Progressive wild-type transthyretin deposition after liver transplantation preferentially occurs onto myocardium in FAP patients

To elucidate whether progressive wild-type transthyretin (TTR) deposition can actually occur after liver transplantation (LT), amyloid fibrils were investigated in two familial amyloid polyneuropathy patients with TTR Val30Leu variant, who died 1 year after LT. Amyloid fibrils were extracted from cardiac muscles, sciatic nerves and kidney, which were investigated by the immunoprecipitation-mass spectrometry method and liquid chromatography-ion trap mass spectrometry analysis. The ratio of wild-type to variant TTR in cardiac muscle was approximately 5:5 before LT, but greatly increased to about 9:1 after transplantation. The ratios in sciatic nerves and kidney obtained at autopsy were approximately 5:5. Wild-type TTR was undetectable in kidney amyloid obtained before LT. Our results indicate that paradoxical wild-type TTR deposition after LT can preferentially occur in myocardium, leading to fatal cardiac dysfunction, but it is quite likely that this phenomenon can also occur in other visceral organs.

Experimental Salmonellosis VI. In Vitro Transfer of Cellular Immunity of Mouse Mononuclear Phagocytes

Saito, Kazuko (Gunma University, Maebashi, Japan), and Susumu Mitsuhashi. Experimental salmonellosis. VI. In vitro transfer of cellular immunity of mouse mononuclear phagocytes. J. Bacteriol. 90:629-634. 1965.-A culture medium of the mononuclear phagocytes (monocytes) of mice immunized with live vaccine of Salmonella enteritidis contains the transfer agent (TA) of cellular immunity from immune to non-immune monocytes. The TA is of ribonucleic acid nature, is nondialyzable through cellophane, and maintains its active state for 3 months in a frozen state (-10 C) and for 24 hr at 37 C.

Enzymatic inactivation of a new aminoglycoside antibiotic, sisomicin by resistant strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa

The antibacterial activity of sisomicin (SS), a new aminoglycoside antibiotic active toward clinical isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, was determined and compared with that of the gentamicin C complex. Both drugs were effective against these strains and showed almost the same antibacterial activity. A few strains were found to be resistant to SS. The antibiotic was inactivated by a cell-free extract from the SS-resistant strains due to acetylation of the drug. Comparative studies of the inactivation of the drugs which lack a 6'-amino group in the amino sugar linked to 2-deoxystreptamine strongly suggested that SS inactivation was due to acetylation of the 6'-amino group of the 4',5'-didehydropurpurosamine moiety.

Demonstration of R factors from Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Sixty strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa were selected from our clinical stock cultures and used as donors of drug resistance to examine the presence of R factors. They were highly resistant to one or more of six drugs including tetracycline (TC), chloramphenicol (CM), streptomycin (SM), sulfanilamide (SA), carbenicillin (CPC), and kanamycin (KM). Three FP(-), auxotrophic mutants of P. aeruginosa were used as recipients, which had been made resistant to either rifampin (RMP) or KM by in vitro mutation. Each donor was mated with each of the three recipients, and 45 strains were found to transfer their resistance to one or more recipients. A second series of conjugation experiments using 45 exconjugants as donors showed that 23 could transfer their resistance. We conclude that these strains carry R factors that are transmissible to one or more recipients. Eleven carried resistance to (TC.CM.SM.SA.CPC), nine to (TC.CM.SM.SA), one to (TC.CM.SA.CPC), one to (TC.CM.SA), and one to (SM). All of these R factors could not be transmitted to other species belonging to the family Enterobacteriaceae.

A gene homologous to beta-type carbonic anhydrase is essential for the growth of Corynebacterium glutamicum under atmospheric conditions

Carbonic anhydrase catalyzes the interconversion of CO(2) and bicarbonate. We focused on this enzyme in the amino acid-producing organism Corynebacterium glutamicum in order to assess the availability of bicarbonate for carboxylation reactions essential to growth and for those required for L-lysine overproduction. A whole-genome sequence revealed two genes encoding putative beta-type and gamma-type carbonic anhydrases in C. glutamicum. These genes encode polypeptides containing zinc ligands strictly conserved in each type of carbonic anhydrase and were designated bca and gca, respectively. Internal deletion of the chromosomal bca gene resulted in a phenotype showing severely reduced growth under atmospheric conditions (0.04% CO(2)) on both complete and minimal media. The growth defect of the Delta bca strain was restored under elevated CO(2) conditions (5% CO(2)). Introduction of the red alga Porphyridium purpureum carbonic anhydrase gene ( pca) could compensate for the bca deletion, allowing normal growth under an atmospheric level of CO(2). In contrast, the Delta gca strain behaved identically to the wild-type strain with respect to growth, irrespective of the CO(2) conditions. Attempts to increase the dosage of bca, gca, and pca in the defined L-lysine-producing strain C. glutamicum AHD-2 led to no discernable effects on growth and production. Northern blot analysis indicated that the bca transcript in strain AHD-2 and another L-lysine producer, C. glutamicum B-6, was present at a much higher level than in the wild-type strain, particularly during exponential growth phases. These results indicate that: (1) the bca product is essential to achieving normal growth under ordinary atmospheric conditions, and this effect is most likely due to the bca product's ability to maintain favorable intracellular bicarbonate/CO(2) levels, and (2) the expression of bca is induced during exponential growth phases and also in the case of L-lysine overproduction, both of which are conditions of higher bicarbonate demand.

Efficient 40 degrees C fermentation of L-lysine by a new Corynebacterium glutamicum mutant developed by genome breeding

We have recently developed a new L-lysine-producing mutant of Corynebacterium glutamicum by "genome breeding" consisting of characterization and reconstitution of a mutation set essential for high-level production. The strain AHP-3 was examined for L-lysine fermentation on glucose at temperatures above 35 degrees C, at which no examples of efficient L-lysine production have been reported for this organism. We found that the strain had inherited the thermotolerance that the original coryneform bacteria was endowed with, and thereby grew and produced L-lysine efficiently up to 41 degrees C. A final titer of 85 g/l after only 28 h was achieved at temperatures around 40 degrees C, indicating the superior performance of the strain developed by genome breeding. When compared with the traditional 30 degrees C fermentation, the 40 degrees C fermentation allowed an increase in yield of about 20% with a concomitant decrease in final growth level, suggesting a significant transition of carbon flux distribution in glucose metabolism. DNA array analysis of metabolic changes between the 30 degrees C and 40 degrees C fermentations identified several differentially expressed genes in central carbon metabolism although we could not find stringent control-like global induction of amino-acid-biosynthetic genes in the 40 degrees C fermentation. Among these changes, two candidates were picked out as the potential causes of the increased production at 40 degrees C; decreased expression of the citrate synthase gene gltA and increased expression of malE, the product of which involves regeneration of pyruvate and NADPH.

A novel methodology employing Corynebacterium glutamicum genome information to generate a new L-lysine-producing mutant

Classical whole-cell mutagenesis has achieved great success in development of many industrial fermentation strains, but has the serious disadvantage of accumulation of uncharacterized secondary mutations that are detrimental to their performance. In the post-genomic era, a novel methodology which avoids this drawback presents itself. This "genome-based strain reconstruction" involves identifying mutations by comparative genomic analysis, defining mutations beneficial for production, and assembling them in a single wild-type background. Described herein is an initial challenge involving reconstruction of classically derived L-lysine-producing Corynebacterium glutamicum. Comparative genomic analysis for the relevant terminal pathways, the efflux step, and the anaplerotic reactions between the wild-type and production strains identified a Val-59-->Ala mutation in the homoserine dehydrogenase gene (hom), a Thr-311-->Ile mutation in the aspartokinase gene (lysC), and a Pro-458-->Ser mutation in the pyruvate carboxylase gene (pyc). Introduction of the hom and lysC mutations into the wild-type strain by allelic replacement resulted in accumulation of 8 g and 55 g of L-lysine/l, respectively, indicating that both these specific mutations are relevant to production. The two mutations were then reconstituted in the wild-type genome, which led to a synergistic effect on production (75 g/l). Further introduction of the pyc mutation resulted in an additional contribution and accumulation of 80 g/l after only 27 h. This high-speed fermentation achieved the highest productivity (3.0 g l(-1) h(-1)) so far reported for microbes producing L-lysine in fed-batch fermentation.

Shock wave application to rat skin induces degeneration and reinnervation of sensory nerve fibres

There have been several reports on the use of extracorporeal shock waves in the treatment of pseudarthrosis, calcifying tendinitis, and tendinopathies of the elbow. However, the pathomechanism of pain relief has not been clarified. To investigate the analgesic properties of shock wave application, we analyzed whether it produces morphologic changes in cutaneous nerve fibres. In normal rat skin, the epidermis is heavily innervated by nerve fibres immunoreactive for protein gene product (PGP) 9.5 and by some fibres immunoreactive for calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP). There was nearly complete degeneration of epidermal nerve fibres in the shock wave-treated skin, as indicated by the loss of immunoreactivity for PGP 9.5 or CGRP. Reinnervation of the epidermis occurred 2 weeks after treatment. These data show that relief of pain after shock wave application to the skin results from rapid degeneration of the intracutaneous nerve fibres.

Allograft inflammatory factor-1 augments production of interleukin-6, -10 and -12 by a mouse macrophage line

Mouse allograft inflammatory factor-1 (AIF-1) cDNA was cloned and the AIF-1-specific monoclonal antibodies were established to examine its tissue distribution. The mouse AIF-1 was highly conserved among all reported AIF-1 from a variety of species, from invertebrates to mammals, and the cloned cDNA was in good accordance with putative expressed regions of genomic sequences in the mouse major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class III region. The messages of mouse AIF-1 were abundantly expressed in the testis, moderately in the spleen and lymph nodes and slightly in the liver and thymus of normal BALB/c mice. Immunohistological examination revealed that differentiating germ cells in the testis and presumably macrophages in the red pulp of the spleen were positive for AIF-1. To analyse the function of the AIF-1, a macrophage cell line, RAW 264.7, was transfected with mouse AIF-1 cDNA. Upon stimulation with bacterial lipopolysaccharide, the transfectants that overexpressed AIF-1 showed marked morphological changes and produced significantly large amounts of interleukin (IL)-6, IL-10 and IL-12p40 but not IL-12p70 compared with control cells. No difference was noted in production of tumour necrosis factor-alpha, transforming growth factor-beta1 and IL-1alpha. These results suggest that AIF-1 plays an important role in cells of a monocyte/macrophage lineage upon stimulation with inflammatory stimuli by augmenting particular cytokine production.

Tautomycetin is a novel and specific inhibitor of serine/threonine protein phosphatase type 1, PP1

Here we isolated tautomycetin, TC, and examined its phosphatase inhibitory activity. Recently we have reported that the left-hand moiety of tautomycin, TM, and the right one containing the spiroketal are essentially required for inhibition of protein phosphatase, PP, and induction of apoptosis, respectively. TC is structurally almost identical to TM except that TC is lacking the spiroketal, which has the potential apoptosis-inducing activity. TC specifically inhibited PP1 activity, IC50 values for purified PP1 and PP2A enzymes being 1.6 and 62 nM, respectively, whereas the IC50 values of TM were 0.21 and 0.94 nM, respectively. These results demonstrate that TC is the most specific PP1 inhibitor out of over 40 species of natural phosphatase inhibitors reported, strongly suggesting that TC is a novel powerful tool to elucidate the physiological roles of PP1 in various biological events.

[Destructed knee in patient with systemic lupus erythematosus treated with total knee arthroplasty: a case report]

We reported a case of a 61-year-old female with arthritis of right knee associated with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). She suffered from SLE at age 31 and felt pain around her right knee at age 60. It gradually increased despite intraarticular injections of steroid and arthroscopic synovectomy. On admission, the range of motion of her right knee was 20 to 135 degrees and remarkable gait disturbance were noted due to the pain. Radiographs of the right knee showed joint space narrowing and bone erosion. YMCK total knee arthroplasty was performed. Operation findings showed smooth and thick synovium and cartilage defect. Histological examination revealed fibrin on surface, proliferad connective tissue and newly development of vasculature. Synovium eroded both cartilage and bone. In SLE, soft tissue contructure was reported to be a main cause of joint dislocation, but there were only a few report of progressive joint destruction due to SLE. In this case, the main cause of joint destruction may be invasion synovium into cartilage and bone.

X-ray structure of beta-carbonic anhydrase from the red alga, Porphyridium purpureum, reveals a novel catalytic site for CO(2) hydration

The carbonic anhydrases (CAs) fall into three evolutionarily distinct families designated alpha-, beta-, and gamma-CAs based on their primary structure. beta-CAs are present in higher plants, algae, and prokaryotes, and are involved in inorganic carbon utilization. Here, we describe the novel x-ray structure of beta-CA from the red alga, Porphyridium purpureum, at 2.2-A resolution using intrinsic zinc multiwavelength anomalous diffraction phasing. The CA monomer is composed of two internally repeating structures, being folded as a pair of fundamentally equivalent motifs of an alpha/beta domain and three projecting alpha-helices. The motif is obviously distinct from that of either alpha- or gamma-CAs. This homodimeric CA appears like a tetramer with a pseudo 222 symmetry. The active site zinc is coordinated by a Cys-Asp-His-Cys tetrad that is strictly conserved among the beta-CAs. No water molecule is found in a zinc-liganding radius, indicating that the zinc-hydroxide mechanism in alpha-CAs, and possibly in gamma-CAs, is not directly applicable to the case in beta-CAs. Zinc coordination environments of the CAs provide an interesting example of the convergent evolution of distinct catalytic sites required for the same CO(2) hydration reaction.

Development of an assay method for activities of serine/threonine protein phosphatase type 2B (calcineurin) in crude extracts

Despite the physiological importance of serine/threonine protein phosphatase type 2B (PP2B/calcineurin), an accurate assay method of PP2B in crude tissue extracts has not been established. By using recombinant protein phosphatase inhibitor-1 as a substrate and ascorbic acid as an antioxidant, we developed an improved assay method for PP2B activity in crude extracts from mouse tissues and investigated tissue distribution of its activity. Under the assay conditions, the PP2B activities were stable for at least 30 min with more than 100-fold higher sensitivity than those previously reported. The specific activities of PP2B were 22.3, 0.85, 2.9, 0.36, and 1.5 mU/mg protein in mouse brain, heart, spleen, liver, and testis, respectively, and furthermore in each region of the brain they were 26.1, 13.7, 42.8, 40.5, 15.1, and 8.6 mU/mg protein in cerebrum, midbrain plus interbrain, striatum, hippocampus, cerebellum, and brain stem, respectively. This is the first paper to demonstrate a close correlation between tissue distributions and content of PP2B. These results showed that the present assay method is extremely powerful for precise measurement of a wide range of PP2B activities including not only high PP2B activity in the brain but also low PP2B activities in other tissues.

Crystallization and preliminary X-ray diffraction studies of a beta-carbonic anhydrase from the red alga Porphyridium purpureum

The beta-carbonic anhydrase from the red alga Porphyridium purpureum was heterologously expressed, purified and crystallized. The crystals belong to space group P2(1) (unit-cell parameters a = 63.8, b = 113.9, c = 73.8 A, beta = 104.1 degrees) with two subunits per asymmetric unit and diffract to 2.5 A resolution.

The apoptosis-inducing activity of the two protein phosphatase inhibitors, tautomycin and thyrsiferyl 23-acetate, is not due to the inhibition of protein phosphatases PP1 and PP2A (review)

Thyrsiferyl 23-acetate (TF-23A) has been shown to potently and specifically inhibit PP2A. TF-23A also induced a rapid cell death in various leukemic T- and B-cell lines. The TF-23A induced cell death with a typical apoptotic process. TF-23A and its several analogous compounds showed apoptosis-inducing activity. However, only TF-23A out of these compounds showed an inhibitory activity for PP2A. These results suggest that a portion of TF-23A involved in induction of apoptosis is different from that involved in the PP2A inhibition. Then, the effects of tautomycin and its derivatives on PP1 and PP2A and their apoptosis-inducing activity were examined. The C22-C26 moiety was essential for inhibition of protein phosphatase activity, whereas the C1-C18 moiety was essential for induction of apoptosis. Therefore, different moieties of tautomycin are involved in protein phosphatase inhibition and induction of apoptosis. From these results, it was concluded that the biological effects of phosphatase inhibitors are not necessarily induced by the inhibition of PP1 and PP2A but through other different molecular mechanisms which remain to be elucidated.

Estimation of outer membrane permeability of carbapenem antibiotics to Pseudomonas aeruginosa

The outer membrane permeability of carbapenems (imipenem [IPM], panipenem [PAPM], meropenem [MEPM], and biapenem [BIPM]) and ceftazidime (CAZ) to Pseudomonas aeruginosa was determined by the Zimmermann and Rosselet method. The permeability coefficients of beta-lactams tested at 50 &mgr;M concentration of substrates ranged from (0.40 +/- 0.10) x 10-6 cm/s for CAZ to (2.33 +/- 0.33) x 10-6 cm/s for IPM, indicating that the outer membrane permeability of carbapenems to P. aeruginosa was high in comparison with that of CAZ. In particular, IPM and BIPM showed a higher rate of penetration than MEPM and PAPM.

Role of permeability in the activities of beta-lactams against gram-negative bacteria which produce a group 3 beta-lactamase

The production of a group 3 beta-lactamase permitted Escherichia coli to raise the MICs of ceftazidime, cefpirome, and meropenem greatly but those of imipenem and piperacillin only slightly. The ratios of maximum rate of hydrolysis to K(m) of ceftazidime, cefpirome, and piperacillin were lower than those of meropenem and imipenem for the group 3 beta-lactamase. The permeability coefficients for piperacillin and meropenem were higher than those for ceftazidime and cefpirome. Imipenem had the highest permeability coefficient.

The spiroketals containing a benzyloxymethyl moiety at C8 position showed the most potent apoptosis-inducing activity

The spiroketals containing a benzyloxymethyl moiety at the C8 position showed the most potent apoptosis-inducing activity, whereas its analogous compounds lacking any substituent at C8 or possessing ones other than the benzyloxymethyl moiety at C8 were all much less active. These results strongly suggest an important role of the benzyloxymethyl moiety linked to the C8 oxygen atom.

A plasmid-mediated beta-lactamase with carbapenem-hydrolyzing activity from Serratia marcescens

Serratia marcescens W-313/pSW313 was isolated from a clinical specimen that showed resistance to various beta-lactams. beta-Lactamase from this strain hydrolyzed oxyiminocephalosporins and carbapenems, but did not hydrolyze 2-carboxypenam and aztreonam. The kinetic parameters of this enzyme were similar to those of the carbapenem-hydrolyzing beta-lactamases mediated by R-plasmid from Pseudomonas aeruginosa and S. marcescens, whose properties were previously reported.

Thyrsiferyl 23-acetate and its derivatives induce apoptosis in various T- and B-leukemia cells

Thyrsiferyl 23-acetate (TF-23A), a cytotoxic compound from marine red alga, induced a rapid cell death in various leukemic T- and B-cell lines. During incubation of Jurkat cells with TF-23A, condensation and fragmentation of nuclei occurred and clusters composed of uneven small cellular particles were formed. Concentration- and time-dependent DNA fragmentation was also induced by the incubation of the cells with TF-23A. These results demonstrate that the TF-23A-induced cell death follows a typical apoptotic process. The TF-23A-induced apoptosis was prevented by fetal calf serum and insulin, but not by EGF or PDGF. TF-23A and its several analogous compounds showed apoptosis-inducing activity. However, only TF-23A out of these compounds showed an inhibitory activity for protein phosphatase 2A, PP2A. These results strongly suggest that a structure of TF-23A involved in induction of apoptosis is different from that involved in the PP2A inhibition.

ADP/vanadate mediated photocleavage of myosin light chain kinase at the autoinhibitory region

The vanadate (Vi)-mediated photocleavage reaction was used to study the interaction between the regulatory segment and the catalytic site of smooth muscle myosin light chain kinase (MLCK). When MLCK was irradiated with long-wave UV (366 nm) in the presence of ADP and Vi, kinase activity was substantially decreased, and the MLCK polypeptide of 130 kDa was cleaved into several smaller fragments with apparent molecular masses of 100, 70, 60, 32, and 28 kDa. Inhibition of kinase activity and photocleavage were both competitively antagonized by the addition of ATP. Inconsistency between the observed maximum levels of UV-induced inhibition of MLCK-mediated phosphorylation (80%) and photocleavage (15-20%) suggested that the photocleavage reaction proceeds as a two-step process. Monoclonal antibodies recognizing the C-terminus of MLCK labeled the 60- and 28-kDa fragments, indicating that MLCK was cleaved at two sites, at 28 and 60 kDa from the C-terminus, within what are believed to be the autoinhibitory region and the catalytic site, respectively. Moreover, Ca2+-calmodulin (Ca2+-CaM) protected against cleavage at the site at 28 kDa from the C-terminus. Analysis of the amino acid composition of the fragment revealed that the cleavage site at 28 kDa from C-terminus occurred at Lys 799 +/- 3 amino acid residues, which is in a region where the CaM-binding and pseudosubstrate regions overlap. These results suggest that the three-dimensional structure of MLCK brings the regulatory segment into direct contact with the ATP-binding site. Moreover, the binding of Ca2+-CaM displaces the regulatory segment away from the catalytic site.

Sequences of homologous beta-lactamases from clinical isolates of Serratia marcescens with different substrate specificities

Genes for two group 1 beta-lactamases, SRT-1 and SST-1, were sequenced. These beta-lactamases were produced by clinical isolates of Serratia marcescens, isolates GN16694 and GN19450, respectively. The resulting enzymes were 96% identical. SRT-1 hydrolyzed oxyimino cephalosporins, but SST-1 hardly hydrolyzed them. At residue 213 in the third motif, which is conserved among group 1 beta-lactamases, SRT-1 and SST-1 had Lys and Glu, respectively. By site-directed mutagenesis, the substitution of Glu by Lys at residue 213 in SST-1 resulted in an enzyme that hydrolyzed oxyimino cephalosporins.