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Gramicidin and related ion channel-forming peptides, Novartis Foundation Symposium 225 (1999), John Wiley and Sons, Ltd., 1999, $75.00, pp. 273
460 regulation, resensitization, and recycling of resensitized receptors to the cell surface. This section covers general considerations on the internalization-trafficking of receptors and experimental approches to analyze these aspects: cell fractionation and binding assays, immunofluoresence by conventional and confocal microscopy, and use of green fluorescent protein. The techniques to analyze transcriptional (Northern blot, mRNA quantification) and posttranscriptional (identification and characterization of mRNA-binding involved in regulation or destabilization of mRNA of G-protein-coupled receptors) are presented in the last chapter. This book is a practical guide of methodology to analyze G-protein-coupled receptors. It will be very useful for all the scientists working at the laboratory bench and students discovering the exciting new insights in regulatory proteins amd receptors. M.R. Popoff
S0300908401012676/BRV Gramicidin and related ion channel-forming peptides, Novartis Foundation Symposium 225 (1999), John Wiley and Sons, Ltd., 1999, $75.00, pp. 273 The book ‘Gramicidin and related ion channel-forming peptides’ reports lectures and discussion of the Novartis meeting held with the major scientist which have contributed to the understanding of channel ion conduction. Obviously multidisciplinary, this books gives a comprehensive picture of the field of gramicidin and trans-membrane channels. After the first structure prediction of the gramicidin channel by Urry in 1971 which was essentially correct, many crystallographic structures of the peptide in alcoholic solution were solved but gave different helical structures which were irrelevant as a trans-membrane channel. The detailed experimental structure in the lipid bilayer was finally solved by solid-state NMR spectroscopy between 1995 and 1999. These lessons, which spanned 30 years, are one of the many that the reader will find in this book. The level of details of the structure allow the theoreticians to study the role of the peptide-ion interactions on the conduction, as well as the role of the ion on the peptide conformation. Gramicidin, a peptide formed of a series of 15 alternating L- and D-amino acids, can be synthesized to address experimentally these questions. Subtle modifications were introduced to modify the backbone and side chains dipole moments and effects on ion and electrical conduction were analyzed. In order to decipher the conduction mechanism, many models were applied to gramicidin and related channels like alamethicin: continuous or multistate models were tested against the conduction data. Even models at atomic level where free energy profiles were calculated along the channel were tested against NMR data aimed at locating Na+ ions. Other aspects are of primary interest for membrane proteins: translocation in the membrane, the water structure in the pore lumen, and the effects of the peptide on the lipid bilayer and vice versa. Here both the protein and the lipid composition can be modified to analyze the respective effects. The resulting effect on membrane dynamics and antimicrobial mechanism were then discussed, Secondary and tertiary prediction of membrane protein with their specific environment were also approached. The relation between mutations and effect on the function was tempted. Last but not least, a tremendously convincing application of gramicidin to biosensors was presented. The construction and tests of nanomachines with a large range of dynamic response was presented. You can choose in this impressive list of approaches which of the above aspect you are most interested in. This book will give you a good starting view point of the field. And certainly, you will not find that these peptides are lacking of spice, or mystery. Arnaud Blondel
S0300908401012676/BRV Gramicidin and related ion channel-forming peptides, Novartis Foundation Symposium 225 (1999), John Wiley and Sons, Ltd., 1999, $75.00, pp. 273 The book ‘Gramicidin and related ion channel-forming peptides’ reports lectures and discussion of the Novartis meeting held with the major scientist which have contributed to the understanding of channel ion conduction. Obviously multidisciplinary, this books gives a comprehensive picture of the field of gramicidin and trans-membrane channels. After the first structure prediction of the gramicidin channel by Urry in 1971 which was essentially correct, many crystallographic structures of the peptide in alcoholic solution were solved but gave different helical structures which were irrelevant as a trans-membrane channel. The detailed experimental structure in the lipid bilayer was finally solved by solid-state NMR spectroscopy between 1995 and 1999. These lessons, which spanned 30 years, are one of the many that the reader will find in this book. The level of details of the structure allow the theoreticians to study the role of the peptide-ion interactions on the conduction, as well as the role of the ion on the peptide conformation. Gramicidin, a peptide formed of a series of 15 alternating L- and D-amino acids, can be synthesized to address experimentally these questions. Subtle modifications were introduced to modify the backbone and side chains dipole moments and effects on ion and electrical conduction were analyzed. In order to decipher the conduction mechanism, many models were applied to gramicidin and related channels like alamethicin: continuous or multistate models were tested against the conduction data. Even models at atomic level where free energy profiles were calculated along the channel were tested against NMR data aimed at locating Na+ ions. Other aspects are of primary interest for membrane proteins: translocation in the membrane, the water structure in the pore lumen, and the effects of the peptide on the lipid bilayer and vice versa. Here both the protein and the lipid composition can be modified to analyze the respective effects. The resulting effect on membrane dynamics and antimicrobial mechanism were then discussed, Secondary and tertiary prediction of membrane protein with their specific environment were also approached. The relation between mutations and effect on the function was tempted. Last but not least, a tremendously convincing application of gramicidin to biosensors was presented. The construction and tests of nanomachines with a large range of dynamic response was presented. You can choose in this impressive list of approaches which of the above aspect you are most interested in. This book will give you a good starting view point of the field. And certainly, you will not find that these peptides are lacking of spice, or mystery. Arnaud Blondel