Plasmid DNA of Agrobacterium tumefaciens detected in a presumed habituated tobacco cell line

'Tabac anergié' tissue has been used by many investigators as a habituated tobacco cell line. In this study, we have found sequences which are homologous to approximately 9 megadaltons of an Agrobacterium octopine-type plasmid in DNA isolated from 'Tabac anergié' tissue. These T-DNA sequences were shown to be the same 'core DNA' sequences found to be present in several other unorganized tumor lines which have been studied in our laboratory. The T-DNA was also shown to be integrated into plant DNA. Thus, the 'Tabac anergié' tissue is a crown gall tumor induced by a strain of Agrobacterium tumefaciens containing an octopine-type plasmid. These results indicate that the plants regenerated from 40 clones of the 'Tabac anergié' line by Sacristán and Melchers (1977) were actually reverted plants obtained from an unorganized crown gall tumor, kept in culture for more than 25 years. It is necessary to re-evaluate observations and conclusions which have been based upon 'Tabac anergié' being a habituated tissue.

Estradiol and progesterone binding in uterine leiomyomata and in normal uterine tissues

To explain the sensitivity of uterine leiomyomata to endogenous and exogenous estrogens, specific cytosol receptor proteins for estradiol-17 beta and progesterone were found in tissue from uterine leiomyomata and compared with the concentrations of receptors in normal myometrium and endometrium from the same patient. The concentration of cytoplasmic estrogen receptors in leiomyomata (40.5 +/- 7.6 cytoplasmic estrogen receptors in leiomyomata (40.5 +/- 7.6 fmole/mg cytosol proteins, mean +/- SEM) was significantly greater than that found in myometrium (16.5 +/- 1.5) and significantly less than that found in endometrium (131 +/- 15.1). The concentration in leiomyomata of cytoplasmic progesterone receptors (104.4 +/- 41.2 fmole/mg cytosol protein, mean +/- SEM) was also greater than that found in myometrium (80.8 +/- 29.9) and less than that of endometrium (194.7 +/- 5.5); however, individual variation precluded statistical significance. The presence of cytoplasmic receptor proteins in myomatous tissues explains the sensitivity of the leiomyoma to endogenous or exogenous steroids and may provide information useful in the clinical management of this neoplastic disorder.

Transition Metal Complexes of 5-(Pyridin-2-yl)tetrazole and Methyl-Substituted 5-(Pyridin-2-yl)tetrazoles

Transition metal complexes of the formulae M(ptt)2,2H2O (M = Mn, Fe, Co, Cu, Zn), M(ptt)2,- 2NH3,H2O (M = Co, Ni), FeCl(ptt),2H2O, Ag(ptt), Mn(tmptt)2,2H2O M(tmptt)2,NH3,2H2O (M = Cu, Zn)M(tmptt)2NH32H2O (M=Co, Ni), Ni(tmptt)2,2NH3,H2O, Ag(tmptt), M(smptt)2 (M = Co, Ni), Cu(smptt)2,3H2O, Cu(smptt)2,NH3,2H2O, Cu(smptt)2,2NH3, Zn(smptt)2,NH3,H2O and Ag(smptt) where ptt, tmptt and smptt are the anions of 5-(pyridin-2-yl)tetrazole, 5-(3-methylpyridin- 2-yl)tetrazole and 5-(6-methylpyridin-2 yl)tetrazole, respectively, have been prepared.Studies of the infrared and ultraviolet-visible spectra, magnetic moments and X-ray diffraction patterns show structural relationships between compounds and indicate that, in addition to the organic ligands, water and ammonia molecules are bonded to the metal ions. Thermal decomposition of the compounds proceeds through the formation of pyridinecarbonitriles.

Iodinated neurohypophyseal hormones as potential ligands for receptor binding and intermediates in synthesis of tritiated hormones

[3-Iodo-Tyr2]oxytocin (MIOT), [3,5-diiodo-Tyr2]oxytocin (DIOT), [3-iodo-Tyr2,Lys8]vasopressin (MILVP), [3,5-diiodo-Tyr2,Lys8]vasopressin (DILVP), [3-iodo-Tyr2,Arg8]vasopressin (MIAVP), and [3,5-diiodo-Tyr2,Arg8]vasopressin (DIAVP) were synthesized by iodination of the respective hormones, pruified, and characterized. All the monoiodo hormones had to be freshly prepared prior to bioassays, since on storage they gave rise to hormonal-like biological activity. The biological activities of these iodo analogues were measured in an adenylate cyclase assay employing neurohypophyseal hormone (NHH) sensitive bovine renal medullary membranes, and/or the rat oxytocic assay. In the cyclase assay, DIOT, DILVP, and DIAVP were inactive as agonists or antagonists. MIOT shows no agonistic activity in the renal cyclase system and uterus, but is a weak reversible inhibitor of oxytocin (OT) in both systems. When MIOT (10(-4) M) was preincubated with renal membranes for 10 min at 37 degrees C before addition of OT, it behaved as a noncompetitive inhibitor of NHH-stimulated adenylate cyclase. MILVP and MIAVP appear to be partial agonists with Km (half maximal response) 3 X 10(-6) and 3 X 10(-7) M, respectively, as determined in the cyclase assay. Upon preincubation with renal medullary membranes, MILVP (10(-6) M) behaves as a more potent noncompetitive inhibitor of OT than MIOT. Accordingly, iodo derivatives of NHH do not exhibit sufficient affinity to serve an specific ligands to measure OT, LVP, or AVP receptors in the uterus and kidney. Study of the specificity of inhibition produced by MIOT revealed that this analogue does not act selectively upon NHH receptors. Thus, MIOT modified adenylate cyclase systems which do not have NHH receptors, e.g., the PTH-sensitive adenylate cyclase in bovine renal cortex and the glucagon-sensitive adenylate cyclase in rat liver. DIOT, DILVP, and DIAVP were subjected to catalytic tritiation (employing carrier free tritium) and were converted to [3H]OT (25, 31, and 25 Ci/mmol), [3H]LVP (26 and 23 Ci/mmol), and [3H]AVP (17 Ci/mmol), respectively. These tritiated ligands have been successfully used to measure NHH receptor sites both in kidney and uterine membranes as described in other studies.

Tuberculous infection in a vascular prosthesis: a case of aortic graft infection resulting from disseminated tuberculosis

Insertion of an aortic prosthetic bypass graft in a patient with untreated disseminated tuberculosis resulted in graft infection with formation of a pseudoaneurysm. Microbiologic cultures implicated Mycobacterium tuberculosis as the causative agent, and a subsequent review of the literature indicated this report to be the first clinical demonstration of the susceptibility of vascular prosthesis to M tuberculosis infection to our knowledge.

Contribution of the peptide backbone to the action of oxytocin analogs

This investigation was undertaken to evaluate the functional contribution of the peptide backbone of oxytocin in its interaction with receptor. Corey-Pauling-Koltun models of (Gly-7) deaminooxytocin, deaminotocinamide, and their respective retro-D-analogs built in any specific conformation (e.g., the Walter-Urry model for oxytocin) have a quai-equivalent topochemical arrangement of amino-acid side chains; however, the CO and NH elements of the peptide backbone of the retro-D-analog are reversed. The retro-D-analogs of deaminotocinamide and (Gly-7) deaminooxytocin (prepared using D-alle for L-Ile) and their respective N-formyl derivatives were assayed for uterotonic activity relative to related L-peptides. All retro-D-analogs (tested at concentrations ranging from 10-10 to 10-5 M) were devoid of angonistic (or antagonistic) activity in the isolated rat uterus, except for the retro-D-(D-alle-3, Gly-7) deaminooxytocinamine, which retains a terminal NH-2 group on the tail; the latter is a partial agonist with very low affinity. The results obtained with retro-D-analogs indicate that one or more of the elements of the peptide backbone of the tocinamide ring are essential for "occupation" and "activation" of uterine receptors. Oxytocin action may be the resultant of multiple hydrogen-bonding interactions between CO, NH, NH-2, and OH groups of the hormone with complementary groups on receptor, made possible by appropriate hydrophobic bonding.