Effects of organophosphorus insecticide phosphomidon on antioxidant defence components of human erythrocyte and plasma.

Effect of organophosphorus insecticide, phosphomidon (250 and 500 ppm) on human erythrocyte and plasma were studied in vitro to get insight into the cellular antioxidant defence mechanism and malondialdehyde formation. The antioxidant defence system of erythrocyte was altered as evident by depression of glutathione reductase, glucose 6 phosphate dehydrogenase, whereas the level of reduced glutathione, glutathione peroxidase, glutathione-S-transferase, superoxidedismutase and catalase were stimulated. In the case of plasma fraction, glutathione reductase, glutathione peroxidase, glutathione-s-transferase, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, superoxide dismutase and levels of reduced glutathione were significantly depressed and the malondialdehyde formation and catalase activity were elevated indicating the less adaptive response of plasma to protect it from oxidative damage.     

Evidence for autophosphorylation of hyaluronate binding protein and its enhanced phosphorylation in rat histiocytoma.

This report documents for the first time the in vitro autophosphorylation of purified 68 kDa hyaluronate binding protein in presence of [32P] ATP. The rate of phosphorylation is proportional to the concentration of protein and to the time of incubation up to 5 min. By both phosphoamino acid and western blot analysis with antiphosphotyrosine antibodies, we have confirmed that the phosphorylation occurs at tyrosine residues. Immunoprecipitation with anti HA binding protein antibody shows a 5 fold increase in the phosphorylation in macrophage histiocytoma compared to normal macrophage. Supplementing hyaluronate with hyaluronate binding protein in the medium is further shown to enhance total protein phosphorylation in rat histiocytoma.     

The HPLC profile of proteins of thermoprotection-acquired wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) seedlings

A pre-treatment of 40 °Cprovided thermoprotection to wheat seedlings against 43 °C, which was otherwise a lethal temperature. Due to temperature pretreatment, the rate of protein synthesis at 45 °C increased in both plumules and radicles. The HPLC profile of plumule and radicle proteins of thermoprotection-acquired seedlings was different from the plumules and radicles of non-treated seedlings.     

Reaction of selenomethionine with o-benzoquinone

A new reaction of selenomethionine with o-benzoquinone is described. This reaction can be used to distinguish between methionine and selenomethionine.     

Immunosuppressive factors from human breast carcinoma cell lines that affect initiation of lymphocyte proliferation

Summary Supernatants from two human breast carcinoma cell lines, 734B and 231, have been shown to inhibit lymphocyte activation by mitogens and antigens. This inhibition appears to be specific for lymphocytes or recently stimulated cells, while having no effect on the growth of established cell lines. Studies of the mechanism of inhibition revealed that the factors inhibit lymphocyte activation and that the factors must be present at the initiation of lymphocyte stimulation for inhibition to occur. The supernatants do not inhibit lymphocyte activation by blocking binding of PHA to lymphocytes. Preliminary purification steps have shown that the inhibitory factors present in the tissue culture supernatants are precipitated at 50% ammonium sulfate saturation and their molecular weights are greater than 100 000. The inhibitory capacity of the 734B supernatants was destroyed by heating at 70° C, while the factors present in the 231 supernatants were only partially destroyed by heating to 90° C. The possible mechanism of action of the inhibitory substances released by tumors and their relevance to tumor growth are important to understanding of immune responses to neoplasia.     

Equilibria of the anomeric and ring forms of ammonium 3-deoxy-d-manno-octulosonate in deuterium oxide

The tautomeric composition of a solution of ammonium 3-deoxy-d-manno-octulosonate (KDO, 1a) in D₂O at 28° was assessed by means of ¹³ C-F.t.-n.m.r. spectroscopy. The results revealed the presence of 6?0 and 11 % of the α and β anomers of the pyranose, and 20 and 9 % of the two furanoses, and suggested, but did not unequivocally prove, that the major furanose form is the α anomer. To facilitate interpretation of the spectral results for 1, ammonium 3,5-dideoxy-d-arabino(or ribo)-octulosonate (3a) was prepared by the reaction of 5-deoxy-d-erythro-pentose with sodium oxalacetate at pH 11. A chromatographically homogeneous, noncrystalline sample of 3 was obtained by lyophilization, and characterized as its (4-nitrophenyl)hydrazone (m.p. 162-163°). The ¹³C-n.m.r. spectrum of a solution of 3a in D₂O revealed it to be substantially all in the α-pyranose form. No signals were obtained for the possible 1,4-lactone of 3. As the 1,5-lactone and furanose forms are impossible for 3, it exhibited no signals analogous to those attributed to furanoid 1. On the basis of these results for 3, the two lactone forms of 1 were excluded from consideration, and the three pairs of ¹³C-n.m.r. signals observed at ≈45, 86, and 104 p.p.m. were assigned to the furanose forms of 1.     

A comparative cytopathologic study of noninvasive and invasive squamous cell carcinoma of the lung

Atypical cells and tissue fragments from the sputum of patients with early and advanced stages of squamous cell carcinoma of the bronchus are objectively characterized and quantitatively compared in this paper. Four classes of single-cell features of cytoplasm, nucleus, nucleolus and nuclear-cytoplasmic ratio are analyzed as a function of cell size and tumor development stage. Distinct differences in the cellular patterns are observed which may enhance cytologic discrimination between noninvasive and invasive stages of squamous cell carcinoma of the bronchus. Initial results justify the application of more sensitive measurement techniques (i.e., automated cytology) to an enlarged data base.