| 1. |
- Hillier, Ladeana W, et al.
(författare)
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Sequence and comparative analysis of the chicken genome provide unique perspectives on vertebrate evolution
- 2004
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Ingår i: Nature. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 432:7018, s. 695-716
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present here a draft genome sequence of the red jungle fowl, Gallus gallus. Because the chicken is a modern descendant of the dinosaurs and the first non-mammalian amniote to have its genome sequenced, the draft sequence of its genome--composed of approximately one billion base pairs of sequence and an estimated 20,000-23,000 genes--provides a new perspective on vertebrate genome evolution, while also improving the annotation of mammalian genomes. For example, the evolutionary distance between chicken and human provides high specificity in detecting functional elements, both non-coding and coding. Notably, many conserved non-coding sequences are far from genes and cannot be assigned to defined functional classes. In coding regions the evolutionary dynamics of protein domains and orthologous groups illustrate processes that distinguish the lineages leading to birds and mammals. The distinctive properties of avian microchromosomes, together with the inferred patterns of conserved synteny, provide additional insights into vertebrate chromosome architecture.
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| 2. |
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| 3. |
- Craig, VSJ, et al.
(författare)
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Determination of coupled solvent mass in quartz crystal microbalance measurements using deuterated solvents
- 2003
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Ingår i: Journal of Colloid and Interface Science. - 0021-9797 .- 1095-7103. ; 262, s. 126-129
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A simple method is described for determining of the contribution of hydrodynamically coupled solvent to the adsorbed film mass determined in a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) when operated in liquid. The method requires no additional apparatus and utilizes the change in QCM resonant frequency response between measurements made in nondeuterated and deuterated solvents. The mass of coupled water in a polymer film has been determined and is found to agree with that determined by XPS analysis of the dried polymer film
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| 4. |
- Horikawa, Y, et al.
(författare)
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Genetic variation in the gene encoding calpain-10 is associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus
- 2000
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Ingår i: Nature Genetics. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1546-1718 .- 1061-4036. ; 26:2, s. 163-175
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Type 2 or non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) is the most common form of diabetes worldwide, affecting approximately 4% of the world's adult population. It is multifactorial in origin with both genetic and environmental factors contributing to its development. A genome-wide screen for type 2 diabetes genes carried out in Mexican Americans localized a susceptibility gene, designated NIDDM1, to chromosome 2. Here we describe the positional cloning of a gene located in the NIDDM1 region that shows association with type 2 diabetes in Mexican Americans and a Northern European population from the Botnia region of Finland. This putative diabetes-susceptibility gene encodes a ubiquitously expressed member of the calpain-like cysteine protease family, calpain-10 (CAPN10). This finding suggests a novel pathway that may contribute to the development of type 2 diabetes.
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| 5. |
- Jackson, Craig M, et al.
(författare)
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A critical evaluation of the prothrombin time for monitoring oral anticoagulant therapy
- 2003
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Ingår i: Pathophysiology of Haemostasis and Thrombosis. - : S. Karger AG. - 1424-8832 .- 1424-8840. ; 33:1, s. 43-51
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Quick prothrombin time is the most common clotting test performed, principally for monitoring oral anticoagulant therapy. The International Normalized Ratio (INR) for comparing patient results from prothrombin time measurements and the International Standardized Index (ISI) for achieving greater consistency of results using different thromboplastins have made it possible to compare the results of vitamin K antagonist drug therapy that was impossible before the introduction of the INR and ISI. However, INR values obtained from the same patient plasma sample using different thromboplastins are significantly different. This is so even when the thromboplastins have nearly the same ISI values. We suggest that investigation of patient-specific differences can provide a means by which the INR discrepancies can be identified and understood and thus lead to better methods for monitoring oral anticoagulant therapy.
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| 6. |
- Kang, J, et al.
(författare)
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Total chemical synthesis and NMR characterization of the glycopeptide tx5a, a heavily post-translationally modified conotoxin, reveals that the glycan structure is alpha-D-Gal-(1 -> 3)-alpha-D-GalNAc
- 2004
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Ingår i: European Journal of Biochemistry. - : Wiley. - 0014-2956 .- 1432-1033. ; 271:23-24, s. 4939-4949
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The 13-amino acid glycopeptide tx5a (Gla-Cys-Cys-Gla-Asp-Gly-Trp*-Cys-Cys-Thr*-Ala-Ala-Hyp-OH, where Trp* = 6-bromotryptophan and Thr* = Gal-GalNAc-threonine), isolated from Conus textile, causes hyperactivity and spasticity when injected intracerebral ventricularly into mice. It contains nine post-translationally modified residues: four cysteine residues, two gamma-carboxyglutamic acid residues, and one residue each of 6-bromotryptophan, 4-trans-hydroxyproline and glycosylated threonine. The chemical nature of each of these has been determined with the exception of the glycan linkage pattern on threonine and the stereochemistry of the 6-bromotryptophan residue. Previous investigations have demonstrated that tx5a contains a disaccharide composed of N-acetylgalactosamine (GalNAc) and galactose (Gal), but the interresidue linkage was not characterized. We hypothesized that tx5a contained the T-antigen, beta-D-Gal-(1-->3)-alpha-D-GalNAc, one of the most common O-linked glycan structures, identified previously in another Conus glycopeptide, contalukin-G. We therefore utilized the peracetylated form of this glycan attached to Fmoc-threonine in an attempted synthesis. While the result-ing synthetic peptide (Gla-Cys-Cys-Gla-Asp-Gly-Trp*-Cys-Cys-Thr*-Ala-Ala-Hyp-OH, where Trp* =6-bromotryptophan and Thr* = beta-D-Gal-(1-->3)-alpha-D-GalNAc-threonine) and the native peptide had almost identical mass spectra, a comparison of their RP-HPLC chromatograms suggested that the two forms were not identical. Two-dimensional H-1 homonuclear and C-13-H-1 heteronuclear NMR spectroscopy of native tx5a isolated from Conus textile was then used to determine that the glycan present on tx5a indeed is not the aforementioned T-antigen, but rather alpha-D-Gal-(1-->3)-alpha-D-GalNAc.
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| 7. |
- Kwoka, Benjamin H B, et al.
(författare)
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The anti-inflammatory natural product parthenolide from the medicinal herb Feverfew directly binds to and inhibits IkappaB kinase
- 2001
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Ingår i: Chemistry & Biology. ; 8:8, s. 759-77
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Biologically active natural products continue to be useful in the exploration and control of intracellular signaling processes. For example, the sesquiterpene lactone parthenolide from the anti-inflammatory medicinal herb Feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium) appears to inhibit the pro-inflammatory signaling pathway. Parthenolide’s direct molecular target, however, remains unknown. We set out to identify the molecular mechanisms of parthenolide’s anti-inflammatory activity.Results: A parthenolide affinity reagent was synthesized and shown to bind directly to and inhibit IκB kinase β (IKKβ), the kinase subunit known to play a critical role in cytokine-mediated signaling. Mutation of cysteine 179 in the activation loop of IKKβ abolished sensitivity towards parthenolide. Moreover, we showed that parthenolide’s in vitro and in vivo anti-inflammatory activity is mediated through the α-methylene γ-lactone moiety shared by other sesquiterpene lactones.Conclusions: In recent years, the multi-subunit IKK complex has been shown to be responsible for cytokine-mediated stimulation of genes involved in inflammation and as such represents an attractive target for pharmaceutical intervention. Our finding that parthenolide targets this kinase complex provides a possible molecular basis for the anti-inflammatory properties of parthenolide. In addition, these results may be useful in the development of additional anti-inflammatory agents.
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| 8. |
- Mahlin, Denny, 1973-
(författare)
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Phase Transformations in Solid Pharmaceutical Materials Studied by AFM, ESCA, DSC and SAXS
- 2004
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Mixing excipients is a common way to produce pharmaceutical materials with suitable properties for drug formulation. An understanding of the basic mechanisms involved in the formation and transformation of the structures of solid state mixtures is crucial if one is to be able to produce materials with the desired properties in a reliable way. In the first part of the thesis, the atomic force microscopy (AFM) technique was used to visualise the re-crystallisation of spray-dried amorphous particles comprised of lactose and PVP. The transformation was quantified on a single particle level and analysed with a common kinetic model, the JMAK-equation. The way in which the PVP was incorporated into the particles and the impact this had on their physical stability on exposure to increasing levels of humidity was investigated. The amount and, to a certain extent, the molecular weight of the PVP affected the moisture induced crystallisation of the particles. The inhibition was further discussed in terms of nucleation and growth. In the second part of the thesis, the formation of phases in solid dispersions of monoolein (MO) in PEGs was studied by the use of SAXS and DSC. Upon solidification of a melt, the components phase separated, resulting in a PEG-rich phase and an MO phase. MO was intercalated into the amorphous domains of the lamellar structure of PEG. A second MO phase appeared in the mixtures where the average molecular weight of PEG was 1500 and 4000 g/mol. It was hypothesised that this second phase was formed in conjunction with the expulsion of MO as the PEG unfolded. This thesis describes the application of two relatively unexplored solid state techniques on two different solid mixtures of pharmaceutical interest and, in so doing, contributes to the knowledge of phase formation and transformations in the solid state.
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| 9. |
- Ndubuisil, MacKevin I, et al.
(författare)
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Characterization of a Novel Mammalian Phosphatase Having Sequence Similarity to Schizosaccharomyces pombe PHO2 and Saccharomyces cerevisiae PHO13
- 2002
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Ingår i: Biochemistry. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 0006-2960 .- 1520-4995. ; 41:24, s. 7841-8
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- p34, a specific p-nitrophenyl phosphatase (pNPPase) was identified and purified from the murine cell line EL4 in a screen for the intracellular molecular targets of the antiinflammatory natural product parthenolide. A BLAST search analysis revealed that it has a high degree of sequence similarity to two yeast alkaline phosphatases. We have cloned, sequenced, and expressed p34 as a GST-tagged fusion protein in Escherichia coli and an EE-epitope-tagged fusion protein in mammalian cells. Using p-nitrophenyl phosphate (pNPP) as a substrate, p34 is optimally active at pH 7.6 with a Km of 1.36 mM and Kcat of 0.052 min-1. Addition of 1 mM Mg2+ to the reaction mixture increases its activity by 14-fold. Other divalent metal ions such as Co2+ and Mn2+ also stimulated the activity of the enzyme, while Zn2+, Fe2+, and Cu2+ had no effect. Furthermore, both NaCl and KCl enhanced the activity of the enzyme, having maximal effect at 50 and 75 mM, respectively. The enzyme is inhibited by sodium orthovanadate but not by sodium fluoride or okadaic acid. Mutational analysis data suggest that p34 belongs to the group of phosphatases characterized by the sequence motif DXDX(T/V).
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| 10. |
- Notley, Shannon M., et al.
(författare)
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Adsorbed layer structure of a weak polyelectrolyte studied by colloidal probe microscopy and QCM-D as a function of pH and ionic strength
- 2004
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Ingår i: Physical Chemistry, Chemical Physics - PCCP. - : Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC). - 1463-9076 .- 1463-9084. ; 6:9, s. 2379-2386
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The adsorbed layer structure of a weak polyelectrolyte poly(2-vinylpyridine), on silica and mica, has been studied using colloidal probe microscopy (CPM) and the quartz crystal microbalance (QCM-D). The adsorbed layer structure was found to be highly dependent on both the solution conditions from which it was adsorbed and the molecular weight. Conditions were altered to favour both flat adsorbed layers and the development of significant steric layers. The structural reconformation of the large steric layer was furthermore studied as a function of pH. The equilibrium interaction force, measured using CPM as a function of surface separation, was used to determine the relative extension of the polyelectrolyte away from the interface. At low pH (3.2) and high ionic strength, the adsorbed polyelectrolyte molecules adopt a highly extended conformation; as the pH is increased (to 4.6 then to 5.5) the polymer chains collapse progressively towards the interface. Reversal of this pH cycle causes a re-protonation of the adsorbed polymers and highlights the finite timescale for this process to occur. The kinetics of this process was measured from the amount of trapped solvent within the polyelectrolyte layer as determined from the QCM-D. Upon decrease in pH, the adsorbed chains swell before partially collapsing. We propose that this is due to cross-linking of the polymer in the protonated state. Furthermore, the combination of techniques used in this study, namely optical reflectometry, CPM and QCM-D, allows the determination of the solvent content of the adsorbed film of polyelectrolyte as well as the extension of the polymer from the interface as a function of pH.
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