Search results for "MACROMOLECULAR"
showing 10 items of 944 documents
The Stress-Inducible Protein DRR1 Exerts Distinct Effects on Actin Dynamics.
2018
Cytoskeletal dynamics are pivotal to memory, learning, and stress physiology, and thus psychiatric diseases. Downregulated in renal cell carcinoma 1 (DRR1) protein was characterized as the link between stress, actin dynamics, neuronal function, and cognition. To elucidate the underlying molecular mechanisms, we undertook a domain analysis of DRR1 and probed the effects on actin binding, polymerization, and bundling, as well as on actin-dependent cellular processes. Methods: DRR1 domains were cloned and expressed as recombinant proteins to perform in vitro analysis of actin dynamics (binding, bundling, polymerization, and nucleation). Cellular actin-dependent processes were analyzed in trans…
GSE4-loaded nanoparticles a potential therapy for lung fibrosis that enhances pneumocyte growth, reduces apoptosis and DNA damage.
2021
© 2021 The Authors.
An overview on anti-tubulin agents for the treatment of lymphoma patients
2020
Anti-tubulin agents constitute a large class of compounds with broad activity both in solid tumors and hematologic malignancies, due to the interference with microtubule dynamics. Since microtubules play crucial roles in the regulation of the mitotic spindles, the interference with their function usually leads to a block in cell division with arrest at the metaphase/anaphase junction of mitosis, followed to apoptosis. This explains the reason why tubulin-binding agents (TBAs) proved to be extremely active in patients with cancer. Several anti-tubulin agents are indicated in the treatment of patients with lymphomas both alone and in combination chemotherapy regimens. The article reviews the …
Transfer Free Energies of Test Proteins Into Crowded Protein Solutions Have Simple Dependence on Crowder Concentration
2019
The effects of macromolecular crowding on the thermodynamic properties of test proteins are determined by the latter's transfer free energies from a dilute solution to a crowded solution. The transfer free energies in turn are determined by effective protein-crowder interactions. When these interactions are modeled at the all-atom level, the transfer free energies may defy simple predictions. Here we investigated the dependence of the transfer free energy (Δμ) on crowder concentration. We represented both the test protein and the crowder proteins atomistically, and used a general interaction potential consisting of hard-core repulsion, non-polar attraction, and solvent-screened electrostati…
Alexander Disease Mutations Produce Cells with Coexpression of Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein and NG2 in Neurosphere Cultures and Inhibit Differenti…
2017
Background Alexander disease (AxD) is a rare disease caused by mutations in the gene encoding glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP). The disease is characterized by presence of GFAP aggregates in the cytoplasm of astrocytes and loss of myelin. Objectives Determine the effect of AxD-related mutations on adult neurogenesis. Methods We transfected different types of mutant GFAP into neurospheres using the nucleofection technique. Results We find that mutations may cause coexpression of GFAP and NG2 in neurosphere cultures, which would inhibit the differentiation of precursors into oligodendrocytes and thus explain the myelin loss occurring in the disease. Transfection produces cells that diff…
Enhancement of Wound Healing in Normal and Diabetic Mice by Topical Application of Amorphous Polyphosphate. Superior Effect of a Host⁻Guest Composite…
2017
The effect of polyphosphate (polyP) microparticles on wound healing was tested both in vitro and in a mice model in vivo. Two approaches were used: pure salts of polyphosphate, fabricated as amorphous microparticles (MPs, consisting of calcium and magnesium salts of polyP, “Ca–polyp-MPs” and “Mg–polyp-MPs”), and host–guest composite particles, prepared from amorphous collagen (host) and polyphosphate (guest), termed “col/polyp-MPs”. Animal experiments with polyP on healing of excisional wounds were performed using both normal mice and diabetic mice. After a healing period of 7 days “Ca–polyp-MP” significantly improved re-epithelialization in normal mice from 31% (control) to 72% (polyP micr…
Uncoupling of dynamin polymerization and GTPase activity revealed by the conformation-specific nanobody dynab
2017
Dynamin is a large GTPase that forms a helical collar at the neck of endocytic pits, and catalyzes membrane fission (Schmid and Frolov, 2011; Ferguson and De Camilli, 2012). Dynamin fission reaction is strictly dependent on GTP hydrolysis, but how fission is mediated is still debated (Antonny et al., 2016): GTP energy could be spent in membrane constriction required for fission, or in disassembly of the dynamin polymer to trigger fission. To follow dynamin GTP hydrolysis at endocytic pits, we generated a conformation-specific nanobody called dynab, that binds preferentially to the GTP hydrolytic state of dynamin-1. Dynab allowed us to follow the GTPase activity of dynamin-1 in real-time. We…
Lipoprotein(a) Levels in Patients With Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm
2016
Circulating markers relevant to the development of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) are currently required. Lipoprotein(a), Lp(a), is considered a candidate marker associated with the presence of AAA. The present meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the association between circulating Lp(a) levels and the presence of AAA. The PubMed-based search was conducted up to April 30, 2015, to identify the studies focusing on Lp(a) levels in patients with AAA and controls. Quantitative data synthesis was performed using a random effects model, with standardized mean difference (SMD) and 95% confidence interval (CI) as summary statistics. Overall, 9 studies were identified. After a combined analysis, patie…
Arabidopsis TCP Transcription Factors Interact with the SUMO Conjugating Machinery in Nuclear Foci
2017
In Arabidopsis more than 400 proteins have been identified as SUMO targets, both in vivo and in vitro. Among others, transcription factors (TFs) are common targets for SUMO conjugation. Here we aimed to exhaustively screen for TFs that interact with the SUMO machinery using an arrayed yeast two-hybrid library containing more than 1,100 TFs. We identified 76 interactors that foremost interact with the SUMO conjugation enzyme SCE1 and/or the SUMO E3 ligase SIZ1. These interactors belong to various TF families, which control a wide range of processes in plant development and stress signaling. Amongst these interactors, the TCP family was overrepresented with several TCPs interacting with diffe…
Exosomes as delivery vehicles: a commentary on "Amoxicillin haptenates intracellular proteins that can be transported in exosomes to target cells".
2017
Exosomes are lipoproteic nanosize vesicles of endocytic origin that are released in the extracellular space by several cell types when a multivesicular body fuses with the plasma membrane (1). To date, accumulating evidences highlight the potential of exosomes as messenger in intercellular communication. Indeed, several studies reported the presence of lipids, proteins, metabolites and nucleic acid (DNA, mRNA, microRNA, lncRNA) in exosomes and highlight their functional role in physiological and pathological processes (2).