The role of phadiatop in the screening of respiratory allergy

Phadiatop is a new in vitro screening test for respiratory allergy. This test, based on the RAST procedure, detects in serum, the presence of specific IgE to a mixture of common inhalent allergens. Among 70 patients (26 children and 44 adults) consulting for respiratory syndrome, Phadiatop was positive in 31 cases. There were a good correlation between this new test and skin tests (59% for adults and 92% for children), total IgE (70% for adults and 65% for children) and RAST (93% for adults and 96% for children). Phadiatop, with a specificity of 100%, a sensitivity of 82% (76% for adults and 92% for children) and an efficiency of 90% (86% for adults and 96% for children), is a more accurate test than total IgE and could be an excellent in vitro screening test for respiratory allergy.     

Mass Ligand Binding Screening for Receptor Antagonists: Prototype New Drugs and Blind Alleys

Abstract

The ligand binding assay is a powerful tool in the search for antagonists for novel receptors, and for identification of novel classes of antagonists for well-known receptors. Ligand binding mass screening can be adapted for very high throughput. In order for mass screening to be useful, it is necessary to strictly define the binding characteristics for a compound to be considered a putative receptor antagonist. In practice, we have found that synthetic pursuit of a compound with a K_i of ± 1 uM is likely to lead down a blind alley unless very good evidence for specificity is available. Even potent competitors for binding should be thoroughly evaluated in assays of biological activity before a synthetic program is initiated in earnest.     

The Efficacy of an Immunoisolating Membrane System for Islet Xenotransplantation in Minipigs

Developing a device that protects xenogeneic islets to allow treatment and potentially cure of diabetes in large mammals has been a major challenge in the past decade. Using xenogeneic islets for transplantation is required in light of donor shortage and the large number of diabetic patients that qualify for islet transplantation. Until now, however, host immunoreactivity against the xenogeneic graft has been a major drawback for the use of porcine islets. Our study demonstrates the applicability of a novel immunoprotective membrane that allows successful xenotransplantation of rat islets in diabetic minipigs without immunosuppressive therapy. Rat pancreatic islets were encapsulated in highly purified alginate and integrated into a plastic macrochamber covered by a poly-membrane for subcutaneous transplantation. Diabetic Sinclair pigs were transplanted and followed for up to 90 days. We demonstrated a persistent graft function and restoration of normoglycemia without the need for immunosuppressive therapy. This concept could potentially offer an attractive strategy for a more widespread islet replacement therapy that would restore endogenous insulin secretion in diabetic patients without the need for immunosuppressive drugs and may even open up an avenue for safe utilization of xenogeneic islet donors.     

The effect of exposure to black background and to α-MSH on black-white background preference in the amphibian Xenopus laevis (Daudin)

Young frogs, Xenopus laevis, raised on a white background showed a slight preference for the black background of a black-white preference testing apparatus. Keeping frogs for either 24 hr or 20 days on a black background resulted in a further increase in their preference for black. Injecting 1 μg of synthetic α-MSH into white-adapted frogs had no effect on their black-white preference. On the other hand, Xenopus laevis tadpoles, at an early stage of metamorphosis, raised on a white background showed a significant preference for white. Keeping these tadpoles for 24 hr on a black background resulted in a shift from white to black preference. Injecting synthetic α-MSH into white-adapted tadpoles resulted in an increase in their preference for black. A behavioral feedback mechanism appears to exist between the release of endogenous MSH when a tadpole is exposed to a black background and its subsequent preference for background color.     

High-affinity binding of Ca2+ to bovine alpha-lactalbumin in the absence and presence of EGTA.

Literature values for the Kd for Ca2+ in bovine alpha-lactalbumin range over 3 orders of magnitude. There is a difference between two results obtained with EGTA as a metal-ion buffer, partly because different values for the Kd of Ca2+-EGTA were used in the calculations, and a much wider difference between results obtained in the presence and absence of EGTA, which has been attributed to an interaction between EGTA and the protein. Titrations in a flow-dialysis cell showed that Mn2+ competed with Ca2+ for the high-affinity site on the protein, and the results, combined with a Kd for Mn2+ of 2.1 +/- 0.1 microM, which was determined fluorimetrically, gave a Kd for Ca2+ of 1.3 +/- 0.1 nM. When alpha-lactalbumin containing 45Ca2+ was titrated with EGTA in a flow-dialysis cell, and widely accepted metal-chelation data for EGTA were used in the calculations, a Kd for Ca2+ of 1.10 +/- 0.03 nM was obtained. The results from the two methods are so similar as to indicate that the affinity for Ca2+ was unaffected by the presence of EGTA.     

Relationship between thermodynamic driving force and one-way fluxes in reversible processes

Chemical reaction systems operating in nonequilibrium open-system states arise in a great number of contexts, including the study of living organisms, in which chemical reactions, in general, are far from equilibrium. Here we introduce a theorem that relates forward and reverse fluxes and free energy for any chemical process operating in a steady state. This relationship, which is a generalization of equilibrium conditions to the case of a chemical process occurring in a nonequilibrium steady state in dilute solution, provides a novel equivalent definition for chemical reaction free energy. In addition, it is shown that previously unrelated theories introduced by Ussing and Hodgkin and Huxley for transport of ions across membranes, Hill for catalytic cycle fluxes, and Crooks for entropy production in microscopically reversible systems, are united in a common framework based on this relationship.     

Inter-plot competition in yield trials of potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L.) with single-drill plots

An experiment was carried out to assess the significance of inter-plot competition in a yield trial of potato cultivars. Seventeen cultivars were deliberately chosen and assessed for yield in single-drill and four-drill plots. Inter-plot competition for fresh-weight yield was a significant factor in the single-drill plots. It was modelled using a common competition coefficient with a covariate based on neighbour fresh-weight yields. In contrast, there was no statistically significant inter-plot competition for specific gravity. After adjustment for inter-plot competition, varietal ranking in estimated monoculture yield differed little from that based on unadjusted means. However, there was a reduction in the range of yield estimates, and a closer agreement with the observed pure-stand yields from the inner two drills of the four-drill plots. The adjustment for monoculture performance was most pronounced for the higher and lower yielding varieties, as expected from the assumption that the performance of high yielding varieties was enhanced in a competitive environment at the expense of low yielding ones. A general and flexible method of estimating competition coefficients in variety trials, together with a suitable algorithm, was developed and is explained in an appendix. It was used to check for inter-plot competition in a number of potato trials with single-drill plots and a large number of entries. Competition was found in some trials but not in others. Thus, where potato tubers are grown in single-drill plots for assessment of fresh-weight yield, adjustment should be made for inter-plot competition when evidence of inter-drill competition is found.     

Screening for functional expression and overexpression of a family of diiron-containing interfacial membrane proteins using the univector recombination system

The large number of uncharacterized genes emerging from genome sequencing projects has resulted in a need for quick and reliable screening methods for protein expression parameters. We have utilized the univector plasmid recombination system (as previously reported) to develop a series of vectors for rapid screening for expression in Escherichia coli. A high level of recombinant protein expression is a requirement for purification of protein for structural determination and other purposes. In other applications, successful complementation of a missing enzyme activity in E. coli, as well as directed evolution studies and metabolic engineering, often require a much lower level of protein expression. In this report we describe the construction of a number of new pHOST vectors that can be screened for both low- and high-level expression. We isolated a mutant vector for MBP fusions that exhibited a more optimal level of expression for complementation of aerobic respiration in hemA(-) E. coli, our functional assay for the alternative oxidase. We then demonstrated the use of our system to rapidly screen for both optimal functional expression and optimal overexpression of the alternative oxidase as well as two other members of a family of membrane-bound diiron carboxylate proteins, the plastid terminal oxidase and 5-demethoxyquinone hydroxylase.     

Site-directed mutants of charged residues in the active site of tyrosine hydroxylase

The active site of tyrosine hydroxylase consists of a hydrophobic cleft with an iron atom near the bottom. Within the cleft are several charged residues which are conserved across the family of pterin-dependent hydroxylases. We have studied four of these residues, glutamates 326 and 332, aspartate 328, and arginine 316 in tyrosine hydroxylase, by site-directed substitution with alternate amino acid residues. Replacement of arginine 316 with lysine results in a protein with a Ktyr value that is at least 400-fold greater and a V/Ktyr value that is 4000-fold lower than those found in the wild-type enzyme; substitution with alanine, serine, or glutamine yields insoluble enzyme. Arginine 316 is therefore critical for the binding of tyrosine. Replacement of glutamate 326 with alanine has no effect on the KM value for tyrosine and results in a 2-fold increase in the KM value for tetrahydropterin. The Vmax for DOPA production is reduced 9-fold, and the Vmax for dihydropterin formation is reduced 4-fold. These data suggest that glutamate 326 is not directly involved in catalysis. Replacement of aspartate 328 with serine results in a 26-fold higher KM value for tyrosine, a 8-fold lower Vmax for dihydropterin formation, and a 13-fold lower Vmax for DOPA formation. These data suggest that aspartate 328 has a role in tyrosine binding. Replacement of glutamate 332 with alanine results in a 10-fold higher KM value for 6-methyltetrahydropterin with no change in the KM value for tyrosine, a 125-fold lower Vmax for DOPA formation, and an only 3.3-fold lower Vmax for tetrahydropterin oxidation. These data suggest that glutamate 332 is required for productive tetrahydropterin binding.     

Kinetic analyses and structure-activity relationship studies of synthetic lysine acetylation catalysts

Lysine acylation of proteins is a crucial chemical reaction, both as a post-translational modification and as a method for bioconjugation. We previously developed a chemical catalyst, DSH, which activates a chemically stable thioester including acyl-CoA, allowing the site-selective lysine acylation of histones under physiological conditions. However, a more active catalyst is required for efficient lysine acylation in more complex biological milieu, such as in living cells, but there are no rational guidelines for developing efficient lysine acylation catalysts for use under physiological conditions as opposed to in organic solvents. We, herein, conducted a kinetic analysis of the ability of DSH and several derivatives to mediate lysine acetylation to better understand the structural elements essential for high acetylation activity under physiological conditions. Interestingly, the obtained trend in reactivity was different from that observed in organic solvents, suggesting that a different principle is necessary for designing chemical catalysts specifically for use under physiological conditions compared to catalysts for use in organic solvents. Based on the obtained information, we identified a new catalyst scaffold with high activity and structural flexibility for further modification to improve this catalyst system.     

Mapping quantitative trait Loci underlying fitness-related traits in a free-living sheep population

We searched for quantitative trait loci (QTL) underlying fitness-related traits in a free-living pedigree of 588 Soay sheep in which a genetic map using 251 markers with an average spacing of 15 cM had been established previously. Traits examined included birth date and weight, considered both as maternal and offspring traits, foreleg length, hindleg length, and body weight measured on animals in August and jaw length and metacarpal length measured on cleaned skeletal material. In some cases the data were split to consider different age classes separately, yielding a total of 15 traits studied. Genetic and environmental components of phenotypic variance were estimated for each trait and, for those traits showing nonzero heritability (N= 12), a QTL search was conducted by comparing a polygenic model with a model including a putative QTL. Support for a QTL at genome-wide significance was found on chromosome 11 for jaw length; suggestive QTL were found on chromosomes 2 and 5 (for birth date as a trait of the lamb), 8 (birth weight as a trait of the lamb), and 15 (adult hindleg length). We discuss the prospects for refining estimates of QTL position and effect size in the study population, and for QTL searches in free-living pedigrees in general.     

Aspects éthiques des prélèvements d’organes à coeur arrêté

Medical progress in organ preservation during cardiopulmonary resuscitation allow to obtain organ for transplantation in patients suffering from a cardiac arrest. The different theoretical situations have been summarized in an international classification (Maastricht classification). In France, the fact that patients deceased after a phase of withholding/withdrawing active therapies in intensive care (Maastricht class III) are specifically excluded from this discussion represent an ethical safeguard for the public and the health-care providers. Ethically, in cardiac arrest patients, there is a will of maintaining a clear distinction between the care of the patients for therapeutic purposes for the patient (that cannot lead to an organ withdrawal except for the specific case of a secondary evolution towards brain death) and for a pursuit of therapeutic maneuvers in order to obtain organs for transplantation.     

Rational engineering of Escherichia coli strains for plasmid biopharmaceutical manufacturing

Plasmid DNA (pDNA) has become very attractive as a biopharmaceutical, especially for gene therapy and DNA vaccination. Currently, there are a few products licensed for veterinary applications and numerous plasmids in clinical trials for use in humans. Recent work in both academia and industry demonstrates a need for technological and economical improvement in pDNA manufacturing. Significant progress has been achieved in plasmid design and downstream processing, but there is still a demand for improved production strains. This review focuses on engineering of Escherichia coli strains for plasmid DNA production, understanding the differences between the traditional use of pDNA for recombinant protein production and its role as a biopharmaceutical. We will present recent developments in engineering of E. coli strains, highlight essential genes for improvement of pDNA yield and quality, and analyze the impact of various process strategies on gene expression in pDNA production strains.     

Stem cells in development of therapeutics for Parkinson's disease: a perspective

Using Parkinson's disease as a prototype of neurodegenerative diseases, we propose applications of human stem cells in the development of therapeutics for neurodegenerative diseases. First, in vitro differentiation of human stem cells offers a versatile model for dissecting molecular interactions underlying human dopamine (DA) neuron specification, which may form a foundation for instigating regeneration of DA neurons from progenitors that reside in the brain. Second, stem cells derived from diseased cells or through genetic modification can serve as a platform for unraveling biochemical processes that lead to the cellular pathogenesis of degeneration. This may in turn serve as a template for identifying or developing therapeutics for slowing, stopping, or reversing the disease process. And finally, stem cells, particularly those induced from patients' own cells, provide a reliable source of DA neurons for cell-based therapy.     

Affinity of corticosteroids for mineralocorticoid and glucocorticoid receptors of the rabbit kidney: effect of steroid substitution

Corticosteroid derivatives coupled in the C3, C7 or C17 position with a long aliphatic chain were synthesized in order to select a suitable ligand for the preparation of a biospecific affinity adsorbent for mineralocorticoid receptor purification. The affinity of these derivatives for mineralocorticoid receptors (MR) and glucocorticoid receptors (GR) was explored in rabbit kidney cytosol. In this model, aldosterone bound to a single class of receptors with high affinity (Kd 1 nM) and mineralocorticoid specificity. RU26988, a highly specific ligand for GR, did not compete for these sites. The C7 and C17 positions were found to be of crucial importance in the steroid's interaction with the mineralocorticoid receptors, since the linkage of a long side chain in these positions induced complete loss of affinity. Hence, deoxycorticosterone no longer bound to MR after 17 beta substitution with a 9-carbon aliphatic chain. This loss of affinity was not observed for glucocorticoids. The 17 beta nonylamide derivative of dexamethasone still competed for GR. Increasing the length of the C7 side of the spirolactone SC26304 suppressed its affinity for MR. Finally, C3 was an appropriate position for steroid substitution. The 3-nonylamide of carboxymethyloxime deoxycorticosterone bound to MR but not to GR, and therefore constitutes a suitable ligand for the preparation of a mineralocorticoid adsorbent.     

Rapid assessment of female preference for male size predicts subsequent choice of spawning partner in a socially monogamous cichlid fish

Although size-assortative mating in convict cichlids, Amatitliana nigrofasciata, is supposed to result from mutual mating preference for larger individuals, female choice in relation to male size remains ambiguous. We revisited the evidence for directional preference for larger males in female convict cichlids using a classical two-way choice apparatus in which each female could decide to spend time in front of a small male or a large one. We found evidence for female preference for large males, as assessed from association preference during a 4-hour period following encounter. Furthermore, females decided to spawn in front of the initially preferred male more often than expected by chance. Our results thus confirm the existence of a directional preference for large males in female convict cichlids, and indicate that association preference measured over a short period of time can provide a quick and reliable proxy for reproductive preference in this species.