scholarly journals Advances in determining signaling mechanisms of ceramide and role in disease

2019 ◽  
Vol 60 (5) ◽  
pp. 913-918 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey L. Stith ◽  
Fabiola N. Velazquez ◽  
Lina M. Obeid
Keyword(s):  
Effector Proteins ◽  
Membrane Properties ◽  
Biological Functions ◽  
Cellular Processes ◽  
The Past ◽  
Signaling Mechanisms ◽  
Metabolizing Enzyme ◽  
Insight Into

Ceramide is a critical bioactive lipid involved in diverse cellular processes. It has been proposed to regulate cellular processes by influencing membrane properties and by directly interacting with effector proteins. Advances over the past decade have improved our understanding of ceramide as a bioactive lipid. Generation and characterization of ceramide-metabolizing enzyme KO mice, development of specific inhibitors and ceramide-specific antibodies, use of advanced microscopy and mass spectrometry, and design of synthetic ceramide derivatives have all provided insight into the signaling mechanisms of ceramide and its implications in disease. As a result, the role of ceramide in biological functions and disease are now better understood, with promise for development of therapeutic strategies to treat ceramide-regulated diseases.

scholarly journals Cholesterol and Sphingolipid Enriched Lipid Rafts as Therapeutic Targets in Cancer

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 726
Author(s):  
Michela Codini ◽  
Mercedes Garcia-Gil ◽  
Elisabetta Albi
Keyword(s):  
Lipid Rafts ◽  
Cholesterol Content ◽  
Membrane Lipid ◽  
Therapeutic Strategies ◽  
Membrane Properties ◽  
Cellular Processes ◽  
The Past ◽  
Nuclear Membranes ◽  
Technical Advances

Lipid rafts are critical cell membrane lipid platforms enriched in sphingolipid and cholesterol content involved in diverse cellular processes. They have been proposed to influence membrane properties and to accommodate receptors within themselves by facilitating their interaction with ligands. Over the past decade, technical advances have improved our understanding of lipid rafts as bioactive structures. In this review, we will cover the more recent findings about cholesterol, sphingolipids and lipid rafts located in cellular and nuclear membranes in cancer. Collectively, the data provide insights on the role of lipid rafts as biomolecular targets in cancer with good perspectives for the development of innovative therapeutic strategies.

Characterization of proteins with Siaα2-3/6Gal-linked glycans from bovine milk and role of their glycans against influenza A virus

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 5198-5208 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanjie Yu ◽  
Yaogang Zhong ◽  
Zhiwei Zhang ◽  
Xiawei Liu ◽  
Kun Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Influenza A Virus ◽  
Influenza A ◽  
Bovine Milk ◽  
Milk Proteins ◽  
Biological Functions ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Range Of Functions ◽  
Bovine Milk Proteins

The bovine milk proteins have a wide range of functions, but the role of the attached glycans in their biological functions has not been fully understood yet.

National Museums, National Narratives, and Identity Politics

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cristina Lleras
Keyword(s):  
Identity Politics ◽  
Resistance To Change ◽  
National Museum ◽  
Traditional Role ◽  
National Narratives ◽  
The Past ◽  
National Museums ◽  
Insight Into

The purpose of this chapter is to examine the surge of identity politics and the diversification of heritage and the tensions that arise with the traditional role of national museums that are expected to support the model of a unitary national identity through their narratives and collections. Engaging with distinct patrimonies and transformations in museums checkmates stagnant notions of heritage, but in turn, these actions might also instigate resistance to change. A case study at the National Museum of Colombia will provide an insight into competing notions of heritage, which can be understood as the relics of a material past, but may also be seen as the meanings created about the past. This analysis instigates thoughts about the role that history and historians might play in the elaboration of narratives of identity.

University Startup Accelerators: Startup Launchpads or Vehicles for Entrepreneurial Learning?

2020 ◽  
pp. 251512742093175
Author(s):  
Lynn E. Metcalf ◽  
Thomas M. Katona ◽  
Jonathan L. York
Keyword(s):  
Return On Investment ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Uniform Structure ◽  
Primary Role ◽  
Entrepreneurial Ecosystem ◽  
The Past ◽  
Mode Of Operation ◽  
The University ◽  
Insight Into

Over the past decade, universities have invested heavily in startup accelerator programs; however, their role in the university entrepreneurial ecosystem is ambiguous. Are university startup accelerators intended to educate or are they created to facilitate business starts and to contribute to regional economic development? In contrast, most private-sector startup accelerators serve a consistent and differentiated role in the entrepreneurial ecosystem—they provide programming and resources to startups to increase the probability of a return on investment. Understanding the role of university startup accelerators is an important precursor to evaluating their impact and whether or not the return is worth the considerable investment. In this study, we poll university accelerator directors to gain their perspective on the role(s) that university startup accelerators play and to identify how they are structured and operated. Our research reveals a fairly uniform structure and mode of operation. While facilitating business starts is a key role for some, it confirms education as the primary role for university startup accelerators. We outline appropriate means of assessing the learning that takes place in accelerator programs, offer insight into how these findings can help accelerator directors deliver on outcomes and demonstrate impact, and propose avenues for future research.

scholarly journals Role of the INDETERMINATE DOMAIN Genes in Plants

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (9) ◽  
pp. 2286 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manu Kumar ◽  
Dung Thi Le ◽  
Seongbin Hwang ◽  
Pil Joon Seo ◽  
Hyun Uk Kim
Keyword(s):  
Plant Architecture ◽  
Genetic Characterization ◽  
Sugar Metabolism ◽  
Hormone Signaling ◽  
Biological Functions ◽  
Transcription Factor Family ◽  
Physiological Processes ◽  
Ammonium Metabolism

The INDETERMINATE DOMAIN (IDD) genes comprise a conserved transcription factor family that regulates a variety of developmental and physiological processes in plants. Many recent studies have focused on the genetic characterization of IDD family members and revealed various biological functions, including modulation of sugar metabolism and floral transition, cold stress response, seed development, plant architecture, regulation of hormone signaling, and ammonium metabolism. In this review, we summarize the functions and working mechanisms of the IDD gene family in the regulatory network of metabolism and developmental processes.

scholarly journals GlcNAcstatins are nanomolar inhibitors of human O-GlcNAcase inducing cellular hyper-O-GlcNAcylation

2009 ◽  
Vol 420 (2) ◽  
pp. 221-227 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helge C. Dorfmueller ◽  
Vladimir S. Borodkin ◽  
Marianne Schimpl ◽  
Daan M. F. van Aalten
Keyword(s):  
Active Site ◽  
Cell Biology ◽  
Rational Design ◽  
Catalytic Mechanism ◽  
Conserved Residues ◽  
Cellular Processes ◽  
Acetyl Group ◽  
Nanomolar Range ◽  
Insight Into

O-GlcNAcylation is an essential, dynamic and inducible post-translational glycosylation of cytosolic proteins in metazoa and can show interplay with protein phosphorylation. Inhibition of OGA (O-GlcNAcase), the enzyme that removes O-GlcNAc from O-GlcNAcylated proteins, is a useful strategy to probe the role of this modification in a range of cellular processes. In the present study, we report the rational design and evaluation of GlcNAcstatins, a family of potent, competitive and selective inhibitors of human OGA. Kinetic experiments with recombinant human OGA reveal that the GlcNAcstatins are the most potent human OGA inhibitors reported to date, inhibiting the enzyme in the sub-nanomolar to nanomolar range. Modification of the GlcNAcstatin N-acetyl group leads to up to 160-fold selectivity against the human lysosomal hexosaminidases which employ a similar substrate-assisted catalytic mechanism. Mutagenesis studies in a bacterial OGA, guided by the structure of a GlcNAcstatin complex, provides insight into the role of conserved residues in the human OGA active site. GlcNAcstatins are cell-permeant and, at low nanomolar concentrations, effectively modulate intracellular O-GlcNAc levels through inhibition of OGA, in a range of human cell lines. Thus these compounds are potent selective tools to study the cell biology of O-GlcNAc.

scholarly journals Advances in the role of m6A RNA modification in cancer metabolic reprogramming

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiu Han ◽  
Lin Wang ◽  
Qingzhen Han
Keyword(s):  
Cancer Cells ◽  
Epigenetic Modification ◽  
Metabolic Reprogramming ◽  
Regulatory Mechanisms ◽  
Rna Modification ◽  
Biological Functions ◽  
Rna Transcription ◽  
Cellular Processes ◽  
Metabolic Genes

Abstract N6-methyladenosine (m6A) modification is the most common internal modification of eukaryotic mRNA and is widely involved in many cellular processes, such as RNA transcription, splicing, nuclear transport, degradation, and translation. m6A has been shown to plays important roles in the initiation and progression of various cancers. The altered metabolic programming of cancer cells promotes their cell-autonomous proliferation and survival, leading to an indispensable hallmark of cancers. Accumulating evidence has demonstrated that this epigenetic modification exerts extensive effects on the cancer metabolic network by either directly regulating the expression of metabolic genes or modulating metabolism-associated signaling pathways. In this review, we summarized the regulatory mechanisms and biological functions of m6A and its role in cancer metabolic reprogramming.

scholarly journals Overview of RNA G-quadruplex structures

2017 ◽  
Vol 63 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Magdalena Małgowska
Keyword(s):  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Telomere Maintenance ◽  
Structural Studies ◽  
Biological Functions ◽  
Cellular Processes ◽  
Novel Drugs ◽  
G Quadruplex ◽  
Conformational Diversity

G-quadruplexes are non-canonical secondary structures which may be formed by guanine rich sequences, both in vitro and in living cells. The number of biological functions assigned to these structural motifs has grown rapidly since the discovery of their involvement in the telomere maintenance. Knowledge of the three-dimensional structures of G-quadruplexes plays an important role in understanding their conformational diversity, physiological functions, and in the design of novel drugs targeting G-quadruplexes. For the last decades, structural studies have been mainly focused on the DNA G-quadruplexes. Their RNA counterparts gained an increased interest along with still-emerging recognition of the central role of RNA in multiple cellular processes. In this review we focus on structural properties of RNA G-quadruplexes, based on high-resolution structures, available in RCSB PDB data base and on structural models. In addition, we point out to the current challenges in this field of research.

Electron Microscope Characterization of Pulse Annealed Semiconductors

1980 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. G. CULLIS
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Defect Structure ◽  
Device Fabrication ◽  
Fabrication Technology ◽  
The Past ◽  
Semiconductor Structures ◽  
Pulse Processing ◽  
Processing Techniques

ABSTRACTThe pulse processing techniques that have assumed prominence over the past few years offer various important advantages for device fabrication technology. However, the usefulness of each individual method depends substantially upon the specific annealing mechanism involved. This article demonstrates the role of electron microscopy in elucidating such mechanisms and in analysing annealed semiconductor structures of importance to both research workers and semiconductor technologists. The range of laser and electron beam pulse annealing methods is covered and defect structure transitions observed are related to the solid and liquid phase processes occurring. Characteristic impurity trapping and segregation phenomena are described.

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