Pulmonary neuroendocrine cells sense succinate to stimulate myoepithelial cell contraction

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Effect of divalent cations on succinate transport in Rhizobium tropici,R. leguminosarum bv phaseoli and R. loti

Rhizobium tropici, R. leguminosarum bv phaseoli and R. loti each have an active C₄-dicarboxylic acid transport system dependent on an energized membrane. Free thiol groups are probably involved at the active site. Since EDTA inhibited succinate transport in R. leguminosarum bv phaseoli and R. loti, divalent cations may participate in the process; the activity was reconstituted by the addition of Ca²⁺ or Mg²⁺. However, EDTA had no effect on succinate transport in R. tropici, R. meliloti or R. trifolii strains. Ca²⁺ or Mg²⁺ had a similar effect on the growth rates of R. tropici and R. leguminosarum bv phaseoli; R. tropici did not require Ca²⁺ to grow on minimal medium supplemented with succinate but R. leguminosarum bv phaseoli required either or both of the divalent cations Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺. A R. tropici Mu-dI (lacZ) mutant defective in dicarboxylic acid transport, was isolated and found unable to form effective bean nodules.The authors are with the Division of Biochemistry, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Avda, Italia 3318, 11.600 Montevideo, Uruguay     

Parabacteroides distasonis Alleviates Obesity and Metabolic Dysfunctions via Production of Succinate and Secondary Bile Acids

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Glutamine regulates mitochondrial uncoupling protein 2 to promote glutaminolysis in neuroblastoma cells

Mitochondrial uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2) is highly abundant in rapidly proliferating cells that utilize aerobic glycolysis, such as stem cells, cancer cells, and cells of the immune system. However, the function of UCP2 has been a longstanding conundrum. Considering the strict regulation and unusually short life time of the protein, we propose that UCP2 acts as a “signaling protein” under nutrient shortage in cancer cells. We reveal that glutamine shortage induces the rapid and reversible downregulation of UCP2, decrease of the metabolic activity and proliferation of neuroblastoma cells, that are regulated by glutamine per se but not by glutamine metabolism. Our findings indicate a very rapid (within 1?h) metabolic adaptation that allows the cell to survive by either shifting its metabolism to the use of the alternative fuel glutamine or going into a reversible, more quiescent state. The results imply that UCP2 facilitates glutamine utilization as an energetic fuel source, thereby providing metabolic flexibility during glucose shortage. The targeting UCP2 by drugs to intervene with cancer cell metabolism may represent a new strategy for treatment of cancers resistant to other therapies.     

Mitochondrial free fatty acid β-oxidation supports oxidative phosphorylation and proliferation in cancer cells

Oxidative phosphorylation (OxPhos) is functional and sustains tumor proliferation in several cancer cell types. To establish whether mitochondrial β-oxidation of free fatty acids (FFAs) contributes to cancer OxPhos functioning, its protein contents and enzyme activities, as well as respiratory rates and electrical membrane potential (ΔΨm) driven by FFA oxidation were assessed in rat AS-30D hepatoma and liver (RLM) mitochondria. Higher protein contents (1.4–3 times) of β-oxidation (CPT1, SCAD) as well as proteins and enzyme activities (1.7–13-times) of Krebs cycle (KC: ICD, 2OGDH, PDH, ME, GA), and respiratory chain (RC: COX) were determined in hepatoma mitochondria vs. RLM. Although increased cholesterol content (9-times vs. RLM) was determined in the hepatoma mitochondrial membranes, FFAs and other NAD-linked substrates were oxidized faster (1.6–6.6 times) by hepatoma mitochondria than RLM, maintaining similar ΔΨm values. The contents of β-oxidation, KC and RC enzymes were also assessed in cells. The mitochondrial enzyme levels in human cervix cancer HeLa and AS-30D cells were higher than those observed in rat hepatocytes whereas in human breast cancer biopsies, CPT1 and SCAD contents were lower than in human breast normal tissue. The presence of CPT1 and SCAD in AS-30D mitochondria and HeLa cells correlated with an active FFA utilization in HeLa cells. Furthermore, the β-oxidation inhibitor perhexiline blocked FFA utilization, OxPhos and proliferation in HeLa and other cancer cells. In conclusion, functional mitochondria supported by FFA β-oxidation are essential for the accelerated cancer cell proliferation and hence anti-β-oxidation therapeutics appears as an alternative promising approach to deter malignant tumor growth.     

大肠杆菌木糖生物合成琥珀酸的代谢工程研究

目的:对大肠杆菌进行代谢网络改造,考察木糖好氧发酵生产琥珀酸的可行性。方法:以有氧条件下大肠杆菌木糖生物合成琥珀酸的代谢途径分析为基础,以大肠杆菌BL21为出发菌株,通过P1噬菌体一步敲除法敲除琥珀酸脱氢酶基因(sdhA)、磷酸转乙酰基酶基因(pta)、丙酮酸脱氢酶基因(poxB)及异柠檬酸裂解酶阻遏物基因(iclR),构建木糖好氧发酵生产琥珀酸的大肠杆菌工程菌JLS400(△poxB△pta△iclR△sdhA)。将携带磷酸烯醇式丙酮酸羧化酶基因的质粒pJW225转化到JLS400中。结果:摇瓶发酵结果表明,构建的工程菌能以木糖为碳源,在好氧发酵条件下琥珀酸产率较高,副产物仅有少量乙酸和丙酮酸。结论:基因工程大肠杆菌JLS400pJW225的构建,为有氧条件下以木糖为原料生产琥珀酸的进一步研究奠定了基础。     

定量比格犬血浆中去甲文拉法辛LC-MS/MS方法的建立及比格犬血浆中富马酸去甲文拉法辛药代动力学研究

目的:建立一种快速灵敏的液质联用方法定量比格犬血浆中去甲文拉法辛,并进行比格犬体内富马酸去甲文拉法辛药代动力学研究,同时与琥珀酸去甲文拉法辛比格犬体内药代参数进行对比。方法:样品处理采用叔丁基甲醚进行液液萃取,液相分离采用Agilent Eclipse Plus C18色谱柱(2.1 mm×100 mm,3.5μm),以乙腈-乙酸铵缓冲液(1 mmol/L)(体积比80∶20)进行等度洗脱。采用单次给药和多次给药试验进行比格犬体内药代动力学研究。结果:此方法具有良好的线性、精密度、准确度,定量下限(0.5 ng/mL)高于文献报道。液液萃取的样品提取方法简便,液质联用分析时间相对较短(3 min)。结论:此方法可成功地应用于比格犬血浆中去甲文拉法辛定量分析。比格犬体内富马酸去甲文拉法辛的药代参数(单次给药和多次给药试验)与对照品琥珀酸去甲文拉法辛没有明显的统计学差异。     

Corynebacterium glutamicum,a natural overproducer of succinic acid?

Corynebacterium glutamicum is well known as an important industrial amino acid producer. For a few years, its ability to produce organic acids, under micro‐aerobic or anaerobic conditions was demonstrated. This study is focused on the identification of the culture parameters influencing the organic acids production and, in particular, the succinate production, by this bacterium. Corynebacterium glutamicum 2262, used throughout this study, was a wild‐type strain, which was not genetically designed for the production of succinate. The oxygenation level and the residual glucose concentration appeared as two critical parameters for the organic acids production. The maximal succinate concentration (4.9 g L^?1) corresponded to the lower k_La value of 5 h^?1. Above 5 h^?1, a transient accumulation of the succinate was observed. Interestingly, the stop in the succinate production was concomitant with a lower threshold glucose concentration of 9 g L^?1. Taking into account this threshold, a fed‐batch culture was performed to optimize the succinate production with C. glutamicum 2262. The results showed that this wild‐type strain was able to produce 93.6 g L^?1 of succinate, which is one of the highest concentration reported in the literature.     

Recent progress on obtaining theoretical and experimental support for the “E-pathway hypothesis” of coupled transmembrane electron and proton transfer in dihaem-containing quinol:fumarate reductase

Reconciliation of apparently contradictory experimental results obtained on the quinol: fumarate reductase (QFR), a dihaem-containing respiratory membrane protein complex from Wolinella succinogenes, was previously obtained by the proposal of the so-called E-pathway hypothesis. According to this hypothesis, transmembrane electron transfer via the haem groups is strictly coupled to co-transfer of protons via a transiently established, novel pathway, proposed to contain the side chain of residue Glu-C180 and the distal haem ring-C propionate as the most prominent components. This hypothesis has recently been supported by both theoretical and experimental results. Multiconformation continuum electrostatics calculations predict Glu-C180 to undergo a combination of proton uptake and conformational change upon haem reduction. Strong experimental support for the proposed role of Glu-C180 in the context of the “E-pathway hypothesis” is provided by the effects of replacing Glu-C180 with Gln or Ile by site-directed mutagenesis, the consequences of these mutations for the viability of the resulting mutants, together with the structural and functional characterisation of the corresponding variant enzymes, and the comparison of redox-induced Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) difference spectra for the wild type and Glu-C180 → Gln variant. A possible haem propionate involvement has recently been supported by combining ¹³C-haem propionate labelling with redox-induced FTIR difference spectroscopy.     

Structures of Gibberellins A39, A48, A49 and a New Kaurenolide in Cucurbita pepo L.

The structures of three new gibberellins A₃₀, A₄₈ and A₄₉ and a new kaurenolide, isolated from seeds of Cucurbita pepo L., were elucidated. The structures of GA₃₉, GA₄₈ and GA₄₉ were shown to be ent-3α,12β-dihydroxygibberell-16-ene-7,19,20-trioic acid (1), ent-2α,3α,10,12α-tetrahydroxy-20-norgibberell-16-ene-7,19-dioic acid 19,10-lactone (5) and the epimer at C–12 of GA₄₈ (8), respectively. The kaurenolide was shown to have the structure: ent-6β,7α,12β-trihydroxykaur-16-en-19-oic acid 19,6-lactone (14).