Copper detoxification in the yeast Candida glabrata is carried out in large part by a family of metallothionein (MT) genes: a unique MT-I gene, a tandemly amplified MT-IIa gene, and a single unlinked MT-IIb gene. In response to elevated environmental copper levels, members of this MT gene family are transcriptionally activated by a copper-dependent, sequence-specific DNA-binding transcription f...

Capillary electrophoresis (CE) coupled to electrospray mass spectrometry via sheathless interfacing has been applied to the analysis of mammalian metallothionein (MT) extracts. In a rabbit-liver extract, four (MT-2C, MT-2A, MT-2D and MT-2E) out of six known MT sub-isoforms were unambiguously identified under three CE-resolved peaks. A fourth peak was found to contain MT-1A and/or MT-2B, whose m...

In this study, heavy metals (Hg,Cd,Pb,Cu,Zn) and metallothionein (MT) biosynthesis were measured in blood of green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas) nesting on the northern coast of the Sea of Oman. Heavy metals concentrations in the sea water, the sediments, the blood samples ranged between 0.02-8.43 μg/l, 0.06-10.32 μg/l, and 0.16-36.78μg/g (ww), respectively.The highest concentration...

In rodents, the metallothionein (MT) family is composed of four members, MT-1 to MT-4. MT-1&2 are expressed in virtually all tissues including those of the Central Nervous System (CNS), while MT-3 (also called Growth Inhibitory Factor) and MT-4 are expressed prominently in the brain and in keratinizing epithelia, respectively. For the understanding of the physiological functions of these protei...

The antiapoptotic response and enhanced cellular proliferation observed in neoplastic cells on overexpression of metallothionein (MT) have been well documented. We have investigated the mechanisms associated with this phenomenon by using MT inducers that increased MT transcripts and stimulated growth in MCF-7 cells. A MT antisense phosphorothioate oligonucleotide inhibited growth induction by >...

Oligodeoxyribonucleotide excess solution hybridization, Northern blot and in situ hybridization were used to analyze metallothionein gene expression in mouse decidua and placentae during gestation. Metallothionein (MT) -I and -II mRNA levels were constitutively elevated, 11- and 13-fold, respectively, relative to the adult liver, in the deciduum (D8), and decreased coordinately about 6-fold dur...

Surficial (oxic) sediments, overlying water, and specimens of the freshwater bivalve Anodonta grandis were collected by divers at 11 littoral lacustrine sites located along a geochemical gradient of pH, [Cd], Dl, and [Z n in an area influenced by mining and smelting activities. The molluscs were dissected (gills; 1 hepatopancreas; remaining tissues) and analyzed for Cd, Cu, Zn, and metallothion...

BACKGROUND To compare the metallothionein (MT) immunoexpression in non-syndromic and syndromic keratocystic odontogenic tumour (KOT), to correlate MT with cellular proliferation, and to evaluate the influence of inflammation in MT. STUDY DESIGN Fourteen cases of KOT were submitted to immunohistochemistry for MT and Ki-67 analysis. The lesions were grouped according to their grade of inflammat...

Metallothionein (MT) is a cysteine-rich protein that binds to heavy metals, and it is induced by them. The objective of this study to identify the MT protein induction/expression and localization in liver and kidney tissues (treated with 20 mg/L of CdCl2 for 72 hours) by immunohistochemical techniques and Western Blotting methods in the fresh water catfish, Clarias gariepinus. MT expression (MT...

BACKGROUND Nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like (Nrf)2 and metallothionein have been implicated in carcinogenesis. This study investigated the expression of Nrf2 and of Nrf2-targeted genes (NQO1 and GCLC) and the genes for the metallothionein (MT) isoforms (MT-1A and MT-2A) in human lung cancer and cancer-surrounding tissues. METHODS Surgically removed lung cancer samples (n = 80) and ca...