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A joint approach that combines molecular modelling and fluorescence spectroscopy is used to study the affinity of an odorant binding protein towards various odorant molecules. We focus on the capability of molecular modelling to rank odorants according to their affinity with this protein, which is involved in the sense of smell. Although...
International audience
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International audience
Systematic enrichments of l -amino acids in meteorites is a strong indication that biological homochirality originated beyond Earth. Although still unresolved, stellar UV circularly polarized light (CPL) is the leading hypothesis to have caused the symmetry breaking in space. This involves the differential absorption of left- and right-CPL, a...
Understanding how chemicals code for a certain type of taste is fundamental for the development of a rational method to create new taste modulators. The identification of these new candidates is important for the food industry and would also be beneficial for the pharmacology industry. In humans, the bitter taste depends on a large family of 25...
International audience
Systematic enrichments of L-amino acids in meteorites is a strong indication that biological homochirality originated beyond Earth. Although still unresolved, stellar UV circularly polarized light (CPL) is the leading hypothesis to have caused the symmetry breaking in space. This involves the differential absorption of left- and right-CPL, a...
International audience
The influence of protein-ligand interactions on protein stability is usually assessed by measurements in the liquid phase. CD spectroscopy appears to be a tool of choice to i) measure the conformation of the protein in different phases and to ii) follow the conformational changes of the protein upon binding.We therefore studied the stability of...
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The Trace Amine Associated Receptors (TAARs) are a family of chemosensory receptors that recognize volatile amines. These receptors are few in number and highly conserved, compared to regular olfactory receptors. Polymorphisms in the TAAR family can have a drastic impact on our perception of amine compounds. Our study combine numerical...
International audience
Odorant-binding proteins (OBPs) are abundant soluble proteins secreted in the nasal mucus of a variety of species which are believed to be involved in the transport of odorants towards olfactory receptors. In this study, we report the functional characterization of mouse OBP5 (mOBP5). mOBP5 was recombinantly expressed as a hexahistidine-tagged...
Odorant-binding proteins are soluble proteins abundantly secreted in the nasal mucus of vertebrates. Although their physiological functions are not known, these proteins are suspected to have a carrier role in solubilizing and carrying hydrophobic odorant molecules to the olfactory receptors. Here, we describe the expression of functional mouse...
Mammalian sense of smell is triggered by interaction between odorant molecules and a class of proteins, called olfactory receptors (ORs). These receptors, expressed at the surface of olfactory sensory neurons, encode myriad of distinct odors via a sophisticated activation pattern. However, determining the molecular recognition spectrum of ORs...
Propylene oxide, the first chiral molecule recently detected in the interstellar medium, has once again raised the question whether biomolecular chirality might have cosmic origins. However, accurate chiroptical properties of propylene oxide in the ultraviolet spectral range necessary to suggest possible asymmetric synthetic routes in the gas...
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