Carbohydrate formation in rewetted terrestrial cyanobacteria

Summary In the terrestrial cyanobacterium Nostoc commune Vauch. formation of carbohydrate polymers was measured upon rewetting the mats in a light-dark regime. To discriminate between carbohydrates of different physiological function, total carbohydrate was determined as anthrone-reactive material (ARM) and storage carbohydrate (glycogen) assayed by an enzymic test. In the dry thalli glycogen was found to represent less than one tenth of the ARM. After rewetting an increase of total carbohydrate was observed in illuminated samples. Only glycogen, however, showed a regular pattern of synthesis and degradation during a 12:12 h light-dark cycle. This indicates that most carbohydrates detected by anthrone belong to the metabolically inert sheath material.When illuminated colonies were kept submerged after rewetting glycogen was hydrolyzed indicative of being used in the rapid recovery of cellular functions as observed in rewetted colonies. Apparently, photosynthesis allowed for net glycogen synthesis only, provided the mats were sufficiently aerated. These findings give evidence that the (carbohydrate) sheath plays an important role in water retention in an organism bound to a terrestrial habitat.     

Induction of hepatic metallothionein by salicylate in adult rats

Application of salicylate increased the concentration of metallothionein (MT) in liver of pregnant rats as well as of adult male rats, whereas in fetal liver, MT was reduced by salicylate. Induction of MT synthesis by salicylate is an indirect effect because in cultured hepatocytes salicylate did not induce MT synthesis. Salicylate increased MT also in adrenalectomized rats. Indomethacin induced the same concentration of MT in maternal liver as salicylate. However, indomethacin had no effect on MT in fetal liver. Induction of MT in adult liver by salicylate and indomethacin was independent of zinc.     

The stimulation of metallothionein synthesis in neuroblastoma IMR-32 by zinc and cadmium but not dexamethasone

Metallothioneins are a class of cysteine-rich and low molecular weight, metal-binding proteins that are inducible by a wide variety of agents, including metal ions, such as cadmium and zinc, glucocorticoid hormones, interferon, and tumor promoters. In an effort to delineate the regulation of the synthesis of the recently identified brain metallothionein-like protein, a study was undertaken to compare the induction of metallothionein in human neuroblastoma IMR-32 cells by zinc, cadmium, and dexamethasone using the human Chang liver cells as a control. Both cadmium (1 microM) and zinc (100 microM) significantly enhanced the incorporation of [35S]cysteine into metallothioneins isolated from both neuroblastoma and Chang liver cells. Dexamethasone in concentrations of 10 microM stimulated the synthesis of metallothionein in the Chang cells, whereas it had no effects on the synthesis of metallothionein in the neuroblastoma cells at concentrations ranging from 2.5--100 microM. The degree of stimulation of metallothionein synthesis in the Chang cells by cadmium and zinc was significantly higher than seen in neuroblastoma cells. The neuroblastoma IMR-32 exhibited less tolerance to the toxicity of both cadmium and zinc than the Chang cells, which may correlate with the inherent ability of these ions to induce metallothioneins in these dissimilar cells. The results of these studies are interpreted to indicate that the factors regulating the synthesis of metallothioneins in the Chang and neuroblastoma cells are not identical, suggesting also of the presence of dissimilar regulatory mechanisms in the liver and brain.     

Effects of etretinate on the distribution of elements in rats

We studied in the rat the effects of the drug etretinate (Tigason), given at three doses 3, 10, and 30 mg/kg body wt for 1 mo, on the concentrations of Na, K, Ca, Mg, Fe, S, P, Cu, and Zn in the plasma, brain, thymus, heart, liver, lung, kidney, testicle, muscle, and bone. The elements were simultaneously determined in tissues after nitric acid dissolution by inductively coupled plasma emission spectrometry using a JY 48 instrument. At the dose of 3 mg/kg, etretinate did not induce any statistically significant modifications of the element distribution. At the dose of 10 mg/kg, the main observed modifications were in plasma an increase of copper (+38%) and a decrease of zinc (-25%). At the highest dose of 30 mg/kg, some variations of the concentrations of elements in tissues were observed. But, on no account did retinoids induce an alteration of the mineral composition of bone, despite obvious macroscopic bone alterations.     

On the mechanism of cellular cadmium uptake

Review of the available evidence on the mechanism of cellular Cd uptake in the rat jejunum supports the concept that this process consists of nonspecific binding to anionic sites on the membrane, followed by a temperature-dependent and rate-limiting internalization step. Because temperature-sensitive transmembrane movement of Cd can be demonstrated also in isolated brush-border vesicles and in erythrocyte ghosts, it is not likely to result from pinocytosis but may be related directly to membrane fluidity. There is no need to assume the existence of saturable Cd carriers, or competition of Cd with essential polyvalent cations for their specific transport systems. Uptake of Cd by tubular epithelium in the kidney of the intact rabbit appears to resemble that described for the jejunum, with the internalization step limiting the rate of uptake.     

Effect of nutritional copper deficiency on carrageenin edema in the rat

The effects of nutritional copper deficiency on carrageenin edema in the rat were investigated with emphasis on studying the correlation between the degree of copper deficiency and the degree of edema. Carrageenin paw edema in both copper-sufficient and copper-deficient groups of rats was compared after either 20, 40, or 60 d on respective diets. The degree of copper deficiency was quantitated by analyzing total copper concentrations in a number of tissues. Other copper dependent parameters were also determined. Results indicated that: (1) although copper sufficient rats showed relatively little change in the degree of edema, copper-deficient rats showed a steady and significant increase in edema from d 20 to 40 to 60; (2) paw edema in copper-deficient animals was highly and negatively correlated to the concentrations of copper in the liver; the correlation with liver Cu,Zn-superoxide dismutase activity, however, was inconsistent; (3) paw edema was not correlated either to copper concentration in tissues other than liver or to plasma ceruloplasmin activity; and (4) aggravation of carrageenin edema in copper-deficient animals seemed to be mediated via an as yet unknown secondary effect of copper deficiency.     

Mechanism of comutagenesis of sodium arsenite withn-methyl-n-nitrosourea

Arsenic compounds are known carcinogens. Although many carcinogens are also mutagens, we have previously shown that sodium arsenite is not mutagenic at either the Na⁺/K⁺ ATPase orhprt locus in Chinese hamster V79 cells. It can, however, enhance UV-mutagenesis. We now confirm the nonmutagenicity of sodium arsenite in line G12, a pSV2gpt-transformed V79 (hprt ⁻) cell line, which is able to detect multilocus deletions in addition to point mutations and small deletions. The lack of arsenic mutagenicity has led to studies emphasizing its comutagenicity. Sodium arsenite at relatively nontoxic concentrations (5 μM for 24 h or 10 μM for 3 h) is comutagenic withN-methyl-N-nitrosourea (MMU) at thehprt locus in V79 cells. Using a nick translation assay, which measures DNA strand breaks by incorporating radioactive deoxyribonucleoside monophosphate at their 3′OH ends in permeabilized cells, we found that much more incorporation was seen in cells treated with MNU (4 mM, 15 min) followed by 3-h incubation with 10 μM sodium arsenite compared with cells exposed to the same MNU treatment followed by 3-h incubation without sodium arsenite. This result shows that in the presence of arsenite, strand breaks resulting from MNU or its repair accumulate over a 3-h period. We suggest that the repair of MNU-induced DNA lesions may be inhibited by arsenite either by affecting the incorporation of dNMPs into the MNU-damaged DNA template or by interfering with the ligation step.     

Multielement analysis of biological samples by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry

Interest in the biological behavior of a growing number of elements, along with increasing recognition of the importance of interactions among them, demands a versatile and reliable technique for multielement analysis of biological samples. Significant improvements over the sensitivity achieved with conventional inductively coupled plasma (ICP) optical emission spectrometries have been realized with the introduction of quadrupole mass spectrometry (MS) for detection of ions in the plasma. The hybrid technique of ICP-MS promises to be a method of rapid multielement analysis, at detection limits that approach or surpass those of other technologies. However, the application of ICP-MS to analyses of biological interest is truly in its infancy. Here we report the use of ICP-MS for the determination of more than 30 elements of biological interest in a tissue and a biological fluid (rat liver and serum, respectively). Experimental values of the elements serve as a basis for discussion of analytical protocols, performance criteria, and certain problems peculiar to ICP-MS.     

Metallothionein induction by nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs

In the present study we report on the effects of commonly used nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs on metallothionein (MT) and MT-I mRNA levels. A single dose of chloroquine (100 mg/kg), diclofenac (100 mg/kg), indomethacin (10 mg/kg), or piroxicam (100 mg/kg) was administered ip to C57B1 mice. After 18 h, MT levels were determined with a Cd-saturation radioassay. MT-I mRNA levels were measured by Northern Blot analyses using a probe containing the mouse MT-I gene. All drugs tested caused an increase in the MT content of the liver but not of the kidneys and lung. The lowest and highest effects were observed with chloroquine (8 times the control value) and diclofenac (18 times), respectively. In accordance with the stimulation of MT synthesis, increased accumulation of hepatic MT-I mRNA could be demonstrated. These results indicate that elevated MT levels may contribute to the effectiveness of nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA).     

Incorporation of tellurium into amino acids and proteins in a tellurium-tolerant fungi

Aspergillus fumigatus, Aspergillus terreus, and Penicillium chrysogenum, a tellurium tolerant fungi, are able to grow on sulfur free medium amended with 0.2% (w/v) tellurite. Tellurium was incorporated into several types of low and high molecular weight proteins. The newly detected telluro-proteins contained an extraordinary high level of tellurium, as well as telluro-cysteine, telluro-cystine, telluro-methionine, and serine.