Effects of intravenous injection of butyrate, valerate and their isomers on endocrine pancreatic responses in conscious sheep (Ovis aries)

1. The effects of intravenous injection of n-butyrate, iso-butyrate, n-valerate and iso-valerate on insulin and glucagon secretion was examined in conscious sheep. 2. Each sodium salt of the short chain fatty acids increased plasma insulin and glucagon concentrations in a dose-dependent manner (312-1250 mumol/kg body wt). 3. Both butyrate and valerate isomers with branched carbon chains had larger insulin releasing activity than isomers with straight carbon chains. 4. The glucagon responses to butyrate or valerate did not differ between the isomers with straight carbon chains and those with branched carbon chains. 5. Our results suggest that the receptive mechanism to short chain fatty acids, which may involve the nervous system, differs between the A cell and the B cell in sheep in vivo.     

D-malic acid production from maleic acid using microorganism: Screening of microorganism

Summary Some bacteria belonging to Arthrobacter, Brevibacterium, Corynebacterium, Pseudomonas, Bacillus, and Acinetobacter produced D-malic acid from maleic acid when the cells grown in a medium containing citraconic acid were reacted aerobically with maleic acid in the pH 7.0 phosphate buffer containing 0.1% sodium chloride.     

Fine Structure of Strictly Anaerobic,Non-Spore-Forming,Gram-Negative Bacilli

The cell division of a strain of Bacteroides convexus was examined by the ultrathin sectioning and the electron microscopy. The cell division was initiated by the invagination of the cytoplasmic membrane from the opposite sites at the middle of the cell. The constriction of the cell wall also occurred simultaneously or soon after the initiation of the invagination of the cytoplasmic membrane. A short septum structure similar to those of gram positive bacteria originated within the base of mesosome. The two mesosomes arising from the opposite sites fused at the center of the cell. After the tips of invaginating outer membrane reached to the middle between cell center and original outer membrane, the mesosomes were reduced gradually and finally disappeared. In this stage of the cell division, a transverse septum was usually completed. The invagination of the outer membrane proceeded progressively and finally fused at the center of the division plane.     

Differentiation of Bacteroides from Sphaerophorus and Fusobacterium

This paper is concerned with new findings in the comparative study of the genera, Bacteroides, Sphaerophorus and Fusobacterium. Victoria blue 4R and barbiturates were found to be effective in differentiating the genera by their discriminative inhibition of the growth. A new character, glutamic acid decarboxylation, was found in Bacteroides but neither in Sphaerophorus nor in Fusobacterium. The procedure for this test was presented. In the classification of newly isolated fecal strains this test and other differential features were compared. An improved method for the threonine deamination test was reported. The use of these characters and tests would be a step in the improvement of the present incomplete classification of gram-negative anaerobic non-sporulating rods.     

Differences in Bacterial Community Structure in Two Color Morphs of the Hawaiian Reef Coral Montipora capitata

Corals harbor diverse bacterial associations that contribute to the health of the host. Using 16S rRNA pyrosequencing, we compared the bacterial communities of red and orange morphs of the Hawaiian coral Montipora capitata. Although both color morphs shared dominant bacterial genera, weighted and unweighted UniFrac analyses showed distinct bacterial communities. A single operational taxonomic unit (OTU), classified as Vibrio, represented the largest driver of differences between the color morphs. This OTU comprised 35.4% (±5.5%) of the orange morph bacterial community yet comprised 1.1% (±0.6%) of the red morph bacterial community. Cultivable bacteria from the two color morphs were also compared and tested for antibacterial activity. Cultured isolates represented 14 genera (7% of the total genera identified from sequencing data), and all but two cultured isolates had a matching OTU from the sequencing data. Half of the isolates tested (8 out of 16) displayed antibacterial activity against other cultured isolates but not against two known bacterial pathogens of M. capitata. The results from this study demonstrate that the specificity of coral-bacterial associations extends beyond the level of coral species. In addition, culture-dependent methods captured bacterial diversity that was representative of both rare and abundant members of the associated bacterial community, as characterized by culture-independent methods.     

Genetic analysis of cysteine-poor prolamin polypeptides reduced in the endosperm of the rice esp1 mutant

The esp1 mutant CM21 specifically exhibits reduced levels of cysteine-poor (CysP) prolamin bands with pIs of 6.65, 6.95, 7.10, and 7.35 in rice seed. Matrix-assisted laser desorption-ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) analysis demonstrated that the bands with pIs 6.65, 6.95, and 7.35 are encoded by different structural genes. These results suggest that the Esp1 locus encodes a regulatory factor involved in the synthesis and/or accumulation of CysP prolamin molecules. Isoelectric focusing (IEF) analysis of CysP prolamins in chromosome substitution lines showed that structural genes for bands with pI values of 6.95, 7.10, and 7.35, which are reduced in esp1 mutant lines, are located as a gene cluster in the 44.2 cM region on chromosome 5.     

Synergistic effect of recombinant CD4-immunoglobulin in combination with azidothymidine, dideoxyinosine and 0.5 β-monoclonal antibody on human immunodeficiency virus infection in vitro

Data are presented which indicate that combinations of rCD4 immunoglobulin with azidothymidine, dideoxyinosine or 0.5 β mouse monoclonal antibodies directed against the V3 region of HIV-1, were more effective in treatment of acute HIV infection in vitro than each compound alone. It is suggested that combination therapy with these compounds is more beneficial in treatment of HIV-infected patients than monotherapy, especially with respect to a reduction of the known side effects and the formation of resistant HIV strains after treatment with nucleoside analogues.     

Human immunodeficiency virus infection in cells of myeloid-monocytic lineage

We established persistent infection with a strain of human immunodeficiency virus type 1, HTLV-IIIB, in a promyelomonocytic cell line, ML-1 (CD4 antigen nearly negative and CD4 mRNA negative), and a promonocytic cell line, THP-1 (CD4 antigen positive). Different reaction of giant cell formation was found after co-cultivation of infected and uninfected cells of ML-1, HL-60, THP-1 and U-937 cell lines with uninfected and infected MOLT4 (a T-lymphoma cell line).