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AIM: To study the cellular transport of L68Q cystatin C, the cystatin variant causing amyloidosis and brain haemorrhage in patients suffering from hereditary cystatin C amyloid angiopathy (HCCAA). METHODS: Expression vectors for wild-type and L68Q cystatin C were constructed and used to transfect mouse NIH/3T3 cells. Stable cell clones were isolated after cotransfection with pSV2neo. Clones expres
The mechanism of transmembrane polyamine internalization in mammalian cells remains unknown. A novel fluorescent spermidine conjugate [Spd-C(2)-BODIPY; N-(4,4-difluoro-5,7-dimethyl-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene-3-propionyl)-N' -(S -[spermidine-(N(4)-ethyl)]thioacetyl)ethylenediamine] was synthesized from N(4)-(mercaptoethyl)spermidine by a simple, one-step coupling procedure. In Chinese-hamster ov
We have previously shown that following severe brain insults, chronic inflammation induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) injection, and status epilepticus, new dentate granule cells exhibit changes of excitatory and inhibitory synaptic drive indicating that they may mitigate the abnormal brain function. Major inflammatory changes in the environment encountering the new neurons were a common feature
Insulin is secreted from the pancreatic β-cells in response to elevated glucose. In intact islets the capacity for insulin release is determined by a complex interplay between different cell types. This has made it difficult to specifically assess the role of β-cell defects to the insulin secretory impairment in type 2 diabetes. Here we describe a new approach, based on optogenetics, that enables
We have previously demonstrated intracellular degradation of the heparan sulfate side-chains in recycling glypican-1 by heparanase and by deaminative cleavage at N-unsubstituted glucosamine with nitric oxide derived from intrinsic nitrosothiols [see Ding, K., Mani, K., Cheng, F., Belting, M. and Fransson, L.-. (2002) J. Biol. Chem., 277, xxx-xxx; prepub M203383200]. To determine where and in what
Background: It is well known that a severe cell injury after exposure to ionizing radiation is the induction of DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs). After exposure, an early response to DSBs is the phosphorylation of the histone H2AX molecule regions adjacent to the DSBs, referred to as γ-H2AX foci. The γ-H2AX assay after external exposure is a good tool for investigating the link between the absorbed
Background Smoking is known to cause chronic inflammatory changes in the bronchi and to contribute to airway hyper-reactivity, such as in bronchial asthma. To study the effect of smoking on the endothelin system in rat airways, bronchial segments were exposed to DMSO-soluble smoking particles (DSP) from cigarette smoke, to nicotine and to DMSO, respectively. Methods Isolated rat bronchial segment
Insulin stimulates fusion, but not tethering, of GLUT4 vesicles in skeletal muscle of HA-GLUT4-GFP transgenic mice. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 302: E950-E960, 2012. First published January 31, 2012; doi:10.1152/ajpendo.00466.2011.-Insulin regulates glucose uptake into fat and muscle by modulating the subcellular distribution of GLUT4 between the cell surface and intracellular compartments. Howe
Processing of the recycling proteoglycan glypican-1 involves the release of its heparan sulfate chains by copper ion- and nitric oxide-catalyzed ascorbate-triggered autodegradation. The Alzheimer disease amyloid precursor protein (APP) and its paralogue, the amyloid precursor-like protein 2 (APLP2), contain copper ion-, zinc ion-, and heparan sulfate-binding domains. We have investigated the possi
Background: Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) has a key role in migraine pathophysiology and is associated with activation of the trigeminovascular system. The trigeminal ganglion, storing CGRP and its receptor components, projects peripheral to the intracranial vasculature and central to regions in the brainstem with A delta- and C-fibers; this constitutes an essential part of the pain pathw
BACKGROUND: Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are thought to play a prominent role in atherogenesis and destabilization of plaque. Pericellularly localized membrane-type (MT)-MMPs activate secreted MMPs. We investigated the hypothesis that MT3-MMP is expressed in human atherosclerotic plaques and is regulated by locally produced inflammatory cytokines and oxidized low-density lipoprotein (Ox-LDL).
Aggregated α-synuclein in Lewy bodies is one of the hallmarks of Parkinson's disease (PD). Earlier observations of α-synuclein aggregates in neurons grafted into brains of PD patients suggested cell-to-cell transfer of α-synuclein and a prion-like mechanism. This prompted the current investigation of whether α-synuclein passes over model phospholipid bilayers. We generated giant unilamellar vesicl
The mechanism behind the adjuvant effect of aluminum salts is poorly understood notwithstanding that aluminum salts have been used for decades in clinical vaccines. In an aqueous environment and at a nearly neutral pH, the aluminum salts form particulate aggregates, and one plausible explanation of the lack of information regarding the mechanisms could be the absence of an efficient method of trac
BACKGROUND: Most colon cancers start with dysregulated Wnt/β-catenin signalling and remain a major therapeutic challenge. Examining whether HAMLET (human α-lactalbumin made lethal to tumour cells) may be used for colon cancer treatment is logical, based on the properties of the complex and its biological context. OBJECTIVE: To investigate if HAMLET can be used for colon cancer treatment and preven
The S-nitrosylated proteoglycan glypican-1 recycles via endosomes where its heparan sulfate chains are degraded into anhydromannose-containing saccharides by NO-catalyzed deaminative cleavage. Because heparan sulfate chains can be associated with intracellular protein aggregates, glypican-1 autoprocessing may be involved in the clearance of misfolded recycling proteins. Here we have arrested and t
Free fatty acids (FFA) have generally been proposed to regulate pancreatic insulin release by an intracellular mechanism involving inhibition of CPT-1. The recently de-orphanized G-protein coupled receptor, FFA(1)R/GPR40, has been shown to be essential for fatty-acid-stimulated insulin release in MIN6 mouse insulinoma cells. The CPT-1 inhibitor, 2-bromo palmitate (2BrP), was investigated for its a
Pancreatic islets express high levels of the orphan G-protein coupled receptor C5C (GPRC5C), the function of which remains to be established. Here we have examined the role of GPRC5C in the regulation of insulin secretion and β-cell survival and proliferation using human and mouse pancreatic islets. The expression of GPRC5C was analysed by RNA-sequencing, qPCR, western blotting and confocal micros
BACKGROUND: Phosphorylation plays an essential role in regulating voltage-gated sodium (Na(v)) channels and excitability. Yet, a surprisingly limited number of kinases have been identified as regulators of Na(v) channels. We posited that glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3), a critical kinase found associated with numerous brain disorders, might directly regulate neuronal Na(v) channels.METHODS: We u
Nanowires (NWs) have unique electrical and optical properties of value for many applications including lighting, sensing, and energy harnessing. Consumer products containing NWs increase the risk of NWs being released in the environment, especially into aquatic ecosystems through sewage systems. Daphnia magna is a common, cosmopolitan freshwater organism sensitive to toxicity tests and represents
