Gluconeogenesis activation after intravenous angiotensin II in freely moving rats.

Intravenous (IV) administration of angiotensin II (0.95 nmol/100 g body weight) produced a marked increase in plasma glucose of 20 h fasted rats. To investigate the possibility of a stimulation of gluconeogenesis, conscious unrestrained rats were continuously infused with [14C]bicarbonate, 60 microl/min (0.18 microCi/min), and label incorporation into circulating glucose was determined before and after angiotensin injection. The rate of 14C incorporation into blood glucose of fed rats increased significantly after angiotensin II administration, a 279% increase after 20 min (P < 0.01). In conclusion, the results of the present study show that the hyperglycemia induced by intravenous (IV) administration of angiotensin II is accompanied by an activation of gluconeogenesis, as evidenced by a rapid and marked increase in the rate of 14CO2 incorporation into circulating glucose.     

Identification of monoclonal antibody defined epitopes on human leukocyte antigens utilizing phage display peptide libraries

Summary Utilizing phage display peptide libraries, we have identified and mapped the antigenic determinants recognized by mouse monoclonal antibodies (mAb) on two sets of immunologically important molecules, HLA class I and class II antigens. Anti-HLA class I mAb TP25.99 recognizes a conformational and a linear determinant on distinct regions of the HLA class I α3 domain. Anti-HLA class I mAb HO-4 recognizes a conformational determinant on the α2 domain of HLA-A2 and A28 allospecificities. Anti-HLA-DR1,-DR4,-DR6,-DR8,-DR9 mAb SM/549 recognizes a conformational determinant on the β chain of HLA class II antigens. These results indicate the versatility of phage display peptide libraries to characterize antigenic determinants recognized by anti-HLA mAb.     

Synthesis, in vitro, and in vivo biological evaluation and molecular docking simulations of chiral alcohol and ether derivatives of the 1,5-diarylpyrrole scaffold as novel anti-inflammatory and analgesic agents

Following our previous research on anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), we report here the synthesis of chiral 1,5-diarylpyrroles derivatives that were characterized for their in vitro inhibitory effects toward cyclooxygenase (COX) isozymes. Analysis of enzymatic affinity and COX-2 selectivity led us to the selection of one compound (+/-)-10b that was further tested in vitro in the human whole blood (HWB) and in vivo for its anti-inflammatory activity in mice. The affinity data have been rationalized through docking simulations.     

HPLC enantioseparation and absolute configuration of novel anti-inflammatory pyrrole derivatives

The assignment of the absolute configuration of novel anti-inflammatory pyrrole derivatives has been accomplished by a combined strategy based on independent physical methods. The key step of our stereochemical characterization approach is the production at mg-scale of enantiomerically pure forms by HPLC on Chiralpak IA stationary phase.     

Rep-PCR of tropical rhizobia for strain fingerprinting, biodiversity appraisal and as a taxonomic and phylogenetic tool

With more than 30 million doses of rhizobial inoculants marketed per year, it is probable that Brazilian agriculture benefits more than any other country from symbiotic N₂ fixation. As a result of strain-selection programs, 142 strains of rhizobia are officially recommended for use in commercial inoculants for ninety-six leguminous crops. In this study, sixty-eight of these elite strains were characterized by rep-PCR with the BOX-primer. Reproducibility of the DNA profiles was confirmed, suggesting efficacy of BOX-PCR both for control of quality of inoculants and for preliminary characterization of rhizobial culture collections. Strains of different species never showed similarity higher than 70% in the BOX-PCR analysis, however, some strains of the same species fit into more than one cluster, and correlation between BOX-PCR products and l6S rRNA sequences was low (7.6%). On the other hand, a polyphasic approach — 20%∶80% of BOX-PCR:16S rRNA which correlated well with the l6S rRNA analysis (95%), and provided higher definition of the genotypes, resulting in clearer indications of the taxonomic groups — might expedite rhizobial diversity studies.