Purification and characterization of six cytochromes P-450 from hepatic microsomes of immature female rats

Six rat hepatic cytochromes P-450, named P-450IF-1-6, were purified from hepatic microsomes of immature female rats by high-performance liquid chromatography with anion-exchange, cation-exchange, and hydroxylapatite columns. The purified forms, except for P-450IF-4, gave a single protein-staining band on SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, with a minimum molecular weight of 50,000 for P-450IF-1, 49,000 for P-450IF-2, 47,000 for P-450IF-3, 53,500 for P-450IF-5, and 54,000 for P-450IF-6. The CO-reduced spectral maximum of these forms was at 450 nm for P-450IF-1, 448 nm for P-450IF-2, 451 nm for P-450IF-3, 449 nm for P-450IF-4, 449 nm for P-450IF-5, and 450 nm for P-450IF-6. All of these cytochromes had the low-spin state of heme in the oxidized form. P-450IF-4 had high metabolic activity for both benzphetamine and 7-ethoxycoumarin. P-450IF-5 had moderate activity toward 7-ethoxycoumarin. P-450IF-3 catalyzed the hydroxylation of testosterone at the 7 alpha-position effectively, but the other forms did not hydroxylate testosterone. Analysis of the NH2-terminal sequence showed that P-450IF-1, 2, 3, 5, and 6 differed structurally from each other. The sequences of P-450IF-1 and IF-2 were somewhat homologous, but the NH2-terminal sequences of the other forms were all different. Based on these results, we concluded that P-450IF-1 corresponded to one of the phenobarbital-inducible forms in male rat liver. P-450IF-2 was a female-specific form and its concentration was low.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

A highly sensitive chromogenic microtiter plate assay for plasminogen activators which quantitatively discriminates between the urokinase and tissue-type activators

A simple and highly sensitive chromogenic microtiter plate assay for plasminogen activators is described. The assay is based on plasmin cleavage of the synthetic tripeptide plasmin substrate H-D-norleucyl-hexahydrotyrosyl-lysine p-nitroaniline, which yields the yellow chromophore p-nitroanilide. Production of the latter compound is then quantitated spectrophotometrically at 405 nm on an ELISA plate reader. Linearity of the assay can be achieved over at least four orders of magnitude in a single experiment (0.01-100 milliPloug units) with appropriate incubation times. Capitalizing on tissue-type plasminogen activator's dependence on fibrin for enzymatic activity, the selective use of soluble fibrin products allows discrimination between urokinase and tissue-type activator. The utility of this aspect of the assay for the analysis of complex samples containing both types of plasminogen activators is demonstrated.     

Internal anion binding site and membrane potential dominate the regulation of proton pumping by the chromaffin granule ATPase

Effects of anions and membrane potential on the reconstituted proton pump from chromaffin granules were investigated. When acetate was present inside of the vesicles, ATP-dependent proton uptake was absolutely dependent on external chloride. Without external chloride, however, substantial proton uptake was observed when chloride or sulfate was present inside of the vesicles. Inside negative membrane potential drove ATP-dependent proton uptake regardless of the anion species present inside or outside of the vesicles. It is concluded that the internal anion binding site and membrane potential regulate the proton pumping activity of the ATPase.     

Lipid metabolism in various regions of squid giant nerve fiber

The purpose of this investigation was to compare the incorporation of radioactivity from various precursors into lipids of different regions of squid giant nerve fiber systems including axoplasm, axon sheath, giant fiber lobes which contain stellate ganglion cell bodies, and the remaining ganglion including giant synapses. To identify the labeled lipids, stellate ganglia including giant fiber lobes and the remaining tissue were first incubated separately with [14C]glucose, [32P]phosphate, [14C]serine, [14C]acetate and [3H]myristate. The radioactivity from glucose, after conversion to glycerol and fatty acids, was incorporated into most lipids, including triacylglycerol, free fatty acids, cardiolipin, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylinositol, phosphatidylserine, sphingomyelin and ceramide 2-aminoethylphosphanate [corrected]. The radioactivity from serine was largely incorporated into phosphatidylserine and, to a lesser extent, into other phospholipids, mainly as the base component. The sphingoid bases of ceramide and sphingomyelin were also significantly labeled. Saturated and monounsaturated and, to a lesser extent, polyunsaturated fatty acids of these lipids were synthesized from acetate, glucose and myristate. Among the major lipids, cholesterol was not labeled by any of the radioactive compounds used. Ganglion residues incorporated the most radioactivity in total lipids from either [14C]glucose or [14C]serine, followed by giant fiber lobes and then sheath. Axoplasm incorporated the least. Among various lipids, phosphatidylethanolamine with shorter saturated fatty acids and phosphatidylglycerol contained the most radioactivity from glucose in all regions. Axoplasm was characterized by a higher proportion of glucose radioactivity in ceramide, sphingomyelin and phosphatidylglycerol. Axoplasm and sheath contained a higher proportion of serine radioactivity than did the other two regions in ceramide. Essentially no radioactivity from [14C]galactose was incorporated in any region.     

The cholecystokinin-induced Ca2+ shuttle from the inositol trisphosphate-sensitive and ATP-dependent pool, and initial pepsinogen release connected with cytoskeleton of the chief cell

In guinea pig chief cells, inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP3) caused release of Ca2+, which was accumulated by ATP, from an endoplasmic reticulum-enriched fraction in both the permeable system and the cell-free system. This was mimicked with the Ca2+ ionophores A23187 and ionomycin on a large scale since an IP3-sensitive Ca2+ pool might be a subset of the Ca2+ ionophore-sensitive Ca2+ pool. The permeable chief cells, but not the cell-free system, retained the ability to react to synthetic cholecystokinin octapeptide (CCK-OP) with Ca2+ release from an IP3-sensitive pool due to of the non-additive but constant effect in exerting Ca2+ release from the store(s) induced by the combination with IP3 and CCK-OP. The increase in the cytosolic free Ca2+ concentration of intact chief cells responding to CCK-OP or the Ca2+ ionophore, ionomycin, comprised two components, namely, that by the Ca2+ entry from the extracellular space, and that by the Ca2+ release from the intracellular space(s) (as measured by fura-2). When CCK-OP or ionomycin was added, there was a biphasic response of pepsinogen secretion. An initial but transient response reaching a peak in 5 min was followed by a sustained response reaching a peak in 30 min. The initial pepsinogen release was independent of medium Ca2+, whereas the sustained one was dependent on medium Ca2+. The results suggest that the intracellular Ca2+ release from the store(s), presumably endoplasmic reticulum, may trigger the initial pepsinogen release, whereas the sustained pepsinogen secretion may be caused by acting in concert with the initial response and external Ca2+ entry. On the other hand, the disruption of the microtubular-microfilamentous system by colchicine or cytochalasin D failed to cause the Ca2+ release evoked by either IP3, CCK-OP or Ca2+ ionophores and to cause the CCK-OP- or ionomycin-induced initial pepsinogen release. These findings suggest that the IP3-sensitive pool is the same Ca2+ store which is completely or partially sensitive to CCK-OP and Ca2+ ionophores, respectively, and that the assembly of the cytoskeletal system is involved in initial intracellular Ca2+ metabolism and the following initial pepsinogen release. The assembly of the cytoskeletal system may be an early event in mediating the CCK-OP-induced initial pepsinogen release, perhaps by causing the Ca2+ release from an IP3-sensitive pool of the chief cell. The translocation or attachment of the IP3-sensitive pool brought about by cytoskeletal system might be necessary to cause Ca2+ release after the cell stimulation with CCK-OP.     

Rhythmical jaw movements and lateral ponto-medullary reticular neurons in rats

Neuronal activity in the lateral reticular formation was investigated in urethane-anesthetized rats. Stimulation of anterior and posterior cortical areas induced two types of rhythmical jaw movements (RJM). The effects of stimulation of these cortical areas, the peripheral nerves, and the trigeminal motor nucleus on these neurons and their activity during the RJM were analyzed. The smallest percentage of neurons receiving anterior cortical input received peripheral input, and most neurons with posterior cortical input received peripheral input. Sixty per cent of reticular neurons showed the rhythmical firing closely related to the RJM. Therefore, these neurons may participate in masticatory pattern formation.     

Immunocytochemical localization of lactoferrin in human neutrophils

Summary The subcellular localization of lactoferrin in human neutrophils was studied by an electron-microscopic immunoperoxidase method. This molecule was detected in small granules of blood polymorphonuclear leukocytes. A morphometrical analysis showed that there was no significant difference in the mean size between lactoferrin-positive and myeloperoxidase-negative granules. In contrast, the mean size of myeloperoxidase-positive granules was significantly larger than that of lactoferrin-positive granules. This indicates that lactoferrin is contained in the myeloperoxidase-negative, secondary, granules of human neutrophils. In immature bone marrow mononuclear neutrophils, lactoferrin was present in cytoplasmic granules of somewhat larger size than lactoferrin-positive granules of polymorphonuclear leucocytes. A morphometrical study showed that the mean size of lactoferrin-positive granules was significantly greater in immature bone marrow cells than in polymorphonuclear leucocytes. This indicates that lactoferrin-positive granules decrease in size as the cells mature. Besides cytoplasmic granules, lactoferrin was demonstrated in the Golgi complex and a part of the rough endoplasmic reticulum of immature bone marrow neutrophils, probably myelocytes and early metamyelocytes. These results show that lactoferrin is synthesized and packed into secondary granules in immature bone marrow neutrophils and therefore that the secondary granules are a type of secretory granule.     

Interleukin-6 triggers the association of its receptor with a possible signal transducer, gp130

Interleukin-6 mediates pleiotropic functions in various types of cells through its specific receptor (IL-6-R), the cDNA of which has already been cloned. We report here that an 80 kd single polypeptide chain (IL-6-R) is involved in IL-6 binding and that IL-6 triggers the association of this receptor with a non-ligand-binding membrane glycoprotein, gp130. The association takes place at 37 degrees C within 5 min and is stable for at least 40 min in the presence of IL-6, but does not occur at 0 degree C. Human IL-6-R can associate with a murine gp130 homolog and is functional in murine cells. Mutant IL-6-R lacking the intracytoplasmic portion is functional, suggesting that the two polypeptide chains interact to involve their extracellular portion. In fact, a soluble IL-6-R lacking the transmembrane and intracytoplasmic domains can associate with gp130 in the presence of IL-6 and mediate its function. These findings indicate that the complex of IL-6 and IL-6-R can interact with a non-ligand-binding membrane glycoprotein, gp130, extracellularly and can provide the IL-6 signal.     

Two distinct O-methyltransferases in aflatoxin biosynthesis

The substances belonging to the sterigmatocystin group bear a close structural relationship to aflatoxins. When demethylsterigmatocystin (DMST) was fed to Aspergillus parasiticus NIAH-26, which endogenously produces neither aflatoxins nor precursors in YES medium, aflatoxins B1 and G1 were produced. When dihydrodemethylsterigmatocystin (DHDMST) was fed to this mutant, aflatoxins B2 and G2 were produced. Results of the cell-free experiment with S-adenosyl-[methyl-3H]methionine showed that first the C-6-OH groups of DMST and DHDMST are methylated to produce sterigmatocystin and dihydrosterigmatocystin (O-methyltransferase I) and then the C-7-OH groups are methylated to produce O-methylsterigmatocystin (OMST) and dihydro-O-methylsterigmatocystin (DHOMST) (O-methyltransferase II). However, no methyltransferase activity was observed when either OMST, DHOMST, 5,6-dimethoxysterigmatocystin, 5-methoxysterigmatocystin, or sterigmatin was incubated with the cell extract. Treatment of the cell extract with N-ethylmaleimide inhibited O-methyltransferase I activity but not that of O-methyltransferase II. Furthermore, these O-methyltransferases were different in their protein molecules and were involved in both the reactions from DMST to OMST and DHDMST to DHOMST. The reactions described in this paper were not observed when the same mold had been cultured in YEP medium.     

Tridimensional analysis of the formation of secretory vesicles in the Golgi apparatus of absorptive columnar cells of the mouse colon

The tridimensional structure of the Golgi apparatus has been studied in the absorptive cells of the mouse colon by means of reduced osmium postfixation and phosphatase cytochemistry. In thick sections of tissue impregnated with osmium tetroxide or treated with a technique to demonstrate TPPase activity, the Golgi formed a continuous ribbon-like structure capping the upper pole of the nucleus. Along the longitudinal axis of this ribbon, compact zones made up of superposed flattened saccules alternated with less compact zones which consisted of highly perforated saccules or bridging anastomosed tubules. In the cis-trans axis, the following elements were observed: (1) a cis element consisting of a continuous osmiophilic tubular network; (2) two or three subjacent elements selectively perforated by wells; (3) a trans compartment made up of two or three TPPase-reactive sacculotubular elements, some showing a "peeling-off" configuration. In some regions, the first flattened saccule of this trans compartment displayed discrete ovoid dilatations, located in compact zones and containing a dense granulofibrillar material; in the subjacent elements this material was seen concentrated in nodular swellings, at the intersection of the meshes of anastomosed membranous tubules. 100-300 nm vesicles containing a similar dense granulofilamentous material were observed in the trans Golgi zone and interspersed in the supranuclear cytoplasm between the Golgi zone and the apical surface of the cell. Smaller vesicles 80-100 nm in diameter containing a fine dusty material were also seen in proximity. These morphological observations suggested that at least two kinds of material were segregated in the saccules of the trans compartment and packaged in vesicles of two class sizes that detached from the Golgi stack on its trans aspect.