In Vivo and in Vitro binding of platinum to metallothionein

The in vivo binding of platinum to metallothionein (MT) has been observed in rat tissues following injections of the cis and trans isomers of DDP (dichlorodiammine-platinum(II)). Platinum in either cis-DDP or trans-DDP does not directly induce MT; platinum-MT is produced by the replacement of previously bound zinc in the protein. The binding of Pt(II) to MT depends on the availability of SH groups in MT. Preinjection with CdCl₂ significantly enhances the association of Pt(II) with MT fractions compared to the degree of association resulting from injections with either cis-DDP or trans-DDP without CdCl₂ pretreatment. In vitro experiments in which tissue extracts including a known (Cd,Zn)-MT were incubated with either cis-DDP or trans-DDP show that these isomers differ with respect to the transfer of Pt to MT; the equilibrium in both cases was reached when approximately 40% of the available Pt is bound to MT but with this equilibrium value attained in 2 h in the case of trans-DDP and only after 72 h in the case of cis-DDP. Pt-MTs were also formed by a series of incubation steps in which a native MT was used to prepare the apoprotein which was subsequently incubated with either cis-DDP or trans-DDP. Spectrophotometry established that a shoulder occurs at 285 nm for the Pt-MTs resulting from the incubation with either isomer. A competitive double-antibody radioimmunoassay for MT demonstrated that these Pt-MTs had complete cross-reactivity with a native (Cd,Zn)-MT. Gel filtration of tissue extracts after either in vivo or in vitro treatment with DDP showed that Pt was bound to a molecular species with properties characteristic of MT. These results were verified by atomic absorption spectrophotometry and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis assays.     

Occurrence of 15-cis-violaxanthin in Viola tricolor

A new cis isomer in the violaxanthin series has been isolated from the blossoms of Viola tricolor and identified by MS, IR and UV as the central-monocis form. It was converted to all-trans-violaxanthin by stereomutation. The CD correlation between 15-cis-violaxanthin and natural violaxanthin (5,6,5′,6′-diepoxy-5,6,5′,6′-tetrahydro- β,β-caroten-3,3′-diol) provided the basis for assignment of the absolute configurations 3S, 5R, 6S, 3′S, 5′R, 6′S. Trans—cis isomerization of all-trans-violaxanthin also resulted in 15- cis-violaxanthin. In addition a quantitative determination of the carotenoids was conducted.     

Interconversion of trans, trans and cis, trans farnesol by enzymes from Andrographis

When trans, trans-farnesol [4,8,12-¹⁴C₃,1-³H₂] is isomerized to cis, trans-farnesol by soluble enzymes from Andrographis paniculata tissue cultures, 50% of the tritium label is lost. The same loss is observed when isomerization occurs in the opposite direction. This is in accordance with the proposed mechanism for isomerization via aldehydes.     

Syntheses of cis and trans 2-methoxy-4,5-methylenedioxycinnamoylpiperidide and revised structure of a new alkaloid from Piper peepuloides

The structure of a new alkaloid isolated from Piper peepuloides has been revised as 2-methoxy-4,5-methylenedioxy-cis-cinnamoylpiperidide. The revision is based upon spectral evidence and syntheses of both isomers. The synthesis of the cis isomer has been accomplished through an intermediate obtained by a novel ring opening of the coumarin ‘ayapin’ using sodium hydride and methyl iodide in tetrahydrofuran.     

Fatty acid changes during maturation of Momordica charantia and Trichosanthes Anguina Seeds

Changes in fatty acids were studied during maturation of Momordica charantia and Trichosanthes anguina seeds, which contain cis-9, trans-11, trans-13-octadecatrienoic acid (α-eleostearic) and cis-9, trans-11, cis-13-octadecatrienoic acid (punicic), respectively. The two seeds matured 30 and 35 days after flowering, respectively. Total lipids as well as α-eleostearic acid accumulated rapidly from 10 to 20 days in M. charantia. In T. anguina the active period of lipid synthesis was from 15 to 30 days but punicic acid continued to be synthesized until maturity. In both species, the disappearance of linolenic acid and the reduction in concentration of linoleic acid were concomitant with the formation of conjugated fatty acids. The conjugated fatty acids were absent from monoacylglycerols and phospholipids of both species, and also from the diacylglycerols of M. charantia, throughout maturation     

Identification of cis/trans isomers of bis(acetylacetonato)nickel(II) complexes in solution based on electronic spectra

Electronic spectra of Ni(acac)₂ were studied in acetone, DMF, and some other solvents for the purpose of identifying the cis/trans isomers from the spectra (acac⁻ = acetylacetonate anion). The spectral components were investigated in the spin-allowed transition bands, and a relationship was found between the spectral pattern and the cis/trans isomers. According to this relationship, it was concluded that the cis isomer was formed in DMF and in N-methylformadide, whereas the trans isomer was formed in acetone and in pyridine. Based on the DFT computation, the cis-[Ni(acac)₂(DMF)₂] was found to be stabilized by intramolecular hydrogen bonds between acetylacetonate and DMF.     

The steam volatile leaf oils of some species of Eucalyptus subseries Strictinae

The volatile leaf oils of Eucalyptus stenostoma, E. fraxinoides, E. triflora, E. dendromorpha, E. burgessiana, E. rupicola, E. approximans subsp. approximans, E. approximans subsp. codonocarpa and E. paliformis were qualitatively very similar to each other but significantly different from the leaf oils of the remaining species of the subseries. Their leaf oils were characterized by high concentrations of p-cymene and by the presence of α- and β-phellandrene, variable amounts of piperitone, trans- and cis-piperitol and trans- and cis-p-menth- 2-en-1-ol. The three last named alcohols have not been previously reported from the Myrtaceae.     

Biosynthetic relationship of citral-trans and citral-cis in cymbopogon flexuosus (lemongrass)

Use of [¹⁴C,³H]-labelled precursors revealed that leaf blades of Cymbopogon flexuosus converted geraniol (3,7-dimethylocta-trans-2,6-diene-1-ol) into citral-trans with loss of pro-(1S) hydrogen whereas nerol lost the pro-(1R) hydrogen while being converted into citral-cis. Secondly, the citral-trans is converted into citral-cis and vice versa and there is no separate route for the biosynthesis of either of the two aldehyde isomers.     

Identification of some volatile compounds from Citrullus vulgaris

Volatile compounds from watermelon (Citrullus vulgaris obtained by vacuum steam distillation—extraction of the fruit at 60–70° in a water-recycling apparatus, were separated by gas chromatography and subjected to spectral analyses. Evidence was obtained for the following new constituents, hexanal, trans-2-heptenal, trans-2-octenal, nonanal, trans-2-nonenal, trans,cis-2,6-nonadienal, nonan-1-ol, trans-2-nonen-1-ol, cis-3-nonen-1-ol, trans,cis-2,6-nonadien-1-ol, trans-2-decenal, trans-2-undecenal, geranial and β-ionone.     

A cis-encoded sRNA controls the expression of fabH2 in Yersinia

YsrH is a novel cis-encoded sRNA located on the opposite strand to fabH2, which is essential for fatty acid biosynthesis in bacteria. In this study, YsrH-mediated regulation of fabH2 expression was investigated in Yersinia pseudotuberculosis. Constitutive and inducible over-expression of YsrH decreased the mRNA level of fabH2, while expression of downstream fabD and fabG remained unaffected. Polynucleotide phosphorylase (PNPase) also played an important role in this regulation process by mediating YsrH decay in the exponential phase. Thus, our data defines a cis-encoded sRNA that regulates fatty acid synthesis via a regulatory mechanism also involving PNPase.     

Cis-4-hydroxypipecolic acid and 2,4-cis-4,5-trans-4,5-dihydroxypipecolic acid from Calliandra

cis-4-Hydroxypipecolic acid and 2,4-cis-4,5-trans-4,5-dihydroxypipecolic acid were isolated from leaves of Calliandra pittieri. A system for resolving the eight imino acids isolated from Calliandra is described.     

Clerodanes from solidago virgaurea

The isolation and structure determination of four known and eight new cis-clerodane lactones from the aerial parts of Solidago virgaurea are described.     

Heliangolides from Leucanthemopsis pulverulenta

The structure of hispanolide (4,5-cis-3-oxogermacranolide) and three other related germacranolides, isolated from Leucanthemopsis pulverulenta, have been established by a series of chemical transformations and spectral data.     

Evidence for trans-trans and cis-cis farnesyl pyrophosphate synthesis in Gossipium hirsutum

A protein fraction capable of catalysing the formation of all four geometrical isomers of farnesyl pyrophosphate has been isolated from cotton roots. Using neryl pyrophosphate and isopentenyl pyrophosphate as substrates the product was found to be cis-cis farnesyl pyrophosphate and possibly trans-cis farnesyl pyrophosphate. Geranyl pyrophosphate and isopentenyl pyrophosphate as substrates yielded trans-trans and possible cis-trans farnesyl pyrophosphate. During purification of the active protein fraction, the ratio of utilization of geranyl pyrophosphate and neryl pyrophosphate did not remain constant, indicating that two enzymes may be involved, one specific for cis C₁₀-substrate and the other for trans C₁₀-substrate.     

Effects of cis and trans regulatory variations on the expression divergence of heat shock response genes between yeast strains

Phenotypic variation among individuals in a population can be due to DNA sequence variation in protein coding regions or in regulatory elements. Recently, many studies have indicated that mutations in regulatory elements may be the major cause of phenotypic evolution. However, the mechanisms for evolutionary changes in gene expression are still not well understood. Here, we studied the relative roles of cis and trans regulatory changes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells to cope with heat stress. It has been found that the expression level of ~ 300 genes was induced at least two fold and that of ~ 500 genes was repressed at least two fold in response to heat shock. From the former set of genes, we randomly selected 65 genes that showed polymorphism(s) between the BY and RM strains for pyrosequencing analysis to explore the relative contributions of cis and trans regulatory variations to the expression divergence between BY and RM. Our data indicated that the expression divergence between BY and RM was mainly due to trans regulatory variations under either the normal condition or the heat stress condition. However, the relative contribution of trans regulatory variation was decreased from 76.9% to 61.5% after the heat shock stress. These results indicated that the cis regulatory variation may play an important role in the adaption to heat stress. In our data, 43.1% (28 genes) of the 65 genes showed the same trend of cis or trans variation effect after the heat shock stress, 35.4% (23 genes) showed an increased cis variation effect and 21.5% (14 genes) showed an increased trans variation effect after the heat shock stress. Thus, our data give insights into the relative roles of cis and trans variations in response to heat shock in yeast.     

Cis-avicennol,a new pyranocoumarin from the root bark of Zanthoxylum elephantiasis

A new pyranocoumarin has been isolated from the root bark of Zanthoxylum elephantiasis and identified as cis-avicennol (6-(3-hydroxy-3-methyl-cis-but-1-enyl)-5-methoxy-2,2-dimethyl- 2H-benzo [1,2b:3,4b′] dipyran-8-one) on the basis of comparison of spectral data with that of trans-avicennol and conversion to tetrahydroavicennol. The usefulness of the lanthanide shift reagent Eu(fod)₃ in the assignment of cis configuration to the butenyl sidechain is briefly discussed.     

Post replication repair in an excision defective strain of Escherichia coli following treatment with cis dichlorodiammineplatinum(II)

The size of the DNA synthetized after treatment of an excision defective E. coli strain with cis-dichlorodiammineplatinum(II) (cis-PDD) was examinated using sedimentation in alkaline sucrose gradients. DNA synthetized during a 10 minutes pulse after treatment with cis-PDD sediments with a molecular weight lower than control DNA from untreated cells. Post treatment incubation of the cells leads to an increase in the sedimentation rate of this DNA which approaches that of normal DNA. This last process is partially abolished in a uvr B5 rec B21 double mutant.These results suggest that single strand breaks or gaps are produced during treatment and are filled in during further reincubation as part of a post replication repair process.     

Sesquiterpenes from pernettya furens

The novel sesquiterpene carboxylic acids, pernetic acid A-E, a new sesquiterpene alcohol pernetol, a new sesquiterpene aldehyde, pernetal, and pernetic acid A methyl ester, were isolated from the aerial parts of Pernettya furens. The structures were established by spectral and X-ray analysis. Pernetic acids D and E have a novel cis hydrindane skeleton presuming the oxidative modification from the cadalane skeleton.