Search results for "Biophysics"
showing 10 items of 3515 documents
Controllable membrane remodeling by a modified fragment of the apoptotic protein Bax.
2021
Intrinsic apoptosis is orchestrated by a group of proteins that mediate the coordinated disruption of mitochondrial membranes. Bax is a multi-domain protein that, upon activation, disrupts the integrity of the mitochondrial outer membrane by forming pores. We strategically introduced glutamic acids into a short sequence of the Bax protein that constitutively creates membrane pores. The resulting BaxE5 peptide efficiently permeabilizes membranes at acidic pH, showing low permeabilization at neutral pH. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) imaging showed that at acidic pH BaxE5 established several membrane remodeling modalities that progressively disturbed the integrity of the lipid bilayer. The AFM…
1,4-Naphthoquinones as inducers of oxidative damage and stress signaling in HaCaT human keratinocytes.
2010
Selected biological effects of 1,4-naphthoquinone, menadione (2-methyl-1,4-naphthoquinone) and structurally related quinones from natural sources--the 5-hydroxy-naphthoquinones juglone, plumbagin and the 2-hydroxy-naphthoquinones lawsone and lapachol--were studied in human keratinocytes (HaCaT). 1,4-naphthoquinone and menadione as well as juglone and plumbagin were highly cytotoxic, strongly induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation and depleted cellular glutathione. Moreover, they induced oxidative DNA base damage and accumulation of DNA strand breaks, as demonstrated in an alkaline DNA unwinding assay. Neither lawsone nor lapachol (up to 100 microM) were active in any of these assay…
Effect of?-cyclodextrin complexation on the photohaemolitic activity induced by Ketoprofen and Naproxen sensitization
1993
Red blood cell lysis photosensitized by two non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs Naproxen (NAP) and Ketoprofen (KPF) was investigated in the presence of β-cyclodextrin (β-Cyd). The photohaemolysis was inhibited by the addition of β-Cyd both for NAP and, to a lesser extent, for KPF. The protective action was found only in a restricted range of concentration of β-Cyd. Higher amounts of β-Cyd interfered with the resistance of the cell to the osmotic shock induced by the photosensitization process. The complexing action of β-Cyd was ascertained through UV-vis absorption spectroscopy, induced circular dichroism and emission spectroscopy. The isolated complexes Naproxen-β-Cyd (NAP-β-Cyd) and Ket…
Kinetics of Molecule Transfer between Lipid Vesicles and β-Cyclodextrins
1996
Abstract We propose a calorimetric method based on the van't Hoff model of depression of the freezing temperature to investigate slow kinetics involving lipid vesicles (liposomes) and drug–β-cyclodextrin (Cyd) complexes. Some nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) were examined and standard phospholipid liposomes were used in our experiments. Three different kinetic processes were investigated: (a)9Transfer of drugs from water-soluble Cyd-complexes to void liposomes. (b)9Uptake of drugs from the surface of liposomes by free Cyd dissolved in the aqueous phase. (c)9Exchange of drugs from loaded to void vesicles, and the effect of free Cyd in enhancing such a transfer. Most experiments w…
How to Bridge the Gap Between Membrane Biology and Polymer Science
1986
Can polymer chemists contribute to the understanding or even mimicking of cell membrane functions and cell-cell interactions? Fascinated by the specificity and efficiency of, for example, the destruction of tumor cells by lymphocytes (1) and having in mind what biochemical analyses tell us about membrane composition, we may try to “synthesize” membrane and cell models. The commonly used model systems, such as planar lipid monolayers at the gas-water interface, bimolecular lipid membranes and spherical liposomes, are much less stable than natural membrane systems (Figure 1).
Asialofetuin Liposomes for Receptor-Mediated Gene Transfer into Hepatic Cells
2003
Publisher Summary The liver is an excellent organ for gene transfer in treating a wide variety of diseases that affect liver function. It is an ideal organ for a high amount of expression of therapeutic genes and efficient systemic distribution of the resulting therapeutic proteins secreted into the bloodstream. For strategies of liver-destined gene therapy, the liver sinusoid endothelium contains pores with a mean diameter of 100 nm, which allow small vectors to leave the blood circulation and reach the hepatocytes. The preparation of asialofetuin–liposomes targeted to hepatocytes can be made by covalent coupling of asialofetuin glycoprotein (ASF) onto the liposome surface, by the use of h…
De-epoxidation of Violaxanthin after Reconstitution into Different Carotenoid Binding Sites of Light-harvesting Complex II
2001
In higher plants, the de-epoxidation of violaxanthin (Vx) to antheraxanthin and zeaxanthin is required for the pH-dependent dissipation of excess light energy as heat and by that process plays an important role in the protection against photo-oxidative damage. The de-epoxidation reaction was investigated in an in vitro system using reconstituted light-harvesting complex II (LHCII) and a thylakoid raw extract enriched in the enzyme Vx de-epoxidase. Reconstitution of LHCII with varying carotenoids was performed to replace lutein and/or neoxanthin, which are bound to the native complex, by Vx. Recombinant LHCII containing either 2 lutein and 1 Vx or 1.6 Vx and 1.1 neoxanthin or 2.8 Vx per mono…
Anisotropic diffusion in etched particle tracks studied by field gradient NMR
1994
Etched particle tracks produced after heavy ion irradiation of polymer foils are used as model systems to test the performance of NMR in a newly developed ultrahigh magnetic field gradient system. The stimulated NMR echo decay of molecules diffusing in the channels, formulated in terms of the self part of the intermediate scattering function, is anisotropic and yields the form factor of the channels.
Degradable cationic nanohydrogel particles for stimuli-responsive release of siRNA.
2014
Well-defined nanogels have become quite attractive as safe and stable carriers for siRNA delivery. However, to avoid nanoparticle accumulation, they need to provide a stimuli-responsive degradation mechanism that can be activated at the payload's site of action. In this work, the synthetic concept for generating well-defined nanohydrogel particles is extended to incorporate disulfide cross-linkers into a cationic nanonetwork for redox-triggered release of oligonucleotide payload as well as nanoparticle degradation under reductive conditions of the cytoplasm. Therefore, a novel disulfide-modified spermine cross-linker is designed that both allows disassembly of the nanogel as well as removal…
Conformational studies of hexapeptides containing two dehydroamino acid residues in positions 2 and 5 in peptide chain
2008
Conformational preferences of a group of hexapeptides containing two dehydroamino acid residues in Positions 2 and 5 in peptide chain were investigated by means of spectroscopic methods (NMR and CD) and theoretical calculations. In the case of dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) solution, only peptide with free N-termini adopted rigid 310-helical conformation, for the rest of examined peptides extended and “zig-zag” conformers were predominant. CD measurements showed that only in chloroform solution the conformational freedom of investigated peptides was restricted. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Biopolymers 89: 691–699, 2008. This article was originally published online as an accepted preprint. The “…