• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.241-247
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• 2000

The present study was designed to assess the protective effect of a selective thromboxane $A_2$ receptor antagonist, KT2-962 (KT2) and possible mechanisms of adriamycin(AD)-induced nephrotoxicity in rats. The male Wistar rats were given either of AD (7.5 mg/kg, i.v.) alone in the AD-group (n=5) or in KT2+AD- group (n=5) which is a combination of AD and KT2 (30 mg/kg/day, i.p.) for 10 days from 3 days before and 7 days after AD injection. The body weight, 24-hours urine volume, urine protein and urinary N-acetyl-$\beta$-D-glu-cosaminidase (NAG) activity were measured with an interval of 2 days during 1 week. BUN, serum creatinine and creatinine clearance were measured on the 7th day. KT2 has significantly suppressed AD-induced change of body weight, 24-hours urine volume, urine protein and urinary NAG activity in the KT2+AD-group. The change of BUN, serum creatinine and creatinine clearance were significantly inhibited in the B7T2+AD-group. Based on these results, it is concluded that KT2 prevents AD-induced nephrotoxicity and suggests that endogenous thromboxane A2 may play an important role in AD-induced nephrotoxicity in rats.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.257-262
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• 2015

It is well known that cigarette smoke can cause erectile dysfunction by affecting the penile vascular system. However, the exact effects of nicotine on the corpus cavernosum remains poorly understood. Nicotine has been reported to cause relaxation of the corpus cavernosum; it has also been reported to cause both contraction and relaxation. Therefore, high concentrations of nicotine were studied in strips from the rabbit corpus cavernosum to better understand its effects. The proximal penile corpus cavernosal strips from male rabbits weighing approximately 4 kg were used in organ bath studies. Nicotine in high concentrations ($10^{-5}{\sim}10^{-4}M$) produced dose-dependent contractions of the corpus cavernosal strips. The incubation with $10^{-5}M$ hexamethonium (nicotinic receptor antagonist) significantly inhibited the magnitude of the nicotine associated contractions. The nicotine-induced contractions were not only significantly inhibited by pretreatment with $10^{-5}M$ indomethacin (nonspecific cyclooxygenase inhibitor) and with $10^{-6}M$ NS-398 (selective cyclooxygenase inhibitor), but also with $10^{-6}M$ Y-27632 (Rho kinase inhibitor). Ozagrel (thromboxane $A_2$ synthase inhibitor) and SQ-29548 (highly selective TP receptor antagonist) pretreatments significantly reduced the nicotine-induced contractile amplitude of the strips. High concentrations of nicotine caused contraction of isolated rabbit corpus cavernosal strips. This contraction appeared to be mediated by activation of nicotinic receptors. Rho-kinase and cyclooxygenase pathways, especially cyclooxygenase-2 and thromboxane $A_2$, might play a pivotal role in the mechanism associated with nicotine-induced contraction of the rabbit corpus cavernosum.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.44 no.6
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• pp.558-565
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• 2000

SK-1080 is one of the newly developed orally active nonpeptide angiotensinII $AT_1-receptor$ antagonist that selectively acts at $AT_1$ receptor with high affinity. The cardiac effect on ischemia/reperfusion injury of SK-1080 was compared with those of losartan, a prototype of this class, in isolated rat hearts. Isolated perfused rat heart was pretreated with drug for 10 min and then subjected to global ischemia for 30 min followed by reperfusion with- or without drug for 30 min. The possible additive effect of SK-1080 on the platelet aggregation and coagulation in human blood was also studied. We investigated whether SK-1080 effects the platelet aggregation induced by ADP, a platelet agonist partially dependent on $thromboxaneA_2$. The clotting times in the prothrombin time (PT) and activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) were also examined in human plasma in vitro as coagulation screening test. SK-1080 improved reperfusion function (LVDP, left ventricular developed pressure; PRP, rate-pressure product) in a dose-dependent manner. SK-1080 reduced ADP-induced platelet aggregation compared with vehicle but less than losartan, and did not affect clotting times.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.5 no.3
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• pp.239-245
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• 1997

Trimetoquinol (TMQ) and its analogs are known to have thromboxane $A_2$ antagonistic action. We also reported that GS389, chemically similar to TMQ, has competitive antagonistic action in rat aorta and human platelets. In the present study, we investigated the pharmacological characteristics of GS283 and GS 386, analogs of GS389, using vascular smooth muscle, human platelets and rat brain homogenates. In isolated pig coronary artery (PCA), both of GS283 and GS386 relaxed U46619-contracted rings in concentration dependent manner. Pretreatment with several concentrations of GS283 and GS386 shifted the dose-response curves to the right, and reduced of maximum contration dose-dependently. Furthermore, GS283 and GS386 strongly inhibited $Ca^{2+}$ -induced contraction in the PCA. In human platelets, U46619- and A23187-induced platelet aggregation was inhibited by GS283 and GS386, concentration-dependently. Anti-platelet aggregation was related to the compound\`s ability to inhibit ATP release at each stimulation. In rat brain homogenates, receptor-binding assay resulted that both GS283 and GS386 have a relative affinity to $\alpha$-adrenergic receptor. Taken together. we concluded that the mechamism of action of GS283 and GS86 is not related with in TXA$_2$ receptor but concerned with calcium antagonistic action and a-blocking action.n.

• The Korean Journal of Pharmacology
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.39-49
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• 1996

In the present study, we observed change in intracellular $Ca^{2+}$$([Ca^{2+}]_i)$ as measured with the fluorescent $Ca^{2+}-indicator$ fura-2 in association with force development of the rat basilar arteries during activation by$K^+$ depolarizing solution and U46619, a thromboxane analogue, in the absence and the presence of calcitonin-gent related peptide (CGRP). CGRP (30 and 100 nM) caused a concentration-dependent inhibition of U46619-induced contraction with decrease in $[Ca^{2+}]_i$, whereas it did not exert any effect on the $K^+$ (90 mM)-induced contraction and increase in $[Ca^{2+}]_i$, Further, $[Ca^{2+}]_i-force$ relationships were determined by plotting the ratio of $F_{340}/F_{380}$ $([Ca^{2+}]_i)$ as a function of the force induced by U46619, and the results were compared with those obtained in the presence of CGRP. The curves obtained in the presence of CGRP (30 and 100 nM) were significantly moved to downward without right shift of the curves suggesting that CGRP inhibited the U46619-induced contraction only by mediation of reduction in $[Ca^{2+}]_i$ with out any change in the sensitivity of contractile apparatus to $Ca^{2+}$. The CGRP-induced attenuation of $[Ca^{2+}]_i$ and force development was significantly inhibited under pretreatment with CGRP $(8{\sim}37)$ fragment (100 nM), a CGRP1 receptor antagonist. Both the reduced contraction and reduction in $[Ca^{2+}]_i$ caused by CGRP were fully reversed by pretreatment with charybdotoxin (100 nM) and iberiotoxin (100 nM), large conductance $Ca^{2+}-activated$ $K^+$ channel blockers, but not by apamin (300 nM), a small conductance $Ca^{2+}-activated$ $K^+$ channel blocker, and glibenclamide ( 1 ${\mu}M$), an ATP-sensitive $K^+$ channel blocker. In conclusion, it is suggested that the CGRP1 receptor, upon activation by CGRP, are coupled to opening of $Ca^{2+}-activated$ $K^+$ channel and cause to decrease in $[Ca^{2+}]_i$, thereby leading to vasodilation of the rat basilar artery. However, it is not defined that the mechanism underlying vasodilation whether the $K^+$ channel blockers, charybdotoxin and iberiotoxin directly block the CGRP receptors and that CGRP-evoked relaxation is dependent on the cyclic AMP or $K^+$ channel opening or both actions.