bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Sepsis begins at the interface of pathogen and host
Authors: Beutler B.
Published: January 2005

To the modern mind, the term ‘sepsis’ conjures up images of microbes. It is easy to forget that the word predates any understanding of the microbial origins of infectious disease. Derived from the Greek ‘sepsios’ (rotten), sepsis denotes decay: a phenomenon that humans once regarded as a mysterious though inevitable natural process. A living organism does not accept decay passively. Virtually all multicellular life forms are capable of resisting infection through the generation of a vigorous immune response. In mammals, the response is so stereotypic that it has come to define sepsis itself: it is often called the ‘septic syndrome’. Our current understanding of the innate immune system is deeply rooted in the study of sepsis. The chain of events linking infection to tissue injury and cardiovascular collapse is not obvious, and affirmation of the concept required three major discoveries. First, the septic syndrome was found to be caused by toxic products of microbes. Secondly, these toxic substances were found to be toxic because of their propensity to activate cells of the innate immune system, prompting cytokine production. Thirdly, the activating events initiated by microbial toxins were traced to members of an ancient family of defensive molecules, versions of which operate in virtually all multicellular life forms. In mammals, proteins of this family are now known as Toll-like receptors. They represent a point of direct contact, and first contact, between a pathogen and the host immune system.
AGC protein kinase phosphorylation and protein kinase C
Authors: Parker P. J. , Parkinson S. J.
Published: January 2005

Protein kinase cascades feature in many signal transduction pathways. For those discussed here, a single upstream protein kinase appears to be responsible for the control of multiple downstream targets. So how is specificity introduced into these events? For the downstream kinases (substrates) described here, it would appear that specificity is determined by substrate-directed events that are permissive for phosphorylation. There are also distinctions relating to the turnover of these phosphorylations providing a further element of specificity.
Role of Src in Signal Transduction Pathways
Authors: Courtneidge S. A.
Published: January 2005

Src was the first oncogene to be discovered, and the first protein tyrosine kinase. The study of how Src transforms cells has been a rich field that has lead to insights into the control of the cell cycle, the organization of the cytoskeleton, and growth factor-independent growth. Yet we still do not fully understand exactly what Src does. In normal cells, Src has been implicated in the control of cell division, the production of autocrine growth factors, the cell's survival response, as well as in cell motility. My laboratory has focused on the involvement of Src and related kinases in the response of cells to mitogenic growth factors. We have shown that the activity of Src kinases is necessary for cells to enter the cell cycle when treated with mitogens such as platelet-derived growth factor. Src activity initiates a signal transduction cascade, involving the adaptor protein She, which culminates in the transcriptional activation of the transcription factor Myc. Furthermore, we have also shown that this requirement for Src is abrogated in cells lacking the tumour suppressor p53, suggesting that another of Src's functions in normal cells is to suppress the actions of p53.
The regulatory design of an allosteric feedback loop: the effect of saturation by pathway substrate
Authors: Jan-Hendrik S. Hofmeyr , Olivier Brett G.
Published: January 2005

Aspects of metabolic regulation can be fruitfully studied with a combination of generic modelling, control analysis and graphical analysis using rate characteristics. This paper analyses a prototypical supply-demand system consisting of a biosynthetic subsystem subject to allosteric inhibition by its product and a demand process that consumes this product. The effect of changes in affinity of the committing supply enzyme for the pathway substrate on the regulatory properties of the supply subsystem is compared for the Monod-Wyman-Changeux and the reversible Hill allosteric enzyme models. We found that the Hill model has a distinct advantage in that the steady-state concentration at which it maintains the product is set by the half-saturating product concentration and is independent of changes in the degree of saturation for substrate. In contrast, with the Monod-Wyman-Changeux model this set point varies with affinity for substrate. Explicitly incorporating reversibility in all rate equations made it possible to distinguish between kinetic and thermodynamic aspects of regulation. Combining the supply and demand rate characteristics allows us to explore both the control distribution at steady state and the regulatory performance of the system over a wide range of demand activities.
Multiple glucose 6-phosphate pools or channelling of flux in diverse pathways?
Authors: Agius Loranne , Centelles Josep , Cascante Marta
Published: January 2005

Glucose 6-phosphate is an intermediate of pathways of glucose utilization and production as well as a regulator of enzyme activity and gene expression. Studies on the latter functions are in part based on measurement of the glucose 6-phosphate content in a whole-cell extract. Several studies have suggested that there are multiple subcellular pools of glucose 6-phosphate. It is proposed that this data can be interpreted in terms of channelling of metabolic intermediates through multiple pathways of glucose metabolism with leakage of glucose 6-phosphate from the channels into a single free pool. It is also proposed that measurement of total tissue content of glucose 6-phosphate approximates the free pool.
Stoicheiometric analysis in studies of metabolism
Authors: Cornish-Bowden Athel , Hofmeyr Jan-Hendrik S. , Cárdenas María Luz
Published: January 2005

Stoicheiometric analysis of metabolic pathways provides a systematic way of determining which metabolite concentrations are subject to constraints, information that may otherwise be very difficult to recognize in a large branched pathway. The procedure involves representing the pathway structure in the form of a matrix and then carrying out row operations to convert the matrix into ‘row echelon form’: this is a form in which as many as possible of the elements on the main diagonal are non-zero, and all of the elements below the main diagonal are zero. If exactly the same operations are carried out on a unit matrix of order equal to the number of intermediate metabolites in the pathway, the resulting matrix allows the stoicheiometric constraints to be read off directly.
Substrate channelling in 2-oxo acid dehydrogenase multienzyme complexes
Authors: Perham Richard N. , Jones D. Dafydd , Chauhan Hitesh J. , Howard Mark J.
Published: January 2005

Heteronuclear NMR spectroscopy and other experiments indicate that the true substrate of the E1 component of 2-oxo acid dehydrogenase complexes is not lipoic acid but the lipoyl domain of the E2 component. E1 can recognize the lipoyllysine residue as such, but reductive acylation ensues only if the domain to which the lipoyl group is attached is additionally recognized by virtue of a mosaic of contacts distributed chiefly over the half of the domain that contains the lipoyl-lysine residue. The lipoyl-lysine residue may not be freely swinging, as supposed hitherto, but may adopt a preferred orientation pointing towards a nearby loop on the surface of the lipoyl domain. This in turn may facilitate the insertion of the lipoyl group into the active site of E1, where reductive acylation is to occur. The results throw new light on the concept of substrate channelling and active-site coupling in these giant multifunctional catalytic machines.
Gene-diet interaction and plasma lipid responses to dietary intervention
Authors: Ordovas J. M.
Published: January 2005

Strategies for disease prevention can have a major impact on people's health. However, major gaps exist in our knowledge with regard to nutritional adequacy, nutrient-disease interactions, nutrient-gene interactions, and effective strategies for implementation of dietary recommendations which have the potential to decrease the disease burden and to contribute to successful aging of the population. Coronary heart disease is one of the major causes of mortality in the world. We have sound evidence that high levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and low levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) are associated with increased risk of coronary heart disease. Lipoprotein concentrations are associated with environmental variables such as diet and lifestyle, but genetics also play a significant role. We have examined polymorphisms at candidate loci to determine their usefulness as markers for dietary responses. A G/A polymorphism 75 bp upstream from the gene encoding apolipoprotein AI (APOA1) has been described in ~ 30% of the population. Our studies show that this polymorphism is associated with variability in the HDL-C response to dietary fat, specifically to polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) in the diet. Carriers of the A allele respond to increases in dietary PUFA with elevations in HDL-C levels, probably due to altered interactions of transcription factors with the mutated promoter. Therefore carriers of the A allele can potentially decrease their atherogenic risk by consuming high-PUFA diets. Likewise, we have examined the interaction between other dietary habits, such as alcohol drinking, and variability at the APOE locus, and have demonstrated that the classical associations between APOE polymorphism and LDL-C levels are observed primarily in those subjects who consume alcohol. Moreover, we have found a subgroup of the population, APOE4 carriers, for whom drinking alcohol may exert detrimental effects on lipid metabolism. This knowledge will contribute towards the development of more effective personalized dietary recommendations.
Application of disposable plastic microfluidic device arrays with customized chemistries to multiplexed biochemical assays
Authors: Ricco A. J. , Boone T. D. , Fan Z. H. , Gibbons I. , Matray T. , Singh S. , Tan H. , Tian T. , Williams S. J.
Published: January 2005

Plastic microfluidic array platforms and synergistic multiplexed assay chemistries are under development for a variety of applications, including assays of gene expression, proteomics, genotyping, DNA sequencing and fragment analysis, sample prepraration and high-throughput pharmaceutical discovery. The low production costs of plastic substrates makes possible economical single-use device arrays, eliminating cleaning and sample-to-sample carryover contamination. Hundreds of microchannels and reservoirs are readily included on a single microtitre-plate-size substrate, enabling the manufacture of highly parallel fluidic array systems to increase throughput and speed.
Exploring Nature's plasticity with a flexible probing tool, and finding new ways for its electronic distribution
Authors: Beier M. , Baum M. , Rebscher H. , Mauritz R. , Wixmerten A. , Stähler C. F. , Müller M. , Stähler P. F.
Published: January 2005

Concepts and results are described for the use of a single, but extremely flexible, probing tool to address a wide variety of genomic questions. This is achieved by transforming genomic questions into a software file that is used as the design scheme for potentially any genomic assay in a microarray format. Microarray fabrication takes place in three-dimensional microchannel reaction carriers by in situ synthesis based on spatial light modulation. This set-up allows for maximum flexibility in design and realization of genomic assays. Flexibility is achieved at the molecular, genomic and assay levels. We have applied this technology to expression profiling and genotyping experiments.
Antimicrobial activity of antiproteinases
Authors: Sallenave J.-M.
Published: January 2005

Low-molecular-mass neutrophil elastase inhibitors have been shown to be important in the control of lung inflammation. In addition to inhibiting the enzyme neutrophil elastase, these low-molecular-mass compounds (10 kDa) have been shown to have other activities. For example, secretory leucocyte proteinase inhibitor (SLPI) and elastase-specific inhibitor/SKALP (skin-derived antileucoproteinase)/elafin have also been shown to have ‘defensin’-like antimicrobial activities. Indeed, these inhibitors have antimicrobial properties in vitro against bacteria, fungi and, potentially, HIV. In addition, we have shown, using an adenovirus-mediated gene transfer overexpression strategy, that elafin is also active against Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection in mice in vivo. The mechanism of action is currently under investigation. In addition to these direct or indirect effects on microbes, it has been shown that lipopolysaccharide is able to up-regulate SPLI production in macrophages in vitro, and that the addition of recombinant SLPI to human monocytes or the transfection of macrophages with SPLI can down-regulate pro-inflammatory mediators such as tumour necrosis factor, presumably to limit self-damaging excessive inflammation. Using viral gene transfer vectors, we are currently investigating the potential of these inhibitors in various models of inflammation in vivo.
The hepatitis C virus internal ribosome-entry site: a new target for antiviral research
Authors: Gallego J. , Varani G.
Published: January 2005

The hepatitis C virus (HCV) is the main causative agent of non-A, non-B hepatitis in humans and a major cause of mortality and morbidity in the world. Currently there is no effective treatment available for the infection caused by this virus, whose replication depends on an unusual translation-initiation mechanism. The viral RNA contains an internal ribosome-entry site (IRES) that is recognized specifically by the small ribosomal subunit and by eukaryotic initiation factor 3, and these interactions allow cap (7-methylguanine nucleotide)-independent initiation of viral protein synthesis. In this article, we review the structure and mechanism of translation initiation of the HCV IRES, and its potential as a target for novel antivirals.
Splicing signals and factors in plant intron removal
Authors: Brown J. W. S. , Simpson C. G. , Thow G. , Clark G. P. , Jennings S. N. , Medina-Escobar N. , Haupt S. , Chapman S. C. , Oparka K. J.
Published: January 2005

Constitutive splicing of the potato invertase miniexon 2 (9 nt long) requires a branchpoint sequence positioned around 50 nt upstream of the 5′ splice site of the adjacent intron and a U11 element found just downstream of the branchpoint in the upstream intron [Simpson, Hedley, Watters, Clark, McQuade, Machray and Brown (2000) RNA 6, 422–433]. The sensitivity of this in vivo plant splicing system has been used to demonstrate exon scanning in plants, and to characterize plant intronic elements, such as branchpoint and poly-pyrimidine tract sequences. Plant introns differ from their vertebrate and yeast couterparts in being UA- or U-rich (up to 85% UA). One of the key differences in splicing between plants and other eukaryotes lies in early intron recognition, which is thought to be mediated by UA-binding proteins. We are adopting three approaches to studying the RNA-protein interactions in plant splicing. First, overexpression of plant splicing factors and, in particular, UA-binding proteins, in conjunction with a range of mini-exon mutants. Secondly, the sequences of around 65% of vertebrate and yeast splicing factors have high-quality matches to Arabidopsis proteins, opening the door to identification and analysis of gene knockouts. Finally, to discover plant-specific proteins involved in splicing and in, for example, rRNA or small nuclear RNA processing, green fluorescent protein-cDNA fusion libraries in viral vectors are being screened.
Structural analysis of the interaction between urokinase-type plasminogen activator and its receptor: a potential target for anti-invasive cancer therapy
Authors: Ploug M. , Gårdsvoll H. , Jørgensen T. J. D. , Hansen L. Lønborg , Danø K.
Published: January 2005

The ability to degrade the extracellular matrix by controlled proteolysis is an important property of malignant cancer cells, which enables them to invade the surrounding tissue and to gain access to the circulation by intravasation. One proteolytic system thought to be involved in these processes is urokinase-mediated plasminogen activation. Expression of a glycolipid-anchored receptor for urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) targets this system to the cell surface. This receptor (uPAR) is composed of three homologous modules belonging to the Ly-6/uPAR/α-neurotoxin protein domain family. Integrity of the three-domain structure of uPAR is required for maintenance of its sub-nanomolar affinity for uPA, but the functional epitope for this interaction is primarily located in uPAR domain I. Using affinity maturation by combinatorial chemistry, we have recently identified a potent 9-mer peptide antagonist of the uPA-uPAR interaction having a high affinity for uPAR (Kd < 1 nM). Photoaffinity labelling suggests that this peptide interacts with a composite binding site in uPAR involving both domains I and III. When tested in a chicken chorioallantoic membrane assay that was developed to quantify intravasation of human cells, this antagonist was able to reduce the intravasation of HEp-3 cancer cells by approx. 60%.
Coagulation proteases and human cancer
Authors: Sampson M. T. , Kakkar A. K.
Published: January 2005

Tumours are capable of activating blood coagulation through the expression of procoagulant molecules such as tissue factor, cancer procoagulant and hepsin. Initiation of the clotting cascade results in the generation of the activated serine proteases factor VIIa, factor Xa and thrombin. These proteases act via protease-activated receptors and tissue factor to alter gene expression, thereby modulating tumour cell growth, invasion, metastasis and angiogenesis.
Role of thrombin and its major cellular receptor, protease-activated receptor-I, in pulmonary fibrosis
Authors: Howell D. C. , Laurent G. J. , Chambers R. C.
Published: January 2005

Pulmonary fibrosis is the end stage of a heterogeneous group of disorders and is characterized by the excessive deposition of extracellular matrix proteins within the pulmonary interstitium. There is increasing evidence from a number of studies that activation of the coagulation cascade, with the resultant generation of coagulation proteases, plays a central role in fibrotic lung disease that is associated with acute and chronic lung injury. Consistent with this finding, levels of thrombin are increased in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid from patients and in animal models of this disorder. In addition to its classical role in blood coagulation, thrombin exerts a number of proinflammatory and profibrotic cellular effects in vitro that are critically important in tissue repair processes. These cellular effects are predominantly mediated via proteolytic activation of the major thrombin receptor protease-activated receptor-1 (PAR-1). This has led us to hypothesize that the procoagulant and the downstream cellular effects of thrombin, which are initiated following receptor activation, may be important in promoting tissue fibrosis in vivo. To examine this hypothesis, we assessed the effect of a direct thrombin inhibitor in bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis in rats. Immunohistochemical studies showed that expression of thrombin and PAR-1 in lung tissue increased dramatically after intratracheal instillation of bleomycin, compared with saline-treated animals. After bleomycin instillation, there was a doubling in the amount of lung collagen after 14 days, which was preceded by elevations in α1(I) procollagen and connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) mRNA levels. However, when bleomycin-treated animals concurrently received a continuous infusion of a direct thrombin inhibitor at an anticoagulant dose, lung collagen accumulation in response to bleomycin was attenuated by up to 40%. Furthermore, α1(I) procollagen and CTGF mRNA levels were also significantly reduced in these animals. These findings confirm that thrombin is a key mediator in the pathogenesis of this condition and suggest that the cellular effects of thrombin may be critically important in promoting lung collagen accumulation in this experimental model of pulmonary fibrosis. Targeting the profibrotic effects of coagulation proteases warrants further evaluation as a potential therapeutic strategy for fibrotic lung disease.
Evolving techniques for the investigation of muscle bioenergetics and oxygenation
Authors: Richardson R. S. , Noyszewski E. A. , Haseler L. J. , Bluml S. , Frank L. R.
Published: January 2005

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) are both powerful, non-invasive methodologies and, as such, offer great potential to investigate both human biochemistry and human physiology, and ultimately to contribute significantly to the field of medicine. Consequently there has been much effort devoted to fostering the evolution of these methodologies into distinct and applicable techniques. Here we will highlight several MRI and MRS techniques for the assessment of human biochemistry and physiology that ultimately may provide useful clinical assessments and diagnoses of various muscular and cardiovascular pathologies. Specifically, the evolving techniques that will be discussed are: (1) 1H MRS of myoglobin to assess the intracellular partial pressure of O2, (2) 31P MRS to assess metabolic capacity, and (3) the combination of 31P chemical shift imaging to assess local metabolic demand (oxygen uptake; o2) with arterial spin labelling to assess local perfusion (blood flow; ), in an effort to characterize the elusive spatial matching of skeletal muscle (/o2).
Lactate shuttles in Nature
Authors: Brooks G. A.
Published: January 2005

Once thought to be the consequence of oxygen lack in contracting skeletal muscle, the glycolytic product lactate is formed and utilized continuously under fully aerobic conditions. ‘Cell-cell’ and ‘intracellular lactate shuttle’ concepts describe the roles of lactate in the delivery of oxidative and gluconeogenic substrates, as well as in cell signalling. Examples of cell-cell shuttles include lactate exchanges between white-glycolytic and red-oxidative fibres within a working muscle bed, between working skeletal muscle and heart, and between tissues of net lactate release and gluconeogenesis. Lactate exchange between astrocytes and neurons that is linked to glutamatergic signalling in the brain is an example of a lactate shuttle supporting cell-cell signalling. Lactate uptake by mitochondria and pyruvate-lactate exchange in peroxisomes are examples of intracellular lactate shuttles. Lactate exchange between sites of production and removal is facilitated by monocarboxylate transport proteins, of which there are several isoforms, and, probably, also by scaffolding proteins. The mitochondrial lactate-pyruvate transporter appears to work in conjunction with mitochondrial lactate dehydrogenase, which permits lactate to be oxidized within actively respiring cells. Hence mitochondria function to establish the concentration and proton gradients necessary for cells with high mitochondrial densities (e.g. cardiocytes) to take up and oxidize lactate. Arteriovenous difference measurements on working cardiac and skeletal muscle beds as well as NMR spectral analyses of these tissues show that lactate is formed and oxidized within the cells of formation in vivo. Glycolysis and lactate oxidation within cells permits high flux rates and the maintenance of redox balance in the cytosol and mitochondria. Other examples of intracellular lactate shuttles include lactate uptake and oxidation in sperm mitochondria and the facilitation of β-oxidation in peroxisomes by pyruvate-lactate exchange. An ancient origin to the utility of lactate shuttling is implied by the observation that mitochondria of Saccharomyces cerevisiae contain flavocytochrome b2, a lactate-cytochrome c oxidoreductase that couples lactate dehydrogenation to the reduction of cytochrome c. The presence of cell-cell and intracellular lactate shuttles gives rise to the notion that glycolytic and oxidative pathways can be viewed as linked, as opposed to alternative, processes, because lactate, the product of one pathway, is the substrate for the other.
Adipose tissue, the immune system and exercise fatigue: how activated lymphocytes compete for lipids
Authors: Pond C. M.
Published: January 2005

Adipose depots that contain lymph nodes, and probably intermuscular fat in skeletal and cardiac muscle, are specialized to provision adjacent tissue in a paracrine mode. Perinodal adipocytes respond selectively to various cytokines and incorporate proportionately more polyunsaturated fatty acids. Lipolysis in the adipocytes of node-containing depots can be stimulated via inflammation of the enclosed lymph nodes. Repeated immune stimulation elicits properties characteristic of perinodal adipocytes in those elsewhere in the same depot, and hours later in other node-containing depots, but not in nodeless depots. Such site-specific properties of adipose tissue enable partitioning of dietary and metabolic supplies of fatty acids between competing tissues. Local interactions emancipate the peripheral immune system from competing with other tissues for lipids during immune responses, and may be especially important during periods of high demand, such as strenuous exercise. Biopsies of subcutaneous adipose tissue from sites remote from lymph nodes do not adequately represent the composition of fatty acids available to the immune system in situ, and perhaps that supplied to other tissues. Intermuscular fat in skeletal and cardiac muscle may also indicate paracrine relationships between adipocytes and ‘end-user’ tissues. The concept of paracrine interactions between certain adipocytes and ‘user’ tissue may account for the widespread contiguity between these tissues in vivo.
An acetyl group deficit limits mitochondrial ATP production at the onset of exercise
Authors: Greenhaff P. L. , Campbell-O'Sullivan S. P. , Constantin-Teodosiu D. , Poucher S. M. , Roberts P. A. , Timmons J. A.
Published: January 2005

The oxygen deficit at the onset of submaximal exercise represents a period when the energy demand of contraction cannot be met solely by mitochondrial ATP generation, and as a consequence there is an acceleration of ATP re-synthesis from oxygen-independent routes (phosphocreatine hydrolysis and glycolysis). Historically, the origin of the oxygen deficit has been attributed to a lag in muscle blood flow and oxygen availability at the onset of exercise which limits mitochondrial respiration. However, more recent evidence suggests that considerable inertia exists at the level of mitochondrial enzyme activation and substrate supply. In support of this latter hypothesis, we have reported on a number of occasions that pharmacological activation of the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (and consequent stockpiling of acetyl groups), using dichloroacetate or exercise interventions, can markedly reduce the degree of ATP re-synthesis from oxygen-independent routes during the rest-to-work transition period. This review will focus on these findings, and will offer the hypothesis that acetyl group delivery to the tricarboxylic acid cycle limits mitochondrial flux at the onset of exercise - the so-called acetyl group deficit.
Exercise, free radicals and oxidative stress
Authors: Cooper C. E. , Vollaard N. B. J. , Choueiri T. , Wilson M. T.
Published: January 2005

This article reviews the role of free radicals in causing oxidative stress during exercise. High intensity exercise induces oxidative stress and although there is no evidence that this affects sporting performance in the short term, it may have longer term health consequences. The mechanisms of exercise-induced oxidative stress are not well understood. Mitochondria are sometimes considered to be the main source of free radicals, but in vitro studies suggest they may play a more minor role than was first thought. There is a growing acceptance of the importance of haem proteins in inducing oxidative stress. The release of metmyoglobin from damaged muscle is known to cause renal failure in exercise rhabdomyolysis. Furthermore, levels of methaemoglobin increase during high intensity exercise, while levels of antioxidants, such as reduced glutathione, decrease. We suggest that the free-radical-mediated damage caused by the interaction of metmyoglobin and methaemoglobin with peroxides may be an important source of oxidative stress during exercise.
Gene expression in skeletal muscle
Authors: Goldspink G.
Published: January 2005

Muscle has an intrinsic ability to change its mass and phenotype in response to activity. This process involves quantitative and qualitative changes in gene expression, including that of the myosin heavy chain isogenes that encode different types of molecular motors. This, and the differential expression of metabolic genes, results in altered fatigue resistance and power output. The regulation of muscle mass involves autocrine as well as systemic factors. We have cloned the cDNAs of local and systemic isoforms of insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) from exercised muscle. Although different isoforms are derived from the IGF-I gene by alternative splicing, the RNA transcript of one of them is only detectable following injury and/or mechanical activity. Thus this protein has been called mechano growth factor (MGF). Because of a reading-frame shift, MGF has a different 3′ sequence and a different mode of action compared with systemic or liver IGF-I. Although MGF has been called a growth factor, it may be regulated as a local repair factor.
Short-term regulation of insulin gene transcription
Authors: Leibiger B. , Moede T. , Uhles S. , Berggren P.-O. , Leibiger I. B.
Published: January 2005

Short-term regulation of insulin gene transcription is still a matter of debate. However, an increasing body of evidence shows that insulin gene transcription is affected by signals, such as incretins, glucose metabolites, intracellular Ca2+, and by insulin secreted from pancreatic β-cells, all supporting the concept of an immediate response resulting in insulin gene transcription following food-uptake. The present review aims to summarize the current view on the mechanisms underlying the up-regulation of insulin gene transcription in response to glucose, the major nutrient factor in insulin secretion and biosynthesis.
Receptors for insulin and insulin-like growth factor-1 and insulin receptor substrate-1 mediate pathways that regulate islet function
Authors: Kulkarni R. N.
Published: January 2005

The insulin/insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) signalling pathways are present in most mammalian cells and play important roles in the growth and metabolism of tissues. Most proteins in these pathways have also been identified in the β-cells of the pancreatic islets. Tissue-specific knockout of the insulin receptor (βIRKO) or IGF-1 receptor (βIGFRKO) in pancreatic β-cells leads to altered glucose-sensing and glucose intolerance in adult mice, and βIRKO mice show an age-dependent decrease in islet size and β-cell mass. These data indicate that these receptors are important for differentiated function and are unlikely to play a major role in the early growth and/or development of the pancreatic islets. Conventional insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1) knockouts manifest growth retardation and mild insulin resistance. The IRS-1 knockouts also display islet hyperplasia, defects in insulin secretory responses to multiple stimuli both in vivo and in vitro, reduced islet insulin content and an increased number of autophagic vacuoles in the β-cells. Re-expression of IRS-1 in cultured β-cells is able to partially restore the insulin content indicating that IRS-1 is involved in the regulation of insulin synthesis. Taken together, these data provide evidence that insulin and IGF-1 receptors and IRS-1, and potentially other proteins in the insulin/IGF-1 signalling pathway, contribute to the regulation of islet hormone secretion and synthesis and therefore in the maintenance of glucose homeostasis.
Molecular mechanisms involved in secretory vesicle recruitment to the plasma membrane in β-cells
Authors: Varadi A. , Ainscow E. K. , Allan V. J. , Rutter G. A.
Published: January 2005

Glucose stimulates the release of insulin in part by activating the recruitment of secretory vesicles to the cell surface. While this movement is known to be microtubule-dependent, the molecular motors involved are undefined. Active kinesin was found to be essential for vesicle translocation in live β-cells, since microinjection of cDNA encoding dominant-negative KHCmut (motor domain of kinesin heavy chain containing a Thr93 → Asn point mutation) blocked vesicular movements. Moreover, expression of KHCmut strongly inhibited the sustained, but not acute, stimulation of secretion by glucose. Thus, vesicles released during the first phase of insulin secretion exist largely within a translocation-independent pool. Kinesin-driven anterograde movement of vesicles is then necessary for the sustained (second phase) of insulin release. Kinesin may, therefore, represent a novel target for increases in intracellular ATP concentrations in response to elevated extracellular glucose and may be involved in the ATP-sensitive K+channel-independent stimulation of secretion by the sugar.
Pharmacological modulation of KATP channels
Authors: Gribble F. M. , Reimann F.
Published: January 2005

Pharmacological modulation of ATP-sensitive K+ (KATP) channels is used in the treatment of a number of clinical conditions, including type 2 diabetes and angina. The sulphonylureas and related drugs, which are used to treat type 2 diabetes, stimulate insulin secretion by closing KATP channels in pancreatic β-cells. Agents used to treat angina, by contrast, act by opening KATP channels in vascular smooth and cardiac muscle. Both the therapeutic KATP channel inhibitors and the KATP channel openers target the sulphonylurea receptor (SUR) subunit of the KATP channel, which exists in several isoforms expressed in different tissues (SUR1 in pancreatic β-cells, SUR2A in cardiac muscle and SUR2B in vascular smooth muscle). The tissue-specific action of drugs that target the KATP channel is attributed to the properties of these different SUR subtypes. In this review, we discuss the molecular basis of tissue-specific drug action, and its implications for clinical practice.
Enhancement of photoluminescence intensity by photoinduced interdiffusion in nanolayered a-Se∕As2S3 films
Authors: Adarsh K. V. , Sangunni K. S. , Kokenyesi S. , Ivan I. , Shipljak M.
Published: January 2005

Optical parameters of chalcogenide glass multilayers with 12–15nm modulation lengths prepared by thermal evaporation can be changed by laser irradiation. Photoluminescence (PL) studies were carried out on such nonirradiated and irradiated multilayered samples of a-Se∕As2S3 (sublayer thickness of a-Se is 4–5nm for one set of samples and 1–2nm for the other set. However As2S3 sublayer thickness is 11–12nm for both sets of samples.) PL intensity can be increased by several orders of magnitude by reducing the Se well layer (lower band gap) thickness and can be further increased by irradiating the samples with appropriate wavelengths in the range of the absorption edge. The broadening of luminescence bands takes place either with a decrease in Se layer thickness or with irradiation. The former is due to the change in interface roughness and defects because of the enhanced structural disorder while the latter is due to photoinduced interdiffusion. The photoinduced interdiffusion creates defects at the interface between Se and As2S3 by forming an As–Se–S solid solution. From the deconvoluted PL spectrum, it is shown that the peak PL intensity, full width half maximum, and the PL quantum efficiency of particular defects giving rise to PL, can be tuned by changing the sublayer thickness or by interdiffusion.
Application of near infrared reflectance spectroscopy to the determination of carotenoid content in tritordeum for breeding purposes
Authors: Atienza S. G. , Avila C. M. , Ramírez M. C. , Martín A.
Published: January 2005

For pasta production, the yellow colour, mainly caused by carotenoids, is a worldwide requirement. Hexaploid tritodeums are the amphiploids derived from the cross between Hordeum chilense and Triticum turgidum. They show a higher carotenoid content than their wheat parents. This work aimed to develop a non-destructive method for carotenoid content determination to assist the tritordeum breeding program. We assessed the ability of near infrared reflectance spectroscopy (NIRS) to predict carotenoid content in whole grains of tritordeum. In total, 285 samples were scanned by NIRS. After non-destructive NIRS scanning, the seeds were analysed for carotenoid content and a calibration equation was developed. It is characterised by a coefficient of multiple determination (R2) of 0.85. This equation was initially evaluated by cross validation showing an r2 of 0.81 and a standard error of cross validation (SECV) of 1.49. It was further evaluated using external validation with a different set of samples not included in the calibration. This analysis showed an r2 of 0.81 and a standard error of performance (SEP) of 1.51. This equation allows discrimination between low and high carotenoid content lines in a non-destructive way. These results constitute a substantial advance for tritordeum breeding programs whose final aim is to develop high carotenoid content tritordeums useful for durum wheat breeding.
New GABAergic interneurons in the adult neocortex and striatum are generated from different precursors
Authors: Dayer Alexandre G. , Cleaver Kathryn M. , Abouantoun Thamara , Cameron Heather A.
Published: January 2005

Ongoing neurogenesis in the adult mammalian dentate gyrus and olfactory bulb is generally accepted, but its existence in other adult brain regions is highly controversial. We labeled newly born cells in adult rats with the S-phase marker bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) and used neuronal markers to characterize new cells at different time points after cell division. In the neocortex and striatum, we found BrdU-labeled cells that expressed each of the eight neuronal markers. Their size as well as staining for γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), glutamic acid decarboxylase 67, calretinin and/or calbindin, suggest that new neurons in both regions are GABAergic interneurons. BrdU and doublecortin-immunoreactive (BrdU+/DCX+) cells were seen within the striatum, suggesting migration of immature neurons from the subventricular zone. Surprisingly, no DCX+ cells were found within the neocortex. NG2 immunoreactivity in some new neocortical neurons suggested that they may instead be generated from the NG2+ precursors that reside within the cortex itself.
Receptor tyrosine phosphatase–dependent cytoskeletal remodeling by the hedgehog-responsive gene MIM/BEG4
Authors: Gonzalez-Quevedo Rosa , Shoffer Marina , Horng Lily , Oro Anthony E.
Published: January 2005

During development, dynamic remodeling of the actin cytoskeleton allows the precise placement and morphology of tissues. Morphogens such as Sonic hedgehog (Shh) and local cues such as receptor protein tyrosine phosphatases (RPTPs) mediate this process, but how they regulate the cytoskeleton is poorly understood. We previously identified Basal cell carcinoma–enriched gene 4 (BEG4)/Missing in Metastasis (MIM), a Shh-inducible, Wiskott-Aldrich homology 2 domain–containing protein that potentiates Gli transcription (Callahan, C.A., T. Ofstad, L. Horng, J.K. Wang, H.H. Zhen, P.A. Coulombe, and A.E. Oro. 2004. Genes Dev. 18:2724–2729). Here, we show that endogenous MIM is induced in a patched1-dependent manner and regulates the actin cytoskeleton. MIM functions by bundling F-actin, a process that requires self-association but is independent of G-actin binding. Cytoskeletal remodeling requires an activation domain distinct from sequences required for bundling in vitro. This domain associates with RPTPδ and, in turn, enhances RPTPδ membrane localization. MIM-dependent cytoskeletal changes can be inhibited using a soluble RPTPδ-D2 domain. Our data suggest that the hedgehog-responsive gene MIM cooperates with RPTP to induce cytoskeletal changes.
Chromosome looping in yeast
Authors: Bystricky Kerstin , Laroche Thierry , van Houwe Griet , Blaszczyk Marek , Gasser Susan M.
Published: January 2005

Long-range chromosome organization is known to influence nuclear function. Budding yeast centromeres cluster near the spindle pole body, whereas telomeres are grouped in five to eight perinuclear foci. Using live microscopy, we examine the relative positions of right and left telomeres of several yeast chromosomes. Integrated lac and tet operator arrays are visualized by their respective repressor fused to CFP and YFP in interphase yeast cells. The two ends of chromosomes 3 and 6 interact significantly but transiently, forming whole chromosome loops. For chromosomes 5 and 14, end-to-end interaction is less frequent, yet telomeres are closer to each other than to the centromere, suggesting that yeast chromosomes fold in a Rabl-like conformation. Disruption of telomere anchoring by deletions of YKU70 or SIR4 significantly compromises contact between two linked telomeres. These mutations do not, however, eliminate coordinated movement of telomere (Tel) 6R and Tel6L, which we propose stems from the territorial organization of yeast chromosomes.
Gain-of-function Mutations Reveal Expanded Intermediate States and a Sequential Action of Two Gates in MscL
Authors: Anishkin Andriy , Chiang Chien-Sung , Sukharev Sergei
Published: January 2005

The tension-driven gating transition in the large mechanosensitive channel MscL proceeds through detectable states of intermediate conductance. Gain-of-function (GOF) mutants with polar or charged substitutions in the main hydrophobic gate display altered patterns of subconducting states, providing valuable information about gating intermediates. Here we present thermodynamic analysis of several GOF mutants to clarify the nature and position of low-conducting conformations in the transition pathway. Unlike wild-type (WT) MscL, which predominantly occupies the closed and fully open states with very brief substates, the mild V23T GOF mutant frequently visits a multitude of short-lived subconducting states. Severe mutants V23D and G22N open in sequence: closed (C) → low-conducting substate (S) → open (O), with the first subtransition occurring at lower tensions. Analyses of equilibrium state occupancies as functions of membrane tension show that the C→S subtransition in WT MscL is associated with only a minor conductance increment, but the largest in-plane expansion and free energy change. The GOF substitutions strongly affect the first subtransition by reducing area (ΔA) and energy (ΔE) changes between C and S states commensurably with the severity of mutation. GOF mutants also exhibited a considerably larger ΔE associated with the second (S→O) subtransition, but a ΔA similar to WT. The area changes indicate that closed conformations of GOF mutants are physically preexpanded. The tension dependencies of rate constants for channel closure (koff) predict different positions of rate-limiting barriers on the energy-area profiles for WT and GOF MscL. The data support the two-gate mechanism in which the first subtransition (C→S) can be viewed as opening of the central (M1) gate, resulting in an expanded water-filled “leaky” conformation. Strong facilitation of this step by polar GOF substitutions suggests that separation of M1 helices associated with hydration of the pore in WT MscL is the major energetic barrier for opening. Mutants with a stabilized S1 gate demonstrate impeded transitions from low-conducting substates to the fully open state, whereas extensions of S1–M1 linkers result in a much higher probability of reverse O→S transitions. These data strongly suggest that the bulk of conductance gain in the second subtransition (S→O) occurs through the opening of the NH2-terminal (S1) gate and the linkers are coupling elements between the M1 and S1 gates.
Cysteine Modification Alters Voltage- and Ca2+-dependent Gating of Large Conductance (BK) Potassium Channels
Authors: Zhang Guangping , Horrigan Frank T.
Published: January 2005

The Ca2+-activated K+ (BK) channel α-subunit contains many cysteine residues within its large COOH-terminal tail domain. To probe the function of this domain, we examined effects of cysteine-modifying reagents on channel gating. Application of MTSET, MTSES, or NEM to mSlo1 or hSlo1 channels changed the voltage and Ca2+ dependence of steady-state activation. These reagents appear to modify the same cysteines but have different effects on function. MTSET increases IK and shifts the GK–V relation to more negative voltages, whereas MTSES and NEM shift the GK–V in the opposite direction. Steady-state activation was altered in the presence or absence of Ca2+ and at negative potentials where voltage sensors are not activated. Combinations of [Ca2+] and voltage were also identified where Po is not changed by cysteine modification. Interpretation of our results in terms of an allosteric model indicate that cysteine modification alters Ca2+ binding and the relative stability of closed and open conformations as well as the coupling of voltage sensor activation and Ca2+ binding and to channel opening. To identify modification-sensitive residues, we examined effects of MTS reagents on mutant channels lacking one or more cysteines. Surprisingly, the effects of MTSES on both voltage- and Ca2+-dependent gating were abolished by replacing a single cysteine (C430) with alanine. C430 lies in the RCK1 (regulator of K+ conductance) domain within a series of eight residues that is unique to BK channels. Deletion of these residues shifted the GK–V relation by >−80 mV. Thus we have identified a region that appears to strongly influence RCK domain function, but is absent from RCK domains of known structure. C430A did not eliminate effects of MTSET on apparent Ca2+ affinity. However an additional mutation, C615S, in the Haem binding site reduced the effects of MTSET, consistent with a role for this region in Ca2+ binding.