Replacement time for alveolar lipid removed by pulmonary lavage: effects of multiple lavage on lung lipids.

Daily washing in vivo of the lung with 0.15 M saline did not deplete the Beagle dog lung of surfactant lipids, but rather increased the quantity of surfactant lipid in the tissue. Replacement time for the lung lipids removed by the lavage was approximately 5 hours. This rate is one indication of the time required for movement of surfactant lipid from storage areas to the surface of the alveoli. The increase in tissue surfactant lipid following multiple lavage suggests that the rate of surfactant lipid synthesis is controlled in part by the level of surfactant lipid in the alveoli.     

Lipolysis of LDL with phospholipase A2 alters the expression of selected apoB-100 epitopes and the interaction of LDL with cells

To assess the effects of perturbing the surface of low density lipoprotein (LDL) on the conformation of apoB-100, LDL (d 1.030-1.050 g/ml) isolated from normal subjects were treated with phospholipase A2 (PL-A2) for 0.5 to 15 min. The resulting P-LDL and concurrent control LDL (C-LDL) incubated without PL-A2 were isolated by gel permeation chromatography. Approximately 50% of LDL-phosphatidylcholine was hydrolyzed in 2 min and approximately 85% in 5 min. Lysophosphatidylcholine compounds (LPC) and free fatty acids (FFA) accumulated during lipolysis but most of the LPC and all of FFA could be removed by adding FFA-free albumin to the lipolysis mixtures. Immunoreactivities of P-LDL and C-LDL were evaluated in competitive radioimmunoassays, using a library of anti-human LDL monoclonal antibodies directed against the major regions of apoB-100 (the T4, T3, and T2 thrombin fragments). One epitope defined by monoclonal antibody 465B6C3 and localized near the carboxyl end of the apoB-100 molecule became less immunoreactive (ED 50s increased); three other epitopes on the T2 fragment near the LDL receptor recognition site and four epitopes localized towards the middle (T3) and amino terminal (T4) regions did not change. Altered immunoreactivities were not related to LPC and FFA contents. Thus, the conformation of apoB-100 was selectively altered by phospholipolysis. The interactions of P-LDL with cultured fibroblasts were grossly altered: P-LDL were bound nonspecifically to fibroblasts of both normal and homozygous familial hypercholesterolemic subjects and P-LDL were not degraded. LPC and FFA retained in LDL did not explain these alterations, nor did changes of epitope expression near the LDL receptor recognition site. It is likely that the apoB-100 aberrant cell interaction is due to loss of surface phospholipids and "uncovering" of core lipids that react nonspecifically with cell surface components.     

Mass spectrometry of silylated flavonol O-glycosides

The electron impact mass spectra of 19 trimethyl silylated flavonol mono-, di- and -triglycosides are reported for the first time. All spectra show wel     

Cell-cycle regulation of the p53-inducible gene B99

B99 is a p53-inducible gene whose accumulation upon p53 activation is restricted to late S/G2 cells. Here we have analyzed B99 regulation during the cell cycle in murine cells with or without functional p53. We report that B99 accumulates in late S/G2 phase, is phosphorylated in mitosis, and disappears in G1 phase, regardless of the status of p53. As a complement to this observation, we show that B99 is not induced by p53 in quiescent cells. Therefore, B99 expression is modulated both by cell-cycle regulatory mechanisms and by p53, and p53 can increase the cellular levels of B99 only during the window of the cell cycle when it is normally expressed. On the basis of these observations we rename B99 Gtse-1 (G-two- and S-phase-expressed).     

Self-Reproduction of Fatty Acid Vesicles: A Combined Experimental and Simulation Study

Dilution of a fatty acid micellar solution at basic pH toward neutrality results in spontaneous formation of vesicles with a broad size distribution. However, when vesicles of a defined size are present before dilution, the size distribution of the newly formed vesicles is strongly biased toward that of the seed vesicles. This so-called matrix effect is believed to be a key feature of early life. Here we reproduced this effect for oleate micelles and seed vesicles of either oleate or dioleoylphosphatidylcholine. Fluorescence measurements showed that the vesicle contents do not leak out during the replication process. We hypothesized that the matrix effect results from vesicle fission induced by an imbalance of material across both leaflets of the vesicle upon initial insertion of fatty acids into the outer leaflet of the seed vesicle. This was supported by experiments that showed a significant increase in vesicle size when the equilibration of oleate over both leaflets was enhanced by either slowing down the rate of fatty acid addition or increasing the rate of fatty acid transbilayer movement. Coarse-grained molecular-dynamics simulations showed excellent agreement with the experimental results and provided further mechanistic details of the replication process.     

Sexually transmitted infections, bacterial vaginosis, and candidiasis in women of reproductive age in rural Northeast Brazil: a population-based study

Population-based data on sexually transmitted infections (STI), bacterial vaginosis (BV), and candidiasis reflect the epidemiological situation more accurately than studies performed in specific populations, but such data are scarce. To determine the prevalence of STI, BV, and candidiasis among women of reproductive age from a resource-poor community in Northeast Brazil, a population-based cross sectional study was undertaken. All women from seven hamlets and the centre of Pacoti municipality in the state of Ceará, aged 12 to 49 years, were invited to participate. The women were asked about socio-demographic characteristics and genital symptoms, and thereafter examined gynaecologically. Laboratory testing included polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for human papillomavirus (HPV), ligase chain reaction (LCR) for Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae, ELISA for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), venereal disease research laboratory (VDRL) and fluorescent treponema antibody absorption test (FTA-ABS) for syphilis, and analysis of wet mounts, gram stains and Pap smears for trichomoniasis, candidiasis, and BV. Only women who had initiated sexual life were included in the analysis (n = 592). The prevalences of STI were: HPV 11.7% (95% confidence interval: 9.3-14.7), chlamydia 4.5% (3.0-6.6), trichomoniasis 4.1% (2.7-6.1), gonorrhoea 1.2% (0.5-2.6), syphilis 0.2% (0.0-1.1), and HIV 0%. The prevalence of BV and candidiasis was 20% (16.9-23.6) and 12.5% (10.0-15.5), respectively. The most common gynaecological complaint was lower abdominal pain. STI are common in women in rural Brazil and represent an important health threat in view of the HIV pandemic.     

Extended bioluminescence resonance energy transfer (eBRET) for monitoring prolonged protein-protein interactions in live cells

Bioluminescence resonance energy transfer (BRET) is an increasingly popular technique for studying protein-protein interactions in live cells. It is particularly suitable for real-time monitoring of such interactions, however, the timescale over which assays can be carried out is currently relatively short (minutes) due to substrate instability. We present a new derivation of the BRET technology, termed 'extended BRET' (eBRET), which now enables protein-protein interactions to be monitored in real-time for many hours. This capability has significant benefits for investigating cellular function over extended timescales, as we have illustrated using the agonist-induced G-protein coupled receptor/beta-arrestin interaction. The potential for studying the modulation of such interactions by agonists, antagonists, inhibitors, dominant negative mutants and co-expressed accessory proteins is substantial. Furthermore, the advantages of eBRET have important implications for the development of high-throughput BRET screening systems, an ever-expanding area of interest for the pharmaceutical industry.     

Freshwater diatoms as a source of lipids for biofuels

Until recently, biodiesel production has been derived from terrestrial plants such as soybean and canola, leading to competition between biodiesel production and agricultural production for source materials. Microalgae have the potential to synthesize 30 times more oil per hectare than terrestrial plants without competing for agricultural land. We examined four genera (Cyclotella, Aulacoseira, Fragilaria, Synedra) of common freshwater diatoms (Bacillariophyceae) for growth and lipid content in defined medium (sD11) that replicates hypereutrophic conditions in lakes and wastewater treatment plant effluents and optimized the medium for silicon content. Cyclotella and Aulacoseira produced the highest levels of total lipids, 60 and 43 μg total lipids/ml, respectively. Both diatoms are rich in fatty acids C14, C16, C16:1, C16:2,7,10, and C22:5n3. Of the diatoms examined, Cyclotella reached the highest population density (>2.5 × 10⁶ cells/ml) in stationary phase when many of the cells appeared to be filled entirely with oil. Silicon enrichment studies indicated that for optimal utilization of phosphorus and nitrogen by diatoms growing in wastewater effluent, the amount of silicon present or added to the effluent should be 17.5 times the mass of phosphorus in the effluent. With high growth rates, high lipid contents, and rapid settling rates, Cyclotella and Aulacoseira are candidates for biodiesel production.