Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to D Kern.
The FBS Control is designed to assist cell culture scientists who have been frustrated with lack of consistency in FBS lots. Continued use will reduce the time and expense needed in classical lot selection methods.
We report the ability of focused soft X-rays to visualize at spatial resolution well beyond that of the optical microscope (less than 100 nm) the interior of a small, whole biological object without fixation, staining, dehydration or sectioning. Quantitative estimation of its protein content with unique femtogram sensitivity is also reported. The present results represent a significant step towards the goals of natural imaging and chemical mapping of biological structures with soft X-rays.
Aspartyl-tRNA synthetase from yeast (AspRS) was screened for functional domains by measuring the effect of two types of amino acid mutations on its catalytic properties: (a) insertion of a dipeptide or a tetrapeptide along the polypeptide chain, (b) deletion of various lengths from the enzyme C-terminal. It was shown that insertion mutations significantly affect the kinetic properties of AspRS only when occurring in the second quarter of the molecule and the two centrally located mutations even inactivate the enzyme completely. Analysis of kinetic data strongly suggests that, in fact, all the observed activity modifications result from alteration of the activation reaction rate constant, kappa cat only. This led to the conclusion that the domain involved in aspartic acid activation should be located in the second quarter of the molecule. Furthermore, a deletion mutant with a modification of the last five amino acid residues was isolated. This mutant is fully active in the activation step, but has lost 80% of the wild-type aminoacylation activity. This involvement of the C-terminus in acylation implies that it has to be folded towards strategic regions of the enzyme, thus favouring conformations required for catalysis or maintaining the tRNA in a functional position.
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Essential lysine residues were sought in the catalytic site of baker's yeast aspartyl-tRNA synthetase (an alpha 2 dimer of Mr 125,000) using affinity labeling methods and periodate-oxidized adenosine, ATP, and tRNA(Asp). It is shown that the number of periodate-oxidized derivatives which can be bound to the synthetase via Schiff's base formation with epsilon-NH2 groups of lysine residues exceeds the stoichiometry of specific substrate binding. Furthermore, it is found that the enzymatic activities are not completely abolished, even for high incorporation levels of the modified substrates. The tRNA(Asp) aminoacylation reaction is more sensitive to labeling than is the ATP-PPi exchange one; for enzyme preparations modified with oxidized adenosine or ATP this activity remains unaltered. These results demonstrate the absence of a specific lysine residue directly involved in the catalytic activities of yeast aspartyl-tRNA synthetase. Comparative labeling experiments with oxidized ATP were run with several other aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases. Residual ATP-PPi exchange and tRNA aminoacylation activities measured in each case on the modified synthetases reveal different behaviors of these enzymes when compared to that of aspartyl-tRNA synthetase. When tested under identical experimental conditions, pure isoleucyl-, methionyl-, threonyl- and valyl-tRNA synthetases from E. coli can be completely inactivated for their catalytic activities; for E. coli alanyl-tRNA synthetase only the tRNA charging activity is affected, whereas yeast valyl-tRNA synthetase is only partly inactivated. The structural significance of these experiments and the occurrence of essential lysine residues in aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases are discussed.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
An adoptive therapy model has been utilized to examine the requirements for T cells to promote eradication of a disseminated, retrovirus-induced, syngeneic leukemia. Complete tumor elimination required that the transferred T cells proliferate in the host and mediate an anti-tumor effect for more than 30 days. Non-cytolytic L3T4+ T helper (Th) cells were capable of eliminating disseminated tumor without the participation of Lyt-2+ cytotoxic T cells (Tc). Purified or cloned Lyt-2+ T cells were also effective in therapy, but required the concurrent administration of either L3T4+ Th or interleukin 2 (IL-2) for optimal efficacy. L3T4+ Th appear to function via secretion of lymphokines that activate macrophages to a cytotoxic state. Lyt-2+ Tc, in addition to direct cytotoxicity, may mediate tumor eradication in part by secretion of lymphokines that activate in vivo tumoricidal macrophages. These studies suggested that the reported efficacy of individual T cell subsets in therapy of particular tumors might not reflect resistance or susceptibility to a cytotoxic effector mechanism, but rather the efficiency with which a T cell subset is activated by the tumor and/or recognizes the tumor antigen. Methods were developed to independently assess the activation and proliferation requirements of each subset. L3T4+ Th required that macrophages degrade tumor antigens in lysosomes and present the antigens in the context of class II molecules, and produced IL-2 and IL-4 as endogenous growth factors. By contrast, Lyt-2+ T cells recognized the tumor directly, required macrophages only to produce IL-1 for activation, and produced IL-2 but not IL-4 as an endogenous growth factor. The ability of T cell subsets to recognize the distinct retroviral tumor antigens expressed on FBL leukemia was assessed using cell lines or recombinant vaccinia viruses transfected with selected retroviral genes. Highly selective antigen recognition was detected, with Lyt-2+ Tc cells recognizing products of gag but not envelope genes, and L3T4+ Th recognizing envelope but not gag products. The results suggest that even complex unique tumor antigens may elicit only limited host T cell responses.
Secondary osteoarthritis (OA) may result from a number of causes including trauma or may be related to a specific occupation or activity. In patients who present with atypical OA one should consider the possibility of such an etiology. This article discusses post-traumatic osteoarthritis and specific forms of occupational OA.
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A new approach allowing detection of contact points between RNAs and proteins has been developed using trans-diamminedichloroplatinum(II) as the cross-linking reagent. The advantage of the method relies on the fact that the coordination bonds between platinum and the potential acceptors on proteins and nucleic acids (mainly S of cysteine or methionine residues; N of imidazole rings in histidine residues; N7 of guanine, N1 of adenine, and N3 of cytosine residues) can be reversed, so that the cross-linked oligonucleotides or peptides in contact within a complex can be analyzed directly. The method was worked out with the ribosome from Escherichia coli and the tRNAVal/valyl-tRNA synthetase system from the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. In the first system the platinum approach permitted detection of ribosomal proteins cross-linked to 16S rRNA within the 30S subunits (mainly S18 and to a lower extent S3, S4, S11, and S13/S14); in the second system major oligonucleotides of tRNAVal cross-linked to valyl-tRNA synthetase were detected in the anticodon stem and loop, in the variable loop, and in the 3' terminal amino acid accepting region. These results are discussed in light of the current knowledge on ribosome and tRNAs and of potential applications of the methodology.
Yeast aspartyl-tRNA synthetase is a dimeric enzyme (alpha 2, Mr 125,000) which can be crystallized either alone or complexed with tRNAAsp. When analyzed by electrophoretic methods, the pure enzyme presents structural heterogeneities even when recovered from crystals. Up to three enzyme populations could be identified by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and more than ten by isoelectric focusing. They have similar molecular masses and mainly differ in their charge. All are fully active. This microheterogeneity is also revealed by ion-exchange chromatography and chromatofocusing. Several levels of heterogeneity have been defined. A first type, which is reversible, is linked to redox effects and/or to conformational states of the protein. A second one, revealed by immunological methods, is generated by partial and differential proteolysis occurring during enzyme purification from yeast cells harvested in growth phase. As demonstrated by end-group analysis, the fragmentation concerns exclusively the N-terminal end of the enzyme. The main cleavage points are Gln-19, Val-20 and Gly-26. Six minor cuts are observed between positions 14 and 33. The present data are discussed in the perspective of the crystallographic studies on aspartyl-tRNA synthetase.
Aspartyl-tRNA synthetase from bakers' yeast gives an unstable complex with the cognate adenylate, which reacts after dissociation with amino acid side chains of the protein. This leads to a covalent incorporation of aspartic acid into aspartyl-tRNA synthetase via amide or ester bonds formed between the alpha-carboxyl group of activated aspartic acid and accessible lysines, serines, and threonines. This property is used to label the peptides at the surface of the enzyme. The main labeled residues have been identified, and their location in the primary structure is discussed in relation to structural properties of aspartyl-tRNA synthetase.
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The effect of patulin on tRNA aminoacylation has been determined. This mycotoxin inhibits the aminoacylation process by irreversibly inactivating aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases. At neutral and alkaline pH-values, the inactivation occurs mainly by modification of essential thiol groups of the protein, whereas at acidic pH, where the effect is the most pronounced, the modification of other amino acid residues cannot be excluded.
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A chemical quenched-flow apparatus is described which measures, in a unique stroke, enough data points (8-11) for establishing the kinetics curve of a reaction. Only very small volumes of reaction solutions (2 X 500 microliters) are required. The time intervals between which the kinetic data may be measured range from 5 to 37 ms and from 120 to 450 ms with the corresponding mixing times of 0.6 and 5 ms, respectively. This apparatus was used to investigate the pre-steady-state domain of the aminoacylation reaction of tRNAVal by valyl-tRNA synthetase from yeast.
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A large scale purification procedure of baker's yeast aspartyl-tRNA synthetase is described which yields more than 200 mg pure protein starting from 30 Kg of wet commercial cells. The synthetase is an alpha 2 dimer of Mr = 125,000 +/- 5,000 which can be crystallized (J. Mol. Biol. 138, 1980, 129-135). The enzyme has an elongated shape with a Stokes radius of 50 A and a frictional ratio of 1.5. The synthetase has a tendency to aggregate but methods are described where this effect is overcome.