2,3-Bisphosphoglycerate protects mitochondrial and cytosolic proteins from proteolytic inactivation

2,3-bisphosphoglycerate at physiological concentration similar to that found in many tissues protects effectively ornithine transcarbamoylase (OTC) from proteolytic inactivation by broken lysosomes. 2,3-bisphosphoglycerate protects also many other mitochondrial and cytosolic proteins, such as glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) an glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), from proteolysis by broken lysosomes and other proteases. It is, thus, suggested that 2,3-bisphosphoglycerate may play an important role in the control of the degradative rates of some proteins, which may explain its high concentration in certain cells.     

Protein and lipid disturbances in rat liver microsomal membranes after bile duct ligation

An analysis of proteins, phospholipids and cholesterol from liver microsomal membranes was performed in normal and post-cholestatic rats. Bile duct ligated rats showed a progressive decrease of these membrane constituents. Minor changes in peptide analysis, a marked decrease of phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylinositol, disappearance of phosphatidylethanolamine and sphingomyelin, and a clear increment of phosphatidylserine was observed in post-cholestatic as compared to normal group. It was concluded that extra-hepatic cholestasis produces structural changes on the liver microsomes, particularly on phospholipid profile.     

Effects of chronic allopurinol therapy on purine metabolism in Duchenne muscular dystrophy

Adenine, adenosine, inosine, hypoxanthine, xanthosine, xanthine, guanine and guanosine blood levels in 11 Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients treated with allopurinol, 10 untreated patients and 8 healthy controls, were determined by HPLC. Serum ADA, PNP and 5'-NT were also determined. Untreated patients showed lower adenine (p less than 0.001) and higher adenosine, xanthine, ADA and PNP levels (p less than 0.01) than controls. Treated patients had lower adenine and higher xanthine levels (p less than 0.001), but higher hypoxanthine, xanthosine and guanine levels (p less than 0.001), than controls, with normal ADA and PNP. The changes observed in ADA and PNP levels suggest an involvement of these enzymes in accelerated degradation of purines in Duchenne dystrophy.     

Cardiac glycosides stimulate phospholipase C activity in rat pinealocytes

Ouabain and related cardiac glycosides stimulate phospholipase C activity 5-fold in rat pinealocytes. The combined treatment of ouabain and norepinephrine, which also stimulates phospholipase C, produces an additive effect. The effects of either ouabain or norepinephrine are blocked by EGTA. However, there are notable differences. The stimulatory effect of ouabain is lost when extracellular Na+ is reduced to 20 mM and is not blocked by prazosin. In contrast, the stimulatory effect of norepinephrine is not blocked when extracellular Na+ is reduced to 20 mM but is blocked by prazosin. Ouabain appears to increase phospholipase C activity through a mechanism involving inhibition of Na+,K+-ATPase, and an accumulation of intracellular Na+ and Ca2+, not involving alpha 1-adrenoceptors. These findings raise the possibility that activation of phospholipase C might be a more general effect of cardiac glycosides.     

Apocytochrome-c competes with pre-ornithine carbamoyl transferase for transport into mitochondria

Apocytochrome c, the cytosolic precursor of cytochrome c, competes with the precursor of ornithine carbamoyltransferase (OCT) for entry into isolated rat liver mitochondria.     

Biochemical indicators of water stress in sunflower seedlings

The free proline and chlorophyll contents, and the chlorophyllase, peroxidase and nitrate-reductase activities were determined in sunflower seedlings grown under controlled conditions and submitted to water stress induced by 14 % polyethyleneglycolj (M_r = 4000) or isotonic NaCl solution. Combined free proline content and peroxidase activity may be used for detection of the factor inducing water stress.     

Limited proteolysis reveals low-affinity binding of N-acetyl-L-glutamate to rat-liver carbamoyl-phosphate synthetase (ammonia)

Carbamoyl-phosphate synthetase was inactivated by elastase with first-order kinetics, and N-acetyl-L-glutamate speeded inactivation. From the dependence of the t1/2 value for inactivation on the concentration of acetylglutamate we estimate a Kd value for binding of the activator of 0.365 mM, which is approximately 600 times greater than in the presence of ATP, HCO3-, K+ and Mg2+. K+ and Mg2+ are not required for binding with low affinity, and in the absence of ATP they do not appear to increase the affinity for acetylglutamate. In the presence of acetylglutamate, mixtures of ATP, K+ and Mg2+ protect the enzyme from inactivation. ADP or AdoPP[NH]P partly replaced ATP in protecting the enzyme and thus binding of the nucleotide without further reaction is enough for protection. Two partial activities of the enzyme were inactivated by elastase to the same extent as the overall reaction, and thus elastase affects some property of the enzyme which is essential for catalysis. With other proteinases tested, inactivation was also accelerated by acetylglutamate and was slowed by mixtures of ATP, K+, Mg2+ and acetylglutamate, suggesting that changes in the accessibility of susceptible bonds are responsible for the changes in the degree of inactivation. It is concluded that elastase attacks at or close to the binding sites for ATP, and that exposure of the binding site for the ATP molecule that yields Pi (ATPA) upon binding of acetylglutamate causes the acceleration of the proteolytic inactivation.     

To produce many small or few large eggs: a size-independent reproductive tactic of fish

Summary We demonstrate here the existence of a range of size-independent reproductive tactics in teleostean fish involving the allocation of a size-dependent reproductive effort between fecundity and egg size. Despite considerable evidence that larger eggs and the larvae hatching from them are more likely to survive than smaller ones, we found no evidence of evolutionary trends towards greater egg sizes. Fish with pelagic eggs tend to spawn many, and therefore small, eggs, whereas demersal spawners tend to produce large, and therefore few, eggs. Maximizing egg number should increase the number of eggs hatching in suitable locations in the patchy pelagic environment and, hence, increase the reproductive success of pelagic spawners. On the other hand, the reproductive success of demersal spawners, which reduce the variance in growing conditions experienced by the off spring, should be more dependent on the survival of the individual larvae, which increases as egg size increases.     

Salinity and germination of annual Melilotus from the Guadalquivir delta (SW Spain)

The germination response to NaCl treatments has been studied in Melilotus seed populations collected from saline and non-saline soils in the Guadalquivir delta. The rank orders for salt tolerance and seed weight were the same in the threeMelilotus species living in this area:Melilotus messanensis>M. segetalis>M. indica. Within the species, differences in germination response to salinity were found inM. indica (6 populations) andM. segetalis (8 populations). The relationship between salt tolerance during germination and salinity of maternal habitat is discussed.