Scoring mitotic activity in longitudinal sections of crypts of the small intestine

Various counts have been made of the number of mitotic figures in whole crypts and sections of crypts of the small intestine of the mouse. Samples were analysed from animals killed at different times of the day and at different times after administration of vincristine. Measurements have been made of the size of mitotic and interphase nuclei and of the radial position of mitotic figures. The correction factor, f, which is required to take into account the enhancement of mitotic counts in sections as a consequence of their centripetal position has been investigated. The results indicate the following: (1) transverse sections of the crypt differ from longitudinal sections if they involve cutting the intestine before fixation which may result in a relaxation of the crypt and its widening by 25%; (2) columnar cell nuclei have a shape that resembles a sphere flattened so that the average diameter is 20% greater in crypt transverse sections; (3) mitotic nuclei tend to be about half-way between the crypt edge and the central axis of the crypt; (4) between about four and seven times more mitotic figures have their mitotic axis parallel to the long axis of the crypt; (5) about one-third of all mitotic figures in a crypt are seen in a longitudinal section of the crypt. If this is related to the number of cells in the crypt as a whole and in a section, a correction factor fD for the mitotic index of 0.59 is obtained; (6) the correction factor fT derived from the shape and position of the mitotic figures measured in 3 microns longitudinal sections is 0.53; (7) relating cell cycle and mitotic accumulation data using a computer-based model of the crypt also permits a correction factor fmod to be estimated. This gives a value of 0.66. When sectioned material is used to calculate a mitotic index the most appropriate correction factor is fD; for mouse small intestine it is 0.59.     

Glutamate biosynthesis in Bacillus azotofixans. 15N NMR and enzymatic studies

Pathways of ammonia assimilation into glutamic acid in Bacillus azotofixans, a recently characterized nitrogen-fixing species of Bacillus, were investigated through observation by NMR spectroscopy of in vivo incorporation of 15N into glutamine and glutamic acid in the absence and presence of inhibitors of ammonia-assimilating enzymes, in combination with measurements of the specific activities of glutamate dehydrogenase, glutamine synthetase, glutamate synthase, and alanine dehydrogenase. In ammonia-grown cells, both the glutamine synthetase/glutamate synthase and the glutamate dehydrogenase pathways contribute to the assimilation of ammonia into glutamic acid. In nitrate-grown and nitrogen-fixing cells, the glutamine synthetase/glutamate synthase pathway was found to be predominant. NADPH-dependent glutamate dehydrogenase activity was detectable at low levels only in ammonia-grown and glutamate-grown cells. Thus, B. azotofixans differs from Bacillus polymyxa and Bacillus macerans, but resembles other N2-fixing prokaryotes studied previously, as to the pathway of ammonia assimilation during ammonia limitation. Implications of the results for an emerging pattern of ammonia assimilation by alternative pathways among nitrogen-fixing prokaryotes are discussed, as well as the utility of 15N NMR for measuring in vivo glutamate synthase activity in the cell.     

Trimethoprim binding to Lactobacillus casei dihydrofolate reductase: a 13C NMR study using selectively 13C-enriched trimethoprim

We have measured the 13C chemical shifts for trimethoprim molecules selectively enriched with 13C at the 2-, 4-, 5-, 6-, and 7-positions and the p-OCH3 position in their complexes with Lactobacillus casei dihydrofolate reductase in the presence and absence of coenzyme analogues. The C2 carbon shifts indicate that the pyrimidine ring is protonated at N1 in all the complexes of trimethoprim with the enzyme and coenzymes and in each case the pyrimidine ring is binding in a similar way to that of the corresponding part of methotrexate in the enzyme-methotrexate complex. The C6 carbon of trimethoprim shows a large upfield shift in all complexes (3.51 to 4.70 ppm) but no shift in the complex of 2,4-diaminopyrimidine with the enzyme: these shifts probably arise from steric interactions between the C1' and C2' carbons and the H6 proton, which approach van der Waals contact in the folded conformation adopted by trimethoprim when bound to the enzyme. The large shift observed for C6 in all complexes indicates that the basic folded conformation is present in all of them. A comparison of the 13C shifts in the enzyme-trimethoprim-NADPH complex with those in the enzyme-trimethoprim binary complex shows substantial changes even for carbons such as C6 and p-OCH3 (0.46 and -0.36 ppm, respectively), which are remote from the coenzyme: these are caused by ligand-induced conformational changes that may involve displacement of the helix containing residues 42-49.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Characterization of Haemophilus parainfluenzae strains with low-Mr or ladder-like lipopolysaccharides

Twenty-five Haemophilus parainfluenzae strains were characterized for lipopolysaccharide (LPS) profiles, outer membrane protein profiles, serum sensitivity, plasmid profiles and DNA homology. Seventeen strains produced low-Mr LPS that did not contain O-sidechains, while the remaining eight strains contained ladder-like LPS suggestive of O-repeated units. This is the first time in the genus Haemophilus that LPS with O-repeated groups has been described. The strains producing the different types of LPS could not be distinguished from each other in outer membrane protein profiles or the other characteristics examined.     

Transforming growth factor beta is an important immunomodulatory protein for human B lymphocytes

The growth and differentiation of B cells to immunoglobulin (Ig)-secreting cells is regulated by a variety of soluble factors. This study presents data that support a role for transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta in this regulatory process. B lymphocytes were shown to have high-affinity receptors for TGF-beta that were increased fivefold to sixfold after in vitro activation. The addition of picogram quantities of TGF-beta to B cell cultures suppressed factor-dependent, interleukin 2 (IL 2) B cell proliferation and markedly suppressed factor-dependent (IL 2 or B cell differentiation factor) B cell Ig secretion. In contrast, the constitutive IgG production by an Epstein Barr virus-transformed B cell line was not modified by the presence of TGF-beta in culture. This cell line was found to lack high-affinity TGF-beta receptors. The degree of inhibition of B cell proliferation observed in in vitro cultures was found to be dependent not only on the concentration of TGF-beta added but also on the concentration of the growth stimulatory substance (IL 2) present. By increasing the IL 2 concentrations in culture, the inhibition of proliferation induced by TGF-beta could be partially overcome. In contrast, the inhibition of Ig secretion induced by TGF-beta could not be overcome by a higher concentration of stimulatory factor, demonstrating that the suppression of B cell differentiation by TGF-beta is not due solely to its effects on proliferation. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that B lymphocytes secrete TGF-beta. Unactivated tonsillar B cells had detectable amounts of TGF-beta mRNA on Northern blot analysis, and B cell activation with Staphylococcus aureus Cowan (SAC) resulted in a twofold to threefold increase in TGF-beta mRNA. Supernatants conditioned by unactivated B cells had small amounts of TGF-beta, SAC activation of the B cells resulted in a sixfold to sevenfold increase in the amount of TGF-beta present in the supernatants. Thus, B lymphocytes synthesize and secrete TGF-beta and express receptors for TGF-beta. The addition of exogenous TGF-beta to cultures of stimulated B cells inhibits subsequent proliferation and Ig secretion. TGF-beta may function as an autocrine growth inhibitor that limits B lymphocyte proliferation and ultimate differentiation.     

Proteins secreted by day-16 to -18 bovine conceptuses extend corpus luteum function in cows

Corpus luteum function, interoestrous interval and spontaneous uterine PGF-2 alpha (PGF) production were evaluated in 9 cyclic Holstein cows (3/group) after intrauterine injections of pooled conceptus secretory proteins, 5 beta-pregnan-3 alpha-ol-20-one, or homologous serum proteins on Days 15.5 through 21 after oestrus. A significant extension of corpus luteum lifespan and interoestrous interval were detected in cows treated with conceptus secretory proteins compared to the other 2 groups. CL lifespan and interoestrous interval were not different (P greater than 0.25) between 5 beta-pregnan-3 alpha-ol-20-one and control groups. Evaluation of spontaneous PGF responses suggested that proteins synthesized and secreted by the bovine conceptus accommodate luteal maintenance during early gestation via an attenuation of endometrial PGF production.     

Hexavalent capsomers of herpes simplex virus type 2: symmetry, shape, dimensions, and oligomeric status

The structures of the hexavalent capsomers of herpes simplex virus type 2 were analyzed by negative staining electron microscopy of capsomer patches derived from partially disrupted nucleocapsids. Optimally computer-averaged images were formed for each of the three classes of capsomer distinguished by their respective positions on the surface of the icosahedral capsid with a triangulation number of 16; in projection, each capsomer exhibited unequivocal sixfold symmetry. According to correspondence analysis of our set of capsomer images, no significant structural differences were detected among the three classes of capsomers, as visualized under these conditions. Taking into account information from images of freeze-dried, platinum-shadowed nucleocapsid fragments, it was established that each hexavalent capsomer is a hexamer of the 155-kilodalton major capsid protein. The capsomer has the form of a sixfold hollow cone approximately 12 nm in diameter and approximately 15 nm in depth, whose axial channel tapers in width from the outside towards the inner capsid surface.     

13C NMR spectroscopy of Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum. Carbon fluxes and primary metabolic pathways

The flux of 13C-labeled carbons from the soluble metabolite 2,3-cyclopyrophosphoglycerate (CPP), a novel compound found in high concentrations exclusively in methanobacteria and methanobrevibacter, into carbohydrate-containing material has been deduced by solid-state 13C NMR spectroscopy which strongly argues for a role in gluconeogenesis for this unique metabolite. The turnover rates, but not the steady-state levels, of CPP labeled by 13CO2 or [13C]acetate depend dramatically on cell growth conditions. When the demand for carbohydrate synthesis is reduced (i.e. in stationary phase), the rates of CPP biosynthesis and degradation decrease 10-fold, and the disaccharide alpha, alpha-trehalose accumulates. Valinomycin, a metabolic inhibitor of Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum growth, does not affect steady-state levels of CPP, but does decrease 13C uptake into the CPP pool. The effects of these different conditions on CPP labeling suggest stringent regulation of CPP linked to cellular metabolism. Labeling of CPP by [6-(13)C]glucose, which does not serve as an energy or carbon source for this organism, provides strong evidence that glucose is cleaved by the reverse of the gluconeogenesis pathway. This metabolic pathway linking glucose with triose phosphate type precursors and an analysis of the 13C NMR spectrum of CPP labeled by incubating cells with [U-13C]glucose have established that in vivo phosphoenolpyruvate synthetase must be reversible.     

Growth hormone regulates the abundance of insulin-like growth factor I RNA in adult rat liver

Insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) is a mitogenic polypeptide present in the plasma of man and rat that is thought to mediate the actions of pituitary growth hormone on cartilage to promote skeletal elongation. In the rat, plasma levels of IGF-I show both developmental and hormonal regulation: levels are low at birth, increase with age, and are decreased in growth hormone-deficient adult animals. The present study demonstrates that these changes in plasma IGF-I reflect the abundance of IGF-I RNA in rat liver. A human IGF-I cDNA probe hybridized to multiple RNA species in adult rat liver with sizes 8.6, 4.6, 3.2, 2.1, and 1.0-1.4 kilobases. These RNA species were decreased by greater than 80% in neonatal (2- and 12-day-old) rat liver and by greater than 90% in liver from adult rats made growth hormone-deficient by hypophysectomy. Treatment of hypophysectomized rats with growth hormone increased the abundance of all species of IGF-I RNA. These results suggest that growth hormone regulates the expression of its physiological mediator by altering the synthesis, stability, or both of IGF-I RNA in rat liver.