Pertussis toxin interfering with intracellular communication. The Gi subunits remain locked in their GDP-bound, inactive state, thus unable to inhibit adenylate cyclase activity, leading to increased cellular concentrations of cAMP. Increased intracellular cAMP affects normal biological signaling. The toxin causes several systemic effects, among which is an increased release of insulin, causing hypoglycemia. Whether the effects of pertussis toxin are responsible for the paroxysmal cough remains unknown. As a result of this unique mechanism, PT has also become widely used as a biochemical tool to ADP-ribosylate GTP-binding proteins in the study of signal transduction. It has also become an essential component of
Peripheral artery disease )Trial. In 2011, pCMV-vegf165 was registered in Russia as the first-in-class gene therapy drug for treatment of PAD, including the advanced stage of critical limb ischemia. Peripheral artery disease Peripheral artery disease (PAD) is an abnormal narrowing of arteries other than those that supply the heart or brain. When narrowing occurs in the heart, it is called coronary artery disease, and in the brain, it is called cerebrovascular disease. Peripheral artery disease most commonly affects the legs, but other arteries may also be involved. The classic symptom is leg pain when walking which resolves with rest, known as intermittent claudication.