Monday, July 25, 2011

RNA-mediated transcriptional gene silencing in Friedreich ataxia

Current Opinion in Biotechnology, Volume 22, Supplement 1, September 2011, Page S16, European Biotechnology Congress 2011

Sanjay Bidichandani, Angela Castro and Yogesh Chutake

Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA

You can find the abstract in the Strasbourg FARA conference summary.
http://www.curefa.org/_pdf/4thInternationalFAConferenceAbstracts.pdf

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Assessment of neurological efficacy of idebenone in pediatric patients with Friedreich's ataxia: data from a 6-month controlled study followed by a 12-month open-label extension study.

J Neurol. 2011 Jul 22. [Epub ahead of print]

Meier T, Perlman SL, Rummey C, Coppard NJ, Lynch DR.
Santhera Pharmaceuticals, Liestal, Switzerland.

Keywords: idebenone, neurological function, ICARS, FARS, neurological rating scales, Friedreich's ataxia (FRDA), open-label extension study (IONIA-E), may offer a therapeutic benefit to pediatric FRDA patients.

Friday, July 22, 2011

A polymorphic miR-155 binding site in AGTR1 is associated with cardiac hypertrophy in Friedreich ataxia.

J Mol Cell Cardiol. 2011 Jul 12.

Kelly M, Bagnall RD, Peverill RE, Donelan L, Corben L, Delatycki MB, Semsarian C.
Agnes Ginges Centre for Molecular Cardiology, Centenary Institute, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Keywords:Friedreich ataxia (FRDA), expanded GAA trinucleotide repeat,frataxin gene (FXN), mitochondrial iron efflux, sensitivity to oxidative stress, variability in cardiac phenotype, genetic modifying factors, single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), Renin-Angiotensin-Aldosterone system (RAAS), angiotensin-II type-1 receptor (AGTR1), angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE), ACE2, left ventricular internal diameter in diastole (LVIDd), interventricular septal wall thickness (SWT), left ventricular mass (LVM), diastolic blood pressure, role of RAAS polymorphisms as modifiers of cardiac phenotype.

Structure-function analysis of Friedreich’s ataxia mutants reveals determinants for frataxin binding and activation of the Fe-S assembly complex

Biochemistry, Just Accepted Manuscript, DOI: 10.1021/bi200895k

Jennifer Bridwell-Rabb , Andrew M Winn , and David P. Barondeau

Keywords: Friedreich’s ataxia (FRDA), frataxin (FXN), GAA triplet repeat expansion, missense mutations, cysteine desulfurase, Fe-S cluster assembly activities, kcat/KM, NFS1, ISD11, ISCU2 (SDU), binding and allosteric activation of the Fe-S assembly complex.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Rim2, pyrimidine nucleotide exchanger, is needed for iron utilization in mitochondria

Biochem. J. (2011) Immediate Publication, doi:10.1042/BJ20111036

Heeyong Yoon, Yan Zhang, Jayashree Pain, Elise R. Lyver, Emmanuel Lesuisse, Debkumar Pain and Andrew Dancis
University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, U.S.A

Keywords: Mitochondria, iron, heme, Fe-S clusters, Mrs3, Mrs4, Yfh1, frataxin homolog, Rim2, mitochondrial carrier protein, pyrimidine exchange, promoting mitochondrial iron utilization.

Cardiac Dysfunction Causes Majority of Deaths in Friedreich's Ataxia

Original paper: Mortality in friedreich ataxia.

By: SHARON WORCESTER, Internal Medicine News Digital Network

Cardiac dysfunction remains the most common cause of death in patients with Friedreich’s ataxia, according to the findings of a retrospective study. read more

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

The Role of CyaY in Iron Sulfur Cluster Assembly on the E. coli IscU Scaffold Protein

PLoS ONE 6(7): e21992. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0021992

OPEN ACCESS

Clara Iannuzzi1#, Salvatore Adinolfi1#, Barry D. Howes2#, Ricardo Garcia-Serres3#, Martin Clémancey4, Jean-Marc Latour5, Giulietta Smulevich2, Annalisa Pastore1

1 Medical Research Council National Institute for Medical Research, London, United Kingdom, 2 Dipartimento di Chimica “Ugo Schiff”, Università di Firenze, Sesto Fiorentino, Firenze, Italy, 3 Commissariat pour l'Energie Atomique, iRTSV/LCBM, Grenoble, France, 4 CNRS, UMR 5249, Grenoble, France, 5 Université Joseph Fourier, Grenoble, France

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Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Rapamycin reduces oxidative stress in frataxin deficient yeast cells

Mitochondrion, Article in Press, Accepted Manuscript, doi:10.1016/j.mito.2011.07.001

Carlo M.T. Marobbioa, 1, Isabella Pisanoa, 1, Vito Porcellia, Francesco M. Lasorsab and Luigi Palmieria, b.

a Laboratory of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Department of Pharmaco-Biology, University of Bari, Via E. Orabona 4, 70125 Bari, Italy
b CNR Institute of Biomembranes and Bioenergetics, Via Orabona 4, 70125 Bari, Italy

Keywords: Friedreich ataxia (FRDA), frataxin, mitochondria, antioxidant protection, mitochondrial damage, antioxidant idebenone, yeast frataxin knock-out model, iron accumulation, iron-sulphur cluster defects, high sensitivity to oxidative stress, reactive oxygen species (ROS), rapamycin, TOR kinases inhibitor, autophagy, mitophagy.

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Long Range Regulation of Human FXN Gene Expression

PLoS ONE 6(7): e22001. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0022001

Puspasari N, Rowley SM, Gordon L, Lockhart PJ, Ioannou PA, Delatycki MB, Sarsero JP
Bruce Lefroy Centre for Genetic Health Research, Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, Royal Children's Hospital, Parkville, Victoria, Australia.

OPEN ACCESS
FULL TEXT PDF

Friday, July 15, 2011

Neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation - Clinical Syndromes And Neuroimaging -

Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Molecular Basis of Disease
Article in Press, doi:10.1016/j.bbadis.2011.06.016

Hyman M. Schipper,
Centre for Neurotranslational Research, Lady Davis Institute, Jewish General Hospital, Departments of Neurology & Neurosurgery and Medicine McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Keywords: Iron, neurotoxic reactive oxygen species, body iron homeostasis, neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation (NBIA), clinical syndromes and neuroimaging, magnetic resonance scanning, Friedreich ataxia (FA), pantothenate kinase 2-associated neurodegeneration (PKAN), PLA2G6-associated neurodegeneration (PLAN), FA2H-associated neurodegeneration (FAHN), Kufor-Rakeb disease (KRD), aceruloplasminemia, neuroferritinopathy.