Plasmodium falciparum, the causative agent of severe human malaria, employs antigenic variation to avoid host immunity. Antigenic variation is achieved by transcriptional switching amongst polymorphic var genes, enforced by epigenetic modification of chromatin. The histone-modifying 'sirtuin' enzymes PfSir2a and PfSir2b have been implicated in this process. Disparate patterns of var expression ...

Diethyl phthalate works as a phthalate plasticizer and is ubiquitously used in personal care products, cosmetics, medical equipment and pharmaceutical coating. Diethyl phthalate is considered a potential endocrine disruptor. Previously we found diethyl phthalate enhanced apoptosis induced by serum deprivation in PC12 cells. However, the relationship between diethyl phthalate and longevity relat...

Sirtuin proteins have a variety of intracellular targets, thereby regulating multiple biological pathways including neurodegeneration. However, relatively little is currently known about the role or expression of the 7 mammalian sirtuins in the central nervous system. Western blotting, PCR and ELISA are the main techniques currently used to measure sirtuin levels. To achieve sufficient sensitiv...

Transcription is regulated by acetylation/deacetylation reactions of histone and nonhistone proteins mediated by enzymes called KATs and HDACs, respectively. As a major mechanism of transcriptional regulation, protein acetylation is a key controller of physiological processes such as cell cycle, DNA damage response, metabolism, apoptosis, and autophagy. The deacetylase activity of class III his...

Diethyl phthalate (DEP) works as a phthalate plasticizer and is ubiquitously used in personal care products, cosmetics, medical equipment and pharmaceutical coating. DEP is considered a potential endocrine disruptor. Previously we found DEP-enhanced apoptosis induced by serum deprivation in PC12 cells. However, the relationship between DEP and longevity-related factors, sirtuins and epigenetic ...

Sirtuins are protein deacetylases regulating metabolism, stress responses, and aging processes, and they were suggested to mediate the lifespan extending effect of a low calorie diet. Sirtuin activation by the polyphenol resveratrol can mimic such lifespan extending effects and alleviate metabolic diseases. The mechanism of Sirtuin stimulation is unknown, hindering the development of improved a...

Fighting diseases and controlling the signs of ageing are the major goals of biomedicine. Sirtuins, enzymes with mainly deacetylating activity, could be pivotal targets of novel preventive and therapeutic strategies to reach such aims. Scientific proofs are accumulating in experimental models, but, to a minor extent, also in humans, that the ancient practice of calorie restriction could prove a...