Binding of immunoglobulin G from patients with autoimmune thyroid diseases to solubilized guinea pig fat cell membranes crosslinked with 125I-TSH

Binding of immunoglobulin G (IgG) to Triton-solubilized fat cell membranes crosslinked with 125I-TSH was studied by an indirect immunoprecipitation method. Guinea pig fat cell membranes (FCM) containing TSH receptors with an association constant of 1.92 X 10(9) M-1 were first reacted with 125I-TSH, then treated with a crosslinker, dissuccinimidyl suberate. The dissociation of 125I-TSH from the crosslinked 125I-TSH-FCM complexes due to the addition of 100 mU/ml unlabeled TSH was 9.0%, while it was 33% without the treatment. To the Triton-solubilized FCM crosslinked with 125I-TSH, 50 micrograms each of IgG from 20 normal controls, 20 patients with Graves' disease and 20 with Hashimoto's disease was added and precipitation was effected by adding anti-human IgG. In patients with Graves' disease, 125I-TSH-FCM complexes immunoprecipitated ranged from 1.10 to 4.18% with an average of 2.4 +/- 0.99 (S. D.) % which was significantly higher than those in normal controls (1.6 +/- 0.29%). The values in the patients with Hashimoto's disease averaged 1.7 +/- 0.53 (S. D.) which did not differ significantly from those of controls. The value did not correlate with either TSH-binding inhibiting activities or titers of anti-microsomal antibodies. These data suggest the presence of TSH-receptor antibodies which react with antigens other than TSH-binding sites in the patients with Graves' disease.     

Inactivation and sedimentation of mercury from organomercurials by Klebsiella pneumoniae

Abstract A susceptibility of 63 clinical isolates of Klebsiella pneumoniae to inorganic and organic mercuric compounds was determined. 18 of them were found to be resistant to fluorescein mercuric acetate (FMA) and merbromin (MB). Moreover, all the resistant strains inactivate the antibacterial effect of FMA. The changes in the amount of organic mercury at the time of inactivation of the drug and the structures of the end products were examined in detail with the plasmid-bearing strain JK9 and its transconjugants of Escherichia coli .
The results showed that FMA was inactivated by an intracellular enzyme produced inducively and was degraded to fluorescein (sodium salt, uranine), which led to the sedimentation of metallic mercury. The discovery of the genes conferring inducible organic mercury-inactivating enzymes determined by plasmids was the next step and their application in the recovery of metallic mercury from organomercurials is now imminent.     

Isolation and characterization of arabinose mycolate from firmly bound lipids of mycobacteria

The glycolipid, d-arabinose-5-mycolate, was purified from bound lipids of mycobacteria. The significance of this glycolipid in the chemical structure of cell wall and wax D is discussed. The hypothetical chemical structure of mycolic acid-arabinogalactan portion of cell wall and wax D is proposed.     

A Tripolar Spindle Formed at Meiosis I Assures the Retention of the Original Ploidy in the Gynogenetic Triploid Crucian Carp, Ginbuna Carassius auratus langsdorfii

A triploid crucian carp, ginbuna ( Carassius auratus langsdorfii ), reproduces by gynogenesis, in which sperm of diploid ginbuna or of other species triggers the development of the triploid eggs, but a male genome makes no contribution to the zygotic genome. Gynogenesis is maintained by two mechanisms: exclusion of male genome during fertilization and retention of somatic ploidy levels during oogenesis. We examined the mechanisms responsible for producing unreduced eggs. Microfluorometry with a DNA staining dye showed that DNA content in the ginbuna oocytes was not reduced in half during meiosis I. Cytological observations revealed that a tripolar spindle was formed at meiosis I and the first polar body was not extruded, whereas an ordinary bipolar spindle was formed and the second polar body was extruded at meiosis II. Activity of histone H1 kinase (as an indicator of maturation-promoting factor) decreased transiently between meiosis I and II, strongly suggesting a "normal" meiotic cycle progression in the ginbuna oocytes. These results have indicated that in the gynogenetic ginbuna the somatic ploidy levels are maintained by inhibiting the first polar body extrusion via the formation of the tripolar spindle at meiosis I.     

Oxidative pathway of choline to betaine in the soluble fraction prepared from Arthrobacter globiformis.

One strain of bacteria which showed high H2O2-generating activity was isolated from soil and characterized as Arthrobacter globiformis based on its morphological, nutritional, and physiological characteristics. The activities of H2O2 generation, NAD reduction and oxygen consumption in the bacterial cells were examined using choline, betaine aldehyde or betaine as substrate. Choline was oxidized to betaine aldehyde under aerobic conditions in a reaction coupled with H2O2 generation and oxygen consumption. On the other hand, betaine aldehyde seemed to be oxidized to betaine through two distinct oxidative reactions, H2O2 generation (oxygen consumption) under aerobic conditions and NAD reduction under either aerobic or anaerobic conditions. These enzyme activities were found in the supernatant fraction of the sonicated cell preparation.     

Purification and characterization of choline oxidase from Arthrobacter globiformis

Choline oxidase was purified from the cells of Arthrobacter globiformis by fractionations with acetone and ammonium sulfate, and column chromatographies on DEAE-cellulose and on Sephadex G-200. The purified enzyme preparation appeared homogeneous on disc gel electrophoresis. The enzyme was a flavoprotein having a molecular weight of approx. 83,000 (gel filtration) or approx. 71,000 (sodium dodecyl sulfate--polyacrylamide disc gel electrophoresis) and an isoelectric point (pI) around pH 4.5. Identification of the reaction products showed that the enzyme catalyzed the following reactions: choline + O2 leads to betaine aldehyde + H2O2, betaine aldehyde + O2 + H2O leads to betaine + H2O2. The enzyme was highly specific for choline and betaine aldehyde (relative reaction velocities: choline, 100%; betaine aldehyde, 46%; N,N-dimethylaminoethanol, 5.2%; triethanolamine, 2.6%; diethanolamine, 0.8%; monoethanolamine, N-methylaminoethanol, methanol, ethanol, propanol, formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, and propionaldehyde, 0%). Its Km values were 1.2 mM for choline and 8.7 mM for betaine aldehyde. The optimum pH for the enzymic reaction was around pH 7.5.     

Selection for floral integration and trait variation in zygomorphic flowers of Aconitum japonicum ssp. subcuneatum (Ranunculaceae)

Pollinator-mediated selection might lead to among-trait differences in the degree and pattern of floral integration and intra-flower variation. To examine the patterns of intra-flower variation in floral traits, including nectar volume, we performed a field study using the zygomorphic flowers of Aconitum japonicum ssp. subcuneatum. We investigated (1) correlations between the sizes of the left and right sepals and petals, (2) variation in floral traits among plants, within plants and within flowers, (3) effects of sexual phases on floral integration variation in floral and nectar traits, and (4) the effect of size and intra-flower variation in traits of the left and right sepals and petals on pollen removal by pollinators. Lateral sepal area, but not lower sepal area, was highly correlated between the left and right sepals. Floral traits were more integrated during the male phase than during the female phase. Nectar standing crop in male-phase flowers correlated with helmet height and lateral and lower sepal area, but in female-phase flowers it only correlated with spur length. While intra-flower variance in lateral sepal area accounted for approximately 10% of the overall variance in these traits, the variance in lower sepal area accounted for 70% of the overall variance. Lateral sepal area had a negative effect on the number of pollen grains remaining after pollinator visits. Low variance in lateral sepals within flowers and measurements of pollen removal suggest that lateral sepals play a more important role in pollen export than the other traits. Left and right sepals may be the targets of selection for symmetry in zygomorphic flowers.