Polymorphism of BF,C2, and GLO in Japanese patients with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus: Confirmation of an increase of BF *FT

Summary The distribution of phenotypes controlled by three HLA-linked loci BF, C2, and GLO has been studied in Japanese patients with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM). A slight but significant higher incidence of a rare varian BF ^*FT (=^* F075) in patients was confirmed in the combined data with our previous study (Tokunaga et al. 1981 b). No significant association of C2 and GLO alleles with IDDM was found.     

Generality of the action of various maturation-promoting factors

It has been known in amphibians and starfishes that a cytoplasmic factor called maturation-promoting factor (MPF), produced in maturing oocytes under the influence of the maturation-inducing hormones, can induce germinal vesicle breakdown (GVBD) and the subsequent process of meiotic maturation. The present study revealed that injection of cytoplasm of maturing starfish oocytes (starfish MPF) into immature sea cucumber oocytes brought about maturation of the recipients. Amphibian MPF obtained from mature oocytes of Xenopus laevis or Bufo bufo was found to induce maturation of starfish oocytes following injection. Cytoplasm taken from cleaving starfish blastomeres induced maturation when injected into immature starfish oocytes. The maturation-inducing activity of cytoplasm of starfish blastomeres changed along with the mitotic cell cycle during 1- to 4-cell stages so far tested and reached a peak just before cleaving. Furthermore, an extract of mammalian cultured cells, CHO or V-79, synchronized in M phase, induced GVBD in starfish oocytes following injection, whereas S phase extract had little activity. These facts suggest that MPF generally brings about nuclear membrane breakdown in both meiosis and mitosis, and that the nature of MPF is very similar among vertebrates and invertebrates.     

Determination of the anti-ulcer agent geranylgeranylacetone in serum by gas chromatography—mass spectrometry

A highly specific and sensitive method for the determination of the anti-ulcer drug geranylgeranylacetone (GGA) in human serum is described. The extract from serum with hexane was saponified with potassium hydroxide and subjected to silica gel column chromatography to remove interfering substances. GGA in the partially purified extract was then reacted with O-(2,3,4,5,6-pentafluorobenzyl)hydroxylamine and measured by selected ion monitoring using gas chromatography—mass spectrometry. A low detection limit (1 ng/ml) and high precision were obtained.     

A Study on the Mechanism of Nodding Initiation of the Flower Stalk in a Poppy, Papaver Rhoeas L.

A study was made to find whether the nodding of the flower stalkin a poppy, Papaver Rhoeas L., immediately after its formationwas triggered by the weight of its flower bud or by positivegeoreaction and the following results were obtained.

1. The direction of the nodding was mostly toward the inclinedside of the stalk, which was opposite the leaf, for apical flowerbuds.
2. If the weight of the flower bud at stage 1 was cancelledbyapplying a load equivalent to the bud weight, the noddingofthe stalk was not initiated.
3. The stalk at stages 1 and2 and the upper part of the stalk(bending zone), as comparedwith the basal part, at later stageswere highly deformableaccording to measurements by the bendingmethod.
4. The cellwall of highly deformable stalks was rich in hemicellulosesand that of the basal part was abundant in pectic substances.

From these results, we concluded that the initiation of thenodding in the flower stalk was caused by the weight of theflower bud and positive geotropic reaction was probably notinvolved. (Received December 22, 1980; Accepted January 26, 1981)     

Lysis of growing fissin-yeast cells induced by aculeacin A,a new antifungal antibiotic

Cells of Schizosaccharomyces pombe grown in the presence of aculeacin A, a peptide antibiotic, were lysed resulting the death of cells. Under high osmolarity, the cellular lysis induced by aculeacin A was considerably reduced. The use of synchronous-culture systems distinguished cell elongation from cell division revealed that the sites of aculeacin A-induced lysis on the fission yeast were the end(s) and the cell plate region, corresponded to the regions of the cell wall synthesis. Aculeacin A-resistant survivors exhibited morphological alterations which were swollen at one or both ends of the cell and appeared drumstick or dumbbel like; the wall of the bulge region was observed to be stained with a fluorescent brightener, as well as that of the cell plate region. These effects of aculeacin A are discussed as compared with effects of 2-deoxy-D-glucose.     

Caffeine biosynthesis in Camellia sinensis

The metabolism of adenine and guanine, relating to the biosynthesis of caffeine, in excised shoot tips of tea was studied with micromolar amounts of adenine-[8-¹⁴C] or guanine-[8-¹⁴C]. Among the presumed precursors of caffeine biosynthesis, adenine was the most effective, whereas guanine was the least effective. After administration of a ‘pulse’ of adenine-[8-¹⁴C], almost all of the adenine-[¹⁴C] supplied disappeared by 30 hr, and ¹⁴C-labelled caffeine and RNA purine nucleotide (AMP and GMP) synthesis increased throughout the experimental period, whereas the radioactivities of free purine nucleotides, 7-methylxanthine and theobromine increased during the first 10 hr incubation period, followed by a steady decrease. By contrast, more than 45% of the guanine-[8-¹⁴C] supplied remained unchanged even after a 120 hr period. The main products of guanine-[8-¹⁴C] metabolism in tea shoot tips were guanine nucleotides, theobromine, caffeine and the GMP of RNA. The results support the hypothesis that the purine nucleotides are synthesized from adenine and guanine via the pathway of purine salvage. Adenylate is readily converted into other purine nucleotides, whereas the conversion rate of guanylate into other purine nucleotides is very low.The results also support the view that 7-methylxanthine and theobromine are precursors of caffeine. For the origin of the purine ring in caffeine, purine nucleotides in the nucleotide pool rather than in nucleic acids are suggested.     

A new amine,stizolamine, from Stizolobium hassjoo

A new pyrazine derivative, stizolamine (1-methyl-3-guanidino-6-hydroxymethylpyrazin-2-one), has been isolated from seeds of Stizolobium hassjoo. This amine, which has a blue fluorescence, gives guanidine, N-methyl-alanine, oxalic acid, alanine and glycine on treatment with 6 N HCl. The permanganate oxidation product of stizolamine is 4-amino-6-methylcarbamoyl-1,3,5-triazine-2-carboxylic acid.     

Synthesis of methyl α- and β-maltotriosides and aryl β-maltotriosides

Reaction of β-maltotriose hendecaacetate with phosphorus pentachloride gave 2′,2″,3,3′,3″,4″,6,6′,6″,-nona-O-acetyl-(2)-O-trichloroacetyl-β-maltotriosyl chloride (2) which was isomerized into the corresponding α anomer (8). Selective ammonolysis of 2 and 8 afforded the 2-hydroxy derivatives 3 and 9, respectively; 3 was isomerized into the α anomer 9. Methanolysis of 2 and 3 in the presence of pyridine and silver nitrate and subsequent deacetylation gave methyl α-maltotrioside. Likewise, methanolysis and O-deacetylation of 9 gave methyl β-maltotrioside which was identical with the compound prepared by the Koenigs—Knorr reaction of 2,2′,2″,3,3′,3″,4″,6,6′,6″-deca-O-acetyl-α-maltotriosyl bromide (12) with methanol followed by O-deacetylation. Several substituted phenyl β-glycosides of maltotriose were also obtained by condensation of phenols with 12 in an alkaline medium. Alkaline degradation of the o-chlorophenyl β-glycoside decaacetate readily gave a high yield of 1,6-anhydro-β-maltotriose.     

The effect of alpha2-macroglobulin from bovine serum on bovine alpha-chymotrypsin.

Bovine alpha2-globulin contains a protein which increases the activity of bovine alpha-chymotrypsin against synthetic substrates. The active protein fraction migrates slowly on polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, so it was named slow alpha2-globulin (Salpha2). The fraction was isolated from bovine serum and purified. Its sedimentation constant S20 was 18.5 S. It was thus identified with the alpha2-macroglobulin (alpha2M). By kinetic studies, the dissociation constant of the alpha-chymotrypsin-alpha2 M complex was calculated to be of the order of 10(-7) l/mol. The purified alpha2 M was shown to bind alpha-chymotrypsin at a definite rate. If the binding ratio was assumed to be 1:2, the molecular weight was calculated to be about 8 X 10(5).     

Transformation of Polyoxins D,E, and F with Sodium Bisulfite

Polyoxins D, E, and F which possess 5-carboxyuracil as the nucleobase were reacted selectively with sodium bisulfite at pH 4.0 resulting in facile decarboxylation to afford corresponding 5,6-dihydrouracil-6-sulfonates and uracil type polyoxins (polyoxins L, M, and K) in good yield. The former compounds were also converted to the latter almost quantitatively with mild alkali treatment. Biological activities of the transformed compounds were described.