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V M Monnier

Publications and source records attributed to V M Monnier.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1997

Advanced glycation modification of Rosenthal fibers in patients with Alexander disease.

Rosenthal fibers, astrocytic inclusions that accumulate in various neoplastic and non-neoplastic conditions, are a characteristic of Alexander disease, a leukodystrophy of unknown etiology. Given that alphaB crystallin is the major protein component of Rosenthal fibers and that crystallins in the diabetic and aged lens are targets for advanced glycation end product modifications via the Maillard reaction we hypothesized that Rosenthal fibers might contain similar modifications. Using antibodies specific for two products of glycation, pyrraline and pentosidine, we showed labeling of Rosenthal fibers that may account for their insolubility and accumulation. These data suggest that advanced glycation end products may be critical to the pathogenesis of Alexander disease.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Molecular cloning and expression of amadoriase isoenzyme (fructosyl amine:oxygen oxidoreductase, EC 1.5.3) from Aspergillus fumigatus.

Amadoriase is an enzyme catalyzing the oxidative deglycation of Amadori products to yield corresponding amino acids, glucosone, and H2O2. We previously reported the purification and characterization of two amadoriase isozymes from Aspergillus sp. that degrade both glycated low molecular weight amines and amino acids (Takahashi, M., Pischetsrieder, M., and Monnier, V. M. (1997) J. Biol. Chem. 272, 3437-3443). To identify the primary structure of the enzymes, we have prepared a cDNA library from Aspergillus fumigatus induced with fructosyl propylamine and isolated a clone using polyclonal anti-amadoriase II antibody. The primary structure of the enzyme deduced from the nucleotide sequence comprises 438 amino acid residues with a predicted molecular mass of 48,798 Da. The deduced primary structure exhibits the presence of an ADP-binding motif near the NH2 terminus. The identity of the amadoriase II cDNA was further confirmed by expression in Escherichia coli cells with an inducible expression system. Northern blotting analysis revealed that amadoriase II was induced by fructosyl propylamine in a dose-dependent manner.

Amino Acid Oxidoreductases↗
PubMed1997

Isolation, purification, and characterization of amadoriase isoenzymes (fructosyl amine-oxygen oxidoreductase EC 1.5.3) from Aspergillus sp.

Four "amadoriase" enzyme fractions, which oxidatively degrade glycated low molecular weight amines and amino acids under formation of hydrogen peroxide and glucosone, were isolated from an Aspergillus sp. soil strain selected on fructosyl adamantanamine as sole carbon source. The enzymes were purified to homogeneity using a combination of ion exchange, hydroxyapatite, gel filtration, and Mono Q column chromatography. Molecular masses of amadoriase enzymes Ia, Ib, and Ic were 51 kDa, and 49 kDa for amadoriase II. Apparent kinetic constants for Nepsilon-fructosyl Nalpha-t-butoxycarbonyl lysine and fructosyl adamantanamine were almost identical for enzymes Ia, Ib, and Ic, but corresponding values for enzyme II were significantly different. FAD was identified in all enzymes based on its typical absorption spectrum. N-terminal sequence was identical for enzymes Ia and Ib (Ala-Pro-Ser-Ile-Leu-Ser-Thr-Glu-Ser-Ser-Ile-Ile-Val-Ile-Gly-Ala-Gly- Thr-Trp-Gly-) and Ic except that the first 5 amino acids were truncated. The sequence of enzyme II was different (Ala-Val-Thr-Lys-Ser-Ser-Ser-Leu-Leu-Ile-Val-Gly-Ala-Gly-Thr-Trp-Gly- Thr-Ser-Thr-). All enzymes had the FAD cofactor-binding consensus sequence Gly-X-Gly-X-X-Gly within the N-terminal sequence. In summary, these data show the presence of two distinct amadoriase enzymes in the Aspergillus sp. soil strain selected on fructosyl adamantanamine and induced by fructosyl propylamine. In contrast to previous described enzymes, these novel amadoriase enzymes can deglycate both glycated amines and amino acids.

Amino Acid Oxidoreductases↗
PubMed1997

Levuglandin E2-protein adducts in human plasma and vasculature.

The prostaglandin endoperoxide PGH2 rearranges nonenzymatically to generate prostaglandins and secoprostanoic acid levulinaldehyde derivatives such as PGE2 and levuglandin (LG) E2, respectively. Direct detection of LGE2 in biological samples is complicated because it is rapidly sequestered by covalent adduction to endogenous nucleophiles including proteins, which produces LGE2-derived protein-bound pyrroles. Therefore, to detect LGE2-protein adducts in vivo, antibodies were raised against a covalent adduct of LGE2 with keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH). This antigen enabled the production of high-titer antibodies that exhibit minimal cross-specificity and are sensitive for detecting LGE2-derived pyrroles. Although pyrrole yields are low at LG/protein ratios found in vivo, an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay with the LGE2-KLH antibodies detects LGE2-derived protein-bound pyrrole immunoreactivity in human plasma from specific patient populations. Furthermore, prominent immunocytochemical staining of human brain thin sections revealed the presence of LGE2-derived pyrrole immunoreactivity, especially in the meningeal vessels of some patients. This demonstration of LG-protein adducts in human plasma and vasculature provides the first evidence for the biological occurrence of levuglandins in vivo and further suggests that these antibodies might prove useful in diagnostic and mechanistic studies of various disease conditions.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Age-related association of tail tendon break time with tissue pentosidine in DBA/2 vs C57BL/6 mice: the effect of dietary restriction.

In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the development of a panel of biomarkers useful in the evaluation of interventions on aging processes. An ideal marker should change with age, be related to species longevity, and respond to the effects of dietary restriction, which is the only intervention currently known to increase species longevity. In the present study; we compared parameters of collagen aging (i.e., tail tendon break time [TBT] and the glycoxidation product pentosidine) in tendon, ear, and skin of two species of rodents with different life spans: the shorter-lived DBA/2 versus the longer-lived C57BL/6 mouse strain. Both TBT and tissue pentosidine significantly increased with age in both strains of mice. The rate of increase for TBT And pentosidine occurred faster for the DBA/2 compared with the C57BL/6 strain. Dietary restriction significantly inhibited the age-related increase of TBT and pentosidine formation rte in DBA/2 mice. In C57BL/6 mice, the age-related increase of TBT was significantly inhibited by dietary restriction. However, except for tendon at 24 months, pentosidine level was not affected by dietary restriction. These studies show that the rate of collagen aging, as reflected by TBT and glycoxidation, increases proportionally with age, and that these rate increases are related to longevity in two strains of mice. Pentosidine can be monitored with age just as well in a piece of easily accessible ear tissue as in skin or tendon. Thus, pentosidine is expected to be a useful and easily measurable noninvasive marker in future intervention studies on aging.

Aging↗
PubMed1996

Purification and characterization of a membrane-bound deglycating enzyme (1-deoxyfructosyl alkyl amino acid oxidase, EC 1.5.3) from a Pseudomonas sp. soil strain.

Searching for novel approaches for uncoupling glycation from hyperglycemia as a cause of diabetic complications, a Pseudomonas sp. soil strain containing a membrane-bound enzyme that deglycates amino acids under release of free fructosamine was isolated (Gerhardinger, C., Marion, S. M., Rovner, A., Glomb, M., and Monnier, V. M. (1995) J. Biol. Chem. 270, 218-224). This enzymatic activity was found to be very sensitive to inactivation by most detergents. From the plasma membrane ( approximately 3 mg/ml protein concentration), the enzyme could be solubilized in active form using 10 mM 3-[(3-chlolamidopropyl) dimethylammonio]-2-hydroxy-1-propanesulfonate aided by 2 M NaCl and 10% glycerol (27% optimal solubilization yield). The supernatant from a 55% saturation (NH4)2SO4 cut was fractionated onto a phenyl-Superose HR 5/5 column and enzymatic activity was eluted with a inverse gradient of (NH4)2SO4. Following removal of (NH4)2SO4 with PD-10 columns and fractionation with a Mono Q HR 5/5 column, a sharp peak of enzyme activity was eluted. Analysis on sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis revealed a major band at 106 kDa and, on isoelectrofocusing gel, a pI of 5.1. The activity was completely inhibited by CN- and N3-, suggestive of copper as a likely cofactor. Identification of the protein was confirmed by affinity labeling with 14CN- and isoelectrofocusing. The "amadoriase" activity was also inhibited by Hg2+, Ag2+, Cu2+, and Zn2+ and had Km and Vmax values of 0.14 mM and 0.48 unit/ml (16 units/mg of protein), respectively, for epsilon-(1-deoxyfructosyl) aminocaproate. Significant activity was noted toward many glycated amino acids (highest with epsilon-fructosyl lysine) but not with glycated proteins. The sequence of the first 16 NH2-terminal amino acids and a search in various data bases revealed that this amadoriase enzyme is a novel protein. Based on its properties, this deglycating enzyme, which degrades Amadori products oxidatively into free fructosamine, is classified as fructosyl aminocaproate:oxygen oxidoreductase (EC 1.5.3).

Amino Acid Oxidoreductases↗
PubMed1996

Involvement of hydrogen peroxide in collagen cross-linking by high glucose in vitro and in vivo.

The Maillard reaction has been implicated in cross-linking and fluorescence formation of collagen exposed to high glucose in vitro. However, several pharmacologic agents, whose action seems unrelated to pathways of nonenzymatic glycation, have been demonstrated to prevent cross-linking in diabetes. To clarify this discrepancy, kinetic changes in glycation, glycoxidation (carboxymethyllysine, CML), and cross-linking (measured as tendon breaking time, TBT) were evaluated in rat tail tendons incubated in 5 and 30 mM glucose in vitro and in tendons implanted in vivo into diabetic rat peritoneal cavity. In vitro, rates were found to be both O2- and glucose-dependent. Tendon preglycation and presence of added 2 mM glycosylamine and Amadori compounds (Amadori product of glucose and propylamine) catalyzed these changes in a primarily O2-dependent manner. In the presence of Amadori compounds, kinetic changes were dramatically increased and were preventable by addition of catalase to the medium. Tendons implanted into diabetic rat peritoneum became more rapidly glycoxidized and cross-linked when implanted at day 30 from diabetes onset (high tissue glycation) compared to day 3 (low tissue glycation) in spite of similar glycation kinetics, suggesting a mechanistic dissociation between glycation, glycoxidation, and cross-linking in diabetes. Indeed, intraperitoneal injection of catalase and other antioxidants dramatically suppressed cross-linking, fluorescence formation, and, to some extent, glycoxidation, without affecting glycation. This study confirms the role of oxidative stress in protein cross-linking by the Maillard reaction in vitro and provides the first evidence for a role of H2O2 in cross-linking in diabetes. Whereas Amadori products are a potent source of H2O2 formation in vitro, their precise contribution to H2O2 generation and the actual role of Maillard reaction products in collagen cross-linking in diabetes requires further investigation.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

Identification of pentosidine as a native structure for advanced glycation end products in beta-2-microglobulin-containing amyloid fibrils in patients with dialysis-related amyloidosis.

beta-2-Microglobulin (beta-2m) is a major constituent of amyloid fibrils in patients with dialysis-related amyloidosis (DRA). Recently, we found that the pigmented and fluorescent adducts formed nonenzymatically between sugar and protein, known as advanced glycation end products (AGEs), were present in beta-2m-containing amyloid fibrils, suggesting the possible involvement of AGE-modified beta-2m in bone and joint destruction in DRA. As an extension of our search for the native structure of AGEs in beta-2m of patients with DRA, the present study focused on pentosidine, a fluorescent cross-linked glycoxidation product. Determination by both HPLC assay and competitive ELISA demonstrated a significant amount of pentosidine in amyloid-fibril beta-2m from long-term hemodialysis patients with DRA, and the acidic isoform of beta-2m in the serum and urine of hemodialysis patients. A further immunohistochemical study revealed the positive immunostaining for pentosidine and immunoreactive AGEs and beta-2m in macrophage-infiltrated amyloid deposits of long-term hemodialysis patients with DRA. These findings implicate a potential link of glycoxidation products in long-lived beta-2m-containing amyloid fibrils to the pathogenesis of DRA.

Amyloid↗
PubMed1996

Early and advanced glycosylation end products. Kinetics of formation and clearance in peritoneal dialysis.

The chronic contact of glucose-containing dialysate and proteins results in the deposition of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) on peritoneal tissues in patients treated by peritoneal dialysis (PD), yet plasma levels of the AGE pentosidine are significantly lower in PD than in hemodialysis (HD). We measured glycation of peritoneal proteins in patients on PD over the time course of intraperitoneal equilibration of fresh peritoneal dialysate. The glycated content of peritoneal proteins (furosine method) was initially identical to plasma but increased 200% within 4 h due to in situ glycation as also demonstrated in vitro. In contrast, peritoneal proteins contained a 2-4 x greater content of the AGE pentosidine at all equilibrium time points. Plasma protein furosine content was identical in patients on PD and on HD. Fractionation by gel filtration of serum from patients on PD and HD revealed that > 95% of the pentosidine was linked to proteins > 10,000 mol wt; < 1% to proteins < 10,000 mol wt; and < 1%, free. Neither HD nor PD affected protein-bound pentosidine. The HD treatment decreased free and < 10,000 mol wt bound pentosidine. However clearance of protein-associated pentosidine by the peritoneal membrane may explain lower steady state levels in patients treated by PD.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Pyrraline ether crosslinks as a basis for protein crosslinking by the advanced Maillard reaction in aging and diabetes.

Pyrraline (epsilon 2-(formyl-5-hydroxymethyl-pyrrol-1-yl)-L- norleucine) is an advanced Maillard reaction product derived from the reaction of glucose with lysine amino group on proteins. Its presence in plasma and tissue proteins has been established by immunological and chromatographic methods. The purified preparation of pyrraline obtained from the reaction of glucose with lysine when stored at room temperature or at refrigeration turned pink in color, suggesting spontaneous formation of degradation products. These products were analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography and one of the products was isolated to purity. The structure of the compound was established to be a dipyrraline formed by an ether bond between two pyrraline molecules. This finding led us to investigate the reactivity of pyrraline with thiol and hydroxy amino acids. The hydroxy amino acids were in general nonreactive, except hydroxy lysine and hydroxy proline which formed minor condensation products. While the reaction of cysteine resulted in the formation of two distinct thioethers, the reaction of glutathione resulted in the formation of two major unidentified compounds which gradually degraded upon incubation. These data suggest that pyrraline formed in vivo can further react with other amino acids on proteins to form crosslinks, which may explain in part increased protein crosslinking associated with aging and diabetes.

Aging↗
PubMed1996

Longevity and the genetic determination of collagen glycoxidation kinetics in mammalian senescence.

A fundamental question in the basic biology of aging is whether there is a universal aging process. If indeed such a process exists, one would expect that it develops at a higher rate in short- versus long-lived species. We have quantitated pentosidine, a marker of glycoxidative stress in skin collagen from eight mammalian species as a function of age. A curvilinear increase was modeled for all species, and the rate of increase correlated inversely with maximum life-span. Dietary restriction, a potent intervention associated with increased life-span, markedly inhibited glycoxidation rate in the rodent. On the assumption that collagen turnover rate is primarily influenced by the crosslinking due to glycoxidation, these results suggest that there is a progressive age-related deterioration of the process that controls the collagen glycoxidation rate. Thus, the ability to withstand damage due to glycoxidation and the Maillard reaction may be under genetic control.

Aging↗
PubMed1996

High galactose levels in vitro and in vivo impair ascorbate regeneration and increase ascorbate-mediated glycation in cultured rat lens.

In contrast to conventional view that glucose is the sole glycating agent, ascorbate has now emerged as a potential precursor of advanced glycation products in lenses during cataractogenesis, owing to the high concentration present in human lens. The effects of high hexose environment in vitro and in vivo on the disruption of redox equilibrium of ascorbate (ASA) to dehydroascorbate (DHA), which is required for ascorbate-mediated crystallin modification by the Maillard reaction during cataractogenesis were examined. Organ culture experiments were performed with rat lenses that were first exposed to high galactose levels in vitro and in vivo and then incubated with 1-14C-labeled ASA, DHA or DKG (2,3-diketogulonic acid). Formation of ASA degradation products as a function of time was assessed by radiometric TLC method. Upon incubation with ASA or DHA, an elevated level of the degradation product, DKG, was detected in lenses exposed to galactose in vivo and in vitro. ASA uptake was significantly enhanced in the galactosemic lenses as compared to controls (P = 0.01). Regeneration of ASA from DHA in both galactose treated and galactosemic lenses was impaired when compared to control lens which completely converted DHA from the medium into ASA. Surprisingly, the galactose exposed lenses showed enhanced permeability to DKG which was picked up readily from the medium in contrast to normal healthy lenses which remained impermeable to DKG. Galactose exposed lenses both in vitro and in vivo showed a 5-9-fold increase in crystallin bound Schiff base-linked radioactivity when incubated with 1-14C-labeled ASA or DHA. As a preamble to the question of whether lens pigmentation predisposes towards ascorbate oxidation, lens homogenate from normal young and old pigmented cataractous lenses were incubated with [1-14C]ASA. After 2 days, ASA levels were found to have decreased by 74% and DKG levels increased by 48% in brunescent lens as compared to the young lens. These data demonstrated that profound abnormalities in ASA metabolism exist in lenses exposed to a high sugar environment suggestive of a breakdown of the redox equilibrium of ASA to DHA and a loss of membrane permeability barrier for DKG. The latter would further contribute toward a ASA-catalysed Maillard reaction in the redox impaired lens.

2,3-Diketogulonic Acid↗
PubMed1996

Monocyte/macrophage response to beta 2-microglobulin modified with advanced glycation end products.

We recently found that acidic beta 2-microglobulin (beta 2m), a major isoform of beta 2m in amyloid fibrils of patients with dialysis-related amyloidosis (DRA), contained early Amadori products and advanced glycation end products (AGEs) formed nonenzymatically between sugar and protein. Further analysis revealed that acidic beta 2m induces monocyte chemotaxis and macrophage secretion of bone-resorbing cytokines, suggesting the involvement of acidic beta 2m in the pathogenesis of DRA. Acidic beta 2m, however, is a mixture of heterogeneous molecular adducts due to various types of modification. In the present study, we investigated the modification responsible for the biological activity of acidic beta 2m toward monocytes/macrophages. The presence of a fair amount of beta 2m species with deamidation was detected in acidic beta 2m isolated from urine of non-diabetic long-term hemodialysis patients, but deamidated beta 2m had no biological activity. In contrast, normal beta 2m acquired the activity upon incubation with glucose in vitro. Among the glycated beta 2m, the pigmented and fluorescent beta 2m that formed after a long incubation period, that is, AGE-modified beta 2m, exhibited biological activity, whereas beta 2m modified with Amadori products, major Maillard products in acidic beta 2m, had no such activity. These findings suggest that AGEs, although only a minor constituent of acidic beta 2m, are responsible for monocyte chemotaxis and macrophage secretion of cytokines, implicating the contribution of AGEs to bone and joint destruction in DRA.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Structure of advanced Maillard reaction products and their pathological role.

In this article we review recent progress and controversies relating to three areas of the field of advanced glycosylation end-products (AGE). A controversy exists as to whether pyrraline, an AGE detectable by immunohistochemistry in kidneys from patients with renal failure, exists in vivo. Recent data from the authors' laboratory revealed that pyrraline is present in alkaline or protease digests from human skin and plasma. However, the amounts are very low and pyrraline was found to undergo further reactions to form an ether with itself (dipyrraline) as well as a thioether with cysteine. This high reactivity of pyrraline may explain the difficulty of quantitating it accurately in biological material. In contrast, the glycoxidation products carboxymethyllysine (CML) and pentosidine are stable, very resistant to acid hydrolysis and easy to quantitate. They are present in elevated concentrations in the extracellular matrix in diabetes mellitus and ageing. In the diabetic human lens, CML is not elevated, in contrast to pentosidine, suggesting a different mechanism of formation. Recent data in diabetic dogs have shown that pentosidine is elevated only in lenses from poorly controlled dogs, in contrast to LM-1, a fluorophore thought to arise from ascorbate. Further studies are needed to clarify the intracellular mechanism of glycoxidation. The greatest concentrations of AGEs and glycoxidation products are found in patients with end-stage renal disease, and they are almost completely normalized by renal transplantation. Comparison of peritoneal dialysis (PD) with haemodialysis (HD) showed that PD is associated with lower plasma protein pentosidine, possibly due to selective transport of pentosidine-rich protein across the peritoneal wall. Fractionation of plasma proteins from ESRD patients by size showed that 90% of pentosidine is linked to HMW protein and 1-2% is in free form. The mechanism of accelerated glycoxidation in ESRD is still not understood.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

The mechanism of collagen cross-linking in diabetes: a puzzle nearing resolution.

Considerable interest has been focused in recent years on the mechanism of collagen cross-linking by high glucose in vitro and in vivo. Experiments in both diabetic humans and in animals have shown that over time collagen becomes less soluble, less digestible by collagenase, more stable to heat-induced denaturation, and more glycated. In addition, collagen becomes more modified by advanced products of the Maillard reaction, i.e., immunoreactive advanced glycation end products and the glycoxidation markers carboxymethyllysine and pentosidine. Mechanistic studies have shown that collagen cross-linking in vitro can be uncoupled from glycation by the use of antioxidants and chelating agents. Experiments in the authors' laboratory revealed that approximately 50% of carboxymethyllysine formed in vitro originates from pathways other than oxidation of Amadori products, i.e., most likely the oxidation of Schiff base-linked glucose. In addition, the increase in thermal stability of rat tail tendons exposed to high glucose in vitro or in vivo was found to strongly depend on H2O2 formation. The final missing piece of the puzzle is that of the structure of the major cross-link. We speculate that it is a nonfluorescent nonultraviolet active cross-link between two lysine residues, which includes a fragmentation product of glucose linked in a nonreducible bond labile to both strong acids and bases.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

Evidence of a glycemic threshold for the formation of pentosidine in diabetic dog lens but not in collagen.

The relationship between long-term glycemic control and the advanced Maillard reaction was investigated in dura mater collagen and lens proteins from dogs that were diabetic for 5 years. Diabetic dogs were assigned prospectively to good, moderate, and poor glycemic control and maintained by insulin. Biochemical changes were determined at study exit. Mean levels of collagen digestibility by pepsin decreased (NS) whereas collagen glycation (P < 0.001), pentosidine cross-links (P < 0.001), and collagen fluorescence (P = 0.02) increased with increasing mean HbA1 values. Similarly, mean levels of lens crystallin glycation (P < 0.001), fluorescence (P < 0.001), and the specific advanced lens Maillard product 1 (LM-1) (P < 0.001) and pentosidine (P < 0.005) increased significantly with poorer glycemic control. Statistical analysis revealed very high Spearman correlation coefficients between collagen and lens changes. Whereas pentosidine cross-links were significantly elevated in collagen from diabetic dogs with moderate levels of HbA1 (i.e., 8.0 +/- 0.4%), lens pentosidine levels were normal in this group and were elevated (P < 0.001) only in the animals with poor glycemic control (HbA1 = 9.7 +/- 0.6%). Thus, whereas protein glycation and advanced glycation in the extracellular matrix and in the lens are generally related to the level of glycemic control, there is evidence for a tissue-specific glycemic threshold for pentosidine formation, i.e., glycoxidation, in the lens. This threshold may be in part linked to a dramatic acceleration in crystallin glycation with HbA1 values of > 8.0% and/or a loss of lens membrane permeability. This study provides support at the molecular level for the growing concept that glycemic thresholds may be involved in the development of some of the complications in diabetes.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Protein modification by the degradation products of ascorbate: formation of a novel pyrrole from the Maillard reaction of L-threose with proteins.

Ascorbate (vitamin C) degradation products can undergo non-enzymatic glycation (Maillard reaction) with proteins to form highly crosslinked structures with brown pigmentation and characteristic fluorescence. Proteins in the body, especially the long-lived proteins develop similar changes during aging and diabetes. Several studies have shown excessive degradation of ascorbate in plasma in diabetes, and in ocular lens during aging and cataract formation. Recent studies have suggested that ascorbate degradation products-mediated glycation plays a role in lens pigmentation and cataract formation. However, the precise chemical nature of ascorbate-specific advanced glycation end-products are not known. Here, we report the purification and characterization of a glycation end-product derived from one of the major degradation products of ascorbate, L-threose. This compound was characterized to be 2-acetamido-6-(3-(1,2-dihydroxyethyl)-2-formyl-4-hydroxymethyl-1- pyrrolyl)hexanoic acid (formyl threosyl pyrrole or FTP) formed by the condensation of epsilon-amino group of lysine with two molecules of threose. Formation of FTP occurred rapidly in the incubation of threose and lysine and reached plateau level within a day. We have developed a sensitive assay for its quantification in proteins based on enzyme digestion followed by HPLC. Ribonuclease A and human lens crystallins incubated with L-threose showed time- and sugar concentration-dependent increases in FTP, reaching 8.2 and 2.48 nmol per mg protein, respectively after one week of incubation. Human plasma proteins showed a peak with identical retention time as that of purified FTP under two different HPLC conditions. FTP may be used as a sensitive marker to assess ascorbate-mediated protein glycation and modifications in aging and diabetes.

Aminocaproates↗