Search results for "genetics [Transcriptome]"
showing 10 items of 3033 documents
Initial Biological Assessment of Upconversion Nanohybrids
2021
Nanoparticles for medical use should be non-cytotoxic and free of bacterial contamination. Upconversion nanoparticles (UCNPs) coated with cucurbit[7]uril (CB[7]) made by combining UCNPs free of oleic acid, here termed bare UCNPs (UCn), and CB[7], i.e., UC@CB[7] nanohybrids, could be used as photoactive inorganic-organic hybrid scaffolds for biological applications. UCNPs, in general, are not considered to be highly toxic materials, but the release of fluorides and lanthanides upon their dissolution may cause cytotoxicity. To identify potential adverse effects of the nanoparticles, dehydrogenase activity of endothelial cells, exposed to various concentrations of the UCNPs, was determined. Da…
Kel1 is a phosphorylation-regulated noise suppressor of the pheromone signaling pathway.
2021
Abstract Mechanisms have evolved that allow cells to detect signals and generate an appropriate response. The accuracy of these responses relies on the ability of cells to discriminate between signal and noise. How cells filter noise in signaling pathways is not well understood. We have analyzed noise suppression in the yeast pheromone signaling pathway. By combining synthetic genetic array screening, mass spectrometry and single-cell time-resolved microscopy, we discovered that the poorly characterized protein Kel1 serves as a major noise suppressor of the pathway. At the molecular level, Kel1 suppresses spontaneous activation of the pheromone response by inhibiting membrane recruitment of…
NF-κB Inhibition Restores Sensitivity to Fas-Mediated Apoptosis in Lymphoma Cell Lines
2003
Failure to perform the Fas-related apoptosis pathway can account for tumor resistance both to chemotherapeutic agents and to immunological effectors. We studied the role of NK-kappaB in Fas-resistance, employing the Fas-sensitive human T-lymphoma HuT78 cell line and its Fas-resistant variants HuT78B1 and HuT78G9. All these cell lines expressed high levels of constitutively activated NF-kappaB. Pretreatment of cells with NF-kappaB inhibitors (PDTC, MG132, or SN50) strongly enhanced CH11-induced apoptosis in HuT78 and Hut78G9 cells, while only MG132 showed a similar potentiating effect in HuT78B1. The described synergism was significantly inhibited by pretreatment with the anti-Fas-blocking a…
Propeller Flaps: A Review of Indications, Technique, and Results
2014
In the last years, propeller flaps have become an appealing option for coverage of a large range of defects. Besides having a more reliable vascular pedicle than traditional flap, propeller flaps allow for great freedom in design and for wide mobilization that extend the possibility of reconstructing difficult wounds with local tissues and minimal donor-site morbidity. They also allow one-stage reconstruction of defects that usually require multiple procedures. Harvesting of a propeller flap requires accurate patient selection, preoperative planning, and dissection technique. Complication rate can be kept low, provided that potential problems are prevented, promptly recognized, and adequate…
Glucocorticoids inhibit MAP kinase via increased expression and decreased degradation of MKP-1
2001
Glucocorticoids inhibit the proinflammatory activities of transcription factors such as AP-1 and NF-kappa B as well as that of diverse cellular signaling molecules. One of these signaling molecules is the extracellular signal-regulated kinase (Erk-1/2) that controls the release of allergic mediators and the induction of proinflammatory cytokine gene expression in mast cells. The mechanism of inhibition of Erk-1/2 activity by glucocorticoids is unknown. Here we report a novel dual action of glucocorticoids for this inhibition. Glucocorticoids increase the expression of the MAP kinase phosphatase-1 (MKP-1) gene at the promoter level, and attenuate proteasomal degradation of MKP-1, which we re…
Heat Shock Proteins: Cell Protection through Protein Triage
2010
Heat shock proteins (HSPs) are chaperones that catalyze the proper folding of nascent proteins and the refolding of denatured proteins. The ubiquitin-proteasome system is an error-checking system that directs improperly folded proteins for destruction. A coordinated interaction between the HSPs (renaturation) and the proteasome (degradation) must exist to assure protein quality control mechanisms. Although it still remains unknown how the decision of folding vs. degradation is taken, many pieces of evidence demonstrate that HSPs interact directly or indirectly with the proteasome, assuring quite selectively the proteasomal degradation of certain proteins under stress conditions. In this rev…
Dual film-like organelles enable spatial separation of orthogonal eukaryotic translation
2021
Summary Engineering new functionality into living eukaryotic systems by enzyme evolution or de novo protein design is a formidable challenge. Cells do not rely exclusively on DNA-based evolution to generate new functionality but often utilize membrane encapsulation or formation of membraneless organelles to separate distinct molecular processes that execute complex operations. Applying this principle and the concept of two-dimensional phase separation, we develop film-like synthetic organelles that support protein translation on the surfaces of various cellular membranes. These sub-resolution synthetic films provide a path to make functionally distinct enzymes within the same cell. We use t…
Bioinformatic flowchart and database to investigate the origins and diversity of Clan AA peptidases
2009
Abstract Background Clan AA of aspartic peptidases relates the family of pepsin monomers evolutionarily with all dimeric peptidases encoded by eukaryotic LTR retroelements. Recent findings describing various pools of single-domain nonviral host peptidases, in prokaryotes and eukaryotes, indicate that the diversity of clan AA is larger than previously thought. The ensuing approach to investigate this enzyme group is by studying its phylogeny. However, clan AA is a difficult case to study due to the low similarity and different rates of evolution. This work is an ongoing attempt to investigate the different clan AA families to understand the cause of their diversity. Results In this paper, we…
Drosophila Muscleblind Is Involved in troponin T Alternative Splicing and Apoptosis
2008
Background: Muscleblind-like proteins (MBNL) have been involved in a developmental switch in the use of defined cassette exons. Such transition fails in the CTG repeat expansion disease myotonic dystrophy due, in part, to sequestration of MBNL proteins by CUG repeat RNA. Four protein isoforms (MblA-D) are coded by the unique Drosophila muscleblind gene. Methodology/Principal Findings: We used evolutionary, genetic and cell culture approaches to study muscleblind (mbl) function in flies. The evolutionary study showed that the MblC protein isoform was readily conserved from nematods to Drosophila, which suggests that it performs the most ancestral muscleblind functions. Overexpression of MblC…
Fast Photochemistry of Prototypical Phytochromes—A Species vs. Subunit Specific Comparison
2015
Phytochromes are multi-domain red light photosensor proteins, which convert red light photons to biological activity utilizing the multitude of structural and chemical reactions. The steady increase in structural information obtained from various bacteriophytochromes has increased understanding about the functional mechanism of the photochemical processes of the phytochromes. Furthermore, a number of spectroscopic studies have revealed kinetic information about the light-induced reactions. The spectroscopic changes are, however, challenging to connect with the structural changes of the chromophore and the protein environment, as the excited state properties of the chromophores are very sens…