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Biomedical subjects

D Picot

Publications and source records attributed to D Picot.

29 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1994

[Prognostic value of nutritional parameters in gastrectomy for cancer: a study of 203 cases].

Two hundred and three patients underwent a gastrectomy for 1981 to 1985, as a treatment for gastric carcinoma. This retrospective study focuses on survival and the prognostic value of oncological features as topography, local involvement and size of the tumour, and nutritional features as albuminemia, prealbuminemia and weight loss. Although prealbuminemia and weight loss have a prognostic value, albuminemia has not this classical value. These results show the great importance of the peri-operative nutrition, and lead to criticisms about albuminemia, which is modified by deshydratation and extra-vascular diffusion.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMed1992

Domain closure in mitochondrial aspartate aminotransferase.

The subunits of the dimeric enzyme aspartate aminotransferase have two domains: one large and one small. The active site lies in a cavity that is close to both the subunit interface and the interface between the two domains. On binding the substrate the domains close together. This closure completely buries the substrate in the active site and moves two arginine side-chains so they form salt bridges with carboxylate groups of the substrate. The salt bridges hold the substrate close to the pyridoxal 5'-phosphate cofactor and in the right position and orientation for the catalysis of the transamination reaction. We describe here the structural changes that produce the domain movements and the closure of the active site. Structural changes occur at the interface between the domains and within the small domain itself. On closure, the core of the small domain rotates by 13 degrees relative to the large domain. Two other regions of the small domain, which form part of the active site, move somewhat differently. A loop, residues 39 to 49, above the active site moves about 1 A less than the core of the small domain. A helix within the small domain forms the "door" of the active site. It moves with the core of the small domain and, in addition, shifts by 1.2 A, rotates by 10 degrees, and switches its first turn from the alpha to the 3(10) conformation. This results in the helix closing the active site. The domain movements are produced by a co-ordinated series of small changes. Within one subunit the polypeptide chain passes twice between the large and small domains. One link involves a peptide in an extended conformation. The second link is in the middle of a long helix that spans both domains. At the interface this helix is kinked and, on closure, the angle of the kink changes to accommodate the movement of the small domain. The interface between the domains is formed by 15 residues in the large domain packing against 12 residues in the small domain and the manner in which these residues pack is essentially the same in the open and closed structures. Domain movements involve changes in the main-chain and side-chain torsion angles in the residues on both sides of the interface. Most of these changes are small; only a few side-chains switch to new conformations.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1991

The open/closed conformational equilibrium of aspartate aminotransferase. Studies in the crystalline state and with a fluorescent probe in solution.

Aspartate aminotransferase undergoes major shifts in the conformational equilibrium of the protein matrix during transamination. The present study defines the two conformational states of the enzyme by crystallographic analysis, examines the conditions under which the enzyme crystallizes in each of these conformations, and correlates these conditions with the conformational behaviour of the enzyme in solution, as monitored by a fluorescent reporter group. Cocrystallization of chicken mitochondrial aspartate aminotransferase with inhibitors and covalent coenzymesubstrate adducts yields three different crystal forms. Unliganded enzyme forms triclinic crystals of the open conformation, the structure of which has been solved (space group P1) [Ford, G. C., Eichele, G. & Jansonius, J. N. (1980) Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 77, 2559-2563; Kirsch, J. F., Eichele, G., Ford, G. C., Vincent, M. G., Jansonius, J. N., Gehring, H. & Christen, P. (1984) J. Mol. Biol. 174, 487-525]. Complexes of the enzyme with dicarboxylate ligands form monoclinic or orthorhombic crystals of the closed conformation. The results of structure determinations of the latter two crystal forms at 0.44 nm resolution are described here. In the closed conformation, the small domain has undergone a rigid-body rotation of 12-14 which closes the active-site pocket. Shifts in the conformational equilibrium of aspartate aminotransferase in solution, as induced by substrates, substrate analogues and specific dicarboxylic inhibitors, can be monitored by changes in the relative fluoresence yield of the enzyme labelled at Cys166 with monobromotrimethylammoniobimane. The pyridoxal and pyridoxamine forms of the labelled enzyme show the same fluorescence properties, whereas in the apoenzyme the fluorescence intensity is reduced by 30%. All active-site ligands, if added to the labelled pyridoxal enzyme at saturating concentrations, cause a decrease in the fluorescence intensity by 40-70% and a blue shift of maximally 5 nm. Comparison of the fluorescence properties of the enzyme in various functional states with the crystallographic data shows that both techniques probe the same conformational equilibrium. The conformational change that closes the active site seems to be ligand-induced in the reaction of the pyridoxal form of the enzyme and syncatalytic in the reverse reaction with the pyridoxamine enzyme.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Crystal structure of neutral protease from Bacillus cereus refined at 3.0 A resolution and comparison with the homologous but more thermostable enzyme thermolysin.

Neutral protease from Bacillus cereus exhibits a 73% amino acid sequence homology to thermolysin, for which an accurate crystal structure exists. The B. cereus enzyme is, however, markedly less thermostable. The neutral protease was crystallized and diffraction data to 3.0 A resolution were recorded by oscillation photography. The crystal structure was solved by molecular replacement methods using thermolysin as a trial molecule. The solution was improved by rigid-body refinement and model rebuilding into electron density omit-maps. The atomic co-ordinates were refined to R = 21.7% at 3.0 A resolution. Comparison of the resultant model with the thermolysin structure shows that the two enzymes are very similar with a root-mean-square deviation between equivalent C alpha-atoms of 0.88 A. The gamma-turn found in thermolysin is transformed into a beta-turn in the neutral protease by the insertion of a glycine residue. There appear to be no contributions to the enhanced thermostability of thermolysin from additional salt bridges, whereas contributions in the form of extra hydrogen bonding interactions could be important. Other factors that may affect thermostability include the two glycine to alanine exchanges and perturbations in the environment of the double calcium site.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1987

Crystallization of the photosystem I reaction centre.

The reaction centre of the photosynthetic membrane complex photosystem I (PSI) from the thermophilic cyanobacterium Phormidium laminosum was found to crystallize under a range of conditions. The crystallization method, which can occur in the presence of larger detergent molecules than those used previously for the crystallization of membrane proteins, is presented in this report. Several crystal forms have been observed, and some of these show birefringence and linear dichroism. Optical measurements on crystals thicker than 5 microm were severely restricted because of the very high chlorophyll density within the crystals, but linear dichroism measurements on thin single crystals were possible and the results are presented here. By comparing the data with earlier measurements on oriented PSI complexes, a working model for the orientation of the PSI complexes within the crystal could be proposed. The PSI reaction centre is one of the largest and most complex membrane protein units that have been crystallized to date.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1979

Individual assignments of the heme resonances in the 360 MHz 1H NMR spectra of cytochrome c-557 from Crithidia oncopelti.

With the use of nuclear Overhauser effects, spin decoupling and saturation transfer experiments individual assignments for numerous resonances of the heme group in the 360 MHz 1H NMR spectra of reduced and oxidized cytochrome c-557 from Crithidia oncopelti were obtained. These data provide direct evidence that the heme substituent in position 2 is a vinyl group. They further show that in spite of the different covalent structures of the heme groups the heme crevice and the electronic heme structure in the oxidized state are nearly identical in cytochrome c-557 and in mammalian cytochromes c.

Animals↗