Spatial relationship between cytochrome a and a3

We have studied the spatial relationship between cytochromes a and a3 by the enhancement of the spin relaxation of cytochrome a3-NO EPR signals by the paramagnetic a heme at 15 K. An Fe-Fe distance of 12-19A is estimated from the absence of dipolar broadening and from the observation of spin relaxation enhancement in the a3-NO complex. When this result is combined with resonance x-ray diffraction data reported by Blasie et al. (Blasie, J. K., Pachence, J. M., Tavormina, A., Dutton, P. L., Stamatoff, J., Eisenberger, P., and Brown, G. (1982) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 679, 188-197) and the contribution from the exchange interaction is considered, we can limit the iron-iron distance to 12-16 A and estimate the angle between the Fe-Fe vector and mitochondrial membrane normal as 30-60 degrees. We also consider the possible effects of CuA on cytochrome a3-NO.     

Endochondral ossification of costal cartilage is arrested after chondrocytes have reached hypertrophic stage of late differentiation

Late cartilage differentiation during endochondral bone formation is a multistep process. Chondrocytes transit through a differentiation cascade under the direction of environmental signals that either stimulate or repress progression from one step to the next. In human costal cartilage, chondrocytes reach very advanced stages of late differentiation and express collagen X. However, remodeling of the tissue into bone is strongly repressed. The second hypertrophy marker, alkaline phosphatase, is not expressed before puberty. Upon sexual maturity, both alkaline phosphatase and collagen X activity levels are increased and slow ossification takes place. Thus, the expression of the two hypertrophy markers is widely separated in time in costal cartilage. Progression of endochondral ossification in this tissue beyond the stage of hypertrophic cartilage appears to be associated with the expression of alkaline phosphatase activity. Costal chondrocytes in culture are stimulated by parathyroid hormone in a PTH/PTHrP receptor-mediated manner to express the fully differentiated hypertrophic phenotype. In addition, the hormone stimulates hypertrophic development even more powerfully through its carboxyterminal domain, presumably by interaction with receptors distinct from PTH/PTHrP receptors. Therefore, PTH can support late cartilage differentiation at very advanced stages, whereas the same signal negatively controls the process at earlier stages.