Purpose: During recent decades, several reports have suggested a decrease in semen quality and DNA damage due in part to environmental toxicants and industrial chemicals. Among these xenobiotics, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are of particular concern because of their remarkable mutagenic and carcinogenic properties and because several experimental and epidemiological studies have reported adverse effects of PAHs on male reproductive health and DNA structure. The aim of the study was to evaluate the association between 1-hydroxypyrene (1-OHP) urinary levels and sperm quality, DNA damage and the frequency of CYP1A1, GSTT1, and GSTM1 polymorphisms.
Methods: Semen, urine and blood samples were taken for sperm-quality assessment, 1-OHP urinary level measurement, DNA damage evaluation and polymorphism frequency analysis of three genes implicated in PAH metabolism in a total of 70 Mexican subjects exposed and nonexposed to PAHs.
Results: A significant decrease in sperm quality and increased DNA damage were registered in occupationally exposed volunteers. Polymorphisms modified the 1-OHP urinary levels; however, no associations were found between them. Inverse associations were registered between the sperm concentration/mL and 1-OHP levels and between tail lengths and the GSMT1 null genotype.
Conclusions: Our data showed an inverse association between 1-OHP urinary levels and both sperm quality and the DNA integrity. Additionally, the heterozygote variants of CYP1A1-m1 and CYP1A1-m2 significantly increased the urinary excretion of 1-OHP, and the GSTM1 null variant was inversely associated with the comet parameters evaluated.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00420-018-1320-9 | DOI Listing |
Understanding kinase action requires precise quantitative measurements of their activity . In addition, the ability to capture spatial information of kinase activity is crucial to deconvolute complex signaling networks, interrogate multifaceted kinase actions, and assess drug effects or genetic perturbations. Here we developed a proteomic kinase activity sensor platform (ProKAS) for the analysis of kinase signaling using mass spectrometry.
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View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn duplex DNA, A-T and G-C form Watson-Crick base pairs, and Hoogsteen pairing only dominates upon protein binding or DNA damage. Using NMR, we show that an A-T Hoogsteen base pair previously observed in crystal structures of transposon DNA hairpins bound to TnpA protein forms in solution even in the absence of TnpA. This Hoogsteen base pair, located adjacent to a dinucleotide apical loop, exists in dynamic equilibrium with a minor Watson-Crick conformation (population ∼11% and lifetime ∼55 µs).
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