The effects of catechol (1-12.5 mM) on membrane properties, action potential and membrane ionic currents were investigated in identified snail neurons under current- and voltage-clamp conditions. Catechol hardly influenced the resting membrane potential, or the action potential amplitude and duration, but it increased the spike voltage threshold and slightly decreased the input resistance. Catechol specifically decreased the amplitude of the potassium A-currents in a dose-dependent way (Kd = 5 mM), without significant modulation of other potassium currents. The time constants of decay of A-current increased and the steady-state activation or inactivation curve shifted to more positive potentials in the catechol solutions. The blocking effect of catechol on A-currents followed a one-to-one binding stoichiometry (nH = 0.8).
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0304-3940(88)90740-9 | DOI Listing |
J Comp Neurol
January 2025
Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico, Medical Sciences Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Snails belonging to the genus Biomphalaria serve as obligatory intermediate hosts for the trematode Schistosoma mansoni, the causative agent for the most widespread form of schistosomiasis. The simpler nervous systems of gastropod molluscs, such as Biomphalaria, provide advantageous models for investigating neural responses to infection at the cellular and network levels. The present study examined neuropeptides related to cholecystokinin (CCK), a major multifunctional regulator of central nervous system (CNS) function in mammals.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSci Rep
December 2024
School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.
Voltage-gated potassium channels (VGKCs) comprise the largest and most complex families of ion channels. Approximately 70 genes encode VGKC alpha subunits, which assemble into functional tetrameric channel complexes. These subunits can also combine to form heteromeric channels, significantly expanding the potential diversity of VGKCs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFToxins (Basel)
November 2024
Laboratorio de Neurofarmacología Marina, Departamento de Neurobiología Celular y Molecular, Instituto de Neurobiología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Juriquilla 76230, Mexico.
Toxins from snails are peptides characterized by a great structural and functional diversity. They have a high affinity for a wide range of membrane proteins such as ion channels, neurotransmitter transporters, and G protein-coupled receptors. Potassium ion channels are integral proteins of cell membranes that play vital roles in physiological processes in muscle and neuron cells, among others, and reports in the literature indicate that perturbation in their function (by mutations or ectopic expression) may result in the development and progression of different ailments in humans.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCells
December 2024
Biochemistry and Tumor Biology Lab, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hannover Medical School, 30625 Hannover, Germany.
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) has an extremely poor prognosis, due in part to early invasion and metastasis, which in turn involves epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) of the cancer cells. Prompted by the discovery that two PDAC cell lines of the quasi-mesenchymal subtype (PANC-1, MIA PaCa-2) exhibit neuroendocrine differentiation (NED), we asked whether NED is associated with EMT. Using real-time PCR and immunoblotting, we initially verified endogenous expressions of various NED markers, i.
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November 2024
Cellular Neurobiology of Learning Laboratory, Institute of Higher Nervous Activity and Neurophysiology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 117485 Moscow, Russia.
Accumulated data indicate that epigenetic regulations, including histone modifications and DNA methylation, are important means for adjusting the expression of genes in response to various stimuli. In contrast to the success in studying the role of DNA methylation in laboratory rodents, the role of DNA methylation in the terrestrial snail has been studied only in behavioral experiments. This prompted us to further investigate the role of DNA methylation and the interaction between DNA methylation and histone acetylation in the mechanisms of neuroplasticity in terrestrial snails using in vitro experiments.
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