Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and cardiovascular disease risk factors

Numerous epidemiological and controlled interventional trials have supported the health benefits of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids in the form of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n-3) plus eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5n-3) from fish and fish oils as well as from algal sources. The beneficial effects on cardiovascular disease and related mortality including various risk factors for cardiovascular disease (particularly lowering circulating triglyceride levels and the triglyceride:HDL-cholesterol ratio) have been observed in the absence of any concomitant blood cholesterol lowering. With appropriate dosages, consistent reductions in both fasting and postprandial triglyceride levels and moderate increases in fasting HDL-cholesterol levels have been observed with algal DHA in the majority of trials. These results are similar to findings for fish oils containing DHA and EPA. Related to greater fish intake, higher levels of DHA in circulating blood biomarkers (such as serum phospholipid) have been associated with reduced risks for the progression of coronary atherosclerosis and lowered risk from sudden cardiac death. Controlled clinical trials have also indicated the potential for algal DHA supplementation to have moderate beneficial effects on other cardiovascular disease risk factors including blood pressures and resting heart rates. Recommended intakes of DHA+EPA from numerous international groups for the prevention and management of cardiovascular disease have been forthcoming, although most have not offered specific recommendations for the optimal individual intake of DHA and EPA.     

Isolation and Characterization of a Novel Thraustochytrid-like Microorganism that Efficiently Produces Docosahexaenoic Acid

A thraustochytrid-like microorganism (strain 12B) was isolated from the mangrove area of Okinawa, Japan. On the basis of its ectoplasmic net structure and biflagellate zoospores we determined strain 12B to be a novel member of the phylum Labyrinthulomycota in the kingdom Protoctista. When grown on glucose/seawater at 28 °C, it had a lipid content of 58% with docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; 22:6 n−3) at 43% of the total fatty acids. It had a growth rate of 0.38 h⁻¹. The DHA production rate of 2.8 ± 0.7 g l⁻¹ day⁻¹ is the highest value reported for any microorganism. Received 7 October 2005; Revisions requested 7 October 2005; Revisions received 15 November 2005; Accepted 15 November 2005     

微生物酶解法产生阿拉伯糖——菌种筛选与初步鉴定

使用半纤维素平板法从土壤分离菌中筛选到产半纤维素酶活较高的真菌。将这些菌株在含玉米芯半纤维素的培养基中发酵,鉴定发酵液中还原糖产量,从中筛选出3株产还原糖较多的菌。将其发酵产物经柱前衍生,HPLC检测,发现其中DHC菌株的发酵产物以木糖和阿拉伯糖为主,而培养基中的葡萄糖大部分被利用,可用于发酵法联产阿拉伯糖和木糖。对DHC菌株通过菌落形态、孢子形态以及ITS区基因序列测序分析,初步确定该菌为亮白曲霉(Aspergillus candidus)。对于亮白曲霉产生的半纤维素酶国内外尚较少研究报导,可为开发利用新的微生物资源奠定基础。     

Organic Acid Production by Basidiomycetes: I. Screening of Acid-Producing Strains

Sixty-seven strains belonging to 47 species of Basidiomycetes were examined for their acid-producing abilities in glucose media, in both the presence and absence of CaCO₃, in stationary and shake cultures. Some strains were found to produce large quantities of oxalic acid. The oxalic acid-producing strains could be separated into two groups. Strains of one group (mostly brown-rot fungi) were able to produce oxalic acid, regardless of whether CaCO₃ was present in the medium. Strains of the other group (mostly white-rot fungi) were characterized by their ability to produce oxalic acid only when CaCO₃ was added to the medium. With the latter group, shake-culturing was generally more effective than stationary culturing in respect to acid production. In the CaCO₃-containing media, Schizophyllum commune, Merulius tremellosus, and Porodisculus pendulus were found to produce substantial amounts of L-malic acid as a main metabolic product, along with small quantities of oxalic and other acids in shake cultures. Especially, S. commune and M. tremellosus may be employed as malic acid-producing species.     

产植酸酶菌株的分离筛选研究

研究了产植酸酶菌株分离筛选的方法 ,筛选得到分别适宜液态发酵和固态发酵的酶活力较高的黑曲霉XH和黑曲霉PA两菌株。在液态发酵KH2 PO4 对植酸酶产生有促进作用 ,其最佳用量为 8mg %;在固态发酵KH2 PO4 的添加对植酸酶的产生无明显促进作用。 2菌株所产植酸酶具有相似的酶学性质 ,最适作用温度为 5 5℃ ,当底物 pH为 3～ 5具有较高的酶活力。     

Binge Ethanol-induced Neurodegeneration in Rat Organotypic Brain Slice Cultures: Effects of PLA2 Inhibitor Mepacrine and Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA)

Using rat organotypic hippocampal-entorhinal cortical (HEC) slice cultures, we examined whether phospholipase A2 (PLA2) activity is involved in binge alcohol (ethanol)-induced neurodegeneration, and whether docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; 22:6n-3), a fish oil-enriched fatty acid that is anti-inflammatory in brain damage models, is neuroprotective. Assessed with propidium iodide and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) leakage, neurodamage from ethanol (6 days 100 mM ethanol with four withdrawal periods) was prevented by the PLA2 pan-inhibitor, mepacrine. Also, ethanol-dependent neurodegeneration—particularly in the entorhinal region—was significantly ameliorated by DHA supplementation (25 μM); however, adrenic acid, a 22:4n-6 analog, was ineffective. Consistent with PLA2 activation, [³H] liberation was approximately fivefold greater in [³H]arachidonic acid-preloaded HEC slice cultures during ethanol withdrawal compared to controls, and DHA supplementation suppressed [³H] release to control levels. DHA might antagonize PLA2 activity directly or suppress upstream activators (e.g., oxidative stress); however, other DHA mechanisms could be important in subdueing ethanol-induced PLA2-dependent and independent neuroinflammatory processes.     

Isolation and Characterization of Circular Deoxyribonucleic Acid Obtained from Lactose-Fermenting Salmonella Strains

Six lac elements originally contained in Salmonella strains were transferred to Escherichia coli WR3026. All of the six E. coli strains that received one of the lac elements were observed to contain supercoiled, circular deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) when examined by the dye-buoyant density method. Segregants of each of these E. coli WR3026 strains that had lost the ability to utilize lactose, when examined in the same manner as the lactose-fermenting strains, were not observed to contain these supercoiled, circular DNA molecules. Thus the DNA of the lac elements is maintained in E. coli WR3026 in the supercoiled, circular form. Molecular weights of the supercoiled, circular molecules isolated from strains carrying the lac elements were determined by sucrose density gradient centrifugation to be 30 million to 56 million. The calculated number of copies per chromosome of the lac elements varied from 1.4 to 3.7, depending upon the particular lac element examined. Each of the elements was determined to have a guanine plus cytosine composition of 50%. All six of the E. coli WR3026 strains containing a transmissible lac element were tested with the E. coli male-specific phage, R-17, and the E. coli female-specific phage, II, and did not respond to either of these phages as do F-containing derivatives of E. coli K-12.     

Screening Microalgae Strains for Biodiesel Production: Lipid Productivity and Estimation of Fuel Quality Based on Fatty Acids Profiles as Selective Criteria

The viability of algae-based biodiesel industry depends on the selection of adequate strains in regard to profitable yields and oil quality. This work aimed to bioprospecting and screening 12 microalgae strains by applying, as selective criteria, the volumetric lipid productivity and the fatty acid profiles, used for estimating the biodiesel fuel properties. Volumetric lipid productivity varied among strains from 22.61 to 204.91 mg l^?1 day^?1. The highest lipid yields were observed for Chlorella (204.91 mg l^?1 day¹) and Botryococcus strains (112.43 and 98.00 mg l^?1 day^?1 for Botryococcus braunii and Botryococcus terribilis, respectively). Cluster and principal components analysis analysis applied to fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) profiles discriminated three different microalgae groups according to their potential for biodiesel production. Kirchneriella lunaris, Ankistrodesmus fusiformis, Chlamydocapsa bacillus, and Ankistrodesmus falcatus showed the highest levels of polyunsaturated FAME, which incurs in the production of biodiesels with the lowest (42.47–50.52) cetane number (CN), the highest (101.33–136.97) iodine values (IV), and the lowest oxidation stability. The higher levels of saturated FAME in the oils of Chlamydomonas sp. and Scenedesmus obliquus indicated them as source of biodiesel with higher oxidation stability, higher CN (63.63–64.94), and lower IV (27.34–35.28). The third group, except for the Trebouxyophyceae strains that appeared in isolation, are composed by microalgae that generate biodiesel of intermediate values for CN, IV, and oxidation stability, related to their levels of saturated and monosaturated lipids. Thus, in this research, FAME profiling suggested that the best approach for generating a microalgae-biodiesel of top quality is by mixing the oils of distinct cell cultures.     

荧光物质(MFA、MFB)的分离、结构鉴定及金华地区高产菌株的筛选

采用硅胶柱层析及制备型液相色谱仪对红曲米中两种荧光物质进行分离纯化,使用高效液相色谱法(HPLC)检测荧光物质纯度,然后使用高分辨质谱(ESI-HRMS)对两种荧光物质进行分析,得到两种荧光物质的分子量分别为356和384,ESI-MS/MS二级质谱把两者鉴定为monasfluore A (MFA)和monasfluore B (MFB);从金华地区红曲米中分离得到10株红曲菌株,经固态发酵采用HPLC法分析,筛选获得1株高产MFA、MFB的菌株WZWZ,该菌株发酵制得红曲米中MFA含量为3.63 g/kg,MFB含量为7.29 g/kg,对WZWZ菌株进行外观形态学及显微观察、ITS基因序列测定与分析,最终将菌株WZWZ鉴定为紫色红曲霉(Monascus purpureus)。     

产果胶酶菌株的筛选

从不同来源的生物样品中分离到产果胶酶菌株,采用刚果红染色法和十六烷基三甲基溴化铵沉淀法进行初筛,通过摇瓶发酵试验进行复筛,最终获得2株果胶酶活力较高的细菌G16和G25,其酶活力分别达到6．37万U／mL和6．84万U／mL。     

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and the developing central nervous system (CNS) - Implications for dietary recommendations

The accretion of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in membranes of the central nervous system is required for the optimum development of retina and brain functions. DHA status is determined by the dietary intake of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), both the metabolic precursor α-linolenic acid (α-LNA) and DHA. Clinical studies have shown that feeding term or premature infants with formula low in total n-3 PUFA may alter the maturation of visual acuity. Moreover, feeding infants over the first 6 mon of life with formula containing adequate α-LNA, but no DHA, did not sustain the same cerebral accretion of DHA as that of breast-fed infants. Whether lower DHA accretion in brain of formula-fed term infants impairs neurophysiological performances is not clearly established. Contradictory data have been published, possibly owing to confounding factors such as maternal intakes and/or genetic variations in PUFA metabolism. Nevertheless, a large corpus of data is in favor of the recommendation of regular dietary intakes of DHA (during at least the first 6 mon of life) and suggest that DHA should be added in formulas at the level generally found in human milk (0.2-0.3 wt% of total fatty acids). The maternal intake of n-3 PUFA during pregnancy and lactation is also crucial, since the n-3 PUFA are provided during perinatal development through placental transfer and maternal milk, which determines the DHA status of the newborn and consequently impacts on post-natal development of brain and visual functions. Whether more clinical studies are needed to control and improve the impact of DHA maternal intakes on the progeny’s neurodevelopment, several commissions recommended by precaution that DHA average intake for pregnant and lactating women should be of 200-300 mg/day.     

一株异养硝化-好氧反硝化皱褶念珠菌(Diutina rugosa)的分离及脱氮特性

为了获得异养硝化-好氧反硝化菌株,从养殖池塘污泥中分离筛选到一株具有异养硝化-好氧反硝化能力的酵母菌,命名为DW-1。经形态学观察和26S rDNA序列分析后鉴定为皱褶念珠菌DW-1(Diutina rugosa DW-1)。以氨氮为唯一氮源,初步探讨了碳源、C/N、初始pH值、培养温度、摇床转速对菌株DW-1除氮性能的影响。结果表明,在以乙酸钠为唯一碳源,C/N为25,pH为6.0、适宜培养温度为32℃、转速为170 r/min的条件下,菌株DW-1氨氮降解率和总氮去除率分别为94.94%、48.69%,而整个过程中亚硝氮积累量仅为0.067 mg/L。皱褶念珠菌DW-1的异养硝化-好氧反硝化特性表明其在降解含氮废水方面具有良好的应用前景。     

山西地区高脂微藻的分离筛选

分别从山西省汾河流域、运城盐湖等水体采集水样,使用微挑法、平板涂布法对其中的微藻进行了分离纯化,并对分离得到的29株微藻和购买的3株微藻,进行了高脂藻株的筛选。结果表明：采用干重法对32株微藻的生长量进行测定,其干重介于48.9～422.2 mg/L之间;采用氯仿甲醇法对32株微藻的总脂含量进行测定,其总脂含量介于5.4%DW～30.1%DW之间;采用尼罗红荧光染色法对32株微藻的中性脂相对含量进行测定,其单位体积的荧光值介于4.1～181.5之间。综合评价藻株的总脂产率,最终筛选到山西省NY017盐生杜氏藻（Dunaliella salina）、NY023线形菱形藻（Nitzschia linearis）以及NY025谷皮菱形藻（Nitzschia palea）为高脂藻株,油脂产率分别为3.25、3.03、2.11 mg.L-1.d-1,具有生产生物柴油的潜力。     

An Experimental Study on Transcutaneous Absorption of Ethylesters of Eicosapentaenoic Acid (EPA; 20:5n-3) and Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA; 22:6n-3) in Pigs

Twenty- two pigs with an average weight of 24.2 kg were divided into two groups. Five grams of an ointment containing 40% of the n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA; 20:5n-3) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; 22:6n-3) as ethylesters, was administered cutaneously to the experimental group and orally to the control group twice daily over a 3 day period. Surgical biopsies of subcutaneous fat of all 22 pigs were taken before and after the ethylester administration period. Blood samples were taken from the jugular vein. Skin biopsies were taken after the application period, and the presence of pathological features and inter-animal variation were noted. No increase of EPA and DHA in subcutaneous fat was found in either group. In the oral group the content of EPA had increased in the total plasma lipids on the first day after the end of the experiment. It is concluded that a rapid transcutaneous absorption of EPA and DHA as ethylesters does not seem to occur in pigs.     

Isolation and Characterization of Supercoiled Circular Deoxyribonucleic Acid from Beta-Hemolytic Strains of Escherichia coli

Covalently closed circular deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) molecules were isolated by cesium chloride centrifugation in the presence of ethidium bromide from a naturally occurring beta-hemolytic Escherichia coli strain (SC52). The open circular forms have contour lengths of 2.25 ± 0.1 μm, 24.0 ± 0.3 μm, and 29.5 ± 0.5 μm. The beta-hemolytic character of E. coli SC52 can be transferred by conjugation to a nonhemolytic recipient strain. Analysis of the supercoiled DNA of the hemolytic recipient demonstrated that the two large supercoiled DNA molecules of E. coli SC52 are transferred during this event, too. A beta-hemolytic laboratory E. coli strain and several of its derivatives have been shown to contain at least one circular DNA molecule, slightly larger in size than those isolated from E. coli SC52 and its conjugant. The possible significance of these DNA molecules for hemolysin production and transfer is discussed.     

Uptake and Incorporation of Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA) into Neuronal Cell Body and Neurite/Nerve Growth Cone Lipids: Evidence of Compartmental DHA Metabolism in Nerve Growth Factor-Differentiated PC12 Cells

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) accumulates in nerve endings of the brain during development. It is released from the membrane during ischemia and electroconvulsive shock. DHA optimizes neurologic development, it is neuroprotective, and rat adrenopheochromocytoma (PC12) cells have decreased PLA₂ activity when DHA is present. To characterize DHA metabolism in PC12 cells, media were supplemented with [³H]DHA or [³H]glycerol. Fractions of nerve growth cone particles (NGC) and cell bodies were prepared and the metabolism of the radiolabeled substrates was determined by thin-layer chromatography. [³H]glycerol incorporation into phospholipids indicated de novo lipid synthesis. [³H]DHA uptake was more rapid in the cell bodies than in the NGC. [³H]DHA first esterified in neutral lipids and later in phospholipids (phosphatidylethanolamine). [³H]glycerol primarily labeled phosphatidylcholine. DHA uptake was compartmentalized between the cell body and the NGC. With metabolism similar to that seen in vivo, PC12 cells are an appropriate model to study DHA in neurons.     

一株嗜酸兼性异养菌的分离和系统发育分析

从广东大宝山矿区硫化矿酸性矿坑水中分离获得一株嗜酸兼性异养菌DBS4-1,对该菌株进行了形态、生理生化特性研究及16S rRNA序列分析。分析结果显示:该菌株为革兰氏阴性细菌,球状,菌体直径约为4.0±0.5μm;该菌株兼性异养,具有广泛的底物利用特性,可以利用有机物进行异养生长,同时在自养环境中,还可以利用三价铁、单质硫获得能量进行生长,最适生长温度为30℃左右,最适生长pH约为3.5;该菌16S rRNA序列与Thiobacillus acidophilus(D86511)同源性高达99%。结果表明DBS4-1属于嗜酸硫杆菌属(Acidiphilium sp.),嗜酸种(acidophilum)。