Study on RNA synthesis in the retina and retinal pigment epithelium of mice by light microscopic radioautography.

With the aim of determining the distribution of the incorporation of 3H-uridine in both retina and retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), the mouse eyes at embryonic day 9.5 (E 9.5), E 12.5, E 14.5, E 16.5, E 18.5 of gestational ages, and postnatal day 1 (P 1), P 3, P 7, P 14 were analyzed by light microscopic radioautography. Small pieces of the ocular tissues were labelled with 3H-uridine in vitro and light microscopic radioautographs were prepared. The average grain numbers per cell of the respective regions of tissues were calculated. In the retina, the grain numbers increased gradually from E 9.5 to P 1 and reached the maximal value at P 1, and then decreased until P 14. However, the grain numbers were more in the vitreal portion than those in the scleral portion at E 16.5 and then became more in the scleral portion from E 18.5 to P 14. It is considered that the ganglion and bipolar cells finish the RNA synthesis earlier, while the photoreceptor cells do it later during the fetal and postnatal development. In the RPE, the grain numbers gradually increased from E 12.5 to P 7 and then decreased until P 14. Considering the same ages, the grain numbers increased in the following order, anterior, equatorial and posterior regions during embryonic stages, but decreased in the same order after birth. Therefore, it is suggested that the activity of RNA synthesis in PE cells is higher in the posterior region than in the anterior region during embryonic stages. But the activity ascends generally and becomes relatively higher in the anterior region, after birth. Comparing the retina and RPE, it was noted that the grain numbers in the RPE were more important than in the retina and that the maximal value was at P 1 in the retina, while it was at P 7 in the RPE. From these results, it can be concluded that the RNA synthesis ceases earlier in the retina than in the RPE.     

Monoclonal antibodies against human alpha-fetoprotein more reactive to cell-surface alpha-fetoprotein than to free alpha-fetoprotein.

This paper describes the finding of monoclonal antibody (MoAb) more reactive to cell-surface alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) than to free AFP by using a simple in vitro system. Twelve mouse MoAbs, ten IgG1, one IgG2a and one IgG2b, against human AFP from hepatocellular carcinoma were obtained by the cell fusion technique. Each hybridoma supernatant was assayed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to solid-phase AFP. The assay results showed that two MoAbs, 67D and 80G, were most reactive to AFP. 80G had a higher affinity constant than 67D, while the both reactions were similarly difficult to inhibit by free AFP in ELISA. 67D and 80G reacted with AFP on the surface of ethanol-fixed cells from the human hepatoma cell line HuH-7 and this reaction was also difficult to inhibit by free AFP in Cell ELISA. Furthermore, Western blot analysis showed that 67D and 80G were more reactive to membrane-bound AFP than other antibodies. These findings first suggest that there could be anti-AFP MoAbs preferably binding to cell-surface AFP rather than to serum AFP.     

The replication origin of proplastid DNA in cultured cells of tobacco

Summary When tobacco suspension culture line BY2 cells in stationary phase are transferred into fresh medium, replication of proplastid DNA proceeds for 24 h in the absence of nuclear DNA replication. Replicative intermediates of the proplastid DNA concentrated by benzoylated, naphthoylated DEAE cellulose chromatography, were radioactively labelled and hybridized to several sets of restriction endonuclease fragments of tobacco chloroplast DNA. The intermediates hybridized preferentially to restriction fragments in the two large inverted repeats. Mapping of D-loops and of restriction fragment lengths by electron microscopy permitted the localization of the replication origin, which was close to the 23S rRNA gene in the inverted repeats. The replication origins in both segments of the inverted repeat in tobacco proplastid DNA were active in vivo.     

Identification of 7 alpha-hydroxy-3-oxo-4-cholestenoic acid in chronic subdural hematoma.

We detected a novel kind of bile acid in the content of chronic subdural hematoma. This substance was specifically found in chronic subdural hematoma, and not in subdural hygroma, which is pathologically similar except for the lack of capsular membrane. The compound was identified as 7 alpha-hydroxy-3-oxo-4-cholestenoic acid by high performance liquid chromatography, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, and nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometry. The structure was confirmed by the comparison with the chemically synthesized compound. The average contents in chronic subdural hematoma were 658.09 +/- 137.53 ng/ml, while those in normal human plasma were 126.27 +/- 17.73 ng/ml. It was not detected in normal cerebrospinal fluid. The higher level in chronic subdural hematoma than human plasma strongly suggests the local, extrahepatic production of this type of C27 bile acids.     

Two species of human CRK cDNA encode proteins with distinct biological activities.

Two distinct human CRK cDNAs, designated CRK-I and CRK-II, were isolated from human embryonic lung cells by polymerase chain reaction and by screening of a human placenta cDNA library, respectively. CRK-I differed from CRK-II in that it lacked a 170-nucleotide sequence, suggesting that CRK-I and CRK-II were the products of alternative splicing. The amino acid sequences deduced from these two cDNAs differed in the carboxyl termini and contained one SH2 and either one or two SH3 domains. RNAse protection analysis demonstrated both CRK-I and CRK-II mRNAs in various human cells. Three CRK proteins, of 42, 40, and 28 kDa, were identified in human embryonic lung cells by means of antibodies against the SH2 region and the SH3 region of the bacterially expressed CRK-I protein. Transient expression of CRK-I and CRK-II cDNAs in COS7 cells showed that the former encoded the 28-kDa protein and the latter encoded the 40- and 42-kDa proteins. All human cell lines so far examined expressed the 40-kDa protein; however, expression of the 28- and the 42-kDa proteins was variable. In a comparison of the biological activity of the two human CRK proteins, both proteins were stably expressed in rat 3Y1 cells. All cell lines expressing CRK-I protein showed altered morphology, proliferated in soft agar, and grew as massive tumors in nude mice. Although CRK-II-expressing cells showed a slight morphologic change, they did not make colonies in soft agar or grow in nude mice. These results demonstrate that the two species of human CRK cDNA encode proteins which differ in their biological activities.     

Activin A increases cytosolic free calcium concentration in rat pituitary somatotropes.

The effect of activin A on the cytosolic free calcium concentration ([Ca2+]i) in normal rat pituitary cells was examined using a calcium sensitive fluorescent dye, indo 1 AM, and a digital imaging fluorescent microscope system. The cells showing an increase in [Ca2+]i in response to activin A were then characterized by comparison with cells responding to growth hormone releasing hormone (GRH), thyrotropin releasing hormone (TRH), corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH), and gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) in monolayer cultures of normal rat pituitary cells. Activin A increased [Ca2+]i in some cells in a mixed population of normal rat pituitary cells. The cells that responded to activin A also responded to GRH. Most of these cells were not affected by other tropic hormones (CRH, TRH, and GnRH), but a few cells responded to both GRH and TRH. None of the activin A-responding cells responded to CRH or GnRH, and none of the CRH- or GnRH-responding cells responded to activin A. In a preparation of somatotropes purified 80-90% by fluorescence-activated cell sorting, activin A increased [Ca2+]i in 30% of the cells that shows a [Ca2+]i-response to GRH. These findings suggest direct involvement of somatotropes in activin A-induced biological events in the rat pituitary gland.     

Expression cloning of a receptor for murine granulocyte colony-stimulating factor

Two cDNAs encoding the receptor for murine granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) were isolated from a CDM8 expression library of mouse myeloid leukemia NFS-60 cells, and their nucleotide sequences were determined. Murine G-CSF receptor expressed in COS cells could bind G-CSF with an affinity and specificity similar to that of the native receptor expressed by mouse NFS-60 cells. The amino acid sequence encoded by the cDNAs has demonstrated that murine G-CSF receptor is an 812 amino acid polypeptide (Mr, 90,814) with a single transmembrane domain. The extracellular domain consists of 601 amino acids with a region of 220 amino acids that shows a remarkable similarity to rat prolactin receptor. The cytoplasmic domain of the G-CSF receptor shows a significant similarity with parts of the cytoplasmic domain of murine interleukin-4 receptor. A 3.7 kb mRNA coding for the G-CSF receptor could be detected in mouse myeloid leukemia NFS-60 and WEHI-3B D+ cells as well as in bone marrow cells.     

Study of RNA synthesis in the livers of aging mice by means of electron microscopic radioautography.

The application of 3H-uridine radioautography results in labeling of the liver cells in which RNA is synthesized at various ages of the mouse. Quantitative changes of RNA synthesis in the hepatocytes of aging mice were studied by electron microscopic radioautography. The silver grains were mainly located in the nucleoli and nuclei and a few in the mitochondria and rough surfaced endoplasmic reticulum of almost all of the cell populations at various ages. The number of silver grains in the hepatocyte gradually increased after birth, reached the maximum at 14 days of postnatal age, then decreased to 24 months with aging. The number of silver grains of the euchromatin was more than those of the heterochromatin of the hepatocyte nuclei at various ages. The number of silver grains of the granular components was more than those of the fibrillar components of the hepatocyte nucleoli at various ages. However, the ratio of silver grains among euchromatin, heterochromatin, granular components and fibrillar components remained approximately constant.     

Production and some properties of monoclonal antibodies against human pancreatic secretory trypsin inhibitor.

Hybridomas that secrete monoclonal antibodies against human pancreatic secretory trypsin inhibitor (PSTI) were established by fusion of spleen cells obtained from mice immunized with PSTI with mouse NS-I-Ag 4/1 myeloma cells. One of three resulting monoclonal antibodies (KN-1) was found to recognize the N-terminal moiety of the inhibitor, while the others (KN-2 and KN-3) reacted with other as yet undefined parts of the molecule. Trypsin inhibitory activity of PSTI treated with KN-1 monoclonal antibody was the same as that of PSTI itself, thus indicating no relationship between the N-terminal moiety of the PSTI molecule and its inhibitory activity. We further examined the applicability of one of the monoclonal antibodies (KN-1) for immunohistochemical study of human pancreatic cancer tissue including the normal as a model, and found granular staining of the cytoplasm of the normal acinar and duct cells and also of that of adenocarcinoma cells in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue sections.