The Alacoil: A very tight,antiparallel coiled-coil of helices

The Alacoil is an antiparallel (rather than the usual parallel) coiled-coil of α-helices with Ala or another small residue in every seventh position, allowing a very close spacing of the helices (7.5–8.5 Å between local helix axes), often over four or five helical turns. It occurs in two distinct types that differ by which position of the heptad repeat is occupied by Ala and by whether the closest points on the backbone of the two helices are aligned or are offset by half a turn. The aligned, or ROP, type has Ala in position “d” of the heptad repeat, which occupies the “tip-to-tip” side of the helix contact where the Cα–Cβ bonds point toward each other. The more common offset, or ferritin, type of Alacoil has Ala in position “a” of the heptad repeat (where the Cα-Cβ bonds lie back-to-back, on the “knuckle-touch” side of the helix contact), and the backbones of the two helices are offset vertically by half a turn. In both forms, successive layers of contact have the Ala first on one and then on the other helix. The Alacoil structure has much in common with the coiled-coils of fibrous proteins or leucine zippers: both are α-helical coiled-coils, with a critical amino acid repeated every seven residues (the Leu or the Ala) and a secondary contact position in between. However, Leu zippers are between aligned, parallel helices (often identical, in dimers), whereas Alacoils are between antiparallel helices, usually offset, and much closer together. The Alacoil, then, could be considered as an “Ala anti-zipper.” Leu zippers have a classic “knobs-into-holes” packing of the Leu side chain into a diamond of four residues on the opposite helix; for Alacoils, the helices are so close together that the Ala methyl group must choose one side of the diamond and pack inside a triangle of residues on the other helix. We have used the ferritin-type Alacoil as the basis for the de novo design of a 66-residue, coiled helix hairpin called “Alacoilin.” Its sequence is: cmSP DQWDKE A AQYDAHA QE FEKKS HRNng TPEA DQYRHM A SQY QAMA QK LKAIA NQLKK Gseter (with “a” heptad positions underlined and nonhelical parts in lowercase), which we will produce and test for both stability and uniqueness of structure.     

Inducible nitric oxide synthase and guinea-pig ileitis induced by adjuvant

We sought to establish a model of inflammatory bowel disease by augmenting the activity of the local immune system with Freund's complete adjuvant, and to determine if inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) expression and peroxynitrite formation accompanied the inflammatory condition. In anaesthetized guinea-pigs, a loop of distal ileum received intraluminal 50% ethanol followed by Freund's complete adjuvant. Control animals were sham operated. When the animals were killed 7 or 14 days later, loop lavage fluid was examined for nitrite and PGE(2) levels; mucosal levels of granulocyte and macrophages were estimated by myeloperoxidase (MPO) and N-acetyl-D-glucosaminidase (NAG) activity, respectively. Cellular localization if iNOS and peroxynitrite formation were determined by immunohistochemistry with polyclonal antibodies directed against peptide epitopes of mouse iNOS and nitrotyrosine, respectfully. Adjuvant administration resulted in a persistent ileitis, featuring gut thickening, crypt hyperplasia, villus tip swelling and disruption, and cellular infiltration. Lavage levels of PGE(2) and nitrite were markedly elevated by adjuvant treatment. Immunoreactive iNOS and nitrotyrosine bordered on detectability in normal animals but were markedly evident with adjuvant treatment at day 7 and particularly day 14. Immunohistochemistry suggested that enteric neurons and epithelia were major sites of iNOS activity and peroxynitrite formation. We conclude that local administration of adjuvant establishes a chronic ileitis. Inducible nitric oxide synthase may contribute to the inflammatory process.     

一种免受乙醇干扰的GOD的酶电极

将酶电极应用于发酵糖的测定时。与糖共存的乙醇常常会影响测糖的准确性,通过对葡萄糖氧化酶(GOD)电极的研究,探讨了乙醇对测糖酶电极测定影响,进而研制出抗干扰的GOD酶电极,若是GOD电极的酶膜通过夹心法制备．在乙醇含量为0．1％(V／V)时·即产生显著的影响,使测定结果偏大4．3%,且乙醇的影响随浓度的升高而增大,若用尼龙网固定GOD膜,GOD电极在测定20mmol／L和5mm01／L左右的葡萄糖溶液时,含量高达9％的乙醇仍未对测定产生显著的影响．表现出良好的不受乙醇干扰的特性,并且,该尼龙网GOD电极具有良好的重复性、稳定的响应活性及较长的保存期．     

河南新乡地区儿童头面部测量

本文对河南省新乡地区汉族儿童（４－１３岁）头面部进行了测量,比较和分析了儿童体质发育与年龄增长的关系,据儿童头面部各指数数值大小分型,确定该地区汉族儿童面部的形态为：圆头型、高头型、狭头型、狭面型、狭鼻型。     

Ca~（2＋）对叶绿素a／b钙结合蛋白波谱学特性的影响（Ⅱ）

用钙螯合亲和层析分离纯化得到的叶绿素ａ／ｂ钙结合蛋白,其荧光发射峰在６８０±１ｎｍ,钙结合后导致荧光发射峰强度降低。当再加入ＥＧＴＡ,螯合钙后,其荧光发射峰强度得以部分恢复。该蛋白在结合钙后,其圆二色谱也发生变化。这些结果表明该蛋白质的构象在结合钙后发生了变化。该蛋白质的荧光激发光谱在４４０ｎｍ和４７０ｎｍ处的激发峰表明此蛋白结合有叶绿素ａ和叶绿索ｂ。本文对叶绿素ａ／ｂ钙结合蛋白在光系统Ⅱ中的可能功能进行了讨论。     

裂褶菌多糖的构象研究

从裂褶菌中提取一水溶性多糖Sci.气相色谱,高碘酸盐氧比,甲基化分析等确定它为葡聚糖.1-3糖苷键构成其主链,平均三分之一的主链残基在6位带有分枝,红外光谱和三氧化铬氧化表明Scl全部残基为β构型,在不同的温度和不同的酸碱浓度状态下,检查糖链与刚果红形成络合物的能力以及Scl水溶液的粘度和旋光值.推测低温近中性Scl主要呈单股螺旋构象.升温或提高酸碱浓度导致有规则的螺旋构象转变成无规则的线团.高碘酸盐氧化去掉分枝则多股螺旋比例在构象中增加.     

PFP的研究进展

焦磷酸:果糖-6-磷酸1-磷酸转移酶(PFP)可催化果糖-6-磷酸与果糖-1,6-二磷酸间的可逆转变.该酶广泛存在于各种高等植物及一些微生物体内.文章综述了90年代以来有关PFP的一些研究进展.包括:PFP的种类与亚基构成、活性中心、底物特异性、酶活性的调节及功能等.     

人脑神经元特异性烯醇化酶的纯化方法

采用改良的Grace层析方法,经一次DEAE-Sephadex A50柱层析即从人脑中纯化了神经元特异性烯醇化酶,比活力为92.1U/mg,纯化倍数为59.4.该酶纯化后,经SDS-聚丙烯酰胺凝胶电泳鉴定为单一蛋白质谱带.此外,还测定了其部分理化性质,其亚单位分子量为45000,等电点pI为4.7,氨基酸组成分析表明其为一种酸性蛋白质;对2-磷酸甘油酸的K_m值为5.6×10^-4mol/L.