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Full-Text Articles in Biochemistry
Predicting The Structure And Selectivity Of Coiled-Coil Proteins, Mojtaba Jokar
Predicting The Structure And Selectivity Of Coiled-Coil Proteins, Mojtaba Jokar
Wayne State University Dissertations
A coiled-coil protein structure consists of two (in coiled-coil dimers) or more interacting α-helical strands that together form a left-handed supercoil structure. Many coiled-coil proteins are involved in significant biological functions such as the regulation of gene expression, known as transcription factors. Also coiled-coil structures entail unique mechanical properties critical to the function and integrity of various motor proteins, cytoskeletal filaments and extra-cellular matrix proteins. Engineering these transcription factors is also expected to create more efficient and practical solutions to treat neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), Huntington's disease (HD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and prion …
Perturbation Of Energy Metabolism At The Center Of The Mechanism Of Action Of Valproate, Michael Ghassan Salsaa
Perturbation Of Energy Metabolism At The Center Of The Mechanism Of Action Of Valproate, Michael Ghassan Salsaa
Wayne State University Dissertations
Bipolar disorder (BD) is a common and debilitating psychiatric disorder. Valproic acid (VPA) is one of the major drugs used to treat BD patients. However, it is not universally effective and, in addition, causes severe side effects. Its mechanism of action is not known, which complicates efforts to develop more effective drugs. Studies have established that VPA perturbs metabolism, which is implicated in both the therapeutic mechanism of action of the drug as well as drug toxicity. However, the mechanism whereby VPA causes these perturbations is not understood. To address this knowledge gap, I investigated the acute and chronic effects …