title: Expression of Urotensin II During Focal Cerebral Ischemic in Diabetic Rats.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The objective of this study was to explore the expression of urotensin II (UII), its receptor (GPR14), and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), as well as their associations in the ischaemic brains of rats with focal cerebral ischaemia, under normal and diabetic conditions.
  
  
  METHODS
  Diabetes mellitus (DM) was induced by injection of streptozotocin (STZ) into Sprague - Dawley rats. Focal cerebral ischaemia was induced by middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) four weeks after DM onset by STZ. Rats (n=80) were divided into four groups: normal control, DM, MCAO, and DM/MCAO. Immunohistochemistry and reverse-transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) were used to detect the expression of UII, GPR14 and VEGF in the diabetic and ischaemic brain.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Expression of UII and GPR14 was increased at mRNA and protein levels in the DM and MCAO group compared with controls. In the DM/MCAO group, expression of UII and GPR14 was increased significantly in the ischaemic brain, and was accompanied by a significantly increased VEGF expression.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Diabetes mellitus was seen to aggravate brain lesions after ischaemia, and UII may have an important role.
authors.forename: Lin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Tian
authors.forename: Yunqian
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Hua
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Jia
authors.forename: Min
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Yunhe
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Gu
authors.forename: Jiping
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Qi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002545:Brain Ischemia / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology*; D003921:Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology*; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D008297:Male; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000096:biosynthesis; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D043562:Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D014579:Urotensins / Q000096:biosynthesis*
chemical_list: D012333:RNA, Messenger; D043562:Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled; D014579:Urotensins; C473142:Uts2r protein, rat; C029677:urotensin II