Iodine, carbohydrate and protein metabolism in rats with cobalt deficiency]

Experiments on male rats maintained at the diet with a low amount of cobalt have revealed a decrease in values of iodine indices in organs and tissues except for the liver tissues where a sharp increase in the inorganic iodine concentration as well as disturbances of the protein and carbohydrate metabolism were observed. Mathematical analysis has shown a high correlation of changes in the carbohydrate and protein metabolism and concentration of protein-bound iodine in blood. It has permitted a conclusion on an indirect effect of the cobalt deficiency on the metabolism processes as a result of changes in the concentration of protein-bound iodine in blood and tissues.     

Role and Metabolism of Free Leucine in Skeletal Muscle in Protein Sparing Action of Dietary Carbohydrate and Fat

Feeding rats with either a carbohydrate meal or a fat meal to the previously fasted rats caused significant decrease in urinary output of urea and total nitrogen. The content of free leucine in skeletal muscle decreased in the rats fed either a carbohydrate meal or a fat meal. Feeding of either a carbohydrate meal or a fat meal stimulated incoiporation of l-leucine-1–¹⁴C into protein fraction of skeletal muscle and reduced its oxidation to ¹⁴CO₂.

These results suggest that the metabolism of leucine is under nutritional regulation and that the decrease in content of free leucine in skeletal muscle might be caused by enhanced reutilization of leucine into protein by the feeding of a carbohydrate meal or a fat meal. The role of free leucine in skeletal muscle as a regulator of protein turnover in the tissue are discussed in relation to the metabolism of this branched chain amino acid.     

Isolation and characterization of hagfish thyroid iodoprotein by its non-thyroglobulin nature, very high iodine and carbohydrate contents and low hormone/iodine ratio

We have characterized the thyroid iodoprotein of a hagfish, Eptatretus burgeri, one of the lowest marine vertebrates. The iodoprotein was not very homogeneous in its apparent molecular mass which decreased with the increase in hormone/iodotyrosine ratio. Four subfractions with an apparent molecular mass of about 400 kDa were purified from one major fraction by size-exclusion and Mono Q ion-exchange HPLC. The subfractions appeared to have the same peptide backbone, since they showed a single band with the same mobility as a 160-kDa protein in SDS/PAGE and the same amino acid composition. However they differed from each other in having increasing iodine contents (1.9% to 5.9% by mass of total amino acids) associated with the increase in hormonal iodine proportion (8.4% to 16.7% of total iodine) and carbohydrate content (35.6% to 53.5% by mass). These values are strikingly different from those of thyroglobulin with an iodine content of less than 1%, hormonal iodine of 20-40% and carbohydrate content of less than 10%. The amino acid composition of the hagfish iodoprotein, especially the cysteine content of less than 1%, was also entirely different from that of thyroglobulin. These results suggest that most, if not all, tyrosine residues of the hagfish thyroid glycoprotein with a less rigid structure are susceptible to an iodinating system, but hormone residues are formed by a much less efficient mechanism than those in thyroglobulin, when poorly iodinated.     

茶足柄瘤蚜茧蜂碳水化合物代谢相关的滞育关联基因差异表达分析

为明确糖代谢相关途径在茶足柄瘤蚜茧蜂Lysiphlebustestaceipes蛹滞育过程中的作用,揭示滞育调控的分子机制,本试验利用转录组测序技术,对滞育组与非滞育组的茶足柄瘤蚜茧蜂蛹进行转录组测序,并结合生物信息学方法对糖代谢相关途径中的差异表达基因进行了筛选与分析.GO注释到的与碳水化合物代谢条目相关的差异基因共...     

Proteomic identification of differentially expressed proteins in Arabidopsis in response to methyl jasmonate

Jasmonates (JAs) are the well characterized fatty acid-derived cyclopentanone signals involved in the plant response to biotic and abiotic stresses. JAs have been shown to regulate many aspects of plant metabolism, including glucosinolate biosynthesis. Glucosinolates are natural plant products that function in defense against herbivores and pathogens. In this study, we applied a proteomic approach to gain insight into the physiological processes, including glucosinolate metabolism, in response to methyl jasmonate (MeJA). We identified 194 differentially expressed protein spots that contained proteins that participated in a wide range of physiological processes. Functional classification analysis showed that photosynthesis and carbohydrate anabolism were repressed after MeJA treatment, while carbohydrate catabolism was up-regulated. Additionally, proteins related to the JA biosynthesis pathway, stress and defense, and secondary metabolism were up-regulated. Among the differentially expressed proteins, many were involved in oxidative tolerance. The results indicate that MeJA elicited a defense response at the proteome level through a mechanism of redirecting growth-related metabolism to defense-related metabolism.     

The significance of micronutrients

Boron, calcium, copper, iron, manganese, molybdenum, sulphur, zinc, sodium and iodine, beneficial to plants though not all known to be essential for normal development, can influence the vitamin, the protein and the carbohydrate content of food plants. Fertilizing practise, based on this understanding, is one of the great fields of applied botany, the practical agricultural aspects of which are surveyed in this article.     

Studies on oral glucose intolerance in fish

The oral glucose tolerance test, a diagnostic procedure used in the detection of human diabetes, was used to study carbohydrate metabolism in rainbow trout, Salmo gairdneri (Richardson). Fish exhibited pronounced and persistent hyperglycaemia on oral glucose administration. Hyperglycaemia was accompanied by decrease in blood amino acids, serum free fatty acids and cholesterol and marked increase in hepatic storage of glycogen. The incidence of oral glucose intolerance results, at least in part from insufficient circulating insulin. Exogenous insulin exerts a hypoglycaemic action and effectively abolishes the hyperglycaemia resulting from glucose administration. Tolbutamidc, the sulphonylurea hypoglycaemic drug, is without effect. Possibly as an indirect result of hyperadreno-corticism, oral glucose tolerance is markedly improved in the pre-spawning female. Long-term feeding of high carbohydrate diet to goldfish Carassius auratus (L.) resulted in gross hepatomegaly due to excessive hepatic glycogen accumulation and, possibly, fatty change of the liver. Protein metabolism was impaired as evidenced by protein depletion. Such degenerative changes in liver metabolism are probably a direct result of oral glucose intolerance and reflect a metabolism adapted to diets normally low in available carbohydrate.     

Glycogen-deficient Mutants of the Yeast Saccharomycopsis lipolytica

Following ultra-violet irradiation of the hydrocarbon-utilizing yeast, Saccharomycopsis lipolytica , a number of mutant strains were isolated which failed to show the normal staining reaction with iodine. Exponential phase cells of the mutant strains were found to contain less carbohydrate and more crude protein than wild type cells in the case of both glucose-grown and n -alkane-grown cultures. The difference between wild type and mutant carbohydrate levels was greater for glucose-grown than for n -alkane-grown cells. Carbohydrate fractionation revealed that the mutant cells were deficient in glycogen, particularly the acid-soluble fraction.     

Effect of two rearing conditions on growth and body composition in carp (Cyprinus carpio L) (author's transl)]

A comparative study was made of the growth and of the influence of seasonal changes on nitrogen and carbohydrate metabolism of carp kept in batches in natural ponds. 10 Growth is active only in natural ponds. In batches where only industrial dried foods are used, no growth can be measured. 20 Activity of ribonucleic and protein metabolism is correlated with seasonal variations of water temperature in both conditions.     

The Impact of Dietary Iodine Intake on Lipid Metabolism in Mice

The present study has been designed to investigate the impact of dietary iodine intake on lipid metabolism in mice, including iodine deficiency and iodine excess. Different amounts of iodine mixed in the drinking water were continuously administered to mice. The body weights and the levels of urinary iodine were measured 8 months after the treatment. Thyroid hormones in the serum were detected by chemiluminescence immunoassay. Serum total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) were determined enzymatically by automatic analyzer. Results showed that the urine iodine concentrations paralleled the amounts of iodine intakes. No statistical differences of body weights among different groups were found. The levels of thyroid hormones were dramatically decreased in iodine deficiency while no significant differences were found between iodine excess groups and normal iodine group. In iodine deficiency groups, the levels of TG, TC, and LDL were increased at varying degrees. In iodine excess groups, the levels of TG in the male mice and the levels of TC in the female mice were much lower than normal iodine group. In conclusion, dietary iodine intake may affect the metabolism of serum lipids. Hypothyroid function induced by iodine deficiency may be responsible for the changes of lipids. Higher iodine intake might benefit lipid metabolism.     

Similar protein phosphatases control starch metabolism in plants and glycogen metabolism in mammals

We report that protein phosphorylation is involved in the control of starch metabolism in Arabidopsis leaves at night. sex4 (starch excess 4) mutants, which have strongly reduced rates of starch metabolism, lack a protein predicted to be a dual specificity protein phosphatase. We have shown that this protein is chloroplastic and can bind to glucans and have presented evidence that it acts to regulate the initial steps of starch degradation at the granule surface. Remarkably, the most closely related protein to SEX4 outside the plant kingdom is laforin, a glucan-binding protein phosphatase required for the metabolism of the mammalian storage carbohydrate glycogen and implicated in a severe form of epilepsy (Lafora disease) in humans.     

Autocrine biological effects of glycosyl inositol phosphate produced by reconstituted pig thyroid follicles: role of pertussis toxin sensitive G proteins.

We examine the autocrine activity of glycosyl inositol phosphate (InP-gly) on thyroid metabolism. The cAMP accumulation promoted by thyrotropin (TSH) or forskolin was modulated by InP-gly, stimulated by the lowest tested concentration (10(-8) M) and progressively inhibited by higher concentrations. Iodide uptake and iodine organification were decreased in a concentration-dependent manner by InP-gly alone, or in the presence of TSH. The IAP component of pertussis toxin blocked the inhibitory action of InP-gly on cAMP accumulation by reconstituted thyroid follicles (RTF), suggesting the participation of Gi protein. But the same treatment with IAP was without effect on iodine metabolism, suggesting that there is a second target for InP-gly, more distal than Gi protein, or coupled to another G protein which is insensitive to the toxin.     

Proteome dynamics during plastid differentiation in rice

We have analyzed proteome dynamics during light-induced development of rice (Oryza sativa) chloroplasts from etioplasts using quantitative two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and tandem mass spectrometry protein identification. In the dark, the etioplast allocates the main proportion of total protein mass to carbohydrate and amino acid metabolism and a surprisingly high number of proteins to the regulation and expression of plastid genes. Chaperones, proteins for photosynthetic energy metabolism, and enzymes of the tetrapyrrole pathway were identified among the most abundant etioplast proteins. The detection of 13 N-terminal acetylated peptides allowed us to map the exact localization of the transit peptide cleavage site, demonstrating good agreement with the prediction for most proteins. Based on the quantitative etioplast proteome map, we examined early light-induced changes during chloroplast development. The transition from heterotrophic metabolism to photosynthesis-supported autotrophic metabolism was already detectable 2 h after illumination and affected most essential metabolic modules. Enzymes in carbohydrate metabolism, photosynthesis, and gene expression were up-regulated, whereas enzymes in amino acid and fatty acid metabolism were significantly decreased in relative abundance. Enzymes involved in nucleotide metabolism, tetrapyrrole biosynthesis, and redox regulation remained unchanged. Phosphoprotein-specific staining at different time points during chloroplast development revealed light-induced phosphorylation of a nuclear-encoded plastid RNA-binding protein, consistent with changes in plastid RNA metabolism. Quantitative information about all identified proteins and their regulation by light is available in plprot, the plastid proteome database (http://www.plprot.ethz.ch).     

Carbohydrate metabolism in adult schistosomes of different strains and species

In this comparative study the carbohydrate metabolism of Schistosoma japonicum, S. haematobium, S. intercalatum, S. bovis and three strains of S. mansoni was investigated. No large differences were found in the protein and glycogen contents of all species involved. In all species investigated, lactate was the main end product of carbohydrate breakdown. However, all parasites degraded part of the glucose to CO2 via the Krebs cycle. No difference was observed in the contribution of this aerobic process to energy production in the three strains of S. mansoni investigated. The differences in Krebs-cycle activity between the five schistosome species investigated were very small. Therefore, this study refutes the idea that significant differences exist in the carbohydrate metabolism of various schistosome species or strains.     

Functional mechanics of the plant defensive Griffonia simplicifolia lectin II: resistance to proteolysis is independent of glycoconjugate binding in the insect gut.

Griffonia simplicifolia lectin II (GSII) is a plant defensive protein that significantly delays development of the cowpea bruchid Callosobruchus maculatus (F.). Previous structure/function analysis by site-directed mutagenesis indicated that carbohydrate binding and resistance to insect gut proteolysis are required for the anti-insect activity of this lectin. However, whether there is a causal link between carbohydrate binding and resistance to insect metabolism remains unknown. Two proteases principally responsible for digestive proteolysis in third and fourth instar larvae of C. maculatus were purified by activated thiol sepharose chromatography and resolved as cathepsin L-like proteases, based on N-terminal amino acid sequence analysis. Digestion of bacterially expressed recombinant GSII (rGSII) and its mutant protein variants with the purified gut proteases indicates that carbohydrate binding, presumably to a target ligand in insect gut, and proteolytic resistance are independent properties of rGSII, and that both facilitate its efficacy as a plant defensive molecule.     

Interactions of okadaic acid with insulin action in hepatocytes: role of protein phosphatases in insulin action.

The regulation of carbohydrate metabolism involves changes in the phosphorylation state of enzymes. We used okadaic acid, a potent inhibitor of protein phosphatases type 2A (IC50 0.05-2 nM) and type 1 (IC50 10-20 nM) to determine the role of these phosphatases in the control of carbohydrate metabolism by insulin in rat hepatocytes. In the absence of insulin, okadaic acid caused total inhibition of glycogen synthesis at 100 nM and half-maximal inhibition at 8-9 nM. In the presence of insulin, lower concentrations of okadaic acid (to which type 2A phosphatases are sensitive) were effective at inhibiting glycogen synthesis. 2.5 nM okadaic acid caused total inhibition of the 2-fold stimulation of glycogen synthesis by insulin but had no effect on the basal unstimulated rate of glycogen synthesis. This suggests the involvement of type 2A protein phosphatases in the stimulation of glycogen synthesis by insulin. Okadaic acid (5 nM), partially suppressed but did not abolish the increase in glucokinase mRNA levels caused by insulin, indicating that dephosphorylation mechanisms may be involved in the control of glucokinase mRNA levels by insulin. It is concluded that activation of protein phosphatases type 1 and/or type 2A by insulin may have a widespread role in the control of glucose metabolism at various sites.