Effect of low concentrations of hydrogen peroxide on the contractile responses of rat detrusor smooth muscle strips.

This study was designed to determine how the contractility of rat detrusor smooth muscle strips changes in the presence of low concentrations of hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)). The strips were dissected from the base of Sprague-Dawley rat bladders and their contractile responses to a cumulative increase in H(2)O(2) concentration (3 x 10(-6)-3 x 10(-2)g%) were measured. How the duration of exposure to the fixed concentration of 3 x 10(-4)g% H(2)O(2) affected contractility was also examined.

Relationship between insulin resistance, obesity and serum prostate-specific antigen levels in healthy men.

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between insulin resistance, obesity and serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels in healthy men with serum PSA level below 4 ng mL(-1). The men included in the study cohort were 11 827 healthy male employees of the Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Co., LTD who had undergone medical checkups including fasting glucose, fasting insulin and serum PSA between January 2003 and December 2008.

Modulation of human beta-defensin-2 expression by 17beta-estradiol and progesterone in vaginal epithelial cells.

We investigated the expression of HBD-1 and -2 in vaginal epithelial cells treated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and the effects on HBD-2 expressions by 17beta-estradiol and progesterone. Primary vaginal epithelial cells were isolated from a segment of normal anterior vaginal wall obtained during vaginoplasty and were cultured in keratinocyte growth medium and were allowed to undergo their 3rd passage. Expression of HBD-1 and -2 by different stimuli using LPS 0.

The effect of endothelin-1 on the production of interleukin-6 in cultured human detrusor smooth muscle cells, and the effect of interleukin-6 on the contractile response of bladder smooth muscle strips from rats.

Objective: To determine the effect of endothelin-1 (ET-1) on the production of interleukin-6 (IL-6) in cultured human detrusor smooth muscle cells (HDSMCs) and the effect of IL-6 on the contractile response of bladder smooth muscle strips from rats.

Materials And Methods: The expression of IL-6 mRNA and production of IL-6 protein in cultured HDSMCs treated with the different concentrations of ET-1 were assayed by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction and specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, respectively. The strips from Sprague-Dawley rats were either untreated or treated with 1 ng/mL of IL-6 for 60 min.