Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0042961 (volvulus)
 4,305 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Glutathione S-transferases (GSTs) are a family of detoxification enzymes that catalyse the conjugation of glutathione to xenobiotic and endogenous electrophilic compounds, thus facilitating their elimination from cells. The recombinant Onchocerca volvulus GST2 has been expressed in Escherichia coli, purified and crystallized by the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion technique. Two different crystal forms were grown under identical conditions. They belong to space groups P2(1)2(1)2 and P2(1), respectively. The unit-cell parameters obtained are a = 112.6, b = 84.3, c = 45.1 A for the P2(1)2(1)2 crystal form and a = 51.6, b = 82.3, c = 56.7 A, beta = 95.89 degrees for the P2(1) form. Complete data sets to 2.6 and 1.5 A, respectively, have been collected at 100 K with synchrotron radiation.
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PMID:Crystallization of the major cytosolic glutathione S-transferase from Onchocerca volvulus. 1527 88

Onchocerciasis is a debilitating parasitic disease caused by the filarial worm Onchocerca volvulus. Similar to other helminth parasites, O. volvulus is capable of evading the host's immune responses by a variety of defense mechanisms, including the detoxification activities of the glutathione S-transferases (GSTs). Additionally, in response to drug treatment, helminth GSTs are highly up-regulated, making them tempting targets both for chemotherapy and for vaccine development. We analyzed the three-dimensional x-ray structure of the major cytosolic GST from O. volvulus (Ov-GST2) in complex with its natural substrate glutathione and its competitive inhibitor S-hexylglutathione at 1.5 and 1.8 angstrom resolution, respectively. From the perspective of the biochemical classification, the Ov-GST2 seems to be related to pi-class GSTs. However, in comparison to other pi-class GSTs, in particular to the host's counterpart, the Ov-GST2 reveals significant and unusual differences in the sequence and overall structure. Major differences can be found in helix alpha-2, an important region for substrate recognition. Moreover, the binding site for the electrophilic co-substrate is spatially increased and more solvent-accessible. These structural alterations are responsible for different substrate specificities and will form the basis of parasite-specific structure-based drug design investigations.
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PMID:Structure of the major cytosolic glutathione S-transferase from the parasitic nematode Onchocerca volvulus. 1564 Jan 52