The steroidogenic acute regulatory (StAR) protein regulates the rate-limiting step in steroidogenesis, i.e. the delivery of cholesterol from the outer (OMM) to the inner (IMM) mitochondrial membrane. StAR is a 37-kDa protein with an N-terminal mitochondrial targeting sequence that is cleaved off during mitochondrial import to yield 30-kDa intramitochondrial StAR. StAR acts exclusively on the OMM and its activity is proportional to how long it remains on the OMM. However, the precise fashion and the molecular mechanism in which StAR remains on the OMM have not been elucidated yet. In this work we will discuss the role of mitochondrial fusion and StAR phosphorylation by the extracellular signal-regulated kinases 1/2 (ERK1/2) as part of the mechanism that regulates StAR retention on the OMM and activity.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.mce.2014.12.011 | DOI Listing |
Insects
December 2024
Honeybee Research Institute, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Nanchang 330045, China.
The greater wax moth (GWM, ) is a prevalent pest of the honeybee and a significant risk to both honeybee populations and honeycomb storage. Research on the toxicity of essential oils (EOs) to GWM larvae has provided promising results, although their ovicidal effects and active ingredients require further study. Identifying effective plant compounds is essential for developing insecticides for GWM control.
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December 2024
Department of Anesthesiology and the Center for Shock, Trauma and Anesthesiology Research (S.T.A.R.), University of Maryland School of Medicine, 685 Baltimore St., Baltimore, MD 21201, USA.
The cerebellum, a key target of ethanol's toxic effects, is associated with ataxia following alcohol consumption. However, the impact of ethanol on Purkinje cell (PC) mitochondria remains unclear. To investigate how ethanol administration affects mitochondrial dynamics in cerebellar Purkinje cells, we employed a transgenic mouse model expressing mitochondria-targeted yellow fluorescent protein in Purkinje cells (PC-mito-eYFP).
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December 2024
Cell Biophysics Laboratory, State Scientific Center of the Russian Federation Institute of Biomedical Problems of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 76a, Khoroshevskoyoe Shosse, 123007 Moscow, Russia.
Research into the mechanisms by which gravity influences spermatozoa has implications for maintaining the species in deep space exploration and may provide new approaches to reproductive technologies on Earth. Changes in the speed of mouse spermatozoa after 30 min exposure to simulated weightlessness (by 3D-clinostat) and 2 g hypergravity (by centrifugation) were studied using inhibitory analysis. Simulated microgravity after 30 min led to an increase in the speed of spermatozoa and against the background of an increase in the relative calcium content in the cytoplasm.
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December 2024
Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, 38124 Braunschweig, Germany.
Recombinant antibodies and, more recently, T cell receptor (TCR)-engineered T cell therapies represent two immunological strategies that have come to the forefront of clinical interest for targeting intracellular neoantigens in benign and malignant diseases. T cell-based therapies targeting neoantigens use T cells expressing a recombinant complete TCR (TCR-T cell), a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) with the variable domains of a neoepitope-reactive TCR as a binding domain (TCR-CAR-T cell) or a TCR-like antibody as a binding domain (TCR-like CAR-T cell). Furthermore, the synthetic T cell receptor and antigen receptor (STAR) and heterodimeric TCR-like CAR (T-CAR) are designed as a double-chain TCRαβ-based receptor with variable regions of immunoglobulin heavy and light chains (VH and VL) fused to TCR-Cα and TCR-Cβ, respectively, resulting in TCR signaling.
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December 2024
Medical Oncology Group, Department of Medicine, RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, D09 YD60 Dublin, Ireland.
The CDK4/6 inhibitor Ribociclib has shown limited efficacy as a monotherapy in colorectal cancer (CRC). However, combining Ribociclib with targeted therapies could present a viable strategy for treating CRC. This study evaluated the combination of Ribociclib and the PI3K inhibitor Alpelisib across four distinct cell lines representing different mutational statuses ( wild-type, -mutated, -mutated, and -mutated).
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