Snake venom L-Amino acid oxidases: trends in pharmacology and biochemistry

Submitted by Claudete Queiroz ([email protected]) on 2016-05-03T18:02:40Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Snake Venom L-Amino Acid Oxidases Trends in - Pharmacology and Biochemistry.pdf: 3419937 bytes, checksum: 77270860cee91bddcc146303c805335c (MD5)Approved for entry into archive by EMERSON LEAL ([email protected]) on 2016-05-17T14:23:25Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 Snake Venom L-Amino Acid Oxidases Trends in - Pharmacology and Biochemistry.pdf: 3419937 bytes, checksum: 77270860cee91bddcc146303c805335c (MD5)Made available in DSpace on 2016-05-17T14:23:25Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Snake Venom L-Amino Acid Oxidases Trends in - Pharmacology and Biochemistry.pdf: 3419937 bytes, checksum: 77270860cee91bddcc146303c805335c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014Universidade Federal de Uberlândia. Faculdade de Ciências Integradas do Pontal. Departamento de Genética e Bioquímica. Uberlândia, MG, Brazil.Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Centro de Estudos de Biomoléculas Aplicadas à Saúde. Departamento de Medicina. Universidade Federal de Rondônia. Porto Velho, RO, Brazil.Universidade Federal de Uberlândia. Faculdade de Ciências Integradas do Pontal. Departamento de Genética e Bioquímica. Uberlândia, MG, Brazil.Universidade de São Paulo. Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto. Departamento de Análises Clínicas, Toxicológicas e Bromatológicas. Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil.Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Centro de Estudos de Biomoléculas Aplicadas à Saúde. Departamento de Medicina. Universidade Federal de Rondônia. Porto Velho, RO, Brazil.Universidade Federal de Uberlândia. Faculdade de Ciências Integradas do Pontal. Departamento de Genética e Bioquímica. Uberlândia, MG, Brazil.Universidade Federal de São João del Rei. Departamento de Química, Biotecnologia e Engenharia de Bioprocessos. Ouro Branco, MG, Brazil.Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Centro de Estudos de Biomoléculas Aplicadas à Saúde. Departamento de Medicina. Universidade Federal de Rondônia. Porto Velho, RO, Brazil.Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Centro de Estudos de Biomoléculas Aplicadas à Saúde. Departamento de Medicina. Universidade Federal de Rondônia. Porto Velho, RO, Brazil.Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Centro de Estudos de Biomoléculas Aplicadas à Saúde. Departamento de Medicina. Universidade Federal de Rondônia. Porto Velho, RO, Brazil.Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Centro de Estudos de Biomoléculas Aplicadas à Saúde. Departamento de Medicina. Universidade Federal de Rondônia. Porto Velho, RO, Brazil.Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Centro de Estudos de Biomoléculas Aplicadas à Saúde. Departamento de Medicina. Universidade Federal de Rondônia. Porto Velho, RO, Brazil.Fundação Oswaldo Cruz. Centro de Estudos de Biomoléculas Aplicadas à Saúde. Departamento de Medicina. Universidade Federal de Rondônia. Porto Velho, RO, Brazil.L-amino acid oxidases are enzymes found in several organisms, including venoms of snakes, where they contribute to the toxicity of ophidian envenomation. Their toxicity is primarily due to enzymatic activity, but other mechanisms have been proposed recently which require further investigation. L-amino acid oxidases exert biological and pharmacological effects, including actions on platelet aggregation and the induction of apoptosis, hemorrhage, and cytotoxicity. These proteins present a high biotechnological potential for the development of antimicrobial, antitumor, and antiprotozoan agents. This review provides an overview of the biochemical properties and pharmacological effects of snake venom L-amino acid oxidases, their structure/activity relationship, and supposed mechanisms of action described so far

Antitumoral Activity of Snake Venom Proteins: New Trends in Cancer Therapy

For more than half a century, cytotoxic agents have been investigated as a possible treatment for cancer. Research on animal venoms has revealed their high toxicity on tissues and cell cultures, both normal and tumoral. Snake venoms show the highest cytotoxic potential, since ophidian accidents cause a large amount of tissue damage, suggesting a promising utilization of these venoms or their components as antitumoral agents. Over the last few years, we have studied the effects of snake venoms and their isolated enzymes on tumor cell cultures. Some in vivo assays showed antineoplastic activity against induced tumors in mice. In human beings, both the crude venom and isolated enzymes revealed antitumor activities in preliminary assays, with measurable clinical responses in the advanced treatment phase. These enzymes include metalloproteases (MP), disintegrins, L-amino acid oxidases (LAAOs), C-type lectins, and phospholipases A2 (PLA2s). Their mechanisms of action include direct toxic action (PLA2s), free radical generation (LAAOs), apoptosis induction (PLA2s, MP, and LAAOs), and antiangiogenesis (disintegrins and lectins). Higher cytotoxic and cytostatic activities upon tumor cells than normal cells suggest the possibility for clinical applications. Further studies should be conducted to ensure the efficacy and safety of different snake venom compounds for cancer drug development

Risk factors for endometrial cancer in black and white women: a pooled analysis from the epidemiology of endometrial cancer consortium (E2C2)

PURPOSE: Endometrial cancer (EC) is the most common gynecologic cancer in the United States. Over the last decade, the incidence rate has been increasing, with a larger increase among blacks. The aim of this study was to compare risk factors for EC in black and white women. METHODS: Data from 7 cohort and 4 case-control studies were pooled. Unconditional logistic regression was used to estimate adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals for each risk factor in blacks and whites separately. RESULTS: Data were pooled for 2,011 black women (516 cases and 1,495 controls) and 19,297 white women (5,693 cases and 13,604 controls). BMI ≥ 30 was associated with an approximate 3-fold increase in risk of EC in both black and white women (OR(black)=2.93, 95% CI: 2.11, 4.07 and OR(white)=2.99, 95% CI: 2.74, 3.26). Diabetes was associated with a 30–40% increase in risk among both groups. Increasing parity was associated with decreasing risk of EC in blacks and whites (p-value=0.02 and <0.001, respectively). Current and former smoking was associated with decreased risk of EC among all women. Both black and white women who used oral contraceptives for 10+ years were also at reduced risk of EC (OR=0.49, 95% CI: 0.27, 0.88 and OR=0.69, 95% CI: 0.58, 0.83, respectively). Previous history of hypertension was not associated with EC risk in either group. CONCLUSIONS: The major known risk factors for EC exert similar effects on black and white women. Differences in the incidence rates between the two populations may be due to differences in the prevalence of risk factors