Comment · Tue, November 10, 2020 · ND Owner
Need help about ACE2 pathway, nicotine role, potential nootropic to upregulate the expression of it.
Original post in this thread
Livai_BlackLagoon · 7 points
Hey, (not on my main reddit account but dont matter)
I'm confused about ACE2, i had read some study regarding this. Technically, if i understand well, it's a kind of peptide (so i guess, epigenetic related ?).
Study say "downregulate" or "upregulate" ACE2. I know these terms for neurotransmitters and receptors of it. But for peptides and stuff i don't really catch the meaning of these terms.
For exemple, ACE2, "peptide" downregulated from nicotine, admitting i quit nicotine cold turkey, will the body compansate with a massive rush of ACE2 due to nicotine sessation and peptide deprivation ? (Which is not really the case with receptors of let's say dopamine if it was downregulate).
Now, is there any nootropic that can "upregulate" OR "boost" (yeah.. ?) ACE2 in the ND store ?
For this i'm calling you u/MisterYouAreSoDumb i think this is really important for the community and particularly elderly people with health problems. (regarding the thing we can't talk about, this kind of very litle monster that make the world crazy. I hope you understand what i'm talking about or don't missread this metaphor).
Thank you
What they were answering
Direct reply to the original post — see the thread post above.
u/MisterYouAreSoDumb · ND Owner
ACE2 is an enzyme (protein) on the surface of certain cells, not a peptide. Certain peptides can bind to ACE2, but ACE2 itself is not a peptide. Proteins are just big strings of peptides, but a peptide is not a protein just like a rectangle is not a square. Bad analogy, but you get the idea. ACE2 is actually a metalloenzyme(metalloprotein), or an enzyme/receptor that contains a metal cofactor. In ACE2's case, that metal is zinc. You will also see ACE2 referred to as a membrane-bound zinc metallopeptidase.
As far as up-regulation is concerned, I know resveratrol does. However, the interactions are pretty complex here. It's hard to give a simple answer.
For exemple, ACE2, "peptide" downregulated from nicotine, admitting i quit nicotine cold turkey, will the body compansate with a massive rush of ACE2 due to nicotine sessation and peptide deprivation ? (Which is not really the case with receptors of let's say dopamine if it was downregulate).
Quitting nicotine cold turkey won't have any acute effects on ACE2 expression, at least to my knowledge. Your body tries to maintain homeostasis, so it will likely up-regulate ACE2 over time. However, it won't be a "rush," so to speak. Also, it can be more complex than that. Nicotine actually up-regulates ACh receptors, but desensitizes them. So you would assume that nicotine, being a nicotinic ACh receptor agonist, would down-regulate those receptors. However, it up-regulates them, but desensitizes them at the same time. It can be counterintuitive sometimes.
What are you trying to accomplish by up-regulating ACE2?