The metabolism of 14C-labelled arginine and ornithine was studied in the isolated, nonrecirculating, perfused rat liver. The catabolism of these amino acids required ornithine aminotransferase since treatment of rats with gabaculine, an inhibitor of this enzyme, decreased substantially the production of 14CO2 from the 14C-labelled amino acids. In the liver, ornithine aminotransferase is restric...

Incubation of D-amino acid oxidase with excess methyl-p-nitrobenzenesulfonate results in a pseudo-first order, irreversible loss of 95% of the assayable activity using D-phenylglycine as substrate. The rate of inactivation reaches a limiting value of 0.021 min-1 (pH 7.7, 22 degrees C) as the concentration of inhibitor is increased, consistent with a two-step mechanism with complex formation pri...

This study aims to determine whether the regulation of extracellular glutamate is altered during aging and its possible consequences on synaptic transmission and plasticity. A decrease in the expression of the glial glutamate transporters GLAST and GLT-1 and reduced glutamate uptake occur in the aged (24-27 months) Sprague-Dawley rat hippocampus. Glutamatergic excitatory postsynaptic potentials...

background: sen virus (senv) is the latest virus proposed as a cause of unknown hepatitis cases. among nine detected genotypes of the virus, genotypes d and h are more frequent in hepatitis cases of unknown origin. the aim of this study was to determine the frequency of senv-d and senv-h genotypes in the sera of healthy individuals and hepatitis b and c patients. methods: totally, 200 serum sam...

The pyridoxal phosphate reactivation of the apo form of aspartate aminotransferase (EC 2.6.1.1) in human serum has been studied with "normal" and above-normal activity of this enzyme. The extent of the reactionation did not depend on the presence of the substrates, L-aspartate or 2-oxoglutarate. Reactivation was greatest with 110 mumol of added pyridoxal phsophate present per liter during a pre...

We examined the pharmacological profile of 1-aminoindan-1,5-dicarboxylic acid (AIDA), a rigid (carboxyphenyl)glycine derivative acting on metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs). In cells transfected with mGluR1a, AIDA competitively antagonized the stimulatory responses of glutamate and (1S,3R)-1-aminocyclopentane-1,3-dicarboxylic acid [(1S,3R)-ACPD] on phosphoinositide hydrolysis (pA2 = 4.21...

Aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase activity is inducible in mouse 3T3 fibroblasts by benz[alpha]anthracene, whereas no detectable basal or inducible levels of this enzyme occur in rat-hepatoma tissue culture cells. Conversely, tyrosine aminotransferase activity is inducible in hepatoma cells by dexamethasone, whereas only low noninducible levels of this enzyme exist in 3T3 cells. In hybrids formed by...