Production of aflatoxin on rice

A method has been developed for the production of aflatoxin by growing Aspergillus flavus strain NRRL 2999 on the solid substrate rice. Optimal yields, more than 1 mg of aflatoxin B₁ per g of starting material, were obtained in 5 days at 28 C. A crude product containing aflatoxins was isolated by chloroform extraction and precipitation with hexane from concentrated solutions. The crude product consisted of 50% aflatoxin in the following ratio: B₁-B₂-G₁-G₂, 100:0.15:0.22:0.02. Aflatoxin B₁ was separated from almost all the impurities and from the other aflatoxins by chromatography on silica gel with 1% ethyl alcohol in chloroform. Analytically pure aflatoxin B₁ was recrystallized from chloroform-hexane mixtures.     

中国西北沙漠夜间活动的东鳖甲属昆虫二新种(鞘翅目:拟步甲科:漠甲亚科)

记述中国西北地区东鳖甲属2新种:巴丹东鳖甲A.badainica Ba,Ren&Liu sp.nov.和古尔班东鳖甲A.gurbantunggutica Ba&Ren sp.nov.,提供了主要鉴别特征和形态图,并简要讨论了其昼夜活动规律.     

Haemosporidian Parasites of Antelopes and Other Vertebrates from Gabon,Central Africa

Re-examination, using molecular tools, of the diversity of haemosporidian parasites (among which the agents of human malaria are the best known) has generally led to rearrangements of traditional classifications. In this study, we explored the diversity of haemosporidian parasites infecting vertebrate species (particularly mammals, birds and reptiles) living in the forests of Gabon (Central Africa), by analyzing a collection of 492 bushmeat samples. We found that samples from five mammalian species (four duiker and one pangolin species), one bird and one turtle species were infected by haemosporidian parasites. In duikers (from which most of the infected specimens were obtained), we demonstrated the existence of at least two distinct parasite lineages related to Polychromophilus species (i.e., bat haemosporidian parasites) and to sauropsid Plasmodium (from birds and lizards). Molecular screening of sylvatic mosquitoes captured during a longitudinal survey revealed the presence of these haemosporidian parasite lineages also in several Anopheles species, suggesting a potential role in their transmission. Our results show that, differently from what was previously thought, several independent clades of haemosporidian parasites (family Plasmodiidae) infect mammals and are transmitted by anopheline mosquitoes.     

Molecular basis of ion permeability in a voltage‐gated sodium channel

Voltage‐gated sodium channels are essential for electrical signalling across cell membranes. They exhibit strong selectivities for sodium ions over other cations, enabling the finely tuned cascade of events associated with action potentials. This paper describes the ion permeability characteristics and the crystal structure of a prokaryotic sodium channel, showing for the first time the detailed locations of sodium ions in the selectivity filter of a sodium channel. Electrostatic calculations based on the structure are consistent with the relative cation permeability ratios (Na⁺ ≈ Li⁺ ≫ K⁺, Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺) measured for these channels. In an E178D selectivity filter mutant constructed to have altered ion selectivities, the sodium ion binding site nearest the extracellular side is missing. Unlike potassium ions in potassium channels, the sodium ions in these channels appear to be hydrated and are associated with side chains of the selectivity filter residues, rather than polypeptide backbones.     

Phosphomannomutase activity in congenital disorders of glycosylation type Ia determined by direct analysis of the interconversion of mannose-1-phosphate to mannose-6-phosphate by high-pH anion-exchange chromatography with pulsed amperometric detection

Congenital disorders of glycosylation (CDG) are a group of multisystemic disorders resulting from defects in the synthesis and processing of N-linked oligosaccharides. The most common form, CDG type Ia (CDG-Ia), results from a deficiency of the enzyme phosphomannomutase (PMM). PMM converts mannose 6-phosphate (man-6-P) to mannose-1-phosphate (man-1-P), which is required for the synthesis of GDP-mannose, a substrate for dolichol-linked oligosaccharide synthesis. The traditional assay for PMM, a coupled enzyme system based on the reduction of NADP(+) to NADPH using man-1-P as a substrate, has limitations in accuracy and reproducibility. Therefore, a more sensitive, direct test for PMM activity, based on the detection of the conversion of man-1-P to man-6-P by high-pH anion-exchange chromatography with pulsed amperometric detection (HPAEC-PAD), was developed. Using this assay, the activity of PMM was markedly deficient in fibroblasts and lymphoblasts from 23 patients with CDG-Ia (range 0-15.3% of control, average 4.9+/-4.7%) and also decreased in seven obligate heterozygotes (range 33.0-72.0% of control, average 52.2+/-14.7%). Unlike the spectrophotometric method, there was no overlap in PMM activity among patients, obligate heterozygotes, or controls. Thus, the PMM assay based on HPAEC-PAD has increased utility in the clinical setting, and can be used, together with transferrin isoelectric focusing, to diagnose patients with CDG-Ia and to identify heterozygotes when clinically indicated.     

Reciprocal and nonreciprocal recombination at the glucocerebrosidase gene region: implications for complexity in Gaucher disease

Gaucher disease results from an autosomal recessive deficiency of the lysosomal enzyme glucocerebrosidase. The glucocerebrosidase gene is located in a gene-rich region of 1q21 that contains six genes and two pseudogenes within 75 kb. The presence of contiguous, highly homologous pseudogenes for both glucocerebrosidase and metaxin at the locus increases the likelihood of DNA rearrangements in this region. These recombinations can complicate genotyping in patients with Gaucher disease and contribute to the difficulty in interpreting genotype-phenotype correlations in this disorder. In the present study, DNA samples from 240 patients with Gaucher disease were examined using several complementary approaches to identify and characterize recombinant alleles, including direct sequencing, long-template polymerase chain reaction, polymorphic microsatellite repeats, and Southern blots. Among the 480 alleles studied, 59 recombinant alleles were identified, including 34 gene conversions, 18 fusions, and 7 downstream duplications. Twenty-two percent of the patients evaluated had at least one recombinant allele. Twenty-six recombinant alleles were found among 310 alleles from patients with type 1 disease, 18 among 74 alleles from patients with type 2 disease, and 15 among 96 alleles from patients with type 3 disease. Several patients carried two recombinations or mutations on the same allele. Generally, alleles resulting from nonreciprocal recombination (gene conversion) could be distinguished from those arising by reciprocal recombination (crossover and exchange), and the length of the converted sequence was determined. Homozygosity for a recombinant allele was associated with early lethality. Ten different sites of crossover and a shared pentamer motif sequence (CACCA) that could be a hotspot for recombination were identified. These findings contribute to a better understanding of genotype-phenotype relationships in Gaucher disease and may provide insights into the mechanisms of DNA rearrangement in other disorders.     

Comparison of Isoflurane and α-Chloralose in an Anesthetized Swine Model of Acute Pulmonary Embolism Producing Right Ventricular Dysfunction

Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a leading cause of sudden cardiac death, and a model is needed for testing potential treatments. In developing a model, we compared the hemodynamic effects of isoflurane and α-chloralose in an acute swine model of PE because the choice of anesthesia will likely affect the cardiovascular responses of an animal to PE. At baseline, swine that received α-chloralose (n = 6) had a lower heart rate and cardiac output and higher SpO_2, end-tidal CO_2, and mean arterial pressure than did those given isoflurane (n = 9). After PE induction, swine given α-chloralose compared with isoflurane exhibited a lower heart rate (63 ± 10 compared with 116 ± 15 bpm) and peripheral arterial pressure (52 ± 12 compared with 61 ± 12 mm Hg); higher SpO₂ (98% ± 3% compared with 95% ± 1%), end-tidal CO₂ (35 ± 4 compared with 32 ± 5), and systolic blood pressure (121 ± 8 compared with 104 ± 20 mm Hg); and equivalent right ventricular:left ventricular ratios (1.32 ± 0.50 compared with 1.23 ± 0.19) and troponin I mean values (0.09 ± 0.07 ng/mL compared with 0.09 ± 0.06 ng/mL). Isoflurane was associated with widely variable fibrinogen and activated partial thromboplastin time. Intraexperiment mortality was 0 of 6 animals for α-chloralose and 2 of 9 swine for isoflurane. All swine anesthetized with α-chloralose survived with sustained pulmonary hypertension, RV-dilation-associated cardiac injury without the confounding vasodilatory or coagulatory effects of isoflurane. These data demonstrate the physiologic advantages of α-chloralose over isoflurane for anesthesia in a swine model of severe submassive PE.Abbreviations: LV, left ventricle; PAP, pulmonary arterial pressure; PE, pulmonary embolism; RV, right ventriclePulmonary embolism (PE) is one of the leading causes of noncardiac sudden death in Western nations and is the third most common cause of cardiovascular morbidity.^4,6,7,18 In survivors, severe PE damages the right heart, leading to a clinical course complicated by hypotension and circulatory shock, suggesting acute right heart failure in about 10% of patients and followed by persistent pulmonary hypertension or right ventricular dysfunction and dyspnea in at least 15% of patients.^{9,15,16,23,29} To test treatments to reduce right heart failure, a standardized model that is repeatable, accurate, and precise and that mimics the gross pathologic, cardiovascular, pulmonary, autonomic, hematologic, biochemical, and cellular characteristics of PE in humans with disease is needed.⁸Three lines of rationale favor domestic pigs as a model for PE. Several publications, using different methods of anesthesia, have found that swine manifest hemodynamic responses similar to those of humans in the presence of autologous PE, including elevated heart rate, decreased cardiac output, and reduced oxygen saturation.^2,12,30 Swine have similar platelet concentrations, and their coagulation profile on thromboelastography has been shown to be similar to humans, with the exception of higher fibrin crosslinking but less fibrin, leading to resistance to plasmin.^5,11,19,34 Market swine, which would otherwise be destined for slaughter, are relatively cost effective compared with other large animals and are of sufficient size for placement of an adult pulmonary arterial catheter for measurement of pulmonary vascular resistance in a closed-chest preparation.In view of the differences in the hemodynamic effects of different anesthetic agents, the choice of anesthesia will likely affect the cardiovascular responses of an animal to PE. However, current literature lacks a methodologic publication that compares the cardiovascular, right ventricular, pulmonary, and hematologic responses to PE in closed-chest swine models incorporating different anesthetic regimens.Figure 1 presents features of an ideal animal model for the purpose of testing treatments for PE. To develop a swine model of PE that closely resembles this physiologic ideal model, we induced PE in swine maintained in a surgical plane of anesthesia with either isoflurane or α-chloralose. Each of these agents has potential advantages and disadvantages. Isoflurane can be titrated minute by minute but causes undesirable vasodilation, whereas α-chloralose is believed to preserve cardiovascular reflexes but requires heating to dissolve and continuous infusion or repeated boluses.^26,35 We hypothesized that, compared with isoflurane, α-chloralose would meet more of the features described in Figure 1.Open in a separate windowFigure 1.Desirable features of large animal model of severe submassive PE designed for translational research.