Ground-state absorbance measurements show that BR from Halobacterium halobium containing asparagine at residue 85 (D85N) exists as three distinct chromophoric states in equilibrium. In the pH range ...6-12 the absorbance spectra of the three states are demonstrated to be similar to flash-induced spectral intermediates which comprise the latter portion of the wild-type BR photocycle. One of the states absorbs maximally at 405 nm, has a deprotonated Schiff base, and contains predominantly the 13-cis form of retinal, identifying it as a close homologue of the M intermediate in the BR photocycle. The other species possess absorbance maxima with correspondence to those of the wild-type N (570 nm) and O (615 nm) photointermediates. The retinal composition of the O-like form was found to be dominated by all-trans isomer. The pH dependence of the concentrations of the equilibrium species corresponds closely with the pH dependence of the M, N, and O photointermediates. These data support kinetic models which emphasize the role of back-reactions during the photocycle of bacteriorhodopsin. Energetic and spectral characterization of the D85N ground-state equilibrium supports its use as a model for elucidating molecular transitions comprising the latter portion of the BR photocycle.
Amino acids have distinct lipid bilayer affinities which influence the insertion and topology of membrane-bound polypeptides and proteins. To measure membrane affinities, 14 uncharged amino acids ...were introduced individually at a guest site in a 25-residue peptide derived from the membrane-binding presequence of yeast cytochrome c oxidase, and the peptides were labeled with a nitroxide spin-label. The free energies of transfer from phospholipid bilayers to water (delta delta Gbilayer) were determined directly by examination of partitioning into phospholipid bilayers using electron paramagnetic resonance. The delta delta Gbilayer values are in agreement with hydrophobicities assessed from 1-octanol-water partitioning of N-acetyl amino acid amides Fauchere, J.-L., & Pliska, V. (1983) Eur. J. Med. Chem. 18, 369-375; Eisenberg, D., & McLachlan, A. (1986) Nature 319, 199-203 and quantitatively demonstrate the role of the hydrophobic effect in membrane-protein interactions.
Ligand-binding-induced conformational changes in the Salmonella typhimurium aspartate receptor were studied using spin-labeling electron paramagnetic resonance. Cysteine residues, introduced by ...site-directed mutagenesis at several positions in the aspartate receptor periplasmic domain, were used to attach covalently a thiol-specific spin label. The electron paramagnetic resonance spectra of these labeled proteins were obtained in the presence and absence of the ligand aspartate, and used to calculate the distance change between spin labels. The results support a model in which transmembrane signaling is executed by a combined movement of alpha helix 4 (which leads into transmembrane domain 2) relative to alpha helix 1 (connected to transmembrane domain 1), as well as a coming together of the two subunits. Ligand binding causes spin labels at position 39 and 179 (within one subunit) to move further from each other and spin labels at position 39 and 39' (between two subunits) to move closer to each other. Both of these changes are very small-less than 2.5 A. No similar changes were detected in any aspartate receptor samples solubilized in detergent, suggesting that the membrane is required for these conformational changes. This is the first case of physically measured ligand-induced changes in a full-length 1-2 transmembrane domain receptor, and the results suggest that very small ligand-induced movements can result in large effects on the activity of downstream proteins.
Tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-1 (TIMP-1) has been shown to be increased in liver fibrosis development both in murine experimental models and human samples. However, the direct role of TIMP-1 ...during liver fibrosis development has not been defined. To address this issue, we developed transgenic mice overexpressing human TIMP-1 (hTIMP-1) in the liver under control of the albumin promoter/enhancer. A model of CCl
4-induced hepatic fibrosis was used to assess the extent of fibrosis development in TIMP-1 transgenic (TIMP-Tg) mice and control hybrid (Cont) mice. Without any treatment, overexpression of TIMP-1 itself did not induce liver fibrosis. There were no significant differences of pro-(α1)-collagen-I, (α2)-collagen-IV, and α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) mRNA expression in the liver between TIMP-Tg and Cont-mice, suggesting that overexpression of TIMP-1 itself did not cause hepatic stellate cell (HSC) activation. After 4-week treatment with CCl
4, however, densitometric analysis revealed that TIMP-Tg-mice had a seven-fold increase in liver fibrosis compared with the Cont-mice. The hepatic hydroxyproline content and serum hyaluronic acid were also significantly increased in TIMP-Tg-mice, whereas CCl
4-induced liver dysfunction was not altered. An active form of matrix metalloproteinases-2 (MMP-2) level in the liver of TIMP-Tg-mice was decreased relative to that in Cont-mice because of the transgenic TIMP-1. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that collagen-I and collagen-IV accumulation was markedly increased in the liver of CCl
4-treated TIMP-Tg-mice with a pattern similar to that of α-SMA positive cells. These results suggest that TIMP-1 does not by itself result in liver fibrosis, but strongly promotes liver fibrosis development. (Hepatology2000;32:1248-1254.)
Through complementary application of SNP genotyping, whole-genome sequencing and imputation in 38,384 Icelanders, we have discovered a previously unidentified sick sinus syndrome susceptibility gene, ...MYH6, encoding the alpha heavy chain subunit of cardiac myosin. A missense variant in this gene, c.2161C>T, results in the conceptual amino acid substitution p.Arg721Trp, has an allelic frequency of 0.38% in Icelanders and associates with sick sinus syndrome with an odds ratio = 12.53 and P = 1.5 × 10⁻²⁹. We show that the lifetime risk of being diagnosed with sick sinus syndrome is around 6% for non-carriers of c.2161C>T but is approximately 50% for carriers of the c.2161C>T variant.
To investigate the interaction of the presequence of the precursor of yeast cytochrome C oxidase subunit IV (COX IV) with phospholipid membranes, a series of single- and double-cysteine-substituted ...peptide variants derived from the 25-residue NH2-terminal presequence has been synthesized and modified with nitroxide spin labels. The immersion depth, orientation, and secondary structure of the peptide in the POPC bilayer containing 10 mol % POPG were determined using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy. EPR saturation analysis of singly labeled variants reveals that the nitroxides attached to the NH2-terminal region of the peptide insert into the acyl chain region of the bilayer, approximately 13 A deep from the membrane surface. EPR line shape analysis of doubly labeled variants indicates that the peptide predominantly exists as an extended conformation, with little secondary structure. The experimental results, together with the energetic consideration of peptide-bilayer interactions, suggest that the presequence is located near the interface between the head group region and the acyl chain region, such that the hydrophobic side chains are solvated by the acyl chains and the charged side chains extended toward the polar environment at the bilayer surface.
We tested whether polygenic risk scores for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder would predict creativity. Higher scores were associated with artistic society membership or creative profession in both ...Icelandic (P = 5.2 × 10(-6) and 3.8 × 10(-6) for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder scores, respectively) and replication cohorts (P = 0.0021 and 0.00086). This could not be accounted for by increased relatedness between creative individuals and those with psychoses, indicating that creativity and psychosis share genetic roots.
Hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor c-met signaling pathway is of central importance during development as well as in tumorigenesis. Because homozygous null mice for either hgf/sf or c-met die in ...utero, we used Cre/loxP-mediated gene targeting to investigate the function of c-met specifically in the adult liver. Loss of c-met appeared not to be detrimental to hepatocyte function under physiological conditions. Nonetheless, the adaptive responses of the liver to injury were dramatically affected. Mice lacking c-met gene in hepatocytes were hypersensitive to Fas-induced apoptosis. When injected with a low dose of anti-Fas antibody, the majority of these mice died from massive apoptosis and hemorrhagic necrosis, whereas all wild-type mice survived with signs of minor injury. After a challenge with a single necrogenic dose of CCl4, c-met conditional knockout mice exhibited impaired recovery from centrolobular lesions rather than a deficit in hepatocyte proliferation. The delayed healing was associated with a persistent inflammatory reaction, over-production of osteopontin, early and prominent dystrophic calcification, and impaired hepatocyte scattering/migration into diseased areas. These studies provide direct genetic evidence in support of the critical role of c-met in efficient liver regeneration and suggest that disruption of c-met affects primarily hepatocyte survival and tissue remodeling.
In anticipation of the sequencing of the human genome and description of the human proteome, the Age, Gene/Environment Susceptibility–Reykjavik Study (AGES–Reykjavik) was initiated in 2002. ...AGES–Reykjavik was designed to examine risk factors, including genetic susceptibility and gene/environment interaction, in relation to disease and disability in old age. The study is multidisciplinary, providing detailed phenotypes related to the cardiovascular, neurocognitive (including sensory), and musculoskeletal systems, and to body composition and metabolic regulation. Relevant quantitative traits, subclinical indicators of disease, and medical diagnoses are identified by using biomarkers, imaging, and other physiologic indicators. The AGES–Reykjavik sample is drawn from an established population-based cohort, the Reykjavik Study. This cohort of men and women born between 1907 and 1935 has been followed in Iceland since 1967 by the Icelandic Heart Association. The AGES–Reykjavik cohort, with cardiovascular risk factor assessments earlier in life and detailed late-life phenotypes of quantitative traits, will create a comprehensive study of aging nested in a relatively genetically homogeneous older population. This approach should facilitate identification of genetic factors that contribute to healthy aging as well as the chronic conditions common in old age.
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