Effects of CDB-4022 on Leydig cell function in adult male rats

CDB-4022, an indenopryridine, suppresses spermatogenesis and decreases inhibin secretion in adult male rats. In the present study, we investigated the effects of CDB-4022 on Leydig cell function. A single oral dose of CDB-4022 (2.5 mg/kg) resulted in a 2-fold decrease in serum testosterone levels after 7 days that was paralleled by a decrease in Cyp17a1 mRNA and protein levels and 17alpha hydroxylase enzymatic activity compared with vehicle-treated rats. Consistent with the lower serum testosterone levels, pituitary Lhb and Fshb mRNA levels were increased 3.2- and 2.3-fold, respectively, by CDB-4022 treatment. Ultrastructural analysis of pituitary gonadotrophs showed distended endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and fewer secretory granules in CDB-4022-treated rats, characteristic of enhanced secretory activity. Conversely, CDB-4022 increased serum progesterone levels, testicular Star mRNA and protein expression, and the number of Leydig cells per testis. Serum inhibin B levels were undetectable in CDB-4022-treated rats, while serum activin A levels were similar to controls, indicating that the CDB-4022-treated rats have an elevated activin A:inhibin B ratio. In the presence of hCG stimulation, activin A directly suppressed testosterone secretion but enhanced progesterone secretion from rat Leydig cell primary cultures. Likewise, treatment of MA-10 cells with activin A was found to enhance cAMP-stimulated progesterone secretion and STAR expression. Together, our data indicate that CDB-4022 treatment inhibits CYP17A1 and stimulates STAR expression, thereby decreasing testosterone but increasing progesterone production. We propose that unopposed actions of activin A most likely contribute to the steroid profile in rats after CDB-4022 treatment. Our findings establish CDB-4022 as a new model to examine intratesticular control mechanisms that modulate Leydig cell gene expression and function.     

Protective effects of baicalein on <Emphasis Type="Italic">tert</Emphasis>-butyl hydroperoxide-induced hepatic toxicity in rat hepatocytes

Summary Baicalein (BAL), a main flavonoid constituent of Scutellaria radix, was studied for its inhibitory effects on tert-butyl hydroperoxide (t-BHP)-induced hepatotoxicity and oxidative damage in primary cultures of rat hepatocytes. In a preliminary study, baicalein revealed effective antioxidant properties in a test of its capacity to quench the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH). Further investigations showed that baicalein, at the concentrations of 1, 5, and 10M, decreased the leakage of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and the formation of malondialdehyde (MDA) induced by 30min of pretreatment with t-BHP (1.5mM) in primary cultures of rat hepatocytes. Baicalein also attenuated t-BHP-induced mitochondrial depolarization as determined by a retention test of rhodamine 123 and DNA repair synthesis as evidenced by unscheduled DNA synthesis (UDS). In addition, baicalein decreased the 8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine (8-OH-dG) content which acts as a DNA damage marker. The sum of the results suggests that the protective effect of baicalein against the cytotoxicity and genotoxicity of hepatocytes induced by t-BHP is due to its ability to quench free radicals.     

Interaction between Phycobilisomes from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Porphyridium cruentum</Emphasis> and Thylakoid Membranes from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Gymnodinium</Emphasis> sp. or Spinach

Thylakoid membranes were isolated from Gymnodinium sp. and spinach, whereas the phycobilisomes were isolated and purified from red alga Porphyridium cruentum. The absorption spectra of the purified phycobilisomes (PBS) showed three peaks at 548, 564, and 624 nm, respectively, and the ratio of the fluorescence intensity at the ₆₈₀ ^em to that at ₅₈₀ ^em was about 7.3. All these results demonstrated that the purified PBS remained intact. The thylakoid membranes were incubated with the purified phycobilisomes, and the thylakoid membranes, which harbored the phycobilisomes, were purified by sucrose density gradient centrifugation. Meantime, the conjugates of phycobilisome-thylakoid membranes were constructed using glutaraldehyde and further purified. Their characteristics were studied by measuring the absorption spectra and fluorescence emission spectra. The results showed that the phycobilisomes from Porphyridium cruentum can attach to the thylakoid membranes from Gymnodinium sp. and spinach without covalent cross-linking, but the excited energy transfer did not occur. The conjugate of phycobilisome-thylakoid membranes with covalent cross-linking exhibits the excited energy transfer between the phycobilisomes and the thylakoid membranes.__________From Fiziologiya Rastenii, Vol. 52, No. 3, 2005, pp. 331–337.Original English Text Copyright © 2005 by Zhu, Wang, Tseng.This article was submitted by the authors in English.     

Cdc42 mediates nucleus movement and MTOC polarization in Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts under mechanical shear stress

Nucleus movement is essential during nucleus positioning for tissue growth and development in eukaryotic cells. However, molecular regulators of nucleus movement in interphase fibroblasts have yet to be identified. Here, we report that nuclei of Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts undergo enhanced movement when subjected to shear flows. Such movement includes both rotation and translocation and is dependent on microtubule, not F-actin, structure. Through inactivation of Rho GTPases, well-known mediators of cytoskeleton reorganization, we demonstrate that Cdc42, not RhoA or Rac1, controls the extent of nucleus translocation, and more importantly, of nucleus rotation in the cytoplasm. In addition to generating nuclei movement, we find that shear flows also causes repositioning of the MTOC in the direction of flow. This behavior is also controlled by Cdc42 via the Par6/protein kinase Czeta pathway. These results are the first to establish Cdc42 as a molecular regulator of not only shear-induced MTOC polarization in Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts, but also of shear-induced microtubule-dependent nucleus movement. We propose that the movements of MTOC and nucleus are coupled chemically, because they are both regulated by Cdc42 and dependent on microtubule structure, and physically, possibly via Hook/SUN family homologues similar to those found in Caenorhabditis elegans.     

Intracellular mechanics of migrating fibroblasts

Cell migration is a highly coordinated process that occurs through the translation of biochemical signals into specific biomechanical events. The biochemical and structural properties of the proteins involved in cell motility, as well as their subcellular localization, have been studied extensively. However, how these proteins work in concert to generate the mechanical properties required to produce global motility is not well understood. Using intracellular microrheology and a fibroblast scratch-wound assay, we show that cytoskeleton reorganization produced by motility results in mechanical stiffening of both the leading lamella and the perinuclear region of motile cells. This effect is significantly more pronounced in the leading edge, suggesting that the mechanical properties of migrating fibroblasts are spatially coordinated. Disruption of the microtubule network by nocodazole treatment results in the arrest of cell migration and a loss of subcellular mechanical polarization; however, the overall mechanical properties of the cell remain mostly unchanged. Furthermore, we find that activation of Rac and Cdc42 in quiescent fibroblasts elicits mechanical behavior similar to that of migrating cells. We conclude that a polarized mechanics of the cytoskeleton is essential for directed cell migration and is coordinated through microtubules.     

Effects of amphetamine on schedule-induced polydipsia

A series of experiments examined the effects of amphetamine (AMPH) at various doses administration for different length of time on a schedule-induced polydipsia (SIP) and possible associations with behavioral activation. Two stages of a two-week AMPH treatment were introduced with interposed interval of two months. In terms of behavioral activation, AMPH induced a robust depression across stages but with less potency in the second one. As for the SIP performance, the effects manifested qualitative difference in the two stages. For the first stage, there were no differential effects of AMPH on stereotypy intensity during the facultative phase of the inter-rewarding interval. However, AMPH reduced the high frequency of licks in the adjunctive (schedule-induced) phase and increased the low frequency of nose pokes in the terminal (schedule-dependent) phase. In the second stage, AMPH had no effect on the frequency of licking whereas the efficiency of licking and the frequency of nose pokes were reduced. These results were interpreted to support the current viewpoint that the behavior of SIP displaying is relevant to the function of central dopaminergic systems. The results were further discussed in the considerations of behavioral competition, stress coping strategy, and also the impact of AMPH at different time.     

Hip joint replacement surgery for idiopathic osteoarthritis aggregates in families

In order to determine whether there is a genetic component to hip or knee joint failure due to idiopathic osteoarthritis (OA), we invited patients (probands) undergoing hip or knee arthroplasty for management of idiopathic OA to provide detailed family histories regarding the prevalence of idiopathic OA requiring joint replacement in their siblings. We also invited their spouses to provide detailed family histories about their siblings to serve as a control group. In the probands, we confirmed the diagnosis of idiopathic OA using American College of Rheumatology criteria. The cohorts included the siblings of 635 probands undergoing total hip replacement, the siblings of 486 probands undergoing total knee replacement, and the siblings of 787 spouses. We compared the prevalence of arthroplasty for idiopathic OA among the siblings of the probands with that among the siblings of the spouses, and we used logistic regression to identify independent risk factors for hip and knee arthroplasty in the siblings. Familial aggregation for hip arthroplasty, but not for knee arthroplasty, was observed after controlling for age and sex, suggesting a genetic contribution to end-stage hip OA but not to end-stage knee OA. We conclude that attempts to identify genes that predispose to idiopathic OA resulting in joint failure are more likely to be successful in patients with hip OA than in those with knee OA.     

Repeated rapid shear-responsiveness of peptide hydrogels with tunable shear modulus

A pair of mutually attractive but self-repulsive decapeptides, with alternating charged/neutral amino acid sequence patterns, was found to co-assemble into a viscoelastic material upon mixing at a low total peptide concentration of 0.25 wt %. Circular dichroism spectroscopy of individual decapeptide solutions revealed their random coil conformation. Transmission electron microscopy images showed the nanofibrillar network structure of the hydrogel. Dynamic rheological characterization revealed its high elasticity and shear-thinning nature. Furthermore, the co-assembled hydrogel was capable of rapid recoveries from repeated shear-induced breakdowns, a property desirable for designing injectable biomaterials for controlled drug delivery and tissue engineering applications. A systematic variation of the neutral amino acids in the sequence revealed some of the design principles for this class of biomaterials. First, viscoelastic properties of the hydrogels can be tuned through adjusting the hydrophobicity of the neutral amino acids. Second, the beta-sheet propensity of the neutral amino acid residue in the peptides is critical for hydrogelation.