Medical and Biomedical Researches

The transmembrane protein TMEM16A is required for normal development of the murine trachea.

July 3rd, 2008
The transmembrane protein TMEM16A is required for normal development of the murine trachea. Pathological collapsibility of the upper airways, caused by many different genetic and environmental insults, is known as tracheomalacia in humans. We determined that Tmem16a, a member of an evolutionarily conserved family of predicted ...

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cis-Regulatory sequences driving the expression of the Hbox12 homeobox-containing gene in the presum

July 3rd, 2008
cis-Regulatory sequences driving the expression of the Hbox12 homeobox-containing gene in the presumptive aboral ectoderm territory of the Paracentrotus lividus sea urchin embryo. Embryonic development is coordinated by networks of evolutionary conserved regulatory genes encoding transcription factors and components of cell signalling pathways. In the sea ...

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Compounds with the dioxopyrimidine cycle inhibit cholinesterases from different groups of animals.

July 3rd, 2008
Compounds with the dioxopyrimidine cycle inhibit cholinesterases from different groups of animals. We firstly synthesized derivatives of 6-methyluracil, alloxazine, and xanthine, containing omega-tetraalkylammonium (TAA) groups at the N(1) and N(3) atoms in a pyrimidine cycle and assayed their anticholinesterase activities. Compounds with triethylpentylammoniumalkyl groups behaved as ...

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Differential changes in mGlu2 and mGlu3 gene expression following pilocarpine-induced status epilept

July 3rd, 2008
Differential changes in mGlu2 and mGlu3 gene expression following pilocarpine-induced status epilepticus: A comparative real-time PCR analysis. Group II metabotropic glutamate (mGlu II) receptors subtype 2 and 3 (mGlu2 and mGlu3) are subtle regulators of neuronal excitability and synaptic plasticity in the hippocampus. In recent years, ...

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Spontaneous and BSE-prion-seeded amyloid formation of full length recombinant bovine prion protein.

July 3rd, 2008
Spontaneous and BSE-prion-seeded amyloid formation of full length recombinant bovine prion protein. The conversion of the cellular isoform of the prion protein into the pathogenic isoform PrP(Sc) is the key event in prion diseases. The disease can occur spontaneously genetically or by infection. In earlier studies ...

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Rational design, solution conformation and identification of functional residues of the soluble and

July 3rd, 2008
Rational design, solution conformation and identification of functional residues of the soluble and structured Nogo-54, which mimics Nogo-66 in inhibiting the CNS neurite outgrowth. The interaction between Nogo-66 and its receptor NgR represents a promising target for designing drugs to treat CNS axonal injury which often ...

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The cytoplasmic C2A domain of synaptotagmin shows sequence specific interaction with its own mRNA.

July 3rd, 2008
The cytoplasmic C2A domain of synaptotagmin shows sequence specific interaction with its own mRNA. Synaptotagmin-1 (Syt1) is essential in Ca(2+)-dependent neurotransmitter release, but its expression regulation is unknown. Here we report that the cytoplasmic Syt1 fragment forms ribonucleoprotein complex by interacting with the 3\' untranslated region ...

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Nrf2 regulates the alternative first exons of CD36 in macrophages through specific antioxidant respo

July 3rd, 2008
Nrf2 regulates the alternative first exons of CD36 in macrophages through specific antioxidant response elements. We previously demonstrated that Nrf2 regulates oxidized LDL-mediated CD36 expression in macrophages. The current study aimed to determine the mechanism of Nrf2-mediated macrophage CD36 induction. Treatment with the Nrf2 activator diethylmaleate, ...

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Dimethyl sulfoxide-induced hydroxyapatite formation: A biological model of matrix vesicle nucleation

July 3rd, 2008
Dimethyl sulfoxide-induced hydroxyapatite formation: A biological model of matrix vesicle nucleation to screen inhibitors of mineralization. To elucidate the inhibition mechanisms of hydroxyapatite (HA), a biological model mimicking the mineralization process was developed. The addition of 4% (v/v) dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) in synthetic cartilage lymph (SCL) ...

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Investigation of subcellular acidic compartments using alpha-aminophosphonate (31)P nuclear magnetic

July 3rd, 2008
Investigation of subcellular acidic compartments using alpha-aminophosphonate (31)P nuclear magnetic resonance probes. The (31)P nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) characteristics, toxicity, and cellular penetration of five linear or cyclic alpha-aminophosphonate highly sensitive pH probes were investigated in Dictyostelium discoideum cells and isolated rat hearts and were compared ...

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Conjugated autoxidizable triene assay: A novel spectrophotometric method for determination of antiox

July 3rd, 2008
Conjugated autoxidizable triene assay: A novel spectrophotometric method for determination of antioxidant capacity using triacylglycerol as ultraviolet probe. Described here is a novel spectrophotometric method for estimating antioxidant capacity in a 96-well microplate using as UV probes the conjugated triene triacylglycerols (TAGs) naturally present in tung ...

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Analysis of homeodomain specificities allows the family-wide prediction of preferred recognition sit

July 3rd, 2008
Analysis of homeodomain specificities allows the family-wide prediction of preferred recognition sites. We describe the comprehensive characterization of homeodomain DNA-binding specificities from a metazoan genome. The analysis of all 84 independent homeodomains from D. melanogaster reveals the breadth of DNA sequences that can be specified by ...

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Variation in homeodomain DNA binding revealed by high-resolution analysis of sequence preferences.

July 3rd, 2008
Variation in homeodomain DNA binding revealed by high-resolution analysis of sequence preferences. Most homeodomains are unique within a genome, yet many are highly conserved across vast evolutionary distances, implying strong selection on their precise DNA-binding specificities. We determined the binding preferences of the majority (168) of ...

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Activation of pheromone-sensitive neurons is mediated by conformational activation of pheromone-bind

July 3rd, 2008
Activation of pheromone-sensitive neurons is mediated by conformational activation of pheromone-binding protein. Detection of volatile odorants by olfactory neurons is thought to result from direct activation of seven-transmembrane odorant receptors by odor molecules. Here, we show that detection of the Drosophila pheromone, 11-cis vaccenyl acetate (cVA), ...

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DSCAM is a netrin receptor that collaborates with DCC in mediating turning responses to netrin-1.

July 3rd, 2008
DSCAM is a netrin receptor that collaborates with DCC in mediating turning responses to netrin-1. During nervous system development, spinal commissural axons project toward and across the ventral midline. They are guided in part by netrin-1, made by midline cells, which attracts the axons by activating ...

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Mechanism of local and global Ca2+ sensing by calmodulin in complex with a Ca2+ channel.

July 3rd, 2008
Mechanism of local and global Ca2+ sensing by calmodulin in complex with a Ca2+ channel. Calmodulin (CaM) in complex with Ca(2+) channels constitutes a prototype for Ca(2+) sensors that are intimately colocalized with Ca(2+) sources. The C-lobe of CaM senses local, large Ca(2+) oscillations due to ...

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Nanoscale organization of hedgehog is essential for long-range signaling.

July 3rd, 2008
Nanoscale organization of hedgehog is essential for long-range signaling. Hedgehog (Hh) plays crucial roles in tissue-patterning and activates signaling in Patched (Ptc)-expressing cells. Paracrine signaling requires release and transport over many cell diameters away by a process that requires interaction with heparan sulfate proteoglycans (HSPGs). Here, ...

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The structural basis for activation of the Rab Ypt1p by the TRAPP membrane-tethering complexes.

July 3rd, 2008
The structural basis for activation of the Rab Ypt1p by the TRAPP membrane-tethering complexes. The multimeric membrane-tethering complexes TRAPPI and TRAPPII share seven subunits, of which four (Bet3p, Bet5p, Trs23p, and Trs31p) are minimally needed to activate the Rab GTPase Ypt1p in an event preceding membrane ...

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Meiotic chromosomes move by linkage to dynamic actin cables with transduction of force through the n

July 3rd, 2008
Meiotic chromosomes move by linkage to dynamic actin cables with transduction of force through the nuclear envelope. Chromosome movement is prominent during meiosis. Here, using a combination of in vitro and in vivo approaches, we elucidate the basis for dynamic mid-prophase telomere-led chromosome motion in budding ...

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Rapid telomere movement in meiotic prophase is promoted by NDJ1, MPS3, and CSM4 and is modulated by

July 3rd, 2008
Rapid telomere movement in meiotic prophase is promoted by NDJ1, MPS3, and CSM4 and is modulated by recombination. Haploidization of the genome in meiosis requires that chromosomes be sorted exclusively into pairs stabilized by synaptonemal complexes (SCs) and crossovers. This sorting and pairing is accompanied by ...

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Ronin is essential for embryogenesis and the pluripotency of mouse embryonic stem cells.

July 3rd, 2008
Ronin is essential for embryogenesis and the pluripotency of mouse embryonic stem cells. Pluripotency is a unique biological state that allows cells to differentiate into any tissue type. Here we describe a candidate pluripotency factor, Ronin, that possesses a THAP domain, which is associated with sequence-specific ...

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A polymorphism in CALHM1 influences Ca2+ homeostasis, Abeta levels, and Alzheimer’s disease risk.

July 3rd, 2008
A polymorphism in CALHM1 influences Ca2+ homeostasis, Abeta levels, and Alzheimer\'s disease risk. Alzheimer\'s disease (AD) is a genetically heterogeneous disorder characterized by early hippocampal atrophy and cerebral amyloid-beta (Abeta) peptide deposition. Using TissueInfo to screen for genes preferentially expressed in the hippocampus and located in ...

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The colorful history of active DNA demethylation.

July 3rd, 2008
The colorful history of active DNA demethylation. Patterns of DNA cytosine methylation are subject to mitotic inheritance in both plants and vertebrates. Plants use 5-methylcytosine glycosylases and the base excision repair pathway to remove excess cytosine methylation. In mammals, active demethylation has been proposed to operate ...

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Team effort by TRAPP forces a nucleotide fumble.

July 3rd, 2008
Team effort by TRAPP forces a nucleotide fumble. TRAPPI is a multisubunit protein complex on the Golgi that activates the small GTPase Ypt1p to facilitate the receipt of transport vesicles inbound from the endoplasmic reticulum. Cai et al. (2008) now present structural and biochemical analyses of ...

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Hedgehog nanopackages ready for dispatch.

July 3rd, 2008
Hedgehog nanopackages ready for dispatch. Hedgehog proteins are intercellular long-range signaling molecules that spread within tissues and activate gene expression during development. Vyas et al. (2008) propose that Hedgehog forms nanometer-sized oligomers that localize in proteoglycan-rich clusters at the surface of cells expressing Hedgehog. This nanoscale ...

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