A high-fat diet rich in corn oil exaggerates the infarct size and memory impairment in rats with cerebral ischemia and is associated with suppressing osteopontin and Akt,and activating GS3Kβ, iNOS,and NF-κB

Journal of Physiology and Biochemistry - The increase in osteopontin (OPN) levels after stroke induces neural protection by activating Akt signaling and inhibiting GS3Kβ, iNOS, and NF-κB....     

Theoretical investigations on the mechanistic pathway of the thermal rearrangement of substituted N-acyl-2,2-dimethylaziridines

The mechanism of the thermal rearrangement of substituted N-acyl-2,2-dimethylaziridines 1 has been studied using quantum chemistry methods. Geometries of reactants, transition states and products have been optimized at the B3LYP/6-311++G(2d,2p) level. Relative energies for various stationary points have been determined and reaction identified by IRC calculations. The results show that thermal rearrangements occur in three ways. Firstly, the transition state TS ₁ in which a hydrogen atom of methyl groups migrates from primary carbon to oxygen of amid group to give the N-methallylamide 2. The second is via the transition state TS ₂ in which the attack of oxygen to the tertiary carbon yields the oxazoline 3. The third is via the transition state TS ₃ in which a hydrogen migrate from the secondary carbon to oxygen to give the vinylamide 4. In order to get insights into the factors determining the exact nature of its interactions with electrophiles, the application of reactivity parameters derived from density functional theory in a local sense, in particular the softness and Fukui function, to interpret and predict the mechanisms of the thermal decomposition of the N-acyl-2,2-dimethylaziridines 1, has been discussed.     

Hyperinvasive Meningococci Induce Intra-nuclear Cleavage of the NF-κB Protein p65/RelA by Meningococcal IgA Protease

Differential modulation of NF-κB during meningococcal infection is critical in innate immune response to meningococcal disease. Non-invasive isolates of Neisseria meningitidis provoke a sustained NF-κB activation in epithelial cells. However, the hyperinvasive isolates of the ST-11 clonal complex (ST-11) only induce an early NF-κB activation followed by a sustained activation of JNK and apoptosis. We show that this temporal activation of NF-κB was caused by specific cleavage at the C-terminal region of NF-κB p65/RelA component within the nucleus of infected cells. This cleavage was mediated by the secreted 150 kDa meningococcal ST-11 IgA protease carrying nuclear localisation signals (NLS) in its α-peptide moiety that allowed efficient intra-nuclear transport. In a collection of non-ST-11 healthy carriage isolates lacking NLS in the α-peptide, secreted IgA protease was devoid of intra-nuclear transport. This part of iga polymorphism allows non-invasive isolates lacking NLS, unlike hyperinvasive ST-11 isolates of N. meningitides habouring NLS in their α-peptide, to be carried asymptomatically in the human nasopharynx through selective eradication of their ability to induce apoptosis in infected epithelial cells.     

Fatty acid composition of canola (Brassica napus L.), as affected by agronomical,genotypic and environmental parameters

Vegetable oils with a high relative amount of unsaturated fatty acids are of great significance for human health. There is not any data on the effects of tillage practices on fatty acid composition of canola (Brassica napus L.). Hence, in a 2-year split plot experiment, the effects of different tillage systems (no (NT), minimum (MT) and conventional tillage (CT)), canola genotypes (Hyola 401 (V1) and PF (V2)) and sowing dates (including Sep. 8, 23 and Oct. 7) on the fatty acid composition of canola were evaluated. Tillage practices and the combination of canola genotypes and sowing dates were randomized to the main and sub-plots, respectively. The highest oleic acid content was the result of combining NT, V1 and Sep. 23, and the lowest was related to the combination of CT, V2 and Oct. 7. While the combination of NT, V1 and D1 resulted in the highest amount of unsaturated fatty acids, this amount was the lowest for the combination of CT, V2 and Sep. 23. For the selection of an appropriate canola producing strategy, all these parameters must be taken into account. The combination of NT, V1 and Sep. 23 may be the most favorable cropping strategy for canola production under a Mediterranean climate.     

Development and application of an in-house reverse hybridization method for Chlamydia trachomatis genotyping

Aim

To develop and evaluate an in‐house reverse hybridization technique for Chlamydia trachomatis genotype identification.

Methods and Results

The evaluation of the developed and optimized reverse hybridization method on reference strains showed the specific detection of all genotypes. This technique showed its ability to type one inclusion‐forming unit of C. trachomatis genotype E and equivalent sensitivity to the Cobas TaqMan assay. It was also able to detect mixed infections in vitro. Application of the reverse hybridization method on 38 isolated C. trachomatis strains and their respective swabs allowed the detection of six urogenital genotypes D, E, F, G, H and K and one trachoma genotype B. Genotype E was the most prevalent, detected in 73% of the swab samples. Mixed infections were detected in 26% of swab cases.

Conclusion

The reverse hybridization technique is simple and does not require specialized instruments. It is powerful in the diagnosis of mixed infections and is suitable for use in epidemiological studies.

Significance and Impact of the Study

This technique allowed rapid C. trachomatis genotype identification.     

Survival of Vibrio fluvialis in seawater under starvation conditions

The viability of Vibrio fluvialis in seawater microcosms, with and without sediment was investigated. The strain survived as culturable bacteria for at least 1 year and the expression of its virulence factors was maintained. In microcosms containing sediment Vibrio fluvialis was more stable. Viable but nonculturable (VBNC) cells of Vibrio fluvialis were able to resuscitate to the culturable state up to 6 years of incubation in marine sediment. These cells recuperate their initial biochemical characteristics after 3 months of incubation in marine broth. Amplified 16S ribosomal DNA (rDNA) restriction analysis (ARDRA) was used to confirm that it is the same strain of Vibrio fluvialis which resists in all microcosms during a long period of time.     

A new locus for otosclerosis, OTSC8, maps to the pericentromeric region of chromosome 9

Otosclerosis is a common disorder of the otic capsule resulting in hearing impairment in 0.3–0.4% of the Caucasian population. The aetiology of the disease remains unclear. In most cases, otosclerosis can be considered as a complex disease. In some cases, the disease is inherited as an autosomal dominant trait, sometimes with reduced penetrance. To date, seven autosomal dominant loci have been reported, but none of the disease-causing genes has been identified. In this study, we present the results of a genome-wide linkage analysis in a large Tunisian family segregating autosomal dominant otosclerosis. Linkage analysis localised the responsible gene to chromosome 9p13.1-9q21.11 with a maximal LOD score of 4.13, and this locus was named OTSC8. Using newly generated short tandem repeat polymorphism markers, we mapped this new otosclerosis locus to a 34.16 Mb interval between the markers D9S970 and D9S1799. This region comprises the pericentromeric region on both arms of chromosome 9, a highly complex region containing many duplicated sequences. Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Chemical Composition,Antioxidant Properties, α‐Glucosidase Inhibitory,and Antimicrobial Activity of Essential Oils from Acacia mollissima and Acacia cyclops Cultivated in Tunisia

The genus Acacia is quite large and can be found in the warm subarid and arid parts, but little is known about its chemistry, especially the volatile parts. The volatile oils from fresh flowers of A. mollissima and A. cyclops (growing in Tunisia) obtained by hydrodistillation were analyzed by GC then GC/MS. Eighteen (94.7% of the total oil composition) and 23 (97.4%) compounds were identified in these oils, respectively. (E,E)‐α‐Farnesene (51.5%) and (E)‐cinnamyl alcohol (10.7%) constituted the major compounds of the flower oil of A. mollissima, while nonadecane (29.6%) and caryophyllene oxide (15.9%) were the main constituents of the essential oil of A. cyclops. Antioxidant activity of the isolated oils was studied by varied assays, i.e., 2,2‐diphenyl‐1‐picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2‐azinobis 3‐ethylbenzothiazoline‐6‐sulfonic acid (ABTS); the isolated oils showed lowest IC₅₀ (4 – 39 μg/ml) indicating their high antioxidant activity. The α‐glucosidase inhibitor activity was also evaluated and Acacia oils were found to be able to strongly inhibit this enzyme with IC₅₀ values (81 – 89 μg/ml) very close to that of acarbose which was used as positive control. Furthermore, they were tested against five Gram‐positive and Gram‐negative bacteria and one Candida species. Essential oil of A. mollissima was found to be more active than that of A. cyclops, especially against Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MIC = 0.31 mg/ml and MBC = 0.62 mg/ml).