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Electrophoretic Mobility Shift Assay EMSA for the Study of RNA-Protein Interactions: The IRE/IRP Example
Published on: December 3, 2014
Roles of Fe-S proteins: from cofactor synthesis to iron homeostasis to protein synthesis
Debkumar Pain1, Andrew Dancis2
1Department of Pharmacology, Physiology, and Neuroscience, New Jersey Medical School, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ 07101, USA.
Abstract:
Fe-S cluster assembly is an essential process for all cells. Impairment of Fe-S cluster assembly creates diseases in diverse and surprising ways. In one scenario, the loss of function of lipoic acid synthase, an enzyme with Fe-S cluster cofactor in mitochondria, impairs activity of various lipoamide-dependent enzymes with drastic consequences for metabolism. In a second scenario, the heme biosynthetic pathway in red cell precursors is specifically targeted, and iron homeostasis is perturbed, but lipoic acid synthesis is unaffected. In a third scenario, tRNA modifications arising from action of the cysteine desulfurase and/or Fe-S cluster proteins are lost, which may lead to impaired protein synthesis. These defects can then result in cancer, neurologic dysfunction or type 2 diabetes.
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