Determination of enzymatic activity and properties of secretory phospholipase A2 by capillary electrophoresis.

A capillary electrophoretic (CE) system coupled with a diode array UV detector was used for the assay of secretory phospholipase A2 (sPLA2) activity. This method is based on monitoring both the breakdown of substrates and the formation of products simultaneously using micellar electrokinetic chromatographic techniques. Under our developed separation conditions, we analyzed the substrates and products quantitatively, and investigated enzyme activity as a function of reaction time and presence of enzyme activator or inhibitor. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry was also utilized to confirm the phosphatidylcholine, a substrate of sPLA2. In order to test the feasibility of the developed method for measurement of enzymatic activity, we compared it to the conventional radioactive assay method for sPLA2. On the basis of our results, the conventional method can be complemented, or even replaced, by this new CE method which possesses the advantages of short analysis time, use of non-radiolabeled and inexpensive substrates, simple measurement of enzymatic activity, and exact quantitation of substrate and product.     

Autoimmune pancreatic disease: preparation of pancreatic juice for proteome analysis

The identification of pancreatic proteins is generally hampered by the high content and activity of proteases produced by this organ. The aim of this work was the development of a protocol for the analysis of pancreatic juice by two-dimensional (2-D) gel electrophoresis allowing consistent and reproducible protein analysis encompassed by high-resolution protein 2-D maps and subtle protein spot recognition without substantial losses due to proteases. Immobilized pH gradient (IPG) strips were used for the first dimension, the second dimension was performed by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). However, the key step was the sample preparation technique. Improvements were achieved by using several protease inhibitors (phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride, aprotinin, L-1-chloro-3-[4-tosyl-amido]-7-amino-2-heptanine (TLCK)-HCI, Complete) to prevent degradation of the proteins. The application of different pH-ranges was a valuable step for getting an overview of the expressed protein pattern. These investigations resulted in well-resolved 2-D maps with a high reproducibility.     

Isolation,purification, and properties of thioredoxin fromAnkistrodesmus braunii

Two forms of thioredoxin possessing the capacity for reactivating glutamine synthetase have been isolated from the cells of a green alga. Thioredoxins I and II are heat-stable proteins with molecular masses of 12 and 24 kDa, respectively. Analysis of the amino acid compositions of (I) and (II) have shown that they each contain two cysteine residues participating in the reduction of the oxidized form of glutamine synthetase.Institute of Microbiology, Academy of Sciences of the Uzbek SSR, Tashkent. Translated from Khimiya Prirodnykh Soedinenii, No. 1, pp. 79–83, January–February, 1990.     

Influence of dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (or dioleoylphosphatidylcholine) and phospholipase A2 enzyme on the properties of emulsions

The properties of n-tetradecane emulsions with dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) or dioleoylphosphatidylcholine (DOPC) in 1M ethanol were investigated at 20 and 37°C. The zwitterionic phospholipids having the same headgroup bound to the apolar tail composed of two saturated or unsaturated chains were used as stabilizing agents. Both phospholipids may self-organize into aggregates, which possess different sizes and surface affinities. Electrokinetic properties of the systems at natural pH or pH 8 were investigated taking into account the effective diameter of the droplets as well as the zeta potentials using the dynamic light scattering technique. The effect of both phospholipids decreases the initially negative zeta potential of the n-tetradecane emulsion and is more evident in the case of DPPC especially at a physiological temperature near its main temperature transition. The change of zeta potential by DOPC is visible at both temperatures probably as an effect of a loose packing of this phospholipid on n-tetradecane droplets, because of the presence of double bonds in its molecule. Also, the role of ethanol dipoles on the stability of oil/phospholipid emulsions is obvious. The other aim of paper was the characterization of the phospholipase A(2) influence on DOPC hydrolysis in the emulsion environment in order to emphasize the importance of such methodology. The present work is the first study that explores the effects of both electrolyte ions and ethanol molecules on DOPC hydrolysis by phospholipase. The effect of enzyme on the n-tetradecane/DOPC emulsions was investigated at pH 8 with Na(+) or Ca(2+) ions, which occur in the physiological fluids. The effective diameters do not always correlate with the zeta potentials. A possible reason of such behavior might a mechanism different from the electrostatic stabilization. The particular role of Ca(2+) ions in the emulsions with phospholipids was confirmed. Those investigations provide insight into the properties of the PLA(2) hydrolysis process enhanced by added ethanol. It is believed that the enzyme effect on the phospholipid aggregation behavior at the oil-water interface will be helpful for understanding other biological phenomena.     

Investigating porcine pancreatic phospholipase A2 action on vesicles and supported planar bilayers using a quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation

We present an investigation of the activity of porcine pancreatic phospholipase A2 towards phospholipids. The phospholipids are presented in three different ways, namely as tethered vesicles, intact surface-bound vesicles, and supported planar bilayers (SPBs). The process is followed using a quartz crystal microbalance which measures both the frequency shift and the energy dissipation factor. This technique is very sensitive not only to the mass of the material deposited on the crystal, but also to its viscoelasticity. The breakdown of the phospholipid vesicles and bilayers consequently gives rise to very large signal changes. Enzyme binding is separated from vesicle hydrolysis using nonhydrolyzable ether lipids. Intact and tethered vesicles give rise to the same profile, indicating that direct immobilization of the vesicles does not affect hydrolysis significantly. The data fit well to a Voight-based model describing the change in film structure with time. Initial enzyme binding to intact vesicles is accompanied by a significant increase in layer thickness as well as a decrease in viscosity and shear modulus. This effect, which is less pronounced in SPBs, is probably mainly due to the accumulation of hydrolysis products in the vesicle prior to rupture of the vesicles and release of bound water, since it disappears when lysolipid is included in the vesicles prior to hydrolysis.     

Photoelectrochemical properties of TiO2 photocatalyst and its applications for environmental purification

In view of the situation that environmental issues become more serious day by day, recent studies on practical applications of TiO₂ photocatalysis for environmental purification are reviewed. Although the fundamental aspects and the mechanisms of TiO₂ photocatalysis have recently become quite well understood, effective photocatalytic environmental purifier, especially water purifier, could not be developed to the stage of real industrial technology. The removal rate of gaseous or aqueous contaminants is influenced by numerous parameters; UV light intensity, substrate concentration, O₂ partial pressure, humidity, substrate type, and so on. Moreover, TiO₂ photocatalyst essentially has a difficulty in decomposition of large amount of contaminants or refractory chemicals. As the solutions of these problems, combination with other processes such as advanced oxidation processes and improvement of the design of photocatalytic environmental purification systems are described. During the past several years, the strategies for effective design of the system are well discussed and evaluated. The reactor design for air- or water-purification can be classified into two main strategies: (1) enlargement of reactive surface area and (2) improvement of mass transfer. Based on these insights, very recent achievements for development of photocatalytic environmental purification system with our contribution in each aspect and future research directions are reviewed.     

FRET probes to monitor phospholipase A2 activity

Phosphatidylethanolamine and -choline derivatives equipped with fluorescent donor-acceptor pairs of dyes connected to the tips of the fatty acids were synthesised and shown to be suitable substrates for phospholipase A2.     

Changes in wetting properties of alumina surface treated with DPPC in the presence of phospholipase A2 enzyme

Wetting properties of commercial Al(2)O(3) plates contacted with dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) or DPPC+enzyme (phospholipase PLA(2)) in NaCl solution were determined by thin layer wicking and with the help of Washburn equation. Van Oss et al.'s approach to interfacial free energy interactions was applied to determining the solid surface free energy components. Wicking experiments were performed both for bare and alumina plates precontacted overnight with the probe liquid saturated vapours, as well as the untreated and DPPC (or DPPC+PLA(2)) treated alumina plates. For this purpose the penetration rates of n-octane, water and formamide were measured. From these experiments it resulted that original alumina surface is strongly polar with electron-donor interactions originating from the surface hydroxyl groups. Adsorption of DPPC on Al(2)O(3) plates slightly increased the hydrophobic character of the alumina surface (considerable decrease of the electron-donor, γ(s)(-) parameter and γ(s)(AB) component was visible) in such a way that the hydrocarbon chains were directed outwards and the polar part towards the alumina surface. However, after the enzyme action the products of DPPC hydrolysis by PLA(2) (palmitic acid and lysophosphatidylcholine) increased again the hydrophilic character of Al(2)O(3) surface (a minor increase in γ(s)(AB) component and drastic increase of the electron-donor γ(s)(-) parameter was noticeable). After treatment with DPPC or DPPC+enzyme PLA(2) solution the changes of the total surface free energy of alumina and its Lifshits-van der Waals (γ(s)(LW)) component were in the range 7-10 mJ/m(2), but the most considerable and delivering more interesting information were the changes of the electron-donor (γ(s)(-)) parameter ranging from 27 to 35 mJ/m(2). Moreover, the changes of the alumina surface wettability were dependent on the time of the enzyme contacting with DPPC in NaCl solution. On the basis of the obtained results it seems that the thin layer wicking method can be an additional useful tool in investigations of the effect of phospholipid and PLA(2) action on the hydrophilic-hydrophobic character of alumina surface.     

Lysophosphatidylcholine suppresses apoptosis and induces neurite outgrowth in PC12 cells through activation of phospholipase D2

Lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) is a bioactive lipid generated by phospholipase A2-mediated hydrolysis of phosphatidylcholine. In the present study, we demonstrate that LPC stimulates phospholipase D2 (PLD2) activity in rat pheochromocytoma PC12 cells. Serum deprivation induced cell death of PC12 cells, as demonstrated by decreased viability, DNA fragmentation, and increased sub-G1 fraction of cell cycle. LPC treatment protected PC12 cells partially from the cell death and induced neurite outgrowth of the cells. Overexpression of PLD2 drastically enhanced the LPC-induced inhibition of apoptosis and neuritogenesis. Pretreatment of the cells with 1-butanol, a PLD inhibitor, completely abrogated the LPC-induced inhibition of apoptosis and neurite outgrowth in PC12 cells overexpressing PLD2. These results indicate that LPC possesses the neurotrophic effects, such as anti-apoptosis and neurite outgrowth, through activation of PLD2.     

Electrospray ionization mass spectrometry as a critical tool for revealing new properties of snake venom phospholipase A2

Results from high‐performance liquid chromatography/nano‐electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC/nESI‐MS/MS) coupled to two‐dimensional sodium dodecyl sulfate‐polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2D SDS‐PAGE) indicated that the monomer and dimer of phospholipase A₂ (PLA₂) coexisted in crude Chinese Agkistrodon blomhoffii Ussurensis snake venom (ABUSV). Then, an acidic PLA₂ with the accurate molecular mass of 13979.6 Da was purified from ABUSV (mo‐ABUSV‐aPLA₂). MS/MS‐derived peptides from ABUSV‐aPLA₂ were compared with other homologous snake venom PLA₂s, which in turn showed that ABUSV‐aPLA₂ is a novel snake venom PLA₂. Meanwhile, the ABUSV‐aPLA₂ dimer (di‐ABUSV‐aPLA₂) was also obtained. MS/MS analysis identified the same peptides from di‐ABUSV‐aPLA₂ as from mo‐ABUSV‐aPLA₂, which indicates that di‐ABUSV‐aPLA₂ is a homodimer. One Ca²⁺ ion is contained per ABUSV‐aPLA₂. The Ca²⁺ ion is critical for both the hydrolytic activity and the structure of ABUSV‐aPLA₂. Pro‐Q Emerald and Pro‐Q Diamond specific glycoprotein and phosphoprotein staining combined with MS/MS analysis indicated that the ABUSV‐aPLA₂ is both a glycoprotein and a phosphoprotein, which to our knowledge is the first such report for a snake venom PLA₂ and thus provides new threads for the study of the functions and structures of snake venom PLA₂s. One phosphorylation site and the size of the glycan chain are determined by using HPLC/nESI‐MS/MS and matrix‐assisted laser desorption/ionization time‐of‐flight (MALDI‐TOF) MS. The delicate utilization of ESI‐MS can exert tremendous impact on protein sciences. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Isolation,purification, and some physicochemical properties of glucose isomerase from Streptomyces atratus

A highly purified glucose isomerase with a specific activity 23.5 times greater than that of a homogenate of the mycelium has been obtained fromStreptomyces atratus by methods of homogenization from the freeze-dried biomass, heat treatment (70°C, 10 min), ion-exchange chromatography, and gel filtration. The yield of enzyme on the initial biomass was 51.8%. The molecular mass of the enzyme has been determined by various methods as 160 kDa but in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate in thin-layer PAG it amounts to 40 kDa.Institute of Microbiology, Academy of Sciences of the Uzbek SSR, Tashkent. Translated from Khimiya Prirodnykh Soedinenii, No. 4, pp. 524–528, July–August, 1990.     

Separation of guinea-pig pancreatic juice proteins by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography

Using a Protesil 300 octyl reversed-phase column with a multistage water-acetonitrile solvent gradient system, it was possible to obtain a well-resolved separation of the nine major proteins present in guinea-pig pancreatic juice. The protein present in each peak of the pancreatic juice chromatogram could only be identified by molecular weight analysis as the acetonitrile denaturated the enzymes and altered their isoelectric points. However, using sodium dodecyl sulphate gel electrophoresis the protein fractions obtained by high-performance liquid chromatography were characterised. Preliminary work has indicated that this system may be capable of separating other complex biological protein mixtures, i.e., saliva.