Search results for "FRAGMENTS"

Identification of a Conserved HLA-A2-Restricted Decapeptide from the IE1 Protein (pUL123) of Human Cytomegalovirus

2002

Abstract Control of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection is predominantly mediated by cytolytic CD8 + T lymphocytes (CTL). Among the roughly 200 HCMV-encoded polypeptides, the tegument protein pp65 (ppUL83) and the nonstructural IE1 protein are considered to be dominant CTL targets. Yet the importance of CTL against IE1 for protective immunity against HCMV reactivation and disease has remained elusive. Analyses have been difficult, as all MHC class I presented peptides of IE1 defined so far are located in parts of the protein that are variable between viral strains. In this study a conserved decameric peptide from IE1 (P6, IE1 354–363 ) that bound to HLA-A2 was identified. Using peptide-p…

Hypoallergenic fragment of Par j 2 increases functional expression of Toll-like receptors in atopic children.

2006

Background: Parietaria judaica (Par j) is one of the main causes of allergy in the Mediterranean countries. The activation of Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) inhibits nasal inflammation of atopic children. Objective:  To examine, in vivo and in vitro, the effect of recombinant Par j 2 (rPar j 2) and of its fragments (1–55 and 52–102) on atopic children. Methods:  We used skin prick test for in vivo evaluations. We assessed, in vitro, in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC), the effect of rPar j 2 and of the two fragments on neutrophil chemotaxis, on CD45RO, on TLR2 and TLR4 expression, on LPS binding and on interferon (IFN)-γ release, by a microchemotaxis chambe…

Stalemating a clever opportunist: lessons from murine cytomegalovirus.

2003

Abstract Cytomegaloviruses and their specific hosts have come to an arrangement that avoids disease but allows the viruses to persist in the individual host and to spread in the host species. Recent work has uncovered some of the molecular details of this evolutionary “contract for mutual survival.” Cytomegaloviruses encode proteins, referred to as “immunoevasins,” which are specifically committed to subvert the immune defense of the host for evading virus elimination. In reply, the hosts have evolved countermeasures to overcome the viral immunoevasins and present antigenic peptides to an extent that is sufficient for confining virus replication to below a harmful level. Accordingly, cytome…

Action of low doses of Aspirin in Inflammation and Oxidative Stress induced by aβ

2019

Aspirin has been used as anti-inflammatory and anti-aggregate for decades but the precise mechanism(s) of action after the presence of the toxic peptide Aβ1-42 in cultured astrocytes remains poorly resolved. Here we use low-doses of aspirin (10-7 M) in astrocytes in primary culture in presence or absence of Aβ1-42 toxic peptide. We noted an increase of cell viability and proliferation with or without Aβ1-42 peptide presence in aspirin treated cells. In addition, a decrease in apoptosis, determined by Caspase 3 activity and the expression of Cyt c and Smac/Diablo, were detected. Also, aspirin diminished necrosis process (LDH levels), pro-inflammatory mediators (IL-β and TNF-α) and NF-ᴋB prot…

Depletion of alphaV integrins from osteosarcoma cells by intracellular antibody expression induces bone differentiation marker genes and suppresses g…

1999

Integrin heterodimers sharing the common alphaV subunit are receptors for adhesion glycoproteins such as vitronectin and fibronectin. They are suggested to play an essential role in cell anchoring, differentiation, and survival. Here, we describe the construction of an expression plasmid coding for an intracellular single-chain antibody against alphaV integrin subunit. Saos-2 osteosarcoma cells transfected with this DNA construct showed an approximately 70-100% decrease in the cell surface expression of alphaVbeta3 and alphaVbeta5 integrins as shown by flow cytometry. Intracellular antibody expression had no effect on the mRNA levels of alphaV integrin. Pulse chase experiments of metabolica…

Drift time-specific collision energies enable deep-coverage data-independent acquisition proteomics.

2013

A data-independent acquisition (DIA) mass spectrometry approach, ultradefinition (UD)MSE, offers high reproducibility and improved proteome coverage over alternative DIA and data-dependent acquisition workflows. We present a data-independent acquisition mass spectrometry method, ultradefinition (UD) MSE. This approach utilizes ion mobility drift time-specific collision-energy profiles to enhance precursor fragmentation efficiency over current MSE and high-definition (HD) MSE data-independent acquisition techniques. UDMSE provided high reproducibility and substantially improved proteome coverage of the HeLa cell proteome compared to previous implementations of MSE, and it also outperformed a…

Las islas: ¿comedia aristofánica o comedia media?

2012

Este artículo revisa la cuestión de la autenticidad de la comed ia fragmentaria de Aristófanes “Las islas”. Pese a las dudas surgidas en la antigü edad y aún hoy en día por parte de los estudiosos modernos, las conclusiones son claras: “Las isla s” es una comedia de Aristófanes. Esto aparece confi rmado por su interacción con otras piezas aristofánicas, su le ngua, su estilo y su espíritu, completamente dentro de las coordenadas de Arist ófanes y de la comedia griega antigua. This paper reviews the Aristophanic authenticity of the fragmen tary comedy “Islands”. Despite the doubts raised in antiquity and today by modern scho lars, conclusions are fi rm: “Islands” is an Aristophanic comedy. T…

Induction of Cell Differentiation in Transformed Keratinocytes by Synthetic (Glyco)peptides from the Homophilic Recognition Domain of E-Cadherin

2002

Mapping of the high molecular weight kininogen binding site of prekallikrein. Evidence for a discontinuous epitope formed by distinct segments of the…

1993

Prekallikrein, a glycoprotein involved in contact phase activation, circulates in plasma in the form of a binary complex with high molecular weight kininogen (H-kininogen). The binding to H-kininogen is mediated by the prekallikrein heavy chain consisting of four repetitive domains, A1-A4. To define more precisely the region(s) involved in kininogen binding, we have employed an affinity cross-linking strategy with a synthetic peptide of 31 residues which mimics the prekallikrein binding site of H-kininogen. Cross-linking of the radiolabeled peptide to (pre)kallikrein revealed a binding segment in the NH2-terminal portion of the prekallikrein heavy chain; another binding segment was located …

The Peptide Hemopressin Acts through CB1Cannabinoid Receptors to Reduce Food Intake in Rats and Mice

2010

Hemopressin is a short, nine amino acid peptide (H-Pro-Val-Asn-Phe-Lys-Leu-Leu-Ser-His-OH) isolated from rat brain that behaves as an inverse agonist at the cannabinoid receptor CB1, and is shown here to inhibit agonist-induced receptor internalization in a heterologous cell model. Since this peptide occurs naturally in the rodent brain, we determined its effect on appetite, an established central target of cannabinoid signaling. Hemopressin dose-dependently decreases night-time food intake in normal male rats and mice, as well as in obeseob/obmale mice, when administered centrally or systemically, without causing any obvious adverse side effects. The normal, behavioral satiety sequence is …