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Photoactivated Adenylyl Cyclase
Photoactivated adenylyl cyclase (PAC) is a protein consisting of an adenylyl cyclase Protein domain, enzyme domain directly linked to a BLUF domain, BLUF (blue light receptor using FAD) type light sensor domain. When illuminated with blue light, the enzyme domain becomes active and converts ATP to Cyclic adenosine monophosphate, cAMP, an important Second messenger system, second messenger in many cells. In the unicellular flagellate ''Euglena gracilis,'' PACα and PACβ (euPACs) serve as a photoreceptor complex that senses light for Photophobia (biology), photophobic responses and phototaxis. Small but potent PACs were identified in the genome of the bacteria ''Beggiatoa'' (bPAC) and ''Oscillatoria acuminata'' (OaPAC). While natural bPAC has some enzymatic activity in the absence of light, variants with no dark activity have been engineered (PACmn). Use of PACs as optogenetic tools As PACs consist of a light sensor and an enzyme in a single protein, they can be expressed in other ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Axon
An axon (from Greek ἄξων ''áxōn'', axis), or nerve fiber (or nerve fibre: see spelling differences), is a long, slender projection of a nerve cell, or neuron, in vertebrates, that typically conducts electrical impulses known as action potentials away from the nerve cell body. The function of the axon is to transmit information to different neurons, muscles, and glands. In certain sensory neurons (pseudounipolar neurons), such as those for touch and warmth, the axons are called afferent nerve fibers and the electrical impulse travels along these from the periphery to the cell body and from the cell body to the spinal cord along another branch of the same axon. Axon dysfunction can be the cause of many inherited and acquired neurological disorders that affect both the peripheral and central neurons. Nerve fibers are classed into three typesgroup A nerve fibers, group B nerve fibers, and group C nerve fibers. Groups A and B are myelinated, and group C are unmyelinated. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Enzymes By Function
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 rat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Protein Families
A protein family is a group of evolutionarily related proteins. In many cases, a protein family has a corresponding gene family, in which each gene encodes a corresponding protein with a 1:1 relationship. The term "protein family" should not be confused with family as it is used in taxonomy. Proteins in a family descend from a common ancestor and typically have similar three-dimensional structures, functions, and significant sequence similarity. The most important of these is sequence similarity (usually amino-acid sequence), since it is the strictest indicator of homology and therefore the clearest indicator of common ancestry. A fairly well developed framework exists for evaluating the significance of similarity between a group of sequences using sequence alignment methods. Proteins that do not share a common ancestor are very unlikely to show statistically significant sequence similarity, making sequence alignment a powerful tool for identifying the members of protein familie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Optogenetics
Optogenetics is a biological technique to control the activity of neurons or other cell types with light. This is achieved by expression of light-sensitive ion channels, pumps or enzymes specifically in the target cells. On the level of individual cells, light-activated enzymes and transcription factors allow precise control of biochemical signaling pathways. In systems neuroscience, the ability to control the activity of a genetically defined set of neurons has been used to understand their contribution to decision making, learning, fear memory, mating, addiction, feeding, and locomotion. In a first medical application of optogenetic technology, vision was partially restored in a blind patient. Optogenetic techniques have also been introduced to map the functional connectivity of the brain''.'' By altering the activity of genetically labelled neurons with light and using imaging and electrophysiology techniques to record the activity of other cells, researchers can identify ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cyclic Guanosine Monophosphate
Cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) is a cyclic nucleotide derived from guanosine triphosphate (GTP). cGMP acts as a second messenger much like cyclic AMP. Its most likely mechanism of action is activation of intracellular protein kinases in response to the binding of membrane-impermeable peptide hormones to the external cell surface. Synthesis Guanylate cyclase (GC) catalyzes cGMP synthesis. This enzyme converts GTP to cGMP. Peptide hormones such as the atrial natriuretic factor activate membrane-bound GC, while soluble GC (sGC) is typically activated by nitric oxide to stimulate cGMP synthesis. sGC can be inhibited by ODQ (1H-,2,4xadiazolo ,3-auinoxalin-1-one). Functions cGMP is a common regulator of ion channel conductance, glycogenolysis, and cellular apoptosis. It also relaxes smooth muscle tissues. In blood vessels, relaxation of vascular smooth muscles leads to vasodilation and increased blood flow. At presynaptic terminals in the striatum, cGMP controls the e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Xenopus
''Xenopus'' () (Gk., ξενος, ''xenos''=strange, πους, ''pous''=foot, commonly known as the clawed frog) is a genus of highly aquatic frogs native to sub-Saharan Africa. Twenty species are currently described within it. The two best-known species of this genus are ''Xenopus laevis'' and ''Xenopus tropicalis'', which are commonly studied as model organisms for developmental biology, cell biology, toxicology, neuroscience and for modelling human disease and birth defects. The genus is also known for its polyploidy, with some species having up to 12 sets of chromosomes. Characteristics ''Xenopus laevis'' is a rather inactive creature. It is incredibly hardy and can live up to 15 years. At times the ponds that ''Xenopus laevis'' is found in dry up, compelling it, in the dry season, to burrow into the mud, leaving a tunnel for air. It may lie dormant for up to a year. If the pond dries up in the rainy season, ''Xenopus laevis'' may migrate long distances to another pond, main ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rhodopsin-like Receptors
Rhodopsin-like receptors are a family of proteins that comprise the largest group of G protein-coupled receptors. Scope G-protein-coupled receptors, GPCRs, constitute a vast protein family that encompasses a wide range of functions (including various autocrine, paracrine, and endocrine processes). They show considerable diversity at the sequence level, on the basis of which they can be separated into distinct groups. GPCRs are usually described as "superfamily" because they embrace a group of families for which there are indications of evolutionary relationship, but between which there is no statistically significant similarity in sequence. The currently known superfamily members include the rhodopsin-like GPCRs (this family), the secretin-like GPCRs, the cAMP receptors, the fungal mating pheromone receptors, and the metabotropic glutamate receptor family. There is a specialised database for GPCRs. Function The rhodopsin-like GPCRs themselves represent a widespread protein ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Retinal
Retinal (also known as retinaldehyde) is a polyene chromophore. Retinal, bound to proteins called opsins, is the chemical basis of visual phototransduction, the light-detection stage of visual perception (vision). Some microorganisms use retinal to convert light into metabolic energy. In fact, a recent study suggests most living organisms on our planet ~3 billion years ago used retinal to convert sunlight into energy rather than chlorophyll. Since retinal absorbs mostly green light and transmits purple light, this gave rise to the Purple Earth Hypothesis. There are many forms of vitamin A — all of which are converted to retinal, which cannot be made without them. Retinal itself is considered to be a form of vitamin A when eaten by an animal. The number of different molecules that can be converted to retinal varies from species to species. Retinal was originally called retinene, and was renamed after it was discovered to be vitamin A aldehyde. Vertebrate animals ingest reti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Catinaria
''Catinaria'' is a genus of lichenized fungi in the family Ramalinaceae The Ramalinaceae are a family of lichenized fungi in the order Lecanorales. The family name is synonymous with the name ''Bacidiaceae''. Species of this family have a widespread distribution. Genera *''Aciculopsora'' *''Adelolecia'' *'' Arthro .... Species *'' Catinaria acrustacea'' *'' Catinaria albocincta'' *'' Catinaria athallina'' *'' Catinaria atomaria'' *'' Catinaria atropurpurea'' *'' Catinaria dispersa'' *'' Catinaria intermixta'' *'' Catinaria isidiza'' *'' Catinaria kelungana'' *'' Catinaria leucoplaca'' *'' Catinaria microcarpa'' *'' Catinaria neuschildii'' *'' Catinaria subcorallina'' References Ramalinaceae Lichen genera Lecanorales genera Taxa named by Edvard August Vainio {{Lecanorales-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blastocladiella
''Blastocladiella'' is a genus of fungus A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from t .... Species * '' Blastocladiella anabaenae'' * '' Blastocladiella asperosperma'' * '' Blastocladiella britannica'' * '' Blastocladiella colombiensis'' * '' Blastocladiella cystogena'' * '' Blastocladiella emersonii'' * '' Blastocladiella laevisperma'' * '' Blastocladiella microcystogena'' * '' Blastocladiella novae-zelandiae'' * '' Blastocladiella simplex'' * '' Blastocladiella stomophilum'' * '' Blastocladiella stuebenii'' * '' Blastocladiella variabilis'' External links Mycobank entry Blastocladiomycota {{Blastocladiomycota-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Guanylate Cyclase
Guanylate cyclase (EC 4.6.1.2, also known as guanyl cyclase, guanylyl cyclase, or GC; systematic name GTP diphosphate-lyase (cyclizing; 3′,5′-cyclic-GMP-forming)) is a lyase enzyme that converts guanosine triphosphate (GTP) to cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) and pyrophosphate: : GTP = 3′,5′-cyclic GMP + diphosphate It is often part of the G protein signaling cascade that is activated by low intracellular calcium levels and inhibited by high intracellular calcium levels. In response to calcium levels, guanylate cyclase synthesizes cGMP from GTP. cGMP keeps cGMP-gated channels open, allowing for the entry of calcium into the cell. Like cAMP, cGMP is an important second messenger that internalizes the message carried by intercellular messengers such as peptide hormones and nitric oxide and can also function as an autocrine signal. Depending on cell type, it can drive adaptive/developmental changes requiring protein synthesis. In smooth muscle, cGMP is the signal f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
