Dps proteins are the structural relatives of bacterioferritins and ferritins ubiquitously present in the bacterial and archaeal kingdoms. The ball-shaped enzymes play important roles in the detoxification of ROS (reactive oxygen species), in iron scavenging to prevent Fenton reactions and in the mechanical protection of DNA. Detoxification of ROS and iron chaperoning represent the most archetyp...

The incidence of mosquito-borne human diseases is increasing worldwide, with effective chemical control limited due to widespread insecticide resistance in the insect. Recent evidence also suggests that bacterial symbionts of mosquitoes, known to be essential in nutritional homeostasis and pathogen defense, may play a significant role in facilitating mosquitocide resistance. Here, I examined th...

glutathione transferase (gst) is a family of multifunctional detoxification enzymes which are mainly cytosolic that detoxify natural and exogenous toxic compounds through conjugation with glutathione tripeptide. its conjugates can be transported to vacuoles or apoplast. these conjugates are generally less toxic than the parent compounds. glutathione transferase is identified and isolated from m...

“Il Principe” (the Prince) is the nickname given to a spectacular Mid Upper Palaeolithic (Gravettian) burial discovered at Arene Candide, Italy in 1942. Arene Candide is a large cave located about 90 m above sea level on the slope of the Caprazoppa promontory, along the Ligurian coast near Finale Ligure (Savona, Italy). The cave is named after a dune of white siliceous sand of aeolian origin, b...

BACKGROUND Bacterial cellulose (BC) is a nanostructured material with unique properties and wide applicability. In order to decrease the production cost of bacterial cellulose, lignocellulose-based media have considerable potential as alternative cost-effective feedstocks. However, pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis of lignocellulose to sugars also generate fermentation inhibitors. Detoxific...

Epidemiological studies have shown that lung cancer is associated with tobacco and alcohol use, and is common in regions where these products are often consumed. Similar to other environmental toxins, tobacco requires metabolic activation and subsequent detoxification by a series of enzymes such as phase I enzymes i-e the cytochrome P450 enzymes (CYP) and phase II xenobiotic metabolizing enzyme...

Health during aging can be improved by genetic, dietary and pharmacological interventions. Many of these increase resistance to various stressors, including xenobiotics. Up-regulation of xenobiotic detoxification genes is a transcriptomic signature shared by long-lived nematodes, flies and mice, suggesting that protection of cells from toxicity of xenobiotics may contribute to longevity. Expres...

Cytochrome P450 3A (CYP3A) enzymes constitute an important detoxification system that contributes to primary metabolism of more than half of all prescribed medications. To investigate the physiological and pharmacological roles of CYP3A, we generated Cyp3a-knockout (Cyp3a-/-) mice lacking all functional Cyp3a genes. Cyp3a-/- mice were viable, fertile, and without marked physiological abnormalit...

High-throughput screening to discover small-molecule modulators of enzymes typically relies on highly tailored substrate assays, which are not available for poorly characterized enzymes. Here we report a general, substrate-free method for identifying inhibitors of uncharacterized enzymes. The assay measures changes in the kinetics of covalent active-site labeling with broad-spectrum, fluorescen...

3alpha-Hydroxy-5 beta-cholan-24-oic (lithocholic) acid is a relatively minor component of hepatic bile acids in humans but is highly cytotoxic. Hepatic microsomal oxidation offers a potential mechanism for effective detoxification and elimination of bile acids. The aim of the present study was to investigate the biotransformation of lithocholic acid by human hepatic microsomes and to assess the...