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Biomedical subjects

G D Virca

Publications and source records attributed to G D Virca.

26 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1984

The elastase/alpha 1-proteinase inhibitor balance in the lung. A review.

Destruction of connective tissue by leukocyte elastase is the major pathogenetic event in the development of pulmonary emphysema. In the normal lung alpha 1-proteinase inhibitor (alpha1PI) and a bronchial mucus inhibitor are present in sufficient amounts to effectively inhibit the elastase released from PMN leukocytes during phagocytosis. Smoking promotes the development of emphysema by upsetting this enzyme/inhibitor balance in at least 4 different ways: 1) The macrophage and PMN leukocyte accumulation in the lung and consequently the proteinase load is increased; 2) the alpha1PI in the lung may become inactivated proteolytically, e.g. by cathepsin B; 3) the alpha1PI as well as the bronchial mucus inhibitor can be inactivated by oxidation through "smoke oxidants" directly, or 4) through the myeloperoxidase system. Analysis of bronchioalveolar lavage fluids confirms that all of these mechanisms do in fact occur, but suggests at the same time that the increased enzyme load to the lung may be the most important factor in the genesis of emphysema in smokers.

Bronchi↗
PubMed1984

Cigarette smoke components are not very effective in directly inactivating alpha 1-proteinase inhibitor.

Cigarette smoke was found to be rather ineffective in inactivating alpha 1-proteinase inhibitor (alpha 1-PI) in aqueous solution, whereas a slow inactivation of alpha 1-PI by a dimethyl sulfoxide extract of whole cigarette smoke condensate was observed. However, this inactivation could only partially be prevented by antioxidants indicating that it is not, or at least not exclusively, due to oxidation. The bulk of inactive alpha 1-PI found in lung lavage fluids from smokers is thus probably generated through endogenous mechanisms and not through smoke components directly.

Blood Proteins↗
PubMed1983

Human neutrophil elastase and cathepsin G cleavage sites in the bait region of alpha 2-macroglobulin. Proposed structural limits of the bait region.

The sites of cleavage in the "bait region" of human alpha 2-macroglobulin made by both neutrophil elastase and cathepsin G, as the first step in their inactivation by this inhibitor, have been identified. These positions are at a valylhistidyl bond for elastase and a phenylalanyl-tyrosyl bond for cathepsin G. All of the proteinases tested so far, including those utilized in this study, are cleaving within a twenty-seven aminoacid peptide sequence occurring between two proline residues. It is suggested that this area represents the outer limits of the "bait region" loop.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1982

Inactivation of human plasma alpha 1-proteinase inhibitor by a metalloproteinase from Serratia marcescens.

The interaction of a Serratia marcescens metalloproteinase with human plasma alpha 1-proteinase inhibitor has been investigated. The enzyme was not inactivated by this inhibitor but, instead, converted the native plasma protein into an inactive form of decreased molecular weight. Amino terminal sequence analysis indicated that the interaction of the inhibitor and enzyme was at the reactive site of the inhibitor, with peptide-bond cleavage resulting in the inactivation. This process may be important in necrotic processes occurring during bacterial infiltration of host tissues.

Amino Acid Sequence↗