Search results for "Structural Biology."

Fibril formation and toxicity of the non-amyloidogenic rat amylin peptide.

2012

Full-length native rat amylin 1-37 has previously been widely shown to be unable to form fibrils and to lack the toxicity of the human amylin form leading to its use as a non-amyloidogenic control peptide. A recent study has suggested that rat amylin 1-37 forms amyloidogenic β-sheet structures in the presence of the human amylin form and suggested that this property could promote toxicity. Using TEM analysis we show here fibril formation by synthetic rat amylin 1-37 and 8-37 peptides when the lyophilized HPLC purified peptides are initially dissolved in 20 mM Tris-HCl. Dissolution of synthetic rat amylin 1-37 and 8-37 peptides in H(2)O or phosphate buffered saline failed to produce fibrils.…

A mutation in the second intracellular loop of the pituitary adenylate cyclase activating polypeptide type I receptor confers constitutive receptor a…

2000

AbstractThe pituitary adenylate cyclase activating polypeptide (PACAP) type I receptor belongs to the glucagon/secretin/vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) receptor family. We mutated and deleted an amino acid residue (E261) which is located within the second intracellular loop of the rat PACAP type I receptor and which is highly conserved among the receptor family. The wild-type receptor and the mutant receptors were efficiently expressed at the surface of COS-7 cells at nearly the same level and revealed the same high affinity for the agonist PACAP-27. The cAMP contents of COS cells transfected with the E261A, E261Q, and the deletion mutant receptor were 4.6-, 5.7-, and 6.7-fold highe…

Expression, purification, crystallization and preliminary X-ray analysis of perakine reductase, a new member of the aldo-keto reductase enzyme superf…

2006

Perakine reductase (PR) is a novel member of the aldo-keto reductase enzyme superfamily from higher plants. PR from the plant Rauvolfia serpentina is involved in the biosynthesis of monoterpenoid indole alkaloids by performing NADPH-dependent reduction of perakine, yielding raucaffrinoline. However, PR can also reduce cinnamic aldehyde and some of its derivatives. After heterologous expression of a triple mutant of PR in Escherichia coli, crystals of the purified and methylated enzyme were obtained by the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion technique at 293 K with 100 mM sodium citrate pH 5.6 and 27% PEG 4000 as precipitant. Crystals belong to space group C222(1) and diffract to 2.0 A, with unit-…

2004

Background Arabidopsis thaliana copper metallochaperone CCH is a functional homologue of yeast antioxidant ATX1, involved in cytosolic copper transport. In higher plants, CCH has to be transported to specialised cells through plasmodesmata, being the only metallochaperone reported to date that leaves the cell where it is synthesised. CCH has two different domains, the N-terminal domain conserved among other copper-metallochaperones and a C-terminal domain absent in all the identified non-plant metallochaperones. The aim of the present study was the biochemical and biophysical characterisation of the C-terminal domain of the copper metallochaperone CCH.

1H, 13C and 15N NMR chemical shift assignments of cAMP-regulated phosphoprotein-19 and -16 (ARPP-19 and ARPP-16)

2020

Protein Phosphatase 2A, PP2A, the principal Serine/threonine phosphatase, has major roles in broad range of signaling pathways that include regulation of cell cycle, cell proliferation and neuronal signaling. The loss of function of PP2A is linked with many human diseases, like cancer and neurodegenerative disorders. Protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) functions as tumor suppressor and its tumor suppressor activity is inhibited by the overexpression of PP2A inhibitor proteins in most of the cancers. ARPP-19/ARPP-16 has been identified as one of the potential PP2A inhibitor proteins. Here, we report the resonance assignment of backbone 1H, 13C and 15N atoms of human ARPP-19 and ARPP-16 proteins. T…

High temperature ferro-paraelectric phase transition in tris(trimethylammonium) nonachlorodiantimonate(III) (TMACA) studied by X-ray diffraction meth…

2000

Abstract The structure of [NH(CH3)3]3Sb2Cl9, tris(trimethylammonium) nonachlorodiantimonate(III) (TMACA) has been determined at 295 K and 373 K, below and above the high temperature ferro-paraelectric phase transition. In both phases the anionic sublattice of TMACA is built of characteristic two-dimensional (Sb2Cl93−)n polyanionic layers lying in the bc plane. In room temperature, ferroelectric phase (monoclinic, Pc space group) there are three crystallographically non-equivalent trimethylammonium [NH(CH3)3]+ cations. Two of them are located between polyanionic layers and the third one, disordered, inside the cavity formed by six SbCl63− octahedra. In the high temperature paraelectric phase…

Microstructure and characteristic properties of dogfish skin gelatin gels prepared by freeze/spray-drying methods

2020

International audience; The effects of two pretreatments (microwaves or oven-drying) on the dogfish (Squalus acanthias) skin as well as two drying processes (freeze-drying or spray-drying) on the extracted gelatins were studied. Thus six types of gelatins were obtained, three of which were freeze-dried (FG) and the others were spray-dried (SG), from the untreated skin (US), microwaves-pretreated skin (MS) and oven-pretreated skin (OS). The highest yield (8.67%) was obtained for the OSFG, while the lowest one (3.06%) was measured for the OSSG. Interestingly, all gelatins exhibited relatively high protein (84.02-89.53%), and low lipid (0.50-1.71%) and ash (3.05-7.17%) contents. In addition, g…

Recent advances in the application of microbial transglutaminase crosslinking in cheese and ice cream products: A review

2018

Microbial transglutaminase (MTGase) has been currently utilized to form new food structures and matrices with high physicochemical stability. Incorporation of this multi-functional enzyme into structural composition of milk protein-based products, such as cheese and ice cream, can not only be a successful strategy to improve their nutritional and technological characteristics through intramolecular cross-linking, but also to reduce the production cost by decreasing fat and stabilizer contents. The recent research developments and promising results of MTGase application in producing functional formulations of cheese and ice cream with higher quality characteristics are reviewed. New interest…

Cholesterol-Streptolysin O Interaction: An EM Study of Wild-Type and Mutant Streptolysin O

1998

We present transmission electron microscopical data from negatively stained specimens of cholesterol following interaction with the thiol-activated bacterial toxin streptolysin O (SLO) (wild-type and a number of cysteine substitution mutants), with and without chemical modification of the cysteine residues. Two experimental systems were used, one with an aqueous suspension of cholesterol microcrystals and the other with immobilized thin planar cholesterol crystals attached to a carbon film. In both systems the wild-type SLO and two cytolytically active mutants, Cys 530 --Ala (C530A) and Ser 101 --Cys (S101C), readily generated the characteristic SLO arc- and ring-like oligomers on the surfa…

Optical illusions in scanning electron micrographs: the case of the eggshell of Acrosternum (Chinavia) marginatum (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae)

2003

Scanning electron microscopy revealed that-as is common in this family of the Hemiptera-the eggs of the green stink bug Acrosternum (Chinavia) marginatum are roughly barrel-shaped and possess at their apical pole a row of slender extensions, the aero-micropylar processes. The outer surface of the eggshell carries hexagonally arranged pits. The analysis of cross-fractured eggshells showed that the pits have slender basal extensions with transverse diaphragms. When scanning electron micrographs of the egg surface of A. marginatum are viewed upside down, the perception flips and the pits appear as elevations to all observers addressed. Thus, we are dealing with an optical illusion, which is kn…