Prophylactic and curative effects of Bacopa monniera in gastric ulcer models.

Bacopa monniera Wettst. (BM, syn. Herpestis monniera L; Scrophulariaceae), is an Ayurvedic drug used as a rasayana. Its fresh juice was earlier reported to have significant antiulcerogenic activity. In continuation, methanolic extract of BM (BME) standardized to bacoside-A content (percentage-38.0 ± 0.9), when given in the dose of 10–50 mg/kg, twice daily for 5 days, showed dose-dependent anti-ulcerogenic on various gastric ulcer models induced by ethanol, aspirin, 2 h cold restraint stress and 4 h pylorus ligation. BME in the dose of 20 mg/kg, given for 10 days, twice daily showed healing effects against 50% acetic acid-induced gastric ulcers. Further work was done to investigate the possible mechanisms of its action by studying its effect on various mucosal offensive acid-pepsin secretion and defensive factors like mucin secretion, mucosal cell shedding, cell proliferation and antioxidant activity in rats. BME 20 mg/kg showed no effect on acid-pepsin secretion, increased mucin secretion, while it decreased cell shedding with no effect on cell proliferation. BME showed significant antioxidant effect per se and in stressed animals. Thus, the gastric prophylactic and curative effects of BME may be due to its predominant effect on mucosal defensive factors.     

Heliothrix oregonensis,gen. nov., sp. nov., a phototrophic filamentous gliding bacterium containing bacteriochlorophyll a

An unusual filamentous, gliding bacterium was found in a few hot springs in Oregon where it formed a nearly unispecific top layer of microbial mats. It contained a bacteriochlorophyll a-like pigment and an abundance of carotenoids. There were no chlorosomes or additional chlorophylls. The organism was aerotolerant and appeared to be photoheterotrophic. It was successfully co-cultured with an aerobic chemoheterotroph in a medium containing glucose and casamino acids. Although it has many characteristics in common with the genus Chloroflexus, the lack of chlorosomes and bacteriochlorophyll c and the aerobic nature of this organism indicate that it should be placed in a new genus. This conclusion is supported by 5S rRNA nucleotide sequence data.     

Synthèse Facile de Pyrazines Disubstituées en 2 et 31)

Corynebacterium equi IFO 3730 was found to oxidize a wide variety of sec-alcohols, including alkanols, substituted alkanols, alkenols and cyclic alcohols, in moderate to high yields. Among them, the sec-alcohols which have longer carbon chains were oxidized more smoothly than those with smaller numbers of carbon. Although both enantiomers of unsymmetrically disubstituted carbinols were oxidized, the S form of 2-dodecanol was converted to the corresponding ketone a little faster than the other enantiomer.     

Effects of Organic Solvents on the Coupling Between ATP Hydrolysis and Sliding of Microtubules in Axonemes from Chlamydomonas Flagella

ABSTRACT. The effects of organic solvents on the ATPase activity and the sliding disintegration of axonemes from Chlamydomonas were investigated. The axonemal ATPase was markedly activated by methanol accompanying with marked inhibition of the sliding disintegration of axonemes. On the contrary, glycerol inhibited the ATPase activity without serious inhibition of the sliding disintegration. As far as the axonemes are not irreversibly denatured by extremely high concentration of solvents, the effects of solvents both on the ATPase and the ability of sliding are reversible. Therefore, the inhibition of sliding accompanied by the activation of ATPase is probably due to an inability to couple the hydrolysis of ATP to sliding between dynein and microtubule in the presence of methanol. The axonemal ATPase was less sensitive to vanadate inhibition after exposure to methanol. This indicates that methanol makes the dyneinADP.Pi complex unstable and increases product release. On the other hand, glycerol and ethylene glycol seem to stabilize the force generation responsible for the sliding through stabilizing the dynein.ADP.Pi complex.     

Up- and down-regulation of membrane receptors as possible mechanisms related to the antiulcer actions of milk in rat gastric mucosa

The effects of a cow's milk diet on receptor activity and histamine metabolism in gastric glands and mucosa isolated from adult rats were examined. The milk diet was associated with (1) a decreased mobilization of H₂ receptors by histamine and (2) an increased mobilization of PGE₂ (prostaglandin E₂) receptors in mucous cells (cytoprotective effect) and parietal cells (antiacid effect). These changes are not observed for the receptors reducing pentagastrin- and histamine-induced gastric acid secretion (pancreatic/enteroglucagons, somatostatin) and stimulating mucus, bicarbonate and pepsin secretions in the rat (secretin). Cimetidine produced a parallel displacement of the histamine dose-response curve, suggesting competitive inhibition between this classical H₂ receptor antagonist and histamine in the two experimental groups. Prostaglandins and other components in milk such as EGF (epidermal growth factor) and somatostatin might therefore protect gastric mucosa by a differential control of PGE₂ and histamine H₂ receptor activity eitherdirectly (PGE₂ in milk) orindirectly (inhibition of endogeneous histamine synthesis/release and stimulation of PGE-I synthesis/release).     

A Chronobiologic Approach to Ethanol and Acidified Aspirin Injury of the Gastric Mucosa in the Rat

Several models of erosive peptic disease have used drug-induced lesions to examine protective mechanisms of the gastric mucosa. Physiological processes such as acid secretion, motility, or epithelial cell turnover have circadian rhythms which may modulate the susceptibility of the gastric mucosa to injury. In this review are described recent studies which demonstrated that susceptibility to gastric mucosal injury by acidified aspirin and absolute ethanol varied with the phases of the light-dark cycle. Acidified aspirin caused significantly more gastric mucosal lesions when administered early in the light phase compared to administration early in the dark phase. The differences in susceptibility were not altered by pretreatment conditions such as immobilization or length of the fasting period. Absolute ethanol also caused significantly greater gastric mucosal injury when administered in the light than in the dark phase, but this difference was only evident in rats immobilized during the pretreatment fasting period. Further studies are needed to correlate circadian susceptibility to drug-induced gastric mucosal injury with physiological defense mechanisms. Careful attention to circadian timekeeping may allow us to refine therapy to optimize physiological defense mechanisms in the stomach.     

Development and Significance of Cysteamine and Propionitrile Models of Duodenal Ulcer

Cysteamine is widely used in rodents to induce duodenal ulcer. Herein, the pathogenesis of duodenal ulceration in its earliest stages was reviewed using findings from cysteamine-and propionitrile-induced duodenal ulcer in rodent models, especially taking into account changes in the secretion of gastric acid, duodenal and pancreatic bicarbonate as well asgastroduodenal motility. The effect of cysteamine-HCl in inducing ulcers in rats is circadian rhythm-dependent. The effect is greatest from just before the end of diurnal rest to just after the start of nocturnal activity. The chronobiologic effect may be in part due to the circadian rhythm-dependent increased gastric acid production from cysteamine. Titratable acidity was found to be twice as great in the gastric juice of rodents when cysteamine was given by injection at 2000 (just after the start of nocturnal activity) in comparison to when given at 0800 or 1200 (at the beginning or middle span of daily rest). Further studies have shown that adrenalectomy of rats 7 days before cysteamine administration obliterated the observed circadian susceptibility to ulcer formation. Duodenal ulceration, at least in the cysteamine model, appears to be under chronobiologic neuroendocrine control or influence, seemingly mediated by the adrenal glands.     

促胰液素对血管灌流大鼠离体胃运动的抑制作用

本工作采用血管灌流大鼠离体胃制备,探讨促胰液素对胃运动的影响。结果表明:(1)促胰液素能明显抑制胃窦自发和五肽胃泌素兴奋的胃运动;(2)抗促胰液素血清可完全取消促胰液素的抑制胃窦运动作用;(3)抗生长抑素血清和消炎痛都能阻断促胰液素的抑制胃窦运动作用。上述结果提示,促胰液素的抑制作用除通过直接作用于促胰液素受体外,还可能部分通过胃窦局部生长抑素和前列腺素介导来抑制胃的运动。