PON

PON or Pon may refer to:

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PON3

Paraoxonase 3, also known as PON3, is a protein which in humans is encoded by the PON3 gene.

Function

This gene is a member of the paraoxonase family and lies in a cluster on chromosome 7 with the other two family members. The encoded protein is secreted into the bloodstream and associates with high-density lipoprotein (HDL). The protein also rapidly hydrolyzes lactones and can inhibit the oxidation of low-density lipoprotein (LDL), a function that is believed to slow the initiation and progression of atherosclerosis. Alternatively spliced variants which encode different protein isoforms have been described; however, only one has been fully characterized.

References

Further reading

PON2

Serum paraoxonase/arylesterase 2 is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the PON2 gene.

This gene encodes a member of the paraoxonase gene family, which includes three known members located adjacent to each other on the long arm of chromosome 7. The encoded protein is ubiquitously expressed in human tissues, membrane-bound, and may act as a cellular antioxidant, protecting cells from oxidative stress. Hydrolytic activity against acylhomoserine lactones, important bacterial quorum-sensing mediators, suggests the encoded protein may also play a role in defense responses to pathogenic bacteria. Mutations in this gene may be associated with vascular disease and a number of quantitative phenotypes related to diabetes. Alternatively spliced transcript variants encoding different isoforms have been described.

References

Further reading

Ragnarök

In Norse mythology, Ragnarök is a series of future events, including a great battle foretold to ultimately result in the death of a number of major figures (including the gods Odin, Thor, Týr, Freyr, Heimdallr, and Loki), the occurrence of various natural disasters, and the subsequent submersion of the world in water. Afterward, the world will resurface anew and fertile, the surviving and returning gods will meet, and the world will be repopulated by two human survivors. Ragnarök is an important event in the Norse canon, and has been the subject of scholarly discourse and theory.

The event is attested primarily in the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and the Prose Edda, written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson. In the Prose Edda, and in a single poem in the Poetic Edda, the event is referred to as Ragnarök or Ragnarøkkr (Old Norse "Fate of the Gods" and "Twilight of the Gods" respectively), a usage popularised by 19th-century composer Richard Wagner with the title of the last of his Der Ring des Nibelungen operas, Götterdämmerung (1876).

Thor: The Dark World

Thor: The Dark World is a 2013 American superhero film featuring the Marvel Comics character Thor, produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. It is the sequel to 2011's Thor and the eighth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The film was directed by Alan Taylor, with a screenplay by Christopher Yost and Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely. It stars Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Hopkins, Stellan Skarsgård, Idris Elba, Christopher Eccleston, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Kat Dennings, Ray Stevenson, Zachary Levi, Tadanobu Asano, Jaimie Alexander, and Rene Russo. In Thor: The Dark World, Thor teams up with Loki to save the Nine Realms from the Dark Elves led by the vengeful Malekith, who intends to plunge the universe into darkness.

Development of Thor: The Dark World began in April 2011, when producer Kevin Feige announced plans for a sequel to follow the crossover film The Avengers. In July 2011, Kenneth Branagh, the director of Thor, withdrew from the project. Brian Kirk and Patty Jenkins were considered to direct the film before Taylor was hired in January 2012. The supporting cast filled out in August 2012, with the hiring of Eccleston, Dennings, and Akinnuoye-Agbaje. Principal photography began in September 2012 in Surrey, England with filming continuing in Iceland and London, before wrapping up in December 2012. Thor: The Dark World was converted to 3D in post-production.

Ragnarök (Swedish band)

Ragnarök is a Swedish prog-rock band, founded in Kalmar in 1972, by Peter Bryngelsson, Henrik Strindberg and Staffan Strindberg. Their first album was released 1976 by Silence Records.

Members of the band

1972-1978

1978-1980

1980-1982

1982-1983

1983-2002

2003-