A conserved iron-binding site, the ferroxidase center, regulates the vital iron storage role of the ubiquitous protein ferritin in iron metabolism. It is commonly thought that two Fe(II) simultaneously bind the ferroxidase center and that the oxidized Fe(III)-O(H)-Fe(III) product spontaneously enters the cavity of ferritin as a unit. In contrast, in some bacterioferritins and in archaeal ferrit...

1. The ferritin content of iron-overloaded tissues was higher than that of normal tissues. There was also an increased iron content of ferritin extracted from these tissues. 2. In the limited number of tissues that we examined haemosiderin deposition appeared to be greater in the iron-overloaded livers than in the iron-overloaded spleens. 3. Ferritins extracted from iron-overloaded liver, splee...

Iron is both an essential cofactor of many enzymes and a producer of highly reactive hydroxyl radicals that can cause cellular damage. To regulate the supply of intracellular iron, cells have developed protein-based organelles, like ferritins, that act as iron storage containers. Myxococcus xanthus, a soil-dwelling gram-negative myxobacterium, produces another type of protein-based organelle th...

Ferritin was isolated from the seeds of pea (Pisum sativum) and lentil (Lens esculenta). The homogeneity of the phytoferritins was established by polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis. The subunit molecular weights were respectively 20 300 and 21 400 for hte pea and lentil proteins. A neutron low-angle scattering study established the molecular weight of the oligomer as 480 000 for pea apoferritin...

Helicobacter pylori is a major human pathogen associated with severe gastroduodenal diseases, including ulcers and cancers. An H.pylori protein that is highly immunogenic in humans and mice has been identified recently. This protein has been termed HP-NAP, due to its ability of activating neutrophils. In order to achieve a molecular understanding of its unique immunogenic and pro-inflammatory p...

We have used a very large scale integration process to generate well-defined patterns of polymerized 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) on patterned Si(100) surfaces. An atom transfer radical polymerization initiator covalently bonded to the patterned surface was employed for the graft polymerization of HEMA to prepare the poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) brushes. After immersing wafer...

In this paper, we describe a graft polymerization/solvent immersion method for generating poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) brushes in various patterns. We used a novel fabrication process, involving very-large-scale integration and oxygen plasma treatment, to generate well-defined patterns of polymerized PHEMA on patterned Si(100) surfaces. We observed brush- and mushroom-like regions ...

The ability of ferritin to bind and deliver metals and metal-based drugs to human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells was studied. We used heavy chain (H) ferritin-based metal-containing nanocarriers to test whether these constructs, which are able to cross the blood-brain barrier, may be used for the delivery of toxic molecules to brain cells, and to study their effect on the viability and cellular re...

1. The iron contents, gel migration rates and isoelectric-focusing patterns of normal liver and hepatocellular carcinoma ferritins from the same patients were compared. 2. Sucrose-density-gradient centrifugation showed that the number of iron atoms per ferritin molecule was decreased to approximately half in carcinoma tissue when compared with normal liver. 3. On electrophoresis, hepatocellular...