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1.
Antimicrob Agents Chemother ; 67(12): e0089523, 2023 12 14.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-37971241

RESUMO

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) acquires high-level resistance against ß-lactam antibiotics by expressing penicillin-binding protein 2a (PBP2a). PBP2a is a cell wall-synthesizing protein whose closed active site exhibits a reduced binding affinity toward ß-lactam antibiotics. Ceftaroline (CFT), a fifth-generation cephalosporin, can effectively inhibit the PBP2a activity by binding to an allosteric site to trigger the active site opening, allowing a second CFT to access the active site. However, the essential mechanism behind the allosteric behavior of PBP2a remains unclear. Herein, computational simulations are employed to elucidate how CFT allosterically regulates the conformation and dynamics of the active site of PBP2a. While CFT stabilizes the allosteric domain surrounding it, it simultaneously enhances the dynamics of the catalytic domain. Specifically, the study successfully captured the opening process of the active pocket in the allosteric CFT-bound systems and discovered that CFT alters the potential signal-propagating pathways from the allosteric site to the active site. These findings reveal the implied mechanism of the CFT-mediated allostery in PBP2a and provide new insights into dual-site drug design or combination therapy against MRSA targeting PBP2a.


Assuntos
Antibacterianos , Staphylococcus aureus Resistente à Meticilina , Antibacterianos/química , Proteínas de Ligação às Penicilinas , Regulação Alostérica , Proteínas de Bactérias/metabolismo , Testes de Sensibilidade Microbiana
2.
Phys Chem Chem Phys ; 25(38): 26081-26093, 2023 Oct 04.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-37740294

RESUMO

Two-dimensional kagome metals possess rich band structure characteristics, including Dirac points, flat bands, and van Hove singularities, because of their special geometric structures. Furthermore, kagome metals AV3Sb5 (A = K, Rb, and Cs) have garnered significant attention due to their nontrivial topological electronic structures. In this study, we theoretically demonstrate that the KV3Sb5 (001) surface is conducive to CO2 and CO reduction. The thermodynamic stability and electrochemical states of various surface types are investigated. The reaction paths reveal that the product is identical on different surfaces, and the free energy profiles exhibit low onset potentials. This paper elucidates the effect of two-dimensional topological kagome metals on CO2 and CO reduction.

3.
J Chem Inf Model ; 62(21): 5110-5119, 2022 Nov 14.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-34464108

RESUMO

Parathyroid hormone (PTH) is an endogenous ligand that activates the PTH type 1 receptor (PTH1R) signaling. Ca2+, a common second messenger, acts as an allosteric regulator for prolonging the activation of PTH1R. However, a clear picture of the underlying allosteric mechanism is still missing. Herein, extensive molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are performed for PTH1R-PTH complexes with and without Ca2+ ions, allowing us to delineate the molecular details of calcium-induced allostery. Our results indicate that acidic residues in the extracellular loop 1 (ECL1) (D251, E252, E254, and E258-E260) and PTH (E19 and E22) serve as key determinants for local Ca2+-coupling structures and rigidity of ECL1. Moreover, the binding of Ca2+ induces conformational changes of transmembrane domain 6/7 (TM6/7) that are related to PTH1R activation and strengthens the residue-residue communication within PTH and TMD allosterically. Moreover, our results demonstrate that the presence of Ca2+ ions potentiates the interaction between PTH and PTH1R via steered molecular dynamics (SMD) simulations, while the point mutation in the PTH (PTHR25C) weakens the binding of PTH and PTH1R. These results support that Ca2+ ions might further prolong the residence time of PTH on PTH1R and facilitate the positive allostery of PTH1R. Together, the present work provides new insights into the allosteric regulation mechanism of GPCRs induced by ions and related drug design targeting the PTH1R allosteric pathway.


Assuntos
Hormônio Paratireóideo , Receptor Tipo 1 de Hormônio Paratireóideo , Humanos , Regulação Alostérica , Cálcio/metabolismo , Hormônio Paratireóideo/química , Hormônio Paratireóideo/genética , Hormônio Paratireóideo/metabolismo , Receptor Tipo 1 de Hormônio Paratireóideo/genética , Receptor Tipo 1 de Hormônio Paratireóideo/metabolismo , Transdução de Sinais
4.
Molecules ; 27(12)2022 Jun 15.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-35744964

RESUMO

Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is an intensively focused target for anti-tumor compounds used in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) therapy. Compared to the classical activating mutations, there are still many uncommon EGFR mutations associated with poorer responses to EGFR inhibitors. A detailed understanding of the molecular basis for multiple EGFR mutants exhibiting diverse responses to inhibitors is of critical importance for related drug development. Herein, we explored the molecular determinants contributing to the distinct responses of EGFR with a single rare mutation (G719S) or combined mutations (G719S/L858R and G719S/l861Q) to Gefitinib (IRE). Our results indicated that interactions, formed within the tetrad of residues S768 (in the αC-helix), D770 (in the αC-ß4 loop), Y827 (in the αE-helix), and R831 (in the catalytic loop), play an important role in the stability of αC-helix and the maintenance of K745-E762 salt bridge in the absence of IRE, which are weakened in the EGFRG719S system and enhanced in the EGFRG719S/L858R system upon IRE binding. Besides, the introduced hydrogen bonds by the co-occurring mutation partner also contribute to the stability of αC-helix. The work done for inhibitor dissociation suggests that IRE exhibits a stronger binding affinity to EGFRG719S/L858R mutant. Together, these findings provide a deeper understanding of minor mutations, which is essential for drug development targeting EGFR with less common mutations.


Assuntos
Carcinoma Pulmonar de Células não Pequenas , Neoplasias Pulmonares , Carcinoma Pulmonar de Células não Pequenas/tratamento farmacológico , Carcinoma Pulmonar de Células não Pequenas/genética , Carcinoma Pulmonar de Células não Pequenas/metabolismo , Receptores ErbB/metabolismo , Gefitinibe/farmacologia , Humanos , Neoplasias Pulmonares/tratamento farmacológico , Neoplasias Pulmonares/genética , Neoplasias Pulmonares/metabolismo , Mutação , Inibidores de Proteínas Quinases/química , Quinazolinas/farmacologia
5.
Phys Chem Chem Phys ; 23(3): 2154-2165, 2021 Jan 28.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-33438687

RESUMO

Detection of cytosolic dsDNA by cyclic GMP-AMP synthase (cGAS) is critical for the immune system to sense and fight against infection, but chronic activation of cGAS by self-DNA leads to autoimmune diseases without effective treatment yet. It was found that acetylation on either Lys384, Lys394, or Lys414 could inhibit the catalytic production of cGAMP by cGAS, and further suppressed self-DNA-induced autoimmunity. However, the implied mechanism remains unclear. Here, extensive molecular dynamics simulations combined with multiple analytical approaches were employed to uncover the allosteric inhibition mechanisms by using the K-to-Q mutations to mimic acetylation. Results suggested that the exterior loops contributed most to the conformational dynamics of cGAS, and two concerted intrinsic motions were observed: the inward/outward or twisting movement for the outer appendage of lobe 1 and the open/closed swing of the active-site loops. Mutations slightly affected the binding of dsDNA and cGAMP. The shift of the conformational sampling of the active-site loops or residues around cGAMP upon mutation might potentially explain the inhibition of cGAS activity. Moreover, the intra- and inter-molecular coupling was weakened upon mutations more or less but via distinct pathways. Hence, conformational dynamics play a vital role in the allosteric inhibition of cGAS upon the studied acetyl-mimic mutations. As the studied acetyl-mimic mutations are located at either the inter-lobe or inter-molecular interfaces, hence except for acetylation, our findings might help the development of new therapeutics against autoimmune diseases due to abnormal cGAS activation by designing inter-lobe or intermolecular allosteric inhibitors.


Assuntos
Nucleotidiltransferases/antagonistas & inibidores , Nucleotidiltransferases/genética , Regulação Alostérica , DNA/metabolismo , Humanos , Simulação de Dinâmica Molecular , Mutação , Nucleotídeos Cíclicos/metabolismo , Nucleotidiltransferases/metabolismo , Ligação Proteica , Conformação Proteica
6.
Zhonghua Yi Xue Yi Chuan Xue Za Zhi ; 38(6): 513-520, 2021 Jun 10.
Artigo em Zh | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-34096016

RESUMO

The use of whole exome sequencing (WES) for the detection of disease-causing variants of genetic diseases and for non-invasive prenatal screening (NIPS) of fetal aneuploidies are two major clinical applications of next generation sequencing (NGS). This article has summarized the official documents developed and updated by the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG) on governing WES and NIPS. These include the development of expert consensus policies and position statements on an ongoing basis to guide clinical application of NGS technology and variant analysis, establish evidence-based practical resources, as well as standards and guidelines to govern diagnosis and screening. These ACMG documents are valuable references to Chinese geneticists, but direct adoption of these standards and guidelines may not be practical due to the differences in disease-associated variant frequencies in Chinese population, socioeconomic status, and medical practice between the two countries. It is hoped that this review could facilitate the development of NGS and NIPS standards and guidelines that are consistent with international standards and concordant with medical genetics practice in China to provide high-quality, efficient and safe clinical services for patients and their families with genetic diseases.


Assuntos
Genômica , Sequenciamento de Nucleotídeos em Larga Escala , China , Consenso , Feminino , Humanos , Gravidez , Tecnologia , Estados Unidos
7.
Biomed Chromatogr ; 34(7): e4833, 2020 Jul.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-32198769

RESUMO

The identification and quantization of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) are a challenge for researchers and industry. Using untargeted analytical methods, the in vivo detection and identification of TCM compounds are difficult because of the significant interference of endogenous substances. Fortunately, the ongoing development of new analytical technologies, especially Q-Orbitrap-MS, offers some solutions. Our team developed a holistic MS method, combining untargeted data-dependent MS2 (dd-MS2 ) modes to extensively identify TCM prototypes in vivo. The method was successfully applied to the analysis of Ligustri Lucidi Fructus (LLF). LLF is a widely used TCM with a remarkable nourishing effect on the liver and kidney. In the study, we aimed to identify the prototypes in rat plasma after oral administration of LLF extract. Following separation on an HSS T3 column, LLF extract and rat plasma were performed in untargeted dd-MS2 mode. Forty-seven compounds were characterized in rats plasma as prototypes of LLF extract. Furthermore, seven major prototypes were chosen as pharmacokinetic markers to investigate LLF's pharmacokinetic properties. The results provides comprehensive determination of compounds in LLF both in vitro and in vivo, which is important for quality control, pharmacology studies and clinical use of LLF.


Assuntos
Medicamentos de Ervas Chinesas , Glicosídeos , Iridoides , Ligustrum/química , Administração Oral , Animais , Cromatografia Líquida de Alta Pressão , Cromatografia de Fase Reversa , Medicamentos de Ervas Chinesas/administração & dosagem , Medicamentos de Ervas Chinesas/farmacocinética , Frutas/química , Glicosídeos/sangue , Glicosídeos/química , Glicosídeos/farmacocinética , Iridoides/sangue , Iridoides/química , Iridoides/farmacocinética , Masculino , Medicina Tradicional Chinesa , Ratos , Ratos Sprague-Dawley , Espectrometria de Massas por Ionização por Electrospray , Espectrometria de Massas em Tandem/métodos
8.
Int Arch Allergy Immunol ; 164(3): 210-7, 2014.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-25138246

RESUMO

BACKGROUND: To date, no predictive methods for the clinical response to allergy immunotherapy (AIT) are available. We sought to evaluate the pretreatment parameters used in diagnosing allergic asthma and/or rhinitis including allergen skin-prick test responses, serum specific and total IgE (sIgE and tIgE) levels and blood eosinophil counts, and to identify whether these can be used to predict clinical effectiveness in children treated with immunotherapy. METHODS: This study involved 185 children who had undergone 3 years of standardized-quality house-dust mite subcutaneous immunotherapy. Clinical characteristics and laboratory parameters were analyzed. A multivariate unconditional logistic regression model and receiver operating characteristic curves were used. Predicted probabilities and predictive areas under the curve were calculated. RESULTS: The clinical response to AIT was effective in 129/185 (69.7%) patients. Four variables were associated with clinical response by multivariate logistic analysis: tobacco smoke exposure [odds ratio (OR) 2.845 and 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.147-7.058; p = 0.024], a family history of atopy (OR 2.881 and 95% CI 1.240-6.692; p = 0.014), a serum tIgE level ≥965 kU/l (OR 5.917 and 95% CI 2.320-15.089; p = 0.000) and an sIgE/tIgE ratio ≥6% (OR 0.336 and 95% CI 0.124-0.911; p = 0.032). The sensitivity and specificity of the area under the curve of the serum tIgE were higher than those of serum sIgE and sIgE/tIgE ratio alone. CONCLUSION: Tobacco smoke exposure, atopic family history, serum tIgE and sIgE/tIgE ratio were in significant correlation with clinical response to AIT in children, which may be helpful for patient selection before immunotherapy. The serum tIgE is superior to both the serum sIgE/tIgE ratio and sIgE levels alone in predicting clinical effectiveness.


Assuntos
Asma/terapia , Dessensibilização Imunológica , Rinite Alérgica Perene/terapia , Adolescente , Alérgenos/imunologia , Animais , Asma/diagnóstico , Asma/imunologia , Criança , Pré-Escolar , Eosinófilos , Feminino , Humanos , Imunoglobulina E/sangue , Contagem de Leucócitos , Masculino , Pyroglyphidae/imunologia , Curva ROC , Estudos Retrospectivos , Rinite Alérgica Perene/diagnóstico , Rinite Alérgica Perene/imunologia , Testes Cutâneos , Fumaça/efeitos adversos , Poluição por Fumaça de Tabaco , Resultado do Tratamento
9.
ACS Chem Neurosci ; 15(4): 844-853, 2024 02 21.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38314550

RESUMO

Parathyroid hormone (PTH) type 1 receptor (PTH1R), as a typical class B1 G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR), is responsible for regulating bone turnover and maintaining calcium homeostasis, and its dysregulation has been implicated in the development of several diseases. The extracellular domain (ECD) of PTH1R is crucial for the recognition and binding of ligands, and the receptor may exhibit an autoinhibited state with the closure of the ECD in the absence of ligands. However, the correlation between ECD conformations and PTH1R activation remains unclear. Thus, this study combines enhanced sampling molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and Markov state models (MSMs) to reveal the possible relevance between the ECD conformations and the activation of PTH1R. First, 22 intermediate structures are generated from the autoinhibited state to the active state and conducted for 10 independent 200 ns simulations each. Then, the MSM is constructed based on the cumulative 44 µs simulations with six identified microstates. Finally, the potential interplay between ECD conformational changes and PTH1R activation as well as cryptic allosteric pockets in the intermediate states during receptor activation is revealed. Overall, our findings reveal that the activation of PTH1R has a specific correlation with ECD conformational changes and provide essential insights for GPCR biology and developing novel allosteric modulators targeting cryptic sites.


Assuntos
Simulação de Dinâmica Molecular , Transdução de Sinais , Receptor Tipo 1 de Hormônio Paratireóideo/química , Receptor Tipo 1 de Hormônio Paratireóideo/metabolismo , Sequência de Aminoácidos , Ligação Proteica , Receptores Acoplados a Proteínas G/metabolismo , Hormônio Paratireóideo/química , Hormônio Paratireóideo/metabolismo
10.
J Biomol Struct Dyn ; : 1-12, 2024 Feb 24.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38400730

RESUMO

5-enolpyruvyl shikimate-3-phosphate synthase (EPSPS), as an indispensable enzyme in the shikimate pathway, is the specific target of grasser killer glyphosate (GPJ). GPJ is a competitive inhibitor of phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP), which is the natural substrate of EPSPS. A novel Ls-EPSPS gene variant discovered from Liliaceae, named ELs-EPSPS, includes five distal mutations, E112V, D142N, T351S, D425G, and R496G, endowing high GPJ insensitivity. However, the implicit molecular mechanism of the enhanced tolerance/insensitivity of GPJ in ELs-EPSPS is not fully understood. Herein, we try to interpret the hidden molecular mechanism using computational methods. Computational results reveal the enhanced flexibility of apo EPSPS upon mutations. The enhanced affinity of the initial binding substrate shikimate-3-phosphate (S3P), and the higher probability of second ligands PEP/GPJ entering the pocket are observed in the ELs-EPSPS-S3P system. Docking and MD results further confirmed the decreased GPJ-induced EPSPS inhibition upon mutations. And, the alterations of K98 and R179 side-chain orientations upon mutations are detrimental to GPJ binding at the active site. Additionally, the oscillation of side chain K98, in charge of PEP location, improves the proximity effect for substrates in the dual-substrate systems upon mutations. Our results clarify that the enhanced GPJ tolerance of EPSPS is achieved from decreased competitive inhibition of GPJ at the atomic perspective, and this finding further contributes to the cultivation of EPSPS genes with higher GPJ tolerance/insensitivity and a mighty renovation for developing glyphosate-resistant crops.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

11.
J Agric Food Chem ; 72(3): 1539-1549, 2024 Jan 24.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38226494

RESUMO

The lethal mutation C423D in Fusarium graminearum myosin I (FgMyoI) occurs close to the binding pocket of the allosteric inhibitor phenamacril and causes severe inhibition on mycelial growth of F. graminearum strain PH-1. Here, based on extensive Gaussian accelerated molecular dynamics simulations and wet experiments, we elucidate the underlying molecular mechanism of the abnormal functioning of the FgMyoIC423D mutant at the atomistic level. Our results suggest that the damaging mutation C423D exhibits a synergistic allosteric inhibition mechanism similar to but more robust than that of phenamacril, including effects on the active site and actin binding. Unlike phenamacril-induced closure of Switch2, the mutation results in unfolding of the N-terminal relay helix with a partially opened Switch2 and blocks the structural rearrangement of the relay/SH1 helices, impairing the proper initiation of the recovery stroke. Due to the significant influence of C423D mutation on the function of FgMyoI, designing covalent inhibitors targeting this site holds tremendous potential.


Assuntos
Cianoacrilatos , Fungicidas Industriais , Fusarium , Miosina Tipo I/genética , Fungicidas Industriais/farmacologia , Mutação , Simulação de Dinâmica Molecular
12.
J Agric Food Chem ; 2024 Jul 03.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-38959424

RESUMO

Phenamacril (PHA) is a highly selective fungicide for controlling fusarium head blight (FHB) mainly caused by F. graminearum and F. asiaticum. However, the C423A mutation in myosin I of F. graminearum (FgMyoI) leads to natural resistance to PHA. Here, based on the computational approaches and biochemical validation, we elucidate the atomic-level mechanism behind the natural resistance of F. graminearum to the fungicide PHA due to the C423A mutation in FgMyoI. The mutation leads to a rearrangement of pocket residues, resulting in increased size and flexibility of the binding pocket, which impairs the stable binding of PHA. MST experiments confirm that the mutant protein FgMyoIC423A exhibits significantly reduced affinity for PHA compared to wild-type FgMyoI and the nonresistant C423K mutant. This decreased binding affinity likely underlies the development of PHA resistance in F. graminearum. Conversely, the nonresistant C423K mutant retains sensitivity to PHA due to the introduction of a strong hydrogen bond donor, which facilitates stable binding of PHA in the pocket. These findings shed light on the molecular basis of PHA resistance and provide new directions for the creation of new myosin inhibitors.

13.
Curr Med Chem ; 30(40): 4533-4553, 2023.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-36642879

RESUMO

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) represent a large superfamily of cell-surface proteins that mediate cell signaling and regulate virtually various aspects of physiological and pathological processes, therefore serving as a rich source of drug targets. As intrinsically allosteric proteins, numerous functions of GPCRs are regulated via allostery, whereby allosteric modulators binding at a distal site regulate the function of the typical orthosteric site. However, only a few GPCR allosteric ligands have been presently approved as drugs due to the high dynamic structures of GPCRs. Fortunately, the rapid development of computational biology sheds light on understanding the mechanism of GPCR allosteric ligands, which is critical for the discovery of new therapeutic agents. Here, we present a comprehensive overview of the currently available resources and approaches in computational biology related to G protein-coupled receptor allostery and their conformational dynamics. In addition, current limitations and major challenges in the field are also discussed accordingly.


Assuntos
Biologia Computacional , Sítio Alostérico , Biologia Computacional/métodos , Receptores Acoplados a Proteínas G/química , Receptores Acoplados a Proteínas G/metabolismo , Modelos Moleculares , Estrutura Terciária de Proteína , Cálcio/química , Cálcio/metabolismo
14.
Biomolecules ; 13(3)2023 02 26.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-36979378

RESUMO

Phthalate esters (PAEs) are a ubiquitous kind of environmental endocrine that disrupt chemicals, causing environmental and health issues. EstJ6 is an effective phthalate-degrading hydrolase, and its mutant with a combination of three non-conservative distal mutations has an improved activity against PAEs with unknown molecular mechanisms. Herein, we attempt to fill the significant gap between distal mutations and the activity of this enzyme using computational approaches. We found that mutations resulted in a redistribution of the enzyme's preexisting conformational states and dynamic changes of key functional regions, especially the lid over the active site. The outward motion of the lid upon the mutations made it easier for substrates or products to enter or exit. Additionally, a stronger substrate binding affinity and conformational rearrangements of catalytic reaction-associated residues in the mutant, accompanied by the strengthened communication within the protein, could synergistically contribute to the elevated catalytic efficiency. Finally, an attempt was made to improve the thermostability of EstJ6 upon introducing a distal disulfide bond between residues A23 and A29, and the simulation results were as expected. Together, our work explored the allosteric effects caused by distal mutations, which could provide insights into the rational design of esterases for industrial applications in the future.


Assuntos
Hidrolases , Ácidos Ftálicos , Hidrolases/metabolismo , Mutação , Domínio Catalítico
15.
Pest Manag Sci ; 79(12): 4977-4989, 2023 Dec.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-37540764

RESUMO

BACKGROUND: Myosin plays a crucial role in cellular processes, while its dysfunction can lead to organismal malfunction. Phenamacril (PHA), a highly species-specific and non-competitive inhibitor of myosin I (FgMyoI) from Fusarium graminearum, has been identified as an effective fungicide for controlling plant diseases caused by partial Fusarium pathogens, such as wheat scab and rice bakanae. However, the molecular basis of its action is still unclear. RESULTS: This study used multiple computational approaches first to elucidate the allosteric inhibition mechanism of FgMyoI by PHA at the atomistic level. The results indicated the increase of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) binding affinity upon PHA binding, which might impede the release of hydrolysis products. Furthermore, simulations revealed a broadened outer cleft and a significantly more flexible interface for actin binding, accompanied by a decrease in signaling transduction from the catalytic center to the actin-binding interface. These various effects might work together to disrupt the actomyosin cycle and hinder the ability of motor to generate force. Our experimental results further confirmed that PHA reduces the enzymatic activity of myosin and its binding with actin. CONCLUSION: Therefore, our findings demonstrated that PHA might suppress the function of myosin through a synergistic mechanism, providing new insights into myosin allostery and offering new avenues for drug/fungicide discovery targeting myosin. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.


Assuntos
Fungicidas Industriais , Fungicidas Industriais/farmacologia , Actinas , Miosinas/química , Cianoacrilatos/farmacologia
16.
Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol ; 109(3): 190-4, 2012 Sep.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-22920074

RESUMO

BACKGROUND: Asthma is the most common chronic respiratory disease seriously endangering the health of children. But disease awareness and self-management skills are relatively poor in children; parents play an important role in the control of childhood asthma. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the status of asthma control and severity of asthma in children and to identify impact factors. METHODS: We studied 1 tertiary hospital in each of the 29 provinces. A total of 2,960 parents with children with asthma who visited those hospitals were selected for the knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) questionnaire survey, and separated into the controlled asthma group and uncontrolled asthma group according to children's asthma conditions in the past 12 months. Multivariate analysis was carried out based on the answers to 28 tested factors. RESULTS: In the past 12 months, 66.0% of children with asthma had asthma attacks, 26.8% visited an emergency room, and 16.2% were hospitalized. The total cost for asthma was significantly higher in the uncontrolled group than controlled group (χ(2) = 23.14, P < .01). Twelve protective factors of asthma control were founded, such as older age of children, long disease course, high KAP scores of parents, compliance with using nasal steroids, and knowledge of "3 or more times recurrent wheezing suggesting asthma." The risk factors were eczema and family history of asthma. CONCLUSION: Children's asthma is poorly controlled. The cost of asthma is significantly higher in uncontrolled asthma than in controlled. The age of children, course of asthma, personal history of allergy, family history of asthma, parents' education level, and parents' KAP are factors that affect asthma control.


Assuntos
Asma/epidemiologia , Asma/prevenção & controle , Conhecimentos, Atitudes e Prática em Saúde , Pais/psicologia , Adolescente , Adulto , Criança , Pré-Escolar , China/epidemiologia , Feminino , Humanos , Lactente , Recém-Nascido , Masculino , Análise Multivariada , Fatores de Risco , Inquéritos e Questionários
17.
Membranes (Basel) ; 12(6)2022 Jun 06.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-35736303

RESUMO

Phthalic acid esters (PAEs) are typical environmental endocrine disrupters, interfering with the endocrine system of organisms at very low concentrations. The plasma membrane is the first barrier for organic pollutants to enter the organism, so membrane permeability is a key factor affecting their biological toxicity. In this study, based on computational approaches, we investigated the permeation and intramembrane aggregation of typical PAEs (dimethyl phthalate, DMP; dibutyl phthalate, DBP; di-2-ethyl hexyl phthalate, DEHP), as well as their effects on membrane properties, and related molecular mechanisms were uncovered. Our results suggested that PAEs could enter the membrane spontaneously, preferring the headgroup-acyl chain interface of the bilayer, and the longer the side chain (DEHP > DBP > DMP), the deeper the insertion. Compared with the shortest DMP, DEHP apparently increased membrane thickness, order, and rigidity, which might be due to its stronger hydrophobicity. Potential of means force (PMF) analysis revealed the presence of an energy barrier located at the water-membrane interface, with a maximum value of 2.14 kcal mol−1 obtained in the DEHP-system. Therefore, the difficulty of membrane insertion is also positively correlated with the side-chain length or hydrophobicity of PAE molecules. These findings will inspire our understanding of structure-activity relationship between PAEs and their effects on membrane properties, and provide a scientific basis for the formulation of environmental pollution standards and the prevention and control of small molecule pollutants.

18.
ACS Chem Neurosci ; 13(11): 1666-1674, 2022 06 01.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-35543321

RESUMO

The parathyroid hormone type 1 receptor (PTH1R), a canonical class B GPCR, is regulated by a positive allosteric modulator, extracellular Ca2+. Calcium ions prolong the residence time of PTH on the PTH1R, leading to increased receptor activation and duration of cAMP signaling. But the essential mechanism of the allosteric behavior of PTH1R is not fully understood. Here, extensive molecular dynamics (MD) simulations are performed for the PTH1R-G-protein combinations with and without Ca2+ to describe how calcium ions allosterically engage receptor-G-protein coupling. We find that the binding of Ca2+ stabilizes the conformation of the PTH1R-PTH-spep (the α5 helix of Gs protein) complex, especially the extracellular loop 1 (ECL1). Moreover, the MM-GBSA result indicates that Ca2+ allosterically promotes the interaction between PTH1R and spep, consistent with the observation of steered molecular dynamics (SMD) simulations. We further illuminate the possible allosteric signaling pathway from the stable Ca2+-coupling site to the intracellular G-protein binding site. These results unveil structural determinants for Ca2+ allosterism in the PTH1R-PTH-spep complex and give insights into pluridimensional GPCR signaling regulated by calcium ions.


Assuntos
Cálcio , Hormônio Paratireóideo , Cálcio/metabolismo , Proteínas de Ligação ao GTP/metabolismo , Simulação de Dinâmica Molecular , Hormônio Paratireóideo/química , Hormônio Paratireóideo/metabolismo , Receptor Tipo 1 de Hormônio Paratireóideo/química , Receptor Tipo 1 de Hormônio Paratireóideo/metabolismo
19.
ACS Appl Mater Interfaces ; 14(6): 8171-8178, 2022 Feb 16.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-35107249

RESUMO

SnTe has been regarded as a potential alternative to PbTe in thermoelectrics because of its environmentally friendly features. However, it is a challenge to optimize its thermoelectric (TE) performance as it has an inherent high hole concentration (nH∼2 × 1020 cm-3) and low mobility (µH∼18 cm2 V-1 s-1) at room temperature (RT), arising from a high intrinsic Sn vacancy concentration and large energy separation between its light and heavy valence bands. Therefore, its TE figure of merit is only 0.38 at ∼900 K. Herein, both the electronic and phonon transports of SnTe were engineered by alloying species Ag0.5Bi0.5Se and ZnO in succession, thus increasing the Seebeck coefficient and, at the same time, reducing the thermal conductivity. As a result, the TE performance improves significantly with the peak ZT value of ∼1.2 at ∼870 K for the sample (SnGe0.03Te)0.9(Ag0.5Bi0.5Se)0.1 + 1.0 wt % ZnO. This result proves that synergistic engineering of the electronic and phonon transports in SnTe is a good approach to improve its TE performance.

20.
Anal Chim Acta ; 1221: 340143, 2022 Aug 15.
Artigo em Inglês | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-35934375

RESUMO

Damaging the structure of the G-quadruplex (G4) to prevent the formation of the G4/hemin complex is presently the only available method to inhibit the activity of the peroxidase-mimic DNAzyme. In this study, a unique intramolecular inhibitory effect of the adjacent base-pair (InE(N:N)), by installing a rationally adjacent base-pair of the G4 core sequence, is proposed for the inhibition of the DNAzyme activity, which eliminates the need to damage the entire G4 structure. Various base pairs show different abilities to inhibit DNAzyme activity. The adjacent adenine: thymine pair possesses the best inhibitory efficiency (17 times). Through detailed investigations of the InE(N:N), it was revealed that the adjacent adenine: thymine pair downregulated the formation of compound I in the catalytic process, thus inhibiting the G4 DNAzyme activity. The mechanism of inhibition indicated that the carbonyl group on the hexatomic ring of the complementary base played an important role. To further reflect the advantages of the proposed strategy, two InE(N:N)-based biosensors were developed for DNA analysis and Uracil-DNA glycosylase (UDG) detection. Compared with existing DNAzyme-based methods, the application of InE(N: N) facilitates the real-time assay and simplifies the design difficulty. Therefore, InE(N:N) provides new insights into the regulation of the DNAzyme activity and offers an efficient approach for the future application of DNAzyme.


Assuntos
Técnicas Biossensoriais , DNA Catalítico , Quadruplex G , Adenina , Técnicas Biossensoriais/métodos , Corantes , DNA Catalítico/química , Hemina/química , Peroxidase/metabolismo , Peroxidases/química , Timina
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