Relationship between 1-aminocyclopropanecarboxylate malonyltransferase and D-amino acid malonyltransferase

An enzyme preparation isolated from mungbean hypocotyls catalyses the malonyl-CoA-dependent N-malonylation of 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC), D-phenylalanine (Phe), D-methionine and 2-aminoisobutyric acid with K_m values of 0.15, 0.8, 3.4 and 5.1 mM, respectively L-enantiomers of Phe and methionine were, however, not malonylated by the enzyme preparation. When ACC was tested on D-Phe malonyltransferase activity, or when D-Phe was tested on ACC malonyltransferase activity, these compounds exhibited competitive inhibition kinetics with K_i values similar to their respective K_m values. Such a relationship suggests that malonylations of ACC and D-amino acids are catalysed by the same enzyme. This view was further supported by the observations that the ratio ACC-D-Phe malonyltransferase activities remained constant throughout various fractionation steps and both enzyme activities were inhibited similarly by various sulphydryl reagents and 1-aminocycloalkane-1-carboxylic acids.     

HeLa细胞的反式作用因子CTF／NF－1与其顺式作用元件的特异性作用

本文运用凝胶延迟反应（ＧｅｌＲｅｔａｒｄａｔｉｏｎＡｓｓａｙ）和足迹法（Ｆｏｏｔｐｒｉｎｔｉｎｇ）研究了ＨｅＬａ细胞核蛋白中的反式作用因子ＣＴＦ／ＮＦ－１与其对应的顺式作用元件的特异性作用。研究结果表明ＨｅＬａ细胞的ＣＴＦ／ＮＦ－１包含有不同分子量的组分,它们均能特异性结合于特异位点ＡＴＡＴＴＧＧＣＴＴＣＡＡＧＣＣＡＡＡＡＴＧＧＡ序列,形成至少５种不同分子量形式的因子－元件复合物。这一结果对阐明ＣＴＦ／ＮＦ－１复杂多样的调控机制及其组成种类有重要意义。此外,本文还建立了一种制备核蛋白提取物的新方法,有效地解决了因反式作用因子含量极低带来的研究上的困难。     

Tumor suppressor protein DAB2IP participates in chromosomal stability maintenance through activating spindle assembly checkpoint and stabilizing kinetochore-microtubule attachments

Defects in kinetochore-microtubule (KT-MT) attachment and the spindle assembly checkpoint (SAC) during cell division are strongly associated with chromosomal instability (CIN). CIN has been linked to carcinogenesis, metastasis, poor prognosis and resistance to cancer therapy. We previously reported that the DAB2IP is a tumor suppressor, and that loss of DAB2IP is often detected in advanced prostate cancer (PCa) and is indicative of poor prognosis. Here, we report that the loss of DAB2IP results in impaired KT-MT attachment, compromised SAC and aberrant chromosomal segregation. We discovered that DAB2IP directly interacts with Plk1 and its loss inhibits Plk1 kinase activity, thereby impairing Plk1-mediated BubR1 phosphorylation. Loss of DAB2IP decreases the localization of BubR1 at the kinetochore during mitosis progression. In addition, the reconstitution of DAB2IP enhances the sensitivity of PCa cells to microtubule stabilizing drugs (paclitaxel, docetaxel) and Plk1 inhibitor (BI2536). Our findings demonstrate a novel function of DAB2IP in the maintenance of KT-MT structure and SAC regulation during mitosis which is essential for chromosomal stability.