Trm5 is a eukaryal and archaeal tRNA methyltransferase that catalyzes methyl transfer from S-adenosylmethionine (AdoMet) to the N(1) position of G37 directly 3' to the anticodon. While the biological role of m(1)G37 in enhancing translational fidelity is well established, the catalytic mechanism of Trm5 has remained obscure. To address the mechanism of Trm5 and more broadly the mechanism of N-m...

Cell-free extracts from Lemna and suspension cultured carrot (Daucus Carota L.) catalyze S-adenosylmethionine-dependent N-methylations of phosphoethanolamine, phosphomethylethanolamine, and phosphodimethylethanolamine; extracts of suspension cultured soybean (Glycine max), of phosphoethanolamine only. Material pelleted from each tissue between 15,000 and 100,000g catalyzes S-adenosylmethionine-...

Pyruvate formate-lyase activating enzyme (PFL-AE) generates the catalytically essential glycyl radical of PFL. It is a member of the so-called "radical-SAM superfamily" of enzymes that use a [4Fe-4S] cluster and S-adenosylmethionine (AdoMet or SAM) to catalyze diverse radical-mediated reactions. Evidence suggests that this class of enzymes operate by common initial steps involving the generatio...

Choline and C1 metabolism pathways intersect at the formation of methionine from homocysteine. Hepatic S-adenosylmethionine (AdoMet) concentrations are decreased in animals ingesting diets deficient in choline, and it has been suggested that this occurs because the availability of methionine limits AdoMet synthesis. If the above hypothesis is correct, changes in hepatic AdoMet concentrations sh...

The Solanaceae plants produce a variety of interesting biologically active products including the steroid alkaloids solanidine, nicotine and tropane alkaloids. Putrescine N-methyltransferase (PMT) is an enzyme that catalyses s-adenosylmethionine-dependent methylation of putrescine in one of the primary steps of nicotine and tropane alkaloids biosynthesis pathway. Two tobacco members of the AP2/...

Methionine is an essential amino acid that is metabolized mainly by the liver where it is converted to S-adenosylmethionine (SAMe) by the enzyme methionine adenosyltransferase. Although all mammalian cells synthesize SAMe, the liver is where the bulk of SAMe is generated as it is the organ where about 50% of all dietary methionine is metabolized. SAMe is mainly needed for methylation of a large...

Treatment of Ehrlich ascites-tumour cells with 1-amino-oxy-3-aminopropane (AOAP), a potent inhibitor of ornithine decarboxylase, resulted in a marked decrease in cellular contents of putrescine and spermidine, concomitant with an arrest of cell growth. The activity of S-adenosylmethionine decarboxylase (AdoMetDC) was greatly increased in cells treated with AOAP. This increase in AdoMetDC activi...

Sam Wang is a pioneer in using statistical methods to analyze U.S. presidential election polls. In this election season interview with Neuron, he discusses diagnosing partisan gerrymandering, his research on the cerebellum, and how he analyzes polls with high accuracy.

Robert MacDuff, Ph.D., President, InfoDynamics Applications Ltd. (Phone) 480-205-6135 Feb. 2, 2009 draft. jj The Paradise Valley Unified School District in Arizona, in northern Phoenix, has been administering Standard Aligned Measures (SAM) tests in mathematics since 2005. The SAMs tests, three during the year, have shown a high degree of correlation with the state’s “Arizona's Instrument to Me...