title: Analysis of amyloid fibrils in the cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus).
abstract: Recently, a high prevalence of amyloid A (AA) amyloidosis has been documented among captive cheetahs worldwide. Biochemical analysis of amyloid fibrils extracted from the liver of a Japanese captive cheetah unequivocally showed that protein AA was the main fibril constituent. Further characterization of the AA fibril components by sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and Western blot analysis revealed three main protein AA bands with approximate molecular weights of 8, 10 and 12 kDa. Mass spectrometry analysis of the 12-kDa component observed in SDS-PAGE and Western blotting confirmed the molecular weight of a 12,381-Da peak. Our finding of a 12-kDa protein AA component provides evidence that the cheetah SAA sequence is longer than the previously reported 90 amino acid residues (approximately 10 kDa), and hence SAA is part of the amyloid fibril.
authors.affiliation: Department of Diagnostic Medicine, Kumamoto University, Japan.
authors.forename: Joakim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bergström
authors.forename: Mitsuharu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ueda
authors.forename: Yumi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Une
authors.forename: Xuguo
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Shogo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Misumi
authors.forename: Shozo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Shoji
authors.forename: Yukio
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ando
mesh_terms: D002612:Acinonyx / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000686:Amyloidosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary*; D000820:Animal Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D000818:Animals; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D000685:Serum Amyloid A Protein / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000685:Serum Amyloid A Protein