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Biomedical subjects

H Yan

Publications and source records attributed to H Yan.

At least 235 records · Page 13Linked to original sources

Interaction of calmodulin with synthetic deletion peptides of melittin.

The 26-residue peptide melittin present in bee venom has been shown to bind calmodulin tightly. In this study we synthesized the following series of deletion peptides of melittin by the solid-phase method: Mel12, Mel13, Mel14, Mel15, Mel15F. The results of this study show that the deletion peptides Mel14 and Mel15 have almost the same binding activity as the intact native peptide. Each deletion peptide forms a 1:1 complex with calmodulin according to electrophoresis analysis. When the tryptophanyl residue of Mel15 was replaced by the phenylalaninyl residue, the dissociation constant of the peptide-calmodulin complex increased. This shows the importance of the tryptophanyl residue for binding to calmodulin.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Direct binding to and tyrosine phosphorylation of the alpha subunit of the type I interferon receptor by p135tyk2 tyrosine kinase.

Binding of type I interferons (IFNs) to their receptors induces rapid tyrosine phosphorylation of multiple proteins, including the alpha and beta subunits of the receptor, the polypeptides that form the transcriptional activator ISGF3 alpha (Stat113, Stat84, and Stat91), and the p135tyk2 and Jak-1 tyrosine kinases. In this report, we demonstrate that the alpha subunit of the type I IFN receptor (IFN-R) corresponds to the product of a previously cloned receptor subunit cDNA and, further, that the p135tyk2 tyrosine kinase directly binds and tyrosine phosphorylates this receptor subunit. Glutathione S-transferase (GST) fusion proteins encoding the different regions of the cytoplasmic domain of the alpha subunit can bind the p135tyk2 contained in human cell lysates. The association between the alpha subunit and Tyk2 was demonstrated by immunoblotting with anti-Tyk2 and antiphosphotyrosine antibodies and by using an in vitro kinase assay. Analogous experiments were then performed with recombinant baculoviruses encoding constitutively active Jak family tyrosine kinases. In this case, p135tyk2, but not Jak-1 or Jak-2 protein, binds to the GST-IFN-R proteins, suggesting that the interaction between these two proteins is both direct and specific. We also demonstrate that Tyk2, from extracts of either IFN alpha-treated human cells or insect cells infected with the recombinant baculoviruses, can catalyze in vitro phosphorylation of GST-IFN-R protein in a specific manner. Deletion mutants of the GST-IFN-R protein were used to localize both the binding and tyrosine phosphorylation site(s) to a 46-amino-acid juxtamembrane region of the alpha subunit, which shows sequence homology to functionally similar regions of other cytokine receptor proteins. These data support the hypothesis that the Tyk2 protein functions as part of a receptor complex to initiate intracellular signaling in response to type I IFNs.

DNA-Binding Proteins↗

Constrained learning vector quantization.

Kohonen's learning vector quantization (LVQ) is an efficient neural network based technique for pattern recognition. The performance of the method depends on proper selection of the learning parameters. Over-training may cause a degradation in recognition rate of the final classifier. In this paper we introduce constrained learning vector quantization (CLVQ). In this method the updated coefficients in each iteration are accepted only if the recognition performance of the classifier after updating is not decreased for the training samples compared with that before updating, a constraint widely used in many prototype editing procedures to simplify and optimize a nearest neighbor classifier (NNC). An efficient computer algorithm is developed to implement this constraint. The method is verified with experimental results. It is shown that CLVQ outperforms and may even require much less training time than LVQ.

Algorithms↗

Handwritten digit recognition using two-layer self-organizing maps.

In this paper, we present a two-layer self-organizing neural network based method for handwritten digit recognition. The network consists of a base layer self-organizing map and a set of corresponding maps in the second layer. The input patterns are partitioned into subspace in the first layer. Patterns in a subspace are led to the second layer and a corresponding map is built according to the first layer performance. In the classification process, each pattern searches for several closest nodes from the base map and then it is classified into a specified class by determining the nearest model of the corresponding maps in the second layer. The new method yielded higher accuracy and faster performance than the ordinary self-organizing neural network.

Handwriting↗

[The clinicopathologic study of histiocytic necrotizing lymphadenitis and the differentiated diagnosis with malignant lymphoma--report of 31 cases].

Histiocytic necrotizing lymphadenitis (HNL) is a kind of rare benign disease, predilection to involve the neck of young women, causing enlargement of the lymph nodes and usually accompanying by fever and other constitutional symptoms, and a unique clinicopathologic course are characteristic of this disease. Because its histomorphology has a given spectrum changing, it may lead to misdiagnosis for someone who is unfamiliar with it. According to the document records, misdiagnostis of HNL could be up to 30%-40%, especially in its early proliferative stage. In this 31 cases analysis, the authors systematically summarize the clinicopathologic characteristics of this lesion, and focus to elucidate the different features between HNL and lymphoma. Although presently it is thought that the disease is self-limited, there are two cases with clinical manifestations of systemic lupus erythematosus in our series. Possibly, the two diseases may have some intrinsic relationships. Long term follow-up of its final outcome in these patients is necessary to clarify whether or not HNL is a self-limiting or progressive disease.

Adolescent↗

[The clinical study on hysteromyoma treated with acupuncture].

Hysteromyoma is a very common disease among women and there is no specific therapy except for surgical operation. We have taken acupuncture to treat it and at the same time we used Chinese and western medicine treatments as a control. As a result, we find that acupuncture treatment is better than medicine treatment. The total effective rate is 98% and cure rate is 73%.

Acupuncture Therapy↗

[Pathological and ultrastructural changes in conjunctival malignant melanoma treated by cryotherapy].

The liquid nitrogen cryotherapy was used to treat conjunctival malignant melanoma. Light and transmission electron microscopic examinations were carried out before, during and after the treatment. It was discovered that the tumor cells died within a few minutes after the cryoapplication. Under transmission electron microscope, marked necrosis of tumor cells was seen 10-14 days after the treatment and a large amount of collagenous fibers and fibroblast hyperplasia were seen in the tumor in 3-4 weeks following the application, while the tumor cells were seldom found. Under light microscope, as significant necrosis of the malignant melanoma occurred, the surface conjunctival epithelium gradually grew and covered the defect of the conjunctiva, showing that the malignant melanoma cells are much more sensitive to the cryoapplication than the normal conjunctival epithelial cells.

Adult↗

Community-based psychiatric rehabilitation in Shanghai. Facilities, services, outcome, and culture-specific characteristics.

This paper describes the community mental health services in Shanghai, analyses the effectiveness of these services, and discusses their culture-specific characteristics. It reports on a prospective, matched-control study of the three most important types of service: a community follow-up programme in psychiatric out-patient clinics at primary-level general hospitals, 'guardianship networks' operated by non-professional volunteers, and work therapy stations. In total 308 pairs of subjects completed the study. Using Chinese versions of the Disability Assessment Schedule to assess impairment in psychosocial functioning and the Present State Examination to assess the levels of positive and negative symptoms, ten blind evaluators who had excellent inter-rater reliability assessed the functioning of subjects at enrollment and every six months for the next two years. Over the two years, symptoms and social functioning improved in the treatment groups and deteriorated in the control groups. Thus these community psychiatric services have the dual benefit of promoting rehabilitation and preventing psychosocial deterioration.

Activities of Daily Living↗

A novel receptor tyrosine phosphatase-sigma that is highly expressed in the nervous system.

A novel transmembrane receptor protein tyrosine phosphatase-sigma (RPTP-sigma) was cloned from a rat brain stem cDNA library. The extracellular segment of one form of RPTP-sigma contains 824 amino acids and is composed of three immunoglobulin-like and five fibronectin type III (FNIII)-like repeats. The 627-amino acid cytoplasmic region of RPTP-sigma consists of two catalytic domains oriented in tandem. Northern blot analyses indicate that RPTP-sigma is highly expressed in the brain as two major transcripts of 5.7 and 6.9 kilobases (kb). The 5.7-kb transcript is expressed exclusively in the brain while the 6.9-kb species can be detected in the lung and heart, but at significantly lower levels. In situ hybridization studies confirm that RPTP-sigma is localized predominantly in the nervous system and can be detected in the rat as early as embryonic day 12. During embryonic development, RPTP-sigma is expressed extensively in the central and peripheral nervous systems, including the trigeminal and dorsal root ganglia as well as the retina. In adult rat brain, expression is restricted primarily to the olfactory tubercule, cerebellum, and hippocampus. Within the latter structure, RPTP-sigma is present in the pyramidal cell layer and granular layer of the dentate gyrus. Transfection of RPTP-sigma cDNA into human embryonic kidney 293 cells results in the synthesis of a protein with an apparent molecular mass of 200 kDa as detected by immunoprecipitation and immunoblot analyses using polyclonal antibodies against the FNIII-like repeats present in the extracellular domain of RPTP-sigma. The gene for RPTP-sigma has been mapped to distal chromosome 17 in the mouse.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Mechanism of adenylate kinase. 1H, 13C, and 15N NMR assignments, secondary structures, and substrate binding sites.

Backbone 1H, 13C, and 15N NMR assignments were obtained for the complex of chicken muscle adenylate kinase (AK) with its bisubstrate analog, MgAP5A [magnesium P1,P5-bis(5'-adenosyl)-pentaphosphate]. The assignments were used to elucidate the secondary structures and the enzyme-MgAP5A interactions. The work involves two unusual features: the molecular weight of AK (21.6 kDa) is one of the largest, on a monomeric basis, for which nearly complete assignment has been reported to date, and the assignment was performed at pH 7.1 instead of the acidic pH used for most other proteins. The results are summarized as follows. Firstly, unambiguous sequential assignments of backbone resonances have been achieved effectively by the combined use of two sequential assignment methods: NOE-directed assignments and the recently developed 1J-coupling-directed assignments. The starting points of the assignments were provided by several specifically labeled enzyme samples. Over 90% of the backbone 1H, 13C, and 15N resonances have been assigned. Secondly, spin system information was obtained from the HCCH-TOCSY and HCCH-COSY experiments as well as from 2D homonuclear NMR data. Overall, the side-chain resonances of ca. 40% of the residues, including most of the those displaying NOEs with the adenosine moieties of MgAP5A, have been assigned. Thirdly, secondary structural elements in the AK-MgAP5A complex were identified by extensive analyses of 1H-15N 2D HMQC-NOESY and 3D NOESY-HMQC spectra. Overall, the enzyme consists of ca. 60% alpha-helices and a five-stranded parallel beta-sheet. The results are compared with the secondary structure of the free AK from porcine muscle in crystals [Dreusicke, D., Karplus, P. A., & Schulz, G. E. (1988) J. Mol. Biol. 199, 359-371]. Lastly, most of the intermolecular NOEs between AK and the adenosine moieties of MgAP5A have been identified: Thr39, Leu43, Gly64, Leu66, Val67, Val72, and Gln101 are in proximity to the adenosine moiety of the adenosine 5'-monophosphate site, whereas Thr23 is in proximity to that of the adenosine 5'-triphosphate site. These data are discussed in relation to previous results from site-directed mutagenesis, NMR, and X-ray studies and in relation to the mechanism of catalysis.

Adenylate Kinase↗

MR image compression using iterated function systems.

This paper presents a method for MR image compression using iterated function systems based on fractal models. The method makes use of self-similarities of an image and achieves compression by matching similar image blocks. A fast matching procedure is proposed in this paper for efficient image encoding. The method is tested with real MR images.

Humans↗

Fat tissue and fat suppression.

Fat tissues consist of fat cells, capillaries, and collagen fibers. In order to completely suppress the signals from fat tissues in clinical magnetic resonance imaging, the signal from capillaries and collagen fibers as well as from fat cells should all be suppressed. We have previously reported that fat signal can be uniformly suppressed by applying an optimized presaturation pulse. The inhomogeneously broadened fat peak of tissue spectrum is excited by the optimized pulse and dephased by a subsequent field gradient. The broadened water peak is not affected. In this paper we discuss a technique that suppresses signals from fat tissues completely as well as uniformly. This technique is based on the cancellation of fat and water signals in the same image voxel by combining the optimized selective excitation with the opposite phase imaging technique. Experimental and clinical images demonstrate that the new technique improves the delineation and depiction of anatomy in clinical fat suppression imaging.

Adipose Tissue↗

Cell cycle-regulated nuclear localization of MCM2 and MCM3, which are required for the initiation of DNA synthesis at chromosomal replication origins in yeast.

MCM2 and MCM3 are two genetically interacting and structurally related proteins essential for growth in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Mutants defective in these proteins affect the stability of minichromosomes in general, but the severity of the defect is dependent on the autonomously replicating sequence (ARS) that drives the replication of that plasmid. In this paper we show by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis that the initiation of DNA synthesis at chromosomal replication origins is also reduced in frequency in these mutants. We show further that the nuclear and subnuclear localizations of the MCM2 and MCM3 proteins are temporally regulated with respect to the cell cycle. These proteins enter the nucleus at the end of mitosis, persist there throughout G1 phase, and disappear from it at the beginning of S phase. Once inside the nucleus, a fraction of the MCM2 and MCM3 proteins becomes tightly associated with DNA. The association of MCM2 and MCM3 with chromatin presumably leads to the initiation of DNA synthesis, and their subsequent disappearance from the nucleus presumably prevents reinitiation of DNA synthesis at replication origins. This temporally and spatially restricted localization of MCM2 and MCM3 in the nucleus may serve to ensure that DNA replication occurs once and only once per cell cycle.

Cell Cycle↗

DNA fingerprinting in relation to male dominance and paternity in a captive colony of tammar wallabies (Macropus eugenii).

The tammar wallaby has a polygynous mating system in which the dominant male usually controls initial access to oestrous females by mating first and then guarding the female from the advances of other subordinate males. In this study we used DNA fingerprinting with a human 3' hypervariable region (HVR) alpha globin probe to examine the paternity of pouch young progeny from 13 female tammars that were given continual access during the breeding season to a group of four sexually mature males. Constant individual-specific DNA profiles were observed for each animal. Paternity for 22 pouch young was successfully assigned using visual and computer-based analyses. However, no statistical difference was observed between the number of young sired by any of the four males (chi 2 = 2, d.f. = 3, P > 0.1). Mate guarding by the dominant male in our captive breeding group was not, therefore, sufficient to prevent successful subsequent matings by subordinates nor to enhance the genetic contribution of this male to the next generation. In each analysis, visual and computer assignments of paternity coincided, and these concurred with the results of a relatedness test which found that a large number of DNA bands were shared by sires and their progeny. The results from this paternity study show that first mating and subsequent mate guarding by the dominant male tammar wallaby in our captive group do not significantly skew the outcome of paternity towards this male and away from other males that subsequently mate with each female.

Animals↗

Mechanism of adenylate kinase. Structural and functional roles of the conserved arginine-97 and arginine-132.

The structural and functional roles of two conserved active site residues, Arg-97 and Arg-132, in chicken muscle adenylate kinase (AK) were evaluated by site-directed mutagenesis in conjunction with one- and two-dimensional proton nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), kinetics, and guanidine hydrochloride-induced denaturation. In addition, 31P NMR analysis was used to evaluate the contribution of Arg-97 to the phosphorus stereospecificity of AK. The results and conclusions are summarized as follows: (i) Kinetic analysis of R97M reveals 6- and 28-fold increases in the dissociation constant Ki and Michaelis constant K of AMP, respectively, and a moderate 30-fold decrease in kcat. The Ki and K values of MgATP are relatively unperturbed. The localized effect of AMP stabilization was independently confirmed by proton NMR titration, which showed a ca. 20-fold increase in the dissociation constant of AMP but not of MgATP. (ii) R132M affords a dramatic decrease in kcat by a factor of 8.0 x 10(3), with unchanged dissociation and Michaelis constants for either substrate. The lack of perturbation in the affinities toward substrates was confirmed by proton NMR titration. (iii) Although small chemical shift changes were observed for the free mutants and their complexes with substrates, further analyses by nuclear Overhauser enhanced spectroscopy with the bisubstrate analogue inhibitor, P1,P5-bis(5'-adenosyl)pentaphosphate (AP5A), indicated little perturbation in the global conformation. (iv) Contributions to conformational stability by Arg-97 and Arg-132 are negligible on the basis of the free energy of unfolding, delta GdH2O. (v) R97M was predicted and demonstrated to exhibit enhanced stereospecificity at the AMP site by at least 10-fold relative to WT in the conversion of adenosine 5'-monothiophosphate to adenosine 5'-(1-thiodiphosphate). This result for R97M was predicted on the basis of the orientation of Arg-97 relative to Arg-44 and AMP in the active site as observed in available crystal structures and the stereospecificity results of R44M [Jiang, R.-T., Dahnke, T., & Tsai, M.-D. (1991) J. Am. Chem. Soc. 113, 5485-5486]. (vi) The above structural and functional analyses led us to conclude that Arg-97 interacts with the phosphoryl group of AMP, beginning at the binary complex (1-2 kcal/mol), continuing through the transition state (3.5 kcal/mol), and that Arg-132 stabilizes the transition state by greater than 5 kcal/mol. (vii) The functional importance of Arg-97 appears to be similar to that of Arg-44 [Yan, H., Dahnke, T., Zhou, B., Nakazawa, A., & Tsai, M.-D. (1990) Biochemistry 29, 10956-10964].(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Adenosine Diphosphate↗

Yan et al. Reply.

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Journal Article↗

Density-dependent modulation of vascular smooth muscle alpha-actin biosynthetic processing in differentiated BC3H1 myogenic cells.

The expression of vascular smooth muscle (VSM) alpha-actin mRNA during BC3H1 myogenic cell differentiation is specifically stimulated by conditions of high cell density. Non-proteolytic dissociation of cell-cell and cell-matrix contacts in post-confluent cultures of BC3H1 myocytes using EDTA promotes loss of the differentiated morphological phenotype. EDTA-dispersed myocytes exhibit an undifferentiated fibroblastoid appearance and contained reduced levels of both VSM and skeletal alpha-actin mRNA. Muscle alpha-actin mRNA levels in EDTA-dispersed myocytes were not restored to that observed in confluent myocyte preparations by experimental manipulation of cell density conditions. Pulse-labeling techniques using L-[35S]cysteine to identify muscle actin biosynthetic intermediates revealed that EDTA-dispersed myocytes expressed nascent forms of both the VSM and skeletal muscle alpha-actin polypeptide chains. However EDTA-dispersed myocytes were less efficient in the post-translational processing of immature VSM alpha-actin compared to non-dispersed myocytes. Simple cell-to-cell contact may mediate VSM alpha-actin processing efficiency since high-density preparations of EDTA-dispersed myocytes processed more VSM alpha-actin intermediate than myocytes plated at low density. The actin isoform selectivity of the response to modulation of intercellular contacts suggests that actin biosynthesis in BC3H1 myogenic cells involves mechanisms capable of discriminating between different isoform classes of nascent actin polypeptide chains.

Actins↗