Differentiated U937 cells and human monocytes exhibit a differential production of extracellular oxygen species: O2•− excretion versus H2O2 diffusion

Abstract The nature and the localization of the oxidative response triggered by different stimuli in either differentiated U937 cells and peripheral blood-derived human monocytes was investigated using luminometric and cytofluorometric techniques. Differentiated U937 cells essentially produced extracellular superoxide anion (O₂^•−), whatever the stimulus used. Monocytes, however, responded to Salmonella typhimurium , phorbol esters, and opsonized zymosan by an intracellular, an extracellular, and both an intra- and extracellular production of oxygen species, respectively. Furthermore, H₂O₂ but not O₂^•− was detected in the extracellular oxidative response of monocytes. Using differentiated U937 cells, luminol was found to be as efficient as lucigenin in the detection of extracellular O₂^•−, providing sufficient concentrations of extracellular horseradish peroxidase were present. However, both azide and histidine inhibited the lucigenin-enhanced chemiluminescence, suggesting an initial and transient production of singlet oxygen differentiated U937 cells. Taken together these results strongly suggest that, when stimulated, differentiated U937 cells directly excrete O₂^•− in the extracellular medium while, within monocytes, O₂^•− is rapidly dismutated in H₂O₂ which can eventually diffuse outside the cell. Such differences in the oxidative response between the two cell types could be explained by the lack of total closure of the phagosome, only observed in differentiated U937 cells.     

Involvement of umuDCST genes in nitropyrene-induced -CG frameshift mutagenesis at the repetitive CG sequence in the hisD3052 allele of Salmonella typhimurium

Expression of the umuDC operon is required for UV and most chemical mutagenesis in Escherichia coli. The closely related species Salmonella typhimurium has two sets of umuDC-like operons, umuDC _ST on the chromosome and samAB on a 60-MDa cryptic plasmid. The roles of theumuDC-like operons in chemically induced frameshift mutagenesis of the hisD3052 allele of S. typhimurium were investigated. Introduction of a pBR322-derived plasmid carrying umuDCST increased the rate of reversion of hisD3052, following treatment with 1-nitropyrene (1-NP) or 1,8-dinitropyrene (1,-8DNP) tenfold and fivefold, respectively, whereas it did not substantially increase the rate of reversion induced by other frameshift mutagens, i.e. 2-nitrofluorene (2NF) and 2-amino- 3-methyldipyrido[1,2-a:3 ,2-d]imi-dazole (Glu-P-1). Introduction of a pBR322-derived plasmid carrying samAB did not increase the incidence of reversion of hisD3052 observed with any of the mutagens examined. Deletion of umuDC _STSubstantially lowered the reversion rate induced by l-NP or 1,8-DNP, but it did not affect reversion induced by 2-NF, Glu-P-1 or N-hydroxyacetylaminofluorene (N-OH-AAF). Deletion of samAB had little impact on reversion incidence induced by any of the five frameshift mutagens. DNA amplification using the polymerase chain reaction technique followed by restriction enzyme analysis using BssHII, suggested that the mutations induced by the five frameshift mutagens were all CG deletions at the CGCGCGCG sequence in hisD3052. These results suggest that umuDCST, but not samAB, is involved in the -2 frameshift mutagenesis induced by l-NP and 1,8-DNP at the repetitive CG sequence, whereas neither operon participates in induction of the same type of mutations by 2-NF, Glu-P-1 or N-OH-AAF.     

Prediction of B-cell epitopes forSalmonella typhi OmpC

The possible B-cell epitopes of the outer membrane porin OmpC ofSalmonella typhi have been identified, using the primary structure of the protein, by means of multiple sequence alignment and the known molecular structure of two other porins. From the analysis, 8 regions were identified as immunodominant and these were ranked based on antigenic index and the ratio of the number of nonconserved residues to the fragment length. Model building of the top two ranked regions show the tendency to form loop structures supporting the possibility of these being candidate epitopes.     

Amelioration of Bacterial Genomes: Rates of Change and Exchange

Although bacterial species display wide variation in their overall GC contents, the genes within a particular species' genome are relatively similar in base composition. As a result, sequences that are novel to a bacterial genome—i.e., DNA introduced through recent horizontal transfer—often bear unusual sequence characteristics and can be distinguished from ancestral DNA. At the time of introgression, horizontally transferred genes reflect the base composition of the donor genome; but, over time, these sequences will ameliorate to reflect the DNA composition of the new genome because the introgressed genes are subject to the same mutational processes affecting all genes in the recipient genome. This process of amelioration is evident in a large group of genes involved in host-cell invasion by enteric bacteria and can be modeled to predict the amount of time required after transfer for foreign DNA to resemble native DNA. Furthermore, models of amelioration can be used to estimate the time of introgression of foreign genes in a chromosome. Applying this approach to a 1.43-megabase continuous sequence, we have calculated that the entire Escherichia coli chromosome contains more than 600 kb of horizontally transferred, protein-coding DNA. Estimates of amelioration times indicate that this DNA has accumulated at a rate of 31 kb per million years, which is on the order of the amount of variant DNA introduced by point mutations. This rate predicts that the E. coli and Salmonella enterica lineages have each gained and lost more than 3 megabases of novel DNA since their divergence. Received: 7 July 1996 / Accepted: 27 September 1996     

Energetics of galactose,proline, and glutamine transport in a cytochrome-deficient mutant of salmonella typhimurium

The effect of inhibitors and uncouplers on the osmotic shock-sensitive transport systems for glutamine and galactose (by the β-methyl galactoside permease) was compared to their effect on the osmotic shock-resistant proline and galactose permease systems in cytochrome-deficient cells of Salmonella typhimurium SASY28. Both osmotic shock-sensitive and -resistant systems were sensitive to uncouplers and to inhibitors of the membrane-bound Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺-activated adenosine triphosphatase. This suggests that uptake by both types of systems is energized in these cells by an electrochemical gradient of protons formed by ATP hydrolysis through the ATPase.     

Genotoxicities of nitropyrenes and their modulation by apigenin, tannic acid, ellagic acid and indole-3-carbinol in the Salmonella and CHO systems

Four naturally occurring compounds, indole-3-carbinol (I3C), apigenin (Api), ellagic acid (EA) and tannic acid (TA), were tested for their inhibitory effects against 1-nitropyrene- (1-NP) or 1,6-dinitropyrene (1,6-DNP)-induced genotoxicity in Salmonella tester strains and Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells. Api and TA strongly inhibited the bacterial mutagenesis induced by nitropyrenes, while 13C and EA had little or no effect. For example, in TA98, 0.2 μmole Api resulted in 48% and 56% inhibition of the mutagenicity induced by 4 nmole 1-NP and 0.035 nmole 1,6-DNP, respectively. With an equal dose, expected, a good correlation was observed between the antimutagenicity of nitropyrenes and their inhibitory effect on nitroreductase activity. This indicated that one of the possible antimutagenic mechanisms of Api or TA was to inactivate the metabolism of nitropyrenes. Two biological end-points, cytotoxicity and sister-chromatid exchange (SCEs), were used to screen the antigenotoxic effects of these compounds in CHO cells. At the sub-cytotoxic dose, 13C, Api and TA all protected against the cytotoxicity induced by 1-NP and 1,6-DNP, but only TA and Api gave a significant reduction of the frequency of SCEs. Moreover, this reduction was found to be highly dose-dependent.     

Effects of pantolactone and butyrolaectone on the pleiotropic phenotypes of lon mutants and on thermal induction of the SOS phenomena in a tif mutant of Escherichia coli K12

Hydrophobic and charge-charge interactions of Salmonella typhimirium and Serratia marcescens were determined and related to their content of fimbriae and lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The cell surface structures were characterized with hydrophobic interaction chromatography (HIC), electrostatic interaction chromatography (ESIC) and particle electrophoresis measurements. The degree of interaction at the air-water interface was tested using a monolayered lipid film applied to an aqueous surface. The cell surface hydrophobicity of S. typhimurium in the presence of fimbriae was less in smooth than in rought bacteria. Examination of a series of rough mutants of S. typhimurium indicates that reduction of the O-side chain and core oligosaccharides was correlated with increased cell hydrophobicity. The enrichment factors at the air-water interface were significantly higher for fimbriated than for non-fimbriated S. typhimurium cells. Fimbriated S. marcescens cells were less hydrophobic and adhered to a lesser degree at the air-water surface than non-fimbriated counterparts. Electrophoretic measurements and adsorption to ion exchangers gives different information about the surface charge of bacteria. The latter technique gives the interaction between localized charged surfaces.Abbreviations HIC hydrophobic interaction chromatography - ESIC electrostatic interaction chromatography - LPS lipopolysaccharide - PBS phosphate buffered saline solution