• Genomics & Informatics
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• 제6권4호
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• pp.166-172
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• 2008

A multitude of protein-coding sequence variations (CVs) in the human genome have been revealed as a result of major initiatives, including the Human Variome Project, the 1000 Genomes Project, and the International Cancer Genome Consortium. This naturally has led to debate over how to accurately assess the functional consequences of CVs, because predicting the functional effects of CVs and their relevance to disease phenotypes is becoming increasingly important. This article surveys and compares variation databases and in silico prediction programs that assess the effects of CVs on protein function. We also introduce a combinatorial approach that uses machine learning algorithms to improve prediction performance.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• 제12권1호
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• pp.93-103
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• 1999

Recent advances in the biotechnology of ruminal bacteria have been made in the characterization of enzymes involved in plant cell wall digestion, the exploration of mechanisms of gene transfer in ruminal bacteria, and the development of vectors. These studies have culminated in the introduction and expression of heterologous glucanase and xylanase genes and a fluoroacetate dehalogenase gene in ruminal bacteria. These recent studies show the strategy of gene and vector construction necessary for the production of genetically engineered bacteria for introduction into ruminants. Molecular research on proteolytic turnover of protein in the rumen is in its infancy, but a novel protein high in essential amino acids designed for intracellular expression in ruminal organisms provides an interesting approach for improving the amino acid profile of ruminal organisms.

• BMB Reports
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• 제43권10호
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• pp.649-655
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• 2010

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common age-dependent neurodegenerative disorder and shows progressive memory loss and cognitive decline. Intraneuronal filaments composed of aggregated hyperphosphorylated tau protein, called neurofibrillary tangles, along with extracellular accumulations of amyloid $\beta$ protein (A$\beta$), called senile plaques, are known to be the neuropathological hallmarks of AD. In light of recent studies, epigenetic modification has emerged as one of the pathogenic mechanisms of AD. Epigenetic changes encompass an array of molecular modifications to both DNA and chromatin, including transcription factors and cofactors. In this review, we summarize how DNA methylation and changes to DNA chromatin packaging by post-translational histone modification are involved in AD. In addition, we describe the role of SIRTs, histone deacetylases, and the effect of SIRT-modulating drugs on AD. Lastly, we discuss how amyloid precursor protein (APP) intracellular domain (AICD) regulates neuronal transcription. Our understanding of the epigenomes and transcriptomes of AD may warrant future identification of novel biological markers and beneficial therapeutic targets for AD.

• BMB Reports
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• 제41권3호
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• pp.177-183
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• 2008

Ubiquitin is an essential, highly-conserved small regulatory protein in eukaryotic cells. It covalently modifies a wide variety of targeted proteins in the forms of monomer and polymers, altering the conformation and binding properties of the proteins and thus regulating proteasomal delivery, protein activities and localization. Mass spectrometry has emerged as an indispensable tool for in-depth characterization of protein ubiquitination. Ubiquitinated proteins in cell lysates are usually enriched by affinity chromatography and subsequently analyzed by mass spectrometry for identification and quantification. Ubiquitin-conjugated amino acid residues can be determined by unique mass shift caused by the modification. Moreover, the complex structure of polyubiquitin chains on substrates can be dissected by bottom-up and middle-down mass spectrometric approaches, revealing potential novel functions of polyubiquitin linkages. Here I review the advances and caveats of these strategies, emphasizing caution in the validation of ubiquitinated proteins and in the interpretation of raw data.

• Interdisciplinary Bio Central
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• 제2권2호
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• pp.6.1-6.5
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• 2010

Fragment molecular orbital (FMO) method provides a novel tool for ab initio calculations of large biomolecules. This method overcomes the size limitation difficulties in conventional molecular orbital methods and has several advantages compared to classical force field approaches. While there are many features in this method, we here focus on explaining the issues related to protein-ligand binding: FMO method provides useful interaction-analysis tools such as IFIE, CAFI and FILM. FMO calculations can provide not only binding energies, which are well correlated with experimental binding affinity, but also QSAR descriptors. In addition, FMO-derived charges improve the descriptions of electrostatic properties and the correlations between docking scores and experimental binding affinities. These calculations can be performed by the ABINIT-MPX program and the calculation results can be visualized by its proper BioStation Viewer. The acceleration of FMO calculations on various computer facilities is ongoing, and we are also developing methods to deal with cytochrome P450, which belongs to the family of drug metabolic enzymes.

• 한국미생물학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국미생물학회 2003년도 International Meeting of the Microbiological Society of Korea
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• pp.77-79
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• 2003

Current therapeutic strategies far anthrax have had no significant impact on anthrax mortality over the last several decades. This study used a matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) discovery platform to generate protein expression profiles in search of overexpressed proteins in murine macrophage cells (RAW264.7) which infected with Bacillus anthracis spores as potentially novel molecular targets. Two differentially expressed proteins were identified in infected murine macrophage cells as Syndapin and CDC46, respectively. Syndapins are potential links between the cortical actin cytoskeleton and endocytosis. Other two proteins were identified from murine macrophage cells infected with avirulent spores as ITBG-2 (CD18) and HSPA5, respectively. These data demonstrate the feasibility of using a MALDI-TOF platform to generate protein expression profiles and identify potential molecular targets for anthrax therapeutics.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• 제24권5호
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• pp.453-468
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• 2016

There is a conserved ATPase domain in topoisomerase II (topo II) and heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90) which belong to the GHKL (gyrase, Hsp90, histidine kinase, and MutL) family. The inhibitors that target each of topo II and Hsp90 are intensively studied as anti-cancer drugs since they play very important roles in cell proliferation and survival. Therefore the development of dual targeting anti-cancer drugs for topo II and Hsp90 is suggested to be a promising area. The topo II and Hsp90 inhibitors, known to bind to their ATP binding site, were searched. All the inhibitors investigated were docked to both topo II and Hsp90. Four candidate compounds as possible dual inhibitors were selected by analyzing the molecular docking study. The pharmacophore model of dual inhibitors for topo II and Hsp90 were generated and the design of novel dual inhibitor was proposed.

• 한국어병학회지
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• 제15권2호
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• pp.83-92
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• 2002

EST analysis was performed to identify stress-responsive and immune-related genes from mud loach (Misgurnus mizolepis), cDNA libraries were constructed with liver, intestine and kidney tissues and randomly chosen clones (216 for liver, 198 for intestine and 224 for kidney) were subjected to automated sequence analysis. Of 638 clones sequenced in totlal, approximalely 25% of ESTs was novel sequences (no match to GenBank) or sequences with high homology to hypothrtical/unknown genes. Several potential stress-responsive biomarker and/or immure-related genes were identified in all the tissues examined. It included lectin, MHC class I/II proteins, proteinase inhibitors, superoxide dismulase, catalase, glutathionc-S. transferase, heat-shock protein, warm temperature acclimation protein, complements, methylrransferasc, zinc finger proteins, macrophage maturation associated protein, and others. This information will offer new possibilities as fundamental baseline data for the molecular genetics and breeding of this species with an emphasis on the development of stress. (and disease)-resistsnt fish.

• 생물정신의학
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• 제18권4호
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• pp.189-196
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• 2011

Major depressive disorder is characterized by cellular and molecular alterations resulting in the depressive behavioral phenotypes. Preclinical and clinical studies have demonstrated the deficits, including cell atrophy and loss, in limbic and cortical regions of patients with depression, which is restored with antidepressants by reestablishing proper molecular changes. These findings have implicated the involvement of relevant intracellular signaling pathways in the pathogenetic and therapeutic mechanisms of depressive disorders. This review summarizes the current knowledge of the signal transduction mechanisms related to depressive disorders, including cyclic-AMP, mitogen-activated protein kinase, Akt, and protein translation initiation signaling cascades. Understanding molecular components of signaling pathways regulating neurobiology of depressive disorders may provide the novel targets for the development of more efficacious treatment modalities.

• BMB Reports
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• 제35권2호
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• pp.199-205
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• 2002

An anticoagulant protein was purified from the edible portion of a blood ark shell, Scapharca broughtonii, by ammonium sulfate precipitation and column chromatography on DEAE-Sephadex A-50, Sephadex G-75, DEAE-Sephacel, and Biogel P-l00. In vitro assays with human plasma, the anticoagulant from 'S. broughtonii, prolonged the activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) and inhibited the factor LX in the intrinsic pathway of the blood coagulation cascade. But, the fibrin plate assay did not show that the anticoagulant is a fibrinolytic protease. The molecular mass of the purified S. broughtonii anticoagulant was measured to be about 26.0kDa by gel filtration on a Sephadex G-75 column and SDS-PAGE under denaturing conditions. The optimum activity in the APTT assay was exhibited at pH 7.0-7.5 and $40-45^{\circ}C$ in the presence of $Ca^{2+}$.