Ornithine decarboxylase, transglutaminase, diamine oxidase and total diamines and polyamines in maternal liver and kidney throughout rat pregnancy

Abstract

Ornithine decarboxylase (ODC; EC 4.1.1.17), transglutaminase (EC 2.3.2.13), diamine oxidase (DAO; EC 1.4.3.6) and total di- and poly-amines were studied in rat liver and kidney cortex throughout pregnancy. In liver, ODC activity exhibited two major peaks (4.5-5 times the control activities) on days 15 and 17. Also putrescine and spermidine increased biphasically (3-4-fold), but no variation in spermine content was observed. Transglutaminase activity showed slight variations only near the end of gestation. In kidney, ODC activity did not fluctuate significantly during pregnancy, whereas both transglutaminase activity and putrescine content showed three major increases, in very early, middle and late pregnancy. No significant variations in spermidine and spermine were observed. In both organs, DAO activity, very low or undetectable until day 10, dramatically increased (10- and 20-fold in kidney and liver respectively) in the second half of pregnancy, reaching maxima on days 16-17 and 19. The results obtained for transglutaminase, ODC and total di- and poly-amines are interpreted on the basis of hyperplastic and hypertrophic events in the liver and kidney respectively. The behaviour of DAO suggests that the enzyme plays an important role in the control of intracellular diamine concentration.

Induction and activation of tissue transglutaminase during programmed cell death

“…The apoptotic index was calculated by screening formalin-fixed sections stained with haematoxylineosin [3,4]. The concentration of protein-bound e-(7-glutamyl)lysine was determined following described principles [17,18]: extensive digestion of the protein fraction precipitated by trichloroacetic acid; separation of the dipeptide by ion-exchange chromatography, then on a silica column by HPLC; modification by phenylisothiocyanate followed by quantitation on HPLC using a C18 column and eluting with acetic acid/methanol; the presence of radioactive e-(7-glutamyl)lysine throughout the procedure to calculate recovery; applying 7-glutamylamine cyclotransferase, the specific enzyme for breaking e-(7-glutamyl)lysine [19], to identify the position of cross-linking during final analysis [20].…”

Lack of ‘tissue’ transglutaminase protein cross-linking leads to leakage of macromolecules from dying cells: relationship to development of autoimmunity in MRLlpr/lpr mice

“…L929 cells after different treatment were mechanically removed from flasks, washed with PBS and sonicated at 48C for 20 s. tTG activity was measured by detecting the incorporation of [ 3 H]putrescine into N,N'-dimethylcasein as previously reported (Piacentini et al, 1986). Protein concentration was determined using bovine serum albumin as standard.…”

Polyamine Metabolism

“…Diamine oxidase, for which putrescine and probably also spermidine and sper mine are natural substrates, has a very high activity in small intestine and placenta [16], From the uneven distribution of the Cu2+-containing amine oxidases, it is evident that terminal catabolic reactions are not partici pating in the regulation of cellular polyamine levels in general. However, these reactions may have regulatory functions in specialized tissues, such as the intestinal mucosa [17], or during speciFic physiological events, such as pregnancy [18], All products of the terminal polyamine catabolism can be found in the urine [19]. Whether these amino acids ( Fig.…”