In vitro processing of B. mori transfer RNA precursor molecules.

Ribonuclease P and 3'-5' nuclease, two enzymatic activities necessary for tRNA synthesis in E. coli, are also found in the silkgland cells of Bombyx mori. B. mori subcellular extracts containing RNAase P activity can cleave the E. coli tRNA precursor molecule endonucleolytically at the same site as the E. coli enzyme, and will also cleave in vitro all E. coli tRNA precursors (pre-tRNAs) which the bacterial enzyme recognizes. B. mori RNAase P will not cleave two E. coli RNAase P substrates that are structurally unrelated to tRNA. Pre-tRNAs from B. mori contain extra 5' and 3' nucleotides as judged by RNA fingerprinting and 5' terminal phosphate analysis. Crude silkgland extracts containing both RNAase P and 3'-5' nuclease can remove the 5' and 3' extra nucleotides from B. mori pre-tRNAs, whereas purified fractions containing RNAase P remove only 5' extra nucleotides. Only large silkworm pre-tRNAs were found to be susceptible to cleavage by B. mori RNAase P. This observation and sequence analysis of intermediates of in vitro processing reactions indicate a two-step process of pre-tRNA maturation in which extra 5' nucleotides are first removed by RNAase P and extra 3' nucleotides are then trimmed off by a 3'-5' nuclease.     

紫芝酸性三萜类化合物体外抑癌和抑菌作用的研究

采用噻唑蓝比色(MTT)法研究紫芝酸性三萜对几种癌细胞体外增殖的影响,并用管碟法检测了紫芝胞内酸性三萜对几种细菌和霉菌的体外抑菌作用。结果表明,紫芝胞内酸性三萜和胞外酸性三萜在250μg/mL时,对人肝癌细胞BEL7402和人乳腺癌细胞MCF-7均有显著抑制作用(P<0.05),但对人胃癌细胞SGC-7901没有显著抑制作用(P>0.05)。BEL7402细胞的生长曲线试验表明,胞内酸性三萜组的细胞受到显著抑制,未出现指数增长期,且BEL7402细胞培养3d后,对照组细胞数目多、均匀,而胞内酸性三萜组的细胞数目明显减少,且细胞变小。抑菌试验结果表明,胞内酸性三萜在40mg/mL时,对大肠杆菌Escherichia coli和金黄色葡萄球菌Staphylococcus aureus的生长均具有显著抑制作用(P<0.01),对枯草芽孢杆菌Bacillus subtitis和青霉的Penicillium chrysogenum抑制作用较弱;而在此浓度下对黑曲霉Aspergillus niger没有抑制作用。该样品对大肠杆菌、金黄色葡萄球菌、枯草芽孢杆菌、黑曲霉和青霉的MIC分别为20mg/mL、20mg/mL、40mg/mL、80mg/mL和40mg/mL。此外,该酸性三萜的抑菌成分在60℃下(处理2h)较稳定,但在80℃以上,热稳定性较差,活性降低。     

In vitro activity of amphotericin B cochleates against Leishmania chagasi

Cochleate delivery vehicles are a novel lipid-based system with potential for delivery of amphotericin B (AmB). In this study, the efficacy of cochleates was evaluated by examining the in vitro activity of AmB cochleates (CAMB) against Leishmania chagasi in a macrophage model of infection. We demonstrate that CAMB is nontoxic to macrophages at concentrations as high as 2.5 μg/mL, whereas the conventional formulation, AmB deoxycholate, showed high toxicity at this concentration. The in vitro activity of CAMB against L. chagasi was found to be similar to that of the reference drug AmB deoxycholate, with ED50s of 0.017 μg/mL and 0.021 μg/mL, respectively. Considering that L. chagasi affects organs amenable to cochleate-mediated delivery of AmB, we hypothesize that CAMB will be an effective lipid system for the treatment of visceral leishmaniasis.     

In vitro selection of RNA molecules that inhibit the activity of ricin A-chain

The cytotoxin ricin disables translation by depurinating a conserved site in eukaryotic rRNA. In vitro selection has been used to generate RNA ligands (aptamers) specific for the catalytic ricin A-chain (RTA). The anti-RTA aptamers bear no resemblance to the normal RTA substrate, the sarcin-ricin loop (SRL), and were not depurinated by RTA. An initial 80-nucleotide RNA ligand was minimized to a 31-nucleotide aptamer that contained all sequences and structures necessary for interacting with RTA. This minimal RNA formed high affinity complexes with RTA (K(d) = 7.3 nM) which could compete directly with the SRL for binding to RTA. The aptamer inhibited RTA depurination of the SRL and could partially protect translation from RTA inhibition. The IC(50) of the aptamer for RTA in an in vitro translation assay is 100 nM, roughly 3 orders of magnitude lower than a small molecule inhibitor of ricin, pteroic acid, and 2 orders of magnitude lower than the best known RNA inhibitor. The novel anti-RTA aptamers may find application as diagnostic reagents for a potential biological warfare agent and hold promise as scaffolds for the development of strong ricin inhibitors.     

Synthesis and in vitro anti-tumor activity of carboranyl levodopa

Reactions of closo-1-Me-2-Iodobutyl-1,2-closo-dicarborane, 1-Me-2-I(CH₂)₄-C₂B₁₀H₁₀, with l-dopa methyl ester can produce carboranyl l-dopa methyl esters in 54% yield in the presence of sodium hydroxide. The appended closo-carboranes can be decapitated with sodium hydroxide in a mixed solvent of ethanol and deionized water to produce highly water-soluble carboranyl levodopa in 64% yield. All the new compounds were characterized by ¹H, ¹³C, ¹¹B NMR, FT-IR spectroscopy and elemental analysis. The highly water soluble carboranyl levodopa 4 shows promising efficacy of anti-tumors in vitro in the presence of slow neutron beams.     

In vitro sulfation of N-acetyllactosaminide by soluble recombinant human beta-Gal-3'-sulfotransferase

Membrane-bound beta-Gal-3'-sulfotransferase (GP3ST) was expressed and used for in vitro sulfation of Tamm-Horsfall glycoprotein. Further, the regioselective transfer of sulfate to an N-acetyllactosamine derivative could be realised with soluble chimeric GP3ST, also in combination with Lac transglycosylation by means of beta-galactosidase. Two alternative straightforward chemical syntheses for the target compound could be elaborated.     

两性霉素B和伏立康唑对临床真菌的体外抗菌活性分析

目的比较两性霉素B和伏立康唑对临床真菌的体外抗菌活性。方法用两性霉素B和伏立康唑的E-test条对分离自临床标本的116株真菌进行体外药敏试验,其中热带念珠菌15株,光滑念珠菌14株,近平滑念珠菌11株,克柔念珠菌6株,新生隐球菌8株,阿萨希毛孢子菌9株,烟曲霉29株,黄曲霉15株,黑曲霉1株,镰刀菌属7株,根霉属1株,以ATCC22019光滑念珠菌为质控菌株。结果两性霉素B对阿萨希毛孢子菌、镰刀菌、黄曲霉的MIC90均为64μg/ml,对其余受试菌株的MIC90均≤1μg/ml,伏立康唑对镰刀菌的MIC90为64μg/ml,对大部分受试菌株的MIC90均≤2μg/ml。结论除对某些真菌可能无效外,两性霉素B和伏立康唑可能适用于治疗大多数的真菌感染。     

In vitro termination of adenovirus DNA synthesis by a soluble replication complex.

The double-stranded DNA from a soluble DNA replication complex that was labeled with deoxyribonucleoside triphosphates and completed in vitro was digested with EcoRI, Sma I, and Hpa I restriction endonucleases. All regions of the adenovirus type 2 genome were labeled in vitro, but restriction fragments derived from the ends of the DNA molecules were relatively more highly labeled than those derived from internal regions. The in vitro endogenous DNA polymerase reaction also exhibited strand-specific labeling near the molecular ends, in that restriciton fragments from the left end were labeled predominantly in the r strand and fragments from the right end were labeled predominantly in the l strand.     

In vitro anti-tumor immune response induced by dendritic cells transfected with EBV-LMP2 recombinant adenovirus

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a high-incidence tumor in southern China. Latent membrane proteins 2 (LMP2) is a subdominant antigen of EBV. The present study was to develop a dendritic cells (DCs)-based cancer vaccine (rAd-LMP2-DC) and to study its biological characteristics and its immune functions. Our results showed that LMP2 gene transfer did not alter the typical morphology of mature DC, and the representative phenotypes of mature DC (CD80, CD83, and CD86) were highly expressed in rAd-LMP2-DCs. The expression of LMP2 in rAd-LPM2-DCs was about 84.54%, which suggested efficient gene transfer. Transfected DCs markedly increased antigen-specific T-cell proliferation. The specific cytotoxicity against NPC cell was significantly higher than that in controls (p < 0.05), and enhanced with increased stimulations by transfected DCs. In addition, phenotypic analysis demonstrated that the LMP2-specific CTLs consisted of both CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells. These results showed that development of DC-based vaccine by transfection with malignancy-associated virus antigens could elicit potent CTL response and provide a potential strategy of immunotherapy for EBV-associated NPC.     

In vitro activity of amphotericin B and anidulafungin against Candida spp. biofilms

Invasive infections caused by Candida spp. are increasing worldwide and are becoming an important cause of morbidity and mortality in immunocompromised patients. A large number of manifestations of candidiasis are associated with the formation of biofilms on inert or biological surfaces. Candida spp. biofilms are recalcitrant to treatment with conventional antifungal therapies. The aim of this study was dual 1) to determine the prevalence of biofilm producers among clinical isolates from catheter (16 C. albicans ) and blood culture (2 C. albicans and 30 C. tropicalis), and 2) to determine the activity of amphotericin B and anidulafungin against C. albicans and C. tropicalis biofilms of 24 and 48 hours of maturation. Biofilms were developed using a 96-well microtitre plate model and production and activity of antifungal agents against biofilms were determined by the tetrazolium (XTT) reduction assay. Of catheter and blood isolates, 62.5 and 56.25%, respectively, produced biofilms. By species, 68.42% of C. albicans and 53.33% of C. tropicalis were biofilm producers. C. albicans biofilms showed more resistance to amphotericin B and anidulafungin than their planktonic counterparts. Complete killing of biofilms was never achieved, even at the highest concentrations of the drugs tested. Anidulafungin displayed more activity than amphotericin B against C. albicans biofilms of 24 hours of maturation (GM MIC 0.354 vs. 0.686 microg/ml), but against C. tropicalis biofilms amphotericin B was more active (GM MIC 11.285 vs. 0.476 microg/ml). In contrast, against biofilms with 48 hours maturation, amphotericin B was more active against both species.     

In vitro antibacterial activity of a 7-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-nutanocoumarin from Chaptalia nutans (Asteraceae)

Ethanolic crude extracts from the roots of Chaptalia nutans, traditionally used in Brazilian folk medicine, were screened against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa by using the disk diffusion test technique. S. aureus with 14 mm inhibition zone was considered susceptible. E. coli and P. aeruginosa without such a zone were considered resistant. As a result of this finding, the ethanolic crude extract was fractionated on silica gel column chromatography into five fractions. The ethyl acetate fraction was active against S. aureus and Bacillus subtilis. Further column chromatography separation of the ethyl acetate fraction afforded 30 fractions, which were assayed against S. aureus. Fractions 16 and 17 showed inhibition zones with S. aureus, indicating the presence of active compounds, and were subjected to purification by repeated preparative thin layer chromatography. The pure compound 7-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-nutanocoumarin inhibited B. subtilis and S. aureus at concentrations of 62.5 g/ml and 125 g/ml, respectively. The antibacterial property of C. nutans appears to have justified its use for the treatment of wounds, which are contaminated through bacterial infections.     

In vitro protein kinase activity measurement by flow cytometry

Protein kinases are important drug targets, and a wide variety of methods have been developed for assessing their activity. A key element in developing selective kinase inhibitors is the ability to rapidly compare the effects of an inhibitor on several related or unrelated kinases. We describe a simple, nonradioactive, bead-based method for detecting kinase activity in vitro. Biotinylated peptide substrates are immobilized on beads and phosphorylation is detected with anti-phosphopeptide antibodies with no separation steps required. Phosphorylation is dependent on the amount of kinase in the assay and can be inhibited by known kinase inhibitors in a concentration-dependent manner. Using Luminex technology, we measured the activity of three kinases (PKA, PKC-μ, and Akt) on multiple substrates simultaneously. We also discuss conditions necessary to optimize measurement of the activity of several kinases in a single sample.     

In vitro and in vivo activity of soluble cross-linked uricase-albumin polymers: A model for enzyme therapy

The possibility of using soluble cross-linked enzyme-albumin polymers as a means of enzyme therapy for the treatment of certain enzyme deficiency diseases is investigated. The hyperuricemic Dalmatian coach hound is used as an experimental animal and the enzyme uricase (urate oxidase) as the administered enzyme. Chemically cross-linking uricase with an excess of canine albumin yields a soluble enzyme polymer that is significantly more heat stable and resistant to proteolytic activity than the native enzyme. Intravenous administration of similar amounts of enzyme in the native or polymeric form indicated that the “solubilized” enzyme survived in the circulation for a longer period of time (clearance half-time of 26 hours as opposed to 4 hours for the native enzyme) and was more effective in lowering plasma uric acid levels for longer periods. In vivo administration of the native enzyme lowered uric acid levels by about 35% with a return to normal levels with a half-time of about 24 hours. Subsequent injections of native uricase proved less effective and produced a severe hypersensitivity reaction following the third injection. No such adverse reactions or decreased activity of the administered “solubilized” uricase-albumin polymers were observed. The plasma uric acid levels were decreased by about 40% and only after 48 hours did the substrate levels begin to rise towards their resting levels.     

In vitro oxidation of indoleacetic Acid by soluble auxin-oxidases and peroxidases from maize roots

Soluble auxin-oxidases were extracted from Zea mays L. cv LG11 apical root segments and partially separated from peroxidases (EC 1.11.1.7) by size-exclusion chromatography. Auxin-oxidases were resolved into one main peak corresponding to a molecular mass of 32.5 kilodaltons and a minor peak at 54.5 kilodaltons. Peroxidases were separated into at least four peaks, with molecular masses from 32.5 to 78 kilodaltons. In vitro activity of indoleacetic acid-oxidases was dependent on the presence of MnCl₂ and p-coumaric acid. Compound(s) present in the crude extract and several synthetic auxin transport inhibitors (including 2,3,5-triiodobenzoic acid and N-1-naphthylphthalamic acid) inhibited auxin-oxidase activity, but had no effect on peroxidases. The products resulting from the in vitro enzymatic oxidation of [³H] indoleacetic acid were separated by HPLC and the major metabolite was found to cochromatograph with indol-3yl-methanol.     

In vitro antioxidant activity of silymarin

Silymarin, a known standardized extract obtained from seeds of Silybum marianum is widely used in treatment of several diseases of varying origin. In the present paper, we clarified the antioxidant activity of silymarin by employing various in vitro antioxidant assay such as 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazyl free radical (DPPH·) scavenging, 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzthiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) radical scavenging activity, total antioxidant activity determination by ferric thiocyanate, total reducing ability determination by Fe³⁺ ? Fe²⁺ transformation method and Cuprac assay, superoxide anion radical scavenging by riboflavin/methionine/illuminate system, hydrogen peroxide scavenging and ferrous ions (Fe²⁺) chelating activities. Silymarin inhibited 82.7% lipid peroxidation of linoleic acid emulsion at 30 μg/mL concentration; butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA), butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT), α-tocopherol and trolox indicated inhibition of 83.3, 82.1, 68.1 and 81.3% on peroxidation of linoleic acid emulsion at the same concentration, respectively. In addition, silymarin had an effective DPPH· scavenging, ABTS^√+ scavenging, superoxide anion radical scavenging, hydrogen peroxide scavenging, ferric ions (Fe³⁺) reducing power by Fe³⁺ ? Fe²⁺ transformation, cupric ions (Cu²⁺) reducing ability by Cuprac method, and ferrous ions (Fe²⁺) chelating activities. Also, BHA, BHT, α-tocopherol and trolox, were used as the reference antioxidant and radical scavenger compounds. Moreover, this study, which clarifies antioxidant mechanism of silymarin, brings new information on the antioxidant properties of silymarin. According to the present study, silymarin had effective in vitro antioxidant and radical scavenging activity. It could be used in the pharmacological and food industry because of its antioxidant properties.     

In vitro peptide binding to soluble empty class I major histocompatibility complex molecules isolated from transfected Drosophila melanogaster cells.

A soluble form of a mouse class I major histocompatibility antigen (H-2Kb) has been expressed in transfected Drosophila melanogaster cells. These molecules were efficiently secreted (up to 4 mg/liter) as noncovalent heterodimers and purified to homogeneity from cell supernatants. The isolated soluble Kb molecules were devoid of endogenous peptides. Using these molecules, we have characterized the Kb heavy chain-beta 2-microglobulin (beta 2m) assembly as well as peptide binding in vitro. In detergent-free solution the heavy chains readily re-assembled with beta 2m even in the absence of peptides. Kinetic analyses showed that the peptide binding is rapid and reversible and dependent on the heavy chains being assembled with beta 2m. Likewise, peptide dissociated from Kb molecules without the displacement of beta 2m. Equilibrium binding experiments using various peptides confirmed that octapeptides bind to Kb molecules with the highest affinity and form the most stable complexes. However, in contrast to earlier studies, the amino-terminal positioning of peptide to Kb molecules was more crucial than the carboxyl-terminal positioning and amidation of the peptide carboxylate did not affect the binding. Soluble Kb molecules could selectively bind allele-specific peptides among a mixture of randomly synthesized octapeptides in vitro; however, no dominant residue was observed at the carboxyl terminus of bound peptides. This suggests that the previously observed hydrophobic residues at the carboxyl terminus of peptides may reflect the specificity of enzyme(s) or protein(s) involved in peptide processing in vivo.     

皮肤癣菌体外蛋白水解酶活性测定

目的观察皮肤癣菌的体外蛋白水解酶活性;比较分离自不同感染部位的红色毛癣菌的体外蛋白水解酶活性。方法实验菌株包括来自不同感染部位的红色毛癣菌22株、须癣毛癣菌3株、犬小孢子菌5株,进行体外培养,并利用9-羟基乙酚噻唑标识的酪蛋白和酶标仪检测真菌细胞外蛋白水解酶的活性。结果须癣毛癣菌的体外蛋白水解酶活性高于红色毛癣菌和犬小孢子菌（P〈0.05）,而红色毛癣菌和犬小孢子菌之间无差异（P〉0.05）。红色毛癣菌的细胞外蛋白水解酶活性在分离自浅部感染部位的菌株之间无差异（P〉0.05）,但高于引起毛癣菌肉芽肿的菌株（P〈0.05）。结论不同的皮肤癣菌体外蛋白水解酶活性可能不同;分离自不同感染部位的同一菌种的体外蛋白水解酶活性也有可能不同。