Direct cross-linking of heptauridilate to E. coli ribosomes by water-soluble carbodiimide in the complex stabilized by codon-anticodon interaction at both A- and P-sites

Affinity labelling of E. coli ribosomes is performed by treatment with water-soluble carbodiimide of the complex of ribosomes with (pU)7, tRNAPhe at the P-site and with Phe-tRNAPhe (complex I) and without Phe-tRNAPhe (complex II) at the A-site. The extent of modification is, respectively, 0.06 and 0.026 mol (pU)7 per mol ribosomes. Protein S3 is found as a single labelled protein in complex I, whereas S7, S8, L25 are modified in complex II. Thus, in the absence of a large spacer group within the complex stabilized by codon-anticodon interactions at both A- and P-sites, a highly selective modification occurs.     

Phase II protocol for the evaluation of new treatments in patients with advanced gastric carcinoma: results of ECOG 5282

The study was a Phase II randomized study to evaluate the efficacy of new agents for the treatment of advanced gastric carcinoma. Patients were randomized to receive single agent chemotherapy with mitoxantrone, etoposide, aclacinomycin-A or spirogermanium. The patients were stratified by prior use of chemotherapy, prior doxorubicin use and ECOG performance status. Patients with a history of cardiac disease or prior doxorubicin exceeding a dose of 400 mg/m² were restrictively randomized to sopirogermanium or etoposide only. One hundred and fourteen patients were registered for the study. Among 98 evaluable patients there were only two partial responses (both in the etoposide arm), and one complete response in the mitoxantrone arm. The median survival on the study was 3.3 months. One hundred and six patients were analyzable for toxicity. There were four treatment-related deaths and four life-threatening toxicities. Because of low response rates and relatively high toxicities the studied compounds were not deemed worth further investigation for advanced gastric cancer.     

Mediators and biomarkers of inflammation in meningitis: Cytokine and peptidome profiling of cerebrospinal fluid

Differential diagnosis of bacterial and viral meningitis is an urgent problem of the modern clinical medicine. Early and accurate detection of meningitis etiology largely determines the strategy of its treatment and significantly increases the likelihood of a favorable outcome for the patient. In the present work, we analyzed the peptidome and cytokine profiles of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of 17 patients with meningitis of bacterial and viral etiology and of 20 neurologically healthy controls. In addition to the identified peptides (potential biomarkers), we found significant differences in the cytokine status of the CSF of the patients. We found that cut-off of 100 pg/ml of IL-1β, TNF, and GM-CSF levels discriminates bacterial and viral meningitis with 100% specificity and selectivity. We demonstrated for the first time the reduction in the level of two cytokines, IL-13 and GM-CSF, in the CSF of patients with viral meningitis in comparison with the controls. The decrease in GM-CSF level in the CSF of patients with viral meningitis can be explained by a disproportionate increase in the levels of cytokines IL-10, IFN-γ, and IL-4, which inhibit the GM-CSF expression, whereas IL-1, IL-6, and TNF activate it. These observations suggest an additional approach for differential diagnosis of bacterial and viral meningitis based on the normalized ratio IL-10/IL-1β and IL-10/TNF > 1, as well as on the ratio IFN-γ/IL-1β and IFN-γ/ TNF < 0.1. Our findings extend the panel of promising clinical and diagnostic biomarkers of viral and bacterial meningitis and reveal opposite changes in the cytokine expression in meningitis due to compensatory action of proand antiinflammatory factors.     

Penetrating Cations Enhance Uncoupling Activity of Anionic Protonophores in Mitochondria

Protonophorous uncouplers causing a partial decrease in mitochondrial membrane potential are promising candidates for therapeutic applications. Here we showed that hydrophobic penetrating cations specifically targeted to mitochondria in a membrane potential-driven fashion increased proton-translocating activity of the anionic uncouplers 2,4-dinitrophenol (DNP) and carbonylcyanide-p-trifluorophenylhydrazone (FCCP). In planar bilayer lipid membranes (BLM) separating two compartments with different pH values, DNP-mediated diffusion potential of H⁺ ions was enhanced in the presence of dodecyltriphenylphosphonium cation (C₁₂TPP). The mitochondria-targeted penetrating cations strongly increased DNP- and carbonylcyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone (CCCP)-mediated steady-state current through BLM when a transmembrane electrical potential difference was applied. Carboxyfluorescein efflux from liposomes initiated by the plastoquinone-containing penetrating cation SkQ1 was inhibited by both DNP and FCCP. Formation of complexes between the cation and CCCP was observed spectophotometrically. In contrast to the less hydrophobic tetraphenylphosphonium cation (TPP), SkQ1 and C₁₂TPP promoted the uncoupling action of DNP and FCCP on isolated mitochondria. C₁₂TPP and FCCP exhibited a synergistic effect decreasing the membrane potential of mitochondria in yeast cells. The stimulating action of penetrating cations on the protonophore-mediated uncoupling is assumed to be useful for medical applications of low (non-toxic) concentrations of protonophores.     

Antiviral Activity of Antisense Oligonucleotides Against Various Targets of Herpes Simplex Virus 1 (Hsv1) and Coxsackievirus B3 (Cvb3) Genome

Abstract

The influence of chemical modification on the antiviral activity of oligonucleotides was studied on Green monkey kidney cells (GMK) using a known antisense oligodeoxynucleotide (AS-ODN) directed against the IE-110 gene of HSVl. The highest antiviral activity was observed with ODNs carrying exclusively phosphothioate internucleotide linkages. CVB3-specific ODNs of this type were synthesized and successfully tested for antiviral activity on HeLa cells.     

Intraduplex Photo-cross-linking of p-Azidoaniline Residue and Amino Acid Side Chains Linked to the Complementary Oligonucleotides via a New Phosphorylating Intermediate Formed in the Mukaiyama System

Abstract

Oligonucleotide derivatives carrying a side chain of either lysine or histidine at the 3′-end and their complementary oligonucleotides having photoreactive groups a p-azidophenyl-NH(CH2)_nNH- (n = 4, 6) residue at the 5′-end were prepared by using new phosphorylating species formed by treatment of oligonucleotides with Ph3P and (PyS)₂ or (PyrS)₂. in DMF, DMSO or their mixture. Efficient cross-linking of duplexes occurred under UV-irradiation (λ > 300 nm).