Turnover of mammalian phospholipids. Stable and unstable components in neoplastic mast cells

1. Choline- and inositol-labelled phospholipids of exponentially growing or static neoplastic mast cells turn over by degradation and resynthesis of the entire molecule. Turnover follows a biphasic pattern, the unstable rapidly turning-over component accounting for 60–80% of labelled phospholipid. The residual stable component does not turn over any more than does protein or DNA. 2. Subcellular fractions and surface membranes of choline-labelled P815Y cells contain the same proportion of stable and unstable components as do whole cells. The unstable component is largely phosphatidylcholine; the stable component is relatively richer in sphingomyelin. 3. It is concluded that the phospholipids of neoplastic mast cells are of two classes, one of which is susceptible to continual enzymic degradation and resynthesis, and the other of which is metabolically stable.     

Relative ribosomal RNA cistron multiplicity in oocytes and postembryonic stages of the eutelic nematodePanagrellus silusiae

Summary The number of ribosomal RNA cistrons has been measured in the total DNA extracted from L2 juvenile and adult stages of the free-living nematodePanagrellus silusiae. Saturation hybridization studies with homologous rRNA indicate that both stages have about 275 ribosomal genes per haploid equivalent. Using homologous¹²⁵I-labelled rRNA for in situ hybridization, the mean number of silver grains per DNA content for oocyte, hypodermis and gut nuclei was similar. The mean DNA contents of maturing oocyte, hypodermis and gut nuclei are about 20C, 2C, and 10C respectively. We conclude that rDNA amplification alone is insufficient to account for the variation in DNA content of oocytes and that postembryonic development in this eutelic organism occurs without a significant differential increase in the number of ribosomal cistrons per worm.Supported by the National Research Council of Canada     

Discrimination by temperature of opiate agonist and antagonist receptor binding.

Variations in incubation temperature can markedly differentiate opiate receptor binding of agonists and antagonists. In the presence of sodium increasing incubation temperatures from 0° to 30° reduces receptor binding of ³H-naloxone by 50% while tripling the binding of the agonist ³H-dihydromorphine. Lowering incubation temperature from 25° to 0° reduces the potency of morphine in inhibiting ³H-naloxone binding by 9-fold while not affecting the potency of the antagonist nalorphine. At temperatures of 25° and higher the number of binding sites for opiate antagonists is increased by sodium and the number of sites for agonists is decreased by sodium with no changes in affinity. By contrast, in the presence of sodium lowering of incubation temperature to 0° increases opiate receptor binding of the antagonist naloxone by enhancing its affinity for binding sites even though the total number of binding sites are not changed.     

The purification and properties of N-acetylglucosamine 6-phosphate deacetylase from Escherichia coli

1. N-Acetylglucosamine 6-phosphate deacetylase and 2-amino-2-deoxy-d-glucose 6-phosphate ketol-isomerase (deaminating) (EC 5.3.1.10, glucosamine 6-phosphate deaminase) of Escherichia coliK(12) have been separated by chromatography on DEAE-cellulose. 2. N-Acetylglucosamine 6-phosphate deacetylase has optimum pH8.5 and K(m) 0.8mm. Glucosamine 6-phosphate is a product of the reaction. There appear to be no essential cofactors. Glucosamine 6-phosphate and fructose 6-phosphate inhibit deacetylation. 3. Glucosamine 6-phosphate deaminase has optimum pH7.0 and K(m) 9.0mm. It is stimulated by N-acetylglucosamine 6-phosphate. 4. We propose that the deacetylase be termed 2-acetamido-2-deoxy-d-glucose 6-phosphate amidohydrolase (EC 3.5.1.-), with acetylglucosamine 6-phosphate deacetylase as a trivial name.     

The incorporation of labelled amino sugars by Bacillus subtilis

1. Glucosamine 6-phosphate deaminase [2-amino-2-deoxy-d-glucose 6-phosphate ketol-isomerase (deaminating), EC 5.3.1.10] of Bacillus subtilis has been partially purified. Its K_m is 3·0mm. 2. Extracts of B. subtilis contain N-acetylglucosamine 6-phosphate deacetylase (K_m 1·4mm), glucosamine 1-phosphate acetylase and amino sugar kinases (EC 2.7.1.8 and 2.7.1.9). 3. Glucosamine 6-phosphate synthetase (l-glutamine–d-fructose 6-phosphate aminotransferase, EC 2.6.1.16) is repressed by growth of B. subtilis in the presence of glucosamine, N-acetylglucosamine, N-propionylglucosamine or N-formylglucosamine. Glucosamine 6-phosphate deaminase and N-acetylglucosamine 6-phosphate deacetylase are induced by N-acetylglucosamine. Amino sugar kinases are induced by glucose, glucosamine and N-acetylglucosamine. The synthesis of glucosamine 1-phosphate acetylase is unaffected by amino sugars. 4. Glucose in the growth medium prevents the induction of glucosamine 6-phosphate deaminase and of N-acetylglucosamine 6-phosphate deacetylase caused by N-acetylglucosamine; glucose also alleviates the repression of glucosamine 6-phosphate synthetase caused by amino sugars. 5. Glucosamine 6-phosphate deaminase increases in bacteria incubated beyond the exponential phase of growth. This increase is prevented by glucose.     

Components involved in virally mediated membrane fusion and permeability changes.

1. Intact F glycoprotein is required to induce permeability changes in Lettrée cells or in erythrocytes. Some HN glycoproteins may also be required. Permeability changes thus offer a simple, accurate and rapid means of assaying the integrity of F glycoprotein in certain viral preparations. 2. The '1-day' virus (which contains intact F glycoprotein but which differs morphologically from '3 day' virus) does not cause permeability changes; it can be rendered active by various physical treatments. It is concluded that the environment in which F glycoprotein is embedded is a determining factor for permeability changes. 3. The entry of fluorescently labelled peptides into cells made permeable by virus has been measured. Peptides having a molecular weight in excess of 1000 enter poorly, suggesting a 'pore' size of approx. 1 nm in diameter. 4. Two novel assay methods concerned with virus--cell fusion are described. The first measures the fluorescence enhancement that occurs when anthroylstearate is transferred from anthroylstearate-labelled virus to cells. The second measures the giant-cell formation that occurs when partially fused erythrocytes are exposed to hypo-osmotic treatment. The '1-day' virus is active in these assays. In contrast with permeability changes, virus--cell fusion is insensitive to changes in external Ca2+-concentration. 5. The results are compatible with a model [Knutton & Pasternak (1979) Trends Biochem. Sci. 4, 220--223; Impraim, Foster, Micklem & Pasternak (1980) Biochem. J. 186, 847--860] in which virus--cell fusion is a prerequisite for permeability changes, and in which permeability changes are the cause of haemolysis and giant-cell (polykaryon) formation.     

Mitochondrial mismatch analysis is insensitive to the mutational process

Mismatch distributions are histograms showing the pattern of nucleotide (or restriction) site differences between pairs of individuals in a sample. They can be used to test hypotheses about the history of population size and subdivision (if selective neutrality is assumed) or about selection (if a constant population size is assumed). Previous work has assumed that mutations never strike the same site twice, an assumption that is called the model of infinite sites. Fortunately, the results are surprisingly robust even when this assumption is violated. We show here that (1) confidence regions inferred using the infinite- sites model differ little from those inferred using a model of finite sites with uniform site-specific mutation rates, and (2) even when site- specific mutation rates follow a gamma distribution, confidence regions are little changed until the gamma shape parameter falls well below its plausible range, to roughly 0.01. In addition, we evaluate and reject the proposition that mismatch waves are produced by pooling data from several subdivisions of a structured population.      

Measurement of trans-epithelial electrical resistance in perfusion: potential application for in vitro ocular toxicity testing

An in vitro toxicity testing system that combines perfusion of a membrane-supported tissue model with measurement of trans-epithelial electrical resistance (TER) is described. The system is fully automated and allows for continuous TER measurements during exposure to a test agent. The utility of this system is demonstrated by the TER response of a tissue model composed of MDCK cells cultured on a cellulose ester filter to a series of nonionic surfactants (Triton X-100, Tween-20, Tween-80). The relative toxicities of the surfactants, as evaluated by the time needed to cause a 50% reduction in TER, are consistent with in vivo test results and with results from previous in vitro assays in static culture. The system can also be used to follow recovery of TER after a test agent has been removed from the perfusate. If the TER of the MDCK cell layer does not fall below a threshold value during surfactant exposure, the TER recovers at least part of the way to preexposure levels, beginning several hours after removal of the surfactant. A major benefit of this system is the increased amount of data obtained compared to traditional static assay systems. This may allow identification of parameters that correlate with different aspects of in vivo exposure. (c) 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.