The misfolding of nascent proteins, or the unfolding of proteins after synthesis is complete, can occur in response to numerous environmental stresses, or as a result of mutations that de-stabilize protein structure. Cells have developed elaborate …
The serine-threonine kinases Pim-1 and Akt regulate cellular proliferation and survival. Although Akt is known to be a crucial signaling protein in the myocardium, the role of Pim-1 has been overlooked. Pim-1 expression in the myocardium of mice …
Over the last decade, it has become clear that the accumulation of misfolded proteins contributes to a number of neurodegenerative, immune, and endocrine pathologies, as well as other age-related illnesses. Recent interest has focused on the …
Ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) affects the integrity of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), the site of synthesis and folding of numerous proteins. Therefore, I/R may activate the unfolded protein response (UPR), resulting in the induction of a collection of …
Overexpression studies have shown that the small heat shock proteins (sHSP) protect the myocardium from ischemia-reperfusion (I/R)-induced damage. However, gene deletion studies are necessary to demonstrate whether sHSPs are required for protection. …
Expression of constitutively active Ras (V12Ras) in cultured neonatal rat ventricular myocytes or targeted cardiac expression of V12Ras in transgenic mice induces myocardial cell growth and expression of genes that are markers of cardiac hypertrophy …
Recent evidence indicates that sphingolipids are produced by the heart during hypoxic stress and by blood platelets during thrombus formation. It is therefore possible that sphingolipids may influence heart cell function by interacting with …
Ras and protein kinase C (PKC), which regulate the Raf-MEK-ERK cascade, may participate in the development of cardiac hypertrophy, a condition characterized by diminished and prolonged contractile calcium transients. To directly examine the influence …
In cardiac myocytes the stimulation of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase activates a hypertrophic growth program and the induction of the cardiac-specific genes associated with this program. This study focused on determining whether these novel …
Sphingosylphosphocholine (SPC) modulates Ca2+ release from isolated cardiac sarcoplasmic reticulum membranes; 50 microM SPC induces the release of 70 80% of the accumulated calcium. SPC release calcium from cardiac sarcoplasmic reticulum through the …