Gonadotropin-releasing hormone activates a rapid Ca2+-independent phosphodiester hydrolysis of polyphosphoinositides in pituitary gonadotrophs

Addition of gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) to pituitary cells prelabeled with [32P]Pi or with myo-[2-3H]inositol, resulted in a rapid decrease in the level of [32P]phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (approximately 10 s), and in [32P]phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate (approximately 1 min), followed by increased labeling of [32P]phosphatidylinositol and [32P]phosphatidic acid (1 min). GnRH stimulated the appearance of [3H]myo-inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (10 s), [3H]myo-inositol 1,4-bisphosphate (15 s), and [3H]myo-inositol 1-phosphate (1 min) in the presence of Li+ (10 mM). Li+ alone stimulated the accumulation of [3H]myo-inositol 1-phosphate and [3H]myo-inositol 1,4-bisphosphate but not [3H]myo-inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate, but had no effect on luteinizing hormone release. The effect of GnRH on inositol phosphates (Ins-P) production was dose-related (ED50 = 1-5 nM), and was blocked by a potent antagonist [D-pGlu,pClPhe,D-Trp]GnRH. Elevation of cytosolic free Ca2+ levels ([Ca2+]i), by ionomycin and A23187 from intracellular or extracellular Ca2+ pools, respectively, had no significant effect on [3H]Ins-P production. GnRH-induced [3H]Ins-P production was not dependent on extracellular Ca2+ and was noticed also after extracellular or intracellular Ca2+ mobilization by A23187 or ionomycin, respectively. The effect of GnRH on [3H]Ins-P accumulation was not affected by prior treatment of the cells with the tumor promoter phorbol ester 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate or with islet-activating protein pertussis toxin. These results indicate that GnRH stimulates a rapid phosphodiester hydrolysis of polyphosphoinositides. The stimulatory effect is not mediated via an islet-activating protein-substrate, is not dependent on elevation of [Ca2+]i, neither is it negatively regulated by 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate which activates Ca2+/phospholipid-dependent protein C kinase. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that GnRH-induced phosphoinositide turnover is responsible for Ca2+ mobilization followed by gonadotropin release.     

Selective activation of the gamma-subspecies of protein kinase C from bovine cerebellum by arachidonic acid and its lipoxygenase metabolites

The gamma-subspecies of protein kinase C (PKC) apparently is expressed only in central nervous tissues, and at a high level in the cerebellum and hippocampus. gamma-PKC from bovine cerebellum, but not the alpha- or beta I/beta II-subspecies, is activated by micromolar concentrations of arachidonic acid (AA), in the absence of both phospholipid and diacylglycerol. A significant component of this activation is also calcium independent. Other unsaturated fatty acids are much less active in this respect. Among the AA metabolites tested, lipoxin A (5(S),6(R),15(S)-11-cis-isomer) was a potent, selective activator of the gamma-subspecies, and also, to a lesser extent, 12(S)-hydroxy-5,8,10,14-eicosatetraenoic acid could support activation. These results raise the possibility that AA and some of its lipoxygenase metabolites may function as messenger molecules in neurones to activate the gamma-subspecies of PKC.     

Morphological, histochemical and immunohistochemical differences between tumorous and adjacent tissues in chemically induced colon cancer in rats.

Methods of morphological, histochemical and immunohistochemical analyses were used to further characterize differences between tumourous and adjacent grossly normal tissues in chemically-induced colon cancer in rats. Colon tumors were induced by the treatment of rats with 1,2-dimethylhydrazine or with N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine alone or with subsequent treatment with deoxycholic bile acid. Tissues were studied morphologically (for the presence of goblet cells in the colon crypts, and the extent of infiltration of lymphocytes into the crypts and between them), histochemically (for the presence of positive reaction to neutral and acid mucopolysaccharides) and immunohistochemically (for the presence of tissue polypeptide antigen). All data were evaluated quantitatively, and index of tissue damage was calculated for both tumorous and non-tumorous tissues. Significant morphological differences were found between tumorous and adjacent apparently normal tissue. Histochemically and immunohistochemically, both types of tissue reacted very similarly to exposure to the carcinogens. Index of damage was significantly different from normal untreated colon in both kinds of tissue. It was suggested that precancerous state in tissue adjacent-to-tumor could be detected using the combination of these methods.     

The effect of the orientation of stem segments of grapevine (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Vitis vinifera</Emphasis>) cv. Chardonnay on callus development in vitro

Callus induction and formation were successfully achieved using stem segments of grapevine cv. Chardonnay. Nodal stem segments from in vitro plantlets and internodal segments from field-grown plants of grapevine were used. The segments were placed in an inverted and upright position in hormone-free medium or in medium supplemented with 1.1 mg/l naphthalene acetic acid and 0.45 mg/l benzyladenine. Firm, compact callus with pro-meristematic clusters was induced on the inverted segments within 10–20 days, while only small calluses and roots appeared on the upright segments. Vascular cells (xylem and phloem) were differentiated and maintained for more than 2 years in consecutive subcultures. The results show that inverting the position of grapevine stem segments in vitro is a simple method for producing firm callus with pro-meristematic clusters.     

Minimum Incidence of Adult Invasive Pneumococcal Disease in Blantyre,Malawi an Urban African Setting: A Hospital Based Prospective Cohort Study

Invasive pneumococcal disease causes substantial morbidity and mortality in Africa. Evaluating population level indirect impact on adult disease of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) programmes in infants requires baseline population incidence rates but these are often lacking in areas with limited disease surveillance. We used hospital based blood culture and cerebrospinal fluid surveillance to calculate minimal incidence of invasive pneumococcal disease in the adult (≥15 years old) population of Blantyre, a rapidly growing urban centre in southern Malawi, in the period preceding vaccine introduction. Invasive pneumococcal disease incidence in Blantyre district was high, mean 58.1 (95% confidence interval (CI): 53.7, 62.7) per 100,000 person years and peaking among 35 to 40 year olds at 108.8 (95%CI: 89.0, 131.7) mirroring the population age prevalence of HIV infection. For pneumococcal bacteraemia in urban Blantyre, mean incidence was 60.6 (95% CI: 55.2, 66.5) per 100,000 person years, peaking among 35 to 40 year olds at 114.8 (95%CI: 90.3, 143.9). We suspected that our surveillance may under-ascertain the true burden of disease, so we used location data from bacteraemic subjects and projected population estimates to calculate local sub-district incidence, then examined the impact of community level socio-demographic covariates as possible predictors of local sub-district incidence of pneumococcal and non-pneumococcal pathogenic bacteraemia. Geographic heterogeneity in incidence was marked with localised hotspots but ward level covariates apart from prison were not associated with pneumococcal bacteraemia incidence. Modelling suggests that the current sentinel surveillance system under-ascertains the true burden of disease. We outline a number of challenges to surveillance for pneumococcal disease in our low-resource setting. Subsequent surveillance in the vaccine era will have to account for geographic heterogeneity when evaluating population level indirect impact of PCV13 introduction to the childhood immunisation program.     

Temporal pattern of LH secretion: regulation by multiple ultradian oscillators versus a single circadian oscillator

The possibility that the 24h rhythm output is the composite expression of ultradian oscillators of varying periodicities was examined by assessing the effect of external continuously or pulsed (20-minute) Gonadotropinreleasing hormone (GnRH) infusions on in vitro luteinizing hormone (LH) release patterns from female mouse pituitaries during 38h study spans. Applying stepwise analyses (spectral, cosine fit, best-fit curve, and peak detection analyses) revealed the waveform shape of LH release output patterns over time is composed of several ultradian oscillations of different periods. The results further substantiated previous observations indicating the pituitary functions as an autonomous clock. The GnRH oscillator functions as a pulse generator and amplitude regulator, but it is not the oscillator that drives the ultradian LH release rhythms. At different stages of the estrus cycle, the effect of GnRH on the expression of ultradian periodicities varies, resulting in the modification of their amplitudes but not their periods. The functional output from the system of ultradian oscillators may superimpose a “circadian or infradian phenotype” on the observed secretion pattern. An “amplitude control” hypothesis is proposed: The temporal pattern of LH release is governed by several oscillators that function in conjunction with one another and are regulated by an amplitude-controlled mechanism. Simulated models show that such a mechanism results in better adaptive response to environmental requirements than does a single circadian oscillator. (Chronobiology International, 18(3), 399-412, 2001)