It has become increasingly clear that the accumulation of proteins in specific regions of the
plasma membrane can facilitate cellular communication. These regions, termed signaling …

One of the major challenges in modern biology is to understand how the molecular
components of a living cell operate in a highly noisy environment. What are the specific …

Gap junction proteins (connexins) are differentially expressed throughout the multiple layers
of the epidermis. A variety of skin conditions arise with aberrant connexin expression or …

Connexin43 (Cx43) is the most abundant gap junction protein in higher vertebrate
organisms and has been shown to be involved in junctional and non-junctional functions. In …

Endothelial dysfunction is the initial step in atherosclerotic plaque development in large-and
medium-sized arteries. This progressive disease, which starts during childhood, is …

The microvascular network of the microcirculation works in tight communication with
surrounding tissues to control blood supply and exchange of solutes. In cerebral circulation …

Diabetic nephropathy is associated with premature senescence. Our previous study showed
that glomerular mesangial cells (GMCs) appeared to take on senescent phenotypes under …

RhoA/Rho kinase (ROCK) signaling has been suggested to be involved in diabetic
nephropathy (DN) pathogenesis. Altered expression of connexin43 (Cx43) has been found …

The demonstration of bystander effect, which means injured cells propagate damage to
neighboring cells, in whole organisms has clear implication of the potential relevance of the …

Gap junctions (GJs) contribute to cerebral vasodilation, vasoconstriction, and, perhaps, to
vascular compensatory mechanisms, such as autoregulation. To explore the effects of …