Photosynthetic efficiency is a critical determinant of crop yield potential, although it remains below the theoretical optimum in modern crop varieties. Enhancing mesophyll conductance (i.e. the rate of carbon dioxide diffusion from substomatal cavities to the sites of carboxylation) may increase photosynthetic and water use efficiencies. To improve water use efficiency, mesophyll conductance s...

The only well described function of vitamin K (VK) is to serve as a co-factor for the γ-carboxylation of particular proteins to convert specific glutamic acid (Glu) residues to γ-carboxyglutamic acid (Gla) residues. This process involves two enzymes, γ-glutamyl carboxylase (γ-carboxylase or GGCX) and vitamin K epoxide reductase (VKORC1), which together constitute the vitamin K cycle [1]. Physio...

Mitochondria provide cells with much more than ATP produced via the electron transport chain (ETC). Cancer cells are no exception. Although many cancer cells rely primarily on aerobic glycolysis for their energy, they still rely on mitochondria to produce precursors for fatty acid synthesis and other biosynthetic processes. How tumor cells with defective mitochondria produce the lipids necessar...

Functionalization has been shown to alter toxicity of multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) in several studies. This study varied the degree of functionalization (viz., amount of MWCNT surface carboxylation) to define the relationship between the extent of carboxylation and effects in a variety of in vitro cell models and short-term ex vivo/in vivo particle exposures. Studies with vitamin D₃ plu...

The formation of 7-carboxyglutamic acid residues from glutamic acid residues is a vitamin K-dependent carboxylation reaction. The reaction has been demonstrated in various species and tissues [1,2], but the most extensive studies have been performed in the microsomal fraction of rat liver.It is generally assumed that the carboxylation reaction is coupled to the epoxidation of reduced vitamin K ...

Precursors of vitamin K-dependent proteins are synthesized with a propeptide that is believed to target these proteins for gamma-carboxylation by the vitamin K-dependent carboxylase. In this study synthetic propeptides were used to investigate gamma-carboxylation of the prothrombin and factor X precursors in rat liver microsomes. The extent of prothrombin processing by the carboxylase was also ...