The photoreduction of H(2)O(2) by Synechococcus sp. PCC 7942 and UTEX 625. (1/32)

It has been claimed that the sole H(2)O(2)-scavenging system in the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC 7942 is a cytosolic catalase-peroxidase. We have measured in vivo activity of a light-dependent peroxidase in Synechococcus sp. PCC 7942 and UTEX 625. The addition of small amounts of H(2)O(2) (2.5 microM) to illuminated cells caused photochemical quenching (qP) of chlorophyll fluorescence that was relieved as the H(2)O(2) was consumed. The qP was maximal at about 50 microM H(2)O(2) with a Michaelis constant of about 7 microM. The H(2)O(2)-dependent qP strongly indicates that photoreduction can be involved in H(2)O(2) decomposition. Catalase-peroxidase activity was found to be almost completely inhibited by 10 microM NH(2)OH with no inhibition of the H(2)O(2)-dependent qP, which actually increased, presumably due to the light-dependent reaction now being the only route for H(2)O(2)-decomposition. When (18)O-labeled H(2)O(2) was presented to cells in the light there was an evolution of (16)O(2), indicative of H(2)(16)O oxidation by PS 2 and formation of photoreductant. In the dark (18)O(2) was evolved from added H(2)(18)O(2) as expected for decomposition by the catalase-peroxidase. This evolution was completely blocked by NH(2)OH, whereas the light-dependent evolution of (16)O(2) during H(2)(18)O(2) decomposition was unaffected.  (+info)

The effects of ammonia on pancreatic enzyme secretion in vivo and in vitro. (2/32)

BACKGROUND: Recent studies clearly demonstrate that Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection of the stomach causes persistent elevation of ammonia (NH3) in gastric juice leading to hypergastrinemia and enhanced pancreatic enzyme secretion. METHODS: The aim of this study is to evaluate the influence of NH4OH on plasma gastrin level and exocrine pancreatic secretion in vivo in conscious dogs equipped with chronic pancreatic fistulas and on secretory activity of in vitro isolated acini obtained from the rat pancreas by collagenase digestion. The effects of NH4OH on amylase release from pancreatic acini were compared with those produced by simple alkalization of these acini with NaOH. RESULTS: NH4OH given intraduodenally (i.d.) in increasing concentrations (0.5, 1.0, 2.0, 4.0, or 8.0 mM/L) resulted in an increase of pancreatic protein output, reaching respectively 9%, 10%, 19%, 16% and 17% of caerulein maximum in these animals and in a marked increase in plasma gastrin level. NH4OH (8 x 0 mM/L, i.d.) given during intravenous (i.v.) infusion of secretin (50 pmol/kg-h) and cholecystokinin (50 pmol/kg-h) reduced the HCO3 and protein outputs by 35% and 37% respectively, as compared to control obtained with infusion of secretin plus cholecystokinin alone. When pancreatic secretion was stimulated by ordinary feeding the same amount of NH4OH administered i.d. decreased the HCO3- and protein responses by 78% and 47% respectively, and had no significant effect on postprandial plasma gastrin. In isolated pancreatic acini, increasing concentrations of NH4OH (10(-7)-10(-4) M) produced a concentration-dependent stimulation of amylase release, reaching about 43% of caerulein-induced maximum. When various concentrations of NH4OH were added to submaximal concentration of caerulein (10(-12) M) or urecholine (10(-5) M), the enzyme secretion was reduced at a dose 10(-5) M of NH4OH by 38% or 40%, respectively. Simple alkalization with NaOH of the incubation medium up to pH 8.5 markedly stimulated basal amylase secretion from isolated pancreatic acini, whereas the secretory response of these acini to pancreatic secretagogues was significantly diminished by about 30%. LDH release into the incubation medium was not significantly changed in all tests indicating that NH4OH did not produce any apparent damage of pancreatic acini and this was confirmed by histological examination of these acini. CONCLUSIONS: 1. NH4OH affects basal and stimulated pancreatic secretion. 2. The excessive release of gastrin may be responsible for the stimulation of basal pancreatic enzyme secretion in conscious animals, and 3. The inhibitory effects of NH4OH on stimulated secretion might be mediated, at least in part, by its direct action on the isolated pancreatic acini possibly due to the alkalization of these acini.  (+info)

The oxidation state of the photosystem II manganese cluster influences the structure of manganese stabilizing protein. (3/32)

Exposure of photosystem II membranes to trypsin that has been treated to inhibit chymotrypsin activity produces limited hydrolysis of manganese stabilizing protein. Exposure to chymotrypsin under the same conditions yields substantial digestion of the protein. Further probing of the unusual insensitivity of manganese stabilizing protein to trypsin hydrolysis reveals that increasing the temperature from 4 to 25 degrees C will cause some acceleration in the rate of proteolysis. However, addition of low (100 microM) concentrations of NH2OH, that are sufficient to reduce, but not destroy, the photosystem II Mn cluster, causes a change in PS II-bound manganese stabilizing protein that causes it to be rapidly digested by trypsin. Immunoblot analyses with polyclonal antibodies directed against the N-terminus of the protein, or against the entire sequence show that trypsin cleavage produces two distinct peptide fragments estimated to be in the 17-20 kDa range, consistent with proposals that there are 2 mol of the protein/mol photosystem II. The correlation of trypsin sensitivity with Mn redox state(s) in photosystem II suggest that manganese stabilizing protein may interact either directly with Mn, or alternatively, that the polypeptide is bound to another protein of the photosystem II reaction center that is intimately involved in binding and redox activity of Mn.  (+info)

Efficacy of common laboratory disinfectants on the infectivity of Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts in cell culture. (4/32)

Nine liquid disinfectants were tested for their ability to reduce infectivity of Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts in cell culture. A 4-min exposure to 6% hydrogen peroxide and a 13-min exposure to ammonium hydroxide-amended windshield washer fluid reduced infectivity 1,000-fold. Other disinfectants tested (70% ethanol, 37% methanol, 6% sodium hypochlorite, 70% isopropanol, and three commercial disinfectants) did not reduce the infectivity after a 33-min exposure. The results indicate that hydrogen peroxide and windshield washer fluid or ammonium hydroxide disinfectant may be suitable laboratory disinfectants against C. parvum oocysts.  (+info)

Structural determination of lipid A of the lipopolysaccharide from Pseudomonas reactans. A pathogen of cultivated mushrooms. (5/32)

The chemical structure of lipid A from the lipopolysaccharide of the mushroom-associated bacterium Pseudomonas reactans, a pathogen of cultivated mushroom, was elucidated by compositional analysis and spectroscopic methods (MALDI-TOF and two-dimensional NMR). The sugar backbone was composed of the beta-(1'-->6)-linked d-glucosamine disaccharide 1-phosphate. The lipid A fraction showed remarkable heterogeneity with respect to the fatty acid and phosphate composition. The major species are hexacylated and pentacylated lipid A, bearing the (R)-3-hydroxydodecanoic acid [C12:0 (3OH)] in amide linkage and a (R)-3-hydroxydecanoic [C10:0 (3OH)] in ester linkage while the secondary fatty acids are present as C12:0 and/or C12:0 (2-OH). A nonstoichiometric phosphate substitution at position C-4' of the distal 2-deoxy-2-amino-glucose was detected. Interestingly, the pentacyl lipid A is lacking a primary fatty acid, namely the C10:0 (3-OH) at position C-3'. The potential biological meaning of this peculiar lipid A is also discussed.  (+info)

Identification of the extracellular loop 2 as the point of interaction between the N terminus of the chemokine MIP-1alpha and its CCR1 receptor. (6/32)

Macrophage inflammatory peptide-1alpha (MIP-1alpha)/CC-chemokine receptor ligand 3 is an 8-kDa peptide that induces chemotaxis of various lymphocytes to sites of inflammation through interaction with the G protein-coupled chemokine receptors CCR1 and CCR5. We recently described the preparation of a photoactivatable derivative of MIP-1alpha labeled with a benzophenone group at the extreme N-terminal end, which is a determinant for the agonist character of chemokines. Benzophenone-MIP-1alpha is a full agonist that specifically and covalently labels CCR1 and CCR5 receptors upon irradiation. In the present study, we use enzymatic and chemical cleavage methods on wild-type and mutated CCR1 receptors to show that the N terminus of the chemokine MIP-1alpha interacts in a specific manner with the second extracellular loop of the CCR1 receptor, within a segment comprising amino acids 178 to 194. This is the first report on the direct identification of a contact point between the N terminus of a chemokine and its membrane-bound receptor. The work shows that the part of chemokines that is endowed with agonist properties interacts with extracellular parts of the receptor rather than the transmembrane core of the protein.  (+info)

Ammonium hydroxide hydrolysis: a valuable support in the MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry analysis of Lipid A fatty acid distribution. (7/32)

Lipid A is the lipophilic moiety of lipopolysaccharides (LPSs), the major components of the external membrane of almost all gram-negative bacteria. It is responsible for the toxicity of LPS and has a heterogeneous structure composed of a bis-phosphorylated glucosamine disaccharide backbone that is acylated at the positions 2, 3 of the GlcN I (proximal) and GlcN II (distal) residue with O- and N-linked 3-hydroxy fatty acids (primary substitution). These fatty acids are further acylated by means of their 3-hydroxy groups (secondary substitution). The toxicity of Lipid A is dependent on its primary structure; the number, the length, and the distribution of the fatty acids on the disaccharide backbone strongly influence the endotoxic activity. In this paper a general and easy methodology to obtain secondary fatty acid distribution, which is one of the most difficult issues in the structural determination of Lipid A, is proposed. The method combines ammonium hydroxide hydrolysis and matrix assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI)-mass spectrometry analysis and has been successfully proven with five different Lipid A species. The procedure exploits the lower stability under mild alkaline conditions of acyl and acyloxyacyl esters with respect to that of the acyl and acyloxyacyl amides. The partially degraded Lipid A species obtained are analyzed by MALDI-MS. The generality of this approach was tested on five Lipid As, namely those arising from Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Klebsiella oxytoca, Pseudomonas reactans, and Burkholderia caryophylli.  (+info)

Decrease in the efficiency of the electron donation to tyrosine Z of photosystem II in an SQDG-deficient mutant of Chlamydomonas. (8/32)

Photosystem (PS) II activity of a sulfoquinovosyl diacylglycerol (SQDG)-deficient mutant (hf-2) of Chlamydomonas was partially decreased compared with that of wild-type. The susceptibility to 3-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-1,1-dimethylurea (DCMU) was also modified in the mutant. Photometric measurements in the isolated thylakoid membranes of hf-2 revealed that the lowered activity in the mutant was derived from a decrease in the efficiency of the electron donation from water to tyrosine Z, not from the efficiency of the electron transport from Q(A) to Q(B). This result was confirmed by the decay kinetics of chlorophyll fluorescence determined in vivo. We conclude that SQDG contributes to maintaining the conformation of PSII complexes, particularly that of D1 polypeptides, which are necessary for maximum activities in Chlamydomonas.  (+info)

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