Hyaluronectin is produced by oligodendrocytes and Schwann cells in vitro

A hyaluronectin (HN)-like antigen was found in rat O-2A progenitors and oligodendrocytes, as well as in Schwann cells and in their culture medium. The HN-like antigen secreted in culture supernatants had a higher molecular mass than HN extracted from rat brain at acidic pH. In vitro the secreted HN-like antigen was spontaneously and slowly degraded into species whose Mr was close to that of HN found in acidic brain extract. In brain or nerve neutral pH extracts, both HN-like antigen and HN were present. The high Mr of the secreted antigen, the homology in amino acid sequences between HN and N-terminal domain of PG-M/versican, in addition to a positive hybridization between Schwann cell RNAs and a probe obtained with primers derived from HN sequences also found in versican suggested that HN is closely related to the large proteoglycan PG-M/versican. The presence in Schwann cell extract of a HN mRNA whose Mr was compatible with the size expected for HN showed that HN may be directly secreted by cells and not only the consequence of a proteolytic cleavage. The similarity of HN with PG-M (V3) suggested that HN found in vivo could be the result of an alternative splicing of a single gene. We conclude that HN as other members of the PG-M/versican family is a marker of oligodendrocytes and Schwann cells in culture.     

Thymic lymphocytes: II. Phenotypic modifications of thymocytes after concanavalin A stimulation in the presence of interleukin 2: Early modifications of Lyt 1+2+ subset and later proliferation of cells with more mature phenotypes

Cortical thymocytes are devoid of any immune function, as tested by presently available techniques. The ability of this subpopulation to respond to mitogens or antigens in the presence of interleukin 2 (IL-2) produced by activated mature T lymphocytes has been claimed but is still questioned. In an attempt to study the participation of the different thymocyte subsets and especially that of the cortical type, phenotypic modifications were examined during concanavalin A activation in the presence of IL-2. An immunofluorescent double labeling technique with anti-Lyt 1 and anti-Lyt 2 antibodies was used which led to the determination of four different phenotypes: Lyt 1⁺2⁺, Lyt 1⁺2^?, Lyt 1^?2⁺, and Lyt 1^?2^?. Careful analysis of cell viability in culture and expression of the results in absolute numbers of living cells per culture allowed us to follow modifications of small cellular subsets. Cultures of total thymocytes and PNA-agglutinated (enriched in Lyt 1⁺2⁺ cells) and non-PNA-agglutinated cells (enriched in Lyt 1⁺2^?, Lyt 1^?2⁺, and Lyt 1^?2^? cells) were studied. It was shown that thymocyte activation began by early phenotypic modifications which took place within the first 2 hr of culture but only when Con A plus IL-2 were used. These modifications imply the reduction of the Lyt 1⁺2⁺ pool and a compensatory enhancement of Lyt 1^?2⁺ and Lyt 1^?2^? cells, without modification of the total cell number or [³H]thymidine incorporation. These early phenotypic changes are interpreted as the modulation of antigens on the surface of Lyt 1⁺2⁺ cells. The second phase of thymocyte activation implies cell death (essentially Lyt 1⁺2⁺ cells) and cell proliferation. The cells which specifically proliferate in the presence of Con A and IL-2 are Lyt 1⁺2^? and Lyt 1^?2⁺, the latter always being present in greater number. Cell survival and absolute number of Lyt 1⁺2^? and Lyt 1^?2⁺ cells in the activated PNA^?-enriched population are always higher than in total thymocyte and PNA⁺ cells cultures. Thus, if Lyt 1⁺2⁺ cortical thymocytes do not proliferate by themselves, they seem to intervene by providing Lyt 1^?2⁺ cells which proliferate secondarily.     

Serological analysis of macrophage surface alloantigens

The expression of cell surface alloantigens and receptors on purified populations of murine macrophages from short-term bone marrow cultures and peritoneal exudates was analyzed by rosetting techniques, by microcytotoxicity, and by absorption. The surface phenotype of these cells was shown to be Thy-1^?, Ly-1^?, Ly-2^?, Ly-4^?, Ly-5⁺, Ly-6⁺, Ly-7^?, Ia⁺, FcR⁺, and CR⁺.     

Macroglial cell development in embryonic rat brain: studies using monoclonal antibodies, fluorescence activated cell sorting, and cell culture

Astrocytes, ependymal cells, and oligodendrocytes have been shown to develop on the same schedule in dissociated cell cultures of early embryonic rat brain as in vivo. Subsequent studies showed that there are two major types of astrocyte (type-1 and type-2), which, in cultures of perinatal optic nerve, develop as two distinct lineages. In such cultures, type-2 astrocytes and oligodendrocytes develop from the same, bipotential, (O-2A) progenitor cells, which differentiate into type-2 astrocytes in 10% fetal calf serum (FCS) and into oligodendrocytes in less than or equal to 0.5% FCS. In light of these findings, we now have extended our studies on macroglial cell development in rat brain and show the following: (i) The first astrocytes to develop have a type-1 phenotype, while astrocytes with a type-2 phenotype do not develop until almost 2 weeks later, just as in the optic nerve. (ii) Most importantly, type-2 astrocytes, like the other macroglial cells, develop on the same schedule in cultures of early embryonic (less than or equal to E15) brain as they do in vivo. (iii) By contrast, both oligodendrocytes and type-2 astrocytes develop prematurely in cultures of E17 brain, and FCS influences this development in the same way it does in perinatal optic nerve cultures. (iv) Type-2 astrocyte precursors are labeled by the A2B5 monoclonal antibody, as shown previously for oligodendrocyte precursors in brain and for O-2A progenitor cells in optic nerve. Taken together with our previous findings, these results suggest that oligodendrocytes and type-2 astrocytes in brain develop from bipotential O-2A progenitor cells, whose choice of developmental pathway and timing of differentiation depend on mechanisms that operate independently of brain morphogenesis.     

Regulation of enzymes responsible for neurotransmitter synthesis and degradation in cultured rat sympathetic neurons. II. Regulation of 16 S acetylcholinesterase by conditioned medium

The molecular forms of acetylcholinesterase (AcChE) have been studied in primary cultures of newborn rat sympathetic neurons grown either in the absence (CM^? cultures) or in the presence (CM⁺ cultures) of muscle conditioned medium. The cultures were treated with a mitotic poison to eliminate non-neuronal cells. CAT activity increased with time in culture 4- to 20-fold faster in CM⁺ than in CM^? cultures. In agreement with previous experiments (J. P. Swerts, A. Le Van Thaï, A. Vigny, and M. J. Weber, 1983, Develop. Biol.100, 1–11), AcChE activity developed at a 3-fold lower rate in CM⁺ than in CM^? cultures. This deficit in AcChE activity in CM⁺ cultures resulted from a deficit in the number of enzyme molecules immunoprecipitable with an antiserum raised against rat brain AcChE. In both types of cultures, AcChE forms were separated by sucrose gradient sedimentation into three main peaks corresponding to the 16 S and 10 S forms and a mixture of the 6.5 and 4 S forms. In 3-day-old CM⁺ and CM^? cultures, the 16 S form represented 2% of the total activity. After 12–26 days, the percentage of 16 S form raised to 15–30% in CM^? cultures, but remained lower than 5% in CM⁺ cultures. This difference was also observed when AcChE molecular forms were analyzed in the presence of protease inhibitors. A similar result was obtained by comparing cultures grown with and without a macromolecular factor partially purified from conditioned medium. These results suggest that an inverse relationship exists between the presence of 16 S AcChE and the presence of cholinergic synapses in these cultures.     

Progenitor-derived Oligodendrocyte Culture System from Human Fetal Brain

Differentiation of human neural progenitors into neuronal and glial cell types offers a model to study and compare molecular regulation of neural cell lineage development. In vitro expansion of neural progenitors from fetal CNS tissue has been well characterized. Despite the identification and isolation of glial progenitors from adult human sub-cortical white matter and development of various culture conditions to direct differentiation of fetal neural progenitors into myelin producing oligodendrocytes, acquiring sufficient human oligodendrocytes for in vitro experimentation remains difficult. Differentiation of galactocerebroside⁺ (GalC) and O4⁺ oligodendrocyte precursor or progenitor cells (OPC) from neural precursor cells has been reported using second trimester fetal brain. However, these cells do not proliferate in the absence of support cells including astrocytes and neurons, and are lost quickly over time in culture. The need remains for a culture system to produce cells of the oligodendrocyte lineage suitable for in vitro experimentation.Culture of primary human oligodendrocytes could, for example, be a useful model to study the pathogenesis of neurotropic infectious agents like the human polyomavirus, JCV, that in vivo infects those cells. These cultured cells could also provide models of other demyelinating diseases of the central nervous system (CNS). Primary, human fetal brain-derived, multipotential neural progenitor cells proliferate in vitro while maintaining the capacity to differentiate into neurons (progenitor-derived neurons, PDN) and astrocytes (progenitor-derived astrocytes, PDA) This study shows that neural progenitors can be induced to differentiate through many of the stages of oligodendrocytic lineage development (progenitor-derived oligodendrocytes, PDO). We culture neural progenitor cells in DMEM-F12 serum-free media supplemented with basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), platelet derived growth factor (PDGF-AA), Sonic hedgehog (Shh), neurotrophic factor 3 (NT-3), N-2 and triiodothyronine (T3). The cultured cells are passaged at 2.5e6 cells per 75cm flasks approximately every seven days. Using these conditions, the majority of the cells in culture maintain a morphology characterized by few processes and express markers of pre-oligodendrocyte cells, such as A2B5 and O-4. When we remove the four growth factors (GF) (bFGF, PDGF-AA, Shh, NT-3) and add conditioned media from PDN, the cells start to acquire more processes and express markers specific of oligodendrocyte differentiation, such as GalC and myelin basic protein (MBP). We performed phenotypic characterization using multicolor flow cytometry to identify unique markers of oligodendrocyte.     

Use of positively selected Lyt-2+ mouse splenocytes to examine interleukin-2 secretion in responses to alloantigens and to TNP-modified syngeneic cells

Current models for T-cell interactions in the generation of cytotoxic T lymphocytes have encountered a technical problem, since it has until recently been impossible to purify the peripheral Lyt-1⁺2⁺ subset from the Lyt-1⁺2^? helper cell set. Reports that the helper factor Interleukin-2 (IL-2) can be synthesized by Lyt-2⁺ spleen cells have suggested that the peripheral Lyt-2⁺ set, unlike Lyt-2⁺ thymocytes, might not depend on help from Lyt-1⁺2^? cells. To clarify this question, we have produced spleen Lyt-2⁺ cells, and the complementary Lyt-2^? set, by a positive selection method. The Lyt-2⁺ cells were able to produce high levels of anti-hapten CTL only if supplemented with either Lyt-2^? cells or with semi-purified IL-2. Although IL-2 synthesis from Lyt-2⁺ cells, or from unseparated T cells, could be induced by H-2I region-disparate stimuli, Lyt-2⁺ cells produced very little IL-2 in response to H-2I or to H-2K region-disparate cells. IL-2 synthesis in hapten-stimulated cultures was found not to depend on the presence of the hapten per se, and probably represents a response to components of the fetal calf serum supplementation. Lyt-2⁺ cells were also much less able to generate IL-2 than Lyt-2^? cells in response to these stimuli. Cell mixing experiments provided no evidence that Lyt-2⁺ cells could suppress IL-2 secretion by Lyt-2^? cells. We conclude that generation of CTL from splenic Lyt-2⁺ cells requires IL-2 produced by Lyt-2^? cells, because Lyt-2⁺ cells do not produce high levels of IL-2 themselves, even when stimulated across an H-2K difference alone.     

Selective inhibition by bis(2-chloroethyl)methylamine (nitrogen mustard) of the Na/K/Cl cotransporter of murine L1210 leukemia cells

Incubation of L1210 murine leukemia cells in vitro with 10 μM of the bifunctional alkylating agent bis(2-chloroethyl)methylamine (nitrogen mustard, HN2) for 10 min brought about a fall of more than 99.9% in their ability to form colonies when the cells were suspended in 0.5% nutrient agar. Incubation with HN2 also inhibited the influx of the potassium congener ⁸⁶Rb⁺ to exponentially proliferating L1210 cells in a concentration-dependent manner. This inhibition was specific and was accounted for by a reduction of a diuretic-sensitive component of ⁸⁶Rb⁺ influx, identified in the preceding paper (Wilcock, C. and Hickman, J.A. (1988) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 946, 359–367) as being mediated by a Na⁺/K⁺/Cl⁻ cotransporter. Inhibition by 10 μM HN2 was complete after a 3-h incubation. There was no inhibition at this time of the ouabain-sensitive component of ⁸⁶Rb⁺ influx, mediated by Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase. After 3 h of incubation with 10 μM HN2 there was also no change in the membrane potential of the treated cells as measured by the distribution of the [³H]TPMP⁺, no decrease in cellular ATP concentration and no change in intracellular pH, and the ability of the cells to exclude the vital dye Trypan blue was not significantly different from control values. These effects of HN2, therefore, appeared to follow lethal damage, but precede cell death. In the stationary phase of L1210 cell growth, the component of HN2 and diuretic-sensitive K⁺ influx to L1210 cells was reduced, whilst the component constituting the HN2-insensitive ouabain-sensitive sodium pump was increased. The monofunctional alkylating agent MeHN1 (2-chloroethyldimethylamine) which cannot cross-link cellular targets and has no antitumour activity, did not inhibit ⁸⁶Rb⁺ influx to L1210 cells when incubated at equimolar or equitoxic concentrations to HN2. Intracellular potassium concentration was maintained close to control values of 138 ± 10 mM in HN2-treated cells because of an approx. 35% fall in cell volume. The results suggest that the Na⁺/K⁺/Cl⁻ cotransporter is a selectively inhibitable target for HN2, and the lesion is discussed with reference to the cytotoxic effects of this agent.     

Histologic characterization of hyaluronic acid in the cerebellum with hyaluronectin

Two techniques of affino-immunofluorescence were described to localize hyaluronic acid (HA) on Rat cerebellum tissue sections. The first technique used the direct soluble hyaluronectin (HN)/anti-HN immune complex fixation to tissue-HA. In the second technique, HN fixation was followed by anti-HN antibody binding to HN. Both reactions were blocked by the addition of HA to HN/anti-HN complexes or to HN. The first direct technique is less time consuming and gives more clear-cut results than the second technique. These affino-immunological methods provide a better tool to localize HA in tissues than the classical stainings.     

Heterotypic and homotypic cellular interactions influencing the growth and differentiation of bipotential oligodendrocyte-type-2 astrocyte progenitors in culture

Cell populations highly enriched in oligodendrocyte-type-2 astrocyte (O-2A) progenitors (so defined by their ability to bind the monoclonal antibodies LB1 and O4, and by the lack of expression of the differentiated glial markers galactocerebroside and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) were obtained from rat mixed cortical glial cultures. The O-2A progenitors were grown at low density (2 X 10(4) cells/cm2) in BME + 10% fetal calf serum (FCS) on a poly-L-lysine (PLL) substrate (controls) or on a substrate of purified type-1 astrocytes (AS) killed by air drying (K-AS), in order to analyze the effects of the interaction between the two cell types on the growth and differentiation of the immature O-2A cells, independently of the mitogenic soluble factors (e.g., platelet-derived growth factor; see Raff, 1989, Science 243, 1450-1455) secreted by type-1 AS. While on PLL most of the progenitors differentiated into GFAP+ type-2 AS within 1 week, on K-AS they largely differentiated into GalC+ oligodendrocytes (OL). On the latter substrate, however, the precursors achieved a higher density, due to higher proliferative activity. The additional observation, that when immature O-2A cells were seeded at high density (greater than 5 X 10(4) cells/cm2) on PLL their differentiation into OL was much more pronounced than in cultures of lower density, indicates that there is a close correlation between the density of immature O-2A cells and lineage decision, and that the increased OL differentiation of the immature O-2A cells on K-AS is at least partly related to the higher density achieved by the cells on this substrate. The enhanced proliferation of immature O-2A cells on K-AS did not appear to be related to platelet-derived growth factor or fibroblast growth factor remaining attached to the substrate, nor to known components of the extracellular matrix (ECM), such as heparan sulfate, chondroitin sulfate, laminin, or fibronectin, but was probably due to other components of a polypeptide nature present in the ECM produced by type-1 AS. A cell-free ECM was in fact almost as mitogenic as the K-AS substrate, and the mitogenic activities of both K-AS and AS-ECM were similarly inhibited by a set of enzymatic (pronase, trypsin) and physicochemical (heat, pH) treatments.     

LPS Unmasking of Shigella flexneri Reveals Preferential Localisation of Tagged Outer Membrane Protease IcsP to Septa and New Poles

The Shigella flexneri outer membrane (OM) protease IcsP (SopA) is a member of the enterobacterial Omptin family of proteases which cleaves the polarly localised OM protein IcsA that is essential for Shigella virulence. Unlike IcsA however, the specific localisation of IcsP on the cell surface is unknown. To determine the distribution of IcsP, a haemagglutinin (HA) epitope was inserted into the non-essential IcsP OM loop 5 using Splicing by Overlap Extension (SOE) PCR, and IcsP^HA was characterised. Quantum Dot (QD) immunofluorescence (IF) surface labelling of IcsP^HA was then undertaken. Quantitative fluorescence analysis of S. flexneri 2a 2457T treated with and without tunicaymcin to deplete lipopolysaccharide (LPS) O antigen (Oag) showed that IcsP^HA was asymmetrically distributed on the surface of septating and non-septating cells, and that this distribution was masked by LPS Oag in untreated cells. Double QD IF labelling of IcsP^HA and IcsA showed that IcsP^HA preferentially localised to the new pole of non-septating cells and to the septum of septating cells. The localisation of IcsP^HA in a rough LPS S. flexneri 2457T strain (with no Oag) was also investigated and a similar distribution of IcsP^HA was observed. Complementation of the rough LPS strain with rmlD resulted in restored LPS Oag chain expression and loss of IcsP^HA detection, providing further support for LPS Oag masking of surface proteins. Our data presents for the first time the distribution for the Omptin OM protease IcsP, relative to IcsA, and the effect of LPS Oag masking on its detection.     

Dopamine and norepinephrine uptake and metabolism by astroglial cells in culture

Primary cultures of normal astroglia started from the cerebral hemispheres of neonatal rats took up dopamine (DA) and norepinephrine (NE) in the concentration range of 10^?7 to 10^?4M and metabolized each to their respective principal central nervous system products by the actions of both catechol-0-methyl transferase and monoamine oxidase. At 10^?7M, uptake of ³H labelled DA and NE was inhibited by omission of Na⁺, addition of ouabain or lowered temperatures. Uptake at 10^?4M was considerable but was Na⁺-independent. Only Na⁺-independent uptake was seen in primary cultures started from the meninges of neonatal rats. These data suggest that astroglial cells in the CNS have a high affinity uptake system for catecholamines, and such uptake is followed by catecholamine metabolism.     

Prototropic tautomerism and basic molecular principles of hypoxanthine mutagenicity: an exhaustive quantum-chemical analysis

The molecular structures, relative stability order, and dipole moments of a complete family of 21 planar hypoxanthine (Hyp) prototropic molecular–zwitterionic tautomers including ylidic forms were computationally investigated at the MP2/6–311++G(2df,pd)//B3LYP/6–311++G(d,p) level of theory in vacuum and in three different surrounding environments: continuum with a low dielectric constant (??=?4) corresponding to a hydrophobic interface of protein–nucleic acid interactions, dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO), and water. The keto-N1HN7H tautomer was established to be the global minimum in vacuum and in continuum with ??=?4, while Hyp molecule exists as a mixture of the keto-N1HN9H and keto-N1HN7H tautomers in approximately equal amounts in DMSO and in water at T?=?298.15?K. We found out that neither intramolecular tautomerization by single proton transfer in the Hyp base, nor intermolecular tautomerization by double proton transfer in the most energetically favorable Hyp·Hyp homodimer (symmetry C _2h ), stabilized by two equivalent N1H…O6 H-bonds, induces the formation of the enol tautomer (marked with an asterisk) of Hyp with cis-oriented O6H hydroxyl group relative to neighboring N1C6 bond. We first discovered a new scenario of the keto–enol tautomerization of Hyp?·?Hyp homodimer (C _2h ) via zwitterionic near-orthogonal transition state (TS), stabilized by N1⁺H…N1^? and O6⁺H…N1^? H-bonds, to heterodimer Hyp^??·?Hyp (C _s ), stabilized by O6H…O6 and N1H…N1 H-bonds. We first showed that Hyp^??·?Thy mispair (C _s ), stabilized by O6H…O4, N3H…N1, and C2H…O2 H-bonds, mimicking Watson–Crick base pairing, converts to the wobble Hyp?·?Thy base pair (C _s ), stabilized by N3H…O6 and N1H…O2 H-bonds, via high- and low-energy TSs and intermediate Hyp?·?Thy^?, stabilized by O4H…O6, N1H…N3, and C2H…O2 H-bonds. The most energetically favorable TS is the zwitterionic pair Hyp⁺?·?Thy^? (C _s ), stabilized by O6⁺H…O4^?, O6⁺H…N3^?, N1⁺H…N3^?, and N1⁺H…O2^? H-bonds. The authors expressed and substantiated the hypothesis, that the keto tautomer of Hyp is a mutagenic compound, while enol tautomer Hyp^? does not possess mutagenic properties. The lifetime of the nonmutagenic tautomer Hyp^? exceeds by many orders the time needed to complete a round of DNA replication in the cell. For the first time purine–purine planar H-bonded mispairs containing Hyp in the anti-orientation with respect to the sugar moiety – Hyp?·?Ade _syn , Hyp?·?Gua^? _syn , and Hyp?·?Gua _syn , that closely resembles the geometry of the Watson–Crick base pairs, have been suggested as the source of transversions. An influence of the surrounding environment (??=?4) on the stability of studied complexes and corresponding TSs was estimated by means of the conductor-like polarizable continuum model. Electron-topological, structural, vibrational, and energetic characterictics of all conventional and nonconventional H-bonds in the investigated structures are presented. Presented data are key to understanding elementary molecular mechanisms of mutagenic action of Hyp as a product of the adenine deamination in DNA.     

Isolation of progenitor cells from cord blood using adhesion matrices

The aim of this study was to develop optimal conditions for selective adhesion and isolation of mesenchymal progenitor cells (MPCs) from cord blood and to determine their potential for osteogenic differentiation. Mononuclear cells (MNCs) were isolated by Ficoll-Paque gradient and plated onto 48-well culture plates precoated with: human or bovine collagen type I, human collagen type IV, fibronectin or matrigel. Cultures were incubated in αMEM containing fetal calf serum. Viability of the adherent cells was determined by alamarBlue® assay after 2, 3, and 4 weeks. After 4 weeks in culture, cells were typsinized and replated. Primary cultures were analyzed by histochemistry and third passage cells by FACS. Isolated fibroblast-like cells were cultured in the presence of osteogenic factors and differentiation determined by Alizarin Red S staining, RT-PCR and electron dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). MNCs adhered to all types of matrices with the greatest adhesion rates on fibronectin. These cells were CD45⁺, CD105⁺, CD14⁺, CD49a⁺, CD49f⁺, CD44⁺ and CD34⁻. The highest incidence of progenitor cells (PC) was observed on fibronectin and polystyrene. Passages were CD45⁻, CD14⁻, CD34⁻ and weakly CD105⁺. Primary cultures expressed endothelial/macrophage RNA markers whether cultured on fibronectin or polystyrene and these markers decreased upon passage. The best osteogenic differentiation was observed in MPCs cultured in osteogenic medium containing vitamin D₃ and FGF9. These cells expressed the bone-related mRNA, collagen type I, core binding factor I (Cbfa I), osteocalcin and osteopontin. EDS of deposits produced by these cells demonstrated a calcium/phosphate ratio parallel to hydroxyapatite. It was concluded that fibronectin increased adhesion rates and isolation potential of cord blood mesenchymal progenitor cells.     

Isolation of progenitor cells from cord blood using adhesion matrices

The aim of this study was to develop optimal conditions for selective adhesion and isolation of mesenchymal progenitor cells (PCs) from cord blood and to determine their potential for osteogenic differentiation. Mononuclear cells (MNCs) were isolated by Ficoll-Paque gradient and plated onto 48-well culture plates precoated with: human or bovine collagen type I, human collagen type IV, fibronectin or matrigel. Cultures were incubated in αMEM containing fetal calf serum. Viability of the adherent cells was determined by alamarBlue® assay after 2, 3, and 4 weeks. After 4 weeks in culture, cells were typsinized and replated. Primary cultures were analyzed by histochemistry and third passage cells by FACS. Isolated fibroblast-like cells were cultured in the presence of osteogenic factors and differentiation determined by Alizarin Red S staining, RT-PCR and electron dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). MNCs adhered to all types of matrices with the greatest adhesion rates on fibronectin. These cells were CD45⁺, CD105⁺, CD14⁺, CD49a⁺, CD49f⁺, CD44⁺ and CD34⁻. The highest incidence of PCs was observed on fibronectin and polystyrene. Passages were CD45⁻, CD14⁻, CD34⁻ and weakly CD105⁺. Primary cultures expressed endothelial/macrophage RNA markers whether cultured on fibronectin or polystyrene and these markers decreased upon passage. The best osteogenic differentiation was observed in MPCs cultured in osteogenic medium containing Vit D₃ and FGF9. These cells expressed the bone-related mRNA, collagen type I, core binding factor I (Cbfa I), osteocalcin and osteopontin. EDS of deposits produced by these cells demonstrated a calcium/phosphate ratio parallel to hydroxyapatite. It was concluded that fibronectin increased adhesion rates and isolation potential of cord blood mesenchymal progenitor cells.     

Cell Cycle activation and ouabain-sensitive ion movements of 3T3 and C3H-10T½ fibroblasts

The introduction of either PGF_2α (10^?7 M) or TPA (10^?7 M) stimulated, ouabain-sensitive ⁸⁶Rb⁺ influx at 30 min in postconfluent 3T3-4 mouse fibroblast cultures by 117% and 124%, respectively. Both TPA and PGF_2α at these concentrations stimulated the incorporation of ³H-TdR into DNA. TPA had the greatest stimulatory effect, which was similar to that obtained with 10% fetal calf serum. In accord with the idea that modulation of membrane processes such as Na⁺/K⁺ pump activity in fibroblasts may reflect important events related to the initiation of DNA synthesis, it was observed that in both 3T3-4 and C3H-1 0T½ cells there were parallel increases in ³H-TdR incorporation and ouabain-sensitive ⁸⁶Rb⁺ influxes with 10^?7 M TPA, whereas PGF_2α stimulated a significant increase in ³H-TdR incorporation in 3T3-4 but not C3H-10T½ cells and only marginal increases in ouabain-sensitive ⁸⁶Rb⁺ influx in both. Therefore, although there appears to be a close correlation between Na⁺/K⁺ pump activation and subsequent S-phase entry following TPA stimulation, a similar correlation for PGF_2α cannot be confirmed.     

Involvement of ligninolytic enzymes and Fenton-like reaction in humic acid degradation by Trametes sp

Trametes sp. M23, isolated from biosolids compost was found to decompose humic acids (HA). A low N (LN) medium (C/N, 53) provided suitable conditions for HA degradation, whereas in a high N (HN) medium (C/N, 10), HA was not degraded. In the absence of Mn²⁺, HA degradation was similar to that in Mn²⁺-containing medium. In contrast, MnP activity was significantly affected by Mn²⁺. Laccase activity exhibited a negative correlation to HA degradation, while LiP activity was not detected. Thus, ligninolytic enzymes activity could provide only a partial explanation for the HA-degradation mechanism. The decolorization of two dyes, Orange II and Brilliant Blue R250, was also determined. Similar to HA degradation, under LN conditions, decolorization occurred independently of the presence of Mn²⁺. We investigated the possible involvement of a Fenton-like reaction in HA degradation. The addition of DMSO, an OH-radical scavenger, to LN media resulted in a significant decrease in HA bleaching. The rate of extracellular Fe³⁺ reduction was much higher in the LN vs. HN medium. In addition, the rate of reduction was even higher in the presence of HA in the medium. In vitro HA bleaching in non-inoculated media was observed with H₂O₂ amendment to a final concentration of 200 mM (obtained by 50 mM amendments for 4 days) and Fe²⁺ (36 mM). After 4 days of incubation, HA decolorization was similar to the biological treatment. These results support our hypothesis that a Fenton-like reaction is involved in HA degradation by Trametes sp. M23.     

Immunochemical Characterization of the Hyaluronic Acid-Hyaluronectin Interaction

The interaction between hyaluronic acid (HA) and hyaluronectin (HN) was analyzed by gel chromatography and by the effects of HA on the immunological precipitation of HN. This interaction led to formation of larger molecules, as shown by gel permeation. No inhibition of immune precipitation occurred in liquid phase after addition of HA, but the precipitates in unstained gels were rendered transparent, giving the appearance of inhibition. However, after staining of the gels the precipitates appeared normal. Moreover, a non-linear decrease of the diffusion rate in antibody-containing gel was observed as a function of HA concentration at HA:HN weight ratios of 0.75 x 10(-3) and higher. A faster movement during electrophoresis, depending on the HA:HN ratio, suppressed the precipitation line when tested by electrosyneresis and produced an increase in migration distance when tested by Laurell's electroimmunoassay. These results show that in the immunochemical detection and quantitation of NH by these techniques consideration should always be given to the amount of HA in the samples.