Analysis of human V H gene repertoire expression in peripheral CD19+ B cells

Using CD19 B-cell selection and polymerase chain reaction-amplified cDNA libraries, we analyzed the peripheral immunoglobulin heavy chain variable repertoire of three healthy adult donors. Here we report that most of the CD19+ circulating B cells expressed unmutated V _H-D-J_H rearrangements. By specific V _H family hybridization, we show that V _H gene family utilization in the periphery roughly corresponds to the complexity of these families in the germline and appears to be relatively constant among the analyzed subjects. However, sequence data of clones picked at random from one IgM cDNA library reveals that in spite of this random utilization, the V _H gene expression in naive circulating B cells is highly biased towards the expression of a limited set of V _H genes. As previously reported by others, this restricted mechanism is also found for the D and J _H segments.The nucleotide sequence data reported in this paper have been submitted to the GenBank/EMBL nucleotide sequence database and have been assigned the accession numbers Z47213-Z47243 and Z47349     

Modeling of adaptations to physical training by using a recursive least squares algorithm

Busso, Thierry, Christian Denis, Régis Bonnefoy,André Geyssant, and Jean-René Lacour. Modeling ofadaptations to physical training by using a recursive least squaresalgorithm. J. Appl. Physiol. 82(5):1685-1693, 1997.The present study assesses the usefulnessof a systems model with time-varying parameters for describing theresponses of physical performance to training. Data for two subjectswho undertook a 14-wk training on a cycle ergometer were used to testthe proposed model, and the results were compared with a model withtime-invariant parameters. Two 4-wk periods of intensive training wereseparated by a 2-wk period of reduced training and followed by a 4-wkperiod of reduced training. The systems input ascribed to the trainingdoses was made up of interval exercises and computed in arbitraryunits. The systems output was evaluated one to five times per week byusing the endurance time at a constant workload. The time-invariantparameters were fitted from actual performances by using the leastsquares method. The time-varying parameters were fitted by using arecursive least squares algorithm. The coefficients of determinationr² were 0.875 and0.879 for the two subjects using the time-varying model, higher thanthe values of 0.682 and 0.666, respectively, obtained with thetime-invariant model. The variations over time in the model parametersresulting from the expected reduction in the residuals appearedgenerally to account for changes in responses to training. Such a modelwould be useful for investigating the underlying mechanisms ofadaptation and fatigue.

     

The activity of one soluble component of the cell-free NADPH:O2 oxidoreductase of human neutrophils depends on guanosine 5'-O-(3-thio)triphosphate

Neutrophil NADPH:O2 oxidoreductase activity, essential in the killing of bacteria by neutrophils, can be elicited in a cell-free system that requires plasma membranes, cytosol and sodium dodecyl sulfate. In addition, GTP or its nonhydrolyzable analog guanosine 5'-3-O-(thio)triphosphate (GTP gamma S) enhances NADPH oxidase activity. We investigated the mechanism of this effect of GTP gamma S in the cell-free system. Cytosol from human neutrophils was separated in three different soluble oxidase components (SOC I, SOC II, and SOC III). Previously we (Bolscher, B. G. J. M., Van Zwieten, R., Kramer, I. J. M., Weening, R. S., Verhoeven, A. J., and Roos, D. (1989) J. Clin. Invest. 83, 757-763) reported that the cytosol contains two components which act synergistically. We now report that one component (previously labeled SOC II) contains two different components that can be separated by ion exchange chromatography. Immunoblotting with antiserum B-1 (Volpp, B. D., Nauseef, W. M., and Clark, R. A. (1988) Science 242, 1295-1297), directed against a cytosolic complex capable of activating latent membranes in the cell-free system, showed a 47-kDa protein in SOC II and a 67-kDa protein in SOC III. SOC II also contains the 47-kDa phosphoprotein, which indicates that this phosphoprotein and the protein recognized by the antiserum are identical. Low rates of NADPH-dependent O2 consumption can be elicited by SOC II and SOC III in the absence of SOC I. This activity is independent of GTP gamma S. Addition of SOC I increases this activity 3-4-fold, only when GTP gamma S is present. Plasma membranes, incubated with SOC I plus GTP gamma S and re-isolated, showed a similar 3-4-fold enhanced O2 consumption with SOC II and SOC III. The GTP gamma S effect is exerted primarily at the level of the plasma membrane. The concentration of GTP gamma S that causes a half-maximal stimulation was 0.4 mu M. It is concluded that SOC I is a functional component of the NADPH oxidase.     

BCG-induced granulomatous pulmonary inflammation and splenomegaly in mice: A T-cell-dependent response

When C57BL/6 mice were injected iv with BCG in an oil-in-saline emulsion, they developed intense pulmonary granulomatous inflammation (PGI) and splenomegaly as well as chemotactic activity for macrophages and angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) in their lung fluids. PGI, splenomegaly, and levels of chemotactic activity and ACE were markedly reduced in T-cell-deficient “B” mice. The capacity to develop PGI was fully restored and splenomegaly was partially restored in “B” mice by the provision of syngeneic thymocytes, spleen cells, or purified T cells. These results indicate that the full expression of BCG-induced PGI is dependent upon thymus-derived cells and is associated with high levels of chemotactic activity for macrophages and ACE in the lung lavage fluid. Although BCG-induced splenomegaly appears to be T cell dependent, it did not reach its full magnitude in reconstituted “B” mice.     

Chronic Hepatitis Associated with Drug Abuse: Significance of Hepatitis B Virus

One hundred and seventy-seven former heroin addicts, consisting of 85 who were newly admitted to a methadone maintenance program and 92 who had received methadone for a mean period of 30 months, were prospectively studied for up to 2 years in order to determine: (1) the effect of heroin withdrawal on the hepatic abnormalities, and (2) the incidence of HBsAg, anti-HBs, and anti-HCc as indices of the frequency of hepatitis B virus infection. Our study indicates that (1) hepatic abnormalities persist when heroin is discontinued and are not temporally related to drug and/or needle usage, and (2) that 71% of subjects had either HBsAg or anti-HBs; anti-HBc was tested for in 16 patients and was present in 100%, although 9 of the 16 were both HBsAg- and anti-HBs-negative. This study suggests that hepatitis B is largely responsible for the liver dysfunction. It is proposed that an abnormality in immune function, induced by heroin, is responsible for the high incidence of chronic hepatitis. Attention is drawn to the similarity between former drug addicts and hemophiliacs, since both develop chronic hepatitis in spite of anti-HBs in the serum.     

The influence of the type of contraction on the masseter muscle EMG power spectrum

Different behaviours of the EMG power spectrum across increasing force levels have been reported for the masseter muscle. A factor that could explain these different behaviours may be the type of contraction used, as was recently shown for certain upper limb muscles⁵. The purpose of this study was to compare, between two types of isometric contractions, the behaviour of EMG power spectrum statistics (median frequency (MF) and mean power frequency (MPF)) obtained across increasing force levels. Ten women exerted, while biting in the intercuspal position, three 5 s ramp contractions that increased linearly from 0 to 100% of the maximal voluntary contraction (MVC). They also completed three step contractions (constant EMG amplitude) at each of the following levels: 20, 40, 60 and 80% MVC. EMG signals from the masseter muscle were recorded with miniature surface electrodes. The RMS, as well as the MPF and MF of the power spectrum were calculated at 20, 40, 60 and 80% MVC for each type of contraction. As expected, the RMS values showed similar increases with increasing levels of effort for both types of contractions. Different behaviours for both MPF (contraction^*force interaction, ANOVA, P<0.05) and MF (contraction^*force interaction, ANOVA, P>0.05) across increasing levels of effort were found between the two types of contraction. The use of step contractions gave rise to a decrease of both MPF and MF with increasing force, while the use of ramp contractions gave rise to an increase in both statistics up to at least 40% MVC followed by a decrease at higher force levels. These findings suggest that the type of contraction used does influence the behaviour of the spectral statistics across increasing force levels and that this could explain the differences obtained in previous studies for the masseter muscle.