Constancy of synaptic ribbon numbers in the retina of the arctic chary,Salvelinus alpinus

Synopsis At high latitudes, such as in Iceland, the daily photoperiod varies from almost continuous darkness in winter to virtually constant light in summer. Previous studies of detailed retinal structure in vertebrates have shown significant daily and annual effects of photoperiod. We sampled arctic charr in Iceland during the summer, including fish that were both light- and dark-adapted, during both day and night. We observed retinomotor responses characteristic of light- and dark-adaptation, but found no difference in the number of synaptic ribbons in the retina. The morpho-physiological changes, appearing as retinomotor responses, are thus not expressed at the synaptic level.     

Development of beta-adrenergic control of phospholipid secretion in rabbit lung

Lung distension is associated with increased phospholipid secretion into the air spaces. Basal, lavage-induced, and inflation-produced phospholipid secretion, in postmortem in situ lungs of newborn rabbits, were examined at three different levels of maturity, with and without 10(-3) M dl-propranolol. Lungs were lavaged with saline at successive 3- and 15-min time intervals to separate basal from lavage-induced secretion. Inflation-produced secretion was studied after static inflation at 30 cmH2O for 30 min. At 27.5 days gestation, basal secretion was undetectable, and neither lavage-induced nor inflation-produced secretion were influenced by propranolol. At 29.5 days gestation, basal secretion was only just detectable. Distension-associated secretion was increased over that present at 27.5 days gestation, and propranolol had a significant inhibitory effect, especially on lavage-induced secretion, in which the inhibition was shown to be rapidly reversible. There was a significant increase of basal secretion at 2.5 days postterm, possibly inhibited by propranolol. In addition, there was a further substantial increase of distension-associated secretion, and the inhibitory effect of propranolol persisted. These changes were independent of the sedimentation behavior of lavaged phospholipid. Overall, the results are consistent with evidence, produced in other laboratories, that there is an increasing density of sympathetic neurons and beta-adrenergic receptors in whole lung preparations during late gestation in the rabbit and suggest that granular pneumocytes, the presumed source of secreted phospholipid, take part in this developmental change.     

An EPR signal from the "invisible" copper of cytochrome oxidase.

Sulfide is both an inhibitor and a slow reductant of oxidized cytochrome $\text{c}$ oxidase. When the enzyme is exposed to sulfide for short times (one minute or less) and frozen, the resultant electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) signals show clearly: low spin heme a, low spin heme a₃, the usual “EPR detectable” Cu²⁺ signal (g_⊥ = 2.17, g_⊥ = 2.03), and a new Cu²⁺ signal superimposed on the same region, with (g_⊥ ～ 2.19, g_⊥ = 2.05). This new signal presumably arises because the antiferromagnetic coupling postulated to exist between the iron atom of heme a₃ and this copper is disrupted when heme a₃ is driven to a low spin state by sulfide. The implications of this result with respect to models of the O₂-binding site and redox geometry of oxidase are briefly discussed.     

Relationship between 2'-hydroxyls and magnesium binding in the hammerhead RNA domain: a model for ribozyme catalysis.

The use of deoxyribonucleotide substitution in RNA (mixed RNA/DNA polymers) permits an evaluation of the role of 2'-hydroxyl groups in ribozyme catalysis. Specific deoxyribonucleotide substitution at G9 and A13 of the ribozyme decreases the catalytic activity (kcat) of the ribozyme by factors of 14 and 20, respectively. The reduction of the reaction rate concomitant with the absence of these 2'-OHs or the 2'-OH of the substrate U7 position can be partially compensated by increasing the Mg2+ concentration above 10 mM. The KMg of the all-RNA ribozyme is 5.3 mM, and the lack of either of the three influential 2'-OHs increases this value by a factor of approximately 3. These and other reaction constants for the ribozyme and the deoxy-substituted analogues have been determined by assuming a three-step mechanism. The data presented here provide the basis for the formulation of a molecular model of ribozyme activity.     

The location of highly repetitious DNA in the somatic chromosomes of Drosophila melanogaster

In situ hybridization of Drosophila melanogaster somatic chromosomes has been used to demonstrate the near exact correspondence between the location of highly repetitious DNA and classically defined constitutive heterochromatin. The Y chromosome, in particular, is heavily labeled even by cRNA transcribed from female (XX) DNA templates (i.e., DNA from female Drosophila with 2 Xs and 2 sets of autosomes). This observation confirms earlier reports that the Y chromosome contains repeated DNA sequences that are shared by other chromosomes. In grain counting experiments the Y chromosome shows significantly heavier label than any other chromosome when hybridized with cRNA from XY DNA templates (i.e., DNA from male Drosophila with 1 X and 1 Y plus 2 sets of autosomes). However, the preferential labeling of the Y is abolished if the cRNA is derived from XX DNA. We interpret these results as indicating the presence of a class of Y chromosome specific repeated DNA in D. melanogaster. The relative inefficiency of the X chromosome in binding cRNA from XY and XYY DNA templates, coupled with its ability to bind XX derived cRNA, may also indicate the presence of an X chromosome specific repeated DNA.     

Discovery of an intravenous hepatoselective glucokinase activator for the treatment of inpatient hyperglycemia

Glucokinase (hexokinase IV) continues to be a compelling target for the treatment of type 2 diabetes given the wealth of supporting human genetics data and numerous reports of robust clinical glucose lowering in patients treated with small molecule allosteric activators. Recent work has demonstrated the ability of hepatoselective activators to deliver glucose lowering efficacy with minimal risk of hypoglycemia. While orally administered agents require a considerable degree of passive permeability to promote suitable exposures, there is no such restriction on intravenously delivered drugs. Therefore, minimization of membrane diffusion in the context of an intravenously agent should ensure optimal hepatic targeting and therapeutic index. This work details the identification a hepatoselective GKA exhibiting the aforementioned properties.