Second messenger molecules relay, amplify, and diversify cell surface receptor signals. Two important examples are phosphorylated D-myo-inositol derivatives, such as phosphoinositide lipids within cellular membranes, and soluble inositol phosphates. Here, we review how phosphoinositide metabolism generates multiple second messengers with important roles in T-cell development and function. They ...

Second messenger molecules relay, amplify, and diversify cell surface receptor signals. Two important examples are phosphorylated D-myo-inositol derivatives, such as phosphoinositide lipids within cellular membranes, and soluble inositol phosphates. Here, we review how phosphoinositide metabolism generates multiple second messengers with important roles in T-cell development and function. They ...

In most people with type 2 diabetes, progression from obesity to diabetes is accompanied by elevated tissue exposures to a variety of lipids. Among these lipid species, ceramides and more complex sphingolipids have gained recent attention as being pathophysiologically relevant for the development of insulin resistance and impaired glycemic control. Upon excess intake of saturated fat, ceramides...

Eukaryotic cells can synthesize thousands of different lipid molecules that are incorporated into their membranes. This involves the activity of hundreds of enzymes with the task of creating lipid diversity. In addition, there are several, typically redundant, mechanisms to transport lipids from their site of synthesis to other cellular membranes. Biosynthetic lipid transport helps to ensure th...

To improve our understanding of the important roles played by inositol lipid derivatives in signalling and other cellular processes, it is crucial to measure phosphoinositide concentration changes in individual cells with high spatial and temporal resolution. A number of protein domains that interact with inositol lipids in a specific manner have been identified. Tagged with the green fluoresce...

We discovered six plant extracts that increase yeast chronological lifespan to a significantly greater extent than any of the presently known longevity-extending chemical compounds. One of these extracts is the most potent longevity-extending pharmacological intervention yet described. We show that each of the six plant extracts is a geroprotector which delays the onset and decreases the rate o...

L-H represents a lipid, generally a polyunsaturated fatty acid moiety (PUFA). (See Figure 1 legend for an explanation of the abbreviations used to denote the various chemical species associated with lipid peroxidation). The rate of the propagation event is governed by the various carbon-hydrogen bond dissociation energies along the lipid chain (Cosgrove et al., 1987). The weakest carbonhydrogen...

Lipids are essential components of biological membranes that present a wide diversity in eukaryotic cells. Recent impressive advances in lipid biochemistry and biophysics have enabled a refocus of our view of lipids as functional units for cellular activity. However, the gap between molecular and cellular processes remains to be bridged. Here, 2 papers meet the burden of proof that choline tran...

Most conventional techniques for the determination of microalgae lipid content are time consuming and in most cases are indirect and require excessive sample preparations. This work presents a new technique that utilizes radio frequency (RF) for rapid lipid quantification, without the need for sample preparation. Tests showed that a shift in the resonance frequency of a RF open-ended coaxial re...

The effect of the herbicide paraquat on the freshwater microalga Chlamydomonas eugametos was studied in function of different parameters such as growth, elemental composition, total lipids, and photosynthetic pigments content and others assayed by flow cytometry (cell viability, cell volume, and granularity). The study reveals that paraquat concentrations above 0.15 microM are toxic for the mic...