Publications by authors named "William K Ray"

Recent paradigm shifting discoveries have demonstrated that bacterial signaling kinases engage in unexpected regulatory crosstalk, yet the underlying molecular mechanisms remain largely uncharacterized. The Pseudomonas aeruginosa RetS/GacS system constitutes an ideal model for studying these mechanisms. The in-depth analysis of the kinase region of RetS and RetS/GacS interactions presented here refutes a longstanding model, which posited the formation of a catalytically inactive RetS/GacS heterodimer.

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Cancer patients receiving chemotherapy often experience taste and smell abnormalities (TSA). To date, the underlying molecular mechanisms of this frequent side-effect have not been determined and effective treatments are not available. This study assessed the feasibility of lactoferrin (LF) supplementation as a treatment for TSA and investigate the related mechanisms through salivary proteome analysis.

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In Methanocaldococcus jannaschii, methylglyoxal (MG) is required for aromatic amino acid biosynthesis. Previously, the reduction of MG to lactaldehyde in Methanocaldococcus jannaschii cell extracts using either NADPH or F H was demonstrated; however, the enzyme responsible was not identified. Using NADPH as the reductant, the unknown enzyme was purified from cell extracts of Methanocaldococcus jannaschii and determined to be the F -dependent N ,N -methylenetetrahydromethanopterin reductase (Mer).

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Water makes up more than 80% of the total weight of milk. However, the influence of water chemistry on the milk proteome has not been extensively studied. The objective was to evaluate interaction of water-sourced iron (low, medium, and high levels) on milk proteome and implications on milk oxidative state and mineral content.

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The eukaryotic protein kinase (ePK) paradigm provides integral components for signal transduction cascades throughout nature However, while so-called typical ePKs permeate the and atypical ePKs dominate the kinomes of the . Intriguingly, the catalytic domains of the handful of deduced typical ePKs from the archaeon P2 exhibit significant resemblance to the protein kinases that phosphorylate translation initiation factor 2α (eIF2α) in response to cellular stresses. We cloned and expressed one of these archaeal eIF2α protein kinases, SsoPK4.

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The chicken small intestine undergoes structural and functional changes during the early posthatch period to accommodate the transition from a lipid-rich diet inside the egg to a carbohydrate- and protein-based diet. Many of the enterocyte brush-border membrane-associated proteins responsible for mediating changes in nutrient utilization are unknown. The objective of this study was to conduct a proteomic analysis of chicken small intestine during the early posthatch period.

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Brassinosteroids (BRs) regulate multiple aspects of plant growth and development and require an active BRASSINOSTEROID-INSENSITIVE 1 (BRI1) receptor serine/threonine kinase for hormone perception and signal transduction. In mammals, the transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) family of polypeptides modulate numerous aspects of development and are perceived at the cell surface by a complex of type I and type II TGF-beta receptor serine/threonine kinases. TGF-beta receptor interacting protein (TRIP-1) is a cytoplasmic substrate of the TGF-beta type II receptor kinase and plays a role in TGF-beta signaling.

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