Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0027819 (neuroblastoma)
 27,800 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Modification of His-47 and removal of the N-terminal octapeptide caused a different effect on the structure of Naja naja atra (Taiwan cobra) phospholipase A2 (PLA2). Unlike native enzyme, Ca2+ induced an alteration in the structural flexibility of His-modified PLA2. Moreover, the spatial positions of Trp residues in His-modified PLA2 were not properly rearranged toward lipid-water interface in the presence of Ca2+. CD spectra and fluorescence measurement showed that the dynamic properties of Trp residues and the gross conformation of N-terminally truncated PLA2 were totally different from native enzyme. Although a precipitous drop in the enzymatic activity was observed with modified PLA2, His-modified PLA2 and N-terminally truncated PLA2 retained cytotoxicity on inducing necrotic death of human neuroblastoma SK-N-SH cells. Our data suggest that structural perturbations elicited by the chemical modification cause a dissociation of enzymatic activity and cytotoxicity of PLA2.
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PMID:The structural and functional contribution of N-terminal region and His-47 on Taiwan cobra phospholipase A2. 1800 83

Many cancer cells display down-regulated major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I antigen (MHC-I), which seems to enable them to evade immune surveillance, whereas the underlying mechanisms remain incompletely understood. Here, we demonstrate that ligand (CXCL12) stimulation of CXCR4, a major chemokine receptor expressed in many malignant cancer cells, induced MHC-I heavy chain down-regulation from the cell surface of the human epithelioid carcinoma HeLa cells, the human U251 and U87 glioblastoma cells, the human MDA-MD 231 breast cancer cells, and the human SK-N-BE (2) neuroblastoma cells. Activation of CXCR4 also induced MHC-I down-regulation in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells. The internalized MHC-I heavy chain molecules were partially co-localized with Rab7, a later endosomal marker. Activation of CXCR4 induced ubiquitination of MHC-I heavy chain, and mutation of the C-terminal two lysine residues (Lys-332, Lys-337) on one of the MHC-I alleles, HLA.B7, blocked CXCR4-evoked ubiquitination and down-regulation of HLA.B7. Moreover, purified GST-conjugated CXCR4 C terminus directly associated with the purified His-tagged beta2-microglobulin (beta2M), and MHC-I heavy chain was co-immunoprecipitated with CXCR4 in a beta2M-dependent manner. This interaction appears to be critical for CXCR4-evoked down-regulation of MHC-I heavy chain as evidenced by the data that MHC-I heavy chain down-regulation was inhibited by either truncation of the CXCR4 C terminus or knockdown of beta2M. All together, these findings shed new light on the role of CXCR4 in tumor evasion of immune surveillance via inducing MHC-I down-regulation from the cell surface.
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PMID:Activation of CXCR4 triggers ubiquitination and down-regulation of major histocompatibility complex class I (MHC-I) on epithelioid carcinoma HeLa cells. 1808 6

Amyloid fibrils are a hallmark of Alzheimer's and prion diseases. In both pathologies fibrils are found associated to glycosaminoglycans, modulators of the aggregation process. Amyloid peptides and proteins with very poor sequence homologies originate very similar aggregates. This implies the possible existence of a common formation mechanism. A homologous structural motif has recently been described for the Alzheimer's peptide Abeta(1-28) and the prion protein fragment PrP(185-208). We have studied the influence histidine residues and heparin on the aggregation process of both peptides and determined the possible amyloid characteristics of PrP(185-208), still unknown. The results show that PrP(185-208) forms amyloid aggregates in the presence of heparin. Histidines influence the aggregation kinetics, as in Abeta(1-28), although to a lesser extent. Other spectroscopic properties of the PrP(185-208) fragment are shown to be equivalent to those of other amyloid peptides and PrP(185-208) is shown to be cytotoxic using a neuroblastoma cell line.
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PMID:Amyloidogenic properties of the prion protein fragment PrP(185-208): comparison with Alzheimer's peptide Abeta(1-28), influence of heparin and cell toxicity. 1820 83

In the present study, we identified a gene termed Nbla10993 whose expression levels are higher in favorable neuroblastomas versus unfavorable ones. Structural analysis showed that Nbla10993 is a novel splicing variant of the ER-associated protein of 140 kDa (ERAP140), which lacks the central acidic as well as the COOH-terminal Cys/His-rich domain. Similarly, ERAP140 was preferentially expressed in favorable neuroblastomas relative to unfavorable ones. During the all-trans-retinoic acid (ATRA)-mediated neuronal differentiation in neuroblastoma-derived RTBM1 cells, the expression levels of ERAP140/Nbla10993 increased at the mRNA level. Consistent with these observations, the luciferase reporter analysis demonstrated that the ERAP140/Nbla10993 promoter responds to ATRA. In addition, the immunoprecipitation/immunoblotting experiments showed that ERAP140 forms a stable complex with RARalpha but not with RXRalpha in cells, suggesting that ERAP140 is involved in RAR-mediated transcriptional regulation. Furthermore, the quantitative real-time PCR analysis using 109 primary neuroblastoma samples demonstrated that the expression levels of ERAP140/Nbla10993 significantly correlate with a better clinical outcome of neuroblastomas. Taken together, our present findings indicate that ERAP140/Nbla10993 plays an important role in the regulation of ATRA-mediated neuronal differentiation, and is a novel member of prognostic indicators for neuroblastoma.
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PMID:ERAP140/Nbla10993 is a novel favorable prognostic indicator for neuroblastoma induced in response to retinoic acid. 1849 40

Modification of catalytic residue His-47 with p-bromophenacyl bromide (BPB) abolished the enzymatic activity of Naja naja atra phospholipase A2 (PLA2). Additionally, alterations in the global structure and the spatial positions of Trp residues were noted in His-modified PLA2. The cell viability of human neuroblastoma SK-N-SH cells was decreased by approximately 40% and 20% after treatment with 10 microM PLA2 and BPB-PLA2, respectively. Native and His-modified PLA2 induced a necrotic cell death accompanied with an activation of p38 MAPK, the loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (DeltaPsim) and cytochrome c release. Pretreatment with SB202190 (p38 MAPK inhibitor) and cyclosporine A (inhibitor of mitochondria permeability transition pore) rescued cell viability, DeltaPsim and cytochrome c release of PLA2-treated cells. Taken together, our data indicate that PLA2 activity does not play an indispensable role on the cytotoxicity of N. naja atra PLA2, and suggest a novel function of secretory PLA2 in inducing cell death of neuroblastoma. Moreover, the reduced cytotoxicity noted with BPB-PLA2 may be partly attributed to conformational distortion after modification of His-47.
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PMID:p38 MAPK activation and mitochondrial depolarization mediate the cytotoxicity of Taiwan cobra phospholipase A2 on human neuroblastoma SK-N-SH cells. 1858 42

Protein histidine phosphatase (PHP) has just recently been discovered in eukaryotes and ATP-citrate lyase (ACL) was shown to be one of its substrates. Since ACL is crucial for cellular energy and fat metabolism we made an attempt to study the influence of PHP on cell viability. Using an adenoviral vector PHP was overexpressed in SN56 cholinergic murine neuroblastoma cells and in primary cultures of hippocampal neurons obtained from embryonic rats (E18). Overexpression of PHP in these cells caused a decrease in ACL activity and consequently impaired viability. To be sure that the reduced cellular viability was achieved by overexpression of PHP we also downregulated ACL in SN56 cells using RNAi-technology. Downregulation of ACL was harmful to the cells similar to what was observed upon overexpression of PHP. Taken together, it is concluded that overexpression of PHP results in increased dephosphorylation with concomitant inactivation of ACL, thus finally leading to cell damage.
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PMID:Reduced viability of neuronal cells after overexpression of protein histidine phosphatase. 1865 14

Traditional venom immunotherapy uses injections of whole bee venom in buffer or adsorbed in Al (OH)(3) in an expensive, time-consuming way. New strategies to improve the safety and efficacy of this treatment with a reduction of injections would, therefore, be of general interest. It would improve patient compliance and provide socio-economic benefits. Liposomes have a long tradition in drug delivery because they increase the therapeutic index and avoid drug degradation and secondary effects. However, bee venom melittin (Mel) and phospholipase (PLA(2)) destroy the phospholipid membranes. Our central idea was to inhibit the PLA(2) and Mel activities through histidine alkylation and or tryptophan oxidation (with pbb, para-bromo-phenacyl bromide, and/or NBS- N-bromosuccinimide, respectively) to make their encapsulations possible within stabilized liposomes. We strongly believe that this formulation will be nontoxic but immunogenic. In this paper, we present the whole bee venom conformation characterization during and after chemical modification and after interaction with liposome by ultraviolet, circular dichroism, and fluorescence spectroscopies. The PLA(2) and Mel activities were measured indirectly by changes in turbidity at 400(n m), rhodamine leak-out, and hemolysis. The native whole bee venom (BV) presented 78.06% of alpha-helical content. The alkylation (A-BV) and succynilation (S-BV) of BV increased 0.44 and 0.20% of its alpha-helical content. The double-modified venom (S-A-BV) had a 0.74% increase of alpha-helical content. The BV chemical modification induced another change on protein conformations observed by Trp that became buried with respect to the native whole BV. It was demonstrated that the liposomal membranes must contain pbb (SPC:Cho:pbb, 26:7:1) as a component to protect them from aggregation and/or fusion. The membranes containing pbb maintained the same turbidity (100%) after incubation with modified venom, in contrast with pbb-free membranes that showed a 15% size decrease. This size decrease was interpreted as membrane degradation and was corroborated by a 50% rhodamine leak-out. Another fact that confirmed our interpretation was the observed 100% inhibition of the hemolytic activity after venom modification with pbb and NBS (S-A-BV). When S-A-BV interacted with liposomes, other protein conformational changes were observed and characterized by the increase of 1.93% on S-A-BV alpha-helical content and the presence of tryptophan residues in a more hydrophobic environment. In other words, the S-A-BV interacted with liposomal membranes, but this interaction was not effective to cause aggregation, leak-out, or fusion. A stable formulation composed by S-A-BV encapsulated within liposomes composed by SPC:Cho:pbb, at a ratio of 26:7:1, was devised. Large unilamellar vesicles of 202.5 nm with a negative surface charge (-24.29 mV) encapsulated 95% of S-A-BV. This formulation can, now, be assayed on VIT.
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PMID:Design of a modern liposome and bee venom formulation for the traditional VIT-venom immunotherapy. 1898 12

We recently found protein histidine phosphatase (PHP) in eukaryotes and identified ATP-citrate lyase (ACL) and the beta-subunit of G-proteins as its substrates. The aim of the present study was to get information on the significance of PHP for cellular function and viability. PHP was overexpressed by a viral vector in SH-SY5Y cells, a human neuroblastoma cell line, and in primary cultures of cortical neurons from embryonic (E19) rats. Furthermore, PHP was downregulated by siRNA in SH-SY5Y cells. We could demonstrate that overexpression of PHP decreased the phosphorylation state of ACL. Accordingly, the activity of ACL seemed to be reduced and subsequently, the viability of the cells was diminished. On the other hand, downregulation of PHP did not clearly influence phosphorylation and activity of ACL as well as viability of the cells. The results suggest that an increased activity of PHP impairs cellular function whereas downregulation of PHP does not.
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PMID:Role of protein histidine phosphatase for viability of neuronal cells. 1913 78

The duck-billed platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) is one of the few venomous Australian mammals. We previously found that its crude venom potently induces Ca(2+) influx in human neuroblastoma IMR-32 cells. Guided by this bioassay, we identified 11 novel peptides, including the heptapeptide H-His-Asp-His-Pro-Asn-Pro-Arg-OH (1). Compounds 1-4 and 5-11 coincided with the 6-9 N-terminal residues of Ornithorhynchus venom C-type natriuretic peptide (OvCNP) and the 132-150 part of OvCNP precursor peptide, respectively. Heptapeptide 1, which is one of the primary components of the venom fluid (approximately 200 ng/microL), induced a significant increase in [Ca(2+)](i) in IMR-32 cells at 75 microM. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first example of the isolation of the N-terminal linear fragments of CNPs in any mammal.
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PMID:Duck-billed platypus venom peptides induce Ca2+ influx in neuroblastoma cells. 1992 58

Metallothionein isoforms I and II (MTI and MTII) have been identified in the rat brain, monkey brain, bovine retina, pineal gland and hippocampus, and in the neuroblastoma IMR 32. Since intraperitoneally administered zinc passes across the blood-brain barrier slowly, the rat brain metallothionein can be induced in a time- and dose-dependent fashion only following intracerebroventricularly (i.c.v.) administered zinc sulfate at a rate of 0.20 ?mol/?l/h for 24 h using an Alzet minipump. The zinc-induced proteins, incorporate large quantities of [(35)S]cysteine, bind (65)Zn and produce two isoforms which contain 17 and 18 cysteine residues, respectively, but lack aromatic amino acids or histidine. In this communication, we report that i.c.v.-administered zinc in a bolus of 0.1 and 0.5 ?mol increased the synthesis of poly A(+) RNA from 6.6 to 8.0 and 9.6 ?g/g brain tissue, respectively. Furthermore, we probed the poly A(+) RNA with (32)P-labeled 180 base pair BamH1/PvuII restriction fragment containing the cDNA for human MTII from the phMT-II(3) plasmid. Slot blot analysis of poly A(+) RNA revealed a dose-dependent increase in brain MTII hybridizable mRNA. Northern blot analysis of poly A(+) RNA extracted from the rat liver and brain using (32)P-labeled cDNA exhibited a major band of hybridization at 700 bases in both tissues. These data provide evidence that the zinc-induced MT synthesis in the brain is associated with an accumulation of mRNA which is analogous to the zinc-induced synthesis of hepatic MT mRNA. However, other evidence indicates that the factors regulating the synthesis of the brain and the hepatic metallothioneins are not identical.
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PMID:Regulation of zinc metallothionein II mRNA level in rat brain. 2050 44


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