An NMR method for determining the three-dimensional structures of membrane proteins in proteoliposomes is demonstrated by determining the structure of MerFt, the 60-residue helix–loop–helix integral membrane core of the 81-residue mercury transporter MerF. The method merges elements of oriented sample (OS) solid-state NMR and magic angle spinning (MAS) solid-state NMR techniques to measure orientation restraints relative to a single external axis (the bilayer normal) from individual residues in a uniformly 13C/15N labeled protein in unoriented liquid crystalline phospholipid bilayers. The method relies on the fast (>105 Hz) rotational diffusion of membrane proteins in bilayers to average the static chemical shift anisotropy and heteronuclear dipole–dipole coupling powder patterns to axially symmetric powder patterns with reduced frequency spans. The frequency associated with the parallel edge of such motionally averaged powder patterns is exactly the same as that measured from the single line resonance in the spectrum of a stationary sample that is macroscopically aligned parallel to the direction of the applied magnetic field. All data are collected on unoriented samples undergoing MAS. Averaging of the homonuclear 13C/13C dipolar couplings, by MAS of the sample, enables the use of uniformly 13C/15N labeled proteins, which provides enhanced sensitivity through direct 13C detection as well as the use of multidimensional MAS solid-state NMR methods for resolving and assigning resonances. The unique feature of this method is the measurement of orientation restraints that enable the protein structure and orientation to be determined in unoriented proteoliposomes.
White spot lesions (WSLs), a side effect of orthodontic treatment, can result in reversible and unaesthetic results. Graphene oxide (GO) with a bioactive glass (BAG) mixture (BAG@GO) was added to Low-Viscosity Transbond XT (LV) in a ratio of 1, 3, and 5%. The composite’s characterization and its physical and biological properties were verified with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD); its microhardness, shear bond strength (SBS), cell viability, and adhesive remnant index (ARI) were also assessed. Efficiency in reducing WSL was evaluated using antibacterial activity of S. mutans. Anti-demineralization was analyzed using a cycle of the acid-base solution. Adhesives with 3 wt.% or 5 wt.% of BAG@GO showed significant increase in microhardness compared with LV. The sample and LV groups showed no significant differences in SBS or ARI. The cell viability test confirmed that none of the sample groups showed higher toxicity compared to the LV group. Antibacterial activity was higher in the 48-h group than in the 24 h group; the 48 h test showed that BAG@GO had a high antibacterial effect, which was more pronounced in 5 wt.% of BAG@GO. Anti-demineralization effect was higher in the BAG@GO-group than in the LV-group; the higher the BAG@GO concentration, the higher the anti-demineralization effect.
Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) play important roles in normal brain development and synaptic plasticity, although aberrant expression of MMPs leads to brain damage, including blood–brain barrier disruption, inflammation, demyelination, and neuronal cell death. In this article, we report that MMP-8 is upregulated in LPS-stimulated BV2 microglial cells and primary cultured microglia, and treatment of MMP-8 inhibitor (M8I) or MMP-8 short hairpin RNA suppresses proinflammatory molecules, particularly TNF-α secretion. Subsequent experiments showed that MMP-8 exhibits TNF-α–converting enzyme (TACE) activity by cleaving the prodomain of TNF-α (A74/Q75, A76/V77 residues) and, furthermore, that M8I inhibits TACE activity more efficiently than TAPI-0, a general TACE inhibitor. Biochemical analysis of the underlying anti-inflammatory mechanisms of M8I revealed that it inhibits MAPK phosphorylation, NF-κB/AP-1 activity, and reactive oxygen species production. Further support for the proinflammatory role of microglial MMP-8 was obtained from an in vivo animal model of neuroinflammatory disorder. MMP-8 is upregulated in septic conditions, particularly in microglia. Administration of M8I or MMP-8 short hairpin RNA significantly inhibits microglial activation and expression/secretion of TNF-α in brain tissue, serum, and cerebrospinal fluid of LPS-induced septic mice. These results demonstrate that MMP-8 critically mediates microglial activation by modulating TNF-α activity, which may explain neuroinflammation in septic mouse brain.
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