Interaction of angio-associated migratory cell protein with the TPα and TPβ isoforms of the human thromboxane A₂ receptor

In humans, thromboxane (TX) A₂ signals through the TPα and TPβ isoforms of its G-protein coupled TXA₂ receptor (TP) to mediate a host of (patho)physiologic responses. Herein, angio-associated migratory cell protein (AAMP) was identified as a novel interacting partner of both TPα and TPβ through an interaction dependent on common (residues 312-328) and unique (residues 366-392 of TPβ) sequences within their carboxyl-terminal (C)-tail domains. While the interaction was constitutive in mammalian cells, agonist-stimulation of TPα/TPβ led to a transient dissociation of AAMP from immune complexes which coincided with a transient redistribution of AAMP from its localization in an intracellular fibrous network. Although the GTPase RhoA is a downstream effector of both AAMP and the TPs, AAMP did not influence TP-mediated RhoA or vice versa. Small interfering RNA (siRNA)-mediated disruption of AAMP expression decreased migration of primary human coronary artery smooth muscle cells (1° hCoASMCs). Moreover, siRNA-disruption of AAMP significantly impaired 1° hCoASMC migration in the presence of the TXA₂ mimetic U46619 but did not affect VEGF-mediated cell migration. Given their roles within the vasculature, the identification of a specific interaction between TPα/TPβ and AAMP is likely to have substantial functional implications for vascular pathologies in which they are both implicated.     

Resveratrol protects diabetic kidney by attenuating hyperglycemia-mediated oxidative stress and renal inflammatory cytokines via Nrf2-Keap1 signaling

Hyperglycemia-mediated oxidative stress plays a crucial role in the progression of diabetic nephropathy. Hence, the present study was hypothesized to explore the renoprotective nature of resveratrol by assessing markers of oxidative stress, proinflammatory cytokines and antioxidant competence in streptozotocin-nicotinamide-induced diabetic rats. Oral administration of resveratrol to diabetic rats showed a significant normalization on the levels of creatinine clearance, plasma adiponectin, C-peptide and renal superoxide anion, hydroxyl radical, nitric oxide, TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6 and NF-κB p65 subunit and activities of renal aspartate transaminase, alanine transaminase and alkaline phosphatase in comparison with diabetic rats. The altered activities of renal aldose reductase, sorbitol dehydrogenase and glyoxalase-I and elevated level of serum advanced glycation end products in diabetic rats were also reverted back to near normalcy. Further, resveratrol treatment revealed a significant improvement in superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, glutathione-S-transferase and glutathione reductase activities and vitamins C and E, and reduced glutathione levels, with a significant decline in lipid peroxides, hydroperoxides and protein carbonyls levels in diabetic kidneys. Similarly, mRNA and protein analyses substantiated that resveratrol treatment notably normalizes the renal expression of Nrf2/Keap1and its downstream regulatory proteins in the diabetic group of rats. Histological and ultrastructural observations also evidenced that resveratrol effectively protects the kidneys from hyperglycemia-mediated oxidative damage. These findings demonstrated the renoprotective nature of resveratrol by attenuating markers of oxidative stress in renal tissues of diabetic rats.     

高温胁迫对新菠萝灰粉蚧不同地理种群保护酶活性的影响

为分析高温胁迫下新菠萝灰粉蚧Dysmicoccus neobrevipes Beardsley不同地理种群保护酶活性的差异,阐明该粉蚧对高温适应性的生理响应。本研究以室内26℃处理为对照测定了高温胁迫下（35℃、38℃、41℃、44℃）新菠萝灰粉蚧4个不同地理（广西、广东、海南和云南）种群雌成虫过氧化物酶（POD）、酚氧化酶（PO）及谷胱甘肽-S-转移酶（GST）的活性。结果表明,在35~44℃高温胁迫下,新菠萝灰粉蚧不同地理种群雌成虫POD和GST活性均高于常温对照的,PO活性均低于常温对照的（除云南种群38℃处理外）;在35~44℃高温胁迫下该粉蚧3种酶活性变化均具有随着处理温度的升高呈先升高后降低趋势。在常温26℃下,该粉蚧除了广西、广东种群POD活性显著高于海南、云南种群外,4个种群的PO、GST间的活性无显著差异。在38℃、41℃和44℃高温处理下广西、广东、云南种群间的POD活性无显著差异。在相同高温处理下,除广东种群38℃处理的GST活性显著低于其它种群的外,其它相同温度处理的不同种群间的GST活性无显著差异。说明新菠萝灰粉蚧广西、广东、云南种群的POD对38℃、41℃、44℃高温适应性和该粉蚧4个种群的GST对35℃、41℃、44℃高温适应性均无明显差异。而高温胁迫对不同地理种群粉蚧的酶活性影响不同,不同地理种群的POD、PO和GST活性经不同的高温胁迫后出现了显著差异。本研究表明高温对新菠萝灰粉蚧不同地理种群雌成虫的POD、PO和GST活性有重要影响,POD及GST对该粉蚧抵抗高温胁迫起到积极作用,而PO可能在应对高温胁迫中没起到积极的抵抗作用,而是通过调节体内POD、GST活性变化来适应高温的胁迫。     

Glutamine repeats and inherited neurodegenerative diseases: molecular aspects

Several dominantly inherited, late onset, neurodegenerative diseases are due to expansion of CAG repeats, leading to expansion of glutamine repeats in the affected proteins. These proteins are of very different sizes and, with one exception, show no sequence homology to known proteins or to each other; their functions are unknown. In some, the glutamine repeat starts near the N-terminus, in another near the middle and in another near the C-terminus, but regardless of these differences, no disease has been observed in individuals with fewer than 37 repeats, and absence of disease has never been found in those with more than 41 repeats. Protein constructs with more than 41 repeats are toxic to E. coli and to CHO cells in culture, and they elicit ataxia in transgenic mice. These observations argue in favour of a distinct change of structure associated with elongation beyond 37–41 glutamine repeats. The review describes experiments designed to find out what these structures might be and how they could influence the properties of the proteins of which they form part. Poly- -glutamines form pleated sheets of β-strands held together by hydrogen bonds between their amides. Incorporation of glutamine repeats into a small protein of known structure made it associate irreversibly into oligomers. That association took place during the folding of the protein molecules and led to their becoming firmly interlocked by either strand- or domain-swapping. Thermodynamic considerations suggest that elongation of glutamine repeats beyond a certain length may lead to a phase change from random coils to hydrogen-bonded hairpins. Possible mechanisms of expansion of CAG repeats are discussed in the light of looped DNA model structures.     

Hepatic and extra-hepatic glutathione-S-transferase activity in wild pigeons (Columba livia)

Glutathione-S-transferase (EC 2.5.1.18) activity was assayed in hepatic and extra-hepatic tissues of pigeons using l-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene and 1,2-dichloro-4-nitrobenzene as substrates. Gluthathione-S-transferase activity towards 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene in pigeon was in the order: kidney > liver > testes > brain > lung> heart. The enzyme activity with 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene as substrate was 40–44 times higher in pigeon liver and kidney than that observed with 1,2-dichloro-4-dinitrobenzene as substrate.K _m values of hepatic and renal glutathione transferase with l-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene as substrate were 2.5 and 3 mM respectively. Double reciprocal plots with varying reduced gluthathione concentrations resulted in biphasic curves with twoK _m values (liver 0.31 mM and 4mM; kidney 0.36 mM and 1.3 mM). The enzyme activity was inhibited by oxidized gluthathione in a dose-dependent pattern. 3-Methylcholanthrene elicited about 50% induction of hepatic glutathione transferase activity whereas phénobarbital was ineffective.     

Affinity purification of insoluble recombinant fusion proteins containing glutathione-S-transferase

Prokaryotic expression of polypeptides as fusion proteins with glutathione-S-transferase has recently been reported as a one-step means of purifying recombinant protein. The usefulness of the glutathione-S-transferase/glutathioneagarose system, however, is significantly limited by the frequent synthesis of recombinant proteins in insuluble form by Escherichia coli. We have found that for 5 separate fusion proteins containing glutathione-S-transferase and different domains of the large cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator, all were packaged in insoluble form by E. coli. Insolubility of these products made them inaccessible to one-step purification utilizing this scheme requires proper folding of recombinant glutathione-S-transferase to allow recognition on glutathione affinity agarose, we investigated the suitability of several alternative approaches for converting insoluble recombinant fusion proteins to a soluble form amenable to glutathione-agarose affinity purification. Low-temperature induction of fusion protein synthesis, but not incubation with anion-exchange resins, led to improved one-step purification of glutathione-S-transferase fusion proteins from E. coli cell lysate using mild, nondenaturing conditions. Solubilization in 8 mol/L urea, but not with other chaotropic agents or detergents, also allowed preparative yields of affinity-purified fusion protein. These techniques increase the usefulness of this recombinant protein purification scheme, and should be broadly applicable to diverse polypeptides synthesized as fusions with glutathione-S-transferase.     

Structural analysis of a maize gene coding for glutathione-S-transferase involved in herbicide detoxification

Summary We have used the cDNA clone encoding maize glutathione-S-transferase (GST I) to isolate a genomic DNA clone containing the complete GST I gene. Nucleotide sequence analysis of the cDNA and genomic clones has yielded a complete amino acid sequence for maize GST I and provided the exon-intron map of its gene. The mRNA homologous sequences in the maize GST I gene consist of a 107 bp 5 untranslated region, a 642 bp coding region and 340 bp of the 3 untranslated region. They are divided into three exons by two introns which interrupt the coding region. The 5 untranslated spacer contains an unusual sequence of pentamer AGAGG repeated seven times. The inbred maize line (Missouri 17) contains a single gene for GST I, whereas the hybrid line (3780A) contains two genes. Nucleotide sequence analysis of the primer extended cDNA products reveals that the 5 untranslated regions of the two genes in the hybrid 3780A are identical except for a 6 bp internal deletion (or insertion). The amino acid sequence of maize GST I shares no apparent sequence homology with the published sequences of animal GST's and represents the first published sequence of a plant GST. re]19850813 ac]19851126     

陆地棉GST基因家族全基因组分析

谷胱甘肽转移酶(glutathione-S-transferase, GST)是一种普遍存在的具有多功能的超家族蛋白,在植物初次生代谢、逆境胁迫、胞间信号传递等方面具有重要作用;同时,作为配体其在植物激素代谢以及物质转运方面也发挥作用。为了解析陆地棉(Gossypium hirsutum L.) GST基因家族的信息,本研究对该基因家族成员的种类、进化关系、物理定位、基因结构和保守基序以及表达模式进行了分析。结果显示,在陆地棉全基因组中共含有70个GST基因,进化树和基因结构分析将该家族分为U族、F族、T族、Z族、EF1Bγ族和TCHQD族。基因定位分析发现,除了AD/At2、AD/At4、AD/At5、AD/Dt5、AD/Dt10号染色体上没有GST基因外,其他染色体上都有GST基因,并且在AD/At9、AD/Dt7、AD/Dt12、AD/Dt13这4条染色体上出现基因簇。对F族(Phi类) 9个GST基因进行荧光定量分析,结果表明,除GhGSTF1可能为假基因外,GhGSTF2~9等8个基因在陆地棉根、茎、叶以及各个发育时期的纤维中均有表达;结合生物信息学分析,推测GhGSTF8可能参与原花青素/花青素的转运和积累;GhGSTF4、GhGSTF6和GhGSTF9可能在调节陆地棉的生长和胁迫反应中起作用,而GhGSTF2、GhGSTF3、GhGSTF5和GhGSTF7的功能还有待进一步研究。本研究为陆地棉GST基因家族的分子进化及功能研究提供了理论依据。     

Different Responses of Plant Growth and Antioxidant System to the Combination of Cadmium and Heat Stress in Transgenic and Non-transgenic Rice

A comparative study of just cadmium (Cd) or heat and their combination treatments on some physiological parameters and the antioxidant systems in transgenic rice ( Oryza sativa L. cv. Zhonghua No.11) carrying glutathione-S-transferase (GST, EC. 2.5.1.18) and catalase1 (CAT1, EC. 1.11.1.6) and non-transgenics was conducted. The results revealed improved resistance in the transgenics to Cd and the combined Cd and heat stress than non-transgenics. Data showed that the activities of CAT, GST, superoxide dismutase (EC.1.15.1.1) and all components of the ascorbate-glutathione cycle measured in the stressed transgenics shoots are significantly different from those of non-transgenics. Results indicated that co-expression of GST and CAT1 had an important effect on the antioxidant system, in particular, the whole ascorbate-glutathione cycle. The less oxidative damage induced by Cd and the stress combination in the transgenics resulted not only from the GST and CAT1 transgene but also from the coordination of the whole ascorbate-glutathione cycle.