Substitution of histidine 30 by asparagine in manganese superoxide dismutase alters biophysical properties and supports proliferation in a K562 leukemia cell line.

We have generated a mutant of C. elegans manganese superoxide dismutase at histidine 30 by site-directed mutagenesis. The structure was solved at a resolution of 1.

Machine learning techniques for protein function prediction.

Proteins play important roles in living organisms, and their function is directly linked with their structure. Due to the growing gap between the number of proteins being discovered and their functional characterization (in particular as a result of experimental limitations), reliable prediction of protein function through computational means has become crucial. This paper reviews the machine learning techniques used in the literature, following their evolution from simple algorithms such as logistic regression to more advanced methods like support vector machines and modern deep neural networks.

A Single Mutation is Sufficient to Modify the Metal Selectivity and Specificity of a Eukaryotic Manganese Superoxide Dismutase to Encompass Iron.

We have generated a site-directed mutant of the manganese superoxide dismutase SOD-3 of C.elegans (MnSOD-3) which modifies the metal specificity of the enzyme. While wild-type MnSOD-3 functions with manganese in the active site (3600 U mg of protein) it has little or no activity when iron is incorporated.

Potential Therapeutic Applications of MnSODs and SOD-Mimetics.

Natural as well as synthetic antioxidants are constantly being investigated for their efficiency in combatting the effects of oxidative stress, which appears to be the responsible cause of several diseases, including cancer, central nervous system disorders, ischaemia-reperfusion disorders, cardiovascular conditions, and diabetes. Superoxide dismutases (SODs) constitute the ubiquitous antioxidant defences against oxidative stress that underlies numerous pathological conditions. Therefore, the development of therapeutics aimed at either delivering MnSOD more effectively to target tissues in the body in the form of MnSOD gene therapy, or the synthesis of molecules that mimic the activity of superoxide dismutase is constantly being explored.

The structure of the Caenorhabditis elegans manganese superoxide dismutase MnSOD-3-azide complex.

C. elegans MnSOD-3 has been implicated in the longevity pathway and its mechanism of catalysis is relevant to the aging process and carcinogenesis. The structures of MnSOD-3 provide unique crystallographic evidence of a dynamic region of the tetrameric interface (residues 41-54).

Determination of metal content in superoxide dismutase enzymes by capillary electrophoresis†.

Superoxide dismutases are antioxidant scavenger enzymes that contain a metal cofactor (copper, zinc, iron, and manganese) in their active site. Metal content measurement is one of the essential steps to characterize enzyme biological activity. We have developed a capillary electrophoretic protocol for the determination of the metal content in superoxide dismutase enzymes.