beta 2-Microglobulin (beta 2M) is a major constituent of amyloid fibrils in hemodialysis-associated amyloidosis, a complication of long-term hemodialysis patients. Amyloid fibril proteins were isolated from connective tissues forming carpal tunnels in hemodialysis patients with carpal tunnel syndrome. Two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and Western blotting demonstrated that most...

Nephrolithiasis is a common clinical disorder, and calcium oxalate (CaOx) is the principal crystalline component in approximately 75% of all renal stones. It is widely believed that proteins act as inhibitors of crystal growth and aggregation. Acidic amino acids present in these proteins play a significant role in the inhibition process. In this study, interaction of calcium oxalate with human ...

Ultra acidic proteins, generated by posttranslational modifications, are becoming increasingly important due to recent evidence showing their function as regulatory elements or as intermediates in degradation pathways in bacteria. Such proteins are important in neurodegenerative diseases and embryonic development, and they include the Alzheimer-related tau (tau) protein (resulting from posttran...

BACKGROUND This experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of different amounts of fertilizers on the polysaccharides of Aloe vera plant. There were four different treatments, viz. T1 = 150% N, T2 = 150% P, T3 = 150% K, and T4 = 150% NPK (50% N + 50% P + 50% K) soil. Crude water-soluble polysaccharides were isolated from the gel juice, skin juice, and flowers of A. vera planted in these so...

Many studies have been conducted in the United States regarding the microbial contamination of dental unit waterline, but not in Japan. Recently, acidic electrolyzed water has been used in the medical and dental fields. In this study, we investigated the bactericidal effects of the temporary inflow of acidic electrolyzed water on microbial contamination of the dental unit waterline. First, in o...

Acidic deposition can leach essential pools of calcium (Ca) directly from plant foliage. Because of the central role of Ca in environmental signal transduction, disruptions of labile foliar Ca pools could impair physiological responses to a variety of environmental stimuli and stressors. We investigated the possibility that acidic mist-induced depletion of membrane-associated Ca (mCa), which is...

Solid tumors often develop an acidic environment due to the Warburg effect. The effectiveness of diagnosis and therapy may therefore be enhanced by the design and use of pH-sensitive agents that target acidic tumors. Recently, a novel technology was introduced to target acidic tumors using pH low insertion peptide (pHLIP), a peptide that inserts across cell membranes as an alpha-helix when the ...

The effects of acidic pH on several voltage-dependent ion channels, such as voltage-dependent K+ and Ca2+ channels, and hyperpolarization-gated and cyclic nucleotide-activated cation (HCN) channels, were examined using a whole-cell patch clamp technique on mechanically isolated rat mesencephalic trigeminal nucleus neurons. The application of a pH 6.5 solution had no effect on the peak amplitude...