The X-linked muscle wasting disease Duchenne muscular dystrophy is caused by the lack of dystrophin in muscle. Protein structure predictions, patient mutations, in vitro binding studies and transgenic and knockout mice suggest that dystrophin plays a mechanical role in skeletal muscle, linking the subsarcolemmal cytoskeleton with the extracellular matrix through its direct interaction with the ...

α1D-Adrenergic receptors (ARs) are key regulators of cardiovascular system function that increase blood pressure and promote vascular remodeling. Unfortunately, little information exists about the signaling pathways used by this important G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR). We recently discovered that α1D-ARs form a “signalosome” with multiple members of the dystrophin-associated protein complex...

Recent neutron scattering experiments showed a striking manifestation of the aversion between polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA)-containing lipids and cholesterol. Selectively deuterated cholesterol/ 1,2-diarachidonylphosphatidylcholine (DAPC) samples revealed that the hydroxyl of the sterol resides at the center of the bilayer. Here we use a recently parametrized coarse grain simulation model t...

BACKGROUND/AIMS We investigated if mixtures of the phosphatidylcholine (PC) lipids 1,2-dilauroyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (C12:0 PC; DLPC) and 1,2-diarachidoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (C20:0 PC; DAPC), which differ by eight methylene groups in acyl chain length, lead to the spontaneous formation of distinct lipid rafts and asymmetric bilayers. METHODS The experiments were performed usi...

Exon skipping mediated by tricyclo-DNA (tc-DNA) antisense oligonucleotides has been shown to induce significant levels of dystrophin restoration in mdx, a mouse model of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. This translates into significant improvement in key disease indicators in muscle, cardio-respiratory function, heart and the central nervous system. Here we examine the relationship between muscle f...

The dystrophin-associated protein complex (DAPC) is a scaffold of proteins linking the intracellular cytoskeleton with the extracellular matrix that is integral to structural stability and integrity, signaling and mechanotransduction, and force transmission. We hypothesized that the expression of DAPC component proteins would be altered by resistance loading during progressive resistance traini...

Interactions of earthworm species with their environment and in particular the soil they inhabit is poorly understood. In this study, we aimed to use mid infrared absorption (MIR) spectroscopy bodies combination discriminant analysis principal components (DAPC), order investigate if biogeochemical composition determined by belonging or inhabit. Our conceptual approach included comparison MIR sp...

The C. elegans dystroglycan (DG) homolog DGN-1 is expressed in epithelia and neurons, and localizes to basement membrane (BM) surfaces. Unlike vertebrate DG, DGN-1 is not expressed in muscle or required for muscle function. dgn-1 null mutants are viable but sterile owing to severe disorganization of the somatic gonad epithelium, and show defects in vulval and excretory cell epithelia and in mot...

Using neutron diffraction Harroun et al. [(2006) Biochemistry 45, 1227-1233; (2008) Biochemistry 47, 7090-7096] carried out studies that unequivocally demonstrated cholesterol preferentially sequestering in the middle of bilayers (i.e., flat orientation) made of lipids with polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), in contrast to its "usual" position where its hydroxyl group locates near the lipid/wa...

Larval genetic information influences populations’ pools, causing homogenization or structuration. So, knowing about adult and larval is essential to understand processes such as connectivity. The aims are evaluate Twospot flounder ( Bothus robinsi , a fish with high dispersal potential) pools’ diversity, test if the larvae tend mix display collective dispersal, compare between adults its We us...