Inhibition of fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase by fructose 2,6-bisphosphate

Rat liver fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase, which was assayed by measuring the release of 32P from fructose 1,6-[1-32P]bisphosphate at pH 7.5, exhibited hyperbolic kinetics with regard to its substrate. beta-D-Fructose 2,6-bisphosphate, an activator of hepatic phosphofructokinase, was found to be a potent inhibitor of the enzyme. The inhibition was competitive in nature and the Ki was estimated to be 0.5 microM. The Hill coefficient for the reaction was 1.0 in the presence and absence of fructose 2,6-bisphosphate. Fructose 2,6-bisphosphate also enhanced inhibition of the enzyme by the allosteric inhibitor AMP. The possible role of fructose 2,6-bisphosphate in the regulation of substrate cycling at the fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase step is discussed.     

Novel marine alkaloids from the tunicate Eudistoma sp. are potent regulators of cellular growth and differentiation and affect cAMP-mediated processes

Six novel alkaloids that contain a fused tetracyclic pyrido[2,3,4-kl]acridine ring system were purified recently from the Red Sea purple tunicate Eudistoma sp. Evaluation of the effects of these alkaloids on cultured neuroblastoma and fibroblast cells revealed that they possess potent growth regulatory properties, and affect cell shape and adhesion. In mouse neuroblastoma cells, the Eudistoma alkaloids inhibited cell proliferation and induced a process of differentiation during which the cels flattened onto the surface, increased considerably in size, and extended long neurites. In hamster fibroblasts the alkaloids slowed down cell multiplication, and caused an exceptional cell flattening or elongation. In a virustransformed derivative of the hamster fibroblasts the alkaloids restored many aspects of normal cell growth and morphology. In addition, several of the alkaloids mimicked the effects of cAMP analogs on two well-characterized cAMP-mediated processes involved in hepatic glucose metabolism–inhibition of pyruvate kinase (PK) activity and induction of mRNA for phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase (PEPCK). All these effects suggest that the Eudistoma alkaloids may act on the cAMP signaling system. However, a single application of these compounds was sufficient to completely block cell multiplication and to induce and sustain differentiation and “reverse transformation”. Furthermore, these effects were not readily reversible following removal of the drugs. In contrast, a single application of agents that mimic or elevate cAMP induced a transient response that waned with time in culture, and the effects induced by constant elevation of cAMP reverse rapidly following drug removal. We propose that the Eudistoma alkaloids cause growth inhibition, differentiation, and reverse transformation by modifying the activity state of proteins that are involved in the regulation of cell shape and adhesion and serve as a target for the cAMP and/or other second messenger systems. © 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Endotoxin-induced alterations in hepatic glucose-6-phosphatase activity and gene expression

The mechanisms responsible for the glycemic changes associated with endotoxic shock are not fully understood, but are known to involve the ability of the liver to produce glucose. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether endotoxin (LPS) influences the expression and activity of glucose-6-phosphatase (Glu-6-Pase) during the early hyperglycemic phase and the later hypoglycemic phase. Rats were injected with a relatively large dose of LPS (20 mg/kg) or saline (control), and sacrificed at 1 or 5 h post-injection. Both the plasma glucose concentration and glucose production were elevated 1 h post-LPS (2-fold) and both decreased at 5 h postinjection (50%). Compared to time-matched control values, hepatic glucose-6-phosphate and fructose-6-phosphate levels were significantly decreased at both 1 and 5 h. Hepatic Glu-6-Pase activity and mRNA levels were moderately increased, 1 h after injection of LPS. At 5 h, an 88% decrease in mRNA abundance for Glu-6-Pase was associated with a 30% decrease in activity of this enzyme. Plasma insulin concentrations were not different 1 h after LPS and were elevated 2-fold from control values at 5 h. Circulating levels of glucagon and corticosterone were elevated at both time points following LPS. Our data indicate that the LPS-induced hypoglycemia and reduction in hepatic glucose production were accompanied by a depression in Glu-6-Pase activity and gene expression.     

Expression of mammalian liver glycolytic/ gluconeogenic enzymes in Escherichia coli: Recovery of active enzyme is strain and temperature dependent

A number of mammalian enzymes have been expressed in Escherichia coli using the T7 RNA polymerase system, but the production of large amounts of these proteins has been limited by the low percentage of active enzyme that is found in the soluble fraction. In this report the effect of induction temperature was tested on the recovery of four rat liver enzymes, 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase/fructose-2,6- bisphosphatase, fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase, glucokinase, and fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase. We also tested the effect using a host cell strain that contains a plasmid encoding T7 lysozyme, an inhibitor of T7 RNA polymerase. Large amounts of the first three enzymes accumulated in the cells after 4 h of induction at 37 degrees C, but only about 1-2% of the total expressed proteins were recovered in a soluble, active form. When the induction was carried out at 22 degrees C for 48 h with the pLysS strain, 20- to 30-fold higher amounts of the active expressed enzymes were recovered in the soluble fraction, even though the total accumulation and the rate of synthesis of these proteins were reduced. The optimal concentration of isopropyl-1-thio-beta-D-galactopyranoside required for induction was the same at both temperatures. On the other hand, the recovery of active fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase, a heat-stable enzyme, was 66% at 37 degrees C and was essentially unchanged at an induction temperature of 22 degrees C. Lowered induction temperature would appear to be of utility for enhanced recovery of active mammalian enzymes which are insoluble in E. coli cytosol at 37 degrees C.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Improving model construction of profile HMMs for remote homology detection through structural alignment

Background  

Remote homology detection is a challenging problem in Bioinformatics. Arguably, profile Hidden Markov Models (pHMMs) are one of the most successful approaches in addressing this important problem. pHMM packages present a relatively small computational cost, and perform particularly well at recognizing remote homologies. This raises the question of whether structural alignments could impact the performance of pHMMs trained from proteins in the Twilight Zone, as structural alignments are often more accurate than sequence alignments at identifying motifs and functional residues. Next, we assess the impact of using structural alignments in pHMM performance.     

Exercise training in childhood-onset systemic lupus erythematosus: a controlled randomized trial

Introduction

Exercise training has emerged as a promising therapeutic strategy to counteract physical dysfunction in adult systemic lupus erythematosus. However, no longitudinal studies have evaluated the effects of an exercise training program in childhood-onset systemic lupus erythematosus (C-SLE) patients. The objective was to evaluate the safety and the efficacy of a supervised aerobic training program in improving the cardiorespiratory capacity in C-SLE patients.

Methods

Nineteen physically inactive C-SLE patients were randomly assigned into two groups: trained (TR, n = 10, supervised moderate-intensity aerobic exercise program) and non-trained (NT, n = 9). Gender-, body mass index (BMI)- and age-matched healthy children were recruited as controls (C, n = 10) for baseline (PRE) measurements only. C-SLE patients were assessed at PRE and after 12 weeks of training (POST). Main measurements included exercise tolerance and cardiorespiratory measurements in response to a maximal exercise (that is, peak VO₂, chronotropic reserve (CR), and the heart rate recovery (ΔHRR) (that is, the difference between HR at peak exercise and at both the first (ΔHRR1) and second (ΔHRR2) minutes of recovery after exercise).

Results

The C-SLE NT patients did not present changes in any of the cardiorespiratory parameters at POST (P > 0.05). In contrast, the exercise training program was effective in promoting significant increases in time-to-exhaustion (P = 0.01; ES = 1.07), peak speed (P = 0.01; ES = 1.08), peak VO₂ (P = 0.04; ES = 0.86), CR (P = 0.06; ES = 0.83), and in ΔHRR1 and ΔHRR2 (P = 0.003; ES = 1.29 and P = 0.0008; ES = 1.36, respectively) in the C-SLE TR when compared with the NT group. Moreover, cardiorespiratory parameters were comparable between C-SLE TR patients and C subjects after the exercise training intervention, as evidenced by the ANOVA analysis (P > 0.05, TR vs. C). SLEDAI-2K scores remained stable throughout the study.

Conclusion

A 3-month aerobic exercise training was safe and capable of ameliorating the cardiorespiratory capacity and the autonomic function in C-SLE patients.

Trial registration

NCT01515163.