Capsular poly-gamma-D-glutamate synthesis in Bacillus licheniformis.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
SEARCH · Search PubMed
Search indexed PubMed citations on genomics, clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health. Explore titles, authors and supplied subject terms, then open the PubMed record.
Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
The chromatin accessibility complex (CHRAC) belongs to the class of nucleosome remodeling factors that increase the accessibility of nucleosomal DNA in an ATP-dependent manner. We found that CHRAC induces movements of intact histone octamers to neighboring DNA segments without facilitating their displacement to competing DNA or histone chaperones in trans. CHRAC-induced energy-dependent nucleosome sliding may, in principle, explain nucleosome remodeling, nucleosome positioning, and nucleosome spacing reactions known to be catalyzed by CHRAC. The catalytic core of CHRAC, the ATPase ISWI, also mobilized nucleosomes at the expense of energy. However, the directionality of the CHRAC- and ISWI-induced nucleosome movements differed drastically, indicating that the geometry of the native complex modulates the activity of its catalytic core.
Cell modulators such as colchicine (CO), cytochalasin B (CY) and taxol (TX) loaded nanoparticles coated with carbohydrate-carrying polymers, as hepatocyte-specific targeting material using galactose ligands as recognition signals to asialoglycoprotein receptors were prepared by the diafiltration method. Effects of cell modulators from their loaded nanoparticles on morphology of hepatocytes were studied. Receptor-mediated endocytosis of the nanoparticles were examined by fluorescence and confocal laser microscopy. It was found that the shapes of most hepatocytes were changed for the CY-loaded, TX-loaded, or CO-loaded nanoparticles whereas their shapes were not changed in comparison with control when CY, TX, or CO were mixed with the nanoparticles. From the fluorescence and confocal laser microscopic studies, it is suggested that the nanoparticles coated with sugar-carrying polymers were internalized by the hepatocytes through the receptor-mediated mechanism.
There are now at least seven polymer-drug conjugates that have entered phase I/II clinical trial as anticancer agents. These include N-(2-hydroxypropyl)methacrylamide (HPMA) copolymer-doxorubicin (PK1, FCE28068), HPMA copolymer-paclitaxel (PNU 166945), HPMA copolymer-camptothecin, PEG-camptothecin, polyglutamic acid-paclitaxel, an HPMA copolymer-platinate (AP5280) and also an HPMA copolymer-doxorubicin conjugate bearing additionally galactosamine (PK2, FCE28069). The galactosamine is used as a means to target the conjugate to liver for the treatment of primary and secondary liver cancer. Promising early clinical results with lysosomotropic conjugates has stimulated significant interest in this field. Ongoing research is developing (1) conjugates containing drugs that could otherwise not progress due to poor solubility or uncontrollable toxicity; (2) conjugates of agents directed against novel targets; and (3) two-step combinations such as polymer-directed enzyme prodrug therapy (PDEPT) and polymer-enzyme liposome therapy (PELT) that can cause explosive liberation of drug from either polymeric prodrugs or liposomes within the tumour interstitium. Moreover, bioresponsive polymer-based constructs able to promote endosomal escape and thus intracytoplasmic delivery of macromolecular drugs (peptides, proteins and oligonucleotides) are also under study.
Block copolymers consisting of poly(gamma-benzyl L-glutamate) (PBLG) as the hydrophobic block and poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) as the hydrophilic block were synthesized and characterized. Core-shell type nanoparticles of the block copolymers (abbreviated as GE) were prepared by the diafiltration method. The particle size diameter obtained by dynamic light scattering of GE-1 (PBLG content: 60.5 mol%), GE-2 (PBLG content: 40.0 mol %), GE-3 (PBLG content: 124.4 mol %) copolymer was 309.9 +/- 160.9, 251.9 +/- 220.6 and 200.5 +/- 177.1nm, respectively. The shape of the nanoparticles by SEM or TEM was almost spherical. The critical micelle concentration of the block copolymers obtained by fluorescence spectroscopy was dependent on the chain length of hydrophobic PBLG. The micelle structure of the copolymers nanoparticle was very stable against sodium dodecyl sulfate. Clonazepam (CZ) was loaded onto the core part of the nanoparticle as the crystalline state. Release of CZ from the nanoparticles in vitro was dependent on the drug loading contents and PBLG chain length.
Primary cultures of rabbit tracheal epithelial (RbTE) cells have been performed in two different ways. Quantitative analysis of both proliferative capacities and ciliated differentiation process were carried out using epithelial cell cultures from tracheal explants and from dissociated tracheal epithelial cells in air-liquid interface conditions. We show that both alpha- and beta-tubulins from RbTE cells are polyglutamylated and that this posttranslational modification is restricted to cilia axonemes and centrioles of non-ciliated cells. A monoclonal antibody raised against polyglutamylated tubulins was used to quantify the proportion of ciliated cells. Even though epithelial cells from outgrowths obtained by the explant technique highly proliferated during the first days of culture, no ciliated differentiation occurred. On the other hand, using air-liquid interface conditions after proliferation of dissociated cells, we could observe and quantify a ciliated cell differentiation in vitro by both Western blot and flow cytometric analysis. The specific detection and quantification of ciliated cells open the way for the biochemical and molecular characterization of centriolar components during ciliated differentiation.
The presence of glutamylated tubulin, a widespread posttranslational modification of alpha- and beta-tubulin, has been investigated in Drosophila melanogaster using the specific monoclonal antibody GT335. We show here that this modification is strongly detected in brain and testis whereas other tissues analyzed did not appear to contain any glutamylated isoforms. Neuronal microtubules are glutamylated on alpha-tubulin only whereas sperm flagella showed a strong modification of both alpha- and beta-tubulin. These results argue for an essential role for glutamylation in differentiation processes that require microtubule stabilization.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
A rapid and sensitive procedure for the separation of methotrexate (MTX) polyglutamates2 using capillary electrophoresis (CE) is described as it applies to the in vitro assay of the enzyme gamma-glutamyl hydrolase (GGH, EC 3.4.22.12). Distinct separation of MTX and polyglutamylated forms (up to glu4) is achieved within 10 min using a 75 microns I.D. capillary (50 cm, +25 kV), and enables quantitation of both reactant and enzyme products. As activity can be reliably determined using less than 5 x 10(5) eukaryotic cells, this new technique can be used to measure GGH in patient tumor samples and investigate the relationship between GGH levels and clinical MTX resistance.
Prolonged circulation of anticancer agent in blood is expected to decrease the host toxicity and enhance the anticancer activity. The purpose of this study is to develop and characterize the prolonged and sustained release formulation of anticancer agent using biodegradable poly(gamma-benzyl-L-glutamate)/poly(ethylene oxide) (PBLG/PEO) polymer nanoparticles. PBLG/PEO polymer is a hydrophilic/hydrophobic block copolymer and forms a micelle-like structure in solution. Spherical nanoparticles incorporating adriamycin were prepared by a dialysis method. The fluorescence intensity of adriamycin in the nanoparticles was increased when sodium dodecylsulfate was added. It is one of the evidences of entrapment of adriamycin in the polymer nanoparticles. Only 20% of entrapped drug was released in 24 h at 37 degrees C a and the release was dependent on the molecular weight of hydrophobic polymer. The endothermic peak of adriamycin at 197 degrees C disappeared in the nanoparticles system, suggesting the inhibition of a crystallization of adriamycin by polymer adsorption during the precipitation process. The mean residence time of adriamycin from the nanoparticles was more than threefold that from a free adriamycin. These results suggest usefulness of PBLG/PEO nanoparticles as a sustained and prolonged release carrier for adriamycin.
Star-block copolymer based on PBLG as the hydrophobic part and PEO as the hydrophilic one (as abbreviated GEG) was synthesized and characterized. Polymeric micelle was prepared by the diafiltration method. From the measurement of photon correlation spectroscopy, the nanoparticle sizes of GEG-1, GEG-2 and GEG-3 were 106.5+/-59.2, 43.8+/-0.7 and 13.5+/-1.0 nm in number average, respectively, indicating of the formation of polymeric micelle. Also, the nanoparticle sizes were dependent on the PBLG chain length, i.e. the more PBLG content in the copolymer, the larger the particle size. From the observation of transmission electron microscope(TEM), GEG-2 block copolymer had almost spherical shapes with size range about 20-70 nm, that was similar to particle size measurement. Fluorescence spectroscopy measurement indicated that GEG block copolymers associated in water to form polymeric micelles and critical micelle concentration (CMC) values of the block copolymers decreased with increasing PBLG chain length in the block copolymer. Characteristic peaks of the protons of the benzyl group in the PBLG and the methylene protons adjacent to the benzyl group of the PBLG segment in the GEG-2 nanoparticles appeared in 7.2 approximately 7.4 and 5.0 approximately 5.2 ppm, respectively, and disappeared in D(2)O, indicating the restricted motions of these protons within the micellar core and the very rigid structure of the PBLG core in the GEG polymeric micelles. Release of ADR from the polymeric micelles in vitro was slower in longer PBLG chain length and higher loading contents of ADR.
Transcription stimulates spontaneous homologous recombination, but prior studies have not investigated the effects of transcription on double-strand break (DSB)-induced recombination in yeast. We examined products of five ura3 direct repeat substrates in yeast using alleles that were transcribed at low or high levels. In each strain, recombination was stimulated by DSBs created in vivo at an HO site in one copy of ura3. Increasing transcription levels in donor or recipient alleles did not further stimulate DSB-induced recombination, nor did it alter the relative frequencies of conversion and deletion (pop-out) events. This result is consistent with the idea that transcription enhances spontaneous recombination by increasing initiation. Gene conversion tracts were measured using silent restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLPs) at approximately 100bp intervals. Transcription did not alter average tract lengths, but increased transcription in donor alleles increased both the frequency of promoter-proximal (5') unidirectional tracts and conversion of 5' markers. Increased transcription in recipient alleles increased the frequency of bidirectional tracts. We demonstrate that these effects are due to transcription per se, and not just transcription factor binding. These results suggest that transcription influences aspects of gene conversion after initiation, such as strand invasion and/or mismatch repair (MMR).
With the aim of investigation, the mechanisms of resistance to methotrexate (MTX) in children refractory to leukaemia-treatment, we established a method of analysing MTX metabolism in Nalm6 cells (human pre-B). The optimal extracellular concentration for MTX uptake and MTX polyglutamate (MTXPG2-6) formation at a density of 5 x 10(6) cells/ml was 1 microM 3H-MTX. After 15 h incubation at this concentration, a plateau of 5 pmol/10(6) cells of total MTX accumulated in the form of equal amounts of polyglutamates 3, 4 and 5 and low amounts of MTX and polyglutamates 2 and 6. MTX preloaded cells rapidly lost MTX and MTXPG2 in MTX-free medium, while MTXPG5 was still formed and then degraded very slowly. After 8 h in medium without MTX, 40% of total MTXPG was lost, after 24 h, 70%. The method is feasible for patient blasts. The number of blasts isolated from bone marrow after diagnosis is enough to perform small kinetic studies. The uptake of MTX into patient blasts is about 1/10 of that in Nalm6 cells.
The optimisation of the P2 pharmacophore in a series of thrombin inhibitors is described. The interaction of a number of piperidine P2 functionalities with lysine 60G of thrombin is explored with reference to the crystal structure of inhibitor enzyme complexes. A primary ion-dipole interaction between the terminal P2 side chain group and lysine 60G is evoked to explain the SAR in this series.