The transcriptional landscape of the mammalian genome

This study describes comprehensive polling of transcription start and termination sites and analysis of previously unidentified full-length complementary DNAs derived from the mouse genome. We identify the 5' and 3' boundaries of 181,047 transcripts with extensive variation in transcripts arising from alternative promoter usage, splicing, and polyadenylation. There are 16,247 new mouse protein-coding transcripts, including 5154 encoding previously unidentified proteins. Genomic mapping of the transcriptome reveals transcriptional forests, with overlapping transcription on both strands, separated by deserts in which few transcripts are observed. The data provide a comprehensive platform for the comparative analysis of mammalian transcriptional regulation in differentiation and development.

Long non-coding RNA ANRIL is required for the PRC2 recruitment to and silencing of p15(INK4B) tumor suppressor gene

A 42 kb region on human chromosome 9p21 encodes for three distinct tumor suppressors, p16(INK4A), p14(ARF) and p15(INK4B), and is altered in an estimated 30-40% of human tumors. The expression of the INK4A-ARF-INK4B gene cluster is silenced by polycomb during normal cell growth and is activated by oncogenic insults and during aging. How the polycomb is recruited to repress this gene cluster is unclear. Here, we show that expression of oncogenic Ras, which stimulates the expression of p15(INK4B) and p16(INK4A), but not p14(ARF), inhibits the expression of ANRIL (antisense non-coding RNA in the INK4 locus), a 3.8 kb-long non-coding RNA expressed in the opposite direction from INK4A-ARF-INK4B. We show that the p15(INK4B) locus is bound by SUZ12, a component of polycomb repression complex 2 (PRC2), and is H3K27-trimethylated. Notably, depletion of ANRIL disrupts the SUZ12 binding to the p15(INK4B) locus, increases the expression of p15(INK4B), but not p16(INK4A) or p14(ARF), and inhibits cellular proliferation. Finally, RNA immunoprecipitation demonstrates that ANRIL binds to SUZ12 in vivo. Collectively, these results suggest a model in which ANRIL binds to and recruits PRC2 to repress the expression of p15(INK4B) locus.

Neutrophil infiltration as an important factor in liver ischemia and reperfusion injury. Modulating effects of FK506 and cyclosporine

To examine the role of neutrophils, their presence and the degree of infiltration, as important determinants of ischemia and reperfusion injury of the liver, male Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to 60 and 90 min of total-liver ischemia. The presence of neutrophils, assessed by the measurement of liver tissue myeloperoxidase (MPO), and the degree of neutrophil liver infiltration, determined by the naphthol AS-D chloroacetate esterase technique, correlated well with animal survival and response to FK506 and cyclosporine administration. Lipid peroxidation, measured by the malondialdehyde (MDA) test in liver tissue, was another factor closely linked with liver function and survival. Pretreatment with FK506 (0.3 mg/kg) and CsA (5 mg/kg) was given at 4 hr and 1 hr before ischemia and at the time of reperfusion. Control ischemic animals showed increased neutrophil liver infiltration, high MPO and MDA liver levels, and diminished overall survival. FK506 and CsA-treated animals had better survival and diminished neutrophil liver infiltration, as well as MPO and MDA levels. The mechanism by which FK506 and CsA protected the animals from severe liver ischemic injury is unknown. Our data indicated that the presence and the degree of infiltration of neutrophils were important components of liver ischemia/reperfusion injury in the rat. So it is possible that one of the fundamental effects of the FK506 and CsA might be through the inhibition of the presence and infiltration of neutrophils in liver tissue.

Severe impairment of interleukin-1 and Toll-like receptor signalling in mice lacking IRAK-4

Toll-like receptors (TLRs), which recognize pathogen-associated molecular patterns, and members of the pro-inflammatory interleukin-1 receptor (IL-1R) family, share homologies in their cytoplasmic domains called Toll/IL-1R/plant R gene homology (TIR) domains. Intracellular signalling mechanisms mediated by TIRs are similar, with MyD88 (refs 5-8) and TRAF6 (refs 9, 10) having critical roles. Signal transduction between MyD88 and TRAF6 is known to involve the serine-threonine kinase IL-1 receptor-associated kinase 1 (IRAK-1) and two homologous proteins, IRAK-2 (ref. 12) and IRAK-M. However, the physiological functions of the IRAK molecules remain unclear, and gene-targeting studies have shown that IRAK-1 is only partially required for IL-1R and TLR signalling. Here we show by gene-targeting that IRAK-4, an IRAK molecule closely related to the Drosophila Pelle protein, is indispensable for the responses of animals and cultured cells to IL-1 and ligands that stimulate various TLRs. IRAK-4-deficient animals are completely resistant to a lethal dose of lipopolysaccharide (LPS). In addition, animals lacking IRAK-4 are severely impaired in their responses to viral and bacterial challenges. Our results indicate that IRAK-4 has an essential role in innate immunity.

Benzene Forms Hydrogen Bonds with Water

Fully rotationally resolved spectra of three isotopic species of 1:1 clusters of benzene with water (H(2)O, D(2)O, and HDO) were fit to yield moments of inertia that demonstrate unambiguously that water is positioned above the benzene plane in nearly free internal rotation with both hydrogen atoms pointing toward the pi cloud. Ab initio calculations (MP2 level of electron correlation and 6-31 G(**) basis set with basis set superposition error corrections) predict a binding energy D(e) greater, similar 1.78 kilocalories per mole. In both the experimental and theoretical structures, water is situated nearly 1 angstrom within the van der Waals contacts of the monomers, a clear manifestation of hydrogen bond formation in this simple model of aqueous-pi electron interactions.

High-performance liquid chromatography of reducing carbohydrates as strongly ultraviolet-absorbing and electrochemically sensitive 1-phenyl-3-methyl-5-pyrazolone derivatives

We found that 1-phenyl-3-methyl-5-pyrazolone reacts with reducing carbohydrates almost quantitatively to yield 2:1 compounds having no stereoisomers, which strongly absorb the uv light at 245 nm and are easily oxidizable on a glassy carbon electrode. Reverse-phase partition chromatography on a column of Capcell Pak C18 with uv or electrochemical detection allowed rapid analysis of aldoses and N-acetylhexosamines with the detection limit of 1 pmol or 100 fmol, respectively. This method proved especially useful for analysis of component monosaccharides of glycorproteins. It was also shown to be valid for separation of reducing oligosaccharides; maltodextrins with a degree of polymerization up to 19 were similarly derivatized and separated on this stationary phase.

Enhanced expression of Iba1, ionized calcium-binding adapter molecule 1, after transient focal cerebral ischemia in rat brain

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Iba1 is a novel calcium-binding protein and is specifically expressed in microglia in the brain. It has been suggested that Iba1 plays an important role in regulation of the function of microglia. In the present study we examined time-dependent Iba1 expression after transient middle cerebral artery occlusion and characterized microglial activation in various brain regions.

METHODS

Rat middle cerebral artery occlusion was induced by the intraluminal filament technique. After 1.5 hours of transient ischemia, Iba1 expression was examined by immunohistochemical and immunoblot analyses. The microglial activation in association with ischemic severity was characterized by double immunostaining with other specific markers.

RESULTS

In the peri-ischemic area, heavily Iba1 immunoreactive cells rapidly appeared at 3.5 hours after reperfusion. Immunoreactivity was further increased and peaked at 7 days. In the ischemic core, round Iba1-positive cells, which may be blood-borne monocytes, appeared from 24 hours and reached a peak at 4 to 7 days. Double immunostaining revealed that activated microglia in the peri-ischemic area upregulated Iba1 expression but were negative for the macrophage marker ED1. ED1-positive cells were clearly restricted to the ischemic core.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings suggest the following: (1) Iba1 expression may be associated with microglial activation in ischemic brain, and Iba1 immunostaining can be useful to evaluate the pathophysiological roles of activated microglia in ischemic injury. (2) Expression of ED1 antigen is strictly restricted to severe ischemic damage, whereas activated microglia in the peri-ischemic area showed Iba1 upregulation without ED1. Therefore, microglia may exhibit difference of antigenicity in the severity of ischemic brain injury.

Amino acid sequence of the human fibronectin receptor

The amino acid sequence deduced from cDNA of the human placental fibronectin receptor is reported. The receptor is composed of two subunits: an alpha subunit of 1,008 amino acids which is processed into two polypeptides disulfide bonded to one another, and a beta subunit of 778 amino acids. Each subunit has near its COOH terminus a hydrophobic segment. This and other sequence features suggest a structure for the receptor in which the hydrophobic segments serve as transmembrane domains anchoring each subunit to the membrane and dividing each into a large ectodomain and a short cytoplasmic domain. The alpha subunit ectodomain has five sequence elements homologous to consensus Ca2+-binding sites of several calcium-binding proteins, and the beta subunit contains a fourfold repeat strikingly rich in cysteine. The alpha subunit sequence is 46% homologous to the alpha subunit of the vitronectin receptor. The beta subunit is 44% homologous to the human platelet adhesion receptor subunit IIIa and 47% homologous to a leukocyte adhesion receptor beta subunit. The high degree of homology (85%) of the beta subunit with one of the polypeptides of a chicken adhesion receptor complex referred to as integrin complex strongly suggests that the latter polypeptide is the chicken homologue of the fibronectin receptor beta subunit. These receptor subunit homologies define a superfamily of adhesion receptors. The availability of the entire protein sequence for the fibronectin receptor will facilitate studies on the functions of these receptors.

Reduction in serum cholesterol with pravastatin improves endothelium-dependent coronary vasomotion in patients with hypercholesterolemia

BACKGROUND

This study aimed to determine if cholesterol-lowering therapy improves endothelium-dependent coronary vasomotion in patients with hypercholesterolemia.

METHODS AND RESULTS

Nine patients with hypercholesterolemia were studied before and after cholesterol-lowering therapy with pravastatin (an inhibitor of HMG-CoA reductase) for 6 +/- 3 months, which lowered serum cholesterol from 272 +/- 8 to 187 +/- 16 mg/dL (P < .01). Control patients with serum cholesterol of 218 +/- 23 mg/dL also were studied twice in a similar interval (8 +/- 2 months) with no cholesterol-lowering drugs. Acetylcholine (the endothelium-dependent vasodilator) and papaverine and nitrate (endothelium-independent vasodilators) were infused into the study coronary artery. Changes in the diameter of the epicardial coronary artery and coronary blood flow were assessed by quantitative coronary arteriography and an intracoronary Doppler catheter. In patients with hypercholesterolemia, acetylcholine-induced vasoconstriction of the epicardial artery was less (P < .05) and the acetylcholine-induced increases in coronary blood flow were greater (P < .001) after than before pravastatin. In control patients, responses of the epicardial coronary artery and coronary blood flow to acetylcholine did not change over the follow-up period. The vasomotor responses to papaverine or nitrate were similar between the two groups, and no interval changes in their responses were noted in either group.

CONCLUSIONS

These results suggest that cholesterol-lowering therapy with pravastatin may improve endothelium-dependent coronary vasomotion, which may possibly contribute to the improvement of myocardial perfusion as well as the regression of coronary atherosclerosis.

Toll-like receptors induce a phagocytic gene program through p38

Toll-like receptor (TLR) signaling and phagocytosis are hallmarks of macrophage-mediated innate immune responses to bacterial infection. However, the relationship between these two processes is not well established. Our data indicate that TLR ligands specifically promote bacterial phagocytosis, in both murine and human cells, through induction of a phagocytic gene program. Importantly, TLR-induced phagocytosis of bacteria was found to be reliant on myeloid differentiation factor 88–dependent signaling through interleukin-1 receptor–associated kinase-4 and p38 leading to the up-regulation of scavenger receptors. Interestingly, individual TLRs promote phagocytosis to varying degrees with TLR9 being the strongest and TLR3 being the weakest inducer of this process. We also demonstrate that TLR ligands not only amplify the percentage of phagocytes uptaking Escherichia coli, but also increase the number of bacteria phagocytosed by individual macrophages. Taken together, our data describe an evolutionarily conserved mechanism by which TLRs can specifically promote phagocytic clearance of bacteria during infection.

Deficiency of T2K leads to apoptotic liver degeneration and impaired NF-kappaB-dependent gene transcription

Induction of NF-kappaB-dependent transcription requires phosphorylation and subsequent degradation of I-kappaB, an inhibitor of NF-kappaB, followed by nuclear translocation and DNA binding of NF-kappaB. Tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 2 (TRAF2) plays a role in NF-kappaB activation in response to cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha). In this study, we purified and characterized a novel kinase (T2K, also known as TBK1 or NAK), which associates with TRAF2 and exhibits kinase activity towards I-kappaBalpha in vitro. The physiological function of T2K was investigated using T2K-deficient mice. Heterozygotes appear normal, but t2k(-/-) animals die at approximately E14.5 of massive liver degeneration and apoptosis. Never theless, hematopoietic progenitors from T2K-deficient fetal liver support normal lymphocyte development. Furthermore, t2k(-/-) embryonic fibroblasts and thymocytes do not display increased sensitivity to TNFalpha-induced apoptosis. In response to either TNFalpha or IL-1 induction, t2k(-/-) embryonic fibroblasts exhibit normal degradation of I-kappaB and kappaB-binding activity. However, NF-kappaB-directed transcription is dramatically reduced. These results demonstrate that, like I-kappaB kinase beta and the RelA subunit of NF-kappaB, T2K is critical in protecting embryonic liver from apoptosis. However, T2K has a unique role in the activation of NF-kappaB-directed transcription, apparently independent of I-kappaB degradation and NF-kappaB DNA binding.

Pattern electrical stimulation of the human retina

Experiments were conducted to study if electrical stimulation of the retinal surface can elicit visual sensation in individuals blind from end-stage retinitis pigmentosa (RP) or age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Under local anesthesia, different stimulating electrodes were inserted through the eyewall and positioned over the surface of the retina. Subjects' psychophysical responses to electrical stimulation were recorded. Subjects perceived simple forms in response to pattern electrical stimulation of the retina. A non-flickering perception was created with stimulating frequencies between 40 and 50 Hz. The stimulation threshold was dependent on the targeted retinal area (macular versus extramacular).

The MAGUK family protein CARD11 is essential for lymphocyte activation

Members of the MAGUK family proteins cluster receptors and intracellular signaling molecules at the neuronal synapse. We report that genetic inactivation of the MAGUK family protein CARD11/Carma1/Bimp3 results in a complete block in T and B cell immunity. CARD11 is essential for antigen receptor- and PKC-mediated proliferation and cytokine production in T and B cells due to a selective defect in JNK and NFkappaB activation. Moreover, B cell proliferation and JNK activation were impaired upon stimulation of TLR4 with lipopolysaccharide, indicating that CARD11 is involved in both the innate and adaptive immune systems. Our results show that the same family of molecules are critical regulators of neuronal synapses and immune receptor signaling.

Diversity of the cadherin family: evidence for eight new cadherins in nervous tissue

To examine the diversity of the cadherin family, we isolated cDNAs from brain and retina cDNA preparations with the aid of polymerase chain reaction. The products obtained included cDNAs for two of three known cadherins as well as eight distinct cDNAs, of which deduced amino acid sequences show significant similarity with the known cadherin sequences. Larger cDNA clones were isolated from human cDNA libraries for six of the eight new molecules. The deduced amino acid sequences show that the overall structure of these molecules is very similar to that of the known cadherins, indicating that these molecules are new members of the cadherin family. We have tentatively designated these cadherins as cadherin-4 through -11. The new molecules, with the exception of cadherin-4, exhibit features that distinguish them as a group from previously cloned cadherins; they may belong to a new subfamily of cadherins. Northern blot analysis showed that most of these cadherins are expressed mainly in brain, although some are expressed in other tissues as well. These findings show that the cadherin family of adhesion molecules is much larger than previously thought, and suggest that the new cadherins may play an important role in cell-cell interactions within the central nervous system.

Protocadherins: a large family of cadherin-related molecules in central nervous system

Using the polymerase chain reaction, we have isolated numerous rat and human cDNAs of which the deduced amino acid sequences are highly homologous to the sequences of the extracellular domain of cadherins. The entire putative coding sequences for two human proteins defined by two of these cDNAs have been determined. The overall structure of these molecules is very similar to that of classic cadherins, but they have some unique features. The extracellular domains are composed of six or seven subdomains that are very similar to those of cadherins, but have characteristic properties. The cytoplasmic domains, on the other hand, have no significant homology with those of classic cadherins. Since various cDNAs with almost identical features were obtained also from Xenopus, Drosophila and Caenorhabditis elegans, it appears that similar molecules are expressed in a variety of organisms. We have tentatively named these proteins protocadherins. They are highly expressed in brain and their expression appears to be developmentally regulated. The proteins expressed from the two full-length cDNAs in L cells were approximately 170 or 150 kDa in size, and were localized mainly at cell-cell contact sites. Moreover, the transfectants showed cell adhesion activity.

Impaired coronary blood flow response to acetylcholine in patients with coronary risk factors and proximal atherosclerotic lesions

We examined whether coronary risk factors and atherosclerotic lesions in the study artery were associated with impaired endothelium-dependent dilation of coronary resistance arteries. Acetylcholine (ACH) at graded doses (1, 3, 10 and 30 micrograms/min) and papaverine (10 mg) were selectively infused into the left anterior descending coronary artery of 28 patients, in whom the study artery was angiographically normal (n = 16) or with mild stenosis < or = 40% (n = 12). Coronary blood flow (CBF) was estimated from the product of mean CBF velocity measured by an intracoronary Doppler catheter and the arterial cross-sectional area of the study artery determined by quantitative arteriography. ACH increased CBF in a dose-dependent manner. However, the maximum CBF response to ACH varied widely among patients (from 50% to 660%). By multivariate analysis, the presence of atherosclerotic lesions in the study artery was an independent predictor for impaired CBF response to ACH (P < 0.01). Hypertension (P < 0.001), hypercholesterolemia (r = -0.52, P < 0.005), age > or = 50 yr (P < 0.01) and total number of coronary risk factors (r = -0.62, P < 0.001) were associated with the impaired increase in CBF with ACH by univariate analysis. The percent increase in CBF evoked with papaverine did not correlate with these risk factors. The results suggest that mild atherosclerotic lesions in the study artery and coronary risk factors are accompanied by impaired endothelium-dependent dilation of coronary resistance arteries evoked with ACH. Endothelial dysfunction of coronary resistance arteries may result in altered regulation of myocardial perfusion in patients with mild coronary atherosclerosis and coronary risk factors.

Complete amino acid sequence of human vitronectin deduced from cDNA. Similarity of cell attachment sites in vitronectin and fibronectin

cDNA clones for vitronectin, a cell adhesion-promoting plasma and tissue protein, were isolated from a lambda gt11 library containing cDNA inserts made from human liver mRNA. The library was screened with anti-vitronectin antibodies and the positive clones were further identified with synthetic oligonucleotide probes deduced from the partial amino acid sequence of vitronectin. Nucleotide sequence analysis showed that the largest insert was 1545 bp long and contained the whole sequence corresponding to plasma vitronectin. It showed that vitronectin contains the entire 44-amino acid somatomedin B peptide at its NH2 terminus and, near its COOH terminus, a 34-amino acid glycosaminoglycan binding site in which half of the amino acids are basic residues. Three potential carbohydrate attachment sites are present in the sequence. An Arg-Gly-Asp sequence, which has previously been shown to be the cell attachment site in fibronectin, was found in vitronectin immediately after the NH2-terminal somatomedin B sequence. No other homologies with fibronectin were found. The Arg-Gly-Asp sequence appears to constitute the cell attachment site of vitronectin, since it is in the region where we have previously localized the cell attachment site, its presence correlate with cell attachment activity among the insert-coded polypeptides, and because previous results have shown that synthetic peptides containing the Arg-Gly-Asp sequence inhibit the cell attachment function of vitronectin. The discovery of an Arg-Gly-Asp cell attachment site in a protein with a known cell attachment function emphasizes the general importance of this sequence in cell recognition.

Vitronectin--a major cell attachment-promoting protein in fetal bovine serum

Bovine serum is a constituent of most media used for the culture of animal cells. The adhesion-promoting properties of serum are generally attributed to fibronectin, yet there have been frequent reports of other adhesion-promoting molecules in bovine serum. Using a technique in which adhesive proteins are visualized after separation by SDS-PAGE, we graphically confirm the presence of a second cell attachment protein in bovine serum and present the evidence that this molecule is the bovine equivalent of vitronectin. The molecular size of this protein is in the same range as the size of the adhesive human plasma protein, vitronectin. The bovine protein also shared with human vitronectin an affinity for glass, and it could be purified by a combination of glass bead and ion exchange chromatography. The isolated bovine protein had varying proportions of an 80 and a 65 kD polypeptide. It showed immunological cross-reactivity with anti-human vitronectin and with anti-human somatomedin B. Somatomedin B is a serum peptide which has a NH2-terminal sequence identical to that of human vitronectin. The identity of the bovine protein as vitronectin was established by showing that its NH2-terminal amino acid sequence is strongly homologous with those of human vitronectin and somatomedin B. Quantitation of the adhesive activities of fibronectin and vitronectin in bovine plasma and fresh serum showed that more activity is associated with vitronectin than with fibronectin. The preponderance of vitronectin was particularly clear in fetal bovine serum intended for cell culture. In various batches, cell attachment activity attributable to vitronectin was 8-16-fold greater than that of fibronectin, making vitronectin the main adhesive protein in routine cell culture media.

Subtotal corpectomy versus laminoplasty for multilevel cervical spondylotic myelopathy: a long-term follow-up study over 10 years

STUDY DESIGN

A retrospective study was conducted.

OBJECTIVE

To compare the long-term outcomes of subtotal corpectomy and laminoplasty for multilevel cervical spondylotic myelopathy.

SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA

No study has compared the long-term outcomes between subtotal corpectomy and laminoplasty for multilevel cervical spondylotic myelopathy.

METHODS

In this study, 23 patients treated with subtotal corpectomy and 24 patients treated with laminoplasty were followed up for 10 to 14 years after surgery. Neurologic recovery, late deterioration, axial pain, radiographic results (degenerative changes at adjacent levels, alignment, and range of motion of the cervical spine), and surgical complications were compared between the two groups.

RESULTS

No significant difference in neurologic recovery was found between the two groups 1 and 5 years after surgery, or at the latest follow-up assessment. Neurologic status deteriorated in one patient of the subtotal corpectomy group because of adjacent degeneration, and in one patient of the laminoplasty group because of hyperextension injury. Axial pain was observed in 15% of the corpectomy group and in 40% of the laminoplasty group (P < 0.05). In the corpectomy group, listhesis exceeding 2 mm developed at 38% of the upper adjacent levels, and osteophyte formation at 54% of the lower adjacent levels. In the laminoplasty group, kyphotic deformity developed in one patient (6%) after surgery. In the corpectomy group, the mean vertebral range of motion had decreased from 39.4 degrees to 19.2 degrees (49%) by the final follow-up assessment. In the laminoplasty group, the mean vertebral range of motion had decreased from 40.2 degrees to 11.6 degrees (29%) by the final follow-up assessment. Neurologic complications related to the surgery occurred in two patients (one myelopathy from bone graft dislodgement and one C5 root palsy from bone graft fracture) of the corpectomy group and four patients (C5 root palsy) of the laminoplasty group. All of these patients recovered over time. The corpectomy group needed longer operative time (P < 0.001) and tended to have more blood loss (P = 0.24). Six patients in the corpectomy group needed posterior interspinous wiring because of pseudarthrosis.

CONCLUSIONS

Subtotal corpectomy and laminoplasty showed an identical effect from a surgical treatment for multilevel cervical spondylotic myelopathy. These neurologic recoveries usually last more than 10 years. In the subtotal corpectomy group, the disadvantages were longer surgical time, more blood loss, and pseudarthrosis. In the laminoplasty group, axial pain occurred frequently, and the range of motion was reduced severely.

Structural analysis of chick-embryo cartilage proteoglycan by selective degradation with chondroitin lyases (chondroitinases) and endo-beta-D-galactosidase (keratanase)

Digestion of chick-embryo cartilage proteoglycan (type H) with chondroitin AC II lyase or keratanase, in the presence of EDTA, N-ethylmaleimide, phenylmethanesulphonyl fluoride and pepstatin, resulted in the removal of the bulk of the chondroitin sulphate or keratan sulphate chains respectively, without altering the protein portion of the macromolecule. An exhaustive treatment of the proteoglycan with chondroitin AC II lyase followed by digestion with keratanase yielded a core fraction having the enzymically modified linkage oligosaccharides. Zonal sedimentation of this core preparation on a sucrose gradient in 0.5% SDS resulted in a single narrow band with a sedimentation coefficient of 6S. In 4 M-guanidinium chloride, the core preparation showed a tendency to aggregate to multiple-molecular-weight forms which could dissociate in the presence of Triton X-100. The results indicate that the preponderance of glycosaminoglycans in the proteoglycan molecule is a main reason for both polydispersity and hydrophilicity of the proteoglycan preparation, and further suggest that the enzymic procedures could prove useful as a method to obtain new information about the structure and properties of proteoglycan core molecules.

Tetrahydrobiopterin-responsive phenylalanine hydroxylase deficiency

Serum phenylalanine concentrations decreased in 4 patients with hyperphenylalaninemia after loading with tetrahydrobiopterin. There were no abnormalities in urinary pteridine excretion or in dihydropteridine reductase activity. However, mutations were detected in the phenylalanine hydroxylase gene, suggesting a novel subtype of phenylalanine hydroxylase deficiency that may respond to treatment with cofactor supplementation.

Urinary excretion of podocytes in patients with diabetic nephropathy

BACKGROUND

Detection of podocytes in the urinary sediments of children with glomerulonephritis has been shown to indicate severe injury to the podocytes. The aim of the present study was to determine whether podocytes are present in the urine sediments of adult patients with diabetes with and without nephropathy and whether trandolapril is effective for podocyte injury.

METHODS

Fifty diabetic patients (10 with normoalbuminuria, 15 with microalbuminuria, 15 with macroalbuminuria and 10 with chronic renal failure) and 10 healthy controls were studied. Urinary podocytes were examined by immunofluorescence using monoclonal antibodies against podocalyxin, which is present on the surface of podocytes. In addition, we studied plasma metalloproteinase (MMP)-9 concentrations in all patients.

RESULTS

Urinary podocytes were absent in healthy controls, diabetic patients with normoalbuminuria and diabetic patients with chronic renal failure. Podocytes were detected in the urine of eight diabetic patients with microalbuminuria (53%) and of 12 patients with macroalbuminuria (80%). The number of podocytes in the urine of patients with macroalbuminuria was significantly greater than in patients with microalbuminuria (P:<0.01). However, there was no relationship between urinary albumin excretion and urinary podocytes. In addition, plasma MMP-9 concentrations were significantly correlated with the number of urinary podocytes (P:<0.01). Twelve diabetic patients with macroalbuminuria and eight patients with microalbuminuria who had urinary podocytes were treated with the angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor trandolapril. Urinary albumin excretion, the number of podocytes and plasma MMP-9 concentrations were reduced by the trandolapril treatment.

CONCLUSIONS

Podocytes in the urine may be a useful marker of disease activity in diabetic nephropathy. Trandolapril may be effective for podocyte injury.