Cell fusion induced by herpes simplex is inhibited by hen egg-white lysozyme

The formation of syncytia in cell monolayers infected with a macroplaque strain (MP) of herpes simplex virus was found to be inhibited by hen egg-white lysozyme. Inhibition was roughly proportional to the enzyme concentration. The virus titres in supernatant fluids of lysozyme-treated cultures were also reduced compared with untreated cultures. Control experiments excluded the possibility that lysozyme altered the virus viability and infectivity or impaired cell growth. Since lysozyme is a cationic protein, further experiments were performed in order to discover whether its antisyncytiogenic effect depended on its enzymatic activity or on its positive charge. Inhibition of the MP-induced polycaryocytosis was found to be caused by heat-inactivated lysozyme and three chemically-modified lysozymes with a higher positive charge (one retaining and two lacking enzymatic activity).     

Approaches to regulating recreational fisheries: balancing biology with angler satisfaction

Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries - Recreational fishing is practiced by?~?350 million people globally, and while it historically has been thought to have minimal ecological impact...     

Design of a novel LOX-1 receptor antagonist mimicking the natural substrate

The lectin-like oxidized low-density lipoprotein receptor-1 (LOX-1), the major receptor for oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL) in endothelial cells, is overexpressed in atherosclerotic lesions. LOX-1 specific inhibitors, urgently necessary to reduce the rate of atherosclerotic and inflammation processes, are not yet available. We have designed and synthesized a new modified oxidized phospholipid, named PLAzPC, which plays to small scale the ligand-receptor recognition scheme. Molecular docking simulations confirm that PLAzPC disables the hydrophobic component of the ox-LDL recognition domain and allows the interaction of the l-lysine backbone charged groups with the solvent and with the charged/polar residues located around the edges of the LOX-1 hydrophobic tunnel. Binding assays, in a cell model system expressing human LOX-1 receptors, confirm that PLAzPC markedly inhibits ox-LDL binding to LOX-1 with higher efficacy compared to previously identified inhibitors.     

Effects of the Infusion of 4% or 20% Human Serum Albumin on the Skeletal Muscle Microcirculation in Endotoxemic Rats

Background

Sepsis-induced microcirculatory alterations contribute to tissue hypoxia and organ dysfunction. In addition to its plasma volume expanding activity, human serum albumin (HSA) has anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties and may have a protective role in the microcirculation during sepsis. The concentration of HSA infused may influence these effects. We compared the microcirculatory effects of the infusion of 4% and 20% HSA in an experimental model of sepsis.

Methods

Adult male Wistar rats were equipped with arterial and venous catheters and received an intravenous infusion of lipopolysaccharide (LPS, serotype O127:B8, 10 mg/kg over 30 minutes) or vehicle (SHAM, n = 6). Two hours later, endotoxemic animals were randomized to receive 10 mL/kg of either 4% HSA (LPS+4%HSA, n = 6), 20% HSA (LPS+20%HSA, n = 6) or 0.9% NaCl (LPS+0.9%NaCl, n = 6). No fluids were given to an additional 6 animals (LPS). Vessel density and perfusion were assessed in the skeletal muscle microcirculation with sidestream dark field videomicroscopy at baseline (t0), 2 hours after LPS injection (t1), after HSA infusion (t2) and 1 hour later (t3). The mean arterial pressure (MAP) and heart rate were recorded. Serum endothelin-1 was measured at t2.

Results

MAP was stable over time in all groups. The microcirculatory parameters were significantly altered in endotoxemic animals at t1. The infusion of both 4% and 20% HSA similarly increased the perfused vessel density and blood flow velocity and decreased the flow heterogeneity to control values. Microvascular perfusion was preserved in the LPS+20%HSA group at t3, whereas alterations reappeared in the LPS+4%HSA group.

Conclusions

In a rat model of normotensive endotoxemia, the infusion of 4% or 20% HSA produced a similar acute improvement in the microvascular perfusion in otherwise unresuscitated animals.     

Chemistry of the consumption and excretion of the bumphead parrotfish (Bolbometopon muricatum), a coral reef mega-consumer

Coral Reefs - Bolbometopon muricatum are ecologically unique mega-consumers in coral reef ecosystems. They primarily divide their dietary intake between living scleractinian corals and coral rock,...     

In situ hybridization analysis of preprotachykinin-A mRNA levels in young and old rats.

Preprotachykinin-A (PPT-A) mRNA levels in discrete rat brain regions were examined. Analysis of silver grains revealed a 19.2% and 31.5% statistically significant decrease in PPT-A mRNA in the dorsal and ventral caudate putamen (d-CPu and v-CPu), respectively, a 30% lower expression of PPT-A mRNA in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST), a 33.7% decrease in PPT-A mRNA in the habenula (Hb), and a 30% decrease of PPT-A mRNA levels in the posterodorsal part of the medial amygdala (MePD). Results show that aging of the CNS is associated with widespread changes in tachykinin gene expression, suggesting that alterations in the tachykinergic system may have implications in the physiopathology of the elderly.     

The evaluation of the oxidative state of native-LDL: three methods compared

LDL-oxidation is considered a contributing factor to the development of atherosclerotic lesions. However, to utilise the oxidative state of LDL as a marker of cardiovascular risk, reliable analytical methods for its detection must be defined. We have compared three methods for their capacity to evaluate the difference in the oxidation state of isolated LDL subjected to either dialysis (D-LDL) or gel filtration (F-LDL) to remove EDTA. Their susceptibility to oxidation promoted by Cu(2+) was monitored by following the time course of conjugated diene (CD) and lipid hydroperoxide (ROOH) accumulation. The relative electrophoretic mobility (REM) of the same LDL samples was evaluated by capillary electrophoresis. As measured by all three methods, F-LDL are less prone to oxidation than D-LDL when added with CuSO(4). REM of F-LDL and D-LDL significantly differs already before the addition of the metal catalyst, whereas CD and ROOH contents become significantly different only after it. Besides confirming that a rapid centrifugation followed by gel filtration is a more convenient procedure than dialysis to remove EDTA during LDL isolation, our study suggests the REM of isolated-LDL as the biochemical marker of choice in the evaluation of its oxidative state.     

Confirmation of the potential usefulness of two human beta globin pseudogene markers to estimate gene flows to and from sub-Saharan Africans

Two polymorphic sites, -107 and -100 with respect to the "cap" site of the human beta globin pseudogene, recently discovered in our laboratory, turned out to have an ethnically complementary distribution. The first site is polymorphic in Europeans, North Africans, Indians (Hindu), and Oriental Asians, and monomorphic in sub-Saharan Africans. Conversely, the second site is polymorphic in sub-Saharan African populations and monomorphic in the aforementioned populations. Here we report the gene frequencies of these two polymorphic sites in nine additional populations (Egyptians, Spaniards, Japanese, Chinese, Filipinos, Vietnamese, Africans from Togo and from Benin, and Pygmies), confirming their ethnospecificity and, through the analysis of these two markers in Oromo and Amhara of Ethiopia (two mixed populations), their usefulness in genetic admixture studies. Moreover, we studied another marker polymorphic in sub-Saharan African populations only, a TaqI restriction fragment length polymorphism located in the same region as the present markers, demonstrating the absence of linkage disequilibrium between it and the -100 site, so that we can exclude that the information they provide is redundant.