Clinical significance of SARS-CoV-2-specific IgG detection with a rapid antibody kit for COVID-19 patients

Background

The longitudinal observation of the detection of antibody responses to SARS‐CoV‐2 using antibody kits during the clinical course of COVID‐19 is not yet fully investigated.

Objectives

To understand the significance of the detection of anti‐SARS‐CoV‐2 antibodies, particularly IgG, using a rapid antibody kit, during the clinical course of COVID‐19 patients with different severities.

Methods

Sixty‐three serum samples from 18 patients (5 asymptomatic and 13 symptomatic patients) were retrospectively examined using a commercial SARS‐CoV‐2 IgM/IgG antibody kit. PCR positivity of patient samples was also examined as a marker of current SARS‐CoV‐2 infection.

Results

IgG antibodies were detected in all cases in this study. The IgG detection rates reached 100.0% in samples collected on day 13 or later. IgG seropositivity after an initial negative status was observed in 13 patients (3/5 asymptomatic and 10/13 symptomatic cases). Interestingly, the persistence of both PCR and IgG positivity was detected in seven cases, of which three were asymptomatic. The longest overlap duration of the PCR and IgG positivity was 17 days in asymptomatic status.

Conclusions

SARS‐CoV‐2‐specific IgG production can be detected in all infected individuals, using a rapid antibody kit, irrespective of clinical status. However, these findings suggest that, in some infected individuals, particularly those with asymptomatic status, the presence of virus‐specific IgG antibodies does not imply prompt viral clearance.

The suppression of Antarctic bottom water formation by melting ice shelves in Prydz Bay

A fourth production region for the globally important Antarctic bottom water has been attributed to dense shelf water formation in the Cape Darnley Polynya, adjoining Prydz Bay in East Antarctica. Here we show new observations from CTD-instrumented elephant seals in 2011–2013 that provide the first complete assessment of dense shelf water formation in Prydz Bay. After a complex evolution involving opposing contributions from three polynyas (positive) and two ice shelves (negative), dense shelf water (salinity 34.65–34.7) is exported through Prydz Channel. This provides a distinct, relatively fresh contribution to Cape Darnley bottom water. Elsewhere, dense water formation is hindered by the freshwater input from the Amery and West Ice Shelves into the Prydz Bay Gyre. This study highlights the susceptibility of Antarctic bottom water to increased freshwater input from the enhanced melting of ice shelves, and ultimately the potential collapse of Antarctic bottom water formation in a warming climate.

Antarctic bottom water (AABW) production is critical to the global ocean overturning circulation. Here, the authors show new observations of AABW formation from seal CTD data in Prydz Bay, East Antarctica that highlights its susceptibility to increased freshwater input from the melting of ice shelves.

Blunt cell growth potential in carcinogen resistant inbred DRH rats

A carcinogen-resistant inbred strain DRH/Sea has been developed from the Crj:Donryu strain. The rats had a very low incidence of liver tumors when they were fed diets containing a hepatocarcinogen such as 3'-methyl-4-dimethylamino-azobenzene (3'-Me-DAB). Despite using 3'-Me-DAB during the stage of selection, the DRH/Sea rats developed normally, reproduced and did not have any spontaneous tumor in the lung, liver or uterus at over 1 year of age. Although their growth curves were similar to the Crj:Donryu rats, the progression of polyploidization in the liver was significantly delayed when compared with Crj:Donryu rats. Mitogenic changes that occurred in the liver caused by either 3'-Me-DAB or lead nitrate were less significant in the DRH rats than in Crj:Donryu rats. Furthermore, the growth rate of cultured fibroblasts derived from the DRH rats was slower than that of Crj:Donryu rats. These results, together with our previous results, suggest that slow growth potential is present under certain conditions in DRH rats. These findings may explain partly the meaning of the different susceptibility to hepatocarcinogens.

Studies on the multidrug resistance gene expression in the livers of rats associated with different susceptibility of hepatocarcinogenesis

Inbred carcinogen-resistant DRH rat strain developed from the closed colony Donryu rats on the basis of selective markers such as poor induction of gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase and marked reduced incidences of liver tumors during 3'-methyl-4-dimethylaminoazobenzene (3'-Me-DAB) administration, which took more than 10 years. Previously, we observed that the Donryu rat liver was quite sensitive to both DNA-damaging and cytotoxic effects of 3'-Me-DAB, while the DRH rat liver showed tolerance to 3'-Me-DAB under the same conditions. In the present study, we examined mRNA levels related to the cytotoxic drug resistance mechanism in the livers of DRH and Donryu rats using RT-PCR. Contrary to our expectation, we observed rather similar levels of mRNAs between the two rat strains under the following conditions: i) mdr1 mRNA induction after 3'-Me-DAB administration. ii) MLP-2 mRNA reduction by 3'-Me-DAB administration, iii) MLP-2 mRNA induction after cholestasis and iv) constitutive levels of cMOAT gene expression. On the other hand, the levels of p53 mRNA and p53 protein in the Donryu rat liver were higher than those in DRH rat liver during 3'-Me-DAB administration, suggesting that the former were more sensitive to 3'-Me-DAB than DRH rat under these conditions. In conclusion, we failed to demonstrate the difference in the cytotoxic drug resistance mechanism between DRH and Donryu rats at least under the conditions examined in this study.

Genetic properties for the suppression of development of putative preneoplastic glutathione S-transferase placental form-positive foci in the liver of carcinogen-resistant DRH strain rats

The post-initiation stage of hepatocarcinogenesis was investigated in carcinogen-resistant inbred DRH rats and the parental strain, carcinogen-sensitive Donryu rats. Male rats at 5 weeks of age from both strains were treated with N-nitrosodiethylamine (200 mg/kg i.p.) followed by feeding with a diet containing 3'-methyl-4-dimethylaminoazobenzene (3'-Me-DAB) from 2 weeks later and were then subjected to partial hepatectomy at 1 week later. At 8 weeks after the start of treatment, the mean area occupied by glutathione S-transferase placental form (GST-P)-positive lesions was about 30% in Donryu rats but less than 4% in DRH rats despite the presence of comparable numbers of foci in the livers of both strains. These observations suggested that clonal expansion of GST-P-positive foci in DRH rat liver was significantly suppressed under these conditions. Furthermore, this genetic property was dominantly inherited in the F1 rats by crosses of DRH and carcinogen-sensitive inbred F344 rats; that is, the induction of GST-P mRNA in the livers of F344 x DRH F1 rats was dominantly suppressed after administration of 3'-Me-DAB for 8 weeks as compared with parental F344 rats under the same conditions. We compared the intrinsic properties related to growth potential of liver cells between adult DRH and Donryu rats. DRH rat liver showed retarded and/or reduced DNA synthesis after partial hepatectomy or a single i.v. injection of lead nitrate and lower activity of telomerase induced by 3'-Me-DAB administration for 1 week, as compared with the Donryu rat liver. The intrinsic properties observed in this study may be related, at least in part, to the low incidence of liver tumors induced by hepatocarcinogens in DRH rats.

Remarkable difference in the incidence of liver tumors by N-nitrosodimethylamine in carcinogen-resistant DRH rat and its parental strain Donryu rat

The carcinogen-resistant inbred DRH rat strain was developed from the carcinogen-sensitive Donryu rat and showed a remarkably lower incidence of liver tumors than the latter after administration of either 3'-methyl-4-dimethylaminoazobenzene (3'-Me-DAB) or 2-acetylaminofluorene (2-AAF). In the present study, we examined the tolerance of DRH rat to another type of hepatocarcinogen, that is, N-nitrosodimethylamine (DMN). Male DRH and Donryu rats, 3 weeks of age, were given a single i.p. injection of 10 mg/kg body weight DMN and were sacrificed 1 year later. Five of 11 Donryu rats (45%) had macroscopically detectable tumors: 9 liver tumors in 4 rats and 1 urinary bladder tumor in the other rat. On the contrary, no tumors were detectable in the livers or other organs of 10 DRH rats under the same conditions. These results and other circumstantial evidence indicate that the different susceptibility of chemical carcinogenesis between DRH and Donryu rats is independent of individual pathways of metabolic activation of carcinogens.

Different responses other than the formation of DNA-adducts between the livers of carcinogen-resistant rats (DRH) and carcinogen-sensitive rats (Donryu) to 3'-methyl-4-dimethylaminoazobenzene administration

Carcinogen-resistant inbred DRH rats developed from the Donryu strain showed a remarkably low incidence of liver tumors when they were fed diets containing hepatocarcinogens such as 3'-methyl-4-dimethylaminoazobenzene (3'-Me-DAB). In this work, we examined various characteristics of male DRH and Donryu rats during 3'-Me-DAB administration for 8 weeks. 32P-Postlabeling analysis showed that essentially similar levels of DNA-adducts were generated by the metabolites of 3'-Me-DAB in the livers of these two strains of rats at several time points. However, both GADD45 (growth arrest and DNA damage-inducible) and O6-methylguanine methyltransferase (putatively DNA damage-inducible) mRNA levels were increased significantly in Donryu rat livers, but were increased to a lesser extent in DRH rats. [3H]Thymidine incorporation into hepatic DNA began to increase around 10 to 20 days after the start of 3'-Me-DAB administration in Donryu rats probably due to DNA repair, while no significant change occurred in DRH rats under the same conditions. Furthermore, inductions of heme oxygenase (due to degradation of heme-proteins) and hepatocyte growth factor (HGF; cell death and regeneration of hepatocytes) mRNAs were greater in Donryu rat livers than those of DRH, suggesting that the former were more sensitive to cytotoxic effects of 3'-Me-DAB than the latter. Another remarkable difference observed between these two strains was the significant induction of cytochrome P-450 2E1 mRNA in Donryu rat livers; this may contribute to the generation of reactive oxygen intermediates. Finally, increases of glutathione S-transferase (P-form) and gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase mRNAs as marker enzymes of preneoplastic changes of hepatocytes were clearly seen only in Donryu rat livers at 6 to 8 weeks after the start of 3'-Me-DAB administration. These results indicate that the different susceptibility to hepatocarcinogenesis between these two strains of rats may arise from events other than the DNA adduct formation.

Zinc suppresses apoptosis of U937 cells induced by hydrogen peroxide through an increase of the Bcl-2/Bax ratio

Treatment of human premonocytic U937 cells with 500 microM H2O2 for 1h followed by 4h incubation in fresh medium to allow the cells to execute apoptotic processes caused DNA fragmentation. However, in the presence of 1mM ZnSO4 throughout the incubation, DNA ladder formation was markedly inhibited. Hydrogen peroxide treatment for 1h with or without zinc increased both Bcl-2 and Bax proteins. However, only Bax protein decreased to basal levels in the presence of zinc during the following 4h incubation, resulting in an increase of the Bcl-2/Bax ratio and prevention of apoptosis. Treatment of U937 cells with 1mM ZnSO4 alone also decreased the levels of Bax protein. Furthermore, we observed that zinc completely inhibited the activation of CPP32 by H2O2, while no significant changes of ICE activities occurred with either H2O2 and/or zinc. These results indicate that the suppression of H2O2-induced apoptosis by zinc is mediated through an increase of the Bcl-2/Bax ratio, which occurs upstream from the activation of CPP32.

Studies on the microsomal cytochrome P450s in the livers of carcinogen-resistant and sensitive rats during long-term administration of 3'-methyl-4-dimethylaminoazobenzene

Time-course studies on the microsomal cytochrome P450s in the livers of carcinogen-resistant (DRH) and sensitive (Donryu) rats were carried out during a long-term administration of 3'-methyl-4-dimethylaminoazobenzene (3'-Me-DAB). Total contents of the microsomal cytochrome P450s were gradually reduced with time in the Donryu rat livers, while those in the DRH rats did not alter significantly under these conditions. The activities of several isoforms of cytochrome P450 (CYP1A1, CYP1A2, and CYP2E1) were determined separately during these experimental periods. However, we could not obtain satisfactory evidence which may explain the different susceptibility to chemical carcinogenic actions in the livers between DRH and Donryu rats. Lower total contents of cytochrome P450s in the Donryu rats during the later stage may be due to the hepatic injuries caused by long-term administration of 3'-Me-DAB.

Traumatic pancreatic duct rupture in a child diagnosed by endoscopic retrograde pancreatography

We report on a child who sustained blunt abdominal trauma with pancreatic duct rupture diagnosed by preoperative endoscopic retrograde pancreatography (ERP). Duct laceration remained undiagnosed by computerized tomography or ultrasonography. Preoperative ERP is the only known method for the accurate diagnosis of injury to main pancreatic duct. Even in children with pancreatic trauma we recommend ERP before any surgery is attempted to help in decisions on operative strategy.

Inhibition of nucleolar function and morphological change by adriamycin associated with heat shock protein 70 accumulation

Adriamycin (ADR) has been considered to target mainly DNA metabolism in the nucleus. Recently, we observed the nuclear translocation of heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) after ADR treatment. We examined which intranuclear changes might be related to this alteration of HSP70 localization. We found considerable alternations in the nucleolar morphology and function in ADR-treated tumor cells, i.e., a ring-shaped segregation of granular components of almost all nucleoli and a dramatic reduction of nucleolar 45S ribosomal precursor RNA biosynthesis in HeLa cells exposed to 100 microM ADR for 2 h. Concomitantly with these changes, HSP70 was concentrated into the nucleoli, as in the case of heat shock treatment. These results indicate a novel anticancer effect of ADR via the suppression of cellular protein biosynthesis, in addition to its effect on DNA.

Effects of 19-oxygenated lanosterol derivatives on 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme a reductase activity and lanosterol demethylase activity

The effects of 19-oxygenated lanosterol derivatives on lanosterol 14 alpha-demethylase (P-450(14DM)) and 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase activity were studied. 3 beta-Hydroxylanost-9(11)-en-19-oic acid (6) was found to be an effective inhibitor (IC50:0.5 microM) of P-450(14DM) in the reconstituted system using purified pig liver P-450(14DM) and was most active in inhibiting HMG-CoA reductase activity (IC50:1.0 microM) in mouse L cells. In [2-14C]acetate incorporation studies using mouse L cells, 6 was found to reduce the incorporation of acetate into C27-sterol (desmosterol) with a concomitant increase in radiolabeled C30-sterols. These results demonstrate that 6 is a dual-action inhibitor of cholesterol biosynthesis.

A case of glycogen storage disease type III (glycogen debranching enzyme deficiency) with liver cirrhosis and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy

We present a 26-year-old woman with glycogen storage disease type III (debranching enzyme deficiency) complicated with liver cirrhosis and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Glycogen debranching enzyme has two catalytic sites, oligo-1,4,-1,4- glucantransferase (EC 2.4.1.25) and amylo-1,6-glucosidase (EC 3.2.1.33). Variability in the clinical phenotype could be a function of the involvement of one or other catalytic site, or differences in tissue expression of the defective enzyme, or both. We hypothesize that some subtypes of glycogen storage disease (GSD) type III may cause liver cirrhosis as seen in GSD type IV due to the accumulation of glycogen of abnormal structure.

Inhibition of the ATP-sensitive potassium channel by class I antiarrhythmic agent, cibenzoline, in rat pancreatic beta-cells

1. Cibenzoline, a class I antiarrhythmic agent, was investigated for its effect on the ATP-sensitive K+ channel of pancreatic beta-cells by the patch clamp technique. 2. In perforated patch clamp experiments, cibenzoline depolarized the membrane of single beta-cells and thereafter, caused firing of action potentials in the presence of 2.8 mM glucose. 3. Cibenzoline inhibited the activity of the ATP-sensitive K+ channel in cell-attached recordings in the presence of 2.8 mM glucose and evoked repetitive fluctuations of the baseline current, apparently reflecting the action potentials of the beta-cell. 4. In whole-cell clamp experiments, time-independent outward current was induced by depleting cytoplasmic ATP with 0.1 mM ATP and 0.1 mM ADP in the solution contained in the pipette. The outward current was inhibited by cibenzoline in a dose-dependent manner in the concentration range of 1 microM to 100 microM and half maximum inhibition occurred at 1.5 microM. 5. Cibenzoline blocked substantially the ATP-sensitive K+ channel current when applied at the inner side of the membrane in isolated inside-out membrane patches. 6. It is concluded that cibenzoline blocks the ATP-sensitive K+ channel of pancreatic beta-cells and, thereby, stimulates insulin secretion at sub-stimulatory levels of glucose.

Stimulation by volume expansion of atrial natriuretic peptide release from perfused rat heart

The release of immunoreactive (ir-) rat atrial natriuretic peptide (rANP) with volume expansion in in situ retrograde perfused rat heart was examined. The volume expansion induced by the infusion of the perfusion medium into the right atrium increased the mean right atrial pressure and the ir-rANP release without changing the rate of the heart beat. There was a significant correlation between the peak values of ir-rANP release and those of mean atrial pressure. The bilateral cervical vagotomy did not effect the ir-rANP release induced by the volume expansion. Therefore, it is highly likely that the stimulatory effect of volume expansion on rANP release is due to, at least in part, the atrial distension accompanied by an increase in mean atrial pressure, not involving a vagal system.