Sperm cell and embryo toxicity tests using the Mediterranean sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus Lmk were performed to assess the toxicity of As3+, Cd2+, Cr3+, Ni2+, Pb2+, Cu2+, Zn2+, and Hg2+. The aim of this study was to improve information about the comparative sensitivity of sea urchin bioassays to the heavy metals, which are an important cause of contamination in the ecosystem of the Lagoon o...

Although nickel-based polyanionic compounds are expected to exhibit a high operating voltage for batteries based on the Ni2+/3+ redox couple activity, some rare experimental studies on the electrochemical performance of these materials are reported, resulting from the poor kinetics of the bulk materials in both Li and Na nonaqueous systems. Herein, the electrochemical activity of the Ni2+/3+ re...

We have explored immobilized metal affinity chromatography as a means of resolving alpha-fetoprotein from its homologous albumin, a problem perennially encountered in the purification of an alpha-fetoprotein or its detection. Human alpha-fetoprotein and human serum albumin were chromatographed on immobilized iminodiacetic acid charged with either Co2+, Ni2+, Cu2+, or Zn2+. Neither human alpha-f...

The glyoxalase pathway is ubiquitously found in all the organisms ranging from prokaryotes to eukaryotes. It acts as a major pathway for detoxification of methylglyoxal (MG), which deleteriously affects the biological system in stress conditions. The first important enzyme of this system is Glyoxalase I (GLYI). It is a metalloenzyme which requires divalent metal ions for its activity. This diva...

The cytoplasmic polyadenylation element binding protein (CPEB) homologue Orb2 is a functional amyloid that plays a key regulatory role for long-term memory in Drosophila. Orb2 has a glutamine, histidine-rich (Q/H-rich) domain that resembles the Q/H-rich, metal binding domain of the Hpn-like protein (Hpnl) found in Helicobacter pylori. In the present study, we used chromatography and isothermal ...

Recently, cupin type phosphoglucose isomerases have been described as a novel protein family representing a separate lineage in the evolution of phosphoglucose isomerases. The importance of eight active site residues completely conserved within the cPGI family has been assessed by site-directed mutagenesis using the cPGI from Archaeoglobus fulgidus (AfcPGI) as a model. The mutants T63A, G79A, G...

Heavy metal ions, lead, cadmium and nickel, are well known carcinogens with natural different origins and their direct mode of action is still not fully understood. A dsDNA-electrochemical biosensor, employing differential pulse voltammetry, was used for the in situ evaluation of Pb2+, Cd2+ and Ni2+ interaction with dsDNA. The results confirm that Pb2+, Cd2+ and Ni2+ bind to dsDNA, and that thi...

Metalloproteins account for nearly one-third of proteins in proteomes. To date, the identification of metalloproteins relies mainly on protein purification and the subsequent characterization of bound metals, which often leads to losses of metal ions bound weakly and transiently. Herein, we developed a strategy to visualize and subsequently identify endogenous metalloproteins and metal-binding ...

Each eye of the mollusc Hermissenda consists of five photoreceptors, two type A and three type B cells. Type A cells are quiescent, whereas B cells are spontaneously active in the dark. Differences in the intrinsic membrane properties of type A and B photoreceptors were studied using voltage- and current-clamp techniques. The current density of a Ni2+-sensitive, low-voltage activated Ca2+ curre...

To systematically study the effects of the number of d electrons of the first transition metal ions (Fe, Co, Ni, Cu and Zn) on the formation and stability of metal flavonoid complexes, we took the quercetin/M2+ complex as a model system to investigate the structures and properties of these complexes. Based on considerable structural information obtained through ESI-MSn, all of the first transit...