The immunomodulatory effects of gentamicin, imipenem, piperacillin and amphotericin B on LAK effector function in vitro

An understanding of the immunomodulating effects of anti-microbial regimens on recombinant interleukin-2 (rIL-2) induced peripheral leukocyte function, i.e. lymphokine-activated killer (LAK)-cell efficacy, would be clinically useful in the selection of commonly employed bone marrow transplantation (BMT) antibiotics to avoid post-transplant complications and optimize anti-microbial, anti-viral, anti-tumor therapies. In this report we evaluated the modulatory effects of a number of antibiotics used in BMT on LAK-cell cytotoxicities, in vitro. Our data showed that, even at serum trough titer, amphotericin B was significantly (P < or =0.05) immunostimulatory, whereas gentamicin, imipenem, and piperacillin, individually, were significantly (P < or =0.05) immunosuppressive. Statistical analysis detected no modulation due to aztreonam, amikacin, cotrimoxazole, or ceftazidime, or any of the six cephalosporins tested at molar equivalent concentration. We conclude that certain antibiotics may be more suitable for infection prone BMT hosts.     

Immunogenicity and protective efficacy of three DNA vaccines encoding pre-erythrocytic- and erythrocytic-stage antigens of Plasmodium cynomolgi in rhesus monkeys

Although several malaria vaccine candidate antigens have been identified, the most suitable methods for their delivery are still being investigated. In this regard, direct immunization with DNA encoding these vaccine target antigens is an attractive alternative. Here, we have investigated the immune responses to DNA immunization with three major vaccine target antigens: the apical membrane antigen-1 and the 19-kDa C-terminal fragment of merozoite surface protein-1 from the erythrocytic stage, and the thrombospondin-related adhesive protein from the pre-erythrocytic stage of Plasmodium cynomolgi in rhesus monkeys. Antigen-specific antibodies were developed in all the immunized monkeys and peripheral blood mononuclear cells from all immunized monkeys proliferated to different extents upon in vitro stimulation with the corresponding recombinant proteins. The immunized monkeys were challenged with P. cynomolgi sporozoites. All of the immunized animals developed infection but although there was no significant difference between the control and vaccinated animals in terms of pre-patent period, total duration of patency and primary peak parasitemia, the vaccinated animals had significantly lower secondary peak parasitemia than the control animals.     

Structural and immunological characterization of recombinant ovomucoid expressed in Escherichia coli

The expression of recombinant allergens is becoming new insights of an important diagnosis and the therapy of allergies as well as molecular approaches to immunological and structural studies of allergens. Ovomucoid is a major food allergens in the hen's egg white which causes immediate food-hypersensitivity reactions mainly in children. A gene coding for the cDNA representing an entire ovomucoid molecule has been cloned in Escherichia coli under the control of T5 promoter fused with six-Histidine tag at the amino terminal end. Upon induction, the E. coli cells, harbouring this construct, expressed the recombinant protein as a soluble fraction and the recombinant ovomucoid protein was purified to electrophoeretic homogeneity using Ni²⁺ nitrilotriacetic acid agarose affinity chromatography. Immunoblot analysis showed that human IgE and IgG binding activities of the recombinant ovomucoid was identical to that of native analogue. The antigenicity and allergenicity of recombinant ovomucoid were almost same as that of native form when tested with an ELISA using six individual patient's serum. CD spectra indicated that that the recombinant ovomucoid has more -helix and less -structure than native form. These results show that the recombinant ovomucoid constructed in this study could be used for further studies on the immunological and structural studies of ovomucoid.     

Effects of farmyard manure and phosphorus on zinc transformations and phyto-availability in two alfisols of India

Laboratory pot experiments were run to study the effects of added zinc (Zn) with and without farmyard manure (FYM) and phosphorus (P) on Zn transformations in two Alfisols, together with Zn uptake by wheat plants grown up to 60 days. In the first experiment the treatments included four levels of Zn (0, 3.75, 7.5 and 15 mgkg(-1) soil) and two levels of FYM (0 and 10 tha(-1)), and in the second experiment five levels of P (0, 20, 40, 80 and 160 mgkg(-1) soil) and one level of Zn (7.5 mgkg(-1) soil). The soils were sequentially fractionated into water-soluble plus exchangeable (CA-Zn), inorganically bound (AAC-Zn), organically bound (PYR-Zn), oxide bound (OX-Zn) and residual (RES-Zn) forms. The effect of added FYM was more evident on the OX-Zn fraction and the percentage utilization of Zn by wheat was the greatest with the addition of FYM alone at the rate of 10 tha(-1) (1.95-2.38%) in comparison to other treatment combinations. Among the levels, application of 7.5 mg Zn kg(-1) soil showed the maximum increase in different fractions of soil Zn and significantly increased the Zn utilization by wheat (0.87-1.17%) as compared to other Zn levels (0.58-0.88%). On an average, about 85% of the added Zn was recovered in different fractions in Zn treated pots. However, the recovery per cent of the added Zn was significantly higher at Zn level 7.5 (95%) mgkg(-1) soil than at 3.75 (87%) and 15 (73%) mg Zn kg(-1) soil levels. Phosphorus additions up to 40 mgkg(-1) soil increased the plant-available Zn in soils whereas at higher P levels plant-available forms decreased with a concominant increase in the inert forms. At 160 mg P kg(-1) soil, the P effect was more pronounced in the shoot than in the root, suggesting that a higher P level inhibits Zn translocation from root to upper plant parts. Path analysis showed that the organically (PYR-Zn) and inorganically bound (AAC-Zn) Zn fractions were the predominant fractions that influenced the Zn availability to plants.     

Biochemical profile of erythrocyte membrane of jaundiced neonates

Studies in newborn humans have demonstrated alteration in the lipid, phospholipid and cholesterol content when compared with age-matched control. Membrane bound (Na+ + K+)ATPase activity is found to be significantly increased in jaundiced neonates. Alteration in membrane permeability characteristics in jaundiced neonates causes severe microenvironmental changes in red blood cell profile.     

Alcohol Use among Adolescent Youth: The Role of Friendship Networks and Family Factors in Multiple School Studies

To explore the co-evolution of friendship tie choice and alcohol use behavior among 1,284 adolescents from 12 small schools and 976 adolescents from one big school sampled in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (AddHealth), we apply a Stochastic Actor-Based (SAB) approach implemented in the R-based Simulation Investigation for Empirical Network Analysis (RSiena) package. Our results indicate the salience of both peer selection and peer influence effects for friendship tie choice and adolescent drinking behavior. Concurrently, the main effect models indicate that parental monitoring and the parental home drinking environment affected adolescent alcohol use in the small school sample, and that parental home drinking environment affected adolescent drinking in the large school sample. In the small school sample, we detect an interaction between the parental home drinking environment and choosing friends that drink as they multiplicatively affect friendship tie choice. Our findings suggest that future research should investigate the synergistic effects of both peer and parental influences for adolescent friendship tie choices and drinking behavior. And given the tendency of adolescents to form ties with their friends'' friends, and the evidence of local hierarchy in these networks, popular youth who do not drink may be uniquely positioned and uniquely salient as the highest rank of the hierarchy to cause anti-drinking peer influences to diffuse down the social hierarchy to less popular youth. As such, future interventions should harness prosocial peer influences simultaneously with strategies to increase parental support and monitoring among parents to promote affiliation with prosocial peers.