Abstract:

Objective　To investigate the effects of gap junctional proteins Cx37 on regulating the vasoconstriction and vasodilation of cerebral vessels. Methods　Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR) and Western blotting were used to examine the expression of Cx37 in cerebral basilar artery of rabbits at different ages, respectively.  Results    Cx37 mRNA expression in basilar artery was positive from young rabbit, and the expression reached a peak at adult stage of animals, and then descended again at the old stage. Cx37 protein expression in basilar artery of rabbits was stronger at adult stage than that of young and old stages.  Conclusions　The expression of cx37 in the basilar artery of rabbit increased gradually, until the adult stage of animal, which implicates that, Cx37 may play an important role in regulating the cerebral vasculomotor activity. However, the decreased expression level of the protein for older animals may relate to the development of cerebrovascular sclerosis.   

Key words: Cerebral vessel!Gap junctional protein!Rabbit