TdP Incidence in Methoxamine-Sensitized Rabbit Model Is Reduced With Age but Not Influenced by Hypercholesterolemia.

Metabolic syndrome is associated with hypercholesterolemia, cardiac remodeling, and increased susceptibility to ventricular arrhythmias. Effects of diet-induced hypercholesterolemia on susceptibility to torsades de pointes arrhythmias (TdP) together with potential indicators of arrhythmic risk were investigated in three experimental groups of Carlsson's rabbit model: (1) young rabbits (YC, young control, age 12-16 weeks), older rabbits (AC, adult control, age 20-24 weeks), and older age-matched cholesterol-fed rabbits (CH, cholesterol, age 20-24 weeks). TdP was induced by α-adrenergic stimulation by methoxamine and IKr block in 83% of YC rabbits, 18% of AC rabbits, and 21% of CH rabbits. High incidence of TdP was associated with high incidence of single (SEB) and multiple ectopic beats (MEB), but the QTc prolongation and short-term variability (STV) were similar in all three groups. In TdP-susceptible rabbits, STV was significantly higher compared with arrhythmia-free rabbits but not with rabbits with other than TdP arrhythmias (SEB, MEB). Amplitude-aware permutation entropy analysis of baseline ECG could identify arrhythmia-resistant animals with high sensitivity and specificity. The data indicate that the TdP susceptibility in methoxamine-sensitized rabbits is affected by the age of rabbits but probably not by hypercholesterolemia. Entropy analysis could potentially stratify the arrhythmic risk and identify the low-risk individuals.

Original Research: Combined model of bladder detrusor smooth muscle and interstitial cells.

Although patients with lower urinary tract symptoms constitute a large and still growing population, understanding of bladder detrusor muscle physiology remains limited. Understanding the interactions between the detrusor smooth muscle cells and other bladder cell types (e.g. interstitial cells, IC) that may significantly contribute to coordinating and modulating detrusor contractions represents a considerable challenge. Computer modeling could help to elucidate some properties that are difficult to address experimentally; therefore, we developed in silico models of detrusor smooth muscle cell and interstitial cells, coupled through gap junctions. The models include all of the major ion conductances and transporters described in smooth muscle cell and interstitial cells in the literature. The model of normal detrusor muscle (smooth muscle cell and interstitial cells coupled through gap junctions) completely reproduced the experimental results obtained with detrusor strips in the presence of several pharmacological interventions (ryanodine, caffeine, nimodipine), whereas the model of smooth muscle cell alone (without interstitial cells) failed to reproduce the experimental results. Next, a model of overactive bladder, a highly prevalent clinical condition in both men and women with increasing incidence at older ages, was produced by modifying several processes as reported previously: a reduction of Ca(2+)-release through ryanodine receptors and a reduction of Ca(2+)-dependent K(+)-conductance with augmented gap junctional coupling. This model was also able to reproduce the pharmacological modulation of overactive bladder. In conclusion, a model of bladder detrusor muscle was developed that reproduced experimental results obtained in both normal and overactive bladder preparations. The results indicate that the non-smooth muscle cells of the detrusor (interstitial cells) contribute significantly to the contractile behavior of bladder detrusor muscle and should not be neglected. The model suggests that reduced Ca(2+)-release through ryanodine receptors and Ca(2+)-dependent K(+)-conductance together with augmented gap junctional coupling might play a major role in overactive bladder pathogenesis.

Possibilities of experimental verification of the validity of urethral pressure profilometry.

OBJECTIVES: The aim is to define conditions for exact measurement of urethral pressure profile, to prepare an aparatus and fabricate an artificial urethra for testing measuring catethers. To examine it's qualities by experiment. METHODS: We designed a measuring appliance and a specialized software for measuring and evaluating. An experimental phantom of urethra, made from a part of bull's urethra, was used for testing of measurement's validity with use of different measuring catethers. Measurements were 10x repeated within the same position of the catether. Reproducibility of the measurement and stability of the experimental model was tested. RESULTS: Measuring urethra and experimental phantom of urethra succeeded, it was possible to make well reproducible measurements with different measuring catethers and to evaluate their metrologic abilities and limits. Results of our measurements confirmed appointed theoretical conditions of the measurement. CONCLUSION: Measurements proved that it is possible to simulate the conditions that are similar to physiological conditions and that it is possible to test metrological qualities of compressive profilometry of urethra.

ConSeq: the identification of functionally and structurally important residues in protein sequences.

MOTIVATION: ConSeq is a web server for the identification of biologically important residues in protein sequences. Functionally important residues that take part, e.g. in ligand binding and protein-protein interactions, are often evolutionarily conserved and are most likely to be solvent-accessible, whereas conserved residues within the protein core most probably have an important structural role in maintaining the protein's fold. Thus, estimated evolutionary rates, as well as relative solvent accessibility predictions, are assigned to each amino acid in the sequence; both are subsequently used to indicate residues that have potential structural or functional importance. AVAILABILITY: The ConSeq web server is available at http://conseq.bioinfo.tau.ac.il/ SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The ConSeq methodology, a description of its performance in a set of five well-documented proteins, a comparison to other methods, and the outcome of its application to a set of 111 proteins of unknown function, are presented at http://conseq.bioinfo.tau.ac.il/ under 'OVERVIEW', 'VALIDATION', 'COMPARISON' and 'PREDICTIONS', respectively.