Metformin, a drug widely used in the treatment of Type II diabetes, has recently received attention owing to new findings regarding its mitochondrial and cellular effects. In the present study, the effects of metformin on respiration, complex 1 activity, mitochondrial permeability transition, cytochrome c release and cell death were investigated in cultured cells from a human carcinoma-derived ...

Oxidatively modified LDL mimics several aspects of atherogenesis. In this disease, degradation of the matrix proteins' network also occurs. By a new morphological ex vivo approach, not requiring sample processing, we explored the relationship between the degradation of matrix protein and oxidatively modified LDL. Two-photon excitation fluorescence microscopy images of fresh cross-section rings ...

We and others have recently shown that loss of the mitochondrial membrane potential (Deltapsi) precedes apoptosis and chemical-hypoxia-induced necrosis and is prevented by Bcl-2. In this report, we examine the biochemical mechanism used by Bcl-2 to prevent Deltapsi loss, as determined with mitochondria isolated from a cell line overexpressing human Bcl-2 or from livers of Bcl-2 transgenic mice....

Mice deficient in the electron transport chain (ETC) complex IV assembly protein SURF1 have reduced assembly and activity of cytochrome c oxidase that is associated with an upregulation of components of the mitochondrial unfolded protein response (UPR(MT)) and increased mitochondrial number. We hypothesized that the upregulation of proteins associated with the UPR(MT) in response to reduced cyt...

Oxidative alkene cleavage is a highly interesting reaction to obtain aldehydes and ketones. The Mn-dependent protein TM1459 from Thermotoga maritima can catalyse of styrene derivatives in the presence tert-butyl hydroperoxide. Despite high thermal stability enzyme, it gets inactivated during reaction. data reported here indicate that auto-oxidation responsible for low oxidative environment requ...

Nanoscaled VO2 structures were made using a fast microwave-assisted synthesis method in acetophenone as solvent, starting from vanadium pentoxide V2O5. Insights the reaction and purification process elaborated by attenuated total reflection infrared nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, which validated choice of oleyl amine ligand solvent. A straightforward heat treatment inert atmosphere wa...