Development and characterization of secretin-stimulated secretion of cultured rat cholangiocytes

We sought to develop a cholangiocyte cell culture system that has preservation of receptors, transporters, and channels involved in secretin-induced secretion. Isolated bile duct fragments, obtained by enzyme perfusion of normal rat liver, were seeded on collagen and maintained in culture up to 18 wk. Cholangiocyte purity was assessed by staining for gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (gamma-GT) and cytokeratin-19 (CK-19). We determined gene expression for secretin receptor (SR), cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator, Cl(-)/HCO(3)(-) exchanger, secretin-stimulated cAMP synthesis, Cl(-)/HCO(3) exchanger activity, secretin-stimulated Cl(-) efflux, and apical membrane-directed secretion in polarized cells grown on tissue culture inserts. Cultured cholangiocytes were all gamma-GT and CK-19 positive. The cells expressed SR and Cl(-)/HCO(3)(-) exchanger, and secretin-stimulated cAMP synthesis, Cl(-)/HCO(3)(-) exchanger activity, and Cl(-) efflux were similar to freshly isolated cholangiocytes. Forskolin (10(-4) M) induced fluid accumulation in the apical chamber of tissue culture inserts. In conclusion, we have developed a novel cholangiocyte line that has persistent HCO(3)(-), Cl(-), and fluid transport functions. This cell system should be useful to investigators who study cholangiocyte secretion.     

N-benzhydryl-glycolamide: the first protecting group in peptide synthesis with a strong conformational bias

We have synthesized and examined the preferred conformation of a set of N-benzhydryl-glycolamide esters from N(alpha)-protected (or N(alpha)-blocked) alpha-amino acids. Experiments were performed in CDCl(3) solution by Fourier transform infrared absorption and (1)H-NMR techniques, and in the crystalline state by x-ray diffraction. The results of our analysis strongly support the view that this type of N(alpha)-acylated alpha-aminoacyl esters has a marked tendency to fold into a beta-turn conformation, the nature of which is dictated by the structural propensity of the amino acid constituent at the i+1 position.     

Conformational constraints of tyrosine in protein tyrosine kinase substrates: Information about preferred bioactive side-chain orientation

The side-chain orientation of a tyrosine residue located in a peptide, which is an excellent substrate of Syk tyrosine kinase (A. M. Brunati, A. Donella-Deana, M. Ruzzene, O. Marin, L. A. Pinna, FEBS Letters, 1995, Vol. 367, pp. 149-152), was fixed in the gauche (+) or gauche (-) conformation by using the 7-hydroxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydro isoquinoline-3-carboxylic (Htc) structure. The tyrosine trans conformation was blocked by using an aminobenzazepine-type (Hba) structure. The proposed side-chain orientations were confirmed by the analysis of the (1)H-NMR parameters: chemical shifts, coupling constants, and nuclear Overhauser effects to the tyrosine constraints in the different analogs. This "rotamer scan" of the phosphorylatable residue allowed us to generate optimal substrates in terms of both phosphorylation efficiency and selectivity for Syk tyrosine kinase. In contrast, these conformationally restricted tyrosine analogs were not tolerated by the Src-related tyrosine kinases Lyn and c-Fgr.     

Molecular dynamics investigations of the polysaccharide scleroglucan: first study on the triple helix structure

Explicit solvent molecular dynamics (MD) simulations on the triple helix of the polysaccharide Scleroglucan (Sclg) at two temperatures (273 and 300 K) were carried out. Owing to the complexity of the system, a united-atom force field, based on the properly modified GROMACS parameters, was adopted. To test these parameters for our system, MD simulations of the two disaccharidic units, representing the main chain and the side-chain linkages of the Sclg repeating unit, were performed and the results were compared with the literature data. The simulated triple helix of Sclg retained the main experimentally determined features of the polymer. The residence times of the solvent molecules at 273 and 300 K were analyzed. The results show that the more internal water molecules, interacting with the core of the Sclg triplex are not influenced substantially by changing the temperature, on the contrary the water molecules, interacting with the side-chain glucose residues show more significant differences. These data suggest that the more external water molecules, interacting with the side chain, play a major role in the conformational transition experimentally observed at low temperature.     

Function of the hepatic melanogenesis in the newt, Triturus carnifex

Like the majority of lower vertebrates, the newt Triturus carnifex holds varying quantities of melanin and hemosiderin in the Kupffer cells of the liver. Following hypoxic treatment, the amount of these two pigments can increase to such an extent that they can occupy nearly a quarter of the surface of histological sections. A group of six specimens, anesthetised with chlorbutol, were subjected to hypoxic treatment by keeping them in a respiratory chamber containing degassed water under vacuum, with only 1.1 ppm of residual oxygen, until they had consumed the oxygen completely (4 hours, at a temperature of 18 degrees C). Using hematological and histochemical techniques and computerised image analysis, it has been shown that hypoxic animals not only increase the extent of the melanic areas of the liver from about 5-7% to almost 24% compared to control groups kept under two different respiratory conditions (6 anesthetised specimens exposed to the air and 6 submerged in normoxic water), they also went through a remarkable hemolytic process to justify a parallel increase in hemosiderin deposits. Melanin was extracted from the liver by keeping fragments of the organ for one hour at 37 degrees C in an oxidising solution (20 mL of benzyl alcohol, 10 mL of acetone, 5 mL of 10% hydrogen peroxide, and 4 drops of concentrated ammonia solution), then quickly rinsing them in 50% acetone and subsequently letting them stand for 6 hours in 10 mL of distilled water alkalised to pH 12 with a drop of ammonia solution. The extract was then left to sediment at pH 2.5 and the black precipitate washed and dried under vacuum. Elemental and spectrophotometric analyses revealed a significant presence of purines in the melanic pigment. This phenomenon can be explained by the animals' need under hypoxic crisis to rapidly neutralise purines resulting from lysis of the nucleated red blood cells by introducing them into an inert molecular complex. A partial model of structure is proposed here. Synthesis of the mixed polymer is possible through the well-known capacity of ferrous iron to activate tyrosinase (the enzyme responsible for melanogenesis) even in the absence of DOPA.     

Cationic polyelectrolyte hydrogel fosters fibroblast spreading, proliferation, and extracellular matrix production: Implications for tissue engineering

Fibrous encapsulation is known to occur to many prosthetic implants and is thought to be due to the cells not adhering adequately to the surface. For developing new materials able to enhance cellular adhesion by mimicking extracellular matrix components, polyelectrolyte polymers, characterized by tunable surface charges, have been proposed. Here we demonstrate that panoply of cell functions over a two-dimensional substratum is influenced by surface charge. We have at first generated structurally related polyelectrolyte substrata varying in their positive surface charge amount and subsequently evaluated a variety of behaviors of human primary fibroblasts seeded on these polymers. The proportion of adherent, spreading, and proliferating cells was increased significantly on cationic hydrophilic surfaces when compared with the neutral base surface. The extent of cell spreading correlated with cytoskeleton organization as assessed using immunofluorescence techniques. In the key experiment, the presence of cationic charges on cell adhesion-resistant neutral surface increased the synthesis of collagen I and III, the release of their metabolites, and the expression of their mRNA by fibroblasts. Interestingly, the scarce collagen deposits on neutral polymer consisted, for the most part, of collagen I while collagen III was present only in traces probably due to the secretion of metalloproteinase-2 by non-adherent fibroblasts. Taken together, these results show that polyelectrolyte films may promote the attachment of fibroblast cells as well as their normal secretory phenotype. Both effects could be potentially useful in integrating soft connective tissue to the implant, decreasing the chance of its fibrous encapsulation.     

Tauroursodeoxycholate inhibits human cholangiocarcinoma growth via Ca2+-, PKC-, and MAPK-dependent pathways

Tauroursodeoxychate (TUDCA) is used for the treatment of cholangiopathies including primary sclerosing cholangitis, which is considered the primary risk factor for cholangiocarcinoma. The effect of TUDCA on cholangiocarcinoma growth is unknown. We evaluated the role of TUDCA in the regulation of growth of the cholangiocarcinoma cell line Mz-ChA-1. TUDCA inhibited the growth of Mz-ChA-1 cells in concentration- and time-dependent manners. TUDCA inhibition of cholangiocarcinoma growth was blocked by BAPTA-AM, an intracellular Ca(2+) concentration ([Ca(2+)](i)) chelator, and H7, a PKC-alpha inhibitor. TUDCA increased [Ca(2+)](i) and membrane translocation of the Ca(2+)-dependent PKC-alpha in Mz-ChA-1 cells. TUDCA inhibited the activity of MAPK, and this inhibitory effect of TUDCA was abrogated by BAPTA-AM and H7. TUDCA did not alter the activity of Raf-1 and B-Raf and the phosphorylation of MAPK p38 and JNK/stress-activated protein kinase. TUDCA inhibits Mz-ChA-1 growth through a signal-transduction pathway involving MAPK p42/44 and PKC-alpha but independent from Raf proteins and MAPK p38 and JNK/stress-activated protein kinases. TUDCA may be important for the treatment of cholangiocarcinoma.     

Influence of sympathetic vascular regulation on heart-rate scaling structure: spinal cord lesion as a model of progressively impaired autonomic control.

Estimation of self-similarity is a promising tool for quantifying alterations in cardiovascular dynamics. To evaluate the as yet unexplored influence of sympathetic vascular regulation on the scaling exponent, namely on the parameter characterizing self-similarity, we studied patients with a spinal cord injury as a model of progressively impaired vascular control. We considered 24 able-bodied subjects (AB) and 23 paraplegics with increasing lesion levels: between T(12) and L(4) (n=7); T(5) and T(11) (n=9); and C(6) and T(4) (n=7). We recorded the heart rate in three conditions characterized by increasing sympathetic activation: supine (SUP), sitting (SIT) and exercise (EXE). We calculated the scaling exponent by detrended fluctuation analysis (H(DFA)). Sympathetic activation had different effects on H(DFA), depending on the lesion level. H(DFA) tended to decrease in AB from SUP (0.85+0.02; mean+SEM) and SIT (0.84+0.02) to EXE (0.79+0.02). It remained constant in the T(12)-L(4) group (0.92+0.04, 0.94+0.05 and 0.94+0.04, respectively), while it increased significantly in the T(5)-T(11) group (0.88+0.07, 0.94+0.05, 1.00+0.08) and increased even more in the C(6)-T(4) group (0.83+0.07, 0.91+0.05, 1.06+0.06). Results suggest that heart-rate self-similarity depends on vascular sympathetic control, because it is altered by spinal-cord lesions, even when cardiac neural control is intact.     

Biological activity of a gallic acid-gelatin conjugate

Goal of the present study was the characterization of the biological properties of a gelatin-gallic acid conjugate (Gel-GA) to evaluate its applicability in biomedicine and pharmacy. The macromolecular conjugate was synthesized by free radical grafting reaction between gelatin and gallic acid (GA) to form a covalent conjugate that was found to retain the antioxidant and enzymatic activities of free GA. In particular, the peroxynitrite scavenging power was found to be consistent with a IC(50) value of 2.17 ± 0.4 mg mL(-1). The enzymatic capacities of GA, which are regarded beneficial for cell functions, are partly retained in the Gel-GA conjugate. In particular, acetylcholinesterase inhibition (IC(50) of 7.1 ± 1.3 mg mL(-1)) implies the conjugate's usefulness in the chemoprevention of Alzheimer's disease, while the inhibition of α-amylase (IC(50) of 9.8 ± 1.1 mg mL(-1)) suggests that the conjugate can be a preferred alternative for inhibition of carbohydrate breakdown and control of glycemic index of food products. Finally, the anticancer activity of Gel-GA was proven in prostate carcinoma and renal cell carcinoma cell lines, confirming the potential of the proposed protein-polyphenol conjugate in medicine.