Thesis (Ph. D.)--Auburn University. / Abstract. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. 162-173).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Auburn University, 2008. / Abstract. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

The endothelium plays an essential role in the regulation of vascular homeostasis and a state of endothelial dysfunction, which develops in the presence of cardiovascular risk factors, may contribute to the development and progression of cardiovascular disease. As such, the measurement of endothelial function, beyond being an experimental tool, may serve as an important tool to complement current risk assessment algorithms in the identification of high-risk patients. Flow-mediated dilation (FMD) is a non-invasive measure of peripheral conduit artery endothelial function that holds great promise. Presently, FMD suffers from methodological heterogeneity and a poor understanding of the various biological components involved in eliciting the dilatory response to a given shear stimulus. We compared both traditional and alternative methods of arterial diameter characterization with regards to their repeatability, nitric oxide-dependency, and their sensitivity in distinguishing between normal and dysfunctional endothelial responses. Our findings emphasize the importance of continuous arterial diameter measurement and suggest that the time to peak FMD is not a useful adjunctive measure of the FMD response. Given that endothelial dysfunction may be of clinical importance, strategies to correct it or prevent it from occurring may be of benefit. The 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A inhibitors are agents that have demonstrated marked cholesterol-independent, endothelial-protective effects. We investigated the ability of rosuvastatin and atorvastatin to protect against endothelial dysfunction associated with ischemia and reperfusion (IR) injury, and chronic nitrate therapy. Using the FMD technique, we demonstrated, for the first time in humans, that acute rosuvastatin administration protects against IR-induced conduit artery endothelial dysfunction. Additionally, we demonstrated that this effect likely occurred by a cyclooxygenase-2-dependent mechanism, which may provide mechanistic insight into the observed cardio-toxicity with cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors. In contrast, we observed that this endothelial-protective effect was lost upon sustained rosuvastatin administration, which may have important implications regarding the generation of sustained cardioprotective phenotypes. Finally, we demonstrated that atorvastatin co-administration prevented the development of tolerance and endothelial dysfunction associated with continuous transdermal nitroglycerin therapy in humans, likely through an antioxidant mechanism. Future studies are needed in disease patients to determine whether the concept of nitrate tolerance needs reconsideration in the presence of vascular-protective agents.

The endothelium plays an essential role in the regulation of vascular homeostasis and a state of endothelial dysfunction, which develops in the presence of cardiovascular risk factors, may contribute to the development and progression of cardiovascular disease. As such, the measurement of endothelial function, beyond being an experimental tool, may serve as an important tool to complement current risk assessment algorithms in the identification of high-risk patients. Flow-mediated dilation (FMD) is a non-invasive measure of peripheral conduit artery endothelial function that holds great promise. Presently, FMD suffers from methodological heterogeneity and a poor understanding of the various biological components involved in eliciting the dilatory response to a given shear stimulus. We compared both traditional and alternative methods of arterial diameter characterization with regards to their repeatability, nitric oxide-dependency, and their sensitivity in distinguishing between normal and dysfunctional endothelial responses. Our findings emphasize the importance of continuous arterial diameter measurement and suggest that the time to peak FMD is not a useful adjunctive measure of the FMD response. Given that endothelial dysfunction may be of clinical importance, strategies to correct it or prevent it from occurring may be of benefit. The 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A inhibitors are agents that have demonstrated marked cholesterol-independent, endothelial-protective effects. We investigated the ability of rosuvastatin and atorvastatin to protect against endothelial dysfunction associated with ischemia and reperfusion (IR) injury, and chronic nitrate therapy. Using the FMD technique, we demonstrated, for the first time in humans, that acute rosuvastatin administration protects against IR-induced conduit artery endothelial dysfunction. Additionally, we demonstrated that this effect likely occurred by a cyclooxygenase-2-dependent mechanism, which may provide mechanistic insight into the observed cardio-toxicity with cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitors. In contrast, we observed that this endothelial-protective effect was lost upon sustained rosuvastatin administration, which may have important implications regarding the generation of sustained cardioprotective phenotypes. Finally, we demonstrated that atorvastatin co-administration prevented the development of tolerance and endothelial dysfunction associated with continuous transdermal nitroglycerin therapy in humans, likely through an antioxidant mechanism. Future studies are needed in disease patients to determine whether the concept of nitrate tolerance needs reconsideration in the presence of vascular-protective agents.

No description available.

Methyl-coenzyme M reductase (MCR) is the key enzyme involved in the production of methane by methanogenic archaea and its consumption by anaerobic methanotrophs (ANME). MCR is a multimeric complex composed of six different subunits arranged in a 2α, 2β, 2γ configuration that requires two molecules of its nickel-containing tetrapyrrole prosthetic group, coenzyme F430. Additionally, the α subunits of MCR house a variety of different post-translational modifications across both methanogens and ANME. In methanogens, MCR is encoded in a conserved mcrBDCGA gene cluster, which encodes accessory proteins McrD and McrC. These are believed to be involved in the assembly and activation of MCR, respectively. However, one or both accessory proteins are often omitted from the operon in other MCR-containing archaea as is the case in ANME. MCR knowledge is mostly limited to methanogens due to difficulties associated with large-scale cultivation of ANME and other MCR-containing archaea. Due to the complexity of MCR, studies on this enzyme are also largely limited to native enzymes. Developing methods for the detailed biochemical characterization ANME MCRs would be highly desirable since these enzymes are proposed to be optimized for methane oxidation and thus have immense potential for bioenergy and greenhouse gas mitigation applications. In addition to containing the necessary machinery for the production of an assembled and active MCR, model methanogens are easier to culture and have established genetic manipulation techniques, making them ideal candidates for the development of heterologous expression systems. Thus, here we sought to generate such a system for the study of various ANME MCRs in the methanogen, Methanococcus maripaludis. We report the successful expression and purification of an ANME-2d MCR, marking a significant step toward the development of a heterologous MCR expression system. Additionally, our attempts to purify various recombinant MCRs revealed the importance of including accessory proteins, particularly McrD, within expression constructs. Therefore, we also sought to functionally characterize McrD, which we show is likely an MCR chaperone that plays a key role in MCR maturation. Taken together, our work has provided key insights into MCR assembly as well as provided a foundation for the eventual development of MCR based biocatalytic systems to be used for methane mitigation strategies and bioenergy platforms. / Doctor of Philosophy / Life is divided into three domains known as Bacteria, Eukarya, and Archaea. Methanogens are anerobic microbes belonging to the domain Archaea, which can be found across a wide variety of oxygen deprived environments. These organisms can turn different carbon-containing compounds into energy and methane gas in a process known as methanogenesis. This results in roughly 90 billion tons of biologically produced methane, making methanogenesis a key point of interest for potential greenhouse gas mitigation. The methane-generating step of methanogenesis is performed by methyl-coenzyme M reductase (MCR), a large enzyme composed of two α subunits, two β subunits, and two γ subunits. Additionally, this enzyme harbors a nickel-containing cofactor which is responsible for catalyzing the difficult methane formation reaction. In addition to the MCR-encoding genes, MCR gene clusters contain two extra genes that encode accessory proteins, named McrC and McrD, which are believed to play an important role in the activation and the assembly of the enzyme, respectively. Relatives of methanogens known as Anerobic Methanotrophs (ANME) are a different type of archaea which consume methane by reversing methanogenesis in a process known as anerobic methane oxidation. Because of their ability to consume methane, there is a large interest in studying MCR from these organisms to potentially use it for methane mitigation strategies and for bioenergy applications to convert methane to more usable liquid fuels. However, due to the high difficulty of growing ANME in a lab setting, studying any biochemical processes from ANME is a difficult task. Luckily, genetic manipulation techniques are available for many methanogens, making them ideal candidates to study MCR from ANME organisms. In this work, we sought to develop a system to express and purify MCR from different methanogens and ANME in a methanogenic host, Methanococcus maripaludis. We also sought to understand the role and importance of accessory protein McrD, especially with respect to developing a proper expression system for MCRs. We were able to successfully express a ANME MCR in M. maripaludis and found that McrD is an important aspect to consider when expressing MCRs in a methanogen, although it is not essential for this protein to exist within the MCR gene cluster. This work sets the stage for the future biotechnological use of MCR for methane mitigation and bioenergy applications.

<p>Hybrid density functional theory (DFT) B3LYP method is applied to study the four diverse enzyme systems: <i>zinc-containing peptidases</i> (thermolysin and stromelysin),<i> methyl-coenzyme M reductase</i>, <i>ribonucleotide reductases</i> (classes I and III), and <i>superoxide dismutases</i> (Cu,Zn- and Ni-dependent enzymes). Powerfull tools of modern quantum chemistry are used to address the questions of biological pathways at their molecular level, proposing a novel mechanism for methane production by methyl-coenzyme M reductase and providing additional insights into hydrolysis by zinc peptidases, substrate conversion by ribonucleotide reductases, and biological superoxide dismutation. Catalysis by these enzymes, with the exception of zinc peptidases, involves radical chemistry.</p>

Hybrid density functional theory (DFT) B3LYP method is applied to study the four diverse enzyme systems: zinc-containing peptidases (thermolysin and stromelysin), methyl-coenzyme M reductase, ribonucleotide reductases (classes I and III), and superoxide dismutases (Cu,Zn- and Ni-dependent enzymes). Powerfull tools of modern quantum chemistry are used to address the questions of biological pathways at their molecular level, proposing a novel mechanism for methane production by methyl-coenzyme M reductase and providing additional insights into hydrolysis by zinc peptidases, substrate conversion by ribonucleotide reductases, and biological superoxide dismutation. Catalysis by these enzymes, with the exception of zinc peptidases, involves radical chemistry.

The enzyme 3-Hydroxy-3- Methylglutaryl Coenzyme A Reductase catalyzes the rate limiting step of hepatic cholesterol biosynthesis and is unique among the enzymes in the early part of the pathway in that it is membrane bound. This gives rise to potential regulation of the enzyme through interactions with the endoplasmic reticulum membrane. A purification procedure has been developed which consistently produces enzyme of high specific activity. In order to fully characterize the interactions between HMG-CoA reductase and the lipids in its immediate environment, HMG-CoA reductase was purified to homogeneity and shown to be a protein-lipid complex.

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / In Southern Brazil, the plant Campomanesia xanthocarpa Berg. (Myrtaceae), popularly known as guavirova , has been empirically used for its potential effect in reducing blood cholesterol levels. Since there are no scientific data confirming its popular use, the aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of C. xanthocarpa on biochemical, hematological, anthropometrical and oxidative stress parameters in hypercholesterolemic patients. Thirty three patients were selected according to total cholesterol (TC) levels: 200-240 mg/dL, undesirable level (UL), and >240 mg/dL, hypercholesterolemic level (HL). UL or HL patients were randomly divided into control group (CG), which received placebo capsules, and experimental group 250 (EG 250) or 500 (EG 500), which received either 250 or 500 mg of encapsulated C. xanthocarpa. All groups received a cholesterol restriction diet and capsules once a day. The biochemical (TC, triglycerides, HDL, LDL and VLDL), hematological (hematocrit and hemoglobin), anthropometrical (weight and abdominal circumference) and oxidative stress (protein carbonyl) parameters were measured before, 45 and 90 days after the treatment started. There was no alteration on biochemical, hematological, anthropometric or oxidative stress parameters in UL patients of all groups. However, a significant decrease in TC and LDL levels was observed in HL patients from EG 500 group (reduction of 28±3 and 45±4% to levels before treatment) in relation to CG group patients (reduction of 12±2 and 29±4%). Moreover, a significant reduction in oxidative stress was observed in HL patients of EG 250 (51±12%) and EG 500 groups (34±18%) when compared to levels before treatment. A positive correlation between plasma oxidative stress PC and TC levels was observed. Finally, was demonstrated that C. xanthocarpa extract possesses anti-oxidant properties and 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase inhibitory activity in vitro. Confirming its popular use, the treatment with C. xanthocarpa encapsulated reduced blood TC and LDL levels in hypercholesterolemic patients. Besides its effect on cholesterol levels, this plant reduced the oxidative stress in plasma of hypercholesterolemic patients as well. / No Sul do Brasil, a planta Campomanesia xanthocarpa Berg. (Myrtaceae), popularmente conhecida como guavirova , tem sido empiricamente usada por seu efeito potencial em reduzir os níveis de colesterol sanguíneo. Uma vez que não há dados científicos confirmando seu uso popular, o alvo do presente estudo foi investigar os efeitos da C. xanthocarpa nos parâmetros bioquímicos, hematológicos, antropométricos e de estresse oxidativo em pacientes hipercolesterolêmicos. Trinta e três pacientes foram selecionados de acordo com os níveis de colesterol total (CT): 200-240 mg/dL, níveis indesejáveis (NI), e > 240 mg/dL, níveis hipercolesterolêmicos (NH). Os pacientes NI e NH foram randomicamente divididos em grupo controle (GC), que recebeu cápsulas placebo, e grupo experimental 250 (GE 250) ou 500 (GE 500), que recebeu 250 ou 500 mg de C. xanthocarpa encapsulada. Todos os grupos receberam uma dieta com restrição a colesterol e cápsulas diariamente. Os parâmetros bioquímicos (CT, triacilgliceróis, HDL, LDL e VLDL), hematológicos (hematócrito e hemoglobina), antropométricos (peso e circunferência abdominal) e de estresse oxidativo (proteína carbonilada) foram mensurados antes, 45 e 90 dias depois do tratamento. Não houve nenhum alteração significativa nos parâmetros bioquímico, hematológico, antropométrico e de estresse oxidativo em pacientes NI de todos os grupos. Entretanto, uma redução significativa nos níveis de CT e LDL foi observada em pacientes NH do GE 500 (redução de 28±3 e 45±4% para os níveis antes do tratamento) em relação aos pacientes do GC (redução de 12±2 e 29±4%). Além disso, uma redução significante no estresse oxidativo foi observada em pacientes NH do GE 250 (51±12%) e GE 500 (34±18%) quando comparado com os níveis antes do tratamento. Uma correlação positiva entre os níveis de proteína carbonilada e CT foi observada. Finalmente, foi demonstrado que o extrato de C. xanthocarpa possui propriedade antioxidante e atividade inibitória da 3-hidroxi-3-metilglutaril coenzima A redutase in vitro. Confirmando seu uso popular, o tratamento com C. xanthocarpa reduziu os níveis de CT e LDL sanguíneos em pacientes hipercolesterolêmicos. Além dos seus efeitos nos níveis de colesterol, esta planta reduziu o estresse oxidativo no plasma de pacientes hipercolesterolêmicos.