Biochemical Characterization of Buffalo Liver Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase Isoforms

Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) is a key regulatory enzyme involved in the pentose phosphate pathway. This works represents purification of two buffalo liver glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenases (BLG6PD1 and BLG6PD2) using combination of ammonium sulfate precipitation and several chromatographic columns. Both enzymes (BLG6PD1 and BLG6PD2) were homogenous on both native PAGE as well as 12 % SDS PAGE with molecular weights of 28 and 66 kDa. The molecular weight of BLG6PD1 and BLG6PD2 native forms were determined to be 28 and 66 kDa by gel filtration; indicating monomeric proteins. The K _m values for BLG6PD1 and BLG6PD2 estimated to be 0.059 and 0.06 mM of β-nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate. The optimum activity of BLG6PD1 and BLG6PD2 were displayed at pH 8.0 and 8.2 with an isoelectric point (pI) of pH 7.7–7.9 and 5.7–5.9. The divalent cations MgCl₂, and CoCl₂ act as activators, on the other hand, FeCl₂, CuCl₂ and ZnCl₂ are potent inhibitors of BLG6PD1 and BLG6PD2 activity. NADPH inhibited both isoenzymes competitively with Ki values of 0.012 and 0.030 mM. This study describes a reproducible purification scheme of G6PD from the liver of buffalo as a rich source.     

Xanthine Dehydrogenase Is Transported to the Drosophila Eye

The rosy (ry) locus in Drosophila melanogaster codes for the enzyme xanthine dehydrogenase. Mutants that have no enzyme activity are characterized by a brownish eye color phenotype reflecting a deficiency in the red eye pigment. This report demonstrates that enzyme which is synthesized in some tissue other than the eye is transported and sequestered at the eye. Previous studies find that no leader sequence is associated with this molecule but a peroxisomal targeting sequence has been noted, and the enzyme has been localized to peroxisomes. This represents a rare example of an enzyme involved in intermediary metabolism being transported from one tissue to another and may also be the first example of a peroxisomal protein being secreted from a cell.     

Pyruvate Dehydrogenase Activity in Regions of the Rat Brain During Postnatal Development

Abstract: Activity of the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (PDHC) was measured in seven brain regions of themale rat at various times during the postnatal period usingan arylamine acetyltransferase coupled assay. Three daysafter birth, PDHC activity was found to be < 15% ofadult values in all brain regions with the exception of hypothalamus and medulla-pons (30% of adult values ineach case). Activity of the enzyme complex in these latterregions attained adult levels by 21 days postnatally, some 5-15 days ahead of that found in cerebral cortex, striatum, hippocampus, and cerebellum. Such differences in PDHC maturation reflect the greater degree of earlymaturity of the phylogenetically older brain structures. Cerebellar PDHC developed more slowly than in otherbrain regions to attain only 40% of adult levels by thetime of weaning. The pattern of maturation of cerebellarPDHC is paralleled by increased incorporation of glucoseinto cerebral amino acids and by the pattern of develop-ment of parallel fiber synaptogenesis. These findings sug-gest that PDHC may play a key role in the regional de-velopment of metabolic compartmentation and the asso-ciated maturation of cerebral function in the rat.     

Detection of VEGF-Axxxb Isoforms in Human Tissues

Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor-A (VEGF-A) can be generated as multiple isoforms by alternative splicing. Two families of isoforms have been described in humans, pro-angiogenic isoforms typified by VEGF-A₁₆₅a, and anti-angiogenic isoforms typified by VEGF-A₁₆₅b. The practical determination of expression levels of alternative isoforms of the same gene may be complicated by experimental protocols that favour one isoform over another, and the use of specific positive and negative controls is essential for the interpretation of findings on expression of the isoforms. Here we address some of the difficulties in experimental design when investigating alternative splicing of VEGF isoforms, and discuss the use of appropriate control paradigms. We demonstrate why use of specific control experiments can prevent assumptions that VEGF-A₁₆₅b is not present, when in fact it is. We reiterate, and confirm previously published experimental design protocols that demonstrate the importance of using positive controls. These include using known target sequences to show that the experimental conditions are suitable for PCR amplification of VEGF-A₁₆₅b mRNA for both q-PCR and RT-PCR and to ensure that mispriming does not occur. We also provide evidence that demonstrates that detection of VEGF-A₁₆₅b protein in mice needs to be tightly controlled to prevent detection of mouse IgG by a secondary antibody. We also show that human VEGF₁₆₅b protein can be immunoprecipitated from cultured human cells and that immunoprecipitating VEGF-A results in protein that is detected by VEGF-A₁₆₅b antibody. These findings support the conclusion that more information on the biology of VEGF-A₁₆₅b isoforms is required, and confirm the importance of the experimental design in such investigations, including the use of specific positive and negative controls.     

Each Conserved Active Site Tyr in the Three Subunits of Human Isocitrate Dehydrogenase Has a Different Function

The human NAD-dependent isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH) is a heterotetrameric mitochondrial enzyme with 2α:1β:1γ subunit ratio. The three subunits share 40–52% identity in amino acid sequence and each includes a tyrosine in a comparable position: αY126, βY137, and γY135. To study the role of the corresponding tyrosines of each of the subunits of human NAD-IDH, the tyrosines were mutated (one subunit at a time) to Ser, Phe, or Glu. Enzymes were expressed with one mutant and two wild-type subunits. The results of characterization of the mutant enzymes suggest that βY137 is involved in NAD binding and allosteric activation by ADP. The αY126 is required for catalytic activity and likely acts as a general acid in the reaction. The γY135 is also required for catalytic activity and may be involved in proper folding of the enzyme. The corresponding tyrosines in the three dissimilar subunits of NAD-IDH thus have distinctive functions.     

Postnatal Expression of Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase in Different Brain Areas

The activity of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) was studied in five brain areas of rats aged 5 to 90 days. The areas studied were: the olfactory bulb (OB), cortex, hippocampus, striatum and septum. The G6PD activity increased more than 2-fold from 5 to 90 days in the OB, while it was almost constant in the other areas. At every stage of development, the G6PD activity was significantly higher in the OB than in the other areas. The G6PD pattern was compared with 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase (6PGD), glutathione reductase (GR); glutathione peroxidase (GPX), catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) in order to find synergistic interactions among activities of these enzymes during development. Over the considered period, the activity of 6PGD increased significantly in the OB, while no significant difference in activity was detected in the other areas. GR increased significantly and progressively at each developmental stage in all areas. GPX showed a progressive increase in the OB, while in other areas a significant increase was detected at 90 days only. CAT and SOD showed a different and independent pattern which differred from the G6PD pattern. CAT showed the highest level of activity at 5 days then progressively decreased or was constant until 90 days; SOD had the highest value at 5 days, than it decreased at 10 days and increased from 10 to 90 days. In all areas, G6PD activity showed three electrophoretic bands, whose relative activity changed with development. At histochemical level, we found a marked G6PD activity in the periglomerular zone of the OB, which increased with age, while other areas showed a homogeneous staining. The present results demonstrate that G6PD activity increases in the OB during the developmental stages and there is a coordinated simultaneous activation of 6PGD, GPX and GR. It is likely that this enzyme induction increases the antioxidant defense of periglomerular cells that are subject to a rapid renewal and thus much more exposed to oxidant stress.     

人类3-磷酸甘油醛脱氢酶的原核表达、纯化和鉴定

为了研究3-磷酸甘油醛脱氧酶(GAPDH)化生物学功能,以pcDNA3.1-GAPDH质粒为模板,PCR方法扩增GAPDH基因,经BamHI和SalI双酶切后插入相同酶切的pET32a(+)载体,构建His-GAPDH融合蛋白表达质粒pET32a(+)-GAPDH;转化JM109感受态细胞,并进行阳性克隆筛选,扩增目的质粒;转化大肠杆菌BL21菌株,经IPTG诱导产生融合蛋白,亲和层析柱纯化后,用SDS-PAGE和Western blotting检测GAPDH蛋白表达情况.结果表明,构建的人GAPDH基因表达载体经序列测定证实,与GenBank数据完全一致;双酶切鉴定证实,克隆基因正确插入pET32a(+)载体;表达质粒pET32a(+)-GAPDH在大肠杆菌BL21中成功地诱导表达了可溶性His-GAPDH融合蛋白,纯化后SDS-PAGE和Western blotting检测证实融合蛋白表达成功.人GAPDH原核表达载体的成功构建,及6His-GAPDH融合蛋白的正确表达,为进一步深入研究GAPDH的生物学功能奠定了基础.     

Isoforms of Aldehyde Dehydrogenase in the Brain Structures of Rats with Different Inclinations to Ethanol Consumption

We measured the levels of activity of aldehyde dehydrogenase (AdhDH, EC 1.2.1.3) manifested at different concentrations of acetaldehyde (AcAdh) in cytosol fractions from the tissues of the hypothalamus, midbrain, and neocortex of rats preferring an ethanol solution or pure water as liquids for drinking (ethanol- and water-preferring, EP and WP groups, respectively). Two AdhDH isoforms, with a high and a low affinity for AcAdh, were identified in the above brain structures. An AdhDH-1 isoform characterized by a higher affinity for AcAdh and a low value of the apparent Michaelis constant (K _m) was found in all studied brain structures of the EP rats. An analogous AdhDH-1 isoform found in cytosol fractions from the hypothalamus and midbrain of the WP rats showed a lower affinity for AcAdh and provided a lower maximum rate of reaction (V _max). In the neocortex cytosol fractions of the rats of this group, AdhDH-1 could not be identified. In EP rats, the level of AcAdh metabolism mediated by AdhDH was noticeably higher in cytosol fractions from the hypothalamus and midbrain, as compared with that in the respective fraction from the neocortex.     

Characterization of the Human Dihydropyrimidine Dehydrogenase Gene

Dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPD) catabolizes endogenous pyrimidines and pyrimidine-based antimetabolite drugs. A deficiency in human DPD is associated with congenital thymine-uraciluria in pediatric patients and severe 5-fluorouracil toxicity in cancer patients. The dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase gene (DPYD) was isolated, and its physical map and exon–intron organization were determined by analysis of P1, PAC, BAC, and YAC clones. TheDPYDgene was found to contain 23 exons ranging in size from 69 bp (exon 15) to 961 bp (exon 23). A physical map derived from a YAC clone indicated thatDPYDis at least 950 kb in length with 3 kb of coding sequence and an average intron size of about 43 kb.The previously reported 5′ donor splice site mutation present in pediatric thymine-uraciluria and cancer patients can now be assigned to exon 14. All 23 exons were sequenced from a series of human DNA samples, and three point mutations were identified in three racial groups as G1601A (exon 13, Ser534Asn), A1627G (exon 13, Ile543Val), and G2194A (exon 18, Val732Ile). These studies, which have established that theDPYDgene is unusually large, lay a framework for uncovering new mutations that are responsible for thymine-uraciluria and toxicity to fluoropyrimidine drugs.     

Coefficients for Active Transport and Thermogenesis of Ca-ATPase Isoforms

Coefficients for active transport of ions and heat in vesicles with Ca²⁺-ATPase from sarcoplasmic reticulum are defined in terms of a newly proposed thermodynamic theory and calculated using experiments reported in the literature. The coefficients characterize in a quantitative manner different performances of the enzyme isoforms. Four enzyme isoforms are examined, namely from white and red muscle tissue, from blood platelets, and from brown adipose mitochondria. The results indicate that the isoforms have a somewhat specialized function. White muscle tissue and brown adipose tissue have the same active transport coefficient ratio, but the activity level of the enzyme in white muscle is higher than in brown adipose tissue. The thermogenesis ratio is high in both white muscle and brown adipose tissue, in agreement with a specific role in nonshivering thermogenesis. Other isoforms do not have this ability to generate heat. A calcium-dependence of the coefficients is found, which can be understood as being in accordance with the role of this ion as a messenger in muscle contraction as well as in thermogenesis. The investigation points to new experiments related to structure as well as to function of the isoforms.     

Purification and Characterization of Cinnamyl Alcohol Dehydrogenase Isoforms from the Periderm of Eucalyptus gunnii Hook

Cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase (CAD, EC 1.1.1.195) isoforms were purified from the periderm (containing both suberized and lignified cell layers) of Eucalyptus gunnii Hook stems. Two isoforms (CAD 1P and CAD 2P) were initially characterized, and the major form, CAD 2P, was resolved into three further isoforms by ion-exchange chromatography. Crude extracts contained two aliphatic alcohol dehydrogenases (ADH) and one aromatic ADH, which was later resolved into two further isoforms. Aliphatic ADHs did not use hydroxycinnamyl alcohols as substrates, whereas both aromatic ADH isoforms used coniferyl and sinapyl alcohol as substrates but with a much lower specific activity when compared with benzyl alcohol. The minor form, CAD 1P, was a monomer with a molecular weight of 34,000 that did not co-elute with either aromatic or aliphatic ADH activity. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and western blot analysis demonstrated that this protein was very similar to another CAD isoform purified from Eucalyptus xylem tissue. CAD 2P had a native molecular weight of approximately 84,000 and was a dimer consisting of two heterogenous subunits (with molecular weights of 42,000 and 44,000). These subunits were differentially combined to give the heterodimer and two homodimers. SDS-PAGE, western blots, and nondenaturing PAGE indicated that the CAD 2P heterodimer was very similar to the main CAD isoform previously purified in our laboratory from differentiating xylem tissue of E. gunnii (D. Goffner, I. Joffroy, J. Grima-Pettenati, C. Halpin, M.E. Knight, W. Schuch, A.M. Boudet [1992] Planta 188: 48-53). Kinetic data indicated that the different CAD 2P isoforms may be implicated in the preferential production of different monolignols used in the synthesis of lignin and/or suberin.     

Appearance of Novel Glucose-6-Phosphate Dehydrogenase Isoforms in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii during Growth on Nitrate

Extractable glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase activity is higher from N-limited Chlamydomonas reinhardtii cells than from N-sufficient cells. Native gels reveal that the isoform complexity varies depending on the form of N supplied. The isoforms associated with NO3- growth appear within 2 h of switching cells from NH4+ to NO3-.     

Enzymatic and Immunologic Identification of Succinic Semialdehyde Dehydrogenase in Rat and Human Neural and Nonneural Tissues

Abstract: We have identified succinic semialdehyde dehydrogenase protein in rat and human neural and nonneural tissues. Tissue localization was determined by enzymatic assay and by western immunoblotting using polyclonal antibodies raised in rabbit against the purified rat brain protein. Although brain shows the highest level of succinic semialdehyde dehydrogenase activity, substantial amounts of enzyme activity occur in mammalian liver, pituitary, heart, and ovary. We further demonstrate the absence of succinic semialdehyde dehydrogenase enzyme activity and protein in brain, liver, and kidney tissue samples from an individual affected with succinic semialdehyde dehydrogenase deficiency, thereby verifying the specificity of our antibodies.     

The Additivity of Contrast in the Human Eye

Using the method of binocular brightness matching, simultaneous brightness contrast effects were measured on two observers. The effects of a given pattern were invariably smaller than the summation of the effects of the pattern's components. This failure of additivity was valid both for patterns with isolated components as well as for those with components exactly contiguous with one another. This failure was more pronounced the farther the inducing patterns were from the test patch. These findings are interpreted as indicating that in the human (just as in the Limulus) eye, the amount of inhibition exerted by a given region on its neighbors depends upon the inhibition exerted against it as well as its excitation state.     

Cellobiose Dehydrogenase, an Active Agent in Cellulose Depolymerization

The ability of cellobiose dehydrogenase purified from Phanerochaete chrysosporium to modify a Douglas fir kraft pulp was assessed. Although the addition of cellobiose dehydrogenase alone had little effect, supplementation with cellobiose and iron resulted in a substantial reduction in the degree of polymerization of the pulp cellulose. When the reaction was monitored over time, a progressive depolymerization of the cellulose was apparent with the concomitant production of cellobiono-1,5-lactone. Analysis of the reaction filtrates indicated that glucose and arabinose were the only neutral sugars generated. These sugars are derived from the degradation of the cellobiose rather than resulting from modifications of the pulp. These results suggest that the action of cellobiose dehydrogenase results in the generation of hydroxyl radicals via Fenton's chemistry which subsequently results in the depolymerization of cellulose. This appears to be the mechanism whereby a substantial reduction in the degree of polymerization of the cellulose can be achieved without a significant release of sugar.     

Different Characteristics and Nucleotide Binding Properties of Inosine Monophosphate Dehydrogenase (IMPDH) Isoforms

We recently reported that Inosine Monophosphate Dehydrogenase (IMPDH), a rate-limiting enzyme in de novo guanine nucleotide biosynthesis, clustered into macrostructures in response to decreased nucleotide levels and that there were differences between the IMPDH isoforms, IMPDH1 and IMPDH2. We hypothesised that the Bateman domains, which are present in both isoforms and serve as energy-sensing/allosteric modules in unrelated proteins, would contribute to isoform-specific differences and that mutations situated in and around this domain in IMPDH1 which give rise to retinitis pigmentosa (RP) would compromise regulation. We employed immuno-electron microscopy to investigate the ultrastructure of IMPDH macrostructures and live-cell imaging to follow clustering of an IMPDH2-GFP chimera in real-time. Using a series of IMPDH1/IMPDH2 chimera we demonstrated that the propensity to cluster was conferred by the N-terminal 244 amino acids, which includes the Bateman domain. A protease protection assay suggested isoform-specific purine nucleotide binding characteristics, with ATP protecting IMPDH1 and AMP protecting IMPDH2, via a mechanism involving conformational changes upon nucleotide binding to the Bateman domain without affecting IMPDH catalytic activity. ATP binding to IMPDH1 was confirmed in a nucleotide binding assay. The RP-causing mutation, R224P, abolished ATP binding and nucleotide protection and this correlated with an altered propensity to cluster. Collectively these data demonstrate that (i) the isoforms are differentially regulated by AMP and ATP by a mechanism involving the Bateman domain, (ii) communication occurs between the Bateman and catalytic domains and (iii) the RP-causing mutations compromise such regulation. These findings support the idea that the IMPDH isoforms are subject to distinct regulation and that regulatory defects contribute to human disease.