Progress in Polyamine Research

This book contains the scientific contributions presented at an International Symposium held in Sorrento, Italy, in June 1988 under the auspices of the University of Naples, the Italian Society of Biochemistry, and the National Research Council. The modern history of polyamines dates back to 1958 when the Tabors and Rosenthal first described the outlines of their biological synthesis. From then on, and particularly in the last ten years, a veri table explosion of Literature, characterized by thousands of papers, has witnessed the interest of the scientific community toward these molecules. Perhaps the old statement that "polyamines are molecules in search of a function" is no longer true today. A large number of effects exerted by these simple molecules are well known, and in many cases the mechanisms underlying these effects have been elucidated. The first section of the volume is entirely devoted to the enzymology and molecular biology of ornithine decarboxylase. Since its discovery by Gale more than forty years ago, this can be considered among the most widely studied enzymes in biology, and one of the most complex models in enzyme regulation. The mechanism of control of the enzyme activity at the transcriptional, post-transcriptional and post-translational levels, as well as the fine regulation by antizyme, are discussed in detail. The second group of contributions deals wi th AdoMet decarboxylase, propylamine transferase, polyamine oxidase and the other enzymes related to polyamine interconversion and regeneration.

Ornithine Decarboxylase: Molecular Genetics, Post-Synthetic Modifications and Antizyme.- Androgen Regulation of Ornithine Decarboxylase and S-Adenosylmethionine Decarboxylase Gene Expression.- Regulation of Polyamine Biosynthesis in Escherichia coli by the Acidic Antizyme and the Ribosomal Proteins S20 and L34.- Studies on Ornithine Decarboxylase Antizyme.- Ornithine Decarboxylase Antizyme in Mammalian Tissues.- Phosphorylation by Casein Kinase-2 and Reversible Alteration of Thiol Groups: Mechanisms of Control of Ornithine Decarboxylase?.- Modifications of Ornithine Decarboxylase induced by Phosphatases.- Enzymes of Polyamine Metabolism and Recycling.- S-Adenosylmethionine Decarboxylase from Escherichia coli and from Saccharomyces cerevisiae: Cloning and Overexpression of the Genes.- Structural and Mechanistic Properties of E. coli Adenosylmethionine Decarboxylase.- S-Adenosylmethionine Decarboxylase from the Thermophilic Archaebacterium Sulfolobus solfataricus.- Properties of Human and Rodent S-Adenosylmethionine Decarboxylase.- Aminopropyltransferases: Mechanistic Studies and the Synthesis of Specific Inhibitors.- Approaching the Structures of Mammalian Propylamine Transferases and their Genes.- Potential Roles of Polyamine Interconversion in the Mammalian Organism.- The Biological Functions of Amine Oxidases and their Reaction Products: an Overview.- Metabolism of 5? -Methylthioadenosine in Normal and Transformed Cells.- Human 5?-Deoxy-5?-Methylthioadenosine Phosphorylase: Kinetic Studies and Catalytic Mechanism.- Methylthioadenosine (MeSAdo) Phosphorylase Deficiency in Malignancy.- Physico-Chemical and Immunological Properties of Bovine Liver 5?-Deoxy-5?-Methylthioadenosine Phosphorylase.- Exploitation of Methylthioribose Kinase in the Development of Antiprotozoal Drugs.- MTA Phosphorylase in Protozoa: a Potential Target for Chemotherapeutic Attack.- Characterization and Biogenesis of 5?-Methylthioxylofuranosyl Adenine, a New Natural Analog of 5?-Methylthioadenosine.- Studies on Human Serum 5?-Deoxy-5?-Methylthioadenosine Phosphorylase: Molecular Properties and Clinical Perspectives.- Polyamines in Cell Growth and Differentiation.- Growth Regulation of the Cellular Levels and Expression of the mRNA Molecules coding for Ornithine Decarboxylase and Adenosylmethionine Decarboxylase.- Structure, Amplification and Methylation of Ornithine Decarboxylase Genes in Human Malignant Cells.- Regulation of Polyamine Synthesis in Mammalian Cells.- Mechanisms Involved in Ornithine Decarboxylase Induction by 12-0-Tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate, a Potent Mouse Skin Tumor Promotor and an Activator of Protein Kinase C.- Polyamines, DNA Methylation and Cell Differentiation.- Two Phases of Ornithine Decarboxylase Activation during Lymphocyte Mitogenesis.- Regulation of Protein Synthesis by Polyamines.- Polyamine Recycling Enzymes in Human Cancer Cells.- Estrogenic Control of Spermidine/Spermine N1-Acetyltransferase Activity in Rat Uterus.- Erythrocyte Polyamines: their Diagnostic and Therapeutic Importance in Human Neuro-Oncology.- Abnormalities of Polyamine Biosynthesis in Spinal Cord of Totally Gastrectomized Rats.- Ornithine Decarboxylase and Polyamine Biosynthesis in Pancreatic Adaptation.- Post-Synthetic Modifications of Proteins Involving Polyamines.- Transglutaminases and their Regulation: Implications for Polyamine Metabolism.- Purification and Structural Characterization of in vitro Synthesized (?-Glutamyl)Spermidine Conjugates of a Major Protein Secreted from the Rat Seminal Vesicles.- Covalent Polyamine-Protein Conjugates: Analysis and Distribution.- Spermidine in Mammalian Lymphocytes and Sea Urchin Embryos: Uptake and Labeling of Macromolecules.- Biosynthesis of Hypusine in eIF-4D Precursors.- Hypusine Biosynthesis in Protein and its Biological Consequences.- Deoxyhypusine Hydroxylase.- Intractions of Polyamines with Macromolecules.- Effect of Polyamines on Protein Kinase C Activation Process.- Interaction of Polyamines with Phospholipids, Spermine and Ca2+ Competition for Phosphatidylserine Containing Liposomes.- Bidirectional Transport of Spermine across the Inner Membrane of Liver Mitochondria.- Polyamines Stimulate the in vitro Transport of the Precursor of Ornithine Carbamoyltransferase into Rat Liver Mitochondria.- Uptake of Polyamines by Human Lymphocytes and their Effect on Lactate Formation from Glucose.- Theoretical and Experimental Characterization of Polyamine/DNA Interactions.- Effect of Spermine on Transfer RNA and Transfer RNA-Ribosome Interactions.- Spermine Inhibition of Basal and Stimulated Adenylate Cyclase is Mediated by the Inhibitory GTP-Binding Protein (Gi).- Polyamines in Plants.- Polyamines as Growth Substances in Higher Plants.- Polyamines in Growth and Differentiation of Plant Cell Cultures: the Effect of Nitrogen Nutrition, Salt Stress and Embryogenic Media.- The Di- and Polyamine Oxidases of Plants.- Control of Phytopathogens by Inhibitors of Polyamine Biosynthesis.- Relationship between Polyamine and Ethylene Biosynthesis in Plants and its Significance in Morphogenesis in Cell Cultures.- Purification of Polyamine Oxidase from Maize Seedlings by Immunoadsorbent Column.- Polyamines in Microorganisms.- Polyamine Pools and the Control of Ornithine Decarboxylase Activity.- Biochemical Properties of Unusual Polyamines found in an Extreme Thermophile, Thermus thermophilus.- Polyamines in the Cell Cycle of the Malarial Parasite Plasmodium falciparum.- The Role of Polyamines in the Growth and Transformation of the African Trypanosome.- The Role of Glutathionylspermidine and Trypanothione in Regulation of Intracellular Spermidine Levels during Growth of C. fasciculata.- Inhibitors of Polyamine Biosynthesis in Therapy.- Regulation of Polyamine Biosynthetic Activity by Spermidine and Spermine Analogs ― a Novel Antiproliferative Strategy.- Fluorine-Containing Polyamines: Biochemistry and Potential Applications.- Mechanism of Antitumor Activity of Norspermidine, a Structural Homologue of Spermidine.- The Effects of Polyamine Analogues on Malaria Parasites in vitro and in vivo.- Inhibition of Ornithine or Arginine Decarboxylase as an Experimental Approach to African or American Trypanosomiasis.- The Polyamine Metabolism of Filarial Worms as Chemotherapeutic Target.- Large Bowel Tumor Promotion by Diamine Oxidase Inhibition: Animal Model and Clinical Aspects.- Closing Remarks: Changing Perspectives in Polyamine Research.- Contributors.