Recombinantly produced proteins are indispensable tools for medical applications. Since the majority of them are glycoproteins, their -glycosylation profiles are major determinants for their activity, structural properties and safety. For therapeutical applications, a glycosylation pattern adapted to product and treatment requirements is advantageous.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHost cell proteins are inevitable contaminants of biopharmaceuticals. Here, we performed detailed analyses of the host cell proteome of moss ( Physcomitrella patens) bioreactor supernatants using mass spectrometry and subsequent bioinformatics analysis. Distinguishing between the apparent secretome and intracellular contaminants, a complex extracellular proteolytic network including subtilisin-like proteases, metallo-proteases, and aspartic proteases was identified.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGenetic defects in complement regulatory proteins can lead to severe renal diseases, including atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome and C3 glomerulopathies, and age-related macular degeneration. The majority of the mutations found in patients with these diseases affect the glycoprotein complement factor H, the main regulator of the alternative pathway of complement activation. Therapeutic options are limited, and novel treatments, specifically those targeting alternative pathway activation, are highly desirable.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnzyme replacement therapy (ERT) is an effective treatment for several lysosomal storage disorders (LSDs). Intravenously infused enzymes are taken up by tissues through either the mannose 6-phosphate receptor (M6PR) or the mannose receptor (MR). It is generally believed that M6PR-mediated endocytosis is a key mechanism for ERT in treating LSDs that affect the non-macrophage cells of visceral organs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFor understanding the mechanism of transcriptional regulation, it is essential to know which transcription factor is bound in vivo to the promoter to be analysed. If transcription from a given promoter is regulated by developmental or environmental stimuli, the question of inducible versus constitutive binding has to be answered, particularly if the transcriptional regulator is expressed both under uninduced and induced conditions. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assays constitute the most adequate approach to address these issues as proteins are cross-linked to the DNA before disruption of the tissue.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe plant signaling molecule salicylic acid (SA) and/or xenobiotic chemicals like the auxin mimic 2,4-D induce transcriptional activation of defense- and stress-related genes that contain activation sequence-1 (as-1)-like cis-elements in their promoters. as-1-like sequences are recognized by basic/leucine zipper transcription factors of the TGA family. Expression of genes related to the SA-dependent defense program systemic acquired resistance requires the TGA-interacting protein NPR1.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFVolatile secondary metabolites emitted by plants contribute to plant-plant, plant-fungus, and plant-insect interactions. The C(16)-homoterpene TMTT (for 4,8,12-trimethyltrideca-1,3,7,11-tetraene) is emitted after herbivore attack by a wide variety of plant species, including Arabidopsis thaliana, and is assumed to play a role in attracting predators or parasitoids of herbivores. TMTT has been suggested to be formed as a degradation product of the diterpene alcohol (E,E)-geranyllinalool.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSalicylic acid (SA) is a plant signaling molecule that mediates the induction of defense responses upon attack by a variety of pathogens. Moreover, it antagonizes gene induction by the stress signaling molecule jasmonic acid (JA). Several SA-responsive genes are regulated by basic/leucine zipper-type transcription factors of the TGA family.
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