Growth Amino acid sequence

Somatostatin is a tetradecapeptide of the hypothalamus that inhibits the release of pituitary growth hormone. Its amino acid sequence has been determined by a combination of Edman degradations and enzymic hydrolysis experiments. On the basis of the following data, deduce the primary structure of somatostatin ... 

Baiillari G, Gendelman R, Gallo RC, Ensoli B (1993) The Tat protein of human immunodeficiency virus type 1, a growth factor for AIDS Kaposi sarcoma and cytokine-activated vascular cells, induces adhesion of the same cell types by using integrin receptors recognizing the ROD amino acid sequence. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 90(17) 7941-7945... 

Table 10.1 Overview of some polypeptide growth factors. Many can be grouped into families on the basis of amino acid sequence homology, or the cell types affected. Most growth factors are produced by more than one cell type and display endocrine, paracrine or autocrine effects on target cells by interacting with specific cell surface receptors...

The Western blot method is often used in the analysis of host cell impurities. It can be used to identify a recurring impurity. O Keefe et al. used a Western blot to identify an E. coli protein impurity in the preparation of the recombinant fibroblast growth factor (aFGF).29 By using specific antisera to the E. coli host cell proteins, they were able to isolate the impurity and determine its N-terminus amino acid sequence to confirm its identity. Antibodies could be used to determine the concentration of this impurity in sample preparations. 

The difficulties encountered in the analysis of short peptides are reflected by the paucity of publications describing the elucidation of the amino acid sequence of short peptides with the aid of volatile buffers. Such buffers have been employed by Niall et al. 3,54) for their investigations on lactogenic and growth hormone. However, a detailed description of the experimental conditions and the results obtained has yet to be awaited. 

Growth hormone is a 191-amino-acid peptide with two sulfhydryl bridges. Its structure closely resembles that of prolactin. In the past, medicinal GH was isolated from the pituitaries of human cadavers. However, this form of GH was found to be contaminated with prions that could cause Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. For this reason, it is no longer used. Somatropin, the recombinant form of GH, has a 191-amino acid sequence that is identical with the predominant native form of human GH. 

Mitochondria arise by division and growth of preexisting mitochondria. Because they synthesize only a few proteins and RNA molecules, they must import many proteins and other materials from the cytoplasm. A mitochondrion contains at least 100 proteins that are encoded by nuclear genes.50,50a The mechanisms by which proteins are taken up by mitochondria are complex and varied. Many of the newly synthesized proteins carry, at the N terminus, presequences that contain mitochondrial targeting signals51-53 (Chapter 10). These amino acid sequences often lead the protein to associate with receptor proteins on the outer mitochondrial membrane and subsequently to be taken up by the mitochondria. While the targeting sequences are usually at the N terminus of a polypeptide, they are quite often internal. The N-terminal sequences are usually removed by action of the mitochondrial processing peptidase (MPP) in... 

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