The maleylpyruvate isomerase NagL from Ralstonia sp. strain U2, which has been structurally characterized previously, catalyzes the isomerization of maleylpyruvate to fumarylpyruvate. It belongs to the class zeta glutathione S-transferases (GSTZs), part of the cytosolic GST family (cGSTs). In this study, site-directed mutagenesis was conducted to probe the functions of 13 putative active site r...

Literatures have reported that the pharmacological mechanism of diphenyl diselenide (DPDS) is strictly dependent on its ability to mimic the endogenous antioxidant enzyme, glutathione peroxidase (GPx), utilizing reduced glutathione (GSH) to deactivate hydroperoxides. However, in the present study, we investigated the strict dependence of DPDS on GSH utilization via its GPx mimetic ability by mo...

To investigate the intercellular control of glutathione synthesis and its influence on leaf redox state in response to short-term chilling, genes encoding gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase (gamma-ECS) and glutathione synthetase (GSH-S) were cloned from maize (Zea mays) and specific antibodies produced. These tools were used to provide the first information on the intercellular distribution of g...

This study was performed as an in vitro model system to investigate the antioxidant role of glutathione in protecting oxymyoglobin from oxidation in competition with its role in detoxifying intracellular toxins such as 4-Hydroxynonenal (HNE). Briefly, the model consisted of a control solution (0.15mM oxymyoglobin solution), a positive control (0.2mM reduced glutathione (GSH) and glutathione per...

Acetaminophen (AAP) overdose causes formation of peroxynitrite in centrilobular hepatocytes. Treatment with glutathione (GSH) after AAP accelerated recovery of mitochondrial GSH levels, which scavenged peroxynitrite and protected against liver injury at 6 h. The objective of this investigation was to evaluate whether GSH treatment has a long-term protective effect against AAP-induced injury and...

Hydrogen peroxide is formed in solutions of glutathione exposed to oxygen. This hydrogen peroxide or its precursors will decrease the viscosity of polymers like desoxyribonucleic acid and sodium alginate. Further knowledge of the mechanism of these chemical effects of oxygen might further the understanding of the biological effects of oxygen. This study deals with the rate of solution of oxygen...

We investigated the hypothesis that reduced glutathione (GSH) is present in secretions of the female reproductive tract and that this extracellular GSH may protect preimplantation mouse embryos after intracellular GSH depletion. The cleavage-stage mouse embryo cannot synthesize GSH de novo and is unable to recover from glutathione depletion in vitro. Analysis of GSH and total protein of oviduct...

BACKGROUND Glucose is the most important metabolic substrate of the retina and maintenance of normoglycemia is an essential challenge for diabetic patients. Glycemic excursions could lead to cardiovascular disease, nephropathy, neuropathy and retinopathy. A vast body of literature exists on hyperglycemia namely in the field of diabetic retinopathy, but very little is known about the deleterious...

Crude extracts of pea shoots (Pisum sativum) catalyzed oxidized glutathione (GSSG)-dependent oxidation of NADPH which was attributed to NADPH-specific glutathione reductase. The pH optimum was 8 and the K(m) values for GSSG and NADPH were 23 mum and 4.9 mum, respectively. Reduced glutathione (GSH) inhibited the reaction. Crude extracts also catalyzed NADPH-dependent reduction of GSSG; the ratio...