Outputs (22)

β-Cell keratin 8 maintains islet mechanical integrity, mitochondrial ultrastructure, and β-cell glucose transporter 2 plasma membrane targeting (2024)
Journal Article
Baghestani, S., Haldin, C., Kosijer, P., Alam, C. M., & Toivola, D. M. (2024). β-Cell keratin 8 maintains islet mechanical integrity, mitochondrial ultrastructure, and β-cell glucose transporter 2 plasma membrane targeting. American Journal of Physiology - Cell Physiology, 327(2), C462-C476. https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpcell.00123.2024

Islet β-cell dysfunction is an underlying factor for type I diabetes (T1D) development. Insulin sensing and secretion are tightly regulated in β-cells at multiple subcellular levels. The epithelial intermediate filament (IF) protein keratin (K) 8 is... Read More about β-Cell keratin 8 maintains islet mechanical integrity, mitochondrial ultrastructure, and β-cell glucose transporter 2 plasma membrane targeting.

The influence of claw morphology on gripping efficiency (2023)
Journal Article
Turnbull, G., Chari, S., Li, Z., Yang, Z., Alam, C. M., Clemente, C. J., & Alam, P. (2023). The influence of claw morphology on gripping efficiency. Biology Open, 12(5), Article bio059874. https://doi.org/10.1242/bio.059874

This paper considers the effects of claw morphology on the gripping efficiency of arboreal (Varanus varius) and burrowing (Varanus gouldii and Varanus panoptes) lizards. To ensure a purely morphological comparison between the lizards, we circumvent t... Read More about The influence of claw morphology on gripping efficiency.

Intermediate Filament Keratins in the Exocrine Pancreas (2021)
Book Chapter
Alam, C., Baghestani, S., & Toivola, D. M. (2021). Intermediate Filament Keratins in the Exocrine Pancreas. In J. A. Williams, & F. S. Gorelick (Eds.), The Pancreas: Biology and Physiology (72-84). Michigan Publishing

Intermediate filament keratins are cytoskeletal components in epithelial tissues, including the exocrine pancreas. Keratin (K) intermediate filaments are highly conserved proteins that are expressed from early developmental stages up to the different... Read More about Intermediate Filament Keratins in the Exocrine Pancreas.

Keratin 7 Is a Constituent of the Keratin Network in Mouse Pancreatic Islets and Is Upregulated in Experimental Diabetes (2021)
Journal Article
Alam, C. M., Baghestani, S., Pajari, A., Omary, M. B., & Toivola, D. M. (2021). Keratin 7 Is a Constituent of the Keratin Network in Mouse Pancreatic Islets and Is Upregulated in Experimental Diabetes. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 22(15), Article 7784. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22157784

Keratin (K) 7 is an intermediate filament protein expressed in ducts and glands of simple epithelial organs and in urothelial tissues. In the pancreas, K7 is expressed in exocrine ducts, and apico-laterally in acinar cells. Here, we report K7 express... Read More about Keratin 7 Is a Constituent of the Keratin Network in Mouse Pancreatic Islets and Is Upregulated in Experimental Diabetes.

Keratin intermediate filaments in the colon: guardians of epithelial homeostasis (2020)
Journal Article
Polari, L., Alam, C. M., Nyström, J. H., Heikkilä, T., Tayyab, M., Baghestani, S., & Toivola, D. M. (2020). Keratin intermediate filaments in the colon: guardians of epithelial homeostasis. International Journal of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, 129, Article 105878. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocel.2020.105878

Keratin intermediate filament proteins are major cytoskeletal components of the mammalian simple layered columnar epithelium in the gastrointestinal tract. Human colon crypt epithelial cells express keratins 18, 19 and 20 as the major type I keratins... Read More about Keratin intermediate filaments in the colon: guardians of epithelial homeostasis.

PDE6D Inhibitors with a New Design Principle Selectively Block K-Ras Activity (2019)
Journal Article
Siddiqui, F. A., Alam, C., Ora, M., Sabt, A., Manoharan, G. B., Bindu, L., Okutachi, S., Catillon, M., Taylor, T., Abdelhafez, O. M., Lönnberg, H., Stephen, A. G., Papageorgiou, A. C., Virta, P., & Abankwa, D. (2020). PDE6D Inhibitors with a New Design Principle Selectively Block K-Ras Activity. ACS Omega, 5(1), 832-842. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsomega.9b03639

The trafficking chaperone PDE6D (also referred to as PDEδ) has been nominated as a surrogate target for K-Ras4B (hereafter K-Ras). Arl2-assisted unloading of K-Ras from PDE6D in the perinuclear area is significant for correct K-Ras localization and t... Read More about PDE6D Inhibitors with a New Design Principle Selectively Block K-Ras Activity.

Decreased levels of keratin 8 sensitize mice to streptozotocin-induced diabetes (2018)
Journal Article
Alam, C., Silvander, J., Helenius, T., & Toivola, D. (2018). Decreased levels of keratin 8 sensitize mice to streptozotocin-induced diabetes. Acta physiologica, 224(2), Article e13085. https://doi.org/10.1111/apha.13085

Aim
Diabetes is a result of an interplay between genetic, environmental and lifestyle factors. Keratin intermediate filaments are stress proteins in epithelial cells, and keratin mutations predispose to several human diseases. However, the involveme... Read More about Decreased levels of keratin 8 sensitize mice to streptozotocin-induced diabetes.

Keratins regulate β‐cell mitochondrial morphology, motility, and homeostasis (2017)
Journal Article
Silvander, J. S. G., Kvarnström, S. M., Kumari‐Ilieva, A., Shrestha, A., Alam, C. M., & Toivola, D. M. (2017). Keratins regulate β‐cell mitochondrial morphology, motility, and homeostasis. FASEB Journal, 31(10), 4578-4587. https://doi.org/10.1096/fj.201700095r

Loss of the epithelial intermediate filament protein keratin 8 (K8) in murine β cells leads to irregular insulin vesicles and decreased insulin levels. Because mitochondria are central in glucose-stimulated insulin secretion, the relationship between... Read More about Keratins regulate β‐cell mitochondrial morphology, motility, and homeostasis.

Diatom-inspired skeletonisation of insulin - Mechanistic insights into crystallisation and extracellular bioactivity (2015)
Journal Article
Véliz, D. S., Alam, C., Nietzel, T., Wyborski, R., Rivero-Müller, A., & Alam, P. (2015). Diatom-inspired skeletonisation of insulin - Mechanistic insights into crystallisation and extracellular bioactivity. Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces, 133, 140-147. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.colsurfb.2015.05.047

In this paper, we encage insulin within calcium carbonate by means of a biomineralisation process. We find that both dogbone and crossbone morphologies develop during the crystallisation process. The crystals break down into small nanocrystals after... Read More about Diatom-inspired skeletonisation of insulin - Mechanistic insights into crystallisation and extracellular bioactivity.

The amount of keratins matters for stress protection of the colonic epithelium (2015)
Journal Article
Asghar, M. N., Silvander, J. S. G., Helenius, T. O., Lähdeniemi, I. A. K., Alam, C., Fortelius, L. E., Holmsten, R. O., & Toivola, D. M. (2015). The amount of keratins matters for stress protection of the colonic epithelium. PLOS ONE, 10(5), Article e0127436. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0127436

Keratins (K) are important for epithelial stress protection as evidenced by keratin mutations predisposing to human liver diseases and possibly inflammatory bowel diseases. A role for K8 in the colon is supported by the ulcerative colitis-phenotype w... Read More about The amount of keratins matters for stress protection of the colonic epithelium.