Bacterial reduction of hexavalent molybdenum to molybdenum blue

A bacterium that was able to tolerate and reduce as high as 50 mM of sodium molybdate to molybdenum blue has been isolated from a metal recycling ground. The isolate was tentatively identified as Serratia sp. strain Dr.Y8 based on the carbon utilization profiles using Biolog GN plates and partial 16S rDNA molecular phylogeny. ANOVA analysis showed that isolate Dr.Y8 produced significantly higher (P < 0.05) amount of Mo-blue with 3, 5.1 and 11.3 times more molybdenum blue than previously isolated molybdenum reducers such as Serratia marcescens strain Dr.Y6, E. coli K12 and E. cloacae strain 48, respectively. Its molybdate reduction characteristics were studied in this work. Electron donor sources such as sucrose, mannitol, fructose, glucose and starch supported molybdate reduction. The optimum phosphate, pH and temperature that supported molybdate reduction were 5 mM, pH 6.0 and 37°C, respectively. The molybdenum blue produced from cellular reduction exhibited a unique absorption spectrum with a maximum peak at 865 nm and a shoulder at 700 nm. Metal ions such as chromium, silver, copper and mercury resulted in approximately 61, 57, 80, and 69% inhibition of the molybdenum-reducing activity at 1 mM, respectively. The reduction characteristics of strain Dr.Y8 suggest that it would be useful in future molybdenum bioremediation.     

Isolation and screening of potential actinobacteria for rapid composting of rice straw

Rice straw is produced as a by-product from rice cultivation, which is composed largely of lignocellulosic materials amenable to general biodegradation. Lignocellulolytic actinobacteria can be used as a potential agent for rapid composting of bulky rice straw. Twenty-five actinobacteria isolates were isolated from various in situ and in vitro rice straw compost sources. Isolates A2, A4, A7, A9 and A24 were selected through enzymatic degradation of starch, cellulose and lignin followed by the screening for their adaptability on rice straw powder amended media. The best adapted isolate (A7) was identified as Micromonospora carbonacea. It was able to degrade cellulose, hemicelluloses and carbon significantly (P ≤ 0.05) over the control. C/N ratio was reduced to 18.1 from an initial value of 29.3 in 6 weeks of composting thus having the potential to be used in large scale composting of rice straw.     

Characterization and partial purification of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Candida albicans</Emphasis> Secretory IL-12 Inhibitory Factor

Background  

We have previously shown that supernatant from Candida albicans (CA) culture contains a Secretory Interleukin (IL)-12 Inhibitory Factor (CA-SIIF), which inhibits IL-12 production by human monocytes. However, the effect of CA-SIIF on secretion of other cytokines by monocytes is unknown, and detailed characterization of this factor has not been performed.     

Postoperative Deep Vein Thrombosis in Sudanese Patients

The incidence of postoperative deep vein thrombosis diagnosed by radioisotope scanning in 100 Sudanese patients aged 40 or over was 12%. This compares with an incidence of nearly 30% in 542 patients reported from British hospitals using the same diagnostic technique. The reason for the difference is obscure and needs further investigation.     

Development of host-dependent high-grade tumor-specific immunity through a novel mechanism triggered by the Lyt-2+ tumor-specific T cell clone (K7L) that induces temporal growth of L1210 leukemia-K7L-variant

When a murine leukemia L1210-specific Lyt-2+ T cell clone, K7L, was injected i.p. into CD2F1 mice together with L1210, the normal growth of L1210 in the peritoneal cavity of the mice at the early stage (days 0 to 5) was strongly inhibited, but L1210 grew progressively at the middle-stage (days 5 to 10), and then was rejected at the late stage (days 10 to 20). The mice thus survived for long times (more than 60 days), whereas the normal control injected with L1210 alone died within 14 days. The L1210 that grew at the middle stage in mice initially inoculated with L1210 together with K7L was a K7L-insensitive (K7L-) variant. All of eight tumor clones established from L1210-K7L- by limiting dilution was insensitive to the antitumor activity of K7L, and this property of tumor clones was stable after repeated in vitro passage. The initial depression of the L1210 growth by K7L followed by growth and rejection of the variant L1210-K7L- by the host T cell activity was then found to prepare a strong, long-lasting (more than 3 mo) immunity to protect mice against the high-dose (10(7) cells per mouse) challenge of original L1210. Corresponding to this result, definite tumor (L1210)-specific cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) activity against both variant and original L1210 targets was developed by antigen (L1210) restimulation in the culture of spleen cells from these mice, but was not increased to a detectable level before L1210-K7L- variant started to grow. It was suggested that the 1210-K7L- variant and the original L1210 should have the common tumor-specific antigen that was independent of the K7L-reactive antigen, and that original L1210, whose growth was retarded by K7L, primed the host with the common antigen to be enormously boosted by the subsequently growing L1210-K7L- variant.     

Polygalacturonase activity and variation in ripening of papaya fruit with tissue depth and heat treatment

Effects of tissue position (viz. outer vs inner mesocarp) and heat treatment (48°C, 20 min) on variations in polygalacturonase (EC 3.2.1.15 and EC 3.2.1.67) activity and ripening of fruits of Carica papaya L. cv. Backcross Solo were investigated. Polygalacturonase activity increased during ripening concomitantly with an increase in tissue softness and soluble polyuronide level. Throughout ripening, inner mesocarp tissue was softer and contained higher polygalacturonase activity than outer mesocarp tissue. Titratable acidity as well as ß-galactosidase (EC 3.2.1.23) activity also increased during ripening; however, unlike polygalacturonase, their level or activity was lower in inner than in outer mesocarp. Ascorbic acid could partially account for the increase in titratable acidity during ripening but contributed very little to the differences in titratable acid levels between outer and inner mesocarp. Heat treatment had no effect on either fruit softness or titratable acidity, but it markedly reduced the increase in ascorbic acid and polygalacturonase activity during ripening. Ripening, as reflected by changes in tissue softness and polygalacturonase activity, progressed outwardly from the interior towards the exterior of the fruit. The effect of heat treatment in suppressing polygalacturonase activity was relatively greater in inner than in outer mesocarp, suggesting that sensitivity of the enzyme to heat treatment may vary with stage of ripeness of the tissue.     

Involvement of prostaglandin-induced proteins in the inhibition of herpes simplex virus replication

Cyclopentenone prostaglandin (PG), delta7-PGA1 was found to induce several polypeptides in human embryonic fibroblast (HEF) cells which were noticed to be dose-related and appeared after 1 h of treatment with a peak at around 5 h and gradual disappearance after 12 h. PG-induced proteins were almost identical in terms of molecular weights with those induced by heat-shock at 42 degrees C. Regarding the mechanism of inhibition of herpes simplex virus (HSV) replication by PG in cell culture, dot blot hybridization has revealed that the level of immediate early (IE) mRNA of the virus was reduced after PG treatment with time dependence. And this delayed inhibitory effect of delta7-PGA1 on HSV was shown to be associated with the production and accumulation of the induced polypeptides.     

Immunisation in a curative setting.

OBJECTIVE--To study the uptake of vaccination offered to women and children attending a curative health facility. DESIGN--Prospective survey over eight months of the uptake of vaccination offered to unimmunised women and children attending a diarrhoeal treatment centre as patients or attendants. SETTING--The International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Dhaka, Bangladesh. SUBJECTS--An estimated 19,349 unimmunised women aged 15 to 45 and 17,372 children attending the centre for treatment or accompanying patients between 1 January and 31 August 1989. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--The number of women and children who were unimmunised or incompletely immunised was calculated and the percentage of this target population accepting vaccination was recorded. RESULTS--7530 (84.2%) Of 8944 eligible children and 7730 (40.4%) of 19,138 eligible women were vaccinated. Of the children, 63.8% were boys, 75.9% were aged under 1 year, and 23.0% were aged 1 to 2 years. The estimated number of missed opportunities for vaccination was 716 among the children (8.0% of the target population) and 11,408 among the women (59.6% of those eligible). CONCLUSION--It is possible to establish immunisation services at a health facility treating acutely ill patients.