PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

T Viswanatha

Publications and source records attributed to T Viswanatha.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Influence of octopamine on trehalase activity in muscle and hemolymph of the American cockroach, Periplaneta americana L.

Injection of adult male cockroaches (Periplaneta americana) with 10 microliter 1 microM octopamine causes elevated activity of trehalase (alpha, alpha-trehalose glucohydrolase; EC 3.2.1.28) in hemolymph and muscle but not in gut. Tyramine, dopamine and glutamate, at the same concentration, failed to elicit any effect on trehalase activity. Determination of some kinetic parameters for muscle and hemolymph trehalases reveal that octopamine causes an increase in Vmax without any significant alteration in the Km of the enzyme for trehalose. The results are discussed in terms of the physiological significance of octopamine-mediated activation of tissue trehalases.

Animals↗

Stimulation by glutamine of the formation of N6-hydroxylysine in a cell-free extract from Aerobacter aerogenes 62-1.

Glutamine may serve as an activator and/or regulator of the N6-hydroxylase (E.C. 1.14.99) of Aerobacter aerogenes 62-1. Activation and stabilization of N6-hydroxylase activity was observed both in vivo and in vitro. Growth in a glutamine-supplemented medium resulted in (1) maximum N6-hydroxylase activity at an earlier stage of growth and (2) higher N6-hydroxylase activity and continued aerobactin synthesis into stationary phase. Storage of P2 in the presence of L-glutamine (1 mM) significantly increased the lifetime of the labile N6-hydroxylase activity. Inclusion of L-glutamine in the incubation mixture typically resulted in a 2-3-fold activation of the hydroxylase activity. The stimulatory effect of glutamine was independent of and additive to the enhancement of N6-hydroxylation by the active component(s) in the supernatant, S2 fraction. Glutamic acid-gamma-semihydrazide activated slightly in the absence of glutamine but activation of the system by glutamine was decreased by this compound. Azaserine was shown to be an uncompetitive inhibitor with respect to lysine and this inhibition was not reversed by glutamine.

Azaserine↗

Thermal denaturation of native and cross-linked Bacillus cereus 569/H beta-lactamase I.

Thermal denaturation of native and internally cross-linked Bacillus cereus 569/H beta-lactamase I (beta-lactamhydrolase, EC 3.5.2.6) was investigated using differential scanning calorimetry. Application of temperature-scanning kinetics provided an estimate of various activation parameters for the denaturation process. Evidence is presented to indicate that subtle temperature-induced conformational changes preceding gross denaturation are sufficient to cause inactivation of the enzyme.

Bacillus cereus↗

Inactivation of Bacillus cereus 569/H beta-lactamase I by 6-beta-(trifluoromethane sulfonyl)amidopenicillanic acid sulfone and its N-methyl derivative.

6-beta-(Trifluoromethane sulfonyl)amidopenicillanic acid sulfone and its N-methyl derivative were found to be potent inhibitors of Bacillus cereus 569/H beta-lactamase I. The rate of the inactivation of the enzyme by both compounds was found to increase with the decreasing pH of the reaction medium. The reaction of the enzyme with 6-beta-(trifluoromethane sulfonyl)amidopenicillanic acid sulfone was found to be irreversible at the pH values investigated. In contrast, the reaction with the N-methyl derivative at neutral pH was consistent with the partitioning of the acyl enzyme intermediate in three pathways which included (a) deacylation to yield active enzyme, (b) conversion to a transiently inhibited species, and (c) conversion to an irreversibly inactive form. The amino acid composition of the chromophoric peptide obtained from the enzyme inactivated by either of the compounds was consistent with the occurrence of an initial acylation of serine-70 of the protein.

Amino Acids↗

The use of bis(mercaptoacetato-S,O)hydroxoiron(III) complex for the determination of hydroxamates.

A rapid, indirect, spectrophotometric procedure for the determination of hydroxamates, based on the competition for ferric ions of the bis(mercaptoacetato-S,O)hydroxoiron(III) complex, has been developed. The assay is remarkably free of interferences by common ions, thus rendering it useful in the quantitative determination of hydroxamates in culture fluids and crude preparations.

Enterobacter↗

Quantitative determination of monosubstituted guanidines: a comparative study of different procedures.

Analysis of N2-acyl arginine derivatives as well as of arginine analogs lacking in alpha-amino function by Weber's modification of the Sakaguchi procedure yielded colored complexes with absorbance values approximately twice that obtained with an equivalent concentration of unmodified arginine. The limitations concerning the applicability of the various modifications of the Sakaguchi procedure as well as of the fluorimetric assay to the quantitative estimation of a variety of monosubstituted guanidines and proteins are discussed.

Arginine↗

Studies on the formation of N6-hydroxylysine in cell-free extracts of Aerobacter aerogenes 62-1.

We have investigated conditions optimal for the conversion of L-lysine to its N6-hydroxy derivative by partially purified cell-free extracts of Aerobacter aerogenes 62-1. The enzyme system was highly specific to L-lysine: the D-isomer and, the N2- or N6-derivatives of lysine, and alpha-amino acids were not hydroxylated. Most of the latter compounds had little effect onthe hydroxylation of L-lysine. However, -l-glutamic acid and L-glutamine enhanced the hydroxylation, with half-maximal activation achieved at 100 micrometers concentration of the effector. The Km values for pyruvate and L-(+)-lactate (compounds known to stimulate N-hydroxylysine formation) were found to be approx. 100 micrometers. The data show that N-hydroxylation of the amino acid precedes acylation in the biosynthesis of hydroxamic acid in A. aerogenes 62-1.

Antimetabolites↗

2,3-butanedione as a photosensitizing agent: application to alpha-amino acids and alpha-chymotrypsin.

2,3-Butanedione sensitized the rapid photodestruction of free alpha-amino acids, and the photoinactivation of alpha-chymotrypsin, in the presence of ultraviolet light and oxygen. These reactions showed "pseudo-first-order" kinetics at 2,3-butanedione concentrations approximating those employed for the chemical modification of arginine residues in proteins. The photoreactions were inhibited in anoxic media or in the presence of azide; findings were consistent with a singlet oxygen mechanism for these reactions. No enhancement in the rate of reaction was observed in D2O. The rate of 2,3-butanedione-sensitized photodestruction of free amino acids increased with increasing pH. However, the rate constants for the photosensitized inactivation of alpha-chymotrypsin, as well as those for the photodestruction of the tryptophan residues of this enzyme, decreased linearly with increasing pH.

Amino Acids↗

Specific localization and quantification of biotin transport components in yeast by use of a biotin-conjugated, impermeant, electron-dense label.

Two approaches are described for the localization and quantification of biotin transport components in yeast cells. One approach is based on tracing the fate of a radioactive affinity label for the biotin transport system, [14C]biotinyl-p-nitrophenyl ester (pBNP), through various stages of subcellular fractionations. A complementary method involves the use of a biotin-derivatized, impermeant, electron-dense, affinity-cytochemical label (ferritin-biotin conjugates) for subsequent visualization by electron microscopy. Values of approximately 8,000 and 4,000 sites/cell, respectively, were achieved by the two methods. Complicating factors, future perspectives and the relevance of the two methods to the isolation of transport components are discussed.

Affinity Labels↗

Clavulanic acid inhibition of beta-lactamase I from Bacillus cereus 569/H.

Inactivation of beta-lactamase I by clavulanic acid was investigated. Clavulanic acid induced inhibition of the enzyme was found to be progressive with time. Benzylpenicillin provided protection against the adverse effects of the inhibitor initially, however, the enzyme was irreversibly inhibited in a progressive manner even in the presence of substrate. Reaction of beta-lactamase I with clavulanic acid, in the presence of ampicillin, led to a very rapid inactivation of the enzyme.

Ampicillin↗

Kinetic evidence for an intermediate in the deacetylation of monoacetyl-chymotrypsin.

Mono[14C]acetyl-chymotrypsin was prepared by treating alpha-chymotrypsin with a 10-fold molar excess of p-nitrophenyl[14C]acetate at pH 5, and the acetylated enzyme was isolated free of excess reagents by gel filtration. Deacetylation at pH 6.0 was followed by observing the decrease in acid-precipitable radioactivity and provided a first-order rate constant of 0.02 +/- 0.008 min-1. Reactivation of the acetylated protein was followed by continuously monitoring the appearance of esterolytic activity towards alpha-N-acetyltyrosine ethyl ester. Reactivation at pH 6.0 occurred exponentially with a first-order rate constant of 0.2 +/- 0.015 min-1, the reactivated enzyme exhibiting an apparent catalytic contant (k' cat) of 1200 +/- 60 min-1, which decreased to a value of 945 +/- 15 min-1 by an apparent first-order process with a rate constant of 0.025 +/- 0.006 min-1. These results are interpreted in terms of a two-step deacetylation of monoacetyl-chymotrypsin involving an acetylated intermediate with esterase activity.

Acetates↗

Reversibility of the ampicillin-and nitrite-induced inactivation of beta-lactamase I.

beta-Lactamase I was isolated from Bacillus cereus 569/H. Treatment with ampicillin in the presence of sodium nitrite at pH 4 or 5 resulted in the inactivation of the enzyme presumably by modification of a carboxyl group in the active site. However, this inactivation was rapidly, reversible at neutral pH and the available evidence points to the participation of a second carboxyl group which is involved in the reactivation process.

Amidohydrolases↗

Effect of metabolites on epsilon-N-hydroxylysine formation in cell-free extracts of Aerobacter aerogenes 62-1.

The conversion of L-lysine to its corresponding epsilon-N-hydroxy derivative has been achieved for the first time by cell-free extracts of Aerobacter aerogenes 62-1. Partial fractionation by differential centrifugation (at 12 000 X g) revealed that both supernatant and pellet are essential for maximum enzymatic activity. The omega-N-hydroxylase (EC 1.14.99) was found to function optimally at pH 7-7.5 and exhibited an apparent Km of about 75 muM for L-lysine. L(+)-Lactate or DL-lactate and pyruvate greatly stimulate the omega-N-hydroxylase activity. The system is strongly inhibited by arsenite and sulfite.

Arsenic↗