Apoptotic proteins Reaper and Grim induce stable inactivation in voltage-gated K+ channels

Drosophila genes reaper, grim, and head-involution-defective (hid) induce apoptosis in several cellular contexts. N-terminal sequences of these proteins are highly conserved and are similar to N-terminal inactivation domains of voltage-gated potassium (K+) channels. Synthetic Reaper and Grim N terminus peptides induced fast inactivation of Shaker-type K+ channels when applied to the cytoplasmic side of the channel that was qualitatively similar to the inactivation produced by other K+ channel inactivation particles. Mutations that reduce the apoptotic activity of Reaper also reduced the synthetic peptide's ability to induce channel inactivation, indicating that K+ channel inactivation correlated with apoptotic activity. Coexpression of Reaper RNA or direct injection of full length Reaper protein caused near irreversible block of the K+ channels. These results suggest that Reaper and Grim may participate in initiating apoptosis by stably blocking K+ channels.

Platelet activating factor as a proinflammatory mediator in acetic-induced colitis in the rat

Platelet activating factor (PAF) induces neutrophilia and produces a variety of gastrointestinal lesions. The role of PAF as a proinflammatory mediator was examined by measuring the production of PAF and the efficacy of the PAF antagonists WEB 2086 and Ro 24-0238 in acetic acid (HOAc)-induced colitis. PAF levels within the colonic mucosa, as measured by radioimmunoassay, increased from 259 +/- 119 ng/mg in control tissue, to 616 +/- 266 ng/mg in HOAc inflamed tissue. The accumulation of neutrophils within the mucosa was decreased by 53 +/- 10% by pretreatment with 3 mg/kg WEB 2086, and by 43 +/- 11% by 3 mg/kg Ro 24-0238. PAF-induced neutrophilia had no effect on the severity of HOAc-induced colitis, therefore, PAF my be involved in sustaining the chronic inflammation of colitis.

Antimicrobial proteins in human unstimulated whole saliva in relation to each other, and to measures of health status, dental plaque accumulation and composition

Saliva antimicrobial proteins may interact in a common system to influence the oral ecology. Clinical studies of antimicrobial protein action thus may require a multiple-protein approach. Multivariate statistical methods have been used to describe possible patterns of interaction for lysozyme, lactoferrin, salivary peroxidase and secretory IgA in stimulated parotid saliva. However, oral microbes are most likely to encounter antimicrobial proteins in mixed resting saliva. Relationships among levels of lysozyme, lactoferrin, salivary peroxidase, and secretory IgA therefore were investigated in whole saliva from 216 subjects, and an attempt made to relate interperson variation in those proteins to differences in health and status, and dental plaque accumulation and composition. All proteins were significantly (alpha = 0.05) correlated with each other (r = 0.38-0.52, p less than 0.001). There was only one axis of common variation among proteins, and that axis was significantly correlated (p less than 0.001) with total protein (r = 0.84) and flow rate (r = -0.56). That pattern deviated from the previous finding that proteins of acinar origin tended to vary independently from proteins of ductal origin in stimulated parotid saliva. The difference between parotid and whole saliva may reflect constitutive secretion of all proteins at low levels of stimulation. Common variation of unstimulated saliva proteins suggests that antimicrobial actions can be compared in subjects at population extremes. There were no significant associations between antimicrobial proteins in whole saliva and measures of health status or plaque accumulation. However, the proportions of Streptococcus sanguis were significantly correlated with lysozyme (r = -0.26), lactoferrin (r = -0.34), peroxidase (r = -0.30), total protein (r = -0.37), flow rate (r = 0.24) and principal-components scores (r = -0.33) in a subset of subjects (n = 85) where commercial biochemical tests were used to supplement species identification by colony morphology. Those findings may indicate that saliva antimicrobial proteins can affect the composition of dental plaque.

Nucleotide sequences from the 3'-ends of vesicular stomatitis virus mRNA's as determined from cloned DNA

Molecular clones of vesicular stomatitis virus mRNA's were used to determine the 3'-terminal sequences of mRNA's encoding the N and NS proteins. This new approach to VSV mRNA sequencing allowed the first comparison of 3'-terminal sequences. The sequences showed a tetranucleotide homology, UAUG, immediately preceding the polyadenylic acid. In addition, both mRNA's had an AU-rich region including the tetranucleotide AUAU at positions 16 to 19 nucleotides from the polyadenylic acid. A possible secondary structure between the 3' end of N mRNA and the 5' end of the adjacent NS mRNA is noted. These structural features may serve as signals for termination (or cleavage) and polyadenylation of vesicular stomatitis virus mRNA's. Neither mRNA had the polyadenylic acidproximal hexanucleotide, AAUAAA, found in eucaryotic cellular and viral mRNA's transcribed from nuclear DNA. The probable location of the translation termination codon for the NS protein is only six nucleotides from polyadenylic acid in NS mRNA.