Serine proteases are one of the biologically most important and widely distributed enzyme families. A protease capable of degrading the substrate Suc-AAF-AMC was isolated from axenically grown trophozoites of Entamoeba histolytica. The enzyme was purified by ion-exchange chromatography and electroelution, and appeared on 2D-PAGE as a spot of 60 kDa and pI of 4.65. Data obtained from zymogram suggest the active protease is present either as homodimer (130 kDa) or homotetramer (250 kDa). The optimal temperature of the enzyme was 37 degrees C, and it exhibited activity over a broad pH range. The protease was strongly inhibited by TPCK and chelating agents. The enzymatic activity was restored upon addition of calcium. BLAST analysis with the sequence of internal peptides of the protein revealed two open reading frames within the genome of E. histolytica, homologous to members of the family S28, clan SC of serine proteases.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.exppara.2005.02.022 | DOI Listing |
J Cell Mol Med
January 2025
Microbiology Laboratory, Department of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, University of Rajshahi, Rajshahi, Bangladesh.
Due to the growing concern about diabetes worldwide, we investigated the antidiabetic potential of Lactobacillus plantarum DMR14, assessing its effects on the diabetic mice and identifying safe, bioactive compounds targeting DPP4 protein for drug development through various methods, including in vivo assays, GC-MS analysis and molecular docking simulations. The animal experiments showed that after 3 weeks of treatment, the blood sugar levels of mice given the bacteria were reduced by 35.03% compared to baseline.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBiofactors
January 2025
Department of Oral Disease Research, National Center for Geriatrics and Gerontology, Obu, Japan.
SARS-CoV-2-related proteins, ACE2 and TMPRSS2, are determinants of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Although these proteins are expressed in oral-related tissues, their expression patterns and modulatory mechanisms in the salivary glands remain unknown. We herein showed that full-length ACE2, which has both a fully functional enzyme catalytic site and high-affinity SARS-CoV-2 spike S1-binding sites, was more highly expressed in salivary glands than in oral mucosal epithelial cells and the lungs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGenome Biol Evol
January 2025
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, BS CW405 Edmonton, AB, T6G 2R3, Canada.
Fungi are well known for their ability to both produce and catabolize complex carbohydrates to acquire carbon, often in the most extreme of environments. Glucuronoxylomannan (GXM)-based gel matrices are widely produced by fungi in nature and though they are of key interest in medicine and pharmaceuticals, their biodegradation is poorly understood. Though some organisms, including other fungi, are adapted to life in and on GXM-like matrices in nature, they are almost entirely unstudied, and it is unknown if they are involved in matrix degradation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWest Afr J Med
September 2024
Urology Department, Dorset County Hospital, Dorchester, UK.
Introduction: Prostate cancer (PCa) is the commonest urologic cancer worldwide and the leading cause of male cancer deaths in Nigeria. In Nigeria, orchidectomy remains the primary androgen deprivation therapy. Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) is the active prostatic androgen, but its relationship with PCa severity has not been extensively studied in Africa.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSci Rep
January 2025
Department of Radiology, The Yancheng School of Clinical Medicine of Nanjing Medical University, Yancheng Third People's Hospital, Yancheng, China.
We intended to investigate the potential of several transitional zone (TZ) volume-related variables for the detection of clinically significant prostate cancer (csPCa) among lesions scored as Prostate Imaging Reporting and Data System (PI-RADS) category 3. Between September 2018 and August 2023, patients who underwent mpMRI examination and scored as PI-RADS 3 were queried from our institution. The diagnostic performances of prostate-specific antigen density (PSAD), TZ-adjusted PSAD (TZPSAD), and TZ-ratio (TZ volume/whole gland prostate volume) were analyzed.
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