Structure and function in rhodopsin: Kinetic studies of retinal binding to purified opsin mutants in defined phospholipid-detergent mixtures serve as probes of the retinal binding pocket

K+-dependent Na+/Ca2+ exchangers (NCKX) catalyze cytosolic Ca2+ extrusion and are particularly important for neuronal Ca2+ signaling. Of the five mammalian isoforms, the detailed functional characteristics have only been reported for NCKX1 and -2. In the current study, the functional characteristics of recombinant NCKX3 and -4 expressed in HEK293 cells were determined and compared with those of NCKX2. Although the apparent affinities of the three isoforms for Ca2+ and Na+ were similar, NCKX3 and -4 displayed ∼40-fold higher affinities for K+ ions than NCKX2. Functional analysis of various NCKX2 mutants revealed that mutation of Thr-551 to Ala, the corresponding residue in NCKX4, resulted in an apparent K+ affinity shift to one similar to that of NCKX4 without a parallel shift in apparent Ca2+ affinity. In the converse situation, when Gln-476 of NCKX4 was converted to Lys, the corresponding residue in NCKX2, both the K+ and Ca2+ affinities were reduced. These results indicate that the apparently low K+ affinity of NCKX2 requires a Thr residue at position 551 that may reduce the conformational flexibility and/or K+ liganding strength of side-chain moieties on critical neighboring residues. This interaction appears to be specific to the structural context of the NCKX2 K+ binding pocket, because it was not possible to recreate the K+-specific low affinity phenotype with reciprocal mutations in NCKX4. The results of this study provide important information about the structure and function of NCKX proteins and will be critical to understanding their roles in neuronal Ca2+ signaling.

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Structure and function of neural networks in the retina

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100102213 ◽

1988 ◽

Vol 46 ◽

pp. 26-27

Author(s):

Peter Sterling

Keyword(s):

Ganglion Cells ◽

Three Dimensional ◽

Structure And Function ◽

Synaptic Connections ◽

Visual Axis ◽

One Dimensional ◽

Cat Retina ◽

Ultrathin Sections ◽

And Function ◽

Insight Into

The synaptic connections in cat retina that link photoreceptors to ganglion cells have been analyzed quantitatively. Our approach has been to prepare serial, ultrathin sections and photograph en montage at low magnification (˜2000X) in the electron microscope. Six series, 100-300 sections long, have been prepared over the last decade. They derive from different cats but always from the same region of retina, about one degree from the center of the visual axis. The material has been analyzed by reconstructing adjacent neurons in each array and then identifying systematically the synaptic connections between arrays. Most reconstructions were done manually by tracing the outlines of processes in successive sections onto acetate sheets aligned on a cartoonist's jig. The tracings were then digitized, stacked by computer, and printed with the hidden lines removed. The results have provided rather than the usual one-dimensional account of pathways, a three-dimensional account of circuits. From this has emerged insight into the functional architecture.

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Osseointegration interface of calcified bone and endosseous implants

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100130110 ◽

1992 ◽

Vol 50 (2) ◽

pp. 1096-1097

Author(s):

K.E. Krizan ◽

J.E. Laffoon ◽

M.J. Buckley

Keyword(s):

Structure And Function ◽

Titanium Implants ◽

En Bloc ◽

Endosseous Implants ◽

Ultrastructural Studies ◽

The Past ◽

Cacodylate Buffer ◽

One Year ◽

And Function

With increase use of tissue-integrated prostheses in recent years it is a goal to understand what is happening at the interface between haversion bone and bulk metal. This study uses electron microscopy (EM) techniques to establish parameters for osseointegration (structure and function between bone and nonload-carrying implants) in an animal model. In the past the interface has been evaluated extensively with light microscopy methods. Today researchers are using the EM for ultrastructural studies of the bone tissue and implant responses to an in vivo environment. Under general anesthesia nine adult mongrel dogs received three Brånemark (Nobelpharma) 3.75 × 7 mm titanium implants surgical placed in their left zygomatic arch. After a one year healing period the animals were injected with a routine bone marker (oxytetracycline), euthanized and perfused via aortic cannulation with 3% glutaraldehyde in 0.1M cacodylate buffer pH 7.2. Implants were retrieved en bloc, harvest radiographs made (Fig. 1), and routinely embedded in plastic. Tissue and implants were cut into 300 micron thick wafers, longitudinally to the implant with an Isomet saw and diamond wafering blade [Beuhler] until the center of the implant was reached.

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Use of human autoantibodies and immunoelectron microscopy to study structure and function of the nucleolus and nuclear bodies

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100122939 ◽

1992 ◽

Vol 50 (1) ◽

pp. 506-507

Author(s):

Robert L. Ochs

Keyword(s):

Electron Microscopy ◽

Structure And Function ◽

Nuclear Bodies ◽

Nuclear Interior ◽

Coiled Bodies ◽

Interchromatin Granules ◽

And Function ◽

Conventional Electron Microscopy ◽

Perichromatin Granules ◽

Perichromatin Fibrils

By conventional electron microscopy, the formed elements of the nuclear interior include the nucleolus, chromatin, interchromatin granules, perichromatin granules, perichromatin fibrils, and various types of nuclear bodies (Figs. 1a-c). Of these structures, all have been reasonably well characterized structurally and functionally except for nuclear bodies. The most common types of nuclear bodies are simple nuclear bodies and coiled bodies (Figs. 1a,c). Since nuclear bodies are small in size (0.2-1.0 μm in diameter) and infrequent in number, they are often overlooked or simply not observed in any random thin section. The rat liver hepatocyte in Fig. 1b is a case in point. Historically, nuclear bodies are more prominent in hyperactive cells, they often occur in proximity to nucleoli (Fig. 1c), and sometimes they are observed to “bud off” from the nucleolar surface.

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Depletion and Reconstitution of Active E. Coli Ribosomes

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100116826 ◽

1975 ◽

Vol 33 ◽

pp. 640-641

Author(s):

M. Boublik ◽

W. Hellmann ◽

F. Jenkins

Keyword(s):

Protein Biosynthesis ◽

Large Subunit ◽

High Resolution Electron Microscopy ◽

Small Subunit ◽

Structure And Function ◽

Biologically Active ◽

Biological Macromolecules ◽

E Coli ◽

Resolution Electron ◽

And Function

Correlations between structure and function of biological macromolecules have been studied intensively for many years, mostly by indirect methods. High resolution electron microscopy is a unique tool which can provide such information directly by comparing the conformation of biopolymers in their biologically active and inactive state. We have correlated the structure and function of ribosomes, ribonucleoprotein particles which are the site of protein biosynthesis. 70S E. coli ribosomes, used in this experiment, are composed of two subunits - large (50S) and small (30S). The large subunit consists of 34 proteins and two different ribonucleic acid molecules. The small subunit contains 21 proteins and one RNA molecule. All proteins (with the exception of L7 and L12) are present in one copy per ribosome.This study deals with the changes in the fine structure of E. coli ribosomes depleted of proteins L7 and L12. These proteins are unique in many aspects.

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The Laryngeal Epithelium in Reflux

Perspectives on Voice and Voice Disorders ◽

10.1044/vvd21.3.112 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 21 (3) ◽

pp. 112-117 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Elizabeth Erickson-Levendoski ◽

Mahalakshmi Sivasankar

Keyword(s):

Laryngopharyngeal Reflux ◽

Critical Role ◽

Structure And Function ◽

Laryngeal Disease ◽

Health And Disease ◽

And Function ◽

The Impact

The epithelium plays a critical role in the maintenance of laryngeal health. This is evident in that laryngeal disease may result when the integrity of the epithelium is compromised by insults such as laryngopharyngeal reflux. In this article, we will review the structure and function of the laryngeal epithelium and summarize the impact of laryngopharyngeal reflux on the epithelium. Research investigating the ramifications of reflux on the epithelium has improved our understanding of laryngeal disease associated with laryngopharyngeal reflux. It further highlights the need for continued research on the laryngeal epithelium in health and disease.

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Relationship of structure and function in spinal cord pathophysiology

Electroencephalography and Clinical Neurophysiology ◽

10.1016/s0013-4694(97)87988-x ◽

1997 ◽

Vol 103 (1) ◽

pp. 19

Author(s):

E Sedgwick

Keyword(s):

Spinal Cord ◽

Structure And Function ◽

And Function ◽

Relationship Of

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