Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UNIPROT:P17174 (aspartate aminotransferase)
 14,872 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

A group of 30 female albino rats were exposed to mosquito-coil smoke, 8 hours a day, 6 days per week, for 6 months. Another group which was exposed to air served as control. At the end of the experiment, the enzyme activities, total protein and lecithin contents as well as cellular responses in the lung lavage between the control and smoke-exposed rats were compared. Morphological observations using scanning and transmission electron microscopy demonstrated that the alveolar macrophages of smoke-exposed rats lost their typical ruffled membranes. They possessed small cytoplasmic processes on their smooth cell surfaces, small particles in phagolysosomes and mitochondria with a very electron-dense matrix. The levels of total protein and lecithin and the activities of lactate dehydrogenase, acid phosphatase and beta-glucuronidase in the lung-lavage fluid of smoke-exposed rats were significantly (P less than 0.05) higher than those of the controls. Increases (P less than 0.05) of serum enzymes, including lactate dehydrogenase, aspartate aminotransferase, isocitrate dehydrogenase and aldolase, indicated damage of liver tissues, but the levels of serum urea and urea nitrogen remained at the control levels implying normal functions of the kidneys of the mosquito-coil smoke-exposed rats. The level of serum tri-iodothyronine also increased significantly (P less than 0.05), but thyroxine remained at the control level.
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PMID:Biochemical and cellular changes in bronchoalveolar lavaged samples from rats after inhalation of mosquito-coil smoke. 256 17

Pathways of glutamine metabolism in resting and proliferating rat thymocytes and established human T- and B-lymphoblastoid cell lines were evaluated by in vitro incubations of freshly prepared or cultured cells for one to two hours with [U14C]glutamine. Complete recovery of glutamine carbons utilized in products allowed quantification of the pathways of glutamine metabolism under the experimental conditions. Partial oxidation of glutamine via 2-oxoglutarate in a truncated citric acid cycle to CO2 and oxaloacetate, which then was converted to aspartate, accounted for 76% and 69%, respectively, of the glutamine metabolized beyond the stage of glutamate by resting and proliferating thymocytes. Similar results were obtained with the lymphoblastoid T- and B-cell lines. Complete oxidation to CO2 in the citric acid cycle via 2-oxoglutarate dehydrogenase and isocitrate dehydrogenase accounted for only 25% and 7%, respectively. In proliferating cells a substantial amount of glutamine carbons was also recovered in pyruvate, alanine, and especially lactate. The main route of glutamine and glutamate entrance into the citric acid cycle via 2-oxoglutarate in lymphocytes appears to be transamination by aspartate aminotransferase rather than oxidative deamination by glutamate dehydrogenase. In the presence of glucose as a second substrate, glutamine utilization and aspartate formation markedly decreased, but complete oxidation of glutamine carbons to CO2 increased to 37% and 23%, respectively, in resting and proliferating cells. The dipeptide, glycyl-L-glutamine, which is more stable than free glutamine, can substitute for glutamine in thymocyte cultures at higher concentrations.
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PMID:Metabolism of glutamine in lymphocytes. 256 63

The early stages of insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus are characterized by a selective inability to secrete insulin in response to glucose, coupled to a better response to nonnutrient secretagogues. The deficient glucose response may be a result of the autoimmune process directed toward the beta-cells. Interleukin-1 (IL-1) has been suggested to be one possible mediator of immunological damage of the beta-cells. In the present study we characterized the sensitivity of beta-cells to different secretagogues after human recombinant IL-1 beta (rIL-1 beta) exposure. Furthermore, experiments were performed to clarify the biochemical mechanisms behind the defective insulin response observed in these islets. Rat pancreatic islets were isolated and kept in tissue culture (medium RPMI-1640 plus 10% calf serum) for 5 days. The islets were subsequently exposed to 60 pM human recombinant IL-1 beta during 48 h in the same culture conditions as above and examined immediately after IL-1 exposure. The rIL-1 beta-treated islets showed a marked reduction of glucose-stimulated insulin release. Stimulation with arginine plus different glucose concentrations, and leucine plus glutamine partially counteracted the rIL-1 beta-induced reduction of insulin release. The activities of the glycolytic enzymes hexokinase, glucokinase, and glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase, were similar in control and IL-1-exposed islets. Treatment with IL-1 also did not impair the activities of NADH+- and NADPH+-dependent glutamate dehydrogenase, glutamate-aspartate transaminase, glutamate-alanine transaminase, citrate synthase, and NAD+-linked isocitrate dehydrogenase. The oxidation of D-[6-14C]glucose and L-[U-14C]leucine were decreased by 50% in IL-1-treated islets. Furthermore, there was a significant decrease in the ratios of [2-14C]pyruvate oxidation/[1-14C]pyruvate decarboxylation and L-[U-14C]leucine oxidation/L-[1-14C]leucine decarboxylation, indicating that IL-1 decreases the proportion of generated acetyl-coenzyme-A residues undergoing oxidation. However, in the presence of IL-1 there was a significant increase in L-[U-14C]glutamate oxidation. These combined observations suggest that exposure to IL-1 induces a preferential decrease in glucose-mediated insulin release and mitochondrial glucose metabolism. This mitochondrial dysfunction seems to reflect an impairment in proximal steps of the Krebs cycle. It is conceivable that the IL-1-induced suppression and shift in islet metabolism can be an explanation for the beta-cell insensitivity to glucose observed in the early phases of human and experimental insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus.
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PMID:Differential sensitivity to beta-cell secretagogues in cultured rat pancreatic islets exposed to human interleukin-1 beta. 266 6

This study was prompted by the paradox of strong presence of mitochondria in an anaerobic protozoan, recently reclassified from the yeasts. Stemming from publication in 1911 to 1912, Blastocystis hominis has been generally accepted as a harmless intestinal yeast of humans, with short standardized textbook (parasitology) descriptions, even to the present day. Reports since 1967 have changed the classification of B. hominis from yeast to protozoan (Sarcodina), and this has been followed by interest in B. hominis-caused disease, resulting in documentation of disease in humans and other primates. In this study of B. hominis, the basic ultrastructure of the mitochondria was shown by thin-section electron microscopy to be identical to that of an archetypical mitochondrion. There were hundreds of them in large B. hominis cells (100 to 200 microns in diameter). Mitochondria were confined to a peripheral ring of cytoplasm bounded by the outer cell membrane (there is no cell wall) and the membrane of the large, spherical, organelle-free central body that constitutes 75% of the cell's volume. Mitochondria tended to surround the cell's usual two to four nuclei. Rhodamine 123 stained the mitochondria selectively, visualized by fluorescence microscopy. The cell was devoid of cytochromes. Addition of 0.1% cytochrome c to the growth medium increased utilization of glucose by 34% and that of lactate by 17%. Furthermore, it markedly increased the number of mitochondrion-filled cells. At higher concentrations, cytochrome c inhibited the growth of the cells. Despite the presence of large numbers of mitochondria, activities of the mitochondrial enzymes pyruvate dehydrogenase complex, alpha-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase complex, isocitrate dehydrogenase, glutamate dehydrogenase, and cytochrome c oxidase were absent. Thus, the function of the mitochondria in B. hominis remains unknown. Considerable activities of aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase were found. Aldolase activity was prominent. Pyruvate decarboxylase was present. Diaphorase and lactate dehydrogenase were detectable but in suspect quantities. Other missing enzymes were gamma glutamyl transpeptidase, alkaline phosphatase (a lysosomal marker), and creatine kinase isoenzymes.
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PMID:Biochemical and ultrastructural study of Blastocystis hominis. 283 9

Pathways of glutamine metabolism in resting and proliferating rat thymocytes were evaluated by in vitro incubations of freshly prepared or 60-h cultured cells for 1-2 h with [U14C]glutamine. Complete recovery of glutamine carbons utilized in products allowed quantification of the pathways of glutamine metabolism under the experimental conditions. Partial oxidation of glutamine via 2-oxoglutarate in a truncated citric acid cycle to CO2 and oxaloacetate, which then was converted to aspartate, accounted for 76 and 69%, respectively, of the glutamine metabolized beyond the stage of glutamate by resting and proliferating thymocytes. Complete oxidation to CO2 in the citric acid cycle via 2-oxoglutarate dehydrogenase and isocitrate dehydrogenase accounted for 25 and 7%, respectively. In proliferating cells a substantial amount of glutamine carbons was also recovered in pyruvate, alanine, and especially lactate. The main route of glutamine and glutamate entrance into the citric acid cycle via 2-oxoglutarate in both cells is transamination by aspartate aminotransferase rather than oxidative deamination by glutamate dehydrogenase. In the presence of glucose as second substrate, glutamine utilization and aspartate formation markedly decreased, but complete oxidation of glutamine carbons to CO2 increased to 37 and 23%, respectively, in resting and proliferating cells. The dipeptide, glycyl-L-glutamine, which is more stable than free glutamine, can substitute for glutamine in thymocyte cultures at higher concentrations.
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PMID:Pathways of glutamine and glutamate metabolism in resting and proliferating rat thymocytes: comparison between free and peptide-bound glutamine. 288 73

It has been reported that the mitochondrial cytochromes and citrate cycle enzymes occur in constant proportions to each other and increase or decrease roughly in parallel in response to various stimuli. The purpose of this study was to determine whether this proportionality is an obligatory consequence of the way in which mitochondria are assembled. Severe iron deficiency was used to bring about decreases of the iron-containing constituents of the mitochondrial respiratory chain in skeletal muscle. Cytochrome c concentration and cytochrome oxidase activity were decreased approximately 50%, while succinate dehydrogenase and NADH dehydrogenase activities were decreased by 78% in iron-deficient muscle. On electron microscopic examination, mitochondria in iron-deficient muscles had relatively sparse numbers of cristae. The iron deficiency had little or no effect on the levels of a range of mitochondrial matrix enzymes, including citrate synthase, isocitrate dehydrogenase, fumarase, aspartate aminotransferase, 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase, 3-ketoacid-CoA transferase, and acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase. These results show that the usual constant proportions between the constituents of the mitochondrial respiratory chain and matrix enzymes are not obligatory; they provide evidence that mitochondrial matrix enzymes and respiratory chain constituents can be incorporated into mitochondria independently and that the ratios between them can vary within wide limits.
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PMID:Perturbation of mitochondrial composition in muscle by iron deficiency. Implications regarding regulation of mitochondrial assembly. 302 53

Seven-day exposure to clinostatic and antiorthostatic hypokinesia led to a significant decrease of Krebs cycle enxymes (malate dehydrogenase--MDH and isocitrate dehydrogenase) and creatine phosphokinase with no significant changes in lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase and MDH and LDH isoenzymes. This hypofermentemia returned to normal during 7-day readaptation. It was not associated with hemodynamic changes or emotional stress. The hypofermentemia was adaptive and induced by diminished motor activity.
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PMID:[Effect of clinostatic and anti-orthostatic hypokinesia on serum enzyme activity]. 322 98

Molecular mass, Stoke's radius, frictional coefficient and isomer-type of non-denatured proteins can be obtained by time-dependent gradient gel electrophoresis by evaluating the resulting data using a two-step mathematical procedure. Provided a histochemical staining procedure is available to locate the position of an enzyme in the gel, crude cell extracts can be used for estimating their molecular size properties. The computation of molecular properties of non-denatured proteins is demonstrated for isozymes of aspartate aminotransferase (EC 2.6.1.1), peroxidase (EC 1.11.1.42) and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (EC 1.1.1.49) from current-year needles of spruce. The resulting data as well as those which were calculated for esterase (EC 3.1.1.1), glutamate dehydrogenase (EC 1.4.1.4), isocitrate dehydrogenase (EC 1.4.1.42), and shikimate dehydrogenase (EC 1.1.1.25) are in accordance with those reported in the literature. The method described may be applied to various scientific areas such as genetics or environmental pollution. It could be shown here that current-year needles of injured spruce (damage class 3) contained two more peroxidase isozymes and one more glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase isozyme than those from non-injured trees. These differences may mark two genotypes of spruce of different susceptibilities towards present-day air and soil pollutants.
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PMID:Determination of molecular mass, Stokes' radius, frictional coefficient and isomer-type of non-denatured proteins by time-dependent pore gradient gel electrophoresis. 323 69

There were significant changes in enzyme activities and concentrations of metabolites in the blood and liver of cows with fatty livers when compared to normal cows. Blood and liver samples were taken from cows at the abattoir immediately after slaughter. The liver was checked for pathological signs and the samples were divided according to the degree of fatty changes. Three groups were studied: controls showing no gross pathological signs, mild fatty infiltration and severe infiltration. In cows with fatty liver, there were significant increases in the serum activities of isocitric dehydrogenase (ICDH), glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH), glutamic dehydrogenase (GLDH), lactic dehydrogenase (LDH), malic dehydrogenase (MDH), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and acid phosphatase (ACP). In the fatty liver, the activities of the enzymes, ICDH, G6PDH, LDH, MDH, ALP and malic enzyme (ME) were significantly higher, while sorbitol dehydrogenase (SDH) was significantly lower. While serum total lipid decreased, the opposite was seen in the liver with higher lipid content, mainly due to triglycerides and cholesterol esters. The significant increases in the NADPH generating enzymes ME, ICDH, G6PDH and MDH, which are required for fatty acid synthesis, suggest that the lipids accumulated in the liver are not only of extrahepatic origin, mobilized into the liver, but also arise from increased lipid synthesis in the liver which is induced during the laying down of fat in the liver. Measurement of the serum NADPH generating enzymes may serve as a useful biochemical test specific for fatty liver in cows.
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PMID:Biochemical changes associated with the fatty liver syndrome in cows. 339 48

The assay of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) enzymes has been suggested for assessing the extent of damage and patient prognosis in cases of brain injury. A potential difficulty associated with using CSF enzyme levels as predictors of outcome is the possibility that enzyme concentrations may vary substantially from one brain region to another. We have determined the concentrations of seven enzymes in seven brain regions in the rat and cat. Acid phosphatase (ACP), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), isocitrate dehydrogenase (ICDH), lactate dehydrogenase (LD), and malate dehydrogenase (MDH) show little regional variability in the rat and cat while creatine kinase (CK) and glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) both exhibit considerable regional variability in both animals. Lack of correlation between CSF enzyme levels and prognosis may possibly be explained by the observed regional variability. The enzymes demonstrating more homogeneous concentrations throughout the brain may be better candidates for predicting patient outcome by determination of the CSF enzyme level.
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PMID:The regional variability of enzymes in the brain: relevance to CSF enzyme determinations. 341 84


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