RETRACTED: SENSORY SUGGESTIVENESS AND LABELING: DO SOY LABELS BIAS TASTE?1

Can labels suggestively influence sensory perceptions and taste? Using a “ Phantom Ingredient” taste test, we show that the presence or absence of a labeled ingredient (soy) and the presence or absence of a health claim negatively bias taste perceptions toward a food erroneously thought to contain soy. We found a label highlighting soy content made health claims believable but negatively influenced perceptions of taste for certain segments of consumers. Our results and discussion provide better direction for researchers who work with ingredient labeling as well as for those who work with soybean products.     

Transport of free polymannose-type oligosaccharides from the endoplasmic reticulum into the cytosol is inhibited by mannosides and requires a thapsigargin-sensitive calcium store

The transport of free polymannose-type oligosaccharides from the lumen of the endoplasmic reticulum into the cytosol has been recently demonstrated (Moore,S.E.H., et al., 1995, EMBO J., 14, 6034-6042), but at present little is known of the characteristics of this process. Here, it is shown that inhibition of the transport of endogenously synthesized metabolically radiolabeled free oligosaccharides out of the endoplasmic reticulum into the cytosol of permeabilized HepG2 cells occurs when assays are conducted in the presence of mannose (IC50, 4.9 mM), or its derivatives modified at the first carbon (C1) of the sugar ring; alpha-methyl mannoside (IC50, 2.0 mM), mannoheptulose (IC50, 1.6 mM), and alpha-benzyl mannoside (IC50, 0.8 mM), whereas other monosaccharides (50 mM), differing from mannose at position; C2 (glucose), C3 (altrose), C4 (talose), C5 (l-rhamnose), and C6 (mannoheptose), have little effect. N-Acetylglucosamine does not inhibit oligosaccharide transport and, furthermore, although mannobioses and a mannotriose inhibit free oligosaccharide transport, di-N-acetylchitobiose is without effect. It is also shown that if the transport assay buffer is either depleted of calcium ions, or supplemented with the Ca2+/Mg2+ATPase inhibitor, thapsigargin, or with calcium ionophores, free oligosaccharide transport out of the endoplasmic reticulum is inhibited. These results demonstrate that the terminal nonreducing mannosyl residues of free polymannose-type oligosaccharides and not their N-acetylglucosamine-containing reducing termini, play an important role in the interaction of the free oligosaccharide with the transport machinery, and that this transport process requires the presence of calcium sequestered in the lumen of the endoplasmic reticulum.      

Unfolding and refolding of bovine beta-lactoglobulin monitored by hydrogen exchange measurements.

Bovine beta-lactoglobulin (beta-LG) is a widely studied protein belonging to the lipocalin family, whose structural characterisation has been reported by X-ray crystallography and NMR studies at physiological and acidic pH, respectively. Bovine beta-LG consists of nine antiparallel beta-sheets and a terminal alpha-helix segment. The beta-sheets form a calyx structure with a hydrophobic buried cluster conferring stability to the protein while a hydrophobic surface patch provides stabilising interactions between the barrel and the flanking terminal helix. Here, the stability and the folding properties of bovine beta-LG in the presence of a chemical denaturant is probed. The analysis of the NMR spectra recorded in aqueous solution with increasing amounts of urea revealed that the intensities of the backbone cross-peaks decrease upon increasing urea concentration, while their secondary shifts do not change significantly on going from 0 to 5 M urea, thus suggesting the presence of slow exchange between native and unfolded protein. Hydrogen exchange measurements at different urea concentrations were performed in order to evaluate the exchange rates of individual backbone amide protons. The opening reactions that determine protein exchange can be computed for the most slowly exchanging hydrogen atoms, and the measured exchange rates and the corresponding free energies can be expressed in terms of the equilibrium energetic for the global transition and the local fluctuations. Most of the residues converge to define a common isotherm identifying a unique cooperative folding unit, encompassing all the strands, except strand betaI, and the terminal region of the helix. The amides that do not join the same global unfolding isotherm are characterised by low DeltaGH20op and especially by low m values, indicating that they are already substantially exposed in the native state. A two-state unfolding model N <==> U is therefore proposed for this rather big protein, in agreement with CD data. Renaturation studies show that the unfolding mechanism is reversible up to 6 M urea and suggest a similar unfolding and refolding pathway. Present results are discussed in light of the hypothesis of an alpha-->beta transition proposed for bovine beta-LG refolding.     

Cinnamoyl nitrogen mustard derivatives of pyrazole analogues of tallimustine modified at the amidino moiety: design, synthesis, molecular modeling and antitumor activity studies

The design, synthesis and in vitro activities of a series of cinnamoyl nitrogen mustard pyrazole analogues of tallimustine 8-13, in which the amidino moiety has been replaced by moieties of different physico-chemical features are described, and the structure-activity relationships are discussed. In spite of the relevance of these modifications on the amidino moiety, these derivatives showed significant growth inhibitory activity against mouse leukemia L1210 cells. A selected series of compounds have been evaluated for their sequence selective alkylating properties and cytotoxicity against human K562 leukemia cells. Therefore, the presence of the amidino moiety, and in general of a basic moiety, is not an absolute requirement for biological activity. Our preliminary results indicated that the compounds of this series have a pattern of alkylation similar to that of tallimustine, but they seem to be less reactive overall in alkylating naked DNA.     

Comparison of serum levels of seven cytokines in premature newborns undergoing different ventilatory procedures: high frequency oscillatory ventilation or synchronized intermittent mandatory ventilation

OBJECTIVE: The severity of pulmonary dysfunction and subsequent development of chronic lung disease (CLD) in preterm neonates depends on several factors, among them oxygen administration. The aim of this report is to compare the effects of high-frequency, oscillatory ventilation (HFOV) versus synchronized, intermittent, mandatory ventilation (sIMV) on serum cytokine levels (IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, MCP-1, PDGF-BB, VEGF and TGF-beta1) and ventilator indices during the first week of life. Moreover, CLD development and several other outcomes were compared between the two groups. DESIGN: Randomized clinical trial. SETTING: Third level NICU. PATIENTS: 40 preterm neonates with a gestational age between 24 and 29 weeks were randomly (20 per group) assigned to one of the two, above-mentioned ventilation strategies within 30 minutes of birth. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: At 1, 3 and 5 days, neonates were monitored by means of ventilator indices and levels of seven pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory (pro-fibrotic) cytokines in serum. No clinical or biochemical differences were observed at baseline. The neonates assigned to HFOV benefited from early and sustained improvement in gas exchange, with earlier extubation and lower incidence of CLD, as compared to the neonates assigned to sIMV treatment, and showed a significant reduction of serum IL-6, IL-8 and IL-10 over time only when the HFOV treatment was administered. In addition, at days 3 and 5, the IL-6 levels were significantly lower in the HFOV group as compared to sIMV patients. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this randomized clinical trial support the hypothesis that early use of HFOV, combined with an optimum volume strategy, has a beneficial effect, reducing serum levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines and consequently the acute phase leading to lung injury.     

Leptotrichia buccalis bacteremia in two patients with acute myelogenous leukemia

Leptotrichia buccalis is rarely implicated in systemic disease. We report two patients with clinically significant L. buccalis bacteremia which developed during the neutropenia secondary to chemotherapy. Based upon our experience, L. buccalis bacteremia should be considered in certain high-risk immunocompromised patients with mucositis and/or gingivitis.     

Purification and characterization of two leaf polypeptide inhibitors of leaf protease from alfalfa (Medicago sativa)

Two polypeptides with antiproteolytic activities have been isolated from alfalfa leaves. Polypeptide I resembles the previously described plant protease inhibitors in both structural and functional features; it has a molecular weight of 15,000, a random coil secondary structure, and inhibits exogenous protease as well as alfalfa leaf protease. Polypeptide II is a novel type of plant inhibitor with a molecular weight of 6300 and a highly organized structure with a high (40-50%) alpha-helix content. It only inhibits endogenous protease with a molar stoichiometry polypeptide/enzyme protein of 1.     

Discovery of novel, highly potent and selective beta-hairpin mimetic CXCR4 inhibitors with excellent anti-HIV activity and pharmacokinetic profiles

Novel highly potent CXCR4 inhibitors with good pharmacokinetic properties were designed and optimized starting from the naturally occurring β-hairpin peptide polyphemusin II. The design involved incorporating important residues from polyphemusin II into a macrocyclic template-bound β-hairpin mimetic. Using a parallel synthesis approach, the potency and ADME properties of the mimetics were optimized in iterative cycles, resulting in the CXCR4 inhibitors POL2438 and POL3026. The inhibitory potencies of these compounds were confirmed in a series of HIV-1 invasion assays in vitro. POL3026 showed excellent plasma stability, high selectivity for CXCR4, favorable pharmacokinetic properties in the dog, and thus has the potential to become a therapeutic compound for application in the treatment of HIV infections (as an entry inhibitor), cancer (for angiogenesis suppression and inhibition of metastasis), inflammation, and in stem cell transplant therapy.