Exposure of human vascular endothelial cells to sustained hydrostatic pressure stimulates proliferation. Involvement of the alphaV integrins. (1/885)

The present study investigated the effects of sustained hydrostatic pressure (SHP; up to 4 cm H2O) on human umbilical vein endothelial cell (HUVEC) proliferation, focal adhesion plaque (FAP) organization, and integrin expression. Exposure of HUVECs to SHP stimulated cell proliferation and a selective increase in the expression of integrin subunit alphaV. The increase in alphaV was observed as early as 4 hours after exposure to pressure and preceded detectable increases in the bromodeoxyuridine labeling index. Laser confocal microscopy studies demonstrated colocalization of the alphaV integrin to FAPs. The individual FAPs in pressure-treated cells demonstrated a reduced area and increased aspect ratio and were localized to both peripheral and more central regions of the cells, in contrast to the predilection for the cell periphery in cells maintained under control pressure conditions. The pressure-induced changes in alphaV distribution had functional consequences on the cells: adhesivity of the cells to vitronectin was increased, and alphaV antagonists blocked the pressure-induced proliferative response. Thus, the present study suggests a role for alphaV integrins in the mechanotransduction of pressure by endothelial cells.  (+info)

The effects of hydrostatic pressure on ribosome conformation in Escherichia coli: and in vivo study using differential scanning calorimetry. (2/885)

Differential scanning calorimetry of whole Escherichia coil cells allowed the detection in vivo of changes in ribosome conformation. This enabled for the first time an analysis of the effects of high hydrostatic pressures on ribosomes in living cells. A correlation was observed between loss of cell viability and decrease in ribosome-associated enthalpy in cells subjected to pressures of 50-250 MPa for 20 min. Cell death and ribosome damage were therefore closely related phenomena. In pressure-treated cells, the thermogram peak temperatures decreased, suggesting that the remaining ribosomes had adopted a less stable conformation. During subsequent incubation of the cultures at 37 degrees C, peak temperatures and enthalpies gradually increased over a period of 5 h. This change in ribosome conformation had no apparent effect on cell survival, as viability continued to decrease. The addition of 5 mM MgCl2 before pressure treatment of cells prevented the reduction in stability of surviving ribosomes but had no effect on the initial loss of enthalpy or on cell viability.  (+info)

Hydrostatic pressure and calcium-induced dissociation of calpains. (3/885)

The dissociation of mu- and m-calpains was studied by fluorescence spectroscopy under high hydrostatic pressure (up to 650 MPa). Increasing pressure induced a red shift of the tryptophan fluorescence of the calcium-free enzyme. The concentration dependence of the spectral transition was consistent with a pressure-induced dissociation of the subunits. Rising temperature increased the stability of calpain heterodimers and confirmed the predominance of hydrophobic interactions between monomers. At saturating calcium, the spectral transition was not observed for native or iodoacetamide-inactivated calpains, indicating that they were already dissociated by calcium. The reaction volume was about -150 ml mol-1 for both isoforms, and the dissociation constants at atmospheric pressure are approximately 10-12 M and 10-15 M for mu- and m-calpains, respectively. This result indicates a tighter interaction in the isoform that requires higher calcium concentration for activity.  (+info)

Variation in resistance of natural isolates of Escherichia coli O157 to high hydrostatic pressure, mild heat, and other stresses. (4/885)

Strains of Escherichia coli O157 isolated from patients with clinical cases of food-borne illness and other sources exhibited wide differences in resistance to high hydrostatic pressure. The most pressure-resistant strains were also more resistant to mild heat than other strains. Strain C9490, a representative pressure-resistant strain, was also more resistant to acid, oxidative, and osmotic stresses than the pressure-sensitive strain NCTC 12079. Most of these differences in resistance were observed only in stationary-phase cells, the only exception being acid resistance, where differences were also apparent in the exponential phase. Membrane damage in pressure-treated cells was revealed by increased uptake of the fluorescent dyes ethidium bromide and propidium iodide. When strains were exposed to the same pressure for different lengths of time, the pressure-sensitive strains took up stain sooner than the more resistant strain, which suggested that the differences in resistance may be related to susceptibility to membrane damage. Our results emphasize the importance of including stress-resistant strains of E. coli O157 when the efficacy of a novel or mild food preservation treatment is tested.  (+info)

Monounsaturated but not polyunsaturated fatty acids are required for growth of the deep-sea bacterium Photobacterium profundum SS9 at high pressure and low temperature. (5/885)

There is considerable evidence correlating the production of increased proportions of membrane unsaturated fatty acids (UFAs) with bacterial growth at low temperatures or high pressures. In order to assess the importance of UFAs to microbial growth under these conditions, the effects of conditions altering UFA levels in the psychrotolerant piezophilic deep-sea bacterium Photobacterium profundum SS9 were investigated. The fatty acids produced by P. profundum SS9 grown at various temperatures and pressures were characterized, and differences in fatty acid composition as a function of phase growth, and between inner and outer membranes, were noted. P. profundum SS9 was found to exhibit enhanced proportions of both monounsaturated (MUFAs) and polyunsaturated (PUFAs) fatty acids when grown at a decreased temperature or elevated pressure. Treatment of cells with cerulenin inhibited MUFA but not PUFA synthesis and led to a decreased growth rate and yield at low temperature and high pressure. In addition, oleic acid-auxotrophic mutants were isolated. One of these mutants, strain EA3, was deficient in the production of MUFAs and was both low-temperature sensitive and high-pressure sensitive in the absence of exogenous 18:1 fatty acid. Another mutant, strain EA2, produced little MUFA but elevated levels of the PUFA species eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA; 20:5n-3). This mutant grew slowly but was not low-temperature sensitive or high-pressure sensitive. Finally, reverse genetics was employed to construct a mutant unable to produce EPA. This mutant, strain EA10, was also not low-temperature sensitive or high-pressure sensitive. The significance of these results to the understanding of the role of UFAs in growth under low-temperature or high-pressure conditions is discussed.  (+info)

Effect of hydrostatic tensile stress on the growth of Escherichia coli and Bacillus cereus. (6/885)

The specific growth rates of Escherichia coli and Bacillus cereus were measured for growth media in a flask, a lens-plate arrangement simulating an isolated capillary space, and a lens-plate arrangement under hydrostatic tensile stress. The specific growth rates of the bacteria were the same for the flask and lens-plate arrangement without hydrostatic tensile stress, but were enhanced when the growth media were subjected to hydrostatic tensile stress. The enhanced specific growth rates reached steady values at a tensile stress of 40 pascals. The effect was observed up to tensile stresses of around 100 pascals. The maximum increase in specific growth rate was 25% for E. coli and 22% for B. cereus.  (+info)

RecD function is required for high-pressure growth of a deep-sea bacterium. (7/885)

A genomic library derived from the deep-sea bacterium Photobacterium profundum SS9 was conjugally delivered into a previously isolated pressure-sensitive SS9 mutant, designated EC1002 (E. Chi and D. H. Bartlett, J. Bacteriol. 175:7533-7540, 1993), and exconjugants were screened for the ability to grow at 280-atm hydrostatic pressure. Several clones were identified that had restored high-pressure growth. The complementing DNA was localized and in all cases found to possess strong homology to recD, a DNA recombination and repair gene. EC1002 was found to be deficient in plasmid stability, a phenotype also seen in Escherichia coli recD mutants. The defect in EC1002 was localized to a point mutation that created a stop codon within the recD gene. Two additional recD mutants were constructed by gene disruption and were both found to possess a pressure-sensitive growth phenotype, although the magnitude of the defect depended on the extent of 3' truncation of the recD coding sequence. Surprisingly, the introduction of the SS9 recD gene into an E. coli recD mutant had two dramatic effects. At high pressure, SS9 recD enabled growth in the E. coli mutant strain under conditions of plasmid antibiotic resistance selection and prevented cell filamentation. Both of these effects were recessive to wild-type E. coli recD. These results suggest that the SS9 recD gene plays an essential role in SS9 growth at high pressure and that it may be possible to identify additional aspects of RecD function through the characterization of this activity.  (+info)

High peritoneal residual volume decreases the efficiency of peritoneal dialysis. (8/885)

BACKGROUND: Wide variation in peritoneal residual volume (PRV) is a common clinical observation. High PRV has been used in both continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) and automated peritoneal dialysis to minimize the time of a dry peritoneal cavity and to achieve better dialysis. However, the impact of PRV on peritoneal transport is not well established. In this study, we investigated the effect of PRV on peritoneal transport characteristics. METHODS: Peritoneal effluents were collected in 32 male Sprague-Dawley rats after a five-hour dwell with 1.36% glucose solution. Forty-eight hours later, a four hour dwell using 25 ml of 3.86% glucose solution and frequent dialysate and blood sampling was done in each rat with 125I-albumin as a volume marker. Before the infusion of the 3.86% glucose solution, 0 (control), 3, 6, or 12 ml (8 rats in each group) of autologous effluent (serving as PRV) was infused to the peritoneal cavity. RESULTS: After subtracting the PRV, the net ultrafiltration was significantly lower in the PRV groups as compared with the control group: 13.4 +/- 0.5, 12.0 +/- 1.0, 11.7 +/- 1.7, and 8.9 +/- 0.4 ml for 0, 3, 6, and 12 ml PRV groups, respectively (P < 0.001). The lower net ultrafiltration associated with higher PRV was due to (a) a significantly lower transcapillary ultrafiltration rate (Qu) caused by a lower osmotic gradient, and (b) a significantly higher peritoneal fluid absorption rate (KE) caused by an increased intraperitoneal hydrostatic pressure. No significant differences were found in the diffusive mass transport coefficient for small solutes (glucose, urea, sodium, and potassium) and total protein, although the dialysate over plasma concentration ratios values were higher in the high-PRV groups. The sodium removal was significantly lower in the PRV groups as compared with the control group (P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that a high PRV may decrease net ultrafiltration through decreasing the Qu, which is caused by a decreased dialysate osmolality, and increasing the KE caused by an increased intraperitoneal hydrostatic pressure. The high volume of PRV also decreased the solute diffusion gradient and decreased peritoneal small solute clearances, particularly for sodium. Therefore, a high PRV may compromise the efficiency of dialysis with a glucose solution.  (+info)