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B4GALNT-1
Beta-1,4 N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase 1 is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the ''B4GALNT1'' gene. GM2 and GD2 gangliosides are sialic acid-containing glycosphingolipids Glycosphingolipids are a subtype of glycolipids containing the amino alcohol sphingosine. They may be considered as sphingolipids with an attached carbohydrate. Glycosphingolipids are a group of lipids (more specifically, sphingolipids) and are a p .... GalNAc-T is the enzyme involved in the biosynthesis of G(M2) and G(D2) glycosphingolipids. GalNAc-T catalyzes the transfer of GalNAc into G(M3) and G(D3) by a beta-1,4 linkage, resulting in the synthesis of G(M2) and G(D2), respectively. References External links * Further reading * * * * * * * * * * {{gene-12-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Enzyme
Enzymes () are proteins that act as biological catalysts by accelerating chemical reactions. The molecules upon which enzymes may act are called substrates, and the enzyme converts the substrates into different molecules known as products. Almost all metabolic processes in the cell need enzyme catalysis in order to occur at rates fast enough to sustain life. Metabolic pathways depend upon enzymes to catalyze individual steps. The study of enzymes is called ''enzymology'' and the field of pseudoenzyme analysis recognizes that during evolution, some enzymes have lost the ability to carry out biological catalysis, which is often reflected in their amino acid sequences and unusual 'pseudocatalytic' properties. Enzymes are known to catalyze more than 5,000 biochemical reaction types. Other biocatalysts are catalytic RNA molecules, called ribozymes. Enzymes' specificity comes from their unique three-dimensional structures. Like all catalysts, enzymes increase the reaction ra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gene
In biology, the word gene (from , ; "...Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a basic unit of heredity and the molecular gene is a sequence of nucleotides in DNA that is transcribed to produce a functional RNA. There are two types of molecular genes: protein-coding genes and noncoding genes. During gene expression, the DNA is first copied into RNA. The RNA can be directly functional or be the intermediate template for a protein that performs a function. The transmission of genes to an organism's offspring is the basis of the inheritance of phenotypic traits. These genes make up different DNA sequences called genotypes. Genotypes along with environmental and developmental factors determine what the phenotypes will be. Most biological traits are under the influence of polygenes (many different genes) as well as gen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
GM2 (ganglioside)
In organic chemistry, GM2 is a type of ganglioside. G refers to ganglioside, the M is for monosialic (as in it has one sialic acid), and 2 refers to the fact that it was the second monosialic ganglioside discovered. It is associated with GM2 gangliosidoses such as Tay–Sachs disease. See also * Ganglioside GM2 activator protein GM2 ganglioside activator also known as GM2A is a protein which in humans is encoded by the ''GM2A'' gene. Function The protein encoded by this gene is a small glycolipid transport protein which acts as a substrate specific co-factor for the ... Additional images Image:Sphingolipidoses.svg, Sphingolipidoses Image:Structure of GM1, GM2, GM3.png, Structures of GM1, GM2, GM3 gangliosides References External links * {{Sphingolipids Glycolipids ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gangliosides
A ganglioside is a molecule composed of a glycosphingolipid (ceramide and oligosaccharide) with one or more sialic acids (e.g. N-acetylneuraminic acid, ''N''-acetylneuraminic acid, NANA) linked on the sugar chain. NeuNAc, an acetylated derivative of the carbohydrate sialic acid, makes the head groups of gangliosides anionic at pH 7, which distinguishes them from globosides. The name ''ganglioside'' was first applied by the German scientist Ernst Klenk in 1942 to lipids newly isolated from ganglion, ganglion cells of the brain. More than 60 gangliosides are known, which differ from each other mainly in the position and number of N-Acetylneuraminic acid, NANA residue (chemistry), residues. It is a component of the cell plasma membrane that modulates cell signal transduction events, and appears to concentrate in lipid rafts. Recently, gangliosides have been found to be highly important molecules in immunology. Natural and semisynthetic gangliosides are considered possible therapeut ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sialic Acid
Sialic acids are a class of alpha-keto acid sugars with a nine-carbon backbone. The term "sialic acid" (from the Greek for saliva, - ''síalon'') was first introduced by Swedish biochemist Gunnar Blix in 1952. The most common member of this group is ''N''-acetylneuraminic acid (Neu5Ac or NANA) found in animals and some prokaryotes. Sialic acids are found widely distributed in animal tissues and related forms are found to a lesser extent in other organisms like in some micro-algae, bacteria and archaea. Sialic acids are commonly part of glycoproteins, glycolipids or gangliosides, where they decorate the end of sugar chains at the surface of cells or soluble proteins. However, sialic acids have been also observed in ''Drosophila'' embryos and other insects. Generally, plants seem not to contain or display sialic acids. In humans the brain has the highest sialic acid content, where these acids play an important role in neural transmission and ganglioside structure in synaptogene ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
