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R J Beynon

Publications and source records attributed to R J Beynon.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1996

Molecular heterogeneity in the Major Urinary Proteins of the house mouse Mus musculus.

Major Urinary Proteins (MUPs) from different inbred strains of mouse have been analysed by high-resolution ion-exchange chromatography and mass spectrometry. MUPs from six strains were resolved chromatographically into four major protein peaks which characterized two distinct phenotypes, typified by the profiles obtained from the Balb/c and C57BL/6 inbred strains. A combination of ion-exchange chromatography and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry analysis of the MUPs from each strain identified five proteins, only one of which was common to both strains. The charge and mass data, together with N-terminal sequence analyses, were correlated with the masses of the proteins inferred from published cDNA sequences. Several members of the family of MUP sequences differ in only four positions, and in some circumstances the substitutions elicit a minimal change in protein mass (Lys/Gln; Lys/Glu). Peptide mapping with endopeptidase Lys-C, followed by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time-of-flight mass spectrometry permitted identification of new MUPs that were correlated with partial cDNA sequence data. In the two strains there are at least 13 different MUPs, either observed or predicted, indicating the heterogeneity of expression of this group of proteins.

Algorithms↗
PubMed1996

Characterization of the soluble, secreted form of urinary meprin.

A soluble form of the kidney membrane metalloendopeptidase, meprin, is present in urine. Urinary meprin is expressed in BALB/C mice with the Mep-1 alpha/alpha genotype (high meprin, expressing meprin-alpha and meprin-beta ) but not in BALB.K mice of the Mep-1b/b genotype (that only express meprin-beta ). Western blotting with antisera specific to the meprin-alpha and the meprin-beta subunits established that the only form of meprin present in urine samples was derived from meprin-alpha. This form of meprin is partially active, and comprises at least three variants by non-reducing SDS/PAGE and by zymography and two protein bands on reducing SDS/PAGE. Sequencing of these two bands established that the N-terminus of the larger protein band begins with the pro-peptide sequence of the alpha-subunit (VSIKH..), whereas the smaller band possessed the mature meprin N-terminal sequence (NAMRDP..). Trypsin is able to remove the pro-peptide, with a concomitant activation in proteolytic activity. After deglycosylation, the size of the pro- and mature forms of urinary meprin are consistent with cleavage in the region of the X-I boundary. There is a pronounced sexual dimorphism in urinary meprin expression. Females secrete a slightly larger form, and its proteolytic activity is about 50% of that released by males. The urinary meprin is therefore a naturally occurring secreted form of this membrane-bound metalloendopeptidase and is more likely to be generated by alternative processing pathways than by specific release mechanisms.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1996

Cold-induced expression of delta 9-desaturase in carp by transcriptional and posttranslational mechanisms.

Poikilothermic animals respond to chronic cold by increasing phosphoglyceride unsaturation to restore the fluidity of cold-rigidified membranes. Despite the importance of this compensatory response, the enzymes involved have not been clearly identified, and the mechanisms that control their activity are unknown. In carp liver, cold induces an 8- to 10-fold increase in specific activity of the microsomal stearoyl coenzyme A desaturase. Cold-induced up-regulation of gene transcription resulted in a 10-fold increase in desaturase transcript amounts after 48 to 60 hours. However, this increase was preceded by the activation of latent desaturase, probably by a posttranslational mechanism. These two mechanisms may act sequentially to match desaturase expression to the demands imposed by a progressive decrease in temperature.

Acclimatization↗
PubMed1995

McArdle's disease: molecular genetics and metabolic consequences of the phenotype.

McArdle's disease is defined as a lack of functional muscle glycogen phosphorylase. Analysis of the myophosphorylase gene has demonstrated substantial heterogeneity in the mutations that cause the disease, but in almost all individuals, the molecular phenotype is the absence of the protein in skeletal muscle. Muscle glycogen phosphorylase is a major repository of vitamin B6 in the body, accounting for at least 80% of the total body pool. In McArdle's patients, this pool is therefore missing, introducing the possibility that vitamin B6 metabolism might be altered in these individuals. Preliminary data have shown that McArdle's patients show signs of a subclinical vitamin B6 deficiency, and that oral vitamin B6 supplementation can improve vitamin B6 status and enhance fatigue resistance in muscle.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1995

The astacin family of metalloendopeptidases.

The astacin family of metalloendopeptidases was recognized as a novel family of proteases in the 1990s. The crayfish enzyme astacin was the first characterized and is one of the smallest members of the family. More than 20 members of the family have now been identified. They have been detected in species ranging from hydra to humans, in mature and in developmental systems. Proposed functions of these proteases include activation of growth factors, degradation of polypeptides, and processing of extracellular proteins. Astacin family proteases are synthesized with NH2-terminal signal and proenzyme sequences, and many (such as meprins, BMP-1, tolloid) contain multiple domains COOH-terminal to the protease domain. They are either secreted from cells or are plasma membrane-associated enzymes. They have some distinguishing features in addition to the signature sequence in the protease domain: HEXXHXXGFXHEXXRXDR. They have a unique type of zinc binding, with pentacoordination, and a protease domain tertiary structure that contains common attributes with serralysins, matrix metalloendopeptidases, and snake venom proteases; they cleave peptide bonds in polypeptides such as insulin B chain and bradykinin and in proteins such as casein and gelatin; and they have arylamidase activity. Meprins are unique proteases in the astacin family, and indeed in the animal kingdom, in their oligomeric structure; they are dimers of disulfide-linked dimers and are highly glycosylated, type I integral membrane proteins that have many attributes of receptors or integrins with adhesion, epidermal growth factor-like, and transmembrane domains. The alpha and beta subunits are differentially expressed and processed to yield latent and active proteases as well as membrane-associated and secreted forms. Meprins represent excellent models of hetero- and homo-oligomeric enzymes that are regulated at the transcriptional and posttranslational levels.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1995

Limited proteolysis of native proteins: the interaction between avidin and proteinase K.

Avidin is a tetramer of 16-kDa subunits that have a high affinity for biotin. Proteolysis of native apoavidin by proteinase K results in a limited attack at the loop between beta-strands 3 and 4, involving amino acids 38-43. Specifically, sites of proteolysis are at Thr 40-Ser 41 and Asn 42-Glu 43. The limited proteolysis results in an avidin product that remains otherwise intact and which has enhanced binding for 4'-hydroxyazobenzene-2-benzoic acid (HABA), a chromogenic reporter that can occupy the biotin-binding site. Saturation of the biotin-binding site with the natural ligand protects avidin from proteolysis, but saturation with HABA enhances the rate of proteolysis of the same site. Analysis of the three-dimensional structures of apoavidin and holoavidin reveals that the 3-4 loop is accessible to solvent and scores highly in an algorithm developed to identify sites of proteolytic attack. The structure of holoavidin is almost identical to the apoprotein. In particular, the 3-4 loop has the same structure in the apo and holo forms, yet there are marked differences in proteolytic susceptibility of this region. Evidence suggests that the 3-4 loop is rather mobile and flexible in the apoprotein, and that it becomes constrained upon ligand binding. In one crystal structure of the apoprotein, this loop appears constrained by contacts with symmetry-related molecules. Structural analyses suggest that the "lid" to the biotin-binding site, formed by the 3-4 loop, is displaced and made more accessible by HABA binding, thereby enhancing its proteolytic susceptibility.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1994

McArdle's disease: a rare frameshift mutation in exon 1 of the muscle glycogen phosphorylase gene.

We have previously discovered a common nonsense mutation in exon 1 of the myophosphosphorylase gene in patients with McArdle's disease, but this failed to explain all cases. We now report a second mutation (G-->TT) in one patient, also in exon 1. This mutation causes a shift in the reading frame which results in the replacement of Val15 by Phe. A further 10 amino acids of mis-sense protein are synthesised before a stop codon is reached.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1993

Activation of oxidized cysteine proteinases by thioredoxin-mediated reduction in vitro.

Activity of the cysteine adducts of the cysteine proteinases papain and thaumatopain can be recovered by treatment with thioredoxin, thioredoxin reductase and NADPH. Recovery of proteinase activity did not occur if any of the components of the thioredoxin system were omitted, or if thioredoxin or thioredoxin reductase were heat-inactivated. Such an enzyme-mediated process may be of significance in the recovery of cysteine proteinases inactivated by oxidative attack.

Cysteine Endopeptidases↗
PubMed1993

Application of electrospray ionization mass spectrometry with maximum-entropy analysis to allelic 'fingerprinting' of major urinary proteins.

Mixtures of a specific group of proteins, the major urinary proteins (MUPs), believed to have a role in odorant binding, have been analysed by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry. The data obtained from conventional transformed electrospray data confirm that the molecular weights of the protein mixtures, deduced from published sequences, lie in the molecular weight range 18,600 to 19,000 Da. Application of maximum-entropy analysis to the raw electrospray data has confirmed a heterogeneity in MUP composition, consistent with allelic similarities (and differences) between the different mouse strains. This work demonstrates the use of maximum entropy in the assessment of protein content and in the subsequent resolution enhancement of naturally occurring protein mixtures containing components of closely similar molecular mass.

Alleles↗
PubMed1993

McArdle's disease: a nonsense mutation in exon 1 of the muscle glycogen phosphorylase gene explains some but not all cases.

McArdle's disease is an inherited disease that results from a lack of functional muscle glycogen phosphorylase. We report here the identification of a C to T transition in exon 1 of the muscle phosphorylase gene found in all patients studied. This base pair mutation results in the substitution of a stop codon (TGA) for the codon (CGA) for Arg49 in the mature protein, and generates a novel restriction site for NlaIII. Of sixteen McArdle's patients, ten are homozygous for this mutation; the remainder are heterozygous. Additional unidentified mutations must lead to the McArdle's phenotype in the latter group of patients.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1992

Immunological detection of degradation intermediates of skeletal-muscle glycogen phosphorylase in vitro and in vivo.

Over 95% of the pyridoxal phosphate (PLP) in skeletal is bound to one protein, glycogen phosphorylase. This, and the fact that phosphorylase constitutes approx. 5% of the soluble protein in skeletal muscle, introduce the possibility that PLP might be used as a specific label to identify degradation intermediates of the enzyme. In this investigation, we have developed immunological methods, using a monoclonal antibody to PLP and polyclonal antibodies to phosphorylase, to detect degradation intermediates in vitro and in vivo. We have identified a family of degradation intermediates of glycogen phosphorylase in the high-speed-supernatant fraction of mouse skeletal muscle. These peptides react with both types of antibodies and are in the size and concentration range expected for degradation intermediates in a model in which the committed step is followed by rapid clearance of the products. Changes in amounts of degradation intermediates are examined in physiological or pathological conditions in which the rate of degradation of phosphorylase is altered.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Application of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry with selected ion monitoring to the urinanalysis of 4-pyridoxic acid.

An analytical protocol has been developed for the analysis of urinary 4-pyridoxic acid (4-PA) by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) for use in metabolic studies. Aliquots of urine were deproteinised and fractionated by isocratic reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. The eluent fraction containing the 4-PA was collected, freeze-dried and silylated using N-methyl-N-(tert.-butyldimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide. Derivatisation produced the mono-tert.-butyldimethylsilyl derivative of 4-PA lactone. This derivative was readily amenable to GC-MS analysis in the electron ionisation (70 eV) mode, yielding a prominent fragment ion at m/z 222 ([M-57]+; base peak). A heavy isotope-labelled derivative of pyridoxine [dideuteriated pyridoxine; 3-hydroxy-4-(hydroxymethyl)-5-[hydroxymethyl-2H2]-2-methylpyridine] has been synthesised and is being employed to determine the kinetics of labelling of the body pools of vitamin B6. Kinetic measurements are based on the determination of the relative proportions of metabolically produced deuterium-labelled and non-labelled 4-PA in urine, obtained from stable isotope ratios determined by low-resolution selected ion monitoring using a bench-top quadrupole GC-MS system.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Turnover of glycogen phosphorylase in the pectoralis muscle of broiler and layer chickens.

Glycogen phosphorylase is a major sarcoplasmic protein in chicken pectoralis muscle, constituting approx. 4% of the total protein complement. In slow-growing layer chicks phosphorylase accumulated in parallel with muscle accretion, but in fast-growing broiler chicks the concentration of phosphorylase in the muscle increased (from 5 to 8 mg/g wet wt.) with time. In a 5-week period, the total amount of phosphorylase in the pectoralis muscles increased 18-fold in broiler chicks (from approx. 75 to 1400 mg total), but only 3-fold (from approx. 100 to 270 mg total) in layers. Pyridoxal phosphate, the cofactor of the enzyme glycogen phosphorylase, was used as a specific label to measure the rate of degradation of the enzyme in the pectoralis muscle of growing broiler and layer chickens in vivo. In young animals, the fractional rate of phosphorylase synthesis was similar in broiler and layer chickens (approx. 15%/day), but the rate of degradation in layers (5%/day) was 5-fold higher than in broilers (1%/day). As the animals aged, the rate of synthesis decreased, but more so in layers than in broilers. The rate of degradation of phosphorylase also decreased in layers, but in broilers it remained at the low level seen in young animals. The dramatically higher rate of phosphorylase accretion in the pectoralis muscles of the broilers is therefore achieved by an initial lower rate of degradation combined with a sustained difference between rates of synthesis and degradation.

Aging↗
PubMed1992

Synthetic analogues of chymostatin. Inhibition of chymotrypsin and Streptomyces griseus proteinase A.

A series of analogues of chymostatin, including Z-Arg-Leu-Phe-aldehyde (Z-Arg-Leu-Phe-H), have been synthesized. Analysis of the inhibitory potential of these analogues permits identification of residues and interactions that are important for inhibitory activity. Moreover, the structure-function relationship for Z-Arg-Leu-Phe-H and chymostatin inhibition of chymotrypsin and Streptomyces griseus proteinase A (SGPA) was probed further with the aid of molecular mechanics. This analysis identified interactions that provide an explanation for the enhanced activity of the natural product, chymostatin, over the synthetic analogues in the inhibition of chymotrypsin but not SGPA.

Amino Acid Sequence↗