Effect of bile diversion and sphincterotomy on gallbladder muscle contractility and gallstone formation

Feeding prairie dogs a diet rich in cholesterol induces gallstone formation that is preceded by a sustained decrease in gallbladder smooth muscle contractility. Sphincterotomy is known to prevent gallstone formation in cholesterol-fed prairie dogs. Experiments were designed to determine whether the effect of sphincterotomy is a consequence of hepatic bile diversion, and whether bile diversion prevents the altered contractility. Following sham operation, surgical biliary enteric bypass, or sphincterotomy, prairie dogs were fed a high-cholesterol or a regular diet. Gallbladder muscle contractility and the presence of crystals and stones were determined. In sham-operated animals, the cholesterol diet induced a decrease in gallbladder muscle contractility and caused the formation of cholesterol gallstones. In animals with bile diversion and sphincterotomy, the effects of cholesterol feeding were reduced or prevented. Thus, these procedures may prevent stone formation by preventing a reduction in gallbladder contractility. Contractility was depressed in animals with bile diversion fed a regular diet, compared with animals with a sham operation fed a regular diet. The mechanism for this depression may differ from that induced by the cholesterol diet. Diversion, and perhaps sphincterotomy, impairs gallbladder filling. Thus, gallbladder muscle is not stretched and does not contract against a load. This could result in a "disuse atrophy." If the results from our study apply to humans, sphincterotomy may reduce stone formation by preventing the effects of lithogenic bile on gallbladder muscle contractility and by enhancing the ability of the muscle to empty the lithogenic bile.

Use of a modified Ussing chamber to monitor intestinal epithelial and smooth muscle functions

A technique that allows the simultaneous monitoring of epithelial and smooth muscle function was developed and used to study rat small intestine in vitro. A Ussing chamber was modified so that a strain gauge force transducer could be sewn to the serosal surface of an intestinal segment clamped in the chamber. The apparatus was used to monitor short-circuit current, potential difference, and resistance across the segment, and contractions of the longitudinal layer of the muscularis externa. Both spontaneous activity and responses to the application of carbachol were recorded. Carbachol applied to the serosal side induced dose-dependent increases in both short-circuit current and contractile force. The median effective doses of the two responses differed, with contractions being more sensitive to the drug. Carbachol applied to the mucosal side induced no changes in either epithelial or contractile activities. The ability of the serosal strain gauge transducer to monitor contractions faithfully was tested in an organ bath in which the gut segment was attached to an external force-displacement transducer. There was a close correlation between the dose-dependent increase in force in response to carbachol measured by the serosal transducer and that measured by the force-displacement transducer (r = 0.988). Thus our technique can be used to study simultaneously epithelial and smooth muscle functions of the intestine.

Active site of DNA photolyase: tryptophan-306 is the intrinsic hydrogen atom donor essential for flavin radical photoreduction and DNA repair in vitro

DNA photolyases repair cyclobutadipyrimidines (Pyr()Pyr) in DNA by photoinduced electron transfer. The enzyme isolated from Escherichia coli contains methenyltetrahydrofolate (MTHF), which functions as photoantenna, and FADH2, which is the redox-active cofactor. During purification, FADH2 is oxidized to the blue neutral radical form, FADH., which has greatly diminished activity. Previous nanosecond flash photolysis studies [Heelis, P.F., Okamura, T., & Sancar, A. (1990) Biochemistry 29, 5694-5698] indicated that excitation of FADH. either directly by absorbing a photon or indirectly by electronic energy transfer from MTHF excited singlet state yielded an FADH. quartet which abstracted a hydrogen atom from a nearby tryptophan to generate the catalytically competent FADH2 from of the enzyme. Using site-directed mutagenesis, we replaced all 15 photolyase tryptophan residues by phenylalanine, individually, in order to identify the internal hydrogen atom donor responsible for photoreduction. We found that W306F mutation abolished photoreduction of FADH. without affecting the excited-state properties of FADH. or the substrate binding (KA approximately 10(9) M-1) of the enzyme. The specificity constant (kcat/km) was approximately 0 for the mutant enzyme in the absence of reducing agents in the reaction mixture, indicating that photoreduction of FADH. is an essential step for photorepair by photolyase in vitro. Chemical reduction of FADH. of the mutant enzyme restored the specificity constant to the wild-type level.

Hypothesis for the evolutionary origin of the chloroplast ribosomal protein L21 of spinach

A full size cDNA clone encoding the chloroplast ribosomal protein L21 from spinach is presented. The identity of the clone and the location of the transit peptide processing site were determined by comparison with the N-terminal amino acid sequence of the spinach chloroplast protein CS-L7 previously identified. L21 r-protein sequences from spinach, Marchantia polymorpha and Escherichia coli are compared. Quite surprisingly, the data do not suggest that the rpl21 nuclear gene from spinach was derived through intracellular gene transfer from the chloroplast genome. The possibility of a mitochondrial origin for rpl21 gene of spinach is discussed.

Biliary and gut function following shock

The aim of this study was to characterize the alterations in gallbladder and intestinal function after hemorrhagic shock and blood reperfusion in opossums. Animals were subjected to a shock of 30 mm Hg of arterial blood pressure for 60 minutes and resuscitated with blood reinfusion. Gallbladder epithelial ion transport, gallbladder motility in vitro and in vivo, gastrointestinal motility, and flora of the stomach and small bowel were studied 2 and 24 hours after shock. Changes at 2 hours included decreased gallbladder contractility in vitro and decreased emptying in vivo, loss of coordination with intestinal motor activity, decrease in frequency of intestinal electrical slow waves, and reduced duration of the intestinal migrating motor complex cycle. By 24 hours, gallbladder epithelial permeability was increased and in vitro contractility remained reduced but the in vivo functions showed partial recovery. Gastrointestinal flora was not affected by these changes. These data demonstrate that hemorrhagic shock and reperfusion affect digestive motility. The early timing of the alterations observed and the partial recovery 24 hours post shock suggest an ischemia-hypoxia mechanism of injury.

Actin and myosin isoforms in gallbladder smooth muscle following cholesterol feeding in prairie dogs

Gallbladder smooth muscle contractility decreases after high-cholesterol feeding in prairie dogs. This decrease is not associated with alterations in the total amounts of the contractile proteins actin and myosin. The present study was designed to determine if cholesterol feeding results in alterations in the isoforms of actin and/or myosin heavy chain in gallbladder smooth muscle. Control prairie dogs were fed a trace-cholesterol diet and test animals were fed a high (1.2%)-cholesterol diet for 8 days. Although the proportion of beta-actin was unchanged, the proportion of alpha-actin in the gallbladder was less in the animals fed the high-cholesterol diet (32.6% +/- 1.5% in the control animals and 24.6% +/- 0.4% in the diet animals). On the other hand, the proportion of gamma-actin was significantly greater in the cholesterol-fed animals. There were no significant differences in the proportions of the myosin heavy-chain isoforms between the two groups. Also, there was no change in the volume fraction of smooth muscle in the gallbladders from the two groups. Thus, cholesterol feeding induces a shift in actin isoforms at the same time that there is a decrease in contractility. Whether the altered pattern of actin isoforms is related to the functional changes remains to be determined.

Active site of Escherichia coli DNA photolyase: mutations at Trp277 alter the selectivity of the enzyme without affecting the quantum yield of photorepair

Escherichia coli DNA photolyase repairs pyrimidine dimers by a photoinduced electron-transfer reaction. The enzyme binds to UV-damaged DNA independent of light (the dark reaction) and upon absorbing a 300-500-nm photon breaks the cyclobutane ring of the dimer (the light reaction) and thus restores the DNA. No structural information on the enzyme is available at present. However, comparison of the sequences of photolyases from five different organisms has identified highly conserved regions of homology. These regions are presumably involved in chromophore (flavin and folate) and substrate binding or catalysis. Trp277 (W277) in E. coli photolyase is conserved in all photolyases sequenced to date. We replaced this residue with Arg, Glu, Gln, His, and Phe by site-specific mutagenesis. Properties of the mutant proteins indicate that W277 is involved in binding to DNA but not in chromophore binding or catalysis. Of particular significance is the finding that compared to wild type W277R and W277E mutants have about 300- and 1000-fold lower affinity, respectively, for substrate but were indistinguishable from wild-type enzyme in their photochemical and photocatalytic properties.

Ultrastructural study of hepatitis B virus in biliary epithelial cells of duck liver

Liver specimens from the Shanghai Ma ducks congenitally infected with duck hepatitis B virus (DHBV) were examined by immunohistochemical technique and electron microscopy. All the 12 serum DHBV positive ducks showed varying degrees of positive straining in hepatocytes. In 8 of the 12 ducks, DHBV antigen was discovered in the cytoplasm of biliary epithelial cells. Conventional electron microscopy revealed two kinds of virus particles in the biliary epithelial cells: 1. the incomplete virus, 40-50 nm in diameter and spherical in shape with an outer membrane, located mainly in the dilated cisternae of rough endoplasmic reticulum of the cells in large amounts; 2. the complete virions, 55-60 nm in diameter, were spherical with an outer membrane and located mainly in the cytoplasmic vesicles in small amount. We believe the particles found in the biliary epithelial cells in this study were DHBV particles. It is most likely that the infection and replication of DHBV not only take place in the liver cells but also in the biliary epithelial cells.

The effects of lithogenic bile on gallbladder epithelium

Prairie dogs were fed a 1.2% cholesterol diet for up to 24 weeks to evaluate the effects of lithogenic bile on the mucosa of the gallbladder. There was a progressive increase in the lithogenic index of the gallbladder bile (1.44 +/- 0.15 at 4 weeks, p less than 0.05). Fifty-five of 70 animals developed gallstones between the second and fourth week. Increasing stone burden was associated with a 27% (p less than 0.05) decrease in the electrical resistance of the epithelium and a 60% (p less than 0.05) decrease in net sodium transport when measured isotopically in an Ussing chamber (3 weeks). After 4 months, seven of ten animals developed inflammatory mucosal polyps characterized by a heavy infiltration of plasma cells into an expanded matrix. Cellular infiltration began as early as 2 weeks. These changes occurred without alterations in the ultrastructural appearance of the epithelium.

[Differences in length and weight growth patterns between urban and rural infants]

Mixed longitudinal data of length and weight growth from 595 rural and 337 urban infants were analysed. Count models were fitted to the means of length and weight in different ages, sexes and feedings separately. The curve fitting to the data was rather satisfactory. Comparison of model parameters between urban and rural infants suggested that rural infants had a higher length level at birth but lower accelerative growth afterwards than urban ones, which was even more obvious in breast-fed infants. The difference in birth weight between them was not significant; and the urban infants had a faster linear growth velocity than rural ones. These results might be caused by the fact that food supplementing in urban infants was significantly earlier and better than in rural ones.

[A study of the effect of pathologic factors on the TcBM readings]

Three hundred twenty two transcutaneous bilirubin measurements (TcBM) were performed in 124 Chinese newborns with hyperbilirubinemia and jaundice in evidence. The effect of pathologic factors on the relationship between TcBM readings and total serum bilirubin (SB) levels was analyzed by multiple regression. The results of regression showed that the relationship between TcBM readings and total SB levels was affected by anemia, phototherapy, ABO and Ph hemolytic disease, and premature. Multiple stepwise regression showed that, after adjusting for each other, anemia, phototherapy and Rh hemolytic disease were the significant factors affecting the relationship between the TcBM readings and total SB levels. A practical multiple regression equation for estimation of total SB levels through TcBM readings considering the significant pathologic factors was suggested.

The components of the plastid ribosome are not accumulated synchronously during the early development of spinach plants

The expression of components of the 70S plastid ribosome has been determined during the first 13 days of spinach plant development. Total cellular RNA and proteins were used to determine the relative steady-state levels of mRNA for ribosomal proteins (r-proteins) by dot blot hybridization and the relative amounts of proteins by immunodetection with specific antibodies. The 16S rRNA as well as mRNAs for 9 out of 11 proteins studied, including those for the 32 kDa polypeptide of photosystem II and the large subunit (LSU) of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase (Rubisco) show a marked increase at the beginning of the germination (day 5). At this time the plastid DNA content increases from 4% to 6% of total DNA content and so the plastome copy number can only in part account for the important increase in mRNA steady-state levels. Interestingly the transcripts of the rpl23 and rps19 genes show a different accumulation pattern, indicating either a differential gene transcription and/or an increased stability of the transcripts. In the western blot analysis a group of r-proteins can be detected in dry seeds or after 24 hours of imbibition while a second group of proteins accumulates after 3 to 5 days of development. The differential accumulation pattern of r-proteins and mRNA for r-proteins indicates that post-transcriptional control plays an important role in plastid r-protein synthesis.

Evidence for embryotoxicity of gossypol in mice and chicks with no evidence of mutagenic activity in the Ames test

Effects of gossypol treatment were studied in pregnant mice and chick embryos. Pregnant Balb C mice were treated orally with 60 or 120 mg/kg of gossypol acetic acid on days 6-13 of pregnancy and killed on day 18. The uteri were removed, the number of resorptions and late fetal deaths were recorded, and the fetuses were weighed and assessed for malformations. Fertilized hen eggs were injected with 0.25 mg gossypol/egg at 24, 48, 72, or 96 h of incubation. The embryos were examined at day 9 of incubation. The mutagenic potential of gossypol was determined by the Ames test. Treatment of mice with gossypol produced significant adverse effects on the dam and offspring including decreased pregnancy weight gain of the dam and growth retardation of the offspring. There were increased resorptions and late fetal deaths in mice and high mortality in chick embryos. Exencephalic fetuses were observed in one of four litters exposed to the higher dose of gossypol, micromelia was observed in one of 26 chick embryos treated at 24 h, and gastroschisis was observed in one of 21 chick embryos treated at 72 h. No malformations were observed in the controls. The number of revertants per plate in the gossypol treatment group (100 or 500 mg gossypol/plate) did not differ significantly from that of control. This study provides evidence that gossypol has embryotoxic and possibly teratogenic activity in mouse and chick embryos but no mutagenic activity according to the Ames assay.

Specificity of alkaline elastase Bacillus on the oxidized insulin A- and B-chains

The substrate specificity of alkaline elastase Bacillus from alkalophilic Bacillus sp. Ya-B was investigated using oxidized insulin A- and B-chains. Under time-limited cleavage, the initial cleavage site of the enzyme on the oxidized insulin A-chain and B-chain was at the leucine13-tyrosine14 bond and the leucine15-tyrosine16 bond, respectively. When the cleavage was completed, three major cleavage sites and three minor cleavage sites on the A-chain, and five major cleavage sites and four minor cleavage sites on the B-chain were found. However, most of the peptides produced after complete hydrolysis of the A- or B-chain by the enzyme were composed of four to six amino acid residues. The results suggest that this enzyme cleaves the oxidized insulin A- and B-chains in a block-cutting manner.

The effect of preoperative internal and external biliary drainage on mortality of jaundiced rats

Mortality following abdominal infection induced by cecal ligation and puncture was studied in rats with obstructive jaundice and after relief of the obstruction by preoperative internal or external biliary drainage. Four groups of adult Sprague-Dawley rats were used: common bile duct ligation (BDL), BDL followed by internal drainage after two weeks, BDL followed by external drainage after two weeks, and sham operation. The serum bilirubin concentration was significantly increased in the BDL group and returned to normal following internal and external drainage. Mortality in the sham group was 16.5% and increased to 83.3% following BDL, but it decreased significantly (25%) to near-normal values after preoperative internal drainage. However, after external drainage no significant reduction in mortality (63%) was found. These findings confirm the poor results of preoperative external drainage in previous studies and establish the efficacy of internal biliary drainage in a well-controlled experimental model that has to be evaluated in the clinical situation.

Calcium-induced contraction and contractile protein of gallbladder smooth muscle after high-cholesterol feeding of prairie dogs

Feeding a high-cholesterol diet to prairie dogs causes a reduction in contractile responses of gallbladder smooth muscle from these animals. In this study, the influence of cholesterol feeding on the contractile response to calcium and on the concentration of the contractile proteins actin and myosin was determined. Strips of gallbladder smooth muscle, at their optimal length for tension development, were stimulated maximally with carbachol. Then the muscle cell membranes were made permeable and strips were exposed to a maximally effective concentration of calcium. Strips from cholesterol fed animals developed less stress than those from control animals under all conditions. The concentration of actin and myosin was determined by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. There were no differences in the concentrations of either protein between the cholesterol-fed and control animals. Our results indicate that the decreased contractile response seen in muscle from cholesterol-fed animals is not due to alterations in membrane excitation, excitation-contraction coupling, or in total contractile proteins.

Characteristic autofluorescence for cancer diagnosis and its origin

The autofluorescence spectra of human tissues excited with the 365-nm line of pulsed xenon ion laser have been measured. The autofluorescence spectra of cancer tissues usually show characteristic peaks near 630 nm and 690 nm, which do not appear in the spectra of the corresponding normal tissues. This characteristic fluorescence can be taken as a criterion for cancer diagnosis; a consistency of 89% with the traditional biopsy method has been obtained in preliminary clinical application to the diagnosis of buccal carcinoma. Spectroscopic investigations suggest that the porphyrin compounds localized and retained in cancer tissues might be responsible for this characteristic autofluorescence.

Gallbladder contractility and mucus secretion after cholesterol feeding in the prairie dog

The purpose of our study was to evaluate changes in gallbladder contractility and mucus secretion in vitro during the early stages of gallstone formation in prairie dogs. Thirty-two animals were divided into five groups. Control animals were fed a trace cholesterol diet. Experimental animals were fed a high-cholesterol diet for 3, 6, 8, and 14 days, respectively. Muscle stress was measured in response to cholecystokinin octapeptide in each of the groups. The maximal stresses in the 8-day diet (68 +/- 7 gm/cm2) (mean +/- SEM) and 14-day diet animals (83 +/- 7 gm/cm2) were found to be significantly lower than those of the control animals (137 +/- 12 gm/cm2). The stress in 3-day diet animals was significantly greater (224 +/- 23 gm/cm2). A significant increase in mucus secretion was observed only in 14-day diet animals (11.0 +/- 0.5 X 10(6) dpm/gm dry wt) compared with the control animals (6.4 +/- 1.0 X 10(6) dpm/gm). The decrease in contractility may be the initial event in cholesterol stone formation, and the prolonged exposure of the gallbladder epithelium to crystals may stimulate the release of mucus into the bile.

Influence of autonomic drugs on the motility of the sphincter of Oddi in the opossum

We have evaluated the effect of various autonomic drugs on the electromyographic activity of the sphincter of Oddi and the small intestine of seven opossums. Hexamethonium bromide and atropine sulfate abolished and bethanechol increased the frequency of spike bursts in the sphincter of Oddi and duodenum. Phenylephrine and epinephrine increased the number of spike bursts in the sphincter of Oddi after a short period of stimulation. No spike potentials were seen in the duodenum after infusion of norepinephrine. Clonidine and dobutamine decreased spike burst activity in the sphincter of Oddi and duodenum. Terbutaline also decreased the frequency of spike bursts in the sphincter of Oddi but did not change the number in the duodenum. Prior infusion of antagonists blocked partially or totally the effect of all respective agonists except for yohimbine, which did not inhibit the effect of clonidine. These findings suggest that the sphincter of Oddi may have cholinergic, alpha 1, alpha 1, beta 1 and beta 2-adrenergic receptors. Cholinergic agonists stimulate and alpha 2, beta 1 and beta 2-adrenergic agonists inhibit the motility of the sphincter of Oddi and the small intestine. Alpha-adrenergic agonists stimulate the motility of the sphincter of Oddi and inhibit the motility of the small intestine.

Gastrointestinal motility following small bowel obstruction in the opossum

The motility of the gastrointestinal tract of six opossums with total and four with partial small bowel obstruction was evaluated. Following the establishment of small bowel obstruction, the migrating myoelectric complex was substituted by a new pattern which was characterized by periods of intense spike activity interspersed with quiescent periods. In the experiments with total intestinal obstruction, the frequency and duration of the periods of intense spike activity were related to the recording site and the time after establishment of intestinal obstruction. The frequency of spike bursts in the ileum proximal and distal to the obstruction was the greatest in the first 2 days after the establishment of the obstruction, while in the antrum and proximal small bowel, the frequency of bursts of spike potentials increased gradually from the first to the fourth postobstruction day (P less than 0.01). However, there was no change in the frequency, duration, and localization of periods of intense spike activity during the 5 days following the establishment of partial intestinal obstruction. We concluded that following intestinal obstruction, the migrating myoelectric complex is substituted by a myoelectric pattern that is characterized by periods of intense spike activity interspersed with quiescent periods. In the animals with total intestinal obstruction, the periods of increased motility are initially more frequent in the bowel proximal and distal to the obstruction and afterwards in the stomach and upper small bowel.