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Rudra Interrupts Receptor Signaling Complexes To Negatively Regulate The Imd Pathway, Kamna Aggarwal, Florentina Rus, Christie Vriesema-Magnuson, Deniz Erturk Hasdemir, Nicholas Paquette, Neal S. Silverman Dec 2009

Rudra Interrupts Receptor Signaling Complexes To Negatively Regulate The Imd Pathway, Kamna Aggarwal, Florentina Rus, Christie Vriesema-Magnuson, Deniz Erturk Hasdemir, Nicholas Paquette, Neal S. Silverman

Neal Silverman

Insects rely primarily on innate immune responses to fight pathogens. In Drosophila, antimicrobial peptides are key contributors to host defense. Antimicrobial peptide gene expression is regulated by the IMD and Toll pathways. Bacterial peptidoglycans trigger these pathways, through recognition by peptidoglycan recognition proteins (PGRPs). DAP-type peptidoglycan triggers the IMD pathway via PGRP-LC and PGRP-LE, while lysine-type peptidoglycan is an agonist for the Toll pathway through PGRP-SA and PGRP-SD. Recent work has shown that the intensity and duration of the immune responses initiating with these receptors is tightly regulated at multiple levels, by a series of negative regulators. Through two-hybrid screening …


Decarboxylation Of L-Dopa And 5-Hydroxytryptophan In Dispersed Rat Pancreas Acinar Cells, E. Yu, L. Stern, A. Tenenhouse Oct 2009

Decarboxylation Of L-Dopa And 5-Hydroxytryptophan In Dispersed Rat Pancreas Acinar Cells, E. Yu, L. Stern, A. Tenenhouse

Edward Yu

Amino acid decarboxylation activity in dispersed rat pancreas acinar cells and fractions derived by differential centrifugation of homogenate of these cells was studied. The rate of decarboxylation was measured by determining the rate of production of the [3H]-amine from [3H]-amino acid or the rate of production of 14CO2 from the [14C]-carboxy-labelled amino acid. Only the hydroxylated amino acids L-dopa and 5-hydroxytryptophan are decarboxylated by intact dispersed pancreas acinar cells or cell homogenates at all pH values and amino acid concentrations tested. The decarboxylase activity is located exclusively in the cell cytosol. Each substrate competitively inhibits the decarboxylation of the other …


In Vitro And In Vivo Models Of Acute Alcohol Exposure, Angela Dolganiuc, Gyongyi Szabo Mar 2009

In Vitro And In Vivo Models Of Acute Alcohol Exposure, Angela Dolganiuc, Gyongyi Szabo

Gyongyi Szabo

Alcohol abuse is a global problem due to the financial burden on society and the healthcare system. While the harmful health effects of chronic alcohol abuse are well established, more recent data suggest that acute alcohol consumption also affects human wellbeing. Thus, there is a need for research models in order to fully understand the effect of acute alcohol abuse on different body systems and organs. The present manuscript summarizes the interdisciplinary advantages and disadvantages of currently available human and non-human models of acute alcohol abuse, and identifies their suitability for biomedical research.