Navigation Links
Computational verification of protein-protein interactions by orthologous co-expression

In the March 3 issue of Nature, Johns Hopkins researchers report that two proteins best known for very different activities actually come together to turn the liver into a sugar-producing factory when food is scarce. Because the liver's production of sugar is a damaging problem in people with diabetes, the proteins' interaction might be a target for future drugs to fight the disease, the researchers say.

Under normal circumstances, the liver's production of sugar is a back-up plan that enables survival during food shortages; the brain and certain other critical organs rely on sugar -- specifically glucose -- for the energy to function. In people with diabetes, however, the liver doesn't sense the incoming calories, and it keeps making glucose when it shouldn't.

The researchers discovered that, in fasting mice, the liver's production of sugar kicked into high gear because amounts and activities of the two proteins, called sirtuin1 and PGC1-alpha, increased when dietary calories weren't available. Once mice were fed, levels of the two proteins went down and sugar production ceased.

"It isn't a coincidence," says Pere Puigserver, Ph.D., an assistant professor of cell biology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine's Institute for Basic Biomedical Sciences. "The two proteins actually bind to each other, and without sirtuin1, PGC1 can't make glucose."

A current diabetes-fighting drug, metformin, blocks steps in the glucose-making process, but the new research identifies a critical regulatory step the researchers say could be targeted as well.

PGC1, which Puigserver isolated and cloned in 1998 as a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard, controls gene expression in the liver and other tissues. In the liver, it triggers the conversion of fats into sugar, particularly when access to food is limited. But no one knew exactly how it was controlled or what else it might need in order to launch the sugar-making process.

Sirtuin1,
'"/>

Source:


Page: 1 2 3

Related biology news :

1. Supercomputer Dedicated To Bioengineering, Computational Biology Installed
2. Institute for Systems Biology Symposium Addresses Need for Better Computational Tools
3. Computational Method Speeds Mapping of Cell Signaling Networks
4. Computational Tool Predicts How Drugs Work In Cells, Advancing Efforts To Design Better Medicines
5. Computational model simulates AZT metabolism in mitochondria
6. Computational analysis shows that plant hormones often go it alone
7. Virus-host interactions at sea effect global photosynthesis
8. Complex gene interactions account for autism risk
9. A real time look at interactions between RNA and proteins
10. U of MN researchers develop way to visualize synchronized interactions of nerve cells in the brain
11. Biologists develop genome-wide map of miRNA-mRNA interactions
Post Your Comments:
(Date:5/21/2013)... way genes function without changing the underlying DNA ... of pregnant women during any trimester, potentially providing ... weeks after giving birth, and an opportunity to ... of the small study involving 52 pregnant women ... Psychiatry . , "Postpartum depression can be harmful ...
(Date:5/20/2013)... popularly known as the lungs of the planet, inhales carbon ... the air to grow parts that eventually fall to the ... plentiful rainfall. , Until recently people believed much of ... ended up deep in the ocean. University of Washington research ... carbon dioxide though left open the question of how ...
(Date:5/20/2013)... conducted at the University of Bristol and published online ... sheds light on how the brain and inner ear ... School of Earth Sciences, together with Tom Hbner from ... of 150 million year old dinosaurs. , The two ... Dysalotosaurus lettowvorbecki : a very young (juvenile) individual ...
Breaking Biology News(10 mins):Genetic predictors of postpartum depression uncovered by Hopkins researchers 2Genetic predictors of postpartum depression uncovered by Hopkins researchers 3Amazon River exhales virtually all carbon taken up by rain forest 2Amazon River exhales virtually all carbon taken up by rain forest 3Fossil brain teaser 2
... among his most vibrant and celebrated works, Vincent van Gogh,s ... basis has, until now, been a mystery. In a study ... of Georgia scientists reveal the mutation behind the distinctive, thick ... more than 100 years ago. The most common sunflower ...
... A DICER protein, known to produce tiny RNAs in ... according to research on Arabidopsis thaliana . ... transcribed into a useable product, requires activation via a promoter ... Science helps to show that later stages of ...
... A team of international scientists working in the central Pacific ... the past is more likely to survive it in the ... PLoS ONE , paves the way towards an important road ... scientists identify the habitats and locations where coral reefs are ...
Cached Biology News:Genetic mutation depicted in van Gogh's sunflower paintings revealed by scientists 2Plant research reveals new role for gene silencing protein 2Some corals like it hot: Heat stress may help coral reefs survive climate change 2
(Date:5/21/2013)... Inflamax scientists worked closely with internationally ... the study, which will provide critical insight into ... in the study of allergy treatments, the Environmental ... models. Although both the models are well recognized ... direct comparison between the allergic responses evoked by ...
(Date:5/21/2013)... Clear Lake, MN (PRWEB) May 21, 2013 ... all-in-one trade show display solution for sales and marketing teams ... GLM Displays describes the kit as “everything you’ll need ... The Fusion Fabric Display Kit comes with a number of ... an all-around trade booth 20 feet by 20 feet in ...
(Date:5/20/2013)... Ga. , May 20, 2013  MiMedx Group, ... manufacturer and marketer of patent protected regenerative biomaterials and ... it has secured a revolving line of credit with ... which is secured by the Company,s accounts receivable and ... through May 1, 2014.  The facility will be used ...
(Date:5/20/2013)... New York, NY (PRWEB) May 20, 2013 ... My Cleaning Products said that although bed bugs need to ... elimination process will not compromise a person's health. And so ... a guide how to get rid of bed bugs ... recommended its non-pesticide bed bug spray it called Bed Bug ...
Breaking Biology Technology:Inflamax Research selected by the Immune Tolerance Network and the National Institutes of Health to conduct a landmark clinical study on the underlying mechanisms of allergic inflammation. 2GLM Displays Announces All-in-One Formulate Fusion Fabric Display Kit 2New Non Pesticide Discovery on How to Get Rid of Bed Bugs Tipped by My Cleaning Products 2
... to deliver first open source infectious disease ... management system to meet CDC mandate, ... that brings like-minded organizations,together to work on collaborative software at ... first open source, web-based infectious,disease reporting and management system., ...
... SYDNEY, Australia, May 18 /Xinhua-PRnewswire-Firstcall/ -- Specialist,Pharmaceutical ... today,announced that it has received national approval ... indicated for measuring airway hyperresponsiveness and has,been ... mutual recognition,procedure (MRP). The necessary national approvals ...
... CRVL ) fiscal year earnings release, CorVel,will be conducting a conference call that ... Eastern Time., Event: CorVel Corporation Fiscal ... Gordon ... Time, Tuesday, June 10th, 2008, Login: ...
Cached Biology Technology:Collaborative Software Initiative Addresses State Governments' Requirements for Meeting Infectious Disease Compliance 2Collaborative Software Initiative Addresses State Governments' Requirements for Meeting Infectious Disease Compliance 3Collaborative Software Initiative Addresses State Governments' Requirements for Meeting Infectious Disease Compliance 4Pharmaxis' Aridol Authorised for Sale in Germany 2Pharmaxis' Aridol Authorised for Sale in Germany 3CorVel Corporation Announces Earnings Release Webcast 2
...
Normal human serum collected off the clot from healthy normal humans. Each donor unit is negative for anti-HIV 1&2, HIV-Ag, HCV, and HBsAg by FDA required tests...
Normal human AB serum, pooled...
sterile filtered, off the clot, all male donors, Total Protein: 4.5 to 8.5 g/dl...
Biology Products: