Search results for "Glycogen"

Expression profile of components of the β-catenin destruction complex in oral dysplasia and oral cancer

2021

Background Oral cancer represents the sixth most common cancer in the world and is associated with 40-50% survival at 5 years. Within oral malignancies, oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is commonly preceded by potentially malignant lesions, which, according to histopathological criteria, are referred to as oral dysplasia and their diagnosis are associated with higher rates of malignant transformation towards cancer. We recently reported that aberrant activation of the Wnt/β‑catenin pathway is due to overexpression of Wnt ligands in oral dysplasia. However, the expression of other regulators of this pathway, namely components of the β-catenin destruction complex has not been explored in o…

Ketogenic diet in neuromuscular and neurodegenerative diseases.

2014

An increasing number of data demonstrate the utility of ketogenic diets in a variety of metabolic diseases as obesity, metabolic syndrome, and diabetes. In regard to neurological disorders, ketogenic diet is recognized as an effective treatment for pharmacoresistant epilepsy but emerging data suggests that ketogenic diet could be also useful in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Alzheimer, Parkinson’s disease, and some mitochondriopathies. Although these diseases have different pathogenesis and features, there are some common mechanisms that could explain the effects of ketogenic diets. These mechanisms are to provide an efficient source of energy for the treatment of certain types of neurodege…

Nocturnin in the demosponge Suberites domuncula: a potential circadian clock protein controlling glycogenin synthesis in sponges

2012

Sponges are filter feeders that consume a large amount of energy to allow a controlled filtration of water through their aquiferous canal systems. It has been shown that primmorphs, three-dimensional cell aggregates prepared from the demosponge Suberites domuncula and cultured in vitro , change their morphology depending on the light supply. Upon exposure to light, primmorphs show a faster and stronger increase in DNA, protein and glycogen content compared with primmorphs that remain in the dark. The sponge genome contains nocturnin, a light/dark-controlled clock gene, the protein of which shares a high sequence similarity with the related molecule of higher metazoans. The sponge nocturnin …

1,2,4-Oxadiazole Topsentin Analogs with Antiproliferative Activity against Pancreatic Cancer Cells, Targeting GSK3β Kinase.

2021

A new series of topsentin analogs, in which the central imidazole ring of the natural lead was replaced by a 1,2,4- oxadiazole moiety, was efficiently synthesized. All derivatives were pre-screened for antiproliferative activity against the National Cancer Institute (NCI-60) cell lines panel. The five most potent compounds were further investigated in various pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) cell lines, including SUIT-2, Capan-1, and Panc-1 cells, eliciting EC50 values in the micromolar and sub-micromolar range, associated with significant reduction of cell migration. These remarkable results might be explained by the effects of these new topsentin analogues on epithelial-to-mesenchy…

A mild juvenile variant of type IV glycogenosis.

1992

The mild juvenile form of type IV glycogenosis, confirmed by a profound deficiency of the brancher enzyme in tissue specimens is reported from three Turkish male siblings who, foremost, suffered from chronic progressive myopathy. Muscle fibers contained polyglucosan inclusions of typical fine structure, i.e. a mixture of granular and filamentous glycogen. They reacted strongly for myophosphorylase, but were resistant to diastase. These inclusions were ubiquitinated and reacted with antibody KM-279 which previously has been shown to bind to Lafora bodies, corpora amylacea and polyglucosan material in hepatic and cardiac cells of type IV glycogenosis as well as polyglucosan body myopathy with…

The Role of Erythropoietin in Neuroprotection: Therapeutic Perspectives

2007

Nervous system diseases are very complex conditions comprising a large variety of local and systemic responses. Several therapeutic agents interfering with all or in part the biochemical steps that ultimately cause neuronal death have been demonstrated to be neuroprotective in preclinical models. However, all the agents so far investigated have inexorably failed in the phase III trials carried out. A large body of evidence suggests that the hormone erythropoietin (EPO), besides its well-known hematopoietic action, exerts beneficial effects in the central nervous system. EPO's effect has been assessed in several experimental models of brain and spinal cord injury thus becoming a serious cand…

The Measurement of Enzyme Activities in the Resting Human Polymorphonuclear Leukocyte — Critical Estimate of a Method

1993

As a system for study, the isolated human polymorphonuclear leukocyte combines the advantages of a quasi-non-invasive preparation with a nearly complete complement of enzymes of carbohydrate and energy metabolism. However, small sample volumes and, in some cases, very low enzyme activities make high demands on sample processing, storage, and performance of continuous measurements, if the enzyme activities are to be measured with acceptable reproducibility. In the presented study several aspects of homogenization, storage, and continuous measurement were scrutinized, to identify critical steps and consider ways of optimizing the method. Polymorphonuclear leukocytes were separated from the bl…

2019

Glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β) represents a relevant drug target for the treatment of neurodegenerative pathologies including Alzheimer’s disease. We herein report on the optimization of a novel class of GSK-3β inhibitors based on the tofacitinib-derived screen hit 3-((3R,4R)-3-((7-chloro-9H-pyrimido[4,5-b]indol-4-yl)(methyl)amino)-4-methylpiperidin-1-yl)-3-oxopropanenitrile (1). We synthesized a series of 19 novel 7-chloro-9H-pyrimido[4,5-b]indole-based derivatives and studied their structure–activity relationships with focus on the cyanoacetyl piperidine moiety. We unveiled the crucial role of the nitrile group and its importance for the activity of this compound series. A successfu…

Caloric content of Daphnia magna as reflect of propanil stress during a short-term exposure and its relationship to long-term responses

2013

The present study investigates energy stores changes in the aquatic invertebrate Daphnia magna following a 5-d exposure to propanil. Juveniles of D. magna were exposed to sublethal propanil concentrations (0.07, 0.10, 0.21 and 0.55 mgl(-1)) which were used previously to test their effect on reproduction, growth and survival (21 days test) of D. magna. Glycogen, total lipids, proteins, and dry weight were determined in control and exposed daphnids at 24, 48, 72, 96 and 120 h. Data were used to calculate caloric content as biomarker of propanil exposure. Results showed a depletion of energy reserves in D. magna exposed to the herbicide. At 120 h of exposure to the highest propanil concentrati…

Effects of Acute Handling Stress on Whitefish Coregonus lavaretus After Prolonged Exposure to Biologically Treated and Untreated Bleached Kraft Mill …

2000

Exposure of fish to water of impaired quality has been shown to disrupt the function of the hypothalamo-pituitary-interrenal (HPI) axis and alter the interpretation of data from field studies due to the varying effects of handling and delayed sampling on exposed and reference animals. In the present study, juvenile whitefish, Coregonus lavaretus, were exposed for 6 weeks to diluted (4-8%) untreated and biologically treated bleached kraft mill effluent (BKME) and their response to acute handling was investigated. Liver microsomal EROD activity and glycogen phosphorylase (GPase) activity, in addition to gill Na+-K+-ATPase activity, and blood hemoglobin and hematocrit levels were increased in …