Search results for " peptides"
showing 10 items of 1796 documents
Semaglutide reduces fat accumulation in the tongue: A randomized single-blind, pilot study
2021
Abstract Aim We evaluated the effect of the latest GLP-1 RA semaglutide on tongue fat storage in obese women. Design. We conducted a randomized single-blind, pilot study. Methods Twenty-five obese women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) (33.7 ± 5.3 years, body mass index (BMI) 36.1 ± 3.9 kg/m2, mean ± SD) were randomized to semaglutide 1.0 mg or placebo for 16 weeks. We quantified tongue volume and its fat tissue and fat proportion by magnetic resonance imaging. Results Tongue fat tissue and fat proportion significantly reduced after semaglutide vs placebo (-1.94 ± 5.51 vs. + 3.12 ± 4.87 cm3, p = 0.022, and −0.02 ± 0.07 vs. 0.04 ± 0.06, p = 0.010, respectively). Correlation analysis rev…
Valproate and Short-Chain Fatty Acids Activate Transcription of the Human Vitamin D Receptor Gene through a Proximal GC-Rich DNA Region Containing Tw…
2022
The vitamin D receptor (VDR) mediates 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 pleiotropic biological actions through transcription regulation of target genes. The expression levels of this ligand-activated nuclear receptor are regulated by multiple mechanisms both at transcriptional and post-transcriptional levels. Vitamin D3 is the natural VDR activator, but other molecules and signaling pathways have also been reported to regulate VDR expression and activity. In this study, we identify valproic acid (VPA) and natural short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) as novel transcriptional activators of the human VDR (hVDR) gene. We further report a comprehensive characterization of VPA/SCFA-responsive elements in the 5…
Patients experiencing statin-induced myalgia exhibit a unique program of skeletal muscle gene expression following statin re-challenge
2017
Statins, the 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl (HMG)-CoA reductase inhibitors, are widely prescribed for treatment of hypercholesterolemia. Although statins are generally well tolerated, up to ten percent of statin-treated patients experience myalgia symptoms, defined as muscle pain without elevated creatinine phosphokinase (CPK) levels. Myalgia is the most frequent reason for discontinuation of statin therapy. The mechanisms underlying statin myalgia are not clearly understood. To elucidate changes in gene expression associated with statin myalgia, we compared profiles of gene expression in skeletal muscle biopsies from patients with statin myalgia who were undergoing statin re-challenge (cases)…
Homozygous familial hypobetalipoproteinemia: two novel mutations in the splicing sites of apolipoprotein B gene and review of the literature.
2015
Objective: Familial hypobetalipoproteinemia (FHBL) is autosomal codominant disorder of lipoprotein metabolism characterized by low plasma levels of total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoproteincholesterol (LDL-C) and apolipoprotein B (apoB) below the 5 th percentile of the distribution in the population. Patients with the clinical diagnosis of homozygous FHBL (Ho-FHBL) are extremely rare and few patients have been characterized at the molecular level. Here we report the medical history and the molecular characterization of one paediatric patient with clinical features of Ho-FHBL. Methods: A one month old infant with failure to thrive, severe hypocholesterolemia and acanthocytosis was clin…
AN IL-6/IL-6 SOLUBLE RECEPTOR (IL-6R) HYBRID PROTEIN (H-IL-6) INDUCES EPO-INDEPENDENT ERYTHROID DIFFERENTIATION IN HUMAN CD34+CELLS
2000
H-IL-6 is a hybrid protein constructed to contain IL-6 and its soluble receptor linked by a flexible peptide chain. Here we show that H-IL-6 strongly enhances proliferation of human CD34(+)cells in serum-free liquid culture, and that the majority of the cells generated belong to the erythroid lineage, being positive for the marker Glycophorin A. Conversely, H-IL-6 does not increase the number of myeloid, CD13-positive cells. Comparable effects are observed on progenitors from cord blood and adult peripheral blood. Therefore, H-IL-6 triggers an erythroid-inducing signal in haematopoietic progenitor cells, independently from erythropoietin (EPO).
N-glycosylation efficiency is determined by the distance to the C-terminus and the amino acid preceding an Asn-Ser-Thr sequon
2011
N-glycosylation is the most common and versatile protein modification. In eukaryotic cells, this modification is catalyzed cotranslationally by the enzyme oligosaccharyltransferase, which targets the β-amide of the asparagine in an Asn-Xaa-Ser/Thr consensus sequon (where Xaa is any amino acid but proline) in nascent proteins as they enter the endoplasmic reticulum. Because modification of the glycosylation acceptor site on membrane proteins occurs in a compartment-specific manner, the presence of glycosylation is used to indicate membrane protein topology. Moreover, glycosylation sites can be added to gain topological information. In this study, we explored the determinants of N-glycosylati…
Statins and metabolic syndrome
2003
Abstract Metabolic syndrome (MS) is a multifactorial condition that represents a risk factor for the development of diabetes mellitus (DMII) and cardiovascular disease (CVD). Statins may play a role on some modifiable clinical features of MS; in fact, whereas therapeutic lifestyle changes are mandatory for MS with a 10-year coronary heart disease (CHD) risk 20% and to correct the other associated lipid and non-lipid abnormalities. In fact, they have a VLDL lowering action in hypertriglyceridemia, they reduce the amount of small and dense LDL, they increase the HDL-C, they reduce the atherogenic lipoproteins, and they decrease the inflammatory marker levels.
Gene expression specificity of the mussel antifungal mytimycin (MytM)
2011
Abstract We previously reported the nucleotide sequences and diversity of mytimycin (MytM) from the Mediterranean mussel, Mytilus galloprovincialis. Using real-time PCR (q-PCR), we observed that the MytM gene was mainly expressed in circulating hemocytes and to a less extent in the mantle. In vivo challenge with bacteria or with the yeast, Candida albicans, did not increase the expression as measured by q-PCR in hemocytes. By contrast, injection of the filamentous fungus, Fusarium oxysporum, induced a sudden and strong increase of expression at 9h p.i. (stimulation index of 25.7 ± 2.1). Optimum stimulating dose was 104 spores of F. oxysporum per mussel. In the same samples, AMP mytilin and …
Apolipoprotein AI and HDL are reduced in stable cirrhotic patients with adrenal insufficiency: a possible role in glucocorticoid deficiency
2015
Backgrounds and aims: Adrenal insufficiency (AI) has been reported in patients with stable cirrhosis. A lack of substrates has been suggested as a possible contributing pathogenic mechanism leading to glucocorticoid deficiency in these subjects. To better explore this hypothesis, we studied lipoproteins in cirrhotics with and without AI. Methods. A total of 81 cirrhotic patients and 30 normal volunteers were enrolled. The severity of liver disease was graded by Child-Pugh score. Total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), triglyceride (TG), and apolipoprotein AI (Apo-AI) levels were evaluated. HDL subfractions were measured by gradient gel electrop…
Probes for studying cholesterol binding and cell biology.
2011
Cholesterol is a multifunctional lipid in eukaryotic cells. It regulates the physical state of the phospholipid bilayer, is crucially involved in the formation of membrane microdomains, affects the activity of many membrane proteins, and is the precursor for steroid hormones and bile acids. Thus, cholesterol plays a profound role in the physiology and pathophysiology of eukaryotic cells. The cholesterol molecule has achieved evolutionary perfection to fulfill its different functions in membrane organization. Here, we review basic approaches to explore the interaction of cholesterol with proteins, with a particular focus on the high diversity of fluorescent and photoreactive cholesterol prob…