Antidiabetic and Anticoagulant Properties of Heparin–Glutamic Acid Complex

Natural heparin complexes proved to activate the anticoagulation system. The obtained experimental data convincingly confirm that glutamic acid alone, and particularly in a complex with heparin, has a considerable preventive potential and efficiently protects experimental animals with induced diabetes mellitus.     

A new role for PGRP-S (Tag7) in immune defense: lymphocyte migration is induced by a chemoattractant complex of Tag7 with Mts1

PGRP-S (Tag7) is an innate immunity protein involved in the antimicrobial defense systems, both in insects and in mammals. We have previously shown that Tag7 specifically interacts with several proteins, including Hsp70 and the calcium binding protein S100A4 (Mts1), providing a number of novel cellular functions. Here we show that Tag7–Mts1 complex causes chemotactic migration of lymphocytes, with NK cells being a preferred target. Cells of either innate immunity (neutrophils and monocytes) or acquired immunity (CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ lymphocytes) can produce this complex, which confirms the close connection between components of the 2 branches of immune response.     

In a comfort zone and beyond—Ecological plasticity of key marine mediators

Copepods of the genus Calanus are the key components of zooplankton. Understanding their response to a changing climate is crucial to predict the functioning of future warmer high‐latitude ecosystems. Although specific Calanus species are morphologically very similar, they have different life strategies and roles in ecosystems. In this study, C. finmarchicus and C. glacialis were thoroughly studied with regard to their plasticity in morphology and ecology both in their preferred original water mass (Atlantic vs. Arctic side of the Polar Front) and in suboptimal conditions (due to, e.g., temperature, turbidity, and competition in Hornsund fjord). Our observations show that “at the same place and time,” both species can reach different sizes, take on different pigmentation, be in different states of population development, utilize different reproductive versus lipid accumulation strategies, and thrive on different foods. Size was proven to be a very mutable morphological trait, especially with regard to reduced length of C. glacialis. Both species exhibited pronounced red pigmentation when inhabiting their preferred water mass. In other domains, C. finmarchicus individuals tended to be paler than C. glacialis individuals. Gonad maturation and population development indicated mixed reproductive strategies, although a surprisingly similar population age structure of the two co‐occurring species in the fjord was observed. Lipid accumulation was high and not species‐specific, and its variability was due to diet differences of the populations. According to the stable isotope composition, both species had a more herbivorous diatom‐based diet in their original water masses. While the diet of C. glacialis was rather consistent among the domains studied, C. finmarchicus exhibited much higher variability in its feeding history (based on lipid composition). Our results show that the plasticity of both Calanus species is indeed impressive and may be regulated differently, depending on whether they live in their “comfort zone” or beyond it.     

Interferon-inducing action of polysaccharide-containing biopolymers from ginseng root and cell culture]

Induction of interferon (IF) and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) under the action of two polysaccharide preparations of ginseng i.e. panaxan-1 (from ginseng root) and panaxan-2 (from ginseng cell culture) was studied. Both the preparations induced production of TNF and IF in human leukocytes. By its properties and the typing results the induced IF proved to be gamma-IF. The preparation from the ginseng cell culture in the doses used had a higher IF inducing activity which could be explained by the difference in the polysaccharide composition of the preparations.     

On mechanisms of fluorescence quenching by water

Mechanisms of fluorescence quenching of aromatic chromophores by water are reviewed. The mechanisms include polarity of chromophore environment, proton or electron transfer between the excited chromophore and water. A hypothesis is proposed that the quenching can be a result of chromophore-solvent hydrogen bond breaking in the excited state.     

Hydrodynamic properties of cyclodextrin molecules in dilute solutions

Three well-known representatives of the cyclodextrin family were completely characterized by molecular hydrodynamics methods in three different solvents. For the first time the possibility of an estimation of velocity sedimentation coefficients s between 0.15 and 0.5 S by the numerical solution of the Lamm equation is shown. Comparison of the experimental hydrodynamic characteristics of the cyclodextrins with theoretical calculations for toroidal molecules allows an estimation of the thickness of the solvent layers on the surface of cyclodextrin molecules.     

Morphofunctional Features of Two Types of Phagocytes in the Holothurian Еupentacta fraudatrix (Djakonov et Baranova, 1958)

Journal of Evolutionary Biochemistry and Physiology - Phagocytes of the Far Eastern holothurian Eupentacta fraudatrix are separated by gradient centrifugation into two fractions (P1 and P2...