Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

G I Bell

Publications and source records attributed to G I Bell.

At least 235 records · Page 13Linked to original sources
PubMed1991

Sequence and functional expression in Xenopus oocytes of a human insulinoma and islet potassium channel.

Regulation of insulin secretion involves the coordinated control of ion channels in the beta-cell membrane. We have isolated and characterized cDNA and genomic clones encoding a voltage-dependent K+ channel isoform expressed in human islets and in a human insulinoma. This K+ channel isoform, designated hPCN1, with a deduced amino acid sequence of 613 residues (Mr = 67,097), is related to the Shaker family of Drosophila K+ channels. hPCN1 is homologous to two other human K+ channel isoforms we have isolated, hPCN2 and hPCN3, with 55% and 65% amino acid sequence identity, respectively. The electrophysiological characteristics of hPCN1 were determined after microinjection of synthetic RNA into Xenopus oocytes. Two-microelectrode voltage-clamp recordings of oocytes injected with hPCN1 RNA revealed a voltage-dependent outward K+ current that inactivated slowly with time. Outward currents were inhibited by 4-aminopyridine with a Ki less than 0.10 mM and were relatively insensitive to tetraethylammonium ion or Ba2+. A delayed rectifier K+ channel such as hPCN1 could restore the resting membrane potential of beta cells after depolarization and thereby contribute to the regulation of insulin secretion.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1991

Sequences of islet amyloid polypeptide precursors of an Old World monkey, the pig-tailed macaque (Macaca nemestrina), and the dog (Canis familiaris).

The 37-amino acid islet amyloid polypeptide represents the major protein component present in islet amyloid deposits. Although the presence of islet amyloid is a characteristic pathological feature of the islets of humans, monkeys and cats with Type 2 (non-insulin-dependent) diabetes mellitus, it is not found in the islets of diabetic rats, mice or dogs. To further explore the molecular basis for these species differences in amyloid deposition we have used a polymerase chain reaction based method to clone cDNAs encoding the monkey (Macaca nemestrina) and dog (Canis familiaris) islet amyloid polypeptide precursors. The predicted amino acid sequence of the monkey precursor is 96% identical to that of the human protein; differences include one replacement in the signal peptide and three in the islet amyloid polypeptide domain. The sequence of the dog precursor is most closely related to that of the cat protein (85% identity); the sequences of dog and cat islet amyloid polypeptide differ only at two positions and are identical in the region of amino acids 20-29, the region thought to be primarily responsible for amyloidogenesis. Thus, amino acid residues in addition to those at positions 20-29 may facilitate the aggregation of islet amyloid polypeptide. The presence of amyloid deposits in some dog pancreatic endocrine tumours suggests that the dog protein can be amyloidogenic, perhaps due to elevated expression of islet amyloid polypeptide by the tumours relative to normal islets.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1991

Multiple restriction fragment length polymorphisms at the GLUT2 locus: GLUT2 haplotypes for genetic analysis of type 2 (non-insulin-dependent) diabetes mellitus.

The liver/islet glucose transporter (GLUT2) is expressed in the liver and in the Beta cells of pancreatic islets and is a candidate gene for the inherited defect in Type 2 (non-insulin-dependent) diabetes mellitus. A series of restriction fragment length polymorphisms have been identified using a GLUT2 cDNA probe with five restriction enzymes in a British white Caucasian population. Five independent restriction fragment length polymorphisms detected by restriction enzymes EcoRI (two restriction fragment length polymorphisms termed EcoRI-1, EcoRI-2), TaqI (two restriction fragment length polymorphisms termed TaqI-1, TaqI-2), and BclI (BclI-2) were used to construct GLUT2 haplotypes. Significant linkage disequilibrium was observed between four polymorphic sites EcoRI-2, TaqI-1, TaqI-2 and BclI-2 but linkage disequilibrium was not observed with EcoRI-1 polymorphic site and the other four sites. The frequencies of GLUT2 restriction fragment length polymorphisms and haplotypes in 50 Type 2 diabetic subjects and 50 non-diabetic control subjects show no significant differences suggesting that it is unlikely that there is a single major defect of this gene contributing to the inherited susceptibility to Type 2 diabetes in a Caucasian population.

Alleles↗
PubMed1991

Is islet amyloid polypeptide a significant factor in pathogenesis or pathophysiology of diabetes?

Islet amyloid polypeptide (IAPP) or amylin, a recently discovered minor secretory peptide of the beta-cell related to calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), is a constituent of amyloid deposits in the islets of many non-insulin-dependent (type II) diabetic individuals and some elderly nondiabetic subjects. IAPP is synthesized as a small precursor at a level of approximately 1% that of insulin and is processed, amidated, stored in beta-granules, and released along with insulin and C-peptide. Analysis of its gene (located on chromosome 12) supports an evolutionary relationship to calcitonin and CGRP, peptides with which it shares some biological actions. Like CGRP, IAPP antagonizes the action of insulin mainly at the level of muscle glycogen synthesis, but the levels required for this effect seem to be considerably higher than reported circulating levels. No evidence for overproduction of IAPP in diabetic subjects has been found thus far, but much more work is necessary to define its normal secretory rates and clearance. Other proposed actions of IAPP include serum calcium-lowering effects and smooth muscle relaxation; the latter effect might promote the uptake of insulin into the circulation within the islets. Deposition of amyloid is species selective due to structural differences within the central part of the molecule and may be initiated intracellularly in type II diabetes by several mechanisms. No differences in the structure of IAPP or its precursor have been found in individuals with maturity-onset diabetes of the young or type II diabetes.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1991

Lilly lecture 1990. Molecular defects in diabetes mellitus.

The application of molecular biology to problems in diabetes mellitus has begun to reveal the underlying molecular defects contributing to the development of hyperglycemia. Islet amyloid represents the most common pathological lesion occurring in the islets of NIDDM subjects. The use of both biochemistry and molecular biology has lead to the identification of the major protein component of human islet amyloid and elucidation of the structure of its precursor. This protein, termed islet amyloid polypeptide, is related to two neuropeptides, calcitonin gene-related peptides 1 and 2, and represents a new beta-cell secretory product whose normal physiological function remains to be determined. The use of molecular biology has also led to a better understanding of the molecular defects contributing to insulin resistance. Characterization of the insulin-receptor gene in patients with extreme forms of insulin resistance has resulted in the identification of mutations that impair its function and lead to tissue resistance to the action of insulin. Molecular biological approaches have also led to a better understanding of the regulation of glucose transport. They have revealed that there is a family of structurally related proteins encoded by distinct genes and expressed in a tissue-specific manner that are responsible for the transport of glucose across the plasma membrane. Moreover, they have shown that specific depletion of the glucose-transporter isoform that mediates insulin-stimulated glucose transport is responsible for decreased transport activity in adipose tissue in insulin-resistant states.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1990

Human facilitative glucose transporters. Isolation, functional characterization, and gene localization of cDNAs encoding an isoform (GLUT5) expressed in small intestine, kidney, muscle, and adipose tissue and an unusual glucose transporter pseudogene-like sequence (GLUT6).

Two novel facilitative glucose transporter-like cDNAs have been isolated from human small intestine and fetal skeletal muscle cDNA libraries by low stringency cross-hybridization with a fragment of the human erythrocyte/GLUT1 facilitative glucose transporter cDNA. One encodes a 501-amino acid facilitative glucose transporter, designated as the small intestine/GLUT5 isoform, having 41.7, 40.0, 38.7, and 41.6% identity with the previously described human erythrocyte/GLUT1, liver/GLUT2, brain/GLUT3, and muscle-fat/GLUT4 isoforms, respectively. GLUT5 mRNA is expressed at highest levels in small intestine and at much lower levels in kidney, skeletal muscle, and adipose tissue. Expression of in vitro synthesized human GLUT5 mRNA in Xenopus laevis oocytes indicates that the GLUT5 protein is a cytochalasin B-sensitive glucose carrier. The gene encoding the GLUT5 protein is located on the short arm of human chromosome 1. The second facilitative transporter-like cDNA sequence, designated GLUT6, is part of an 11-kilobase transcript that is expressed in all tissues examined. The sequence of a partial-length GLUT6 cDNA having an insert of 3.4 kilobase pairs revealed a region of 1.5 kilobase pairs that has 79.6% identity with the human brain/GLUT3 facilitative glucose transporter cDNA. However, because of the presence of multiple stop codons and frame shifts, this sequence cannot encode a functional glucose transporter protein. The region of facilitative glucose transporter nucleotide sequence homology in the GLUT6 transcript may have arisen by insertion of a reverse-transcribed GLUT3 transcript into the untranslated region of another gene. The GLUT6 gene is located on the long arm of human chromosome 5.

Adipose Tissue↗
PubMed1990

Islet amyloid polypeptide (amylin): no evidence of an abnormal precursor sequence in 25 type 2 (non-insulin-dependent) diabetic patients.

Islet amyloid polypeptide is the major protein component of the islet amyloid of patients with Type 2 (non-insulin-dependent) diabetes mellitus. Since the synthesis of a structurally abnormal or mutant protein may contribute to the formation of amyloid deposits, we have examined the possibility that a mutant form of islet amyloid polypeptide or its precursor contributes to the formation of islet amyloid in Type 2 diabetic patients. We have sequenced the islet amyloid polypeptide precursor coding regions of the gene of 25 patients with Type 2 diabetes. Genomic DNA fragments corresponding to exon 2 and 3 of the islet amyloid polypeptide gene were amplified from patients' peripheral blood leucocyte DNAs using the polymerase chain reaction and specific oligonucleotide primer sets, and then directly sequenced. The nucleotide sequences of the amplified regions of both alleles of the islet amyloid polypeptide gene of these 25 patients were identical to one another and to the sequence of an islet amyloid polypeptide allele isolated from a human fetal liver genomic library. These findings suggest that a primary structural abnormality of islet amyloid polypeptide or its precursor is unlikely to play a significant role in the formation of islet amyloid in Type 2 diabetic patients.

Amyloid↗
PubMed1990

Cloning of cDNAs for human phosphoribosylpyrophosphate synthetases 1 and 2 and X chromosome localization of PRPS1 and PRPS2 genes.

Cloned cDNAs representing the entire, homologous (80%) translated sequences of human phosphoribosylpyrophosphate synthetase (PRS) 1 and PRS 2 cDNAs were utilized as probes to localize the corresponding human PRPS1 and PRPS2 genes, previously reported to be X chromosome linked. PRPS1 and PRPS2 loci mapped to the intervals Xq22-q24 and Xp22.2-p22.3, respectively, using a combination of in situ chromosomal hybridization and human x rodent somatic cell panel genomic DNA hybridization analyses. A PRPS1-related gene or pseudogene (PRPS1L2) was also identified using in situ chromosomal hybridization at 9q33-q34. Human HPRT and PRPS1 loci are not closely linked. Despite marked cDNA and deduced amino acid sequence homology, human PRS 1 and PRS 2 isoforms are encoded by genes widely separated on the X chromosome.

Animals↗