Search results

Transforming growth factor betas (TGF Betas) mediate many cell-cell interactions that occur during embryonic development. Three TGF Betas have been identified in mammals. TGF Beta 1, TGF Beta 2 and TGF Beta 3 are each synthesized as precursor proteins that are very similar in that each is cleaved to yield a 112 amino acid polypeptide that remains associated with the latent portion of the molecule.

SSU72 is an extremely conserved homologue of yeast Ssu72, a CTD phosphatase and a component of the polyadenylation/termination machinery. SSU72 interacts with TFIIB, Rb and DNAM-1 and operates to catalyze the dephosphorylation of target proteins, and taking part in RNA processing and termination via dephosphorylation of Pol II. SSU72 is found in multiple alternatively spliced isoforms.

Interferon-beta has antiviral, antibacterial and anticancer activities.

GH is a member of the somatotropin/prolactin family of hormones which play an important role in growth control. The gene, along with four other related genes, is located at the growth hormone locus on chromosome 17 where they are interspersed in the same transcriptional orientation; an arrangement which is thought to have evolved by a series of gene duplications. The five genes share a remarkably high degree of sequence identity. Alternative splicing generates additional isoforms of each of the five growth hormones, leading to further diversity and potential for specialization. This particular family member is expressed in the pituitary but not in placental tissue as is the case for the other four genes in the growth hormone locus. Mutations in or deletions of the gene lead to growth hormone deficiency and short stature.

Zika virus (ZIKV) belongs to the family Flaviviridae and the genus Flavivirus, it is transmitted by daytime-active Aedes mosquitoes, such as A. aegypti and A. albopictus. The Zika virus is related to the dengue, yellow fever, Japanese encephalitis, and West Nile viruses. Much like the other flaviviruses, Zika virus is enveloped and icosahedral and has a nonsegmented, single-stranded, positive-sense RNA genome. Zika fever is an infection, which often causes no symptoms or only mild ones, like a mild form of dengue fever, and it is treated by rest. As of February 2016, there has been mounting evidence that Zika fever in pregnant women can cause abnormal brain development in their fetuses by mother-to-child transmission, which may result in miscarriage or microcephaly, however it is not yet known whether Zika virus causes microcephaly. Furthermore, a connection has been established with neurologic conditions in infected adults, including Guillain–Barre syndrome.

PPA1 is a member of the PPase family. PPA1 catalyzes the conversion of one molecule of pyrophosphate to two phosphate ions. Many biochemical pathways use the hydrolysis of PPi to two phosphate ions to make the reactions permanently irreversible. A prominent illustration of this phenomenon is the inorganic pyrophosphatase catalyzation in the hydrolysis reaction at the beginning of lipid degradation. Inorganic pyrophosphatase provides the motivation for the activation of fatty acids destined for oxidation by stimulating the rapid hydrolysis of pyrophosphate.

HBsAg is the surface antigen of the Hepatitis-B-Virus (HBV). The capsid of a virus has different surface proteins from the rest of the virus. The antigen is a protein that binds specifically on one of these surface proteins. It is commonly referred to as the Australian Antigen.

Thymine-DNA glycosylase (TDG) is a member of the TDG/mug DNA glycosylase family.
TDG is a nuclear protein that fixes G/T mismatches to G/C pairs by hydrolyzing the carbon-nitrogen bond between the sugar-phosphate backbone of the DNA and the mispaired thymin. In addition, TDG removes uracil and 5-bromouracil from mispairings with guanine. The TDG enzyme has an essential role in cellular defense against genetic mutation triggered by the spontaneous deamination of 5-methylcytosine and cytosine.

A 16-kDa peptide hormone secreted from white adipocytes and implicated in the regulation of food intake and energy balance. Leptin provides the key afferent signal from fat cells in the feedback system that controls body fat stores.

Lymphotoxin-alpha (LT-alpha or LTA) belongs to the TNF ligand superfamily, which bind the same TNF receptor and mediate similar pleiotropic effect. LTA is a proinflammatory cytokine with important biological activity and immunomodulatory function and is known to influence a variety of cellular response. Furthermore, LTA mediates a large variety of inflammatory, immunostimulatory, and antiviral responses, is involved in the formation of secondary lymphoid organs during development and has a role in apoptosis. LTA is highly inducible, secreted, and forms heterotrimers with lymphotoxin-beta which anchors lymphotoxin-alpha to the cell surface. LTA, which is located within the MHC III region of chromosome 6, shows close relation to the HLA class I (HLA-B) and class II (HLA-DR) genes. Polymorphism in the LTA gene appears to contribute to infectious disease susceptibility and infection. Genetic variations in the LTA gene are linked to susceptibility to leprosy type 4 and psoriatic arthritis.

Pyruvate kinase is a key enzyme in the glycolytic pathway. The M2 isoenzyme of pyruvate kinase is specifically expressed at high levels in tumor cells, and can be measured in plasma of patients with advanced breast cancer. The marker is useful for measuring disease activity, sensitivity to chemotherapy and recurrence.

Adenylate kinases plays a role in regulating the adenine nucleotide composition within a cell by catalyzing the reversible transfer of phosphate groups among adenine nucleotides. There are 3 types of adenylate kinase isozymes, AK1, AK2, and AK3 in vertebrates. Expression of these isozymes are tissue-specific and developmentally regulated. AK2 is localized in the mitochondrial intermembrane space and is involved in apoptosis. AK2 is mutated in individuals with reticular dysgenesis.

Glutathione synthetase (GSS) is the second enzyme in the glutathione biosynthesis pathway. GSS catalyses the condensation of gamma-glutamylcysteine and glycine to form glutathione. Defects in the GSS are the cause of glutathione synthetase deficiency aka GSS deficiency or 5-oxoprolinuria or pyroglutamic aciduria, which is a severe form characterized by an increased rate of hemolysis and defective function of the central nervous system.

Aldolase C Fructose-Bisphosphate (ALDOC) belongs to the class I fructose-bisphosphate aldolase family. ALDOC is a glycolytic enzyme which catalyzes the reversible aldol cleavage of fructose-1,6-biphosphate and fructose 1-phosphate to dihydroxyacetone phosphate and either glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate or glyceraldehydes respectively. ALDOC is expressed exclusively in the hippocampus and Purkinje cells of the brain.

ACAA1 is part of the thiolase family of enzymes and is takes part in lipid metabolism. ACAA1 enzyme is localized to the peroxisome and catalyzes the conversion of acyl-CoA and acetyl-CoA to 3-oxoacyl-CoA in the fatty acid oxidation pathway. ACAA1 shows high enzymatic activity in liver, kidney, intestine and white adipose tissue in rats. ACAA1 deficiency causes pseudo-Zellweger syndrome.

Phosphopantothenate-cysteine ligase (PPCS) catalyzes the first step in the biosynthesis of coenzyme A (CoA) from pantothenic acid (vitamin B5), which is a vital universal pathway in prokaryotes and eukaryotes. PPCS, being one of the last enzymes in this pathway, converts phosphopantothenate to phosphopantothenoylcysteine.

Since April 2012, cases of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) have been identified in various countries. Coronaviruses are the cause of the common cold, SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) and other severe illnesses with high mortality rates, all are classified into coronavirus family. MERS-CoV is a new type of SARS found in the coronavirus family causing severe pneumonia with sudden and serious respiratory illness with high mortality rates as well. Since January 27th 2015, the WHO has reported 956 human cases, including 351 deaths. More cases of the new coronavirus strain are expected. Like in other coronaviruses, large surface spike glycoprotein is a central structural protein of this virus; it is located above the virion surface to bind and enter into the target cell. Spike protein has 2 domains- S1 and S2. The S1 domain is responsible for cellular tropism and interaction with target cell, while the S2 domain is responsible for membrane fusion. The C-terminal of S1 domain contains a receptor binding domain, and is also a potential target for vaccine development and an antigen for diagnosis.

SSU72 is an extremely conserved homologue of yeast Ssu72, a CTD phosphatase and a component of the polyadenylation/termination machinery. SSU72 interacts with TFIIB, Rb and DNAM-1 and operates to catalyze the dephosphorylation of target proteins, and taking part in RNA processing and termination via dephosphorylation of Pol II. SSU72 is found in multiple alternatively spliced isoforms.

ACP1 is part of the phosphotyrosine protein. ACP1 functions as an acid phosphatase and a protein tyrosine phosphatase (PTPase) existing in all human tissues, including adipocytes. ACP1 enzyme hydrolyzes protein tyrosine phosphate to protein tyrosine and orthophosphate, and also orthophosphoric monoesters to alcohol and orthophosphate. ACP1 is present in adipocytes, thus playing a specific role in the regulation of adipose tissue. High levels of the ACP1 negatively regulate cell proliferation and growth of leiomyomas during dephosphorylation of the PDGF receptor. High significant differences in birth weight-placental weight relationships were observed among acid phosphatase locus 1 phenotypes.

Hexokinases phosphorylate glucose to produce glucose-6-phosphate, thus committing glucose to the glycolytic pathway. Hexokinase1 encodes a ubiquitous form of hexokinase which localizes to the outer membrane of mitochondria. Mutations in this gene have been associated with hemolytic anemia due to hexokinase deficiency. Alternative splicing of HXK1 results in five transcript variants which encode different isoforms, some of which are tissue-specific. Each isoform has a distinct N-terminus; the remainder of the protein is identical among all the isoforms. A sixth transcript variant has been described, but due to the presence of several stop codons, it is not thought to encode a protein.

Ornithine decarboxylase is the preliminary and rate-limiting enzyme in the biosynthetic pathway of polyamines and it takes part in the alteration of ornithine to putrescine. ODC1 is a key member of various biological processes, such as cell growth, transformation, differentiation and apoptosis. Overexpression of the ODC1 gene has a vital part in cell proliferation and the progress of cancer.

G6PD is the rate-limiting enzyme of the pentose phosphate pathway, a metabolic pathway that supplies reducing energy to cells by maintaining the level of NADPH. G6PD converts glucose-6-phosphate into 6-phosphoglucono-δ-lactone and at the same time produces NADPH. The NADPH maintains the level of glutathione in these cells that helps protect the red blood cells against oxidative damage. G6PD deficiency causes acute hemolytic anemia, neonatal jaundice or acute hemolysis. G6PD is a cytosolic enzyme encoded by an X-linked gene whose main function is to produce NADPH, a crucial electron donor in the defense against oxidizing agents and in reductive biosynthetic reactions. G6PD produces pentose sugars for nucleic acid synthesis and is a main producer of NADPH reducing power.

The Fas receptor (CD95) mediates apoptotic signaling by Fas-ligand expressed on the surface of other cells. The Fas-FasL interaction plays an important role in the immune system and lack of this system leads to autoimmunity, indicating that Fas-mediated apoptosis removes self-reactive lymphocytes. Fas signaling is also involved in immune surveillance to remove transformed cells and virus infected cells. Binding of FAS to oligimerized FasL on another cell activates apoptotic signaling through a cytoplasmic domain termed the death domain that interacts with signaling adaptors including FAF, FADD and DAX to activate the caspase proteolytic cascade. Caspase-8 and caspase-10 are first activated, to then cleave and activate downstream caspases, and a variety of cellular substrates that lead to cell death. Caspases cleave nuclear lamins, causing the nucleus to break down and lose its normal structure and another caspase substrate is DFF, inducing cleavage and degradation of the genome. Other caspase substrates are involved in cytoskeletal structure, cell cycle regulation and signaling pathways. Activation of JNK kinase, activation of Jun, and production of ceramide may also play roles in Fas-mediated apoptosis. Activation of fas-mediated apoptosis is opposed by I-FLICE and FAP. Viruses and tumors may escape immune surveillance in part through suppression of fas-mediated apoptosis using similar mechanisms.

GroEL, HSP60 is a chaperonin located in the mitochondria which is responsible for the transportation & refolding of proteins from the cytoplasm directly into the mitochondrial matrix. GroEL is regulated by the HSP10 cochaperonin, which is a single heptameric protein ring having a molecular mass of 10 kDa which form a unique complex with HSP60. HSP10, GroES coordinates the ATPase activity of the HSP60 subunits in order to allow the release of bound polypeptide in a manner that is productive for its correct folding.