Elucidation of the mechanism by which platelet-activating factor (PAF) a bioactive phospholipid, enhances detrusor smooth muscle (DSM) contractile activities

–PAF-induced responses depend on extracellular Ca²⁺ influxes through voltage-dependent Ca²⁺ channels and store-operated Ca²⁺ channels–

A research group led by Dr. Keisuke Obara, Dr. Kento Yoshioka, and Professor Yoshio Tanaka of the Department of Chemical Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Toho University, discovered that platelet-activating factor (PAF), a bioactive phospholipid, enhanced the contractile activities of guinea pig detrusor smooth muscle (DSM) by increasing extracellular Ca²⁺ influxes through molecularly distinct two types of Ca²⁺ channels; voltage-dependent Ca²⁺ channels (VDCCs) and store-operated Ca²⁺ channels (SOCCs). The results of this research were published in the journal “Journal of Pharmacological Sciences” in June 2023 (pre-published in April 2023).

Dr. Keisuke Obara A research group led by Dr. Keisuke Obara, Dr. Kento Yoshioka, and Professor Yoshio Tanaka of the Department of Chemical Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Toho University, discovered that platelet-activating factor (PAF), a bioactive phospholipid, enhanced the contractile activities of guinea pig detrusor smooth muscle (DSM) by increasing extracellular Ca²⁺ influxes through molecularly distinct two types of Ca²⁺ channels; voltage-dependent Ca²⁺ channels (VDCCs) and store-operated Ca²⁺ channels (SOCCs). The results of this research were published in the journal “Journal of Pharmacological Sciences” in June 2023 (pre-published in April 2023).

A schematic summary of this study. PAF enhances the contractile activities of guinea pig detrusor smooth muscle (DSM) by increasing Ca²⁺ influxes from extracellular spaces through molecularly distinct two types of Ca²⁺ entry pathways. One is the voltage-dependent Ca²⁺ channel (VDCC), which is primarily responsible for PAF-induced increases in the DSM basal tone and its spontaneous contraction frequency. The other is the store-operated Ca²⁺ channel (SOCC), which is primarily responsible for PAF-induced increases in the DSM spontaneous contraction amplitud

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