Biostability and pharmacokinetics of LJP 920, an octameric Gal (alpha1-3) Gal conjugate for the inhibition of xenotransplantation rejection

Antibodies to an alpha-galactosyl saccharide structure present in human serum are associated with hyperacute rejection and delayed xenograft rejection after pig-to-primate xenotransplantation. To overcome this major barrier to the xenotransplantation, LJP 920, a galactosyl alpha1-3 galactose (Gal (alpha1-3) Gal) coupled to a non-immunogenic platform at a valency of eight Gal (alpha1-3) Gal molecules/platform, was synthesized to clear circulating antibodies and to inhibit their production by B cells that produce these antibodies. Herein we report on the stability of UP 920 in biological media and its pharmacokinetic profile. Incubation of LJP 920 with mouse serum or liver microsomes at 37 degrees C for 2 days showed no indication of degradation of the conjugate as detected by a reversed-phase HPLC method, indicating that the conjugate is not subject to enzymatic metabolism. After intravenous administration of LJP 920 to mice at the doses of 20 and 100 mg kg(-1), UP 920 serum concentration decreased rapidly, showing a biphasic pattern, with a distribution half-life of 3 min and an elimination half-life of more than 30 min, respectively. The serum-to-erythrocyte concentration ratio of UP 920 was 33- and 36-fold excess at 0.5 and 5 min, respectively, after intravenous administration (100 mg kg(-1)). Both Cmax and AUC values increased in a dose-proportional manner. UP 920 displayed a great distribution to well-perfused tissues. It was eliminated mainly through renal excretion in the unchanged form, which accounted for 23% of the total amount within 8 h of dosing.

[Combination chemotherapy with docetaxel and cisplatin in weekly schedule in the treatment of 30 cases of advanced non-small cell lung cancer]

BACKGROUND

To observe the response rate, survival time and toxicity of docetaxel and cisplatin in weekly schedule in the treament of stage III-IV non-small cell lung cancer.

METHODS

A total of 30 cases of stage III-IV non-small cell lung cancer was included in this study. Docetaxel 25 mg/m² and cisplatin 25 mg/m² were given through intravenous dripping for the 1st, 8th, and 15th days. The chemotherapy was repeated every 28 days. Each patient was given at least 2 cycles.

RESULTS

The overall response rate was 43.3% (13/30,all were partial response). Quality of life of the patients was improved (there were 66.7% of the patients with Karnofsky score increased or unchanged). Median remission duration was 7 months. 40% of the patients survived for more than 1 year. The main toxicity was hematological: Grade III-IV leucopenia was 16.7%; Grade III thrombocytopenia was 6.7%. The non-hematological toxicity was mild.

CONCLUSIONS

The regimen of docetaxel and cisplatin in weekly schedule is effective and tolerable in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer.

Cloning, expression patterns, and chromosome localization of three human and two mouse homologues of GABA(A) receptor-associated protein

Type A receptors of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), an inhibitory neurotransmitter, contain alpha, beta, delta, gamma, and rho subunits. The gamma subunit has four subtypes: gamma1, gamma2, gamma3, andgamma4. GABA(A) receptor-associated protein (GABARAP) was previously demonstrated to act as a linker protein between microtubules and the gamma2 subunit of GABA(A) receptors. However, no other linker proteins have been identified as mediating the linkage of microtubules and the remaining subunits of GABA(A) receptors. In this study we identified three human paralogues (GABARAPL1, GABARAPL2, and GABARAPL3) and two mouse orthologues (Gabarapl1 and Gabarapl2) of human GABARAP, all of which encoded 117 amino acids, as does Gabarapl. The expression patterns of GABARAPL1, GABARAPL2, and GABARAP in 16 adult tissues showed that they were expressed ubiquitously. The expression levels of GABARAPL1 as a 2.3-kb transcript were very high in brain, heart, peripheral blood leukocytes, liver, kidney, placenta, and skeletal muscle, very low in thymus and small intestine, and moderate in other tissues tested. The unique 1.35-kb transcript of GABARAPL2 was expressed at high levels in heart, brain, testis, prostate, ovary, spleen, and skeletal muscle, at very low levels in lung, thymus, and small intestine, and moderately in other tissues tested. For GABARAP, a 1.3-kb transcript was abundantly expressed in all tested tissues with small variation. The expression patterns of Gabarapl1 and Gabarapl2 were similar to those of their counterparts in human. In addition, GABARAPL1 was localized to human chromosome 12p12.3 and GABARAPL2 to 16q22.3-q24.1 by RH mapping, while GABARAP and GABARAPL3 were found to be localized at chromosomes 17p13.2 and 15q25.1, respectively, by searching the related databases. Sequence comparison of the cDNAs and their corresponding genomic sequences shows that GABARAP, GABARAPL1, and GABARAPL2 are composed of four exons each, while GABARAPL3 is distributed only at one exon.

Mesoscopic Kondo screening effect in a single-electron transistor embedded in a metallic ring

We study the Kondo screening effect generated by a single-electron transistor or quantum dot embedded in a small metallic ring. When the ring circumference L becomes comparable to the fundamental length scale xi(0)(K) = Planck's constant over upsilon(F)/T(0)(K) associated with the bulk Kondo temperature, the Kondo resonance is strongly affected, depending on the total number of electrons (mod4) and magnetic flux threading the ring. The resulting Kondo-assisted persistent currents are also calculated in both Kondo and mixed-valence regimes, and the maximum values are found in the crossover region.

Cell cycle regulation by galectin-12, a new member of the galectin superfamily

Galectins are a family of beta-galactoside-binding animal lectins with conserved carbohydrate recognition domains (CRDs). Here we report the identification and characterization of a new galectin, galectin-12, which contains two domains that are homologous to the galectin CRD. The N-terminal domain contains all of the sequence elements predicted to form the two beta-sheets found in other galectins, as well as conserved carbohydrate-interacting residues. The C-terminal domain shows considerable divergence from the consensus sequence, and many of these conserved residues are not present. Nevertheless, the protein has lactose binding activity, most likely due to the contribution of the N-terminal domain. The mRNA for galectin-12 contains features coding for proteins with growth-regulatory functions. These include start codons in a context that are suboptimal for translation initiation and AU-rich motifs in the 3'-untranslated region, which are known to confer instability to mRNA. Galectin-12 mRNA is sparingly expressed or undetectable in many tissues and cell lines tested, but it is up-regulated in cells synchronized at the G(1) phase or the G(1)/S boundary of the cell cycle. Ectopic expression of galectin-12 in cancer cells causes cell cycle arrest at the G(1) phase and cell growth suppression. We conclude that galectin-12 is a novel regulator of cellular homeostasis.

Detection of immunomagnetically captured Escherichia coli O157:H7 by antibody-conjugated alkaline phosphatase

A rapid and sensitive detection process for Escherichia coli O157:H7 was developed using alkaline phosphatase (APase)-labeled anti-E. coli O157 antibodies to tag the targeted bacteria. Immunomagnetic beads or antibody-labeled streptavidin-coated magnetic beads were then used to capture the APase-tagged E. coli. Immunomagnetically captured bacteria were washed and distributed into microplates or optical cuvettes. The enzyme-catalyzed hydrolysis of p-nitro-phenol phosphate in alkaline solutions was then followed. Less than 1000 cfu/ml of E. coli O157:H7 could be detected. This approach was applied to detect the bacteria artificially spiked in beef hamburgers. Less than 1 cfu/g of E. coli O157:H7 produced a significant response after cultural enrichment for 4-6 h at 37 degrees C.

Determination of trimebutine maleate in rat plasma and tissues by using capillary zone electrophoresis

A simple and rapid capillary zone electrophoresis method was developed for the determination of trimebutine maleate in rat plasma and tissues. Rat plasma and tissue homogenates were mixed with acetonitrile containing internal standard, ephedrine hydrochloride, and then centrifuged. The supernatant was dried under a stream of nitrogen, and the residue was reconstituted in methanol-water (1:1). The electrophoresis was performed in uncoated capillary with 30 mmol/L phosphate buffer of pH 6.0 as the separation electrolyte. The applied voltage was 10 kV and the UV detection was set at 214 nm. The peak height ratio vs concentration in plasma or homogenates was linear over the range of 5-500 ng/mL and the limit of quantitation was 5 ng/mL. The intra- and inter-day precision was RSD < 14% and <15%. The accuracy was relative error (RE) within +/- 14%. This method was applied to studying the pharmacokinetics and tissue distribution after a single dose of trimebutine maleate was administrated to the rats. The T(max), AUC, C(max) and t(1/2) were 30 min, 7.8 x 10(2) (ng/mL) min, 39 ng/mL and 1.7 x 10(2) min. The drug distribution was found in a decreasing order of liver, kidney, spleen, lung and heart.

Peptide and major histocompatibility complex-specific breaking of humoral tolerance to native insulin with the B9-23 peptide in diabetes-prone and normal mice

NOD mice spontaneously develop anti-insulin autoantibodies and diabetes. A dominant peptide recognized by T-cell clones from NOD mice is insulin B-chain peptide B9-23. When administered subcutaneously to NOD mice, this peptide decreases the development of diabetes. In this study, we evaluated the autoantibody response to native insulin after administration of the B9-23 peptide. In NOD mice, administration of the B9-23 peptide in incomplete Freund's adjuvant enhanced their insulin autoantibody response with a higher level and longer persistence. Induction of insulin autoantibodies with the B9-23 peptide was observed in non-diabetes-prone BALB/c mice and NOR mice within 2 weeks of administration, but this was not observed in C57BL/6 mice. A series of A-chain, other B-chain, and proinsulin peptides did not induce insulin autoantibodies. Induced anti-insulin autoantibodies could not be absorbed with the peptide alone but could be absorbed with native insulin. The B13-23 peptide (one of two identified epitopes within B9-23) when administered to BALB/c mice, induced autoantibodies, whereas peptide B9-16 did not. Induction of autoantibodies mapped to the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) rather than to the background genes. Both splenocytes with I-A(d)/I-E(d) or I-A(g7)/I-E(null) presented the B9-23 peptide to NOD islet-derived T-cell clones. Finally, administration of the B9-23 peptide to BALB/c mice, even without adjuvant, could induce insulin autoantibodies. Our results indicate that B-cell tolerance to intact insulin is readily broken with the presentation of the B9-23 insulin peptide, depending on the host's specific MHC.

Structure of the N-terminal region of Haemophilus influenzae H10017: implications for function

Haemophilus influenzae is a gram-negative pathogen that causes infections ranging from asymptomatic colonization of the human upper respiratory tract to serious invasive diseases such as meningitis. Although the genome of Haemophilus influenzae has been completely sequenced, the structure and function of many of these proteins are unknown. H10017 is one of these uncharacterized proteins. Here we describe the three-dimensional solution structure of the N-terminal portion of H10017 as determined by NMR spectroscopy. The structure consists of a five-stranded antiparallel beta-sheet and two short alpha-helices. It is similar to the C-terminal domain of Diphtheria toxin repressor (DtxR). The C-terminal portion of H10017 has an amino acid sequence that closely resembles pyruvate formate-lyase--an enzyme that converts pyruvate and CoA into acetyl-CoA and formate by a radical mechanism. Based on structural and sequence comparisons, we propose that the C-terminus of H10017 functions as an enzyme with a glycyl radical mechanism, while the N-terminus participates in protein/protein interactions involving an activase (iron-sulfur protein) and/or the substrate.

Mutation analysis and the correlation between genotype and phenotype of Arg778Leu mutation in chinese patients with Wilson disease

BACKGROUND

The defective gene (ATP7B) that causes Wilson disease (WD) codes for a putative copper-transporting P-type adenosine triphosphatase. After cloning of ATP7B, the spectrum of mutations and their clinical consequences have been investigated in patients with WD in different ethnic populations. However, the spectrum of mutations and the correlation of genotype-phenotype in the Chinese population have not been extensively studied.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the characterization of mutations of ATP7B and the correlation between genotype and phenotype in the Chinese population.

METHODS

We studied 60 unrelated healthy Chinese and 65 unrelated Chinese families, including 84 patients with WD and 126 parents. Genomic DNA was prepared from peripheral blood leukocytes using a salt-precipitation method. Polymerase chain reaction single-strand conformation polymorphism and subsequent direct sequencing were used to identify the mutations and polymorphisms of ATP7B. Statistical analysis was performed using t test or chi(2) test.

RESULTS

We identified 18 mutations (7 novel) and 11 polymorphisms (3 novel). The novel mutations are -36C-->T, Trp650ter, Gln914ter, 2810delT, Thr935Met, Arg1041Pro, and Glu1173Lys. The novel polymorphisms are 1168A-->G (Ile390Val), 2785A-->G (Ile929Val), and 3316G-->A (Val1106Ile). Two mutations, Arg778Leu and Thr935Met, are relatively frequent, representing 37.7% and 10.0% of patients, respectively. To our knowledge, we are the first to report the correlation between the genotype and phenotype of Arg778Leu. The result shows that Arg778Leu homozygotes are associated with the early onset of WD with hepatic presentation.

CONCLUSIONS

The Arg778Leu and Thr935Met mutations are hot spots in the Chinese population. The features of mutations of ATP7B differ between the Chinese and Western ethnic populations. The Arg778Leu mutation has severe effects on the function of ATP7B. These findings are valuable for developing a fast and effective method to diagnose the presence of the WD gene.

[Auricular cartilage palisade technique for repairing tympanic membrane perforation]

OBJECTIVE

To study the auricular cartilage palisade technique for repairing tympanic membrane perforation.

METHOD

Sixty-six cases of large tympanic membrane perforation were treated with auricular cartilage. The results were compared with that of temporal fascia repairing in 60 ears.

RESULTS

The closure rates of tympanic membrane perforation were 92.4% in cartilage group and 80% in temporal fascia group, respectively. There was no significant difference between two groups in hearing improvement. The cartilage is quite suitable for repairing large perforation of the tympanic membrane and for treating adhesive otitis media.

CONCLUSION

The auricular cartilage palisade technique is an ideal method for repairing tympanic membrane perforation.

Sexual differences and estrous cycle in methamphetamine-induced dopamine and serotonin depletions in the striatum of mice

Four consecutive doses (10 mg/kg) of methamphetamine, s.c., produced a substantial striatal dopamine depletion in both sexes of BALB/c and C57BL/6J mice. Male C57BL/6J mice exhibited greater dopamine depletions in the striatum compared to female C57BL/6J mice. In contrast, male and female BALB/c mice demonstrated an equivalent magnitude of striatal dopamine depletion. Regardless of sex, C57BL/6J mice demonstrated approximately 1.4 to 2.2 times greater dopamine depletions in the striatum compared to BALB/c mice. Moreover, methamphetamine caused 4 times greater serotonin depletions in male as opposed to female BALB/c mice while sparing either sex of the C57BL/6J mice. Furthermore, female mice of both strains appeared to have the greatest basal dopamine levels during proestrus and the lowest basal dopamine levels during diestrus. Likewise, female mice of both strains exhibited the lowest dopamine depletions in the striatum when the dosing regimen of methamphetamine started at proestrus whereas the greatest dopamine depletions in the striatum occurred when the regimen started during diestrus. These results suggest that sex hormones and other modulating factors may play a role in methamphetamine-induced dopamine and serotonin neurotoxicity.

Amorphous pharmaceutical solids: preparation, characterization and stabilization

The importance of amorphous pharmaceutical solids lies in their useful properties, common occurrence, and physicochemical instability relative to corresponding crystals. Some pharmaceuticals and excipients have a tendency to exist as amorphous solids, while others require deliberate prevention of crystallization to enter and remain in the amorphous state. Amorphous solids can be produced by common pharmaceutical processes, including melt quenching, freeze- and spray-drying, milling, wet granulation, and drying of solvated crystals. The characterization of amorphous solids reveals their structures, thermodynamic properties, and changes (crystallization and structural relaxation) in single- and multi-component systems. Current research in the stabilization of amorphous solids focuses on: (i) the stabilization of labile substances (e.g., proteins and peptides) during processing and storage using additives, (ii) the prevention of crystallization of the excipients that must remain amorphous for their intended functions, and (iii) the selection of appropriate storage conditions under which amorphous solids are stable.

Novel methylation targets in de novo acute myeloid leukemia with prevalence of chromosome 11 loci

Aberrant DNA methylation is believed to be important in tumorigenesis by causing either transcriptional inactivation of genes or chromosomal instability. Several laboratories have identified promoter hypermethylation of tumor suppressor genes in acute myeloid leukemia (AML). However, these studies do not provide a global assessment of overall methylation changes and do not allow the identification of novel methylated sequences. Previously, nonrandom CpG island methylation was reported in 17 adult de novo AML diagnostic samples when compared with the corresponding remission samples by means of restriction landmark genomic scanning (RLGS). That study has been expanded on by an analysis of a larger set of CpG islands (1740 vs 1184), which now provides details of 33 cloned methylated loci, including 21 known genes or expressed sequence tags. Five of these cloned loci appear to be methylated only in AML and not in the 6 solid tumors studied in this study (more than 98 samples analyzed). Chromosomal location was available for 30 of the 33 loci, and 5 of these 30 (17%) are localized to chromosome 11, suggesting a trend toward overrepresentation of methylation events on this chromosome. These results provide evidence for widespread aberrant methylation in AML, with identification of novel methylation targets, epigenetic changes that appear unique to AML, and apparent preferential methylation on chromosome 11.

TerplexDNA gene carrier system targeting artery wall cells

The development of non-viral gene carrier systems becomes more urgent and important due to the major biosafety considerations involved with application of viral vector systems for clinical gene therapy. We recently developed a novel non-viral gene carrier system, termed TerplexDNA, which showed high gene transfer efficiency when compared to the lipofectamine gene delivery system both in HepG2 and A7R5 cell lines in vitro. In present studies, we demonstrated that the TerplexDNA gene carrier system specifically delivered the reporter genes (LacZ and Luciferase) and therapeutic gene (hrVEGF(165) cDNA) into bovine aortic artery wall cells (endothelial cells and smooth muscle cells) by receptor mediated endocytosis. We found that the transfection efficiency to these primary artery wall cells, when mediated by the TerplexDNA system, was dose-dependent, saturable and was significantly inhibited by excess free LDL. The transfection efficiency of the TerplexDNA gene carrier system was approximately 60-fold higher than that of the lipofectamine gene carrier system. The TerplexDNA gene carrier system is a useful and promising tool for artery wall gene transfer.

[beta-elemene induces apoptosis of K562 leukemia cells]

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the apoptosis-inducing effect of beta-elemene on K562 leukemia cells.

METHODS

Hoechst 33342 and PI fluorescence staining, DNA fragmentation, electron microscopy, flow cytometry, and immunocytochemistry were used to evaluate the effect of beta-elemene on K562 cells.

RESULTS

beta-elemene heatment induced the formation of apoptotic bodies and DNA ladder. The effect was dose- and time-dependent. The expression of bcl-2 was decreased in beta-elemene treated cells as compared with the untreated control cells.

CONCLUSION

beta-elemene exerts its cytotoxic effect on K562 leukemic cells by the induction of apoptosis.

Iterative algorithm with a constraint condition for numerical reconstruction of a three-dimensional object from its hologram

A novel method to obtain the three-dimensional mathematical model of a transparent object from its hologram is presented. The proposed method can numerically extract the object information from the fringe pattern of the hologram. Then an iterative algorithm is used to imitate an imaging system by focusing on different layers of the object; and by operating in both the spatial domain and the frequency domain, the algorithm produces a series of two-dimensional layer images. The object is finally reconstructed layer by layer. A constraint condition should be satisfied, and the noise distribution can be rearranged in different reconstruction cycles so as to get better reconstruction quality. Numerical simulations have proved the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Androgen metabolism in regenerating liver of male rats: evidence for active uptake and utilization of testosterone

The role of androgen in the regenerative process of the liver remains unclear. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to either 70% hepatectomy or sham operation. Immediately after surgical procedures, rats were injected with 0.3 µCi/g of body weight [3H]-testosterone from the inferior vena cava. The radioactivities of the remnant liver were counted for 0-24 h. For measurement of sex hormones and their metabolizing enzymes activities in the regenerating liver, the same experiments were also conducted, in which the rats were sacrificed up to 120 h. The plasma and hepatic testosterone, dihydrotestosterone(DHT) and estradiol were determined by radioimmunoassays. Uptake of [3H]-testosterone in the regenerating liver was significantly higher during the first 6 h. 5alpha-reductase I and DHT were increased in parallel to the hepatocyte proliferation which was assessed by proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) labeling index. On the other hand, hepatic 3alpha-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase level did not alter but aromatase activity significantly decreased after 70% hepatectomy. These results suggest that during the early phase of liver regeneration, testosterone was actively uptaken from the plasma by the regenerating liver and was converted into DHT by elevated hepatic 5alpha-reductase enzyme. Thus androgens might play a crucial role in liver regeneration.

[Study on antitumor effect and mechanism of aloe polysaccharides]

OBJECTIVE

To study the antitumor activity and mechanism of aloe polysaccharides (AP).

METHODS

AP was administered i.p. or i.v. to Sarcoma 180(S180) bearing mice or Hepatoma22(H22) bearing mice solely or combining with CTX, FU and ADM respectively. 10 days later, for S180 mice, the blood was analyzed, the tumor was peeled off and weighed, and the spleen index, thymus index was calculated. For H22 bearing mice, the survival rate was observed or the IL-2, TNF content in serum was tested.

RESULTS

25 mg/kg.d or 50 mg/kg.d AP group could evidently reduce the tumor weight of S180 bearing mice and prolong the survival time of H22 bearing mice. AP also could improve the antitumor effects of CTX, ADM, FU, and lessen the chemotherapy side-effects. Furthermore, AP could improve the level of IL-2, TNF in the serum of mice bearing S180 or H22.

CONCLUSION

AP has the effects of antitumor, enhancing the antitumor activity of chemotherapy drugs and lessening their side-effects. This effect was possibly derived from inducing IL-2 and TNF producing in body and improving the immunity activity.

Cloning and Characterization of Human and Mouse Mitochondrial Elongation Factor G, GFM and Gfm, and Mapping of GFM to Human Chromosome 3q25.1–q26.2

Similar to the translational system in the cell cytoplasm, the initiation, elongation, and termination of protein synthesis in the mitochondria of eukaryotes are catalyzed by several protein factors. These factors, from the viewpoint of evolution, are more closely related to the corresponding prokaryotic factors than to those in the eukaryotic cytoplasm. In this paper, we isolated two cDNAs coding for human and mouse mitochondrial elongation factor G (GFM and Gfm, respectively). The GFM cDNA, which is 3481 bp in length, predicts a protein of 751 amino acids sharing 84 and 42% identity and 88 and 62% similarity to rat EF-G(mt) and Escherichia coli EF-G, respectively, and 24% identity and 39% similarity to human EF-2, the equivalent of EF-G in the cytoplasm. The mouse Gfm cDNA is 2564 bp and contains an intact open reading frame that encodes 751 amino acids showing 89% sequence identity and 94% similarity to human GFM. Northern blot analysis of human GFM revealed three transcripts of 3.8, 3.4, and 2.9 kb. The first two were expressed at high levels in heart, skeletal muscle, and testis, at moderate levels in liver and kidney, and at low levels in other tissues including brain, placenta, and lung, while the last transcript was expressed only in testis. The relative abundance of GFM was consistent with the observations for human EF-Tu(mt) and EF-Ts(mt), the other two mitochondrial elongation factors, indicating that the three factors were expressed at corresponding levels. The expression pattern of mouse Gfm was also determined, which showed that Gfm was expressed as a 3.0-kb transcript, abundantly in heart, skeletal muscle, kidney, and testis. In addition, GFM was assigned to human chromosome 3q25.1-q26.2 by the radiation hybrid mapping method. The genomic organization of GFM was also analyzed by comparing this cDNA with a genomic DNA sequence (Accession No. AC010936), which showed that GFM contained 18 exons and spanned at least 40 kb.

Metal-insulator crossover in superconducting cuprates in strong magnetic fields

The metal-insulator crossover of the in-plane resistivity upon temperature decrease, recently observed in several classes of cuprate superconductors, when a strong magnetic field suppresses the superconductivity, is explained using the U(1)xSU(2) Chern-Simons gauge field theory. The origin of this crossover is the same as that for a similar phenomenon observed in heavily underdoped cuprates without magnetic field. It is due to the interplay between the diffusive motion of the charge carriers and the "peculiar" localization effect due to short-range antiferromagnetic order. We also calculate the in-plane transverse magnetoresistance which is in fairly good agreement with available experimental data.

Rapid intravenous administration of amino acids prevents biliary sludge induced by total parenteral nutrition in humans

The aim of this study was to evaluate whether daily rapid intravenous administration of amino acids (IVAA) prevented the formation of biliary sludge in humans receiving long-term total parenteral nutrition (TPN). Thirty adult patients receiving TPN for more than 28 consecutive days were studied. They were randomized to receive either saline solution (placebo) intravenously (15 patients) or 6.9% branched chain amino acid (BCAA)-enriched amino acid (15 synthetic amino acids; Freamine HBC) solution given by administration rapid intravenous (15 patients). The groups were similar with respect to age, sex, diagnosis, liver function test results, amylase levels, TPN time, and time of study. All patients underwent weekly ultrasound studies. Volume and emptying studies of the gallbladder in response to the study drug were performed after 1 week. As a result, none of the patients receiving rapid IVAA had sludge, whereas 11 of the 15 patients receiving placebo had sludge (P < 0.01). Results of emptying studies showed significant contraction of the gallbladder in those in the rapid IVAA group, but not in the placebo group. Consequently, the data suggest that rapid IVAA given daily prevents TPN-induced stasis and sludge in the gallbladder. We conclude that rapid IVAA should be used as routine prophylaxis against biliary sludge and formation of gallstones in patients receiving long-term TPN.

Characterization of three infectious bronchitis virus isolates from China associated with proventriculus in vaccinated chickens

Outbreaks of an avian disease in infectious bronchitis-vaccinated chickens in China have led to the characterization of coronaviral isolates Q1, J2, and T3, which were isolated from proventricular tissues of the affected young layer flocks. Serologic analysis revealed that they could induce high titers of infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) antibodies in inoculated specific-pathogen-free (SPF) chickens in indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay but were not neutralized by antisera specific to the IBV serotype M41 and the Australian T strain. In a pathogenicity experiment, the clinical signs and related gross lesions resembling those of field outbreaks were reproduced in SPF chickens, and viruses were reisolated from the damaged tissues, including trachea, proventriculus, duodenum, and cecal tonsil. Sequence data demonstrated the complete S1 amino acid sequences of these isolates were almost identical despite recovery from geographically different areas in China and had 47.3%-82.3% similarity in comparison with the 47 published S1 sequences. On the basis of genotyping and limited serology, the three isolates, which were responsible for field outbreaks of the disease, might be a new IBV variant.