(1/836) Contact dermatitis in Alstroemeria workers.

Hand dermatitis is common in workers in the horticultural industry. This study determined the prevalence of hand dermatitis in workers of Alstroemeria cultivation, investigated how many workers had been sensitized by tulipalin A (the allergen in Alstroemeria) and took stock of a wide range of determinants of hand dermatitis. The 12-month period prevalence of major hand dermatitis amounted to 29.5% whereas 7.4% had minor dermatitis. Of these workers, 52.1% were sensitized for tulipalin A. Several personal and work-related determinants played a role in the multifactorial aetiology of hand dermatitis. Factors which showed a significant relationship with major hand dermatitis were: female sex, atopic dermatitis, chapped hands and the frequency of washing hands. It may be concluded that the Alstroemeria workers are a population at risk of developing contact dermatitis and it might be useful to carry out an educational campaign to lower the high prevalence.  (+info)

(2/836) Modulation of acute and chronic inflammatory processes by cacospongionolide B, a novel inhibitor of human synovial phospholipase A2.

1. Cacospongionolide B is a novel marine metabolite isolated from the sponge Fasciospongia cavernosa. In in vitro studies, this compound inhibited phospholipase A2 (PLA2), showing selectivity for secretory PLA2 (sPLA2) versus cytosolic PLA2 (cPLA2), and its potency on the human synovial enzyme (group II) was similar to that of manoalide. 2. This activity was confirmed in vivo in the 8 h zymosan-injected rat air pouch, on the secretory enzyme accumulating in the pouch exudate. Cacospongionolide B, that is bioavailable when is given orally, reduced the elevated levels of sPLA2 present in paw homogenates of rats with adjuvant arthritis. 3. This marine metabolite showed topical anti-inflammatory activity on the mouse ear oedema induced by 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol acetate (TPA) and decreased carrageenin paw oedema in mice after oral administration of 5, 10 or 20 mg kg(-1). 4. In the mouse air pouch injected with zymosan, cacospongionolide B administered into the pouch, induced a dose-dependent reduction in the levels of eicosanoids and tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha) in the exudates 4 h after the stimulus. It also had a weak effect on cell migration. 5. The inflammatory response of adjuvant arthritis was reduced by cacospongionolide B, which did not significantly affect eicosanoid levels in serum, paw or stomach homogenates and did not induce toxic effects. 6 Cacospongionolide B is a new inhibitor of sPLA2 in vitro and in vivo, with anti-inflammatory properties in acute and chronic inflammation. This marine metabolite was active after oral administration and able to modify TNFalpha levels, and may offer an interesting approach in the search for new anti-inflammatory agents.  (+info)

(3/836) Human metabolism of mammalian lignan precursors in raw and processed flaxseed.

BACKGROUND: The mammalian lignans enterolactone and enterodiol are produced in the colon by the action of bacteria on the plant precursor secoisolariciresinol diglycoside, which is found in high concentrations in flaxseed. OBJECTIVE: Two experiments were conducted to determine 1) whether there is a dose response in urinary lignan excretion with increasing flaxseed intake, 2) whether flaxseed processing affects lignan excretion, 3) peak plasma lignan concentrations, and 4) plasma lignan concentrations after chronic supplementation. DESIGN: Nine healthy young women supplemented their diets with 5, 15, or 25 g raw or 25 g processed (muffin or bread) flaxseed for 7 d during the follicular phase of their menstrual cycles. Twenty-four-hour urine samples were collected at baseline and on the final day of supplementation. As an adjunct to the 25-g-flaxseed arm, subjects consumed the supplement for an additional day and blood and urine samples were collected at specific intervals. All blood and urine samples were analyzed for enterolactone and enterodiol by gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy. RESULTS: A dose-dependent urinary lignan response to raw flaxseed was observed (r = 0.72, P < 0.001). The processing of flaxseed as a muffin or bread did not affect the quantity of lignan excretion. Plasma lignan concentrations were greater (P < or = 0.05) than baseline by 9 h after flaxseed ingestion (29.35+/-3.69 and 51.75+/-7.49 nmol/L, respectively). The total plasma area under the curve was higher on the eighth than on the first day (1840.15+/-343.02 and 1027.15+/-95.71 nmol x h/L, respectively). CONCLUSION: Mammalian lignan production from flaxseed precursors is dependent on time and dose but not on processing.  (+info)

(4/836) Evidence that halogenated furanones from Delisea pulchra inhibit acylated homoserine lactone (AHL)-mediated gene expression by displacing the AHL signal from its receptor protein.

Acylated homoserine lactone (AHL)-mediated gene expression controls phenotypes involved in colonization, often specifically of higher organisms, in both marine and terrestrial environments. The marine red alga Delisea pulchra produces halogenated furanones which resemble AHLs structurally and show inhibitory activity at ecologically realistic concentrations in AHL bioassays. Evidence is presented that halogenated furanones displace tritiated OHHL [N-3-(oxohexanoyl)-L-homoserine lactone] from Escherichia coli cells overproducing LuxR with potencies corresponding to their respective inhibitory activities in an AHL-regulated bioluminescence assay, indicating that this is the mechanism by which furanones inhibit AHL-dependent phenotypes. Alternative mechanisms for this phenomenon are also addressed. General metabolic disruption was assessed with two-dimensional PAGE, revealing limited non-AHL-related effects. A direct chemical interaction between the algal compounds and AHLs, as monitored by 1H NMR spectroscopy, was shown not to occur in vitro. These results support the contention that furanones, at the concentrations produced by the alga, can control bacterial colonization of surfaces by specifically interfering with AHL-mediated gene expression at the level of the LuxR protein.  (+info)

(5/836) Adverse events associated with ingestion of gamma-butyrolactone--Minnesota, New Mexico, and Texas, 1998-1999.

Products containing gamma-butyrolactone (GBL) are marketed for many claimed purposes, including to induce sleep, release growth hormone, enhance sexual activity and athletic performance, relieve depression, and prolong life. GBL is converted by the body into gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB), a drug banned outside of clinical trials approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Recognized manifestations of GHB toxicity include bradycardia, hypothermia, central nervous system depression, and uncontrolled movements. This report describes seven cases of GBL toxicity involving the product "Revivarant," which is labeled as containing 1.82 g of GBL per fluid ounce, reported from two hospital emergency departments (EDs) in Minnesota during October-December 1998 and summarizes an additional 34 cases of GBL toxicity reported to poison centers in New Mexico and Texas during October 1998-January 1999.  (+info)

(6/836) Production of poly(3-hydroxybutyric acid-co-4-hydroxybutyric acid) and poly(4-hydroxybutyric acid) without subsequent degradation by Hydrogenophaga pseudoflava.

A Hydrogenophaga pseudoflava strain was able to synthesize poly(3-hydroxybutyric acid-co-4-hydroxybutyric acid) [P(3HB-co-4HB)] having a high level of 4-hydroxybutyric acid monomer unit (4HB) from gamma-butyrolactone. In a two-step process in which the first step involved production of cells containing a minimum amount of poly(3-hydroxybutyric acid) [P(3HB)] and the second step involved polyester accumulation from the lactone, approximately 5 to 10 mol% of the 3-hydroxybutyric acid (3HB) derived from the first-step culture was unavoidably reincorporated into the polymer in the second cultivation step. Reincorporation of the 3HB units produced from degradation of the first-step residual P(3HB) was confirmed by high-resolution 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. In order to synthesize 3HB-free poly(4-hydroxybutyric acid) [P(4HB)] homopolymer, a three-stage cultivation technique was developed by adding a nitrogen addition step, which completely removed the residual P(3HB). The resulting polymer was free of 3HB. However, when the strain was grown on gamma-butyrolactone as the sole carbon source in a synthesis medium, a copolyester of P(3HB-co-4HB) containing 45 mol% 3HB was produced. One-step cultivation on gamma-butyrolactone required a rather long induction time (3 to 4 days). On the basis of the results of an enzymatic study performed with crude extracts, we suggest that the inability of cells to produce 3HB in the multistep culture was due to a low level of 4-hydroxybutyric acid (4HBA) dehydrogenase activity, which resulted in a low level of acetyl coenzyme A. Thus, 3HB formation from gamma-butyrolactone is driven by a high level of 4HBA dehydrogenase activity induced by long exposure to gamma-butyrolactone, as is the case for a one-step culture. In addition, intracellular degradation kinetics studies showed that P(3HB) in cells was completely degraded within 30 h of cultivation after being transferred to a carbon-free mineral medium containing additional ammonium sulfate, while P(3HB-co-4HB) containing 5 mol% 3HB and 95 mol% 4HB was totally inert in interactions with the intracellular depolymerases. Intracellular inertness could be a useful factor for efficient synthesis of the P(4HB) homopolymer and of 4HB-rich P(3HB-co-4HB) by the strain used in this study.  (+info)

(7/836) Promotion of antibiotic production by high ethanol, high NaCl concentration, or heat shock in Pseudomonas fluorescens S272.

A stress imposed by a continuous feed of high ethanol, high NaCl concentration, or a high temperature shock increased antibiotic production by several times in Pseudomonas fluorescens S272. A tentative bioassay showed that the stress caused about 40-fold elevation in the autoinducer activity. Addition of synthetic autoinducers, N-(3-oxododecanoyl)-L-homoserine lactone or N-(3-oxohexanoyl)-L-homoserine lactone at a concentration of more than 100 micrograms/l to a non-stressed culture also increased the antibiotic production by several times. These results suggested that the antibiotic production in P. fluorescens S272 was regulated by N-acyl-homoserine lactone and the promotive effect by stress occurred through any function that increased the autoinducer production.  (+info)

(8/836) Acyl homoserine-lactone quorum-sensing signal generation.

Acyl homoserine lactones (acyl-HSLs) are important intercellular signaling molecules used by many bacteria to monitor their population density in quorum-sensing control of gene expression. These signals are synthesized by members of the LuxI family of proteins. To understand the mechanism of acyl-HSL synthesis we have purified the Pseudomonas aeruginosa RhlI protein and analyzed the kinetics of acyl-HSL synthesis by this enzyme. Purified RhlI catalyzes the synthesis of acyl-HSLs from acyl-acyl carrier proteins and S-adenosylmethionine. An analysis of the patterns of product inhibition indicated that RhlI catalyzes signal synthesis by a sequential, ordered reaction mechanism in which S-adenosylmethionine binds to RhlI as the initial step in the enzymatic mechanism. Because pathogenic bacteria such as P. aeruginosa use acyl-HSL signals to regulate virulence genes, an understanding of the mechanism of signal synthesis and identification of inhibitors of signal synthesis has implications for development of quorum sensing-targeted antivirulence molecules.  (+info)

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