We have undertaken the following projects: Autoimmune diseases: subclass specific characterization of IgG glycosylation in myositis.
Aims : 1) To determine whether a pattern of elecated agalactosyl IgG glycoforms is characteristic of myositis patients similar to that found in rheumatoid arthritis patients. 2) Determine if IgG markers of susceptibility can be identified. Results: 1) Elevated amounts of glycoforms lacking terminal galactose, IgG-Gal 0, were found in myositis patients. 2 )Statistical trend analysis indicates an increasing pattern in IgG-Gal 0 in the order controls ≤asymptomatic siblings ≤patients in both IgG1 and IgG2-3. Characterizatioon of O-glycosylation in collagen Aims: 1) identification of sites of O-linked glycosylation in type I collagen from mouse osteoblast cells and bovine bone;2) structural characterization of bi- (DHLNL) and trifunctional (Pyr) cross-linked peptides in human and bovine collagen, including their glycosylation status. 3) characterization of glycosylation changes in mouse type I collagen from LH3 suppressed osteoblast clones. Results: ) site specific occupancies were identified. 2) five cross-linked species (3 divalent, 2 trivalent) were found in bovine bone collagen. 2 trivalent species found in human bone collagen. Glycosylation states were identified. 3) Glycosylation in LH3 suppressed osteoblasts were observed to be significantly lower than in wt. Anthrax studies Aims: To determine whether or not the spin-trapping agent, DMPO, can alter the course of anthrax lethal toxin intoxication. Results: Based on previous studies that indicate that ree-radical induced oxidation is a major player in anthrax, we studied the effec on LT-exposed macrophage cellst of DMPO dosing at several levels and time-points post exposure to LT. We found that cell viability increased significantly at DMPO doses up to 100 mM and up to 1 hr dosing post exposure. As part of a study of the immunological detection of N-formylkynurenine in oxidized proteins we have found that artefactual formation of oxidized tryptophan residues in proteins can occur during gel electrophoresis. Mars-500 Project: Collaboration with the State scientific center of the Russian Federation Institute for Bio-Medical Problems of RAS under aegis of Roscosmos and Russian Academy of Sciences. Includes a series of experiments simulating long-term insolation of the crew of a Mars-bound space-flight. The main part is a series of the experiments on long-term isolation in conditions of the specially built ground-based experimental facility. Our role is to provide proteomics data from serum samples of participants in a 105 day isolation. Data are being analyzed.
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