Biomaterial Database

Subcellular fractionation of brown adipose tissue. 1979

J P Giacobino

The present study proposes a technique, using Metrizamide, which permits the preparation of brown adipose tissue plasma membranes from the crude mitochondria as well as from the crude microsome fraction. These plasma membranes have high relative specific activities of their marker enzyme, 5'-nucleotidase (15 +/- 3 and 14 +/- 2 respectively) and, particularly those originating in the crude microsomes, are relatively free of mitochondria contamination. This study also shows the influence of the mode of cell disruption on microsome integrity. When cell disruption was achieved by grinding in liquid nitrogen the purified microsome NADPH cytochrome c reductase specific activity was found to be 3.5 times greater than that of microsomes obtained after homogenization of the tissue.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D008297	Male		Males
D008861	Microsomes	Artifactual vesicles formed from the endoplasmic reticulum when cells are disrupted. They are isolated by differential centrifugation and are composed of three structural features: rough vesicles, smooth vesicles, and ribosomes. Numerous enzyme activities are associated with the microsomal fraction. (Glick, Glossary of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 1990; from Rieger et al., Glossary of Genetics: Classical and Molecular, 5th ed)	Microsome
D008928	Mitochondria	Semiautonomous, self-reproducing organelles that occur in the cytoplasm of all cells of most, but not all, eukaryotes. Each mitochondrion is surrounded by a double limiting membrane. The inner membrane is highly invaginated, and its projections are called cristae. Mitochondria are the sites of the reactions of oxidative phosphorylation, which result in the formation of ATP. They contain distinctive RIBOSOMES, transfer RNAs (RNA, TRANSFER); AMINO ACYL T RNA SYNTHETASES; and elongation and termination factors. Mitochondria depend upon genes within the nucleus of the cells in which they reside for many essential messenger RNAs (RNA, MESSENGER). Mitochondria are believed to have arisen from aerobic bacteria that established a symbiotic relationship with primitive protoeukaryotes. (King & Stansfield, A Dictionary of Genetics, 4th ed)	Mitochondrial Contraction,Mitochondrion,Contraction, Mitochondrial,Contractions, Mitochondrial,Mitochondrial Contractions
D002001	Adipose Tissue, Brown	A thermogenic form of adipose tissue composed of BROWN ADIPOCYTES. It is found in newborns of many species including humans, and in hibernating mammals. Brown fat is richly vascularized, innervated, and densely packed with MITOCHONDRIA which can generate heat directly from the stored lipids.	Brown Fat,Hibernating Gland,Brown Adipose Tissue,Fat, Brown,Tissue, Brown Adipose
D002458	Cell Fractionation	Techniques to partition various components of the cell into SUBCELLULAR FRACTIONS.	Cell Fractionations,Fractionation, Cell,Fractionations, Cell
D002462	Cell Membrane	The lipid- and protein-containing, selectively permeable membrane that surrounds the cytoplasm in prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells.	Plasma Membrane,Cytoplasmic Membrane,Cell Membranes,Cytoplasmic Membranes,Membrane, Cell,Membrane, Cytoplasmic,Membrane, Plasma,Membranes, Cell,Membranes, Cytoplasmic,Membranes, Plasma,Plasma Membranes
D002499	Centrifugation, Density Gradient	Separation of particles according to density by employing a gradient of varying densities. At equilibrium each particle settles in the gradient at a point equal to its density. (McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 4th ed)	Centrifugations, Density Gradient,Density Gradient Centrifugation,Density Gradient Centrifugations,Gradient Centrifugation, Density,Gradient Centrifugations, Density
D000818	Animals	Unicellular or multicellular, heterotrophic organisms, that have sensation and the power of voluntary movement. Under the older five kingdom paradigm, Animalia was one of the kingdoms. Under the modern three domain model, Animalia represents one of the many groups in the domain EUKARYOTA.	Animal,Metazoa,Animalia
D051381	Rats	The common name for the genus Rattus.	Rattus,Rats, Laboratory,Rats, Norway,Rattus norvegicus,Laboratory Rat,Laboratory Rats,Norway Rat,Norway Rats,Rat,Rat, Laboratory,Rat, Norway,norvegicus, Rattus