Syndecan receptors: pericellular regulators in development and inflammatory disease.

The syndecans are the major family of transmembrane proteoglycans, usually bearing multiple heparan sulfate chains. They are present on virtually all nucleated cells of vertebrates and are also present in invertebrates, indicative of a long evolutionary history. Genetic models in both vertebrates and invertebrates have shown that syndecans link to the actin cytoskeleton and can fine-tune cell adhesion, migration, junction formation, polarity and differentiation.

Affective Disorders with Psychosis in Youth: An Update.

Mood disorders, including major depression and mania, can present with psychotic features. In youth psychotic-like phenomena such as "seeing faces in the dark" or "hearing noises" are fairly common. Rates of lifetime psychotic symptoms are much higher than rates of psychosis during a "current" episode of mania or depression in youth.

Proteomic analysis of monolayer-integrated proteins on lipid droplets identifies amphipathic interfacial α-helical membrane anchors.

Despite not spanning phospholipid bilayers, monotopic integral proteins (MIPs) play critical roles in organizing biochemical reactions on membrane surfaces. Defining the structural basis by which these proteins are anchored to membranes has been hampered by the paucity of unambiguously identified MIPs and a lack of computational tools that accurately distinguish monolayer-integrating motifs from bilayer-spanning transmembrane domains (TMDs). We used quantitative proteomics and statistical modeling to identify 87 high-confidence candidate MIPs in lipid droplets, including 21 proteins with predicted TMDs that cannot be accommodated in these monolayer-enveloped organelles.