Publications by authors named "F Fuccio"

Sulfolobus solfataricus 5'-deoxy-5'-melthylthioadenosine phosphorylase II (SsMTAPII), is a hyperthermophilic hexameric protein with two intrasubunit disulfide bonds (C138-C205 and C200-C262) and a CXC motif (C259-C261). To get information on the role played by these covalent links in stability and folding, the conformational stability of SsMTAPII and C262S and C259S/C261S mutants was studied by thermal and guanidinium chloride (GdmCl)-induced unfolding and analyzed by fluorescence spectroscopy, circular dichroism, and SDS-PAGE. No thermal unfolding transition of SsMTAPII can be obtained under nonreducing conditions, while in the presence of the reducing agent Tris-(2-carboxyethyl) phosphine (TCEP), a Tm of 100°C can be measured demonstrating the involvement of disulfide bridges in enzyme thermostability.

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Nucleoside hydrolases are metalloproteins that hydrolyze the N-glycosidic bond of β-ribonucleosides, forming the free purine/pyrimidine base and ribose. We report the stability of the two hyperthermophilic enzymes Sulfolobus solfataricus pyrimidine-specific nucleoside hydrolase (SsCU-NH) and Sulfolobus solfataricus purine-specific inosineadenosine- guanosine nucleoside hydrolase (SsIAG-NH) against the denaturing action of temperature and guanidine hydrochloride by means of circular dichroism and fluorescence spectroscopy. The guanidine hydrochloride-induced unfolding is reversible for both enzymes as demonstrated by the analysis of the refolding process by activity assays and fluorescence measurements.

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Purine nucleoside metabolism in the archaeon Pyrococcus furiosus is catalyzed by purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PfPNP) and 5'-deoxy-5'-methylthioadenosine phosphorylase (PfMTAP). These enzymes, characterized by 50% amino acid sequence identity, show non-common features of thermophilicity and thermostability and are stabilized by intramolecular disulfide bonds. PfPNP is highly specific for 6-oxopurine nucleosides while PfMTAP is characterized by a broad substrate specificity with 6-aminopurine nucleosides as preferred substrates.

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5'-Deoxy-5'-methylthioadenosine phosphorylase II from Sulfolobus solfataricus (SsMTAPII) and purine nucleoside phosphorylase from Pyrococcus furiosus (PfPNP) are hyperthermophilic purine nucleoside phosphorylases stabilized by intrasubunit disulfide bonds. In their C-terminus, both enzymes harbour a CXC motif analogous to the CXXC motif present at the active site of eukaryotic protein disulfide isomerase. By monitoring the refolding of SsMTAPII, PfPNP and their mutants lacking the C-terminal cysteine pair after guanidine-induced unfolding, we demonstrated that the CXC motif is required for the folding of these enzymes.

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This experiment tested the effect of clozapine on the sympathetic and thermogenic effects induced by orexin A. The firing rates of the sympathetic nerves to interscapular brown adipose tissue (IBAT), along with IBAT and colonic temperatures were monitored in urethane-anesthetized male Sprague-Dawley rats before and for 5 h after an injection of orexin A (1.5 nmol) into the lateral cerebral ventricle.

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