The fine structure of Micrococcus radiophilus and Micrococcus radioproteolyticus

The radiation resistant bacteria Micrococcus radiophilus and M. radioproteolyticus were studied by thin sectioning and freeze-etching techniques and the two species were found to be similar in the fine structure. The only significant difference was in the appearance of the surfaces of the cell walls in freeze-etched preparations.Since the two species, together with M. radiodurans, possess a unique cell wall structure and a cell wall peptidoglycan, which is different from that of other micrococci and Gram-positive cocci, it is recommended that they be reclassified into a new genus.     

Autolysins are direct involved in the bactericidal effect caused by penicillin in wild type and in tolerant pneumococci

The two pneumococcal autolytic enzymes (an N-acetylmuramoyl-L-alanine amidase and an endo-beta-1,4-N-acetylglucosaminidase) are directly involved in the penicillin-induced killing of Streptococcus pneumoniae. The activity of these lytic enzymes was efficiently controlled in tolerant mutants under physiological conditions.     

Control of Redox Balance by the Stringent Response Regulatory Protein Promotes Antioxidant Defenses of Salmonella

We report herein a critical role for the stringent response regulatory DnaK suppressor protein (DksA) in the coordination of antioxidant defenses. DksA helps fine-tune the expression of glutathione biosynthetic genes and discrete steps in the pentose phosphate pathway and tricarboxylic acid cycle that are associated with the generation of reducing power. Control of NAD(P)H/NAD(P)⁺ redox balance by DksA fuels downstream antioxidant enzymatic systems in nutritionally starving Salmonella. Conditional expression of the glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase-encoding gene zwf, shown here to be under DksA control, increases both the NADPH pool and antioxidant defenses of dksA mutant Salmonella. The DksA-mediated coordination of redox balance boosts the antioxidant defenses of stationary phase bacteria. Not only does DksA increase resistance of Salmonella against hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂), but it also promotes fitness of this intracellular pathogen when exposed to oxyradicals produced by the NADPH phagocyte oxidase in an acute model of infection. Given the role of DksA in the adjustment of gene expression in most bacteria undergoing nutritional deprivation, our findings raise the possibility that the control of central metabolic pathways by this regulatory protein maintains redox homeostasis essential for antioxidant defenses in phylogenetically diverse bacterial species.     

The role of enteric bacteria in the anerobic metabolism of 5-aminosalicylate

The primary (and inactive) enteric metabolite of 5-aminosalicylate is N-acetyl-5-amino-salicylate. Previous studies have demonstrated acetylation of this anti-inflammatory agent by intestinal and bacterial homogenates. To assess the contribution of anerobic bacteria to the N-acetylation in vivo, we have measured the production of N-acetyl-5-aminosalicylate in anerobic microculture. Our results indicate that enteric bacteria play a minor role in N-acetylation, but may contribute to the production of other metabolites of pharmacologic and toxicological interest.     

Mechanism of action of Clostridium perfringens enterotoxin. Effects on membrane permeability and amino acid transport in primary cultures of adult rat hepatocytes

Purified enterotoxin from the bacterium Clostridium perfringens rapidly decreased the hormonally induced uptake of α-aminoisobutyric acid in primary cultures of adult rat hepatocytes. At 5 min after toxin addition the decrease in α-aminoisobutyric acid uptake appeared not due to increased passive permeation (estimated with l-glucose) or to increased α-aminoisobutyric acid efflux. When short uptake assay times were employed a depression of α-aminoisobutyric acid influx was observed in toxin-treated hepatocytes. The depression of α-aminoisobutyric acid influx was correlated with a rapid increase in intracellular Na⁺ (estimated using ²²Na⁺) apparently effected by membrane damage. In contrast, the uptake of cycloleucine in the presence of unlabeled α-aminoisobutyric acid (assay for Na⁺-independent amino acid uptake) by hepatocytes treated with toxin for 5 min was decreased to only a small extent or not at all depending upon experimental design. At later times, C. perfringens enterotoxin increased the exodus of l-glucose, $\text{3-O-}\text{methylglucose}$ and α-aminoisobutyric acid from pre-loaded cells indicating that the toxin effects progressive membrane damage. When enterotoxin was removed by repeated washing after 5–20 min the decay of α-aminoisobutyric acid uptake ceased and appeared to undergo recovery towards the hormonally induced control level. The degree of recovery of α-aminoisobutyric acid uptake was inverse to the length of time of exposure to toxin. Adding at 10 min specific rabbit antiserum against C. perfringens enterotoxin without medium change also reversed the effect of toxin on increased intracellular ²²Na⁺, and on the exodus (from preloaded cells) of α-aminoisobutyric acid, L-glucose, and $\text{3-O-}\text{methylglucose}$.     

The cooperativity phenomena in a pigment-protein complex of light-harvesting antenna revealed by picosecond absorbance difference spectroscopy

A model of the cooperative changes in optical properties of light-harvesting bacteriochlorophyll molecules of complex B890 in response to the absorption of light quanta is proposed. According to the model, each antenna chromophore may persist in either of two optically non-excited states, R and T. The occurrence of at least one excitation per complex causes all optically non-excited chromophores of the complex to be converted from state R to state T. The theory is shown to be in good agreement with experimental ‘light curves’ (ΔAvs intensity of picosecond excitation pulse) for the ‘minor’ and ‘major’ signals of light-harvesting bacteriochlorophylls of complex B890 from Chromatium minutissimum.     

NleB/SseKs ortholog effectors as a general bacterial monoglycosyltransferase for eukaryotic proteins

Protein glycosylation is the most common post-translational modification as more than 50% of all human proteins are glycosylated. Pathogenic bacteria glycosylation allows adhesion to host cells and manipulates eukaryotic functions. A variety of acceptor proteins in bacterial glycosylation was recently discovered. Especially NleB/SseKs type III effectors unexpectedly glycosylate a poor nucleophile arginine. Other pathogenic toxins modify the unusual tyrosine, as well as canonical serine/threonine residues. And a huge diversity is found in target proteins; Rho/Ras families, death domains and moreover themselves for autoglycosylation. However, in spite of this acceptor diversity, all their sugar donors are only UDP-Glc/-GlcNAc and structural alignments as liganded show their catalytic cores are geometrically conserved, where DRY and DXD motives and W residues equally position to hold the sugar donors and to π-π bind with a uridine ring, respectively. Therefore, bacterial glycosyltransferases have a key for carbohydrate research problems concerning the sugar donors and target proteins recognition.     

CRP、PCT、WBC联合检测对中老年社区获得性肺炎的诊断效果

目的:研究C反应蛋白(C-reactive protein,CRP)、降钙素原(Procalcitonin,PCT)以及白细胞(White blood cell,WBC)联合检测对中老年社区获得性肺炎患者的诊断效果。方法:选择2018年1月～2019年1月我院收治的76例中老年社区获得性肺炎患者为观察组,同期在我院体检中心选取30例健康体检者为对照组。检测两组研究对象的CRP、PCT及WBC水平。采取肺炎严重程度CURB-65评分将观察组的76例患者分为低危组(n=63例),CURB-65评分3分,以及高危组(n=13例),CURB-65评分≥3分;依照观察组的转归情况分为存活组(n=70例)以及死亡组(n=6例),比较观察组和对照组患者,低危组和高危组患者,存活组和死亡组患者的CRP、PCT及WBC水平的差异。结果:观察组患者的CRP、PCT及WBC水平明显高于对照组(P0.05);高危组患者的CRP、PCT水平明显高于低危组患者(P0.05),而WBC水平两组无明显差异(P0.05);死亡组患者的CRP、PCT水平明显高于存活组患者(P0.05),而WBC水平两组无明显差异(P0.05)。经Pearson相关分析发现,CURB-65评分与PCT、CRP均呈明显的正相关(t=0.532,0.497,P均0.05)。结论:CRP、PCT以及联合检测可以为中老年社区获得性肺炎的诊断提供有利的信息,且CRP、PCT与患者的病情严重程度有一定的相关性。