Ataxin active site determination using spectral distribution of electron ion interaction potentials of amino acids.

Ataxia is a genetic neurological disorder characterised by a neurodegenerative process affecting a motor cortex responsible for balance and coordination. Recently several genes that cause autosomal dominant ataxia development were identified. These abnormal genes share a common ability to produce abnormal ataxin proteins that can affect nerve cells in the cerebellum and spinal cord. Here, using the Resonant Recognition Model (RRM) based on signal processing, we analysed ataxin proteins and identified the characteristic features corresponding to their biological activities. The RRM is a physico-mathematical model developed for analysis of protein interactions. By incorporating Smoothed Pseudo Wigner-Ville distribution (SPWV) in the RRM, we can define the active regions along the protein molecule. The results showed that our computational predictions correspond closely with the experimentally identified locations of the active/binding sites for ataxin-1 and ataxin-3 protein groups. The results obtained provide a valuable insight into the functional performance of ataxin proteins.

Non-thermal effects of 500MHz - 900MHz microwave radiation on enzyme kinetics.

Enzymes are essential for the catalysis of biochemical reactions and in the regulation of metabolic pathways. They function by greatly accelerating the rate of specific chemical reactions that would otherwise be slow. It has been shown that extremely low-power microwaves can influence enzyme activity [1-5]. This study is focused at investigating the effects of low level microwave exposures ranging from 500MHz to 900MHz on L-Lactate Dehydrogenase (LDH) enzyme activity. The results obtained revealed the increased bioactivity of the LDH upon microwave radiation at two particular frequencies 500MHz and 900MHz.

Influence of electromagnetic radiation on enzyme kinetics.

This study is focused on experimental validation of our hypothesis proposed within the Resonant Recognition Model (RRM) [7], [8] that protein function can be modified by an applied electromagnetic radiation of defined frequency in a range of infra red (IR), visible and ultra violet (UV) light. This postulate is investigated here by applying the electromagnetic radiation (1140-1200 nm) to example of L-Lactate Dehydrogenase (LDH) protein and its biological activity is measured before and after the exposures. The presented methodology provides a possibility of enhancing the pharmaceutical and agricultural industries by amplifying drug potency via electromagnetic radiation.

The relationship of the resonant recognition model to effects of low-intensity light on cell growth.

The resonant recognition model (RRM) is a model of protein-protein and protein-DNA interaction based on a significant correlation between spectra of numerical presentation of the amino acid or nucleotide sequences and their biological activity. Having compared absorption characteristics of photosensitive proteins with their RRM spectral characteristics we obtained a linear correlation between the RRM frequency space and real frequency space, which determines a scaling factor between these two frequency spaces. On applying the RRM model to several groups of peptide growth factors, characteristic RRM frequencies were revealed and the corresponding real characteristic frequencies for these groups of growth factors were calculated using the scaling factor previously obtained. The real frequency characteristics of growth factors obtained in this way correspond with maxima in the action spectra of low-intensity light irradiation effects on cell proliferation.

Prediction of "hot spots" in interleukin-2 based on informational spectrum characteristics of growth-regulating factors. Comparison with experimental data.

The Resonant Recognition Model (RRM) is a theoretical method for analysis of protein and nucleotide sequences, based on the Fourier transform of the numerical representation of sequences. The amplitude spectrum of this transform is designated Informational Spectrum (IS). There are certain common frequencies in IS of growth-regulating factors. These characteristic frequencies may correlate with their roles in cell proliferation and metabolism, and in antitumor activity. IS of IL-2 has prominent characteristics in the main frequency domain of growth factors, frequency domain of antitumor factors, and frequency domain characteristic for IL-2-alpha receptor. By means of the inverse method for these 3 domains, the amino acids in the sequence of human IL-2 that may be relevant to its biological function, the so-called "hot spots", were predicted. The most probable hot spots, obtained in this way, are in the potential binding site of IL-2 to its receptor, which agrees with experimental data.