A new method for the isolation of renal basement membranes

A method is described for the isolation of basement membranes from rabbit renal cortex in which the detergent $\text{N-}\text{lauroyl}$ sarcosine is used as the disruptive agent. The isolated membranes have been compared with membranes prepared using ultrasonication and they were comparable both in terms of purity and gross chemical composition. Glomerular and tubular basement membranes were isolated by first separating glomeruli from tubules by density gradient centrifugation followed by detergent treatment of the separated tissues.The detergent method has the advantage that the basement membranes retained their native structure to a large degree, whereas sonicated membranes were severely fragmented. Collagen fibres were a significant contaminant in both preparations and were revealed more clearly by negative staining than by examination of thin sections. Studies with the detergent-treated membrane revealed that a few proteins, which seemed to be membrane components, were extracted with 1 M NaCl and that these proteins were lost from the basement membranes during sonication used in the conventional isolation procedure.     

A versatile microstirrer and oxygen electrode system for a spectrophotometer cuvette.

A microstirring device is described which measures only 1 × 1 × 0.4 cm outsidedimensions and is thus suitable for insertion beneath most spectrophotometer cuvettes without displacing the cuvette from the light path and without the need for modification of the spectrophotometer. The top of the cuvette remains accessible for a specially designed cuvette lid and electrode. This combined equipment is particularly suitable for the simultaneous measurement of two parameters, one with the electrode and the other by spectrophotometry. The design of the lid also permits the addition of reactants, including O₂, during monitoring. The equipment has been used to measure the oxygen-binding isotherm of human hemoglobin using 0.1 mg of protein. The curve so obtained was identical with curves found in the literature and obtained under the same conditions of pH, temperature, etc.     

A method for determining amino acid concentrations and specific activities of amino acids and some other compounds in biological fluids

A method is described for obtaining plasma ultrafiltrates from which the concentrations of all amino acids, including tryptophan and ammonia, are obtained. A split-stream methodology is described for obtaining, in addition to the concentrations, the radioactivities of amino acids, glucose, and plasma water.     

A radiotracer enzyme assay for phosphofructokinase using ( , , -32P) adenosine triphosphate

A radiotracer enzyme assay for phosphofructokinase using adenosine 5′-triphosphate[α,β,γ-³²P] is described in this paper. Here the rates of appearance of both [1-³²P]d-fructose 1,6-diphosphate and [α,β-³²P] adenosine 5′-diphosphate were followed to establish enzyme activity. The unique advantages of multiple rate determinations in a single reaction sequence which accrue from the use of a readily available multiply labeled cosubstrate are discussed. By an extension of this approach other labeled(¹) nucleotides of the type, N(¹P)_n, and enzymes in the Enzyme Commision categories, EC 2.7(phosphotransferases) and EC 6.1–6.4(ligases) are equally amenable to radionuclide assay.     

Effects of γ-aminobutyric acid on 33Pi incorporation into rat brain phospholipids in vivo

The effects of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), bicuculline and strychnine on the incorporation $\text{in vivo}$ of ³³Pi into phospholipids of rat brain were studied at 10 and 30 minutes after intracisternal injection of the radionuclide. GABA inhibited labeling of phospholipids in the three brain regions studied at both times. Bicuculline by itself had no significant effect on ³³Pi incorporation, but totally blocked the inhibitory effect of GABA in all three brain regions. Strychnine by itself inhibited phospholipid labeling in the brain stem and forebrain, had no significant effect on GABA inhibition of ³³Pi incorporation in the cerebellum and forebrain, and partially blocked the GABA effect in the brain stem. GABA inhibited ³³Pi incorporation into phosphatidic acid, phosphatidylinositol, phosphatidyl choline and phosphatidyl ethanolamine but had no effect on phosphatidyl serine. The data suggest that the inhibitory effects of GABA on CNS phospholipid labeling are mediated specifically through GABA receptor sites.     

Separation of bases, ribonucleosides and deoxyribonucleosides by anion-exclusion and partition chromatography on cation-exchange resin: application to the assay of ribonucleotide reductase, deaminase and nucleosidase.

[5-³H]CDP and CTP are used as substrates in the assay of ribonucleotide reductase, deaminase and nucleosidase activity in crude enzyme preparations. After incubation, the nucleotides are hydrolyzed to nucleosides by sequential treatment with potato apyrase and alkaline phosphatase. An aliquot is then chromatographed on a cation-exchange column at 50°C with 0.1 m boric acid, adjusted to pH 7.4 with ammonia, used as eluant. The pyrimidines Ura, Urd, dUrd, Cyt, Cyd and dCyd are separated and eluted in about 50 min in small volumes. Assays by this procedure of CTP reductase activity in crude fractions of ribonucleotide reductase from Euglena gracilis gave results comparable to those obtained by the standard method. The new procedure is also applicable when adenine or guanine nucleotides are used as substrates. The adenine derivatives Ade, Ado, dAdo, Hyp, Ino, dIno as well as the guanine derivatives Gua, Guo, dGuo, Xan, Xao are separated from each other in this chromatographic system in about an hour.     

Photoreactivating enzyme from Euglena and the control of its intracellular level

Photoreactivating (PR) enzyme activity has already been demonstrated by us in cell-free extracts of Euglena gracilis var. bacillaris Pringsheim using the Hemophilus transformation assay. This activity can also be detected in extracts using a direct non-biological assay for the photorepair of thymine dimers in DNA. PR enzyme is found in extracts of both wild-type cells and cells of an aplastidic mutant, W₃BUL, lacking detectable chloroplast DNA, indicating that the PR enzyme is neither coded nor translated exclusively in the chloroplast, but is probably coded in the nucleus and translated in the cytoplasm. Growing cultures of wild-type cells manifest a large increase in PR enzyme activity in vitro upon entering stationary phase. This correlates with the increased photoreactivability of chloroplast inheritance in vivo in stationary phase cells, previously found for Euglena, and suggests that a substantial part of the newly synthesized PR enzyme is available to repair plastid DNA. When dark-grown nondividing wild-type cells are exposed to light, there is a large increase in the specific activity of PR enzyme measured in vitro. This increase is prevented by cycloheximide but not by chloramphenicol or streptomycin, indicating that the enzyme is synthesized on 87s cytoplasmic ribosomes rather than 68s chloroplast ribosomes. Wavelengths of light effective for PR of chloroplast DNA in vivo are also effective for the light induction of PR enzyme. A brief illumination (45 min) of dark-grown nondividing wild-type cells triggers the synthesis of PR enzyme which continues in the absence of light. Growing cultures of W₃BUL also exhibit a preferential synthesis of PR enzyme in the staionary phase of growth, but the specific activity in vitro is consistently ten times higher than that of wild-type. Dark-grown non-dividing cultures of W₃BUL also show a cycloheximide-sensitive light induction of PR enzyme synthesis which, however, is dependent on the continued presence of light. The light induction of PR enzyme synthesis can be regarded as the induction of an enzyme by one of its substrates.     

Stimulation of ion release from liposomes by the polyene antibiotic, filipin.

The effect of the polyene antibiotic, filipin, upon release of the ions Ca²⁺, Sr²⁺, SO₄^2? and phosphate out of phospholipid and phospholipid-cholesterol liposomal vesicles was studied. The addition of filipin at concentrations stoichiometrically comparable to the cholesterol concentration in the liposomes, resulted in 2–10 × stimulation of the rate of release of all of these ions. The filipin mediated stimulation of release of ions from liposomes was dependent upon the presence of cholesterol. The relative effectiveness of filipin increased when the mole percent of cholesterol incorporated into the liposomes increased from 10 to 50% and when the molar filipin:cholesterol ratio increased from 0.2 to 1.0. It has been previously shown that there is a 1:1 stoichiometry of interaction between filipin and cholesterol [Biochem. Biophys. Acta339, 57 (1974)]. The present studies suggest that this 1:1 stoichiometric interaction may also be responsible for the increased release of entrapped ions.A possible mechanism of action of polyene antibiotics is discussed which suggests that the rearrangement of membrane constituents occurring upon interaction of filipin with cholesterol is the basis for the enhancement of ion release. This would imply that the ion specificity observed upon interaction of polyene antibiotics with membranes would not only be determined by the polyene antibiotic itself, but also by the intrinsic properties of the membrane.     

Purification and characterization of a phosphonic acid-containing glycoprotein from the cell membranes of Tetrahymena

A protein which contains 2-aminoethylphosphonic acid (AEP) has been isolated from the ciliate protozoan Tetrahymena thermophila. The protein contains about 30% carbohydrate with both N- and O-glycosidic linkages to the polypeptide and 8% AEP which is attached only to the O-linked glycoside. The amino group of AEP is unreactive to dansyl chloride as is the amino terminus of the protein. The polypeptide portion of the molecule, M_r 22,500, contains 22% glycine, 5.5% hydroxyproline, and is quite acidic. The phosphoprotein is found in the cell membranes. Its synthesis is inhibited by tunicamycin to the same extent which the antibiotic inhibits cell division.     

A simple method for quantitative, semiquantitative, and qualitative assay of protein.

Aqueous cesium trichloroacetate permits the buoyant resolution of various RNAs and also of DNA at room temperature and neutral pH. Precipitate formation does not occur, under either native or denaturing conditions. The compositional buoyant density gradient was determined, and the buoyant densities of a variety of RNAs are presented. The buoyant densities increase in the order protein < DNA ? duplex RNA ? single-stranded RNA.     

Changes in rat renal cortex, isolated plasma membranes and urinary enzymes following the injection of mercuric chloride.

Some of the biochemical changes in rat kidney following the administration of mercuric chloride have been determined. Mercuric chloride had an immediate effect on the renal brush border resulting in rapid loss of the microvilli. Plasma membranes were isolated and characterised at various stages in the necrotic process, mircovilli were absent from these preparations and the activities of marker enzymes for the brush border were significantly decreased. In contrast the basal plasma membranes were unaffected by the nephrotoxin during the early stages and no change occurred in the activity of (Na+ + K+)-ATPase, a marker enzyme for the basal membranes. The change in the pattern of urinary enzyme excertion closely paralleled the ultrastructural changes in the tubular cells. The sequence of subcellular change following the administration of mercuric chloride is discussed in relation to the known mechanism of action of this agent.     

Binding of [125I]Bolton Hunter conjugated eledoisin to rat brain cortex membranes--evidence for two classes of tachykinin receptors in the mammalian central nervous system

[125I]Bolton Hunter conjugated eledoisin was prepared and purified by ion-paired reverse phase chromatography. The ligand binds to rat brain cortex membranes, and the binding is inhibited over 95% by unlabeled eledoisin (6.6 microM). The binding site appears to be distinct from the [125I]Bolton Hunter conjugated substance P receptor based on the relative potencies of substance P, eledoisin, kassinin, physalaemin and [pGlu]substance P (6-11) hexapeptide to displace the binding of these two ligands.     

Studies on the mode of action of calciferol. XVIII. Evidence for a specific high affinity binding protein for 1,25 dihydroxyvitamin D3 in chick kidney and pancreas.

Cytosol fractions prepared from rachitic chick kidney and pancreas were analyzed for binding of vitamin D₃ metabolites by sucrose density gradient centrifugation. Both cytosol fractions were found to contain a 3.6S macromolecule which specifically binds 1,25-dihydroxy[³H] vitamin D₃ and in addition a 5 to 6S macromolecule which binds 25-hydroxy[³H]vitamin D₃. Sucrose gradient analysis of a KCl extract prepared from kidney or pancreas chromatin resulted in a peak (3.6S) of bound 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D₃ which could not be distinguished from the cytoplasmic binding component. The interaction of 1,25-dihydroxy[³H]vitamin D₃ with the cytoplasmic binding component of both tissues occurred at low concentrations of hormone with high affinity.     

Anomalous behavior of certain poliovirus polypeptides during SDS-gel electrophoresis.

Urea is shown to be a useful additive to sodium dodecyl sulfate gels prior to electrophoresis and offers an alternative means for the resolution of some SDS-protein complexes. Two types of effect are described, one of which causes increases in the relative mobilities of certain polypeptides found in poliovirus-infected cells. It is postulated that urea plus SDS is able to achieve a more complete denaturation of some polypeptides, which leads to faster electrophoretic mobilities. The molecular weight estimations for such proteins in these conditions are therefore lower than those determined in the presence of SDS alone. A second effect of some urea solutions is to cause the multiple banding of the structural polypeptide VP3 when included in gels at high concentrations. This effect is variable and appears to be unrelated to the presence of cyanate ions.     

Cellular aging studied by the reconstruction of replicating cells from nuclei and cytoplasms isolated from normal human diploid cells

Cytochalasin B (CB) was used to enucleate cells (cytoplasts) and to obtain karyoplasts (nuclei) from the human diploid fetal lung fibroblast strain WI-38. Fusion of cytoplasts and nuclei from young and old cells was accomplished with the aid of inactivated Sendai virus. Viable nuclei may be obtained from the karyoplast pellet after passage through a layer of bovine albumin which retains any contamination cytoplasts. The majority of successful fusions forming “whole cells” occurred when cytoplast from “old” cultures (PDL 40–51) and karyoplasts from “young” cultures were used (PDL 12–22), but almost always resulted in limited division of the viable reconstructed cells. When successful fusion occurred between “young” cytoplasts and “young” karyoplasts the number of cell divisions obtained was comparable to control cells kept under similar conditions.     

A simple and sensitive colorimetric method for the determination of long-chain free fatty acids in subcellular organelles

A colorimetric assay for the determination of long-chain free fatty acids (FFA) is described. The FFA were extracted from subcellular organelles with chloroform:heptane:methanol. The copper soaps of FFA were determined colorimetrically with diphenylcarbazide. There are three advantages to employing the present modified procedure. (a) The sensitivity has been increased approximately twofold over that of the previous procedure of K. Falholt, B. Lund, and W. Falholt (1973, Clin. Chim. Acta46, 105–111); (b) it takes less time to complete the assay compared to the tedious procedures currently available; and (c) the presence of bovine serum albumin, a known FAA-binding protein, does not interfere with the assay procedure. The assay shows a linear response over the range of 10 to 130 nmol of FFA. The recovery of free fatty acids from mitochondria is 99%.     

Serum-independent human lymphoblastoid cells. Effects of cell density on growth

A serum-independent (SI) line of human lymphoblastoid cells has been developed from a clone of the serum-dependent (SD) line RPMI 8866. The SI cells have been growing in serum-free culture for more than one year. In high serum concentrations the growth of the SI cells is identical to that of the SD cells. At low serum concentrations the SD cells die while the SI cells survive and grow. The growth of SI cells is density-dependent and can be overcome by the addition of serum, conditioned medium, or daily feeding with fresh medium.     

Purification and properties of d-galactose-binding lectins from some erythrina species: Comparison of properties of lectins from E. indica,E. arborescens,E. suberosa, and E. lithosperma

The lectins of the seeds of four species of the genus Erythrina, namely E. indica, E. arborescens, E. lithosperma, and E. suberosa were isolated by affinity chromatography on acid-treated ECD-Sepharose 6B. The lectins were found homogeneous in polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and immunochemical tests. In SDS-gel electrophoresis, E. indica and E. lithosperma lectins each gave two bands with subunit molecular weights of 30,000 and 33,000 in the case of the former and 26,000 and 28,000 in the case of the latter. E. arborescens and E. suberosa gave single bands corresponding to polypetide chain molecular weight of 28,000. The lectins were found to be glycoproteins with their neutral sugar contents ranging from 4–9%. In carbohydrate specificity all the lectins were d-galactose specific. Their close similarity was also demonstrated by their homologous cross-reaction against the antiserum to E. indica lectin. In hemagglutinating activity toward human erythrocytes, E. indica and E. suberosa lectins showed higher activity toward the O group and E. arborescens toward the B group. The results show the similarity of the lectins derived from different species of the same genus in respect of immunochemical properties and carbohydrate specificity. In studies on E. indica lectin, the protein was found homogeneous by electrophoretic, immunochemical, and sedimentation experiments. Its molecular weight of 68,000 determined from sedimentation and diffusion data indicated that the molecule was a dimer of two noncovalently bound unequal subunits whose SDS-gel electrophoretic molecular weights are noted above. The lectin was devoid of cysteine and methionine and contained valine as its N-terminal amino acid. It had 9% neutral sugars and 1.5% glucosamine. Equilibrium dialysis studies with lactose showed that the values of the association constant K at different temperatures were of similar orders of magnitude to other lectins and the dimeric molecule possessed two noninteracting binding sites.     

A major role for chloride in (3H)- noradrenaline transport by rat heart adrenergic nerves

The effect of Cl^? and other anions on (³H)-noradrenaline line (NA) transport by bisected rat heart atrial appendages $\text{in}$$\text{vitro}$ has been studied. It was found that NA active transport, at the plasma membrane level, shows an absolute dependency on Cl^?, with a half-maximal activation of transport occurring at 6 mM Cl^? and complete saturation at 50 mM. Cl^? effects are due to changes in transport Km, while Vmax is not changed. Only one class of sites for Cl^? seem to be present in the transport system. Br^? can substitute for Cl^? with 90% effectiveness, nitrate and iodide are less effective, while larger anions are very poor substitutes. In addition, heart atrial hemi-appendages have been characterized as a suitable preparation for studies of this type.