d-Aspartate in Human Brain

The presence of the biologically uncommon D-aspartic acid (D-aspartate) in human brain white matter has been previously reported. The earlier study has now been expanded to include D/L-aspartate ratios from 67 normal brains. The data show that the D-aspartate content increases rapidly from 1 year to approximately 35 years of age, levels off in middle age, and then appears to decrease somewhat. The D-aspartate content in gray matter remains at a consistently low level (half of that found in white matter) throughout the human life span. Within the limitations of current analytical methods, there was no detectable difference in D/L-aspartate ratios in white and gray matter of brains with Alzheimer's disease and several other pathologies when compared with brains of normal subjects. However, the presence of a significant D-aspartate level in white matter during the adult life span may lead to changes in protein configuration related to dysfunctions associated with the aging brain.     

Targeted deletion of the muscular dystrophy gene myotilin does not perturb muscle structure or function in mice

Myotilin, palladin, and myopalladin form a novel small subfamily of cytoskeletal proteins that contain immunoglobulin-like domains. Myotilin is a thin filament-associated protein localized at the Z-disk of skeletal and cardiac muscle cells. The direct binding to F-actin, efficient cross-linking of actin filaments, and prevention of induced disassembly of filaments are key roles of myotilin that are thought to be involved in structural maintenance and function of the sarcomere. Missense mutations in the myotilin-encoding gene cause dominant limb girdle muscular dystrophy type 1A and spheroid body myopathy and are the molecular defect that can cause myofibrillar myopathy. Here we describe the generation and analysis of mice that lack myotilin, myo(-/-) mice. Surprisingly, myo(-/-) mice maintain normal muscle sarcomeric and sarcolemmal integrity. Also, loss of myotilin does not cause alterations in the heart or other organs of newborn or adult myo(-/-) mice. The mice develop normally and have a normal life span, and their muscle capacity does not significantly differ from wild-type mice even after prolonged physical stress. The results suggest that either myotilin does not participate in muscle development and basal function maintenance or other proteins serve as structural and functional compensatory molecules when myotilin is absent.     

Telethonin protein expression in neuromuscular disorders

Telethonin is a 19-kDa sarcomeric protein, localized to the Z-disc of skeletal and cardiac muscles. Mutations in the telethonin gene cause limb-girdle muscular dystrophy type 2G (LGMD2G).We investigated the sarcomeric integrity of muscle fibers in LGMD2G patients, through double immunofluorescence analysis for telethonin with three sarcomeric proteins: titin, alpha-actinin-2, and myotilin and observed the typical cross striation pattern, suggesting that the Z-line of the sarcomere is apparently preserved, despite the absence of telethonin. Ultrastructural analysis confirmed the integrity of the sarcomeric architecture. The possible interaction of telethonin with other proteins responsible for several forms of neuromuscular disorders was also analyzed. Telethonin was clearly present in the rods in nemaline myopathy (NM) muscle fibers, confirming its localization to the Z-line of the sarcomere. Muscle from patients with absent telethonin showed normal expression for the proteins dystrophin, sarcoglycans, dysferlin, and calpain-3. Additionally, telethonin showed normal localization in muscle biopsies from patients with LGMD2A, LGMD2B, sarcoglycanopathies, and Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). Therefore, the primary deficiency of calpain-3, dysferlin, sarcoglycans, and dystrophin do not seem to alter telethonin expression.     

Solution structure of ZASP PDZ domain; implications for sarcomere ultrastructure and enigma family redundancy

Z band alternately spliced PDZ-containing protein (ZASP) is a sarcomere Z disk protein expressed in human cardiac and skeletal muscle that is thought to be involved in a dominant familial dilated cardiomyopathy. The N-terminal PDZ domain of ZASP interacts with the C terminus of alpha-actinin-2, the major component of the Z disk, probably by forming a ternary complex with titin Z repeats. We have determined the structure of ZASP PDZ by NMR and showed that it is a classical class 1 PDZ domain that recognizes the carboxy-terminal sequence of an alpha-actinin-2 calmodulin-like domain with micromolar affinity. We also characterized the role of each component in the ternary complex ZASP/alpha-actinin-2/titin, showing that the alpha-actinin-2/ZASP PDZ interaction involves a binding surface distinct from that recognized by the titin Z repeats. ZASP PDZ structure was used to model other members of the enigma family by homology and to predict their abilities to bind alpha-actinin-2.     

Calls during agonistic interactions vary with arousal and raise audience attention in ravens

Background

Acoustic properties of vocalizations can vary with the internal state of the caller, and may serve as reliable indicators for a caller’s emotional state, for example to prevent conflicts. Thus, individuals may associate distinct characteristics in acoustic signals of conspecifics with specific social contexts, and adjust their behaviour accordingly to prevent escalation of conflicts. Common ravens (Corvus corax) crowd-forage with individuals of different age classes, sex, and rank, assemble at feeding sites, and engage in agonistic interactions of varying intensity. Attacked individuals frequently utter defensive calls in order to appease the aggressor. Here, we investigated if acoustic properties of defensive calls change with varying levels of aggression, and if bystanders respond to these changes.

Results

Individuals were more likely to utter defensive calls when the attack involved contact aggression, and when the attacker was higher in rank than the victim. Defensive calls produced during intense conflicts were longer and uttered at higher rates, and showed higher fundamental frequency- and amplitude-related measures than calls uttered during low-intensity aggression, indicating arousal-based changes in defensive calls. Playback experiments showed that ravens were more likely to react in response to defensive calls with higher fundamental frequency by orientating towards the speakers as compared to original calls and calls manipulated in duration.

Conclusions

Arousal-based changes are encoded in acoustic parameters of defensive calls in attacked ravens, and bystanders in the audience pay attention to the degree of arousal in attacked conspecifics. Our findings imply that common ravens can regulate conflicts with conspecifics by means of vocalizations, and are able to gather social knowledge from conspecific calls.

     

Discovery of a novel azaindole class of antibacterial agents targeting the ATPase domains of DNA gyrase and Topoisomerase IV

We present the discovery and optimization of a novel series of bacterial topoisomerase inhibitors. Starting from a virtual screening hit, activity was optimized through a combination of structure-based design and physical property optimization. Synthesis of fewer than a dozen compounds was required to achieve inhibition of the growth of methicillin-resistant Staphyloccus aureus (MRSA) at compound concentrations of 1.56 μM. These compounds simultaneously inhibit DNA gyrase and Topoisomerase IV at similar nanomolar concentrations, reducing the likelihood of the spontaneous occurrence of target-based mutations resulting in antibiotic resistance, an increasing threat in the treatment of serious infections.     

A mutation in telethonin alters Nav1.5 function

Excitable cells express a variety of ion channels that allow rapid exchange of ions with the extracellular space. Opening of Na(+) channels in excitable cells results in influx of Na(+) and cellular depolarization. The function of Na(v)1.5, an Na(+) channel expressed in the heart, brain, and gastrointestinal tract, is altered by interacting proteins. The pore-forming alpha-subunit of this channel is encoded by SCN5A. Genetic perturbations in SCN5A cause type 3 long QT syndrome and type 1 Brugada syndrome, two distinct heritable arrhythmia syndromes. Mutations in SCN5A are also associated with increased prevalence of gastrointestinal symptoms, suggesting that the Na(+) channel plays a role in normal gastrointestinal physiology and that alterations in its function may cause disease. We collected blood from patients with intestinal pseudo-obstruction (a disease associated with abnormal motility in the gut) and screened for mutations in SCN5A and ion channel-interacting proteins. A 42-year-old male patient was found to have a mutation in the gene TCAP, encoding for the small protein telethonin. Telethonin was found to be expressed in the human gastrointestinal smooth muscle, co-localized with Na(v)1.5, and co-immunoprecipitated with sodium channels. Expression of mutated telethonin, when co-expressed with SCN5A in HEK 293 cells, altered steady state activation kinetics of SCN5A, resulting in a doubling of the window current. These results suggest a new role for telethonin, namely that telethonin is a sodium channel-interacting protein. Also, mutations in telethonin can alter Na(v)1.5 kinetics and may play a role in intestinal pseudo-obstruction.