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Full-Text Articles in Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology
Regulation Of The Lipid Raft Localization Of The Gal/Galnac Lectin, An Adhesin On The Surface Of The Human Protozoan Parasite, Entamoeba Histolytica, Amanda Goldston
Regulation Of The Lipid Raft Localization Of The Gal/Galnac Lectin, An Adhesin On The Surface Of The Human Protozoan Parasite, Entamoeba Histolytica, Amanda Goldston
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Lipid rafts, sterol- and sphingolipid-rich membrane microdomains, have been shown to control virulence in a variety of parasites including Entamoeba histolytica, an intestinal parasite that causes dysentery and liver abscess. Parasite cell surface receptors, such as the Gal/GalNAc lectin, facilitate attachment to host cells and extracellular matrix. The Gal/GalNAc lectin binds to galactose or N-acetylgalactosamine residues on host components, and is composed of heavy (Hgl), intermediate (Igl), and light (Lgl) subunits. Although Igl is constitutively localized to lipid rafts, Hgl and Lgl transiently associate with this compartment in a cholesterol-dependent fashion. Exposure to bonafide Gal/GalNAc lectin ligands is associated with …
Lignin Modification In Arabidopsis And Populus For Studies Of Gene Function And Improving Lignin Degradation, Yi Xu
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Lignin is one of the most abundant biopolymers in plants and plays an important role in plant structure and stress defense. Lignin is also considered to be a hallmark of vascular plants because of its crucial role in plant terrestrialization. However, lignin is an undesired component in the pulp and paper industry, bioethanol production, and forage digestibility. Thus, understanding the functions and the evolution of lignin biosynthesis genes can not only advance our knowledge of the evolution of land-adaptation for vascular plants but also help guide the effort to exploit the potential for genetic manipulation of lignin for desirable traits …
An Investigation Of Trypanosoma Brucei Hexokinases: Localization, Oligomerization, And Inhibition, April Joice
An Investigation Of Trypanosoma Brucei Hexokinases: Localization, Oligomerization, And Inhibition, April Joice
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Trypanosoma brucei is the causative agent of African sleeping sickness in humans and nagana in livestock. The parasite inhabits multiple environmental niches including the bloodstream of the mammalian host and the mid-gut of the tsetse fly vector. While in the bloodstream of its mammalian host, the organism depends solely on glycolysis for production of ATP. My studies focus on the first enzyme in glycolysis, hexokinase.
T. brucei has two hexokinases, TbHK1 and TbHK2 that are 98.5% identical at the nucleotide level. The hexokinases are expressed in the glycosomes of both procyclic form and bloodstream form parasites. Glycosomes are peroxisome-like organelles …
Stromal-Epithelial Interactions Modulate Cross Talk Between Prolactin Receptor And Her2/Neu In Breast Cancer, Cong Xu
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The tumor microenvironment is a crucial factor in breast tumorigenesis. Tumor epithelial cells maintain 3D structure in tumor stroma and they interact with soluble factors secreted by stromal cells such as cancer associated fibroblasts (CAFs) or directly with the extracellular matrix (ECM). Recent studies have shown that the hormone prolactin (PRL) promotes the proliferation and survival of breast cancer cells in part via the transactivation of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), also known as Neu in rodents. A PRL receptor (PRLR) antagonist, G129R, has been demonstrated not only to be able to directly inhibit PRLR activation but also …