Gata factor translation is the final downstream step in the amino acid/tor-mediated vitellogenin gene expression in the anautogenous mosquito aedes aegypti.
'Ingestion of blood is required for vector mosquitoes to initiate reproductive cycles determining their role as vectors of devastating human diseases. Nutritional signaling plays a pivotal role in regulating mosquito reproduction. Transcription of yolk protein precursor genes is repressed until mosquitoes take blood. Previously, we have shown that to signal ... More
Cytoskeletal changes regulated by the PAK4 serine/threonine kinase are mediated by LIM kinase 1 and cofilin.
Authors Dan C; Kelly A; Bernard O; Minden A;
JournalJ Biol Chem
PubMed ID11413130
'PAK4 is the most recently identified member of the PAK family of serine/threonine kinases. PAK4 differs from other members of the PAK family in sequence and in many of its functions. Previously, we have shown that an important function of this kinase is to mediate the induction of filopodia in ... More
Expression, purification, and characterization of an activated cytokine-suppressive anti-inflammatory drug-binding protein 2 (CSBP2) kinase from baculovirus-infected insect cells.
Authors Cai X Y; Shanahan M; Miller K; Gommoll C; Lundell D; Zavodny P; Dalie B;
JournalProtein Expr Purif
PubMed ID9226723
'An activated form of the human cytokine-suppressive anti-inflammatory drug-binding protein 2 (CSBP2) kinase was expressed in Spodoptera frugiperda (SF9) cells from a baculovirus vector. To maximize expression and to facilitate purification of the recombinant protein, CSBP2 kinase was expressed as a carboxy-terminal fusion protein to glutathione S-transferase (GST). Under optimal ... More
Production of a urokinase plasminogen activator-IgG fusion protein (uPA-IgG) in the baculovirus expression system.
Authors Kost T A; Ignar D M; Clay W C; Andrews J; Leray J D; Overton L; Hoffman C R; Kilpatrick K E; Ellis B; Emerson D L;
JournalGene
PubMed ID9185859
'Numerous studies have demonstrated the importance of urokinase plasminogen activator (uPA) and its receptor, uPAR, in the processes of tumor progression and metastasis. Thus, the uPA/uPAR interaction may represent an important target for inhibiting metastatic disease. The baculovirus expression system was used to produce high levels of a secreted uPA-Immunoglobulin ... More
Reuptake of extracellular amelogenin by dental epithelial cells results in increased levels of amelogenin mRNA through enhanced mRNA stabilization.
'Amelogenin is an extracellular matrix protein secreted by ameloblasts and is a major component of enamel matrix. Recently, in addition to their role in enamel formation, the biological activity of enamel proteins in the process of cell differentiation has recently become widely appreciated. In this study, we examined the biological ... More
Wengen, a member of the Drosophila tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily, is required for Eiger signaling.
'We identified Wengen, the first member of the Drosophila tumor necrosis factor receptor (TNFR) superfamily. Wengen is a type III membrane protein with conserved cysteine-rich residues (TNFR homology domain) in the extracellular domain, a hallmark of the TNFR superfamily. wengen mRNA is expressed at all stages of Drosophila development. The ... More
Deterin, a new inhibitor of apoptosis from Drosophila melanogaster.
Authors Jones G; Jones D; Zhou L; Steller H; Chu Y;
JournalJ Biol Chem
PubMed ID10764741
'Deterin, a new apoptosis inhibitor from Drosophila melanogaster, possesses an unusual structure of only a single baculovirus inhibitor of apoptosis (IAP)-type repeat and no RING finger motif. The biochemical actions of deterin are demonstrated in SF9 and S2 cell transfection assays, in which the expressed protein acts in the cytoplasm ... More
Controllable self-assembly of nanoparticles for specific delivery of multiple therapeutic molecules to cancer cells using RNA nanotechnology.
AuthorsKhaled A, Guo S, Li F, Guo P,
JournalNano Lett
PubMed ID16159227
'By utilizing RNA nanotechnology, we engineered both therapeutic siRNA and a receptor-binding RNA aptamer into individual pRNAs of phi29''s motor. The RNA building block harboring siRNA or other therapeutic molecules was fabricated subsequently into a trimer through the interaction of engineered right and left interlocking RNA loops. The incubation of ... More
Fast isolation of recombinant baculovirus by antibody screening.
AuthorsManns A, Grosse F
JournalBiotechniques
PubMed ID1711869
'The use of a rapid and efficient scheme for the detection and purification of recombinant baculoviruses is described. The method is based on the detection of foreign proteins in cellular lysates of baculovirus-infected insect cells by antibody screening. The recombinant virus is purified by repeated serial dilutions. The method allows ... More
When less is more: enhanced baculovirus production of recombinant proteins at very low multiplicities of infection.
Authors Liebman J M; LaSala D; Wang W; Steed P M;
JournalBiotechniques
PubMed ID9894589
Stromal cell-derived factors 1alpha and 1beta, inflammatory protein-10 and interferon-inducible T cell chemo-attractant are novel substrates of dipeptidyl peptidase 8.
AuthorsAjami K, Pitman MR, Wilson CH, Park J, Menz RI, Starr AE, Cox JH, Abbott CA, Overall CM, Gorrell MD,
JournalFEBS Lett
PubMed ID18275857
N-terminal truncation of chemokines by proteases including dipeptidyl peptidase (DP) IV significantly alters their biological activity; generally ablating cognate G-protein coupled receptor engagement and often generating potent receptor antagonists. DP8 is a recently recognised member of the prolyl oligopeptidase gene family that includes DPIV. Since DPIV is known to process ... More
Regulation of notch signaling by o-linked fucose.
AuthorsOkajima T, Irvine KD,
JournalCell
PubMed ID12526814
Notch and its ligands are modified by a protein O-fucosyltransferase (OFUT1) that attaches fucose to a Serine or Threonine within EGF domains. By using RNAi to decrease Ofut1 expression in Drosophila, we demonstrate that O-linked fucose is positively required for Notch signaling, including both Fringe-dependent and Fringe-independent processes. The requirement ... More
Noninfectious virus-like particles produced by Moloney murine leukemia virus-based retrovirus packaging cells deficient in viral envelope become infectious in the presence of lipofection reagents.
AuthorsSharma S, Murai F, Miyanohara A, Friedmann T
JournalProc Natl Acad Sci U S A
PubMed ID9380714
Retrovirus packaging cell lines expressing the Moloney murine leukemia virus gag and pol genes but lacking virus envelope genes produce virus-like particles constitutively, whether or not they express a transcript from an integrated retroviral provirus. In the absence of a proviral transcript, the assembled particles contain processed gag and reverse ... More
The S100A8-serum amyloid A3-TLR4 paracrine cascade establishes a pre-metastatic phase.
AuthorsHiratsuka S, Watanabe A, Sakurai Y, Akashi-Takamura S, Ishibashi S, Miyake K, Shibuya M, Akira S, Aburatani H, Maru Y,
JournalNat Cell Biol
PubMed ID18820689
A large number of macrophages and haematopoietic progenitor cells accumulate in pre-metastatic lungs in which chemoattractants, such as S100A8 and S100A9, are produced by distant primary tumours serving as metastatic soil. The exact mechanism by which these chemoattractants elicit cell accumulation is not known. Here, we show that serum amyloid ... More
A serine/threonine-rich motif is one of three nuclear localization signals that determine unidirectional transport of the mineralocorticoid receptor to the nucleus.
AuthorsWalther RF, Atlas E, Carrigan A, Rouleau Y, Edgecombe A, Visentin L, Lamprecht C, Addicks GC, Haché RJ, Lefebvre YA,
JournalJ Biol Chem
PubMed ID15737989
The mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) is a tightly regulated nuclear hormone receptor that selectively transmits corticosteroid signals. Steroid treatment transforms MR from a transcriptionally inert state, in which it is distributed equally between the nucleus and cytoplasm, to an active completely nuclear transcription factor. We report here that MR is an ... More
Sp1- and Sp3-mediated transcriptional regulation of the fibroblast growth factor receptor 1 gene in chicken skeletal muscle cells.
Authors Parakati Rajini; DiMario Joseph X;
JournalJ Biol Chem
PubMed ID11756440
Expression of the fibroblast growth factor receptor 1 (FGFR1) gene in skeletal muscle is positively regulated in proliferating myoblasts and declines during differentiation. We have characterized the cis-regulatory elements in the proximal region of the FGFR1 promoter which render positive transcriptional activity. Multiple elements between -69 and -14 activate the ... More
Identification and characterization of a novel human microsomal glutathione S-transferase with leukotriene C4 synthase activity and significant sequence identity to 5-lipoxygenase-activating protein and leukotriene C4 synthase.
Authors Jakobsson P J; Mancini J A; Ford-Hutchinson A W;
JournalJ Biol Chem
PubMed ID8703034
5-Lipoxygenase-activating protein (FLAP) and leukotriene C4 (LTC4) synthase, two proteins involved in leukotriene biosynthesis, have been demonstrated to be 31% identical at the amino acid level. We have recently identified and characterized a novel member of the FLAP/LTC4 synthase gene family termed microsomal glutathione S-transferase II (microsomal GST-II). The open ... More
Stable plasma membrane levels of hCTR1 mediate cellular copper uptake.
AuthorsEisses JF, Chi Y, Kaplan JH,
JournalJ Biol Chem
PubMed ID15634665
The human copper transporter 1 (hCtr1), when heterologously overexpressed in insect cells, mediates saturable Cu uptake. In mammalian expression systems, a rapid Cu-dependent internalization of hCtr1 has been reported in cells that overexpress epitope-tagged hCtr1 when exposed to Cu in the external medium. This finding led to the suggestion that ... More
Reconstitution of ATP-dependent leukotriene C4 transport by Co-expression of both half-molecules of human multidrug resistance protein in insect cells.
Authors Gao M; Loe D W; Grant C E; Cole S P; Deeley R G;
JournalJ Biol Chem
PubMed ID8910374
Multidrug resistance protein (MRP) confers a multidrug resistance phenotype similar to that associated with overexpression of P-glycoprotein. Unlike P-glycoprotein, MRP has also been shown to be a primary active ATP-dependent transporter of conjugated organic anions. The mechanism(s) by which MRP transports these compounds and increases resistance to natural product drugs ... More