Drug distribution studies with microdialysis. II. Caffeine and theophylline in blood, brain and other tissues in rats

Microdialysis was applied to estimate the pharmacologically active concentration of caffeine and theophylline in blood, adipose tissue, muscle, liver and brain of rats. The concentration of the drugs in the extracellular space was estimated by perfusion with varying concentrations of the drug through the microdialysis probe (difference method). Caffeine (20 mg/kg) was found to be evenly distributed with a free concentration of approximately 120 microM. Theophylline concentration in the brain was 91 microM and in other tissues approximately 120 microM. The rate of penetration into brain extracellular space was higher for caffeine than for theophylline. It is suggested that the lower levels of theophylline attained in the brain may to some extent explain the differences in clinical action profile between caffeine and theophylline.     

Toxicity of "DiI" for embryonic rat motoneurons and sensory neurons in vitro.

The carbocyanine dye DiIC18(3) ("DiI") is commonly used for both anterograde and retrograde labeling of neurons, including live neurons in situ and in vitro. In the present experiments, DiIC18(3) was used to label motoneurons in the spinal cords and sensory neurons in the dorsal root ganglia of embryonic rats. When the neurons from these regions were placed in culture, the neurons labeled by the dye were found to die rapidly, suggesting that DiIC18(3) can be toxic to neurons of these types. A related dye, DiIC12(3), was found to be equally suitable for labeling these neurons, and was found not to have detectable toxic effects in vitro.     

Peroxisomal oxidation of thiazolidine carboxylates in firefly fat body, frog retina, and rat liver and kidney.

D-amino acid oxidase is a widely distributed peroxisomal enzyme whose principal natural substrates are still unknown. Thiazolidine carboxylates, their derivatives and relatives, and the intermediates in their metabolism are among the more plausible substrate candidates. Using a cytochemical procedure, we have explored the distribution of peroxide-generating enzymatic activity against two thiazolidine carboxylates. We find that these compounds are effective substrates for peroxisomal oxidation in a variety of tissues that contain peroxisomal D-amino acid oxidase. Reaction was seen in the "classical" peroxisomes of rat liver and kidney, the peroxisomes of the fat body of firefly and of Drosophila and the peroxisomes of frog retina. Interestingly, both with the thiazolidine compounds and with more traditional D-amino acid oxidase substrates, the fireflies' photocyte granules, which are peroxisomes, lack activity.     

Single point mutations of the sodium channel drastically reduce the pore permeability without preventing its gating

1. Two mutants of the sodium channel II have been expressed inXenopus oocytes and have been investigated using the patch-clamp technique. In mutant E387Q the glutamic acid at position 387 has been replaced by glutamine, and in mutant D384N the aspartic acid at position 384 has been replaced by asparagine.2. Mutant E387Q, previously shown to be resistant to block by tetrodotoxin (Noda et al. 1989), has a single-channel conductance of 4 pS, that can be easily measured only using noise analysis. At variance with the wild-type, the openchannel current-voltage relationship of mutant E387Q is linear over a wide voltage range even under asymmetrical ionic conditions.3. Mutant D384N has a very low permeability for any of the following ions: Cl^–, Na⁺, K⁺, Li⁺, Rb⁺, Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, NH₄ ⁺ , TMA⁺, TEA⁺. However, asymmetric charge movements similar to the gating currents of the Na⁺-selective wild-type are still observed.4. These results suggest that residues E387 and D384 interact directly with the pathway of the ions permeating the open channel.Abbreviations TTX tetrodotoxin; Na⁺, sodium; K⁺, potassium; - NFR normal frog Ringer - HEPES N-2-hydroxylethyl piperazine-N-2-ethanesulfonic acid - EGTA ethyleneglycol-bis(-amino-ethyl ether) N,N,N',N'-tetra acetic acid - TEA tetraethylammonium - TMA tetramethylammonium;I _g , gating current; , single-channel conductance     

Investigations on possible genotoxic effects ofFusarium toxins in boars

For several weeks, boars were fed feedstuff containing mycotoxins (zearalenone, nivalenol, and deoxynivalenol). To determine a possible mutagenic effect of this feedstuff, the boars were examinated for structural chromosome aberrations in the lymphocytes. The investigations indicate a genotoxic effect on the boars’ lymphocytes.     

Potassium channels expressed from rat brain cDNA have delayed rectifier properties

Injection into Xenopus oocytes of RNA synthesized in vitro using the rat brain cDNA RCK1 as a template or nuclear injection of the cDNA results in the expression of functional potassium channels. These channels exhibit properties similar to those of the non-inactivating delayed rectifier channel found in mammalian neurons and other excitable cells.     

Effect of treatment with glutaraldehyde-fixed myelin basic protein-liposomes on active induction and passive transfer of experimental allergic encephalomyelitis in Lewis rats

Guinea pig myelin basic protein (MBP)-liposomes were prepared and fixed with 0.2% glutaraldehyde (GA). Lewis rats were treated with glutaraldehyde-fixed MBP-liposomes (MBP-L-GA) or with cytochrome-c-liposomes (CYC-L-GA), 7 days before and 7 days after challenge with MBP in CFA. Rats treated with MBP-L-GA, but not with CYC-L-GA, were very well protected against the clinical manifestations of EAE. The protection was better than that obtained after treatment with conventional MBP-liposomes (without glutaraldehyde). Furthermore, when grown in vitro for 72 hr in the presence of MBP, lymphocytes from rats treated with MBP-L-GA and challenged with MBP in CFA exhibited a marked decrease in their ability to transfer EAE to normal syngeneic recipients.     

M?ssbauer spectroscopic studies of the cores of human, limpet and bacterial ferritins

Ferritin cores from human spleen, limpet (Patella vulgata) haemolymph and bacterial (Pseudomonas aeruginosa) cells have been investigated using 57Fe M?ssbauer spectroscopy. The M?ssbauer spectra were recorded over a range of temperatures from 1.3 to 78 K, all the spectra are quadrupole-split doublets with similar quadrupole splittings and isomer shifts, characteristic of iron(III), while at sufficiently low temperatures the spectra of all the samples show well-resolved magnetic splitting. At intermediate temperatures, the spectra from the human ferritin exhibit typical superparamagnetic behaviour, while those from the bacterial ferritin show behaviour corresponding to a transition from a magnetically ordered to a paramagnetic state. The spectra from the limpet ferritin show a complex combination of the two effects. The results are discussed in terms of the magnetic behaviour of small particles. The data are consistent with magnetic ordering temperatures of about 3 and 30 K for the bacterial and limpet ferritin cores, respectively, while the data indicate that the magnetic ordering temperature for the human ferritin cores must be above 50 K. These differences are interpreted as being related to different densities of iron in the cores and to variations in the composition of the cores. The human ferritin cores are observed to have a mean superparamagnetic blocking temperature of about 40 K, while that of the limpet ferritin cores is about 25 K. This difference is interpreted as being due not only to different mean numbers of iron atoms in the two types of core but also to the higher degree of crystallinity in the cores of the human ferritin.     

Active immunization of intact mares against gonadotropin-releasing hormone: differential effects on secretion of luteinizing hormone and follicle-stimulating hormone

Five lighthorse mares were actively immunized against gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) to determine the relative importance of this hypothalamic hormone in the secretion of luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH). Five mares immunized against the conjugation protein served as controls. Mares were initially immunized in November and received secondary immunizations 4 wk later, and then at 6-wk intervals until ovariectomy in June. All mares immunized against GnRH exhibited an increase (p less than 0.01) in the binding of tritiated GnRH by plasma, an indication that antibodies against this hormone had been elicited. Concentrations of LH, FSH and progesterone in weekly blood samples were lower (p less than 0.05) in GnRH-immunized mares than in controls after approximately 4 mo of immunization. However, the LH concentrations were affected to a greater degree than were FSH concentrations. All five control mares exhibited normal cycles of estrus and diestrus in spring, whereas no GnRH-immunized mare exhibited cyclic displays of estrus up to ovariectomy. All mares were injected intravenously with a GnRH analog (which cross-reacted less than 0.1% with the anti-GnRH antibodies) in May, after all control mares had displayed normal estrous cycles, to characterize the response of LH and FSH in these mares; two days later, the mares were injected with GnRH. The LH response to the analog, which was assessed by net area under the curve, was lower (p less than 0.01) by approximately 99% in mares immunized against GnRH than in control mares. In contrast, the FSH response to the analog was similar for both groups.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)