Search results for "ENZYMES"
showing 10 items of 730 documents
Agalsidase alpha and hearing in Fabry disease: data from the Fabry Outcome Survey.
2006
Fabry disease is an X-linked lysosomal storage disorder characterized by multi-organ dysfunction, including hearing loss - mainly sensorineural. The recent introduction of enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) has resulted in improvements in renal and cardiac function, pain and quality of life. One study has also suggested small improvements in high-frequency hearing. In this paper, we study the effect of ERT on hearing in patients in the Europe-wide database - the Fabry Outcome Survey (FOS). Twenty-six patients in FOS had pure-tone audiometry performed up to 6 months before starting ERT with agalsidase alpha and after a median of 12 months of treatment. We assessed changes in hearing thresholds…
Congenital myopathies - a comprehensive update of recent advancements
2009
The congenital myopathies are relatively newly discovered compared with other categories of muscle diseases. Current research continues to clarify and classify the congenital myopathies. These pose a diagnostic problem and cannot be diagnosed by routine hematoxylin and eosin stain. A lot of special techniques are required to diagnose them correctly and it's various subtypes. The disease specific structural changes seen in the muscle are detected by enzyme histochemistry, immunohistochemistry and electron microscopy. Through this review we provide an up-to-date analysis of congenital myopathies including clinical and pathologic aspects.
Glycogen phosphorylase in fish muscle: demonstration of three interconvertible forms
1990
White skeletal muscle of crucian carp contains a single isoenzyme of glycogen phosphorylase, which was purified approximately 300-fold to a specific activity of approximately 13 mumol.min-1.mg protein-1 (assayed in the direction of glycogen breakdown at 25 degrees C). Tissue extracts of crucian muscle produced three distinct peaks of phosphorylase activity when separated on DEAE-Sephacel. Peaks 1 and 3 were identified, in terms of kinetic properties and by interconversion experiments, as phosphorylase b and a, respectively. Peak 2 was shown to be a phospho-dephospho hybrid. The three interconvertible forms of phosphorylase were purified and shown to be dimeric molecules at 20 degrees C. At …
Fetuin-A and Cystatin C Are Endogenous Inhibitors of Human Meprin Metalloproteases
2010
Meprin α and β, zinc metalloproteinases, play significant roles in inflammation, including inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), possibly by activating cytokines, like interleukin 1β, interleukin 18, or tumor growth factor α. Although a number of potential activators for meprins are known, no endogenous inhibitors have been identified. In this work, we analyzed the inhibitory potential of human plasma and identified bovine fetuin-A as an endogenous meprin inhibitor with a K(i) (inhibition constant) of 4.2 × 10(-5) M for meprin α and a K(i) of 1.1 × 10(-6) M meprin β. This correlated with data obtained for a fetuin-A homologue from carp (nephrosin inhibitor) that revealed a potent meprin α and β…
Type V collagen and protein kinase C η down-regulation in 8701-BC breast cancer cells.
2011
We previously reported that ductal infiltrating carcinomas (d.i.c.) of the human breast display profound modifications of the stromal architecture, associated with anomalous collagen composition. Among the major alterations observed in the interstitial collagen, the relative increase of type V collagen content was detected. When type V collagen was used as an ‘‘in vitro’’ substrate for 8701-BC d.i.c. cells, it appeared able to restrain cell growth, inhibit cell motility and invasion ‘‘in vitro’’, and modify the expression levels of genes coding for apoptosis factors, caspases and stress response proteins. In the present paper we demonstrate that type V collagen induces the down-regulation o…
Linking Electrostatic Effects and Protein Motions in Enzymatic Catalysis. A Theoretical Analysis of Catechol O-Methyltransferase
2014
The role of protein motions in enzymatic catalysis is the subject of a hot scientific debate. We here propose the use of an explicit solvent coordinate to analyze the impact of environmental motions during the reaction process. The example analyzed here is the reaction catalyzed by catechol O-methyltransferase, a methyl transfer reaction from S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) to the nucleophilic oxygen atom of catecholate. This reaction proceeds from a charged reactant to a neutral product, and then a large electrostatic coupling with the environment could be expected. By means of a two-dimensional free energy surface, we show that a large fraction of the environmental motions needed to attain the…
Exceptional affinity of nanostructured organic-inorganic hybrid materials towards dioxygen: confinement effect of copper complexes
2007
We report the exceptional reactivity towards dioxygen of a nanostructured organic-inorganic hybrid material due to the confinement of copper cyclam within a silica matrix. The key step is the metalation reaction of the ligand, which can occur before or after xerogel formation through the sol-gel process. The incorporation of a Cu(II) center into the material after xerogel formation leads to a bridged Cu(I)/Cu(II) mixed-valence dinuclear species. This complex exhibits a very high affinity towards dioxygen, attributable to auto-organization of the active species in the solid. The remarkable properties of these copper complexes in the silica matrix demonstrate a high cooperative effect for O(2…
Enzyme-Controlled Nanodevice for Acetylcholine-Triggered Cargo Delivery Based on Janus Au–Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles
2017
[EN] This work reports a new gated nanodevice for acetylcholine-triggered cargo delivery. We prepared and characterized Janus Au-mesoporous silica nanoparticles functionalized with acetylcholinesterase on the Au face and with supramolecular b-cyclodextrin: benzimidazole inclusion complexes as caps on the mesoporous silica face. The nanodevice is able to selectively deliver the cargo in the presence of acetylcholine via enzyme-mediated acetylcholine hydrolysis, locally lowering the pH and opening the supramolecular gate. Given the key role played by ACh and its relation with Parkinson's disease and other nervous system diseases, we believe that these findings could help design new therapeuti…
Shed membrane vesicles and clustering of membrane-bound proteolytic enzymes
2003
Publisher Summary Eukaryotic cells appear to release into the extracellular medium several populations of exovesicles, which are suggested to have different origins and functions and are identified by different names. This chapter deals with vesicles believed to originate from the cell membrane and named membrane vesicles. These are structures in which membrane-bound proteolytic enzymes are clustered and they play important roles in matrix remodeling. Relatively large membrane vesicles (diameters ranging from 100 nm to 1 μm) are shed from plasma membranes through unidentified budding mechanisms. These membrane structures are enriched in selected plasma-membrane components including integrin…
Exercise and antioxidant supplements in the elderly
2013
Abstract Both exercise and aging increase reactive oxygen species (ROS), which can result in damage to cells. Aging is the result of damage caused by ROS to the mitochondrial genome in post mitotic cells and numerous studies have demonstrated an increase in ROS or their byproducts with exercise. ROS can cause oxidative stress as they overwhelm the antioxidant cellular defenses. Therefore interventions aimed at limiting or inhibiting ROS production, such as supplementation with antioxidant vitamins, should be able to reduce fatigue during muscle contraction and the rate of formation of aging changes with a consequent reduction of the aging rate and disease pathogenesis. However, it has been …