Neplanocin A. Actions on S-adenosylhomocysteine hydrolase and on hormone synthesis by GH4C1 cells

We have investigated the biochemical actions of Neplanocin A (Nepl A), a carbocyclic adenosine analog, on purified calf liver S-adenosylhomocysteine hydrolase and in the GH4C1 strain of functional rat pituitary cells. Addition of 1 mol of Nepl A/2 mol of S-adenosylhomocysteine hydrolase subunit led to rapid and complete inactivation. Concomitant with inactivation, half of the enzyme-bound NAD was reduced and adenine was released stoichiometrically from Nepl A. In GH4C1 cells Nepl A caused a dose-dependent rapid (within 5 min) and irreversible inactivation of S-adenosylhomocysteine hydrolase and concomitant increase in intracellular S-adenosylhomocysteine. In cells treated with Nepl A for 4-5 days, methylation of DNA cytosine was depressed approximately 50%, and the level of cytoplasmic prolactin mRNA was elevated 2-fold. While acute (30 min) release of prolactin from intracellular stores was unaffected, Nepl A acted in a dose- and time-dependent manner to increase the production of both prolactin and growth hormone, the two hormones synthesized and secreted by GH4C1 cells. The lowest effective dose was 0.12 microM, the concentration required to decrease S-adenosylhomocysteine hydrolase activity by 50%. By 4-7 days the production of both hormones in Nepl A-treated cells was increased 2-3 times above control. The action on hormone production persisted for at least 7 days after removal of Nepl A from the culture medium. We conclude that Nepl A inhibits S-adenosylhomocysteine hydrolase, raises cellular S-adenosylhomocysteine, decreases bulk DNA methylation, and increases hormone synthesis in GH4C1 cells.     

Design,Synthesis, and In Vitro Evaluation of APIO Analogue of Neplanocin A

Abstract

A novel apio analogue of neplanocin A was efficiently synthesized from D-ribose via stereoselective aldol-retroaldol reaction for introducing hydroxymethyl group and RCM reaction for synthesizing carbocycle, and its inhibitory activity against SAH hydrolase was assayed.     

Neplanocin A. A cyclopentenyl analog of adenosine with specificity for inhibiting RNA methylation

The mechanism of action of the adenosine analog, neplanocin A (NPC), was investigated in human colon carcinoma cell line HT-29. Cell viability was reduced to 38 and 17% of control by 24-h exposure to 10(-5) and 10(-4) M NPC, respectively. Cytocidal activity was not affected by inhibition of adenosine deaminase with 2'-deoxycoformycin. Concomitant with decreased cell viability was the reduced incorporation of [14C]dThd and [3H]Leu, and to a lesser extent [3H]Urd, into acid-precipitable material. Labeling of rRNA and tRNA during drug treatment for 24 h with [methyl-3H]Met and [14C]Urd revealed that NPC primarily inhibited RNA methylation, and to a lesser extent, RNA synthesis. RNase T2 digests of total RNA indicated that base and 2'-O-methylation were inhibited to approximately the same degree. Metabolites of NPC were measured by reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography and it was found that the major drug metabolite was the drug analog of S-adenosylmethionine with little formation of the respective, S-adenosylhomocysteine metabolite. NPC was utilized to a very small degree for RNA synthesis where only 2 and 30 pmol of NPC/A260 were incorporated into rRNA and tRNA after 24-h exposure to 10(-5) and 10(-4) M NPC, respectively. These results indicate that NPC is metabolized to a metabolite of S-adenosylmethionine which is a poor methyl donor for RNA methyltransferases, and that the accompanying decrease in RNA methylation and protein synthesis appears to be related to its cytocidal activity.     

Structure of Aurasperone C

Aurasperone C (III) shows properties closely related to those of aurasperone B (II) and gave dianhydro compound (V) on hydrochloric acid treatment. Partial methylation of (V) with methyl iodide afforded a monomethyl ether identical with aurasperone A (I).

NMR studies, including solvent induced methoxyl shifts, indicate the structure of (III) to be 2,2′-dimethyl-2,2′,5,5′-,8-pentahydroxy-6,6′,8-trimethoxy-7,10′-bi[2,3-dihydro-4H-naphtho[2,3b]pyran-4-one], in which the 8-methoxyl of aurasperone B is replaced by a hydroxyl group.     

蛋白激酶Cα相互作用蛋白的结构与功能

蛋白激酶Cα相互作用蛋白（protein interacting with Cα kinase,PICK1）是蛋白激酶Cox（protein kinase Cα,PKCα）的靶蛋白之一,也是在PKCα和突触后膜受体蛋白间起重要作用的衔接蛋白。PICK1分别由PDZ结构域、BAR结构域以及卷曲螺旋区和酸性氨基酸区组成。PICK1中的PDZ结构域和受体蛋白、转运蛋白、衔接蛋白的相互作用报道较多,BAR结构域则与支架蛋白、质膜等相互作用。PICK1在突触可塑性、神经递质传递、外周神经感觉、细胞生长和黏连等方面发挥重要作用。本文对PICK1的结构和功能进行综述。     

SCF和APC/C的结构及功能

细胞周期蛋白依赖性蛋白激酶(cyclin dependent kinases,CDKs)是细胞周期进行的推动力,泛素-蛋白酶体途径(ubiquitin-proteasome pathway,UPP)通过对细胞周期蛋白(cyclin)和CDK抑制物(CDK inhibitors,CKIs)的蛋白质水解作用来实现对CDKs活性的调控。SCF(Skp1-Cul1-F-box protein)和APC/C(anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome)这两个泛素连接酶复合物参与了很多细胞周期调节因子的泛素化作用。它们参与的蛋白质降解系统的功能失调可能导致细胞增殖紊乱、基因组不稳定和肿瘤的发生。现对这两个泛素连接酶复合物的结构以及它们在细胞周期调控和肿瘤发生机制中的作用进行综述。     

The Quaternary Structure of NADPH Thioredoxin Reductase C Is Redox-Sensitive

NADPH thioredoxin reductase C （NTRC） is a chloroplast enzyme able to conjugate NADPH thioredoxin reductase （NTR） and thioredoxin （TRX） activities for the efficient reduction of 2-Cys peroxiredoxin （2-Cys PRX）. Because NADPH can be produced in chloroplasts during darkness, NTRC plays a key role for plant peroxide detoxification during the night. Here, it is shown that the quaternary structure of NTRC is highly dependent on its redox status. In vitro, most of the enzyme adopted an oligomeric state that disaggregated in dimers upon addition of NADPH, NADH, or DTT. Gel filtration and Western blot analysis of protein extracts from Arabidopsis chloroplast stroma showed that native NTRC forms aggregates, which are sensitive to NADPH and DTT, suggesting that the aggregation state might be a significant aspect of NTRC activity in vivo. Moreover, the enzyme is localized in clusters in Arabidopsis chloroplasts. NTRC triple and double mutants, A164G- V182E-R183F and A164G-R183F, replacing key residues of NADPH binding site, showed reduced activity but were still able to dimerize though with an increase in intermediary forms. Based on these results, we propose that the catalytically active form of NTRC is the dimer, which formation is induced by NADPH.     

鲎C因子的性质、结构、功能及应用

鲎C因子是一种分子量为123kD的丝氨酸蛋白酶原,主要由六种结构域构成,能特异地结合内毒素分子而被激活。在内毒素的检测,抗内毒素治疗,去除生物制品中污染的内毒素,以及在抗微生物作用中有多种潜在的应用价值 。     

Structure and activity of C1r and C1s

During activation of the first component of the classical complement pathway the two zymogen subcomponents, C1r and C1s are converted to active proteolytic enzymes. Activated C1r cleaves C1s which then becomes the activator of C4 and C2. Amino acid sequence studies of the proteolytic chains of C1r and C1s, carried out in Oxford and Aberdeen respectively, have shown that they belong to the serine proteinase family. Modelling of these sequences to the three-dimensional coordinates of chymotrypsin (Birktoft & Blow 1972) reveals that both molecules have a conserved structural core, and that most of the differences lie in the external loops. Catalytically functional residues (Ile-16, His-57, Asp-102, Ser-195) are conserved, and residue 189 is aspartic acid, consistent with the known trypsin-like specificity of cleavage. Examination of the amino acid sequences of C4a, and comparison with those of the homologous molecules C3a and C5a, shows that there is a marked difference in the distribution of basic residues near the C-terminal arginine residue which is the site of action of C1s. When these amino acid sequences are modelled to the coordinates of C3a (Huber et al. 1980) and docked to the active site of C1s, the basic residues of C4a appear to interact with two glutamate residues peculiar to C1s, suggesting that this interaction may contribute to the ability of C1s to discriminate C4 from C3 and C5.     

Crystal Structure of Human Carbonic Anhydrase C

The three dimensional structure of human carbonic anhydrase C has been determined at 2.0 Å resolution. The active site has been identified by the binding of inhibitors and the location of the zinc ion.     

Structure and function of clostridial phospholipases C

A range of clostridial species produce phospholipases C. The zinc metallo phospholipases C have related sequences but different properties. All of these enzymes may be arranged, like alpha-toxin as two-domain proteins. Differences in enzymatic, haemolytic and toxic properties may be explained by differences in amino acids at key positions.     

Structure of C protein purified from cardiac muscle

C protein is a component of the thick filament of striated muscles. Although the function of C protein remains unknown, a variety of evidence suggests that C protein may regulate actin-myosin interaction or be involved in structural support or elasticity of the sarcomere. We have previously proposed (Hartzell, H. C., 1984, J. Gen. Physiol., 83:563-588) that C protein is involved in regulating twitch relaxation in cardiac muscle. To gain further insight into the function of C protein, we have studied the structure of C protein purified from chicken heart. C protein was purified from extracts of detergent-washed myofibrils by sequential hydroxylapatite and DEAE-Sephacel chromatography. C protein was judged greater than 95% pure by SDS PAGE. The polypeptide subunit had a molecular weight of 155,000 and the native molecule sedimented on linear sucrose or glycerol gradients at 4-5S. For electron microscopy, purified C protein was dialyzed and diluted into a volatile buffer in 50% glycerol, aspirated onto mica, dried under vacuum, and rotary platinum-shadowed. Replicas revealed particles of relatively homogeneous overall dimensions. Over half of the particles were V-shaped. The "arm" lengths of the V-shaped particles were 22 +/- 4.5 nm (SD). Gel filtration on Sephacryl S-300 demonstrated that purified C protein had a Stokes' radius of 5.07 nm. Measurements of viscosity gave an intrinsic viscosity of 16.5 cm3/g. These data are consistent with the electron microscopic data and suggest that C protein in heart muscle is asymmetric. The C protein molecule is large enough to extend from the surface of a thick filament to adjacent thin or thick filaments.     

Structure of the horseradish peroxidase isozyme C genes

We have isolated, cloned and characterized three cDNAs and two genomic DNAs corresponding to the mRNAs and genes for the horseradish (Armoracia rusticana) peroxidase isoenzyme C (HPR C). The amino acid sequence of HRP C1, deduced from the nucleotide sequence of one of the cDNA clone, pSK1, contained the same primary sequence as that of the purified enzyme established by Welinder [FEBS Lett. 72, 19-23 (1976)] with additional sequences at the N and C terminal. All three inserts in the cDNA clones, pSK1, pSK2 and pSK3, coded the same size of peptide (308 amino acid residues) if these are processed in the same way, and the amino acid sequence were homologous to each other by 91-94%. Functional amino acids, including His40, His170, Tyr185 and Arg183 and S-S-bond-forming Cys, were conserved in the three isozymes, but a few N-glycosylation sites were not the same. Two HRP C isoenzyme genomic genes, prxC1 and prxC2, were tandem on the chromosomal DNA and each gene consisted of four exons and three introns. The positions in the exons interrupted by introns were the same in two genes. We observed a putative promoter sequence 5' upstream and a poly(A) signal 3' downstream in both genes. The gene product of prxC1 might be processed with a signal sequence of 30 amino acid residues at the N terminus and a peptide consisting of 15 amino acid residues at the C terminus.     

Structure and organization of the C4 genes

This 200 000 Mr serum protein is coded for by at least two separate loci, C4A and C4B, which map in the HLA Class III region on chromosome 6 in man. Both loci are highly polymorphic with more than 30 alleles, including null alleles assigned to the two loci. The complete nucleotide sequence of a full length C4A cDNA clone and a substantial part of a C4b cDNA clone has shown class differences which can be used to synthesize nucleotide probes specific for C4A and C4B. Three C4 loci of approximately 16 kilobases each spaced by 10 kilobases have been identified in DNA from one individual and aligned 30 kilobases from the factor B gene by overlapping cloned genomic fragments from a cosmid library. Characterization of these genes by restriction mapping, nucleotide sequence analysis and hybridization with C4A and C4B specific synthetic oligonucleotides show that these genes are very similar.     

丙型肝炎病毒基因组结构及功能

丙型肝炎病毒（hepatitis C virus, HCV）是单股正链的RNA 病毒,全长为9.6 kb,包括1个大的开放阅读框（ORF）和两侧的5′,3′非编码区（UTRs）.核糖体通过进入HCV 5′UTR 端的内部核糖体进入位点（IRES）,将HCV基因组翻译成1个聚蛋白前体.前体聚蛋白被宿主和病毒的蛋白酶共同切割成为若干个具有独立功能的HCV蛋白,根据功能的不同分别命名为C、E1、E2、p7、NS2、NS3、NS4A、NS4B、NS5A 和NS5B,它们不但在HCV的生活史中发挥着重要的作用,也影响着宿主细胞的信号传导、凋亡及物质代谢等一系列生化过程.近年来,随着HCV体外细胞摸型的不断发展,其病毒分子生物学方面的研究取得了很大的进展.本文从基因组结构及其编码的蛋白功能等方面阐述了HCV病毒的研究进展,为致病机理的研究及抗HCV药物的开发和疫苗研制等提供理论基础.