Peptide chain elongation: A possible role of montmorillonite in prebiotic synthesis of protein precursors

1995 ◽  
Vol 25 (5) ◽  
pp. 431-441 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juraj Bujdák ◽  
Katarína Faybíková ◽  
Artur Eder ◽  
Yongyos Yongyai ◽  
Bernd M. Rode
1994 ◽  
Vol 266 (4) ◽  
pp. E628-E634 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. C. Vary ◽  
A. Nairn ◽  
C. J. Lynch

Cardiac muscles of experimentally induced diabetic rats show a progressive decrease in the rate of protein synthesis. The decline in protein synthesis is associated with decreases in both the number and efficiency of cardiac ribosomes. In hearts from 48 h diabetic rats, the decrease in protein synthesis was accounted for solely by a 28% reduction in the ribosome content. In contrast, the inhibition of protein synthesis in hearts from 72 h diabetic rats resulted from a reduction in both the ribosome content (28%) and the translational efficiency (30%). The decreased translational efficiency was not associated with an increase of RNA in ribosomal subunits, indicating the defect resulted from an inhibition of peptide-chain elongation/termination. Diabetes of 72 h duration resulted in a 37% inhibition in the rate of peptide-chain elongation. The decreased rate of peptide-chain elongation was associated with a 66% reduction in the amount of elongation factor 2 (EF-2). Treatment of diabetic rats with insulin for 3 days was sufficient to reverse the effects of 72 h diabetes on protein synthesis, RNA content, and translational efficiency. Also, insulin therapy increased the EF-2 content of diabetic rats to control values. These studies suggest that decreased EF-2 content is a molecular mechanism for the impaired rates of peptide-chain elongation in diabetes.


2000 ◽  
Vol 279 (2) ◽  
pp. E425-E432 ◽  
Author(s):  
W.-N. Paul Lee ◽  
Sara Bassilian ◽  
Shu Lim ◽  
Laszlo G. Boros

We present here a study on the role of leptin in the regulation of lipogenesis by examining the effect of dietary macronutrient composition on lipogenesis in the leptin receptor-defective Zucker diabetic fatty rat (ZDF) and its lean litter mate (ZL). Animals were pair fed two isocaloric diets differing in their fat-to-carbohydrate ratio providing 10 and 30% energy as fat. Lipogenesis was measured in the rats using deuterated water and isotopomer analysis. From the deuterium incorporation into plasma palmitate, stearate, and oleate, we determined de novo synthesis of palmitate and synthesis of stearate by chain elongation and of oleate by desaturation. Because the macronutrient composition and the caloric density were controlled, changes in de novo lipogenesis under these dietary conditions represent adaptation to changes in the fat-to-carbohydrate ratio of the diet. De novo lipogenesis was normally suppressed in response to the high-fat diet in the ZL rat to maintain a relatively constant amount of lipids transported. The ZDF rat had a higher rate of lipogenesis, which was not suppressed by the high-fat diet. The results suggest an important hormonal role of leptin in the feedback regulation of lipogenesis.


1987 ◽  
Vol 241 (2) ◽  
pp. 491-498 ◽  
Author(s):  
D Pérez-Sala ◽  
R Parrilla ◽  
M S Ayuso

We investigated the effects of administration of single amino acids to starved rats on the regulation of protein synthesis in the liver. Of all the amino acids tested, only alanine, ornithine and proline promoted statistically significant increases in the extent of hepatic polyribosome aggregation. The most effective of these was alanine, whose effect of promoting polyribosomal aggregation was accompanied by a decrease in the polypeptide-chain elongation time. The following observations indicate that alanine plays an important physiological role in the regulation of hepatic protein synthesis. Alanine was the amino acid showing the largest decrease in hepatic content in the transition from high (fed) to low (starved) rates of protein synthesis. The administration of glucose or pyruvate is also effective in increasing liver protein synthesis in starved rats, and their effects were accompanied by an increased hepatic alanine content. An increase in hepatic ornithine content does not lead to an increased protein synthesis, unless it is accompanied by an increase of alanine. The effect of alanine is observed either in vivo, in rats pretreated with cycloserine to prevent its transamination, or in isolated liver cells under conditions in which its metabolic transformation is fully impeded.


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