Methylglyoxal is a precursor to advanced glycation endproducts that may contribute to diabetes and its cardiovascular-related complications. Methylglyoxal is successively catabolized to D-lactate by glyoxalase-1 and glyoxalase-2. The objective of this study was to determine whether dietary fructose and green tea extract (GTE) differentially regulate methylglyoxal accumulation in liver and adipo...

An enzyme which catalyzes the oxidation of methylglyoxal to pyruvic acid was partially purified from aqueous extracts of sheep liver acetone powders. NAD+ or NADP+ was necessary for the oxidation. Changes in methylglyoxal, pyruvate, and pyridine nucleotide were stoichiometrically equivalent. Of various carbonyl-containing compounds tested, only oc-keto aldehydes were substrates. Enzyme activity...

Methylglyoxal is a mutagenic bis-electrophile that is produced endogenously from carbohydrate precursors. Methylglyoxal has been reported to induce DNA-protein cross-links (DPCs) in vitro and in cultured cells. Previous work suggests that these cross-links are formed between guanine and either lysine or cysteine side chains. However, the chemical nature of the methylglyoxal induced DPC have not...

It was found by Kisch (1) that methylglyoxal inhibits tissue respiration in vitro. The mechanism of this inhibition is the combination of methylglyoxal with enzyme proteins, requiring -SH groups for their catalytic activity (2). As a continuation of these experiments, the specificity of the widely distributed glyoxalase-glutathione (GSH) system was tested with both methylglyoxal and glyoxal. Th...

We isolated and identified the glyceraldehyde-derived advanced glycation product (AGE) formed from glyceraldehyde and N(alpha)-acetylarginine. A major product was identified as N(alpha)-acetyl-N(delta)-(5-methyl-imidazolin-4-one-2-yl)-ornithine. The compound has been reported as methylglyoxal-derived AGE, MG-H1. This study suggests that MG-H1 is formed through both glyceraldehyde-related and me...

Methylglyoxal is an essential component in glycolysis and is known to be an inducer of apoptosis. Glyoxalase I (GLO1) metabolizes and inactivates methylglyoxal. GLO1 is known to be overexpressed in cancer cells and causes resistance to anticancer agents. We show for the first time that methylglyoxal treatment or the silencing of GLO1 enhances sensitivity to the promising anticancer agent TRAIL ...

Methylglyoxal (MG) is a metabolite of glucose that may contribute to peripheral neuropathy and pain in diabetic patients. MG increases intracellular calcium in sensory neurons and produces behavioral nociception via the cation channel transient receptor potential ankyrin 1 (TRPA1). However, rigorous characterization of an animal model of methylglyoxal-evoked pain is needed, including testing wh...

The current epidemic of obesity and type 2 diabetes is attributed to a high carbohydrate diet, containing mainly high fructose corn syrup and sucrose. More than two thirds of diabetic patients have hypertension. Methylglyoxal is a highly reactive dicarbonyl generated during glucose and fructose metabolism, and a major precursor of advanced glycation end products (AGEs). Plasma methylglyoxal lev...

Methylglyoxal is an essential component in glycolysis and is known tobe an inducer of apoptosis.Glyoxalase I (GLO1) metabolizes and inactivates methylglyoxal. GLO1 is known to be overexpressed in cancer cells and causes resistance to anticancer agents.We show for the first time that methylglyoxal treatment or the silencing ofGLO1enhances sensitivity to thepromising anticancer agentTRAIL inmalig...

Accumulation of hyperphosphorylated Tau protein as paired helical filaments in pyramidal neurons is a major hallmark of Alzheimer disease. Besides hyperphosphorylation, other modifications of the Tau protein, such as cross-linking, are likely to contribute to the characteristic features of paired helical filaments, including their insolubility and resistance against proteolytic degradation. In ...