Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews. Membrane Transport and Signaling

Cellular release of nucleotides is of physiological importance to regulate and maintain cell function and integrity. Also in the tubular and collecting duct system of the kidney, nucleotides are released in response to changes in cell volume or luminal flow rate and act in a paracrine and autocrine way on basolateral and luminal P2Y receptors. Recent studies using gene knockout mice assigned a prominent role to G protein-coupled P2Y(2) receptors, which are activated by both ATP and UTP. The antidiuretic hormone, arginine-vasopressin (AVP), and possibly an increase in collecting duct cell volume induce ATP release...

The miRNA pathway, as a fundamental mechanism of gene regulation, plays a key role in controlling the establishment, self-renewal, and differentiation of stem cells. Such regulation is manifested as fine-tuning the temporal- and tissue-specificity of gene expression. This fine-tuning function is achieved by (1) miRNAs form positive and negative feedback loops with transcription factors and epigenetic factors to exert concerted control of given biological processes; and/or (2) different miRNAs converge to control one or more mRNA targets in a signaling pathway...

Parasitic flatworms of the genus Schistosoma are the causative agents of schistosomiasis, a highly prevalent, neglected tropical disease that causes significant morbidity in hundreds of millions of people worldwide. The current treatment of choice against schistosomiasis is praziquantel (PZQ), which is known to affect Ca(2+) homeostasis in schistosomes, but which has an undefined molecular target and mode of action. PZQ is the only available antischistosomal drug in most parts of the world, making reports of PZQ resistance particularly troubling...