Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Yury B. Slonimskiy, Andrei O. Zupnik, Larisa A. Varfolomeeva, Konstantin M. Boyko, Eugene G. Maksimov, Nikolai N. Sluchanko
Summary: Cyanobacteria played a crucial role in the Great Oxygenation Event, and the Gloeobacter OCPX, a primitive form of OCP, exhibits unique functional adaptations and faster recovery after photoactivation through an intramolecular locking mechanism.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL MACROMOLECULES
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Panagis Polykretis, Enrico Luchinat
Summary: XIAP is a multi-functional protein overexpressed in cancer cells, acting as a direct caspase inhibitor to regulate apoptosis and becoming an important target for cancer treatment. The pro-apoptotic protein Smac is considered a master regulator of apoptosis in mammals, and the development of Smac mimetic compounds for inhibiting XIAP activity has shown limited efficacy. This study provides the first bio-physical characterization of the interaction between full-length XIAP and Smac, offering important information for the development of more effective XIAP inhibitors.
BIOCHEMICAL AND BIOPHYSICAL RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Ryo Ishiguro, Tetsuro Fujisawa
Summary: High pressure is an important tool to alter the equilibrium of oligomeric proteins. Native PAGE at high pressure can characterize the dissociation and differentiation of aggregates, but band smearing often hinders detailed analysis. This study focused on band smearing dependent on migration velocity to extract thermodynamic and kinetic parameters.
ANALYTICAL BIOCHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Nikolai N. Sluchanko, Eugene G. Maksimov, Yury B. Slonimskiy, Larisa A. Varfolomeeva, Antonina Y. Bukhanko, Nikita A. Egorkin, Georgy Tsoraev, Maria G. Khrenova, Baosheng Ge, Song Qin, Konstantin M. Boyko, Vladimir O. Popov
Summary: This study presents the first crystal structures of OCP2 from cyanobacteria with different morphoecophysiological characteristics and provides a comprehensive comparison of their structure, spectroscopy, and function with OCP1, OCP3, and all-OCP ancestor. The structures enable the correlation of spectroscopic signatures with the effective number of hydrogen and the discovery of chalcogen bonds anchoring the ketocarotenoid in OCP, as well as the rotation of the echinenone's beta-ionone ring in the CTD. The structural data also helped rationalize the observed differences in OCP/FRP and OCP/phycobilisome functional interactions.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL MACROMOLECULES
(2024)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Eva Sarvari, Gabriella Gellen, Mate Sagi-Kazar, Gitta Schlosser, Katalin Solymosi, Adam Solti
Summary: In this study, the Blue/Clear-Native polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (BN PAGE) method was improved by using a detergent mixture of 1% (w/V) n-dodecyl-beta-d-maltoside plus 1% (w/V) digitonin for solubilisation and 4.3-8% gel gradients for separation. Several large photosystem (PS) I containing bands were detected, and it was found that these bands were PSI-NADH dehydrogenase-like megacomplexes in maize bundle sheath thylakoids and PSI complexes with different light-harvesting complex (LHC) complements (PSI-LHCII, PSI-LHCII*) in mesophyll thylakoids of lincomycin treated maize. Proposed methods for quantitative determination and comparison of the complexes in different samples were also provided.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Marcin Mielecki, Marcin Ziemniak, Magdalena Ozga, Radoslaw Borowski, Jaroslaw Antosik, Angelika Kaczynska, Beata Pajak
Summary: Protein aggregation is a common problem in industrial preparation and understanding its structure and function is crucial for the development of therapeutic proteins. This study analyzed the side products of a single-chain fusion cytotoxin and provided comprehensive insights into their molecular architecture and function.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Xiaojing Huang, Hari Kamadurai, Piro Siuti, Ezaz Ahmed, Jack L. Bennett, William A. Donald
Summary: Molecular glues stabilize interactions between E3 ligases and novel substrates to promote substrate degradation, facilitating the inhibition of traditionally undruggable protein targets. Efficient approaches for discovering and characterizing the effects of molecular glues on protein interactions are required to accelerate the discovery of novel agents.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Junmo Hwang, Kunwoong Park, Ga-Young Lee, Bo Young Yoon, Hyunmin Kim, Sung Hoon Roh, Byoung-Cheol Lee, Kipom Kim, Hyun-Ho Lim
Summary: MLC1 is a membrane protein mainly expressed in astrocytes, with eight transmembrane domains and the ability to exist as an oligomer. The study provides a basis for further high-resolution structural determination and functional characterization.
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Marie Fichter, Gesa Richter, Alexander Bepperling, Paul Wassmann
Summary: This study systematically assessed the factors and characteristics governing the formation of immune complexes (ICs) in vitro. The interplay between the absolute concentration of the involved components, their molar ratios, structural features of the biologic, and its endogenous target was demonstrated. The study provides valuable insights into IC formation mechanisms and can be applied to various biotherapeutics.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Miao Chen, Frank Koopmans, Iryna Paliukhovich, Sophie J. F. van der Spek, Jian Dong, August B. Smit, Ka Wan Li
Summary: This study used an interaction proteomics workflow to reveal the existence of GABA(A) receptor subtypes containing both alpha 1 and alpha 6 subunits. Mass spectrometry analysis showed that these receptor subtypes exist in two main forms, with or without Neuroligin-2. Immunocytochemistry confirmed the presence of this synaptic GABA(A)R subtype at the synapse.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Kazutoshi Tani, Ryo Kanno, Riku Kikuchi, Saki Kawamura, Kenji V. P. Nagashima, Malgorzata Hall, Ai Takahashi, Long-Jiang Yu, Yukihiro Kimura, Michael T. Madigan, Akira Mizoguchi, Bruno M. Humbel, Zheng-Yu Wang-Otomo
Summary: In this study, the authors used cryo-EM to analyze the structure of the light-harvesting-reaction center complex in Rhodobacter sphaeroides. They found asymmetric features and altered shape in the complex, and also identified the critical role of protein-U in assembly and stability.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Food Science & Technology
Natacha Ferreira de Oliveira, Ana Teresa Azevedo Sachetto, Marcelo Larami Santoro
Summary: This study applied the bidimensional BN/SDS-PAGE technique for the first time to investigate the protein interactions in snake venoms. The results showed the presence of native protein complexes and the maintenance of enzymatic activity of snake venom metalloproteinases and venom serine proteinases during the separation process.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Christophe Velours, Jingjing Zhou, Paolo Zecchin, Nisha He, Myriam Salameh, Marie-Pierre Golinelli-Cohen, Beatrice Golinelli-Pimpaneau
Summary: Size Exclusion Chromatography coupled with Multi-Angle Light Scattering (SEC-MALS) is a technique used to determine the absolute molar mass of macromolecules in solution by detecting their light scattering intensity. This technique can be applied to proteins and polymers of any shape without relying on assumptions or calibrations. However, corrections are needed for samples that absorb light at the MALS laser wavelength. In this study, various corrections were applied to determine the absolute molar mass of [2Fe-2S] and [4Fe-4S] cluster-containing proteins in both apo- and holo-forms. The determination of the absolute molar mass of the [2Fe-2S]-containing holo-NEET proteins revealed changes in oligomerization state upon cluster binding, highlighting an essential function of the cluster.
Article
Neurosciences
Jing Xue, Yan Han, Weizhong Zeng, Youxing Jiang
Summary: Mammalian cyclic nucleotide-gated (CNG) channels are nonselective cation channels activated by cGMP or cAMP and play essential roles in signal transduction. The rod CNG channels exist as heterotetramers with different functional properties compared to the homotetrameric CNGA1 model system. The functional analysis and cryo-EM structures of the human rod CNGA1/B1 heterotetramer provide insights into its subunit stoichiometry, gating mechanism, and pharmacological characteristics.
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Ziqiao Yan, Minyi He, Yuwei Zhang, Gengxin Hu, Hong Li
Summary: The study demonstrates that methylene blue can significantly amplify the oxidation signals of tyrosine residues in proteins. By evaluating various factors, the mechanism of signal amplification is determined. This method of signal enhancement shows good selectivity, high reproducibility, and strong anti-interference ability.
JOURNAL OF ELECTROANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
(2021)