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  • Summer 2009 - Issue Number 75
  • Summer 2009 - Issue Number 75

Below are the feature articles from Physiology News Issue 75, Summer 2009.

To read the full articles please download the issue.

  • Features

The peri-conceptional origins of the life-long physiological consequences of being a twin

Studies in twins, both human and ovine, suggest that the fetal developmental trajectory in twins is different from that of singletons and may be reflected by altered physiology in post-natal life. The early pregnancy environment may be critical in determining both pregnancy outcome and the risk for adverse long-term health outcomes
  • Features

No peace for monkey mothers
  • Features

Where do we look while sleeping?

The question of whether rapid eye movements during sleep are similar to those during alertness has been controversial. Recently, a precise description of eye movements and the behaviour of extraocular motoneurons during the wake–sleep cycle has shown that the oculomotor system is controlled by tonic and phasic signals that fully explain eye movements during sleep. Tonic inhibition and a complex pattern of bilateral activation–inhibition of extraocular motoneurons are responsible for the exclusive characteristics of rapid eye movements during sleep
  • Features

Calcium: it’s not just for bones!

Calcium ions in the human body have diverse physiological functions. Recently, extracellular calcium ions and a G protein-coupled, calcium-sensing receptor have been shown to play a role in developmental lung physiology. By increasing our knowledge of the lung development process, we may be able to pursue novel treatments that could improve outcomes for infants born prematurely or born with developmental lung disorders
  • Features

Parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP): a modulator of fetal growth and development

The role of PTHrP during embryonic development is slowly being elucidated. Recent data suggest that PTHrP plays a key role in the regulation of placental calcium transport, fetal skeletal development and calcium homeostasis. Our understanding of how PTHrP exerts these effects in utero has been improved by studies using genetically modified mice in which fetal expression of PTHrP has been ablated. These investigations have provided insights into the multiple roles of fetal PTHrP in normal embryonic development
  • Features

Is brain carbohydrate consumption driven by adrenaline?

Many people use exercise to switch the brain off following a stressful day. While low intensity exercise can be performed almost automatically, strenuous exercise requires intense brain activation to keep the muscles working. Brain activation is accompanied by increased carbohydrate uptake and an increase in plasma adrenaline, rather than in noradrenaline, appears to be important for this uptake, suggesting that cerebral glycolysis is driven by a β2-adrenergic mechanism
  • Features

Novel player in insulin resistance: focal adhesion kinase

Focal adhesion kinase (FAK) has recently been implicated in the regulation of insulin resistance in vitro. We hope the results of this study will provide a new strategy for the synthesis of new chemicals for FAK activation and promote development of new drugs against insulin resistance
  • Features

Muscles under stress

It is often assumed that skeletal muscles are not among the targets of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS). However, muscles receive abundant (nor)adrenergic innervation, mostly but not exclusively addressed to arterioles, and are affected by the hormone adrenaline, released by the adrenal medulla (under sympathetic control). In fact, catecholamines modulate many functions of skeletal muscle fibres, ranging from excitability to contractility to metabolism
  • Features

When fatiguing cycling muscles complain, the brain insightfully responds!
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