IGb3
Isoglobotriosylceramide, Gal(α1→3)Gal(β1→4) Glcβ(1→1)Cer, abbreviated as iGb3, is an iso-globo-series of glycosphingolipid, which mysteriously disappeared in most mammals studied (pig, mouse, and human), except trace amount reported in the thymus. iGb3 was discovered in canine and rat intestines among iso-globo-series of glycosphingolipids. First NMR spectrums for standard iGb3 were published by Dr. Tomoya Ogawa. The physiological function of iGb3 is not clear. It has been identified as a CD1d- presented self-antigen for an innate type of immune cells termed as Natural Killer T (NKT) cells. Extensive biochemical studies by multiple methods including HPLC, mass spectrometry Mass spectrometry (MS) is an analytical technique that is used to measure the mass-to-charge ratio of ions. The results are presented as a '' mass spectrum'', a plot of intensity as a function of the mass-to-charge ratio. Mass spectrometry is u ..., and NMR did not lead to positive finding ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Galactose
Galactose (, '' galacto-'' + '' -ose'', "milk sugar"), sometimes abbreviated Gal, is a monosaccharide sugar that is about as sweet as glucose, and about 65% as sweet as sucrose. It is an aldohexose and a C-4 epimer of glucose. A galactose molecule linked with a glucose molecule forms a lactose molecule. Galactan is a polymeric form of galactose found in hemicellulose, and forming the core of the galactans, a class of natural polymeric carbohydrates. D-Galactose is also known as brain sugar since it is a component of glycoproteins (oligosaccharide-protein compounds) found in nerve tissue. Etymology The word ''galactose'' was coined by Charles Weissman in the mid-19th century and is derived from Greek ''galaktos'' (of milk) and the generic chemical suffix for sugars ''-ose''. The etymology is comparable to that of the word '' lactose'' in that both contain roots meaning "milk sugar". Lactose is a disaccharide of galactose plus glucose. Structure and isomerism Galactose exists ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Glucose
Glucose is a simple sugar with the molecular formula . Glucose is overall the most abundant monosaccharide, a subcategory of carbohydrates. Glucose is mainly made by plants and most algae during photosynthesis from water and carbon dioxide, using energy from sunlight, where it is used to make cellulose in cell walls, the most abundant carbohydrate in the world. In energy metabolism, glucose is the most important source of energy in all organisms. Glucose for metabolism is stored as a polymer, in plants mainly as starch and amylopectin, and in animals as glycogen. Glucose circulates in the blood of animals as blood sugar. The naturally occurring form of glucose is -glucose, while -glucose is produced synthetically in comparatively small amounts and is less biologically active. Glucose is a monosaccharide containing six carbon atoms and an aldehyde group, and is therefore an aldohexose. The glucose molecule can exist in an open-chain (acyclic) as well as ring (cyclic) form. ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ceramide
Ceramides are a family of waxy lipid molecules. A ceramide is composed of N-acetyl sphingosine and a fatty acid. Ceramides are found in high concentrations within the cell membrane The cell membrane (also known as the plasma membrane (PM) or cytoplasmic membrane, and historically referred to as the plasmalemma) is a biological membrane that separates and protects the interior of all cells from the outside environment (the ... of Eukaryote, eukaryotic cells, since they are component lipids that make up sphingomyelin, one of the major lipids in the lipid bilayer. Contrary to previous assumptions that ceramides and other sphingolipids found in cell membrane were purely supporting structural elements, ceramide can participate in a variety of cellular lipid signaling, signaling: examples include regulating cell differentiation, differentiation, cell proliferation, proliferation, and programmed cell death (PCD) of Cell (biology), cells. The word ''ceramide'' comes from the Latin ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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IGb3
Isoglobotriosylceramide, Gal(α1→3)Gal(β1→4) Glcβ(1→1)Cer, abbreviated as iGb3, is an iso-globo-series of glycosphingolipid, which mysteriously disappeared in most mammals studied (pig, mouse, and human), except trace amount reported in the thymus. iGb3 was discovered in canine and rat intestines among iso-globo-series of glycosphingolipids. First NMR spectrums for standard iGb3 were published by Dr. Tomoya Ogawa. The physiological function of iGb3 is not clear. It has been identified as a CD1d- presented self-antigen for an innate type of immune cells termed as Natural Killer T (NKT) cells. Extensive biochemical studies by multiple methods including HPLC, mass spectrometry Mass spectrometry (MS) is an analytical technique that is used to measure the mass-to-charge ratio of ions. The results are presented as a '' mass spectrum'', a plot of intensity as a function of the mass-to-charge ratio. Mass spectrometry is u ..., and NMR did not lead to positive finding ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Glycosphingolipid
Glycosphingolipids are a subtype of glycolipids containing the amino alcohol sphingosine. They may be considered as sphingolipids with an attached carbohydrate. Glycosphingolipids are a group of lipids (more specifically, sphingolipids) and are a part of the cell membrane. They consist of a hydrophobic ceramide part and a glycosidically bound carbohydrate part. This oligosaccharide content remains on the outside of the cell membrane where it is important for biological processes such as cell adhesion or cell–cell interactions. Glycosphingolipids play also important role in oncogenesis and ontogenesis. Classification In general, glycosphingolipids can be categorized into two groups: neutral glycosphingolipids (also called glycosphingolipids) and negatively charged glycosphingolipids. The latter can be distinguished again by means of the charge carrier. While in gangliosides sialic acids are found, sulfatides have a sulfate group. The structural similarity of most glycolipids ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Thymus
The thymus is a specialized primary lymphoid organ of the immune system. Within the thymus, thymus cell lymphocytes or ''T cells'' mature. T cells are critical to the adaptive immune system, where the body adapts to specific foreign invaders. The thymus is located in the upper front part of the chest, in the anterior superior mediastinum, behind the sternum, and in front of the heart. It is made up of two lobes, each consisting of a central medulla and an outer cortex, surrounded by a capsule. The thymus is made up of immature T cells called thymocytes, as well as lining cells called epithelial cells which help the thymocytes develop. T cells that successfully develop react appropriately with MHC immune receptors of the body (called ''positive selection'') and not against proteins of the body (called ''negative selection''). The thymus is largest and most active during the neonatal and pre-adolescent periods. By the early teens, the thymus begins to decrease in size and ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Canidae
Canidae (; from Latin, ''canis'', "dog") is a family (biology), biological family of dog-like carnivorans, colloquially referred to as dogs, and constitutes a clade. A member of this family is also called a canid (). There are three subfamily, subfamilies found within the canid family, which are the extinct Borophaginae and Hesperocyoninae, and the extant Caninae. The Caninae are known as canines, and include Dog, domestic dogs, Wolf, wolves, Coyote, coyotes, foxes, jackals and other extant and extinct species. Canids are found on all continents except Antarctica, having arrived independently or accompanied Human, human beings over extended periods of time. Canids vary in size from the gray wolf to the fennec fox. The body forms of canids are similar, typically having long muzzles, upright ears, teeth adapted for cracking bones and slicing flesh, long legs, and bushy tails. They are mostly social animals, living together in family units or small groups and behaving cooperativ ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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CD1d
CD1D is the human gene that encodes the protein CD1d, a member of the CD1 (cluster of differentiation 1) family of glycoproteins expressed on the surface of various human antigen-presenting cells. They are non-classical MHC proteins, related to the class I MHC proteins, and are involved in the presentation of lipid antigens to T cells. CD1d is the only member of the group 2 CD1 molecules. Biological significance CD1d-presented lipid antigens activate a special class of T cells, known as natural killer T (NKT) cells, through the interaction with the T-cell receptor present on NKT membranes. When activated, NKT cells rapidly produce Th1 and Th2 cytokines, typically represented by interferon-gamma and interleukin 4 production. Nomenclature CD1d is also known as R3G1 Ligands Some of the known ligands for CD1d are: * α- galactosylceramide (α-GalCer), a compound originally derived from the marine sponge ''Agelas mauritanius'' with no physiological role but great research utilit ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Natural Killer T Cell
Natural killer T (NKT) cells are a heterogeneous group of T cells that share properties of both T cells and natural killer cells. Many of these cells recognize the non-polymorphic CD1d molecule, an antigen-presenting molecule that binds self and foreign lipids and glycolipids. They constitute only approximately 1% of all peripheral blood T cells. Natural killer T cells should neither be confused with natural killer cells nor killer T cells (cytotoxic T cells). Nomenclature The term "NK T cells" was first used in mice to define a subset of T cells that expressed the natural killer (NK) cell-associated marker NK1.1 (CD161). It is now generally accepted that the term "NKT cells" refers to CD1d-restricted T cells, present in mice and humans, some of which coexpress a heavily biased, semi-invariant T-cell receptor and NK cell markers. Molecular characterization NKT cells are a subset of T cells that coexpress an αβ T-cell receptor, but also express a variety of molecular ma ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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HPLC
High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), formerly referred to as high-pressure liquid chromatography, is a technique in analytical chemistry used to separate, identify, and quantify each component in a mixture. It relies on pumps to pass a pressurized liquid solvent containing the sample mixture through a column filled with a solid adsorbent material. Each component in the sample interacts slightly differently with the adsorbent material, causing different flow rates for the different components and leading to the separation of the components as they flow out of the column. HPLC has been used for manufacturing (''e.g.'', during the production process of pharmaceutical and biological products), legal (''e.g.'', detecting performance enhancement drugs in urine), research (''e.g.'', separating the components of a complex biological sample, or of similar synthetic chemicals from each other), and medical (''e.g.'', detecting vitamin D levels in blood serum) purposes. Chrom ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Mass Spectrometry
Mass spectrometry (MS) is an analytical technique that is used to measure the mass-to-charge ratio of ions. The results are presented as a '' mass spectrum'', a plot of intensity as a function of the mass-to-charge ratio. Mass spectrometry is used in many different fields and is applied to pure samples as well as complex mixtures. A mass spectrum is a type of plot of the ion signal as a function of the mass-to-charge ratio. These spectra are used to determine the elemental or isotopic signature of a sample, the masses of particles and of molecules, and to elucidate the chemical identity or structure of molecules and other chemical compounds. In a typical MS procedure, a sample, which may be solid, liquid, or gaseous, is ionized, for example by bombarding it with a beam of electrons. This may cause some of the sample's molecules to break up into positively charged fragments or simply become positively charged without fragmenting. These ions (fragments) are then separated acco ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy
Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, most commonly known as NMR spectroscopy or magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS), is a spectroscopic technique to observe local magnetic fields around atomic nuclei. The sample is placed in a magnetic field and the NMR signal is produced by excitation of the nuclei sample with radio waves into nuclear magnetic resonance, which is detected with sensitive radio receivers. The intramolecular magnetic field around an atom in a molecule changes the resonance frequency, thus giving access to details of the electronic structure of a molecule and its individual functional groups. As the fields are unique or highly characteristic to individual compounds, in modern organic chemistry practice, NMR spectroscopy is the definitive method to identify monomolecular organic compounds. The principle of NMR usually involves three sequential steps: # The alignment (polarization) of the magnetic nuclear spins in an applied, constant magnetic field B0. # The p ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |