scholarly journals Radiofrequency Remote Control of Thermolysin Activity

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian B. Collins ◽  
Christopher J. Ackerson
Keyword(s):  
Enzyme Activity ◽  
Remote Control ◽  
Bulk Solution ◽  
Solution Temperature ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Thermophilic Enzyme ◽  
Activity Increase ◽  
Precise Control ◽  
Cellular Processes ◽  
Kinetics Studies

AbstractNearly all biological processes are regulated by enzymes, precise control over specific enzymes could create the potential for controlling cellular processes remotely. We have successfully shown that the thermophilic enzyme thermolysin can be remotely activated in 17.76 MHz radiofrequency (RF) fields when covalently attached to 6.1 nm gold coated magnetite nanoparticles. Without raising the bulk solution temperature, we observe enzyme activity as if the solution was 16 ± 2 °C warmer in RF fields, or an increase in enzymatic rate of 129 ± 8%. Kinetics studies show that the activity increase of the enzyme is consistent with the induced fit of a hot enzyme with cold substrate.

scholarly journals Radiofrequency remote control of thermolysin activity

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian B. Collins ◽  
Ryan A. Riskowski ◽  
Christopher J. Ackerson
Keyword(s):  
Enzyme Activity ◽  
Remote Control ◽  
Bulk Solution ◽  
Solution Temperature ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Thermophilic Enzyme ◽  
Activity Increase ◽  
Precise Control ◽  
Cellular Processes ◽  
Kinetics Studies

AbstractThe majority of biological processes are regulated by enzymes, precise control over specific enzymes could create the potential for controlling cellular processes remotely. We show that the thermophilic enzyme thermolysin can be remotely activated in 17.76 MHz radiofrequency (RF) fields when covalently attached to 6.1 nm gold coated magnetite nanoparticles. Without raising the bulk solution temperature, we observe enzyme activity as if the solution was 16 ± 2 °C warmer in RF fields—an increase in enzymatic rate of 129 ± 8%. Kinetics studies show that the activity increase of the enzyme is consistent with the induced fit of a hot enzyme with cold substrate.

scholarly journals Intrinsically Disordered Proteins as Regulators of Transient Biological Processes and as Untapped Drug Targets

Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (8) ◽  
pp. 2118
Author(s):  
Yusuke Hosoya ◽  
Junko Ohkanda
Keyword(s):  
Drug Targets ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered Proteins ◽  
Dynamic Control ◽  
Disordered Proteins ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Phase Separations ◽  
Cellular Processes ◽  
Intrinsically Disordered ◽  
New Drug ◽  
Liquid Phase Separations

Intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) are critical players in the dynamic control of diverse cellular processes, and provide potential new drug targets because their dysregulation is closely related to many diseases. This review focuses on several medicinal studies that have identified low-molecular-weight inhibitors of IDPs. In addition, clinically relevant liquid–liquid phase separations—which critically involve both intermolecular interactions between IDPs and their posttranslational modification—are analyzed to understand the potential of IDPs as new drug targets.

scholarly journals Research Progress of Sirtuin4 in Cancer

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yibing Bai ◽  
Jiani Yang ◽  
Ying Cui ◽  
Yuanfei Yao ◽  
Feng Wu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Oxidative Stress ◽  
Enzyme Activity ◽  
Energy Metabolism ◽  
Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide ◽  
Enzyme Activities ◽  
Research Progress ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Catalytic Activities ◽  
Cellular Processes ◽  
Dependent Protein

Sirtuins (SIRTs) are members of the silent information regulator-2 family. They are a conserved family of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide-dependent protein lysine deacylases. SIRTS are involved in intricate cellular processes. There are seven subtypes of SIRTs (1–7) in mammals. SIRT4 is located mainly in mitochondria and has various catalytic activities. These enzyme activities give it a diverse range of important biologic functions, such as energy metabolism, oxidative stress, and aging. Cancer is characterized as reprogramming of energy metabolism and redox imbalance, and SIRT4 can affect tumorigenesis. Here, we review the structure, localization, and enzyme activity of SIRT4 and its role in various neoplasms.

A Wnt5a pathway underlies outgrowth of multiple structures in the vertebrate embryo

Development ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 126 (6) ◽  
pp. 1211-1223 ◽  
Author(s):  
T.P. Yamaguchi ◽  
A. Bradley ◽  
A.P. McMahon ◽  
S. Jones
Keyword(s):  
Progenitor Cells ◽  
Primitive Streak ◽  
The Body ◽  
Loss Of Function ◽  
Proliferating Cells ◽  
Precise Control ◽  
Cellular Processes ◽  
Cell Proliferation And Differentiation ◽  
Primary Body ◽  
Multiple Structures

Morphogenesis depends on the precise control of basic cellular processes such as cell proliferation and differentiation. Wnt5a may regulate these processes since it is expressed in a gradient at the caudal end of the growing embryo during gastrulation, and later in the distal-most aspect of several structures that extend from the body. A loss-of-function mutation of Wnt5a leads to an inability to extend the A-P axis due to a progressive reduction in the size of caudal structures. In the limbs, truncation of the proximal skeleton and absence of distal digits correlates with reduced proliferation of putative progenitor cells within the progress zone. However, expression of progress zone markers, and several genes implicated in distal outgrowth and patterning including Distalless, Hoxd and Fgf family members was not altered. Taken together with the outgrowth defects observed in the developing face, ears and genitals, our data indicates that Wnt5a regulates a pathway common to many structures whose development requires extension from the primary body axis. The reduced number of proliferating cells in both the progress zone and the primitive streak mesoderm suggests that one function of Wnt5a is to regulate the proliferation of progenitor cells.

scholarly journals Thickness-Dependent Swelling Behavior of Vapor-Deposited Hydrogel Thin Films

Proceedings ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (13) ◽  
pp. 757 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabian Muralter ◽  
Alberto Perrotta ◽  
Anna Maria Coclite
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Film Thickness ◽  
Chemical Vapor ◽  
Solution Temperature ◽  
Cross Linking ◽  
Temperature Sensitive ◽  
Critical Solution Temperature ◽  
Precise Control ◽  
Initiated Chemical Vapor Deposition ◽  
Deposited Film

Hydrogel thin films containing temperature sensitive chemical functionalities (such as N-isopropylacrylamide, NIPAAm) are particularly interesting for sensor and actuator setups. Complex 3D structures can be conformally coated by the solvent free technique initiated Chemical Vapor Deposition, with precise control over chemical composition and film thickness. In this study, NIPAAm-based thin films with film thicknesses ranging from tens to several hundreds of nanometers and with different amounts of cross-linking were deposited. Above the lower critical solution temperature (LCST), these films repel out water and hence shrink. The amount of cross-linking and the deposited film thickness were successfully identified to both affect shape and position of the LCST transition of these systems: a promising basis for tuning response properties.

Nanomechanochemical Delivery of Nanoparticles for Nanomechanics Inside Living Cells

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyungsuk Yum ◽  
Sungsoo Na ◽  
Yang Xiang ◽  
Ning Wang ◽  
Min-Feng Yu
Keyword(s):  
Single Molecule ◽  
Living Cells ◽  
Endocytic Pathway ◽  
Great Promise ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Temporal Precision ◽  
Single Molecule Level ◽  
Cellular Processes ◽  
Cellular Environment ◽  
Biological Studies

Studying biological processes and mechanics in living cells is challenging but highly rewarding. Recent advances in experimental techniques have provided numerous ways to investigate cellular processes and mechanics of living cells. However, most of existing techniques for biomechanics are limited to experiments outside or on the membrane of cells, due to the difficulties in physically accessing the interior of living cells. On the other hand, nanomaterials, such as fluorescent quantum dots (QDs) and magnetic nanoparticles, have shown great promise to overcome such limitations due to their small sizes and excellent functionalities, including bright and stable fluorescence and remote manipulability. However, except a few systems, the use of nanoparticles has been limited to the study of biological studies on cell membranes or related to endocytosis, because of the difficulty of delivering dispersed and single nanoparticles into living cells. Various strategies have been explored, but delivered nanoparticles are often trapped in the endocytic pathway or form aggregates in the cytoplasm, limiting their further use. Here we show a nanoscale direct delivery method, named nanomechanochemical delivery, where we manipulate a nanotube-based nanoneedle, carrying “cargo” (QDs in this study), to mechanically penetrate the cell membrane, access specific areas inside cells, and release the cargo [1]. We selectively delivered well-dispersed QDs into either the cytoplasm or the nucleus of living cells. We quantified the dynamics of the delivered QDs by single-molecule tracking and demonstrated the applicability of the QDs as a nanoscale probe for studying nanomechanics inside living cells (by using the biomicrorhology method), revealing the biomechanical heterogeneity of the cellular environment. This method may allow new strategies for studying biological processes and mechanics in living cells with spatial and temporal precision, potentially at the single-molecule level.

scholarly journals Effect of Hydrophobic Interactions on Lower Critical Solution Temperature for Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide-co-dopamine Methacrylamide) Copolymers

Polymers ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 991 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alberto García-Peñas ◽  
Chandra Sekhar Biswas ◽  
Weijun Liang ◽  
Yu Wang ◽  
Pianpian Yang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Weight ◽  
Lower Critical Solution Temperature ◽  
Hydrophobic Interactions ◽  
Structural Information ◽  
Drug Carriers ◽  
Solution Temperature ◽  
Polymerization Degree ◽  
Tissue Engineering Scaffolds ◽  
Critical Solution Temperature ◽  
Precise Control

For the preparation of thermoresponsive copolymers, for e.g., tissue engineering scaffolds or drug carriers, a precise control of the synthesis parameters to set the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) is required. However, the correlations between molecular parameters and LCST are partially unknown and, furthermore, LCST is defined as an exact temperature, which oversimplifies the real situation. Here, random N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAM)/dopamine methacrylamide (DMA) copolymers were prepared under a systematical variation of molecular weight and comonomer amount and their LCST in water studied by calorimetry, turbidimetry, and rheology. Structural information was deduced from observed transitions clarifying the contributions of molecular weight, comonomer content, end-group effect or polymerization degree on LCST, which were then statistically modeled. This proved that the LCST can be predicted through molecular structure and conditions of the solutions. While the hydrophobic DMA lowers the LCST especially the onset, polymerization degree has an important but smaller influence over all the whole LCST range.

scholarly journals Small RNA Expression Profiling by High-Throughput Sequencing: Implications of Enzymatic Manipulation

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fanglei Zhuang ◽  
Ryan T. Fuchs ◽  
G. Brett Robb
Keyword(s):  
High Throughput ◽  
Expression Profiling ◽  
Messenger Rna ◽  
High Throughput Sequencing ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Cellular Processes ◽  
Disease States ◽  
Powerful Approach ◽  
Sequencing Library ◽  
Rna Expression Profiling

Eukaryotic regulatory small RNAs (sRNAs) play significant roles in many fundamental cellular processes. As such, they have emerged as useful biomarkers for diseases and cell differentiation states. sRNA-based biomarkers outperform traditional messenger RNA-based biomarkers by testing fewer targets with greater accuracy and providing earlier detection for disease states. Therefore, expression profiling of sRNAs is fundamentally important to further advance the understanding of biological processes, as well as diagnosis and treatment of diseases. High-throughput sequencing (HTS) is a powerful approach for both sRNA discovery and expression profiling. Here, we discuss the general considerations for sRNA-based HTS profiling methods from RNA preparation to sequencing library construction, with a focus on the causes of systematic error. By examining the enzymatic manipulation steps of sRNA expression profiling, this paper aims to demystify current HTS-based sRNA profiling approaches and to aid researchers in the informed design and interpretation of profiling experiments.

scholarly journals Systematic identification of signal integration by protein kinase A

2015 ◽  
Vol 112 (14) ◽  
pp. 4501-4506 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie Filteau ◽  
Guillaume Diss ◽  
Francisco Torres-Quiroz ◽  
Alexandre K. Dubé ◽  
Andrea Schraffl ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Protein Kinase A ◽  
Protein Interactions ◽  
Carbon Sources ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Protein Protein Interactions ◽  
Cellular Processes ◽  
Protein Complex Formation ◽  
Growth And Aging ◽  
Kinase A

Cellular processes and homeostasis control in eukaryotic cells is achieved by the action of regulatory proteins such as protein kinase A (PKA). Although the outbound signals from PKA directed to processes such as metabolism, growth, and aging have been well charted, what regulates this conserved regulator remains to be systematically identified to understand how it coordinates biological processes. Using a yeast PKA reporter assay, we identified genes that influence PKA activity by measuring protein–protein interactions between the regulatory and the two catalytic subunits of the PKA complex in 3,726 yeast genetic-deletion backgrounds grown on two carbon sources. Overall, nearly 500 genes were found to be connected directly or indirectly to PKA regulation, including 80 core regulators, denoting a wide diversity of signals regulating PKA, within and beyond the described upstream linear pathways. PKA regulators span multiple processes, including the antagonistic autophagy and methionine biosynthesis pathways. Our results converge toward mechanisms of PKA posttranslational regulation by lysine acetylation, which is conserved between yeast and humans and that, we show, regulates protein complex formation in mammals and carbohydrate storage and aging in yeast. Taken together, these results show that the extent of PKA input matches with its output, because this kinase receives information from upstream and downstream processes, and highlight how biological processes are interconnected and coordinated by PKA.

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