Mechanisms of Ca/calmodulin-dependent kinase II activation in single dendritic spines.

CaMKIIα plays an essential role in decoding Ca signaling in spines by acting as a leaky Ca integrator with the time constant of several seconds. However, the mechanism by which CaMKIIα integrates Ca signals remains elusive. Here, we imaged CaMKIIα-CaM association in single dendritic spines using a new FRET sensor and two-photon fluorescence lifetime imaging.

CaMKII Autophosphorylation Is Necessary for Optimal Integration of Ca Signals during LTP Induction, but Not Maintenance.

CaMKII plays a critical role in decoding calcium (Ca) signals to initiate long-lasting synaptic plasticity. However, the properties of CaMKII that mediate Ca signals in spines remain elusive. Here, we measured CaMKII activity in spines using fast-framing two-photon fluorescence lifetime imaging.

Profiling the Monascus pilosus proteome during nitrogen limitation.

Monascus species have the unique ability to economically produce many secondary metabolites. However, the influence of nitrogen limitation on Monascus secondary metabolite production and metabolic performance remains unclear. Varying the carbon/nitrogen (C/N) ratios in the range from 20 to 60 in cultivation of Monascus pilosus by glucose nitrate medium, our resulting data showed that red pigment production was significantly suppressed and more sensitive to nitrogen limitation than cellular biomass growth at a C/N ratio of 60.

Proteome response of Monascus pilosus during rice starch limitation with suppression of monascorubramine production.

For centuries, red mold rice has been made by fermentation of cooked rice with Monascus species. However, the influence of different carbon sources on the metabolism of Monascus cells remains unclear. We compared the proteome response of Monascus pilosus to replacement of the rice starch fraction with lactose during cultivation, using two-dimensional gel electrophoresis, matrix-assisted laser desorption-ionization time-of-flight/time-of-flight mass spectrometry, and tandem mass spectrometry to identify the proteins expressed.

Metabolic protein patterns and monascorubrin production revealed through proteomic approach for Monascus pilosus treated with cycloheximide.

Monascus species have the unique ability to economically produce many secondary metabolites. However, most metabolic regulation processes in the production of secondary metabolites in Monascus remain unclear. We found that the translational inhibitor cycloheximide induced different expression patterns between the monascorubrin pigment production and the growth in Monascus pilosus.