[Direct anticoagulants for atrial fibrillation. Update 2014]. / Direkte Antikoagulanzien bei Vorhofflimmern. Update 2014.

For several decades vitamin K antagonists (VKA) were the standard for stroke prevention in atrial fibrillation. Because of inconvenience associated with their use (frequently VKA levels cannot be consistently maintained within the therapeutic range, e.g. due to food and drug interactions, which necessitates regular control of international normalized ratios) alternative compounds have recently been developed, the direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) dabigatran (a direct antithrombin) as well as rivaroxaban, apixaban and edoxaban (direct factor Xa inhibitors). All these agents show a predictable pharmacokinetic profile making routine laboratory controls unnecessary. Moreover, DOACs do not only show a similar or even better efficacy, but also a more attractive safety profile in terms of similar or less major bleeding complications, where all DOACs significantly reduce the rate of intracranial bleeding when compared to VKAs. This review summarizes the pharmacological characteristics and clinical study results of DOACs that have been tested in phase 3 trials.

Crystal structure of the ffh and EF-G binding sites in the conserved domain IV of Escherichia coli 4.5S RNA.

BACKGROUND: Bacterial signal recognition particle (SRP), consisting of 4.5S RNA and Ffh protein, plays an essential role in targeting signal-peptide-containing proteins to the secretory apparatus in the cell membrane. The 4.5S RNA increases the affinity of Ffh for signal peptides and is essential for the interaction between SRP and its receptor, protein FtsY. The 4.5S RNA also interacts with elongation factor G (EF-G) in the ribosome and this interaction is required for efficient translation. RESULTS: We have determined by multiple anomalous dispersion (MAD) with Lu(3+) the 2.7 A crystal structure of a 4.5S RNA fragment containing binding sites for both Ffh and EF-G. This fragment consists of three helices connected by a symmetric and an asymmetric internal loop. In contrast to NMR-derived structures reported previously, the symmetric loop is entirely constituted by non-canonical base pairs. These pairs continuously stack and project unusual sets of hydrogen-bond donors and acceptors into the shallow minor groove. The structure can therefore be regarded as two double helical rods hinged by the asymmetric loop that protrudes from one strand. CONCLUSIONS: Based on our crystal structure and results of chemical protection experiments reported previously, we predicted that Ffh binds to the minor groove of the symmetric loop. An identical decanucleotide sequence is found in the EF-G binding sites of both 4.5S RNA and 23S rRNA. The decanucleotide structure in the 4.5S RNA and the ribosomal protein L11-RNA complex crystals suggests how 4.5S RNA and 23S rRNA might interact with EF-G and function in translating ribosomes.

A versatile expression vector for the in vitro study of protein-protein interactions: characterization of E47 mutant proteins.

Several mutants of the E47 protein, a member of the family of basic/helix-loop-helix (b-HLH) transcriptional regulators, were examined for their ability to homo- and heterodimerize with the protein product of the T-cell oncogene tal-1/SCL. For this purpose, a novel bacterial expression system was developed in which proteins are expressed as fusions appended to glutathione-S-transferase via a thrombin cleavage site and either one or four protein kinase recognition sites embedded in a glycine-rich domain. Since the interaction domain can be purified away from the glutathione-S-transferase moiety and the radioactive label is located in a flexible N-terminal tag, protein folding should occur normally. Our studies with E47 proteins prepared in this system indicate that the ratio between E47 homodimers and E47/tal-1 heterodimers can dramatically shift upon subtle mutations in the loop region and the second helix of the E47 protein. This unexpected results suggests a novel mechanism to alter the equilibrium between different transactivating protein complexes of the b-HLH class.

Identification of interaction partners for the basic-helix-loop-helix protein E47.

Helix-loop-helix proteins constitute a family of transcription factors with the potential to form homo- and hetero-dimers mediated by the helix-loop-helix domain. Oncogenic mutations in such genes can disrupt the equilibrium of protein-protein interactions in the affected cell. In order to assess the biological consequences of such mutations, the full complement of interacting proteins must be known. To identify proteins interacting with the basic-helix-loop-helix domain of the ubiquitously expressed E47 protein, a 'sandwich'-screening procedure was developed which distinguishes between homo- and hetero-oligomers, and specifically excludes the detection of complexes which cannot bind DNA. Nine distinct cDNAs were identified which encode proteins with apparent basic-helix-loop-helix domains, including a novel clone termed eip1 which is distantly related in the basic-helix-loop-helix domain to the Drosophila enhancer-of-split m7 protein. Using epitope-tagging, interaction of E47 basic-helix-loop-helix protein with the eip1 protein encoded by this novel cDNA was confirmed by immunoprecipitation experiments in COS7 cells. Interaction was also observed in the yeast two-hybrid system. Three cDNAs encoding proteins without basic-helix-loop-helix domains were also found to interact in the sandwich-expression screen. Interactions with human PARP and mouse replication factor 1a were confirmed using glutathione transferase-tagged cDNAs. A cDNA encoding part of the nucleolin protein sequence interacted with the E47 basic-helix-loop-helix only when fused to a beta-galactosidase tag.

Crystallization and preliminary X-ray analysis of the conserved domain IV of escherichia coli 4.5S RNA. erratum

In the paper by Jovine et al. [Acta Cryst. (2000), D56, 1033-1037] the name of the second author was given incorrectly. The correct name should be Tobias Hainzl as given above.