Temperature influences the expression of fimbriae and flagella in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Hafnia alvei</Emphasis> strains: an immunofluorescence study

Hafnia alvei, a Gram negative bacillus related to the Enterobacteriaceae family, is considered an opportunistic pathogen of several animal species and humans. In this communication, we describe fimbrial-like structures from different strains of H. alvei that cannot be easily ascribed to any of the previously reported fimbrial types in this species (type I or type III). Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and immunofluorescence assays were carried out to study fimbriae and flagella in H. alvei strains isolated from different sources. No correlation between the results obtained by PCR and those obtained by phenotypic methods were found, and the antibodies used gave cross or different recognition patterns of the surface structures present in these strains. We report as well that strain and growth temperature influence fimbriation and expression of flagella in human and animal isolates of H. alvei. This study also indicates that the absence of fimbriae have a significant positive influence on the initial adhesion of H. alvei to human epithelial cells.     

Determination of deuterium-labeled tryptophan in proteins by means of high-performance liquid chromatography and thermospray mass spectrometry

In order to develop direct methods for determining the extent of metabolic incorporation of isotopically labeled amino acids into a protein, the determination of deuterated tryptophan in [2H5]tryptophan-bacteriorhodopsin was investigated. The isotopically modified protein was subjected to alkaline hydrolysis. After phenyl isothiocyanate derivatization of the hydrolysate, the mixture was separated by reversed-phase liquid chromatography. Field desorption mass spectrometry and thermospray mass spectrometry were investigated for their ability to determine the ratio between [2H5]tryptophan and total tryptophan in the collected fractions. In order to check the procedure a set of known tryptophan/[2H5]tryptophan mixtures were passed through the same derivatization, HPLC separation, and lyophilization procedure as used for the biological samples.     

Studies on ulcerative dermal necrosis of salmonids

Fourteen fresh run salmon Satmo salar L. with early extant lesions of ulcerative dermal necrosis (UDN) were kept in separate tanks and treated with zinc free malachite green. Ten of the fish were held at 10° C and 4 at 2° C. The treatment precluded infection with Saprolegnia fungus and allowed natural resolution of the lesions. There was a marked difference in rate of healing between warm and cold water conditions.
Histological examination of healing lesions at different stages showed that there was a primary invasion of cuboidal epithelium over the collagen scar followed by a phase of disorganized proliferation which eventually organized itself into normal epithelium. Melanocytes were very obvious in the dermis of healing lesions.     

Purification of (Ca2+-Mg2+)-ATPase from rat liver plasma membranes

The Ca2+-stimulated, Mg2+-dependent ATPase from rat liver plasma membranes was solubilized using the detergent polyoxyethylene 9 lauryl ether and purified by column chromatography using Polybuffer Exchanger 94, concanavalin A-Sepharose 4B, and Sephadex G-200. The molecular weight of the enzyme, estimated by gel filtration in the presence of the detergent on a Sephadex G-200 column, was 200,000 +/- 15,000. The enzyme was purified at least 300-fold from rat liver plasma membranes and had a specific activity of 19.7 mumol/mg/min. Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis under nondenaturing conditions of the purified enzyme indicated that the enzymatic activity correlated with the major protein band. In sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, one major band in the molecular weight range of 70,000 +/- 5,000 was seen. The isoelectric point of the purified enzyme was 6.9 +/- 0.2 as determined by analytical isoelectric focusing. The enzyme was activated by Ca2+ with an apparent half-saturation constant of 87 +/- 2 nM for Ca2+. Calmodulin and trifluoperazine at the concentration of 1 microgram/ml and 100 microM, respectively, had no effect on the enzymatic activity.     

Cl- transport in apical plasma membrane vesicles isolated from bovine tracheal epithelium

Gradually altered synthetic entities were employed as molecular probes, and arachidonic acid, ADP, human alpha-thrombin and the Ca2+ ionophore A23187 as aggregation-inducing agents, in a comprehensive study on the response profile of human blood platelets with an emphasis on the effects of exogenous and increased intracellular Ca2+. Corroborating further previous conclusions, some representative carbamoylpiperidine derivatives, at concentrations effecting substantial inhibition of ADP-induced aggregation, failed to retain that effect when 5.0 mM Ca2+ was introduced into the otherwise identical test medium; reference compounds chlorpromazine and propranolol registered corresponding inhibitory patterns. At increased concentrations the compounds' inhibitory potency was regenerated even in the presence of 5 mM Ca2+. In fact, in sufficiently high concentrations, the compounds were even capable of inhibiting aggregation elicited by 15 microM of the ionophore A23187; so did chlorpromazine and propranolol. Another set of congeners revealed the striking sensitivity of ionophore A23187-induced human blood platelet aggregation to the surface active potencies of inhibitor molecules. The loss in inhibitory potency was directly related to the lesser hydrophobic character of the molecule.     

Three phenotypes of glucosephosphate isomerase in sheep: improved staining recipe

Contrary to results published recently, we observe three, rather than two, phenotypes for the enzyme glucosephosphate isomerase (EC 5.3.1.9) from sheep. The phenotypic electrophoretic patterns conform to the patterns observed for this dimeric enzyme in other species. Genotype frequencies in a flock of Southdowns do not deviate significantly from those predicted under the assumption of the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. A remarkable observation is that the electrophoretically distinct phenotypes of GPI are largely or entirely obliterated by the addition of 1-10 mmol/l MgCl2 to the electrophoretic buffers. Modification of the usual staining recipe for GPI result in greater resolution and shorter staining times.