Give a brief description of Haemoglobin (Hb):  Hb is made up of Four Subunits (Tetramer) held together by multiple non-covalent interactions  Each subunit (Monomer) consist of: Haem (Ferro-Protoporphyrin) and Globin protein  Haem consist of a Protoporphyrin IX and Ferrous ion (Fe 2 )  Globin protein folds around the Haem group forming a hydrophobic pocket that protects the Haem, which serve...

This investigation focused on obtaining a further understanding of the role of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) in tolerance induction. Hearts from C57BL/6 (H-2b) mice survived long-term when transplanted into BALB/c (H-2d) recipients treated with the tolerance-inducing regimen of anti-CD40L antibody (MR-1) plus donor-specific transfusion (DST). Grafts did not, however, survive long-term in (HO-1-/-) re...

Fluorescence spectroscopy and microscopy have been used extensively to monitor biomolecules, especially reactive oxygen species (ROS) and, more recently, reactive sulfide (RSS) species. Nearly all fluorophores are either excited by or emit light between 450 and 550 nm, which is similar to the absorbance of heme proteins and metal-centered porphyrins. Here we examined the effects of catalase (Ca...

The relaxation dynamics of a zinc protoporphyrin (ZnPP) in THF, KPi buffer, and encapsulated within apomyoglobin (apoMb) was investigated in its excited state using femtosecond fluorescence up-conversion spectroscopy with S2 excitation (lambda(ex) = 430 nm). The S2 --> S1 internal conversion of ZnPP is ultrafast (tau < 100 fs), and the hot S1 ZnPP species are produced promptly after excitation....

Formaldehyde (HCHO) and protoporphyrin, are in connection with redox homeostasis. Data show the importance of HCHO in proliferative as well as in apoptotic processes. Free protoporphyrin can be detected near the Zn-protoporphyrin in cancer and it has pro- and antioxidant forms depending on concentrations. The aim was to determine the amount of HCHO and protoporphyrin concentrations of erythrocy...

The green fruit of Solanum integrifolium Poir. has been used traditionally as an anti-inflammatory and analgesic remedy in Taiwanese aboriginal medicine. The goal of this study is to evaluate the anti-inflammatory activity and mechanism of the green fruit extract of S. integrifolium. A bioactivity-guided fractionation procedure was developed to identify the active partition fraction. The methan...

BACKGROUND The effects of lead exposure on thyroid function are unclear. METHODS Serum thyroxine (T4) was evaluated among 137 lead-exposed workers and 83 non-exposed workers. Free thyroxine (FT4) was evaluated among a subset of these workers. Exposure metrics included blood lead level (BLL), which reflects recent exposure, zinc protoporphyrin (ZPP), a marker of intermediate-duration lead expo...

Optical devices for measuring protoporphryin IX (PpIX) fluorescence in tissue are routinely validated by measurements in optical phantoms. Yet there exists limited data to form a consensus on the recipe for phantoms that both mimic the optical properties found in tissue and yield a reliable and stable relationship between PpIX concentration and the fluorescence remission intensity. This study c...

The porphyrinogenicity of 3-[(arylthio)ethyl]sydnone (TTMS) and 3, 5-diethoxycarbonyl-1,4-dihydro-2,6-dimethyl-4-ethylpyridine (4-ethylDDC) in rats is dependent on mechanism-based inactivation of selected isozymes of hepatic cytochrome P450 (P450), namely P4501A1/2, 2C6, 3A, and 2C11, followed by formation of ferrochelatase-inhibitory N-alkyl protoporphyrin IX (N-alkylPP). The objective of this...