Genotypic and phenotypic characterization of a Salmonella Typhimurium strain resistant to pulsed electric fields

Pulsed Electric Fields (PEF) technology is regarded as one of the most interesting alternatives to current food preservation methods, due to its capability to inactivate vegetative microorganisms while leaving the product's organoleptic and nutritional properties mostly unchanged. However, many aspects regarding the mechanisms of bacterial inactivation by PEF are still not fully understood. The aim of this study was to obtain further insight into the mechanisms responsible for the increased resistance to PEF of a Salmonella Typhimurium SL1344 variant (SL1344-RS, Sagarzazu et al., 2013), and to quantify the impact that the acquisition of PEF resistance has on other aspects of S. enterica physiology, such as growth fitness, biofilm formation ability, virulence and antibiotic resistance. WGS, RNAseq and qRT-PCR assays indicated that the increased PEF resistance of the SL1344-RS variant is due to a higher RpoS activity caused by a mutation in the hnr gene. This increased RpoS activity also results in higher resistance to multiple stresses (acidic, osmotic, oxidative, ethanol and UV-C, but not to heat and HHP), decreased growth rate in M9-Gluconate (but not in TSB-YE or LB-DPY), increased ability to adhere to Caco-2 cells (but no significant change in invasiveness) and enhanced antibiotic resistance (to six out of eight agents). This study significantly contributes to the understanding of the mechanisms of the development of stress resistance in Salmonellae and underscores the crucial role played by RpoS in this process. Further studies are needed to determine whether this PEF-resistant variant would represent a higher, equal or lower associated hazard than the parental strain.

Glutamatergic synapse in autism: a complex story for a complex disorder

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder whose pathophysiological mechanisms are still unclear. Hypotheses suggest a role for glutamate dysfunctions in ASD development, but clinical studies investigating brain and peripheral glutamate levels showed heterogenous results leading to hypo- and hyper-glutamatergic hypotheses of ASD. Recently, studies proposed the implication of elevated mGluR5 densities in brain areas in the pathophysiology of ASD. Thus, our objective was to characterize glutamate dysfunctions in adult subjects with ASD by quantifying (1) glutamate levels in the cingulate cortex and periphery using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy and metabolomics, and (2) mGluR5 brain density in this population and in a validated animal model of ASD (prenatal exposure to valproate) at developmental stages corresponding to childhood and adolescence in humans using positron emission tomography. No modifications in cingulate Glu levels were observed between individuals with ASD and controls further supporting the difficulty to evaluate modifications in excitatory transmission using spectroscopy in this population, and the complexity of its glutamate-related changes. Our imaging results showed an overall increased density in mGluR5 in adults with ASD, that was only observed mostly subcortically in adolescent male rats prenatally exposed to valproic acid, and not detected in the stage corresponding to childhood in the same animals. This suggest that clinical changes in mGluR5 density could reflect the adaptation of the glutamatergic dysfunctions occurring earlier rather than being key to the pathophysiology of ASD.

MPTP intoxication in mice: a useful model of Leigh syndrome to study mitochondrial diseases in childhood

The basal ganglia, which are interconnected in the striato-nigral dopaminergic network, are affected in several childhood diseases including Leigh syndrome (LS). LS is the most common mitochondrial disorder affecting children and usually arise from inhibition of the respiratory chain. This vulnerability is attributed to a particular susceptibility to energetic stress, with mitochondrial inhibition as a common pathogenic pathway. In this study we developed a LS model for neuroprotection trials in mice by using the complex I inhibitor MPTP. We first verified that MPTP significantly inhibits the mitochondrial complex I in the brain (p = 0.018). This model also reproduced the biochemical and pathological features of LS: MPTP increased plasmatic lactate levels (p = 0.023) and triggered basal ganglia degeneration, as evaluated through dopamine transporter (DAT) autoradiography, tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) immunohistochemistry, and dopamine dosage. Striatal DAT levels were markedly decreased after MPTP treatment (p = 0.003). TH immunoreactivity was reduced in the striatum and substantia nigra (p = 0.005), and striatal dopamine was significantly reduced (p < 0.01). Taken together, these results confirm that acute MPTP intoxication in young mice provides a reproducible pharmacological paradigm of LS, thus opening new avenues for neuroprotection research.

Antifungal activity of actinomycetes from cuban soils

This study reports on the capacity of actinomycete strains isolated from Cuban soils to produce antifungal agents. The antimicrobial activities were determined by susceptibility disk assay methods. We isolated 563 different actinomycetes and 286 produced compounds with antifungal activity. Our screening method indicated the presence of many possible polyene macrolide antibiotics and the important antifungal activity in the soils rich in minerals.

Effect of Mild Hyperglycemia ± Meta-Iodo-Benzylguanidine on the Radiation Response of R3230 Ac Tumors

The effects of glucose or meta-iodo-benzylguanidine (MIBG) on oxygen utilization (QO2) of several tumor cell lines were studied using a Clark-type electrode chamber. For in vivo studies, rats bearing R3230 Ac rat mammary adenocarcinomas were utilized. To evaluate changes in tumor oxygenation induced by glucose or MIBG, intratumoral pO2 and skeletal muscle pO2 were measured using Eppendorf Histography. To find the effect of mild hyperglycemia (i.p., 1 g/kg) +/- MIBG (i.p., 20 mg/kg) on the radiation response, a growth delay assay was used. Glucose alone produced a approximately 20% inhibition of QO2 in several tumor cells we tested except Q7 tumor cells. MIBG inhibited QO2 in R3230 Ac tumors. The median tumor pO2 for glucose + MIBG was increased from 5.3 mm Hg to 13.8 mm Hg. We hypothesized that combined treatment with glucose + MIBG significantly enhanced radiation-induced tumoricidal effects on R3230 Ac tumors, mainly due to reduction in QO2 and increase in tumor pO2.

Mitochondrial creatine kinase functional development in post-natal rat skeletal muscle. A combined polarographic/31P NMR study

Mitochondrial creatine kinase (Mi-CK) function in viable mitochondria from developing rat skeletal muscle was assessed both by polarographic measurements of creatine-induced respiration and 31P NMR spectroscopy measurements of phosphocreatine (PCr) synthesis. Creatine-induced respiration was observed in very young rats and increased by 50% to 35 days of age. PCr synthesis was present in 7 day old animals and increased by 300% reaching levels measured in 35 day and adult muscle. Unlike reports showing Mi-CK enzymatic activities but no mitochondrial function in several situations, a concomitant progression of enzymatic activity and mitochondrial function was evidenced during the developmental stages of skeletal muscle Mi-CK in altricious animals. These results correlated with the progressive pattern of muscle differentiation during development of motricity in such animals. The observation that Mi-CK is functional in skeletal muscle mitochondria very early after birth, strongly favors the notion that adaptations in skeletal muscle of Mi-CK knock-out mice occur early.

Quantification of plasma lipoprotein fractions by wavelet transform time-domain data processing of the proton nuclear magnetic resonance methylene spectral region

Quantitative analysis of lipoprotein major fractions, LDL, VLDL and HDL, is of great interest for medical purposes, for instance in liver or heart diseases, diet management or cancer. The presently available biochemical methods require time consuming ultracentrifugation. A potentially automated method is proposed, using time domain quantification by Wavelet Transform (WT-NMR) method. The aim of the present study was to evaluate, on a preliminary series of nine human plasmas, the potential interest of WT-NMR in the quantification of both NMR-visible lipids and total lipoprotein fractions. The correlation coefficients between low and intermediate density (LDL+IDL), very low density (VLDL) and high density (HDL) lipoprotein visible lipid quantifications, obtained on nine human plasmas with WT-NMR and standard biochemical methods, were 0.79, 0.84 and 0.92, respectively. For the total lipoprotein assay, i.e. including an estimation of non NMR-visible protein and free cholesterol, the correlation between WT-NMR and the biochemistry were 0.87 for LDL+IDL, 0.81 for VLDL and 0.88 for HDL.

Proton and phosphorus nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy of human brain tumor extracts with automatic data classification: a preliminary study

High-resolution one-dimensional proton and phosphorus and two dimensional COSY proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy were used to investigate the lipid and carbohydrate metabolism of human brain tumors. Sixteen meningioma (MG) (benign tumors) and ten glioblastoma (GB) (malignant tumors) samples from brain surgery were treated for dual extraction of lipidic and aqueous phases before NMR processing. A highly significant variation of the 1H metabolite spectral pattern was observed between benign and malignant tumors. Double extraction method combined with both 1H and 31P NMR in vitro analyses provided a large set of biochemical information which may be statistically analyzed to elucidate tumor-specific biochemical pathways and to improve interpretation of in vivo spectra.

Does a passive transport between modified plasma lipoproteins and cell membranes exist in cancer disease?

Malignant diseases increase the level of total lipids in blood and modify their distribution in lipoprotein carriers affecting lipid exchanges between serum and tissues. These exchanges take place by active and/or passive ways which coexist in most tissues. This work concerns the exploration of passive diffusion, using the red blood cell mechanism as a model. Lipid components of normal and cancerous rat erythrocytes have been investigated by Proton and Carbon high resolution Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (H-1 and C-13 MRS). As previously established, MRS yields the usual molar ratio cholesterol/phospholipids and moreover provides information on the length and degree of unsaturation of the phospholipid fatty acyl chains. No modification has been recorded in erythrocyte lipids between cancer and control populations. These data would suggest that erythrocytes can maintain membrane lipid homeostastis during malignancy. The numerous abnormalities noted in their membrane fuction remain to be explained.

Phosphocreatine synthesis by isolated rat skeletal muscle mitochondria is not dependent upon external ADP: a 31P NMR study

Phosphocreatine synthesis by mitochondria isolated from rat skeletal muscle was determined in presence of inorganic phosphate, creatine, and either ATP or ADP, using 31P NMR spectroscopy in a new protocol maintaining mitochondria for several hours in a well-coupled state. Maximal velocity of phosphocreatine synthesis was identical with 0.4 mM of ADP or 0.5 mM ATP at a rate of 0.063 mM/min. External ATP and ADP were always present in the spectra, demonstrating that in skeletal muscle cells as in heart muscle cells, mitochondrial creatine kinase coupled to translocase has a very strong amplifying effect on oxidative phosphorylation and converts external inorganic phosphate and creatine into phosphocreatine without net adenine nucleotide consumption. Therefore, adenine nucleotides can be considered as cofactors rather than regulators of mitochondria metabolism. This is in agreement with the "phosphocreatine-circuit" theory.

Proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy of plasma lipoprotein: technical problems and potential interest in cancer disease

This paper reviews several methods presently available for analysing lipoprotein NMR spectra. Two main steps can be distinguished: NMR signal processing and data analysis. Time domain (wavelet transform) and frequency domain (curve fitting) signal processing methods are compared. Statistical methods of data analysis (Ascending Hierarchical Classification, Correspondence Analysis and Principal Component Analysis) have been tested on simulated NMR data of plasma lipoprotein with different numbers of sampling points and different noise levels. These few examples clearly attest that the NMR approach to complex "mixture" (such as body fluids) analysis is emerging from its infancy. New interest in plasma lipoprotein analysis in cancer biology is finally discussed in the light of previous clinical and experimental results and of understanding of lipid metabolism in cancer.

Do elephants ever forget?

Three adult female elephants (Elephas maximus) were tested on a light-dark discrimination problem with an 8-yr intertrial interval. The first subject took only 6 min to reach criterion and made only two errors, suggesting remarkable retention. The other two subjects were found to have visual anomalies that would have gone undetected without this research.