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Biomedical subjects

R T Dowell

Publications and source records attributed to R T Dowell.

65 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1975

Heart biochemical responses in miniature swine subjected to +Gz acceleration.

Myocardial biochemical systems which are sensitive to hypoxic and ischemic insult were studied to determine the possible etiology of ventricular endocardial hemorrhage in miniature swine following +GZ stress. Unanesthetized animals were subjected to a single, 120-s +9 GZ acceleration. Approximately 1-2 h following +GZ exposure, the animals were anesthetized and the hearts removed for analyses. Acceleration exposure resulted in the loss of acid phosphatase enzyme activity from the membrane-bound lysosomal fraction with concomitant increased activity in the soluble fraction. This suggests that lysosomal membrane integrity had been disrupted. Mitochondrial preparations from +GZ-stressed hearts exhibited marked increases in active respiratory rate and rate of calcium transport while oxidative phosphorylation efficiency was unchanged. The results clearly indicate that +GZ acceleration is capable of altering myocardial biochemical systems. However, the results tend to suggest that these alterations in cellular processes may be mediated by influences other than hypoxia or ischemia.

Acid Phosphatase↗
PubMed1975

Lysosomal and neutral hydrolase activity during the regression of cardiac hypertrophy.

Cardiac hypertrophy was produced in rats by constriction of the ascending aorta. Removal of the constricting band 10 days after operation resulted in rapid decline in left ventricular (LV) weight and total ventricular RNA. Activities of acid RNase and beta-glucuronidase were elevated 3 days after aortic constriction. Activities of cathepsin D and alkaline RNase were unchanges. Activities of cathepsin D and acid RNase were unchanged 1 and 3 days after removal of constricting band. Ca2+-activated, neutral protease (CAF) isolated from postmitochondrial muscle supernatant was partially purified and characterized. CAF specifically degrades alpha-actinin when incubated with isolated myofibriles in the presence of Ca2+.

Animals↗
PubMed1973

Synthesis and degradation of mitochondrial components in hypertrophied rat heart.

The accumulation of inner mitochondrial components of rat heart was studied 1 and 3 days after constriction of the ascending aorta of rats. By 1 day after aortic constriction, the activities of three mitochondrial respiratory enzymes/mg of cardiac homogenate protein were increased; after 3 days, specific activities had levelled off or decreased. Selective accumulation of inner mitochondrial membrane components 24h after aortic constriction was further indicated by increased left ventricular cytochrome c concentration (nmol/mg of protein). By 3 days after surgery, cytochrome c concentration was significantly diminished. Low-temperature spectroscopy of isolated mitochondria showed that the ratios of cytochromes c, b and a+a(3) remained unchanged after aortic constriction, suggesting that cytochrome c was a good indicator of the response of the other mitochondrial inner-membrane cytochromes as well. The effect of cardiac hypertrophy on the turnover of cytochrome c was also examined. Cytochrome c was labelled in its haem group with delta-amino[2,3-(3)H(2)]laevulinate 3 days before aortic constriction. By 1 day after surgery the total ventricular radioactivity in cytochrome c of aortic banded animals was significantly higher than in sham-operated controls, indicating a decreased degradation rate in the former during the first postoperative day. delta-Aminolaevulinate was shown to be a particularly suitable precursor for such turnover studies, since it results in rapid pulse-labelling of cytochrome c (peak activity in 90min), is rapidly removed from the precursor pool (t((1/2))=30min) and is not reutilized.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The influence of route of administration on the acute cardiovascular effects of cocaine in conscious unrestrained pregnant rats.

The intravenous route of administration, accessed via a subcutaneous vascular access port, has been recently suggested as an animal model for studying the developmental effects of maternal cocaine abuse in the pregnant and/or group-housed rat. The present study (1) assessed the cardiovascular effects of intravenous (IV) cocaine, delivered via bolus injection, in chronically catheterized near-term pregnant rats, and (2) compared the IV cardiovascular responses to those following cocaine delivered via the commonly employed subcutaneous (SC) and intragastric (IG) routes of administration. Pregnant gestation day 15 (GD15) young adult female Sprague-Dawley rats (n = 21) were anesthetized and catheters surgically implanted into the carotid artery, jugular vein, fundus of the stomach, and a subcutaneous pouch. On GD17-19, heart rate (HR) and mean arterial pressure (MAP) were assessed, using a within-subjects design, prior and subsequent to IV (3 mg/kg), IG (60 mg/kg), and SC (40 mg/kg) cocaine. An interval of 6 h separated IV and IG cocaine administration and an interval of 18 h separated IG and SC cocaine administration. The peak responses of HR (23% downward arrow) and MAP (37% upward arrow) following IV cocaine were noted within 0.5 min. In contrast, the peak responses of HR (4% downward arrow, 6% downward arrow) and MAP (2% upward arrow, 15% downward arrow) after IG (23 min) or SC (26 min) cocaine, respectively, were significantly smaller and markedly delayed. No significant change in aortic blood flow velocity was detected following cocaine via any route of administration, although phasic flow velocities (PFV) were differentially sensitive to route of administration (PFV(dias) not PFV(sys)); IV cocaine increased (55% upward arrow) whereas IG or SC cocaine decreased approximately 35% downward arrow) PFV(dias). The pressor effects of an equimolar dose of IV cocaine methiodide (3.9 mg/kg) were indistinguishable from those of IV cocaine (38% upward arrow vs. 37% upward arrow), as were the effects on PFV(dias) (83% upward arrow vs. 55% upward arrow). The lack of an effect of cocaine methiodide on HR was consistent with the bradycardia effect of cocaine attributable to central mediation of the baroreflex. Finally, the pressor effects of IV cocaine paralleled the rapidly peaking arterial plasma levels of cocaine noted within 30 s after the initiation of drug injection. In sum, prominent effects of IV cocaine on maternal cardiovascular physiology are noted; as such, the recent reports of a lack of maternal/fetal toxicity following daily (3-6mg/kg) IV cocaine during GD8-21 are not due to use of an ineffective drug dose. It was equally clear that the SC and IG routes of exposure did not reproduce the cardiovascular component(s) of the expected physiological response to cocaine.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

beta-Adrenergic receptors, adenylate cyclase activity, and cardiac dysfunction in the diabetic rat.

Cardiomyopathy is a complication of human diabetes mellitus. The relationship of cardiac function to the beta-adrenergic receptor and catecholamine-stimulated adenylate cyclase activity was investigated in the streptozotocin-diabetic rat. beta-Adrenergic receptor number in cardiac membranes from diabetic rats was reduced. After 2 weeks of diabetes, the response of adenylate cyclase to isoproterenol stimulation was not altered. Cardiac contractile function assessed by the maximum rate of rise of left ventricular pressure (LV dP/dtmax) in an open-chest anesthetized rat was also unchanged from control at 2 weeks. However, after 4 weeks of diabetes, the sensitivity of adenylate cyclase to isoproterenol stimulation was depressed and abnormalities in cardiac contractility were noted, including a depressed response of LV dP/dtmax to graded isoproterenol infusion. These studies suggest that alterations in beta-adrenergic receptors and their coupling to adenylate cyclase may be important in the development of diabetic cardiomyopathy.

Adenylyl Cyclases↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Integrative nature and time course of cardiovascular alterations in the diabetic rat.

Time-dependent alterations in integrated cardiovascular function were assessed in the streptozotocin-diabetic rat. Hemodynamic measurements in the intact, anesthetized animal revealed significant and progressive reduction in heart rate after 2, 4, and 8 weeks of diabetes. Myocardial contractility (+ dP/dt) and rate of relaxation (-dP/dt) were preserved at 2 weeks, but progressively declined thereafter. Integrative mechanisms maintained mean arterial blood pressure within normal limits at all time points. Pressure was regulated by minimizing cardiac output reduction via slight increases in stroke volume (Starling mechanism) and concomitant small increases in total peripheral resistance. In response to graded isoproterenol infusion and brief, total aortic occlusion, percent increase of heart rate and + dP/dt was maintained despite decrements in absolute values. Reduced peripheral vasodilation resulted in elevated sensitivity of the heart rate-blood pressure relationship during isoproterenol challenge. The -dP/dt was uniformly impaired in diabetic rats during isoproterenol infusion. When given a rapid saline infusion, diabetic hearts appropriately augmented volume output via the Starling mechanism. Initial hemodynamic abnormalities observed in the intact, diabetic rat are consistent with known defects in cardiac adrenergic receptor density, contractile protein ATPase activity, and sarcoplasmic reticulum calcium uptake. However, many cellular and subcellular defects are compensated by integrative hemodynamic mechanisms while latent alterations are observed only in the intact cardiovascular system.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Enzymatic method for quantitating creatine kinase M and B isoenzyme composition in cardiac tissue: consideration for utilization in studies of developing and adult rat heart.

Creatine kinase (CK) is a cardiac enzyme of interest due to its involvement in both mitochondrial and contractile protein aspects of heart function. Studies on the structure, function, and developmental expression of myofibrillar CK led to the identification of specific isoenzymes whose synthesis can be mediated by changes in expression at two primary gene loci. Experimental interventions which alter gene expression and protein synthesis in other cardiac enzymes have been attempted to pinpoint underlying genetic and molecular CK control mechanisms. CK isoenzymes can be separated electrophoretically and then quantitated by densitometry; however, these methods are time consuming and require specialized instruments. Enzyme specific activity can be assessed spectrophotometrically, but this method, alone, does not provide isoenzyme quantitation. The present work establishes a rapid, simple spectrophotometric enzyme assay procedure based on relative thermal lability to quantitate tissue CK isoenzyme composition. Applicability to cardiac tissue having (a) heterogeneous muscle/nonmuscle cells and (b) heterogeneous subcellular fractions within a given cell population was evaluated. Results show that cardiac tissue from newborn, weanling, and adult rats undergoes dramatic and progressive augmentation of overall CK enzyme activity that may be mediated, at least in part, by altered CK gene expression. However, based on adult rat heart analyses, it is also apparent that cell makeup and fractional composition of subcellular constituents require consideration. The described activation energy method is simple, rapid, and reliable for initial screening for potential changes in CK isoenzyme expression which can then be verified by more detailed, albeit more complex, methodology involving mRNA and/or cDNA analyses.

Aging↗