Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: EC:4.2.1.22 (cystathionine beta-synthase)
 965 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Addition of serum, obtained from patients suffering from an acute psychosis characterized by dysperceptions, to the culture media of fibroblasts altered the amino acid metabolism in these cells. After subculturing of fibroblasts in the presence of serum obtained from these patients, the concentrations of both serine and methionine were decreased in the medium as well as in the fibroblasts. Moreover, the concentration of taurine in the fibroblasts was increased. The specific activities of serine hydroxymethyltransferase and cystathionine beta-synthase were also measured in the fibroblasts. It was found that both enzyme activities were significantly higher after subculturing with patients' serum as compared with serum obtained from healthy controls. It is concluded that a factor, present in the serum of these acute psychotic patients, is responsible for the observed changes in serine, taurine, and methionine concentrations in the fibroblasts as well as for the increased enzyme activities mentioned.
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PMID:Changes in serine metabolism by a serum factor present in a group of episodic psychotic patients. 175 1

A disturbance of serine-glycine metabolism in a group of patients who became psychotic after oral intake of serine may be due to any serine-related enzyme abnormality. In order to elucidate this problem, we studied several enzymes in fibroblasts obtained from these patients. First, the enzyme serine hydroxymethyltransferase was investigated. The apparent Km values for serine, L-tetrahydrofolate (H4folate), and pyridoxal 5'-phosphate, as well as the maximal velocities of the forward and backward reactions measured in fibroblasts obtained from patients, were not different from those in the cells from controls. We also measured the activities of another three enzymes of the folic acid cycle, viz., 5,10-methylene-H4folate dehydrogenase, 10-formyl-H4folate synthetase, and 5,10-methenyl-H4folate cyclohydrolase, as well as the enzyme cystathionine beta-synthase. Again, no differences were found among these enzymes in fibroblasts from patients and controls. It can be concluded that the psychotic symptoms occurring after the administration of serine are not the result of any malfunctioning of the enzymes investigated.
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PMID:Serine and folate metabolism in fibroblasts from episodic psychotic patients with psychedelic symptoms. 309 Oct 98

We experimented with a mathematical model for 1-carbon metabolism and glutathione (GSH) synthesis to investigate the effects of vitamin B-6 deficiency on the reaction velocities and metabolite concentrations in this metabolic network. The mathematical model enabled us to independently alter the activities of each of the 5 vitamin B-6-dependent enzymes and thus determine which inhibitions were responsible for the experimentally observed consequences of a vitamin B-6 deficiency. The effect of vitamin B-6 deficiency on serine and glycine concentrations in tissues and plasma was almost entirely due to its effects on the activity of glycine decarboxylase. The effect of vitamin B-6 restriction on GSH concentrations appeared to be indirect, arising from the fact that vitamin B-6 restriction increases oxidative stress, which, in turn, affects several enzymes in 1-carbon metabolism as well as the GSH transporter. Vitamin B-6 restriction causes an abnormally high and prolonged homocysteine response to a methionine load test. This effect appeared to be mediated solely by its effects on cystathionine beta-synthase. Reduction of the enzymatic activity of serine hydroxymethyltransferase (SHMT) had negligible effects on most metabolite concentrations and reaction velocities. Reduction or total elimination of cytoplasmic SHMT had a surprisingly moderate effect on metabolite concentrations and reaction velocities. This corresponds to the experimental findings that a reduction in the enzymatic activity of SHMT has little effect on 1-carbon metabolism. Our simulations showed that the primary function of SHMT was to increase the rate by which the glycine-serine balance was reequilibrated after a perturbation.
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PMID:A mathematical model gives insights into the effects of vitamin B-6 deficiency on 1-carbon and glutathione metabolism. 1924 83