bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Specificity of the effects of cytochalasin B on transport and motile processes.
Authors: Lin S , Lin D C , Flanagan M D
Published: May 2006

The effects of cytochalasin B (CB) and dihydrocytochalasin B (H2CB) on a variety of transport and motile processes have been compared. CB inhibited transport of D-glucose and L-glucose but not transport of thymidine in human erythrocytes. In contrast, H2CB, which differs from CB by the absence of a single double bond, had little or no effect on any of these processes. Both cytochalasins, however, affected the morphology of cultured fibroblasts and inhibited motile processes such as membrane ruffling, axon growth cone activity, blood clot retraction, cytoplasmic streaming, photodinesis, and cytokinesis. Determination of the partition coefficient of the two cytochalasins in several organic solvent/phosphate-buffered saline systems showed that H2CB has a higher affinity for the hydrophobic phase than CB. These results indicate that the inhibitory effects of CB on sugar transport and on cell motility and morphology are separable and independent events, mediated by the binding of the drug to specific cellular receptors.
Density-dependent regulation of growth of BSC-1 cells in cell culture: Control of growth by low molecular weight nutrients
Authors: Holley Robert W. , Armour Rosemary , Baldwin Julia H.
Published: May 2006

BSC-1 cells, epithelial cells of African green monkey kidney origin, show pronounced density-dependent regulation of growth in cell culture. Growth of the cells is rapid to a density of approximately 1.5 × 10
5
cells/per cm
2
in Dulbecco-modified Eagle's medium supplemented with 10% calf serum. Above this “saturation density,” growth is much slower. It has been found that the glucose concentration in the culture medium is important in determining the “saturation density.” If the glucose concentration is increased 4-fold, the “saturation density” increases approximately 50%. Reduction of the “saturation density” of BSC-1 cells is also possible by decreasing the concentrations of low molecular weight nutrients in the culture medium. In medium supplemented with 0.1% calf serum, decreasing the concentrations of all of the organic constituents of the medium, from the high levels present in Dulbecco-modified Eagle's medium to concentrations near physiological levels, decreases the “saturation density” by approximately half. The decreased “saturation density” is not the result of lowering the concentration of any single nutrient but rather results from reduction of the concentrations of several nutrients. When the growth of BSC-1 cells is limited by low concentrations of all of the nutrients, some stimulation of growth results from increasing, separately, the concentrations of individual groups of nutrients, but the best growth stimulation is obtained by increasing the concentrations of all of the nutrients. The “wound healing” phenomenon, one manifestation of density-dependent regulation of growth in cell culture, is abolished by lowering the concentration of glutamine in the medium. Density-dependent regulation of growth of BSC-1 cells in cell culture thus appears to be a complex phenomenon that involves an interaction of nutrient concentrations with other regulatory factors.
Gonadotropin binding and stimulation of steroidogenesis in Leydig tumor cells
Authors: Ascoli Mario , Puett David
Published: May 2006

Testicular tumors are generally characterized by a loss of responsiveness to gonadotropins. The M5480 Leydig cell tumor is unusual, if not unique, in that it responds to human choriogonadotropin and to lutropin via increased steroidogenesis. This report describes the identification of two variants of the original M5480 tumor that have altered steroid output both in the basal state and in response to human choriogonadotropin. One of the tumors produces mainly progesterone, which is stimulated by the choriogonadotropin; the other tumor produces about equal amounts of progesterone and testosterone, and the secretion of both is stimulated by the choriogonadotropin. The dissociation constant describing the interaction between Leydig tumor cells and
125
I-labeled human choriogonadotropin is between 3 and 5×10
-11
M. This agrees with values reported for normal Leydig cells, although the tumor cells appear to have fewer receptors. The differences noted in the two tumors and normal Leydig cells may have arisen from alterations in gene regulation, or in mutations, involving one or more enzymes in the pathway in which progesterone is converted to testosterone. Under the experimental conditions used, all the tumors studied (seven generations) responded to the choriogonadotropin both in binding and in the resultant stimulation of steroidogenesis. This property, together with the characteristic that a homogeneous cell population can be obtained without enzymatic treatment, should qualify the M5480 Leydig cell tumor(s) as a model system for further studies on the mechanism of action of gonadotropin, on hormone receptors, and on hormonally responsive tumors.
Isolation of two interferon-induced translational inhibitors: a protein kinase and an oligo-isoadenylate synthetase.
Authors: Zilberstein A , Kimchi A , Schmidt A , Revel M
Published: May 2006

Large-scale purification of translational inhibitors present in interferon-treated mouse L cells, but not in untreated cells, led to the isolation of two interferon-induced activities. One is a protein kinase system that is activatable by double-stranded RNA and ATP and that phosphorylates a Mr 67,000 protein and the smallest subunit of eukaryotic initiation factor-2. The purified protein kinase is a strong translational inhibitor. The second activity is an enzyme that, with double-stranded RNA, slowly polymerizes ATP into oligoadenylate with a 2'-5' phosphodiester linkage. The oligo-isoadenylate in turn activates a potent inhibitor of mRNA translation.
Lactose and major milk proteins are present in secretory vesicle-rich fractions from lactating mammary gland.
Authors: Sasaki M , Eigel W N , Keenan T W
Published: May 2006

Preparations enriched in apparently intact secretory vesicles were isolated from homogenates of lactating rat and bovine mammary tissue by differential and density gradient centrifugation in isoosmotic media. Morphologically these preparations consisted nearly entirely of vesicles of varying sizes, at least some of which contained casein micelles. Endoplasmic reticulum vesicles, Golgi apparatus cisterna and dictyosomes, mitochondria, peroxisomes, lysosomes, and nuclei were not observed in secretory vesicle-rich fractions. Vesicle preparations were enriched in lactose relative to total membrane fractions from mammary gland. The galactosyltransferase of lactose synthase (UDPgalactose: D-glucose 4 beta-galactosyl-transferase, EC 2.4.1.22) was also present in secretory vesicle preparations, alphas1- and beta-caseins, alpha-lactalbumin, and beta-lactoglobulin, the major secretory proteins of differentiated mammary epithelial cells, were identified as constituents of vesicle-rich fractions from bovine mammary gland. These observations suggest that the major carbohydrate and major proteins of milk are compartmentalized into secretory vesicles and are secreted by exocytotic fusion of secretory vesicles with the apical plasma membrane.
Sleep-promoting factor S: purification and properties.
Authors: Krueger J M , Pappenheimer J R , Karnovsky M L
Published: May 2006

Sleep-promoting factor was purified from acid/acetone extracts of whole brains of rabbits and from brainstems of slaughterhouse cattle. Intraventricular infusion of extracts purified by means of ion exchange and gel filtration induced excess slow-wave sleep in rabbits for 5-10 hr. The procedure is simple and provides material suitable for physiological studies. Further treatment by partition chromatography and electrophoresis yielded an active product that was purified at least 1 million-fold. This product was inactivated by incubation with mixed carboxypeptidases A and B. Amino acid analysis of acid hydrolysates indicated that the effective dose was less than 150 pmol per rabbit and the original concentration in brain tissue was of the order of 30 pmol/g of brain.
Effect of thyroid phospholipids on the interaction of thyrotropin with thyroid membranes.
Authors: Omodeo-Sale F , Brady R O , Fishman P H
Published: May 2006

Various lipids extracted from bovine thyroid glands were tested for their ability to affect the binding of 125I-labeled thyrotropin to bovine thyroid membranes. The most potent inhibitors were the acidic phospholipids in the order cardiolipin greater than phosphatidylglycerol greater than phosphatidylinositol greater than phosphatidylserine. Other phospholipids, neutral lipids, and neutral glycolipids were ineffective. As reported previously [mullin, B. R., Pacuszka, T., Lee, G., Kohn, L. D., Brady, R. O. & Fishman, P. H. (1978) Science 199, 77--79], thyroid gangliosides also inhibited thyrotropin binding but not as effectively as phospholipids. In addition, the mode of action of these two classes of acidic lipids was different. When thyroid membranes were preincubated with the phospholipids and then separated by centrifugation, their ability to bind thyrotropin was still diminished. In contrast, gangliosides appear to interact with the hormone and not with the membranes. The effect of phospholipids on thyroid membranes was further examined by incubating the membranes with phospholipase A. The treated membranes now bound more labeled hormone. These results suggest that certain acidic phospholipids, which are present in only small amounts in thyroid membranes, influence the state of the thyrotropin receptor and its ability to bind thyrotropin.
Evidence that the gamma-glutamyl cycle functions in vivo using intracellular glutathione: effects of amino acids and selective inhibition of enzymes.
Authors: Griffith O W , Bridges R J , Meister A
Published: May 2006

The function of the gamma-glutamyl cycle was explored in in vivo studies in which amino acids and specific inhibitors of cycle enzymes (gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase, gamma-glutamyl cyclotransferase, gamma-glutamylcysteine synthetase, and 5-oxoprolinase) were administered to mice. The findings, which show that the gamma-glutamyl cycle functions in vivo, support the conclusion that gamma-glutamyl amino acids formed by gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase from externally supplied amino acids and intracellular glutathione are translocated into the cell and thus indicate that there is a significant physiological connection between the metabolism of glutathione and the transport of amino acids.
Mammalian cell mutant requiring cholesterol and unsaturated fatty acid for growth.
Authors: Limanek J S , Chin J , Chang T Y
Published: May 2006

A mutant requiring both cholesterol and oleate for growth has been isolated from mutagenized Chinese hamster ovary cells. By comparison with wild-type cells, sterol and unsaturated fatty acid biosynthetic activities in the mutant cells grown in fetal calf serum medium appear to be nearly intact. However, whole-cell radioactive acetate, mevalonate, dihydrolanosterol, and stearate incorporation studies show that sterol synthesis from acetate, lanosterol demethylation, and fatty acid desaturation are defective in the mutant cells grown in delipidated serum medium. In vitro enzyme assays with crude cell extracts demonstrated that beta-hydroxy-beta-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase is not induced in the mutant. These experiments were substantiated by gas/liquid chromatographic analyses which showed the sterol content and the percentage unsaturated fatty acids in mutant cells to be drastically reduced when the cells are grown in delipidated serum medium. A spontaneous revertant exhibiting prototrophic growth in lipid-free medium has been isolated from 50 X 10(6) mutant cells. All three defects in this revertant reverted back in parallel, which suggests that these three biosynthetic activities may be controlled by a common regulatory mechanism.
Structural origins of diamagnetic anisotropy in proteins.
Authors: Worcester D L
Published: May 2006

Magnetic anisotropy in proteins and polypeptides can be attributed to the diamagnetic anisotropy of the planar peptide bonds. The alpha helix in particular has large anisotropy due to the axial alignment of the peptide bonds. The regular arrangements of the peptide bonds in beta pleated sheet and collagen structures also produce substantial anisotropy, but less than for alpha helix. The anisotropy permits orientation of small structures of these types in magnetic fields of several kilogauss.
Three-dimensional electron microscopical visualization of the cytoskeleton of animal cells: immunoferritin identification of actin- and tubulin-containing structures.
Authors: Webster R E , Henderson D , Osborn M , Weber K
Published: May 2006

Cytoskeletons prepared by Triton X-100 treatment of tissue culture cells appear in stereo electron microscopy as a highly organized and interconnected three-dimensional matrix of different fibrous elements. Microfilament bundles and also tonofilament-like bundles are readily discerned when present in the cell type. In addition thinner fibers, some of which branch (smallest diameter 30--40 A), as well as fibers of larger diameter, some of which correspond to microtubules, can be seen. Since such cytoskeletons are an open, membrane-free system, individual fibrous organizations can be identified by specific antibodies. An indirect immunoferritin procedure using antibodies to tubulin or actin visualizes microtubules or actin-containing structures. Stereo electron microscopy of cytoskeletons decorated with actin antibody reveals, in addition to the F-actin-containing microfilament bundles, an extended fine actin lattice. This actin net is displayed throughout the cytoplasm not only between the microfilament bundles but also in those regions of the cytoskeleton that in the intact cell correspond to the submembraneous regions. Thus all actin-containing fibrous cytoplasmic structures may be interconnected in the living cell.
Regeneration of T-cell helper function in zinc-deficient adult mice
Authors: Fraker Pamela J. , DePasquale-Jardieu Paula , Zwickl Craig M. , Luecke Richard W.
Published: May 2006

Diets deficient in zinc cause rapid atrophy of the thymus and loss of T-cell helper function in the young adult A/J mouse. Because zinc deficiency, as well as other nutritional deficiences, causes extensive damage to the immune system, the question arose as to whether zinc-deficient mice could repair the thymus and fully regenerate T-cell helper function if returned to diets containing adequate amounts of zinc. Five-week-old A/J female mice were fed either a zinc-deficient (<1 μg of Zn per g) or a zinc-adequate (50 μg of Zn per g) diet for 31 days. Histological examination of thymuses from the zinc-deficient mice revealed that the cortex was preferentially involuted and the thymus was about one-third of normal size. The direct plaque-forming cells produced per mouse spleen in response to immunization with sheep erythrocytes was 34% of normal; indirect plaque-forming cells were 18% of normal (Jerne plaque assay). After the deficient mice had been fed a zinc-adequate diet for 1 week, their response was nearly normal, except that the indirect response was 68% of controls; in this same period, the thymuses of these mice had quadrupled in size and exhibited a greatly enlarged cortex repopulated with immature thymocytes. By 2 weeks, the thymuses of the previously zinc-deficient mice were normal in size and appearance; however, there was a slight increases in numbers of indirect plaque-forming cells. By 4 weeks, the thymus weights, direct and indirect plaque-forming cell counts, and secondary response of the previously deficient mice were normal. Mice that were nearly athymic after 45 days of dietary zinc deficiency were also able to fully reconstruct the thymus and regenerate T-cell helper function. The data show that the zinc-deficient young adult mouse has the capacity to fully restore the T-cell-dependent antibody-mediated responses upon nutritional repletion.
Steady-state analysis of tracer exchange across the C5b-9 complement lesion in a biological membrane.
Authors: Sims P J , Lauf P K
Published: May 2006

Resealed erythrocyte ghosts have been used to define the kinetics of tracer exchange across the membrane-bound terminal complex of the complement cascade (C5b-9). Under steady-state conditions and at net chemical equilibrium, C5b-9 ghosts showed no significant lysis above control levels as measured by hemoglobin efflux. In 1 mM sucrose at 37 degrees C, [14C]sucrose isotopic exchange diffusion into C5b-9 ghosts occurred at 4.8 (+/- 0.5, SEM) X 10(-20) mol sec-1 per functional lesion, equivalent to an apparent permeability coefficient of 4.8 X 10(-14) cm3 sec-1 for the single C5b-9 lesion. No significant uptake of [14C]sucrose above control levels was observed in C5b67 ghosts. The apparent rate of tracer permeation through the complement lesion is one to two orders of magnitude slower than predicted by a model of a transmembrane channel of dimensions permitting free diffusion of sucrose. The data support earlier assertions from this laboratory that diffusion of small molecules across the complement lesion in biological membranes is significantly restricted.
Cholesterol is a critical cellular component for T-lymphocyte cytotoxicity.
Authors: Heiniger H J , Brunner K T , Cerottini J C
Published: May 2006

Preincubation of cytolytic T lymphocytes (CTLs) generated in secondary C57BL/6 anti-DBA/2 mixed leukocyte cultures with an inhibitor of cellular cholesterol synthesis (25-OH-cholesterol) for 24 hr strongly depressed the cytolytic activity as determined in a 3-hr 51Cr assay. The effect of the inhibitor was reversed by the simultaneous addition of cholesterol or of mevalonic acid during the preincubation period (mevalonate is the product of the regulatory enzyme in the sterol synthesis pathway, 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase (NADP) [mevalonate:NADP+ oxidoreductase (CoA-acylating), EC 1.1.1.34]). Because, under the same culture conditions, inhibition of DNA synthesis had no effect on CTL activity, the experiments suggest that the effect of 25-OH-cholesterol is related to its inhibitory effect on sterol synthesis, resulting in decreased levels of membrane-bound cholesterol, rather than to inhibition of cellular proliferation.
Selective labeling of serotonin receptors by d-[3H]lysergic acid diethylamide in calf caudate.
Authors: Whitaker P M , Seeman P
Published: May 2006

Since it was known that d-lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) affected catecholaminergic as well as serotoninergic neurons, the objective in this study was to enhance the selectivity of [3H]LSD binding to serotonin receptors in vitro by using crude homogenates of calf caudate. In the presence of a combination of 50 nM each of phentolamine (added to preclude the binding of [3H]LSD to alpha-adrenoceptors), apomorphine, and spiperone (added to preclude the binding of [3H]LSD to dopamine receptors), it was found by Scatchard analysis that the total number of [3H]LSD sites went down to 300 fmol/mg, compared to 1100 fmol/mg in the absence of the catecholamine-blocking drugs. The IC50 values (concentrations to inhibit binding by 50%) for various drugs were tested on the binding of [3H]LSD in the presence of 50 nM each of apomorphine (A), phentolamine (P) and spiperone (S). With this combination, the IC50 for serotonin was 35 nM (compared to 1000 nM without it), indicating that [3H]LSD had become considerably more selectively displaceable by serotonin under these conditions whereas the effects of norepinephrine and dopamine on [3H]LSD binding were eliminated. Various ergots had approximately equal IC50 values against [3H]serotonin and [3H]LSD but tryptamines were much more selective against [3H]serotonin; the data may indicate the existence of the two types of serotonin receptors.
Properties of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors in heart cell cultures
Authors: Galper Jonas B. , Smith Thomas W.
Published: May 2006

The binding of acetylcholine to receptors in the intact heart causes a decrease in the frequency (chronotropic effect) and force (ionotropic effect) of contraction. The studies reported here demonstrate a chronotropic response of cultured embryonic chicken heart cells to the muscarinic agonist carbamoylcholine. This response is markedly decreased after a 3-hr incubation with 0.1 mM carbamoylcholine. In order to determine whether agonist-induced alterations in muscarinic receptors were responsible for this decrease, we studied the effects of incubation with carbamoylcholine on the binding of the
3
H-labeled muscarinic antagonist quinuclidinyl benzilate (QNB) to homogenates of heart cell cultures. [
3
H]QNB binding to homogenates of cultures of embryonic hearts of chicks 9 days
in ovo
was characterized and shown to have properties similar to those of muscarinic receptors in intact hearts. Binding was both specific and saturable. [
3
H]QNB was displaced by muscarinic agonists and antagonists in concentrations consistent with their known potency. Binding was poorly inhibited by the nicotinic antagonist D-tubocurarine. Kinetic analysis of the binding of QNB by muscarinic receptors showed that initially the reaction proceeds by formation of a rapidly reversible complex with a
K
d
of 1.8 nM, which is converted to a slowly reversible form. These properties of muscarinic receptors in heart cell cultures are strikingly similar to those observed in homogenates of intact hearts. Homogenates of heart cell cultures bound 84 ± 6 fmol (mean ± SD) of QNB per mg of protein. The number of receptors remained stable from day 4 to day 8 in culture. Incubation of cultures with 0.1 mM carbamoylcholine for 3 hr decreased QNB binding by 55%, to 38 ± 5 fmol/mg protein. When cell cultures were first homogenized and then incubated with carbamoylcholine, no decrease in QNB binding sites could be detected. Thus, incubation with carbamoylcholine causes loss of muscarinic binding sites as well as decreased physiologic responsiveness to muscarinic agonists.
Ten-nanometer filaments of hamster BHK-21 cells and epidermal keratin filaments have similar structures.
Authors: Steinert P M , Zimmerman S B , Starger J M , Goldman R D
Published: May 2006

The 10-nm filaments of baby hamster kidney (BHK-21) cells, when examined either in the form of native filament caps or polymerized in vitro, are long tubes of protein 8--10 nm in diameter. They contain about 42% alpha-helix, which, on the basis of x-ray diffraction data, is arranged in a coiled-coil conformation characteristic of proteins of the alpha type. The known structural properties such as morphology, dimensions, subunit composition, and ultrastructure of this fibrous protein are very similar to those of the mammalian epidermal keratin filament, to which it may therefore be related.
Unusual resistance to ionizing radiation of the viruses of kuru, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, and scrapie.
Authors: Gibbs C J , Gajdusek D C , Latarjet R
Published: May 2006

The titers of several preparations of kuru. Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease, and scrapie viruses were reduced by only 1/10th or less by high doses of gamma radiation of 50 kGy and by only 1/10th-1/1000th or less for 200 kGy. This unusual radiation resistance of the two human viruses further links them with the scrapie virus and suggests that the genetic information of all three viruses is considerably smaller than that of any other known viruses of mammals.
Histamine H1 receptors identified in mammalian brain membranes with [3H]mepyramine.
Authors: Tran V T , Chang R S , Snyder S H
Published: May 2006

The antihistamine [3H]mepyramine binds to H1 histamine receptors in mammalian brain membranes. Potencies of H1 antihistamines at the binding sites correlate with their pharmacological antihistamine effects in the guinea pig ileum. Specific [3H]mepyramine binding is saturable with a dissociation constant of about 4 nM in both equilibrium and kinetic experiments and a density of 10 pmol per gram of whole kinetic experiments and a density of 10 pmol per gram of whole brain. Some tricyclic antidepressants are potent inhibitors of specific [3H]mepyramine binding. Regional variations of [3H]mepyramine binding do not correlate with variations in endogeneous histamine and histidine decarboxylase activity.
Localization of cholecystokinin-like immunoreactivity in isolated nerve terminals.
Authors: Pinget M , Straus E , Yalow R S
Published: May 2006

Subcellular fractionation of the rat cerebral cortex demonstrated the presence of immunoreactive cholecystokinin in the pellet identified by electron microscopy as containing a high proportion of synaptic vesicles. The recovery in this pellet of 40% of the total immunoreactivity in the initial cortical extract is quite comparable to the recovery of other peptides such as vasoactive intestinal polypeptide and somatostatin, which are also located in synaptosomes and for which roles as neuroregulators or transmitters have been suggested. The evidence of concentration of cholecystokinin-like peptides in the synaptosomal pellet is consistent with our earlier demonstration by immunohistochemical techniques of cholecystokinin's presence in rabbit cerebral cortical neurons. These observations and the evidence for diminished concentration of cholecystokinin-like peptides in the brains of hyperphagic mice are consistent with cholecystolinin's suggested role as a neuroregulator for appetite.
Classifications and comparisons of multilocus recombination distributions
Authors: Karlin Samuel , Liberman Uri
Published: May 2006

Various classifications and representations of multilocus recombination structures are delineated based on generalized notions of linkage values and recombination rates. An important class of recombination distributions (called the count-location chiasma process) is parameterized by a distribution of the number of crossover events and, for each such crossover count, by a conditional distribution of crossover locations. A number of properties of this recombination structure are developed. A multilocus definition of a “natural” recombination range is set forth. Orderings among recombination distributions in the multilocus setting are also discussed. Comparisons are made in terms of complete linkage, free assortment and noninterference schemes serving as standards.
Model compounds for the T state of hemoglobin.
Authors: Collman J P , Brauman J I , Doxsee K M , Halbert T R , Suslick K S
Published: May 2006

O2 binding to a series of ferrous and cobaltous "picket fence" porphyrins is reported. N-Methylimidazole and covalently attached imidazoles gives O2 binding to ferrous porphyrins with deltaH degrees =-16.2 kcal/mol (-67.7 kJ/mol) and deltaS degrees =-40 eu (standard state, 1 atmosphere O2). Similar studies with cobaltous porphyrins yield deltaH degrees =- 12.8 kcal/mol (-53.5 kJ/mol) and deltaS degrees =- 39 eu. These values match well those of myoglobin and isolated subunits of hemoglobin and their cobalt reconstituted analogues. 1,2-Dimethylimidazole has been successfully used to mimic the presumed restraint of T state hemoglobin. In direct analogy to the decreased cooperativity shown by cobalt-substituted hemoglobin, model cobalt porphyrins show a smaller decrease in O2 affinity than the analogous iron porphyrins when the axial base is hindered. Thermodynamic data are presented. The molecular mechanism of cooperativity in hemoglobin is discussed.
Adaptive design in regression and control
Authors: Lai T. L. , Robbins Herbert
Published: May 2006

When
y
=
M
(
x
) + ε, where
M
may be nonlinear, adaptive regression designs of the levels
x
1
,
x
2
,... at which
y
1
,
y
2
,... are observed lead to asymptotically efficient estimates of the value θ of
x
for which
M
(θ) is equal to any desired value
y
*
. More importantly, these designs also make the “cost” of the observations, defined at the
n
th stage to be Σ
1

n

(

x
i

— θ)
2
, to be of the order of log
n
instead of
n
, an obvious advantage in medical and other applications.
Analysis of the phiX DNA replication cycle by electron microscopy.
Authors: Koths K , Dressler D
Published: May 2006

We have monitored the development of intracellular phiX DNA forms during the course of a virus life cycle that duplicates as closely as possible the normal infection of individual cells by single virions. The viral DNA was isolated in a one-step purification procedure, and quantitative electron microscopy was performed on the samples, resulting in the following conclusions: (i) Early in the life cycle, when the cells accumulate duplex rings, two types of DNA replication intermediates are observed: a rolling circle with a single-stranded tail; and a novel form, a single-stranded circle that is partially duplex. Thus, duplex ring synthesis appears to occur in two asymmetric steps, with positive strand DNA first being processed from the tail of the rolling circle and circularized, before it acts as a template for negative strand synthesis. (ii) Late in the life cycle, as single-stranded circles are synthesized and virus particles are assembled, only one replicating intermediate is observed--the rolling circle with a single-stranded tail. At this stage, the number of rolling circles reaches a level of about 35 per cell. (iii) The net rate of polymerization in the rolling circle intermediates is about 200 nucleotides per sec.
Chromatin structure in the cellular slime mold Dictyostelium discoideum.
Authors: Bakke A C , Wu J R , Bonner J
Published: May 2006

The structure of Dictyostelium discoideum chromatin has been studied by the following techniques: electron microscopy, staphylococcal nuclease digestion, acrylamide gel electrophoresis, sucrose gradient centrifugation, and melting. The basic unit of chromatin is the nucleosome, which is a particle 98.6 A in diameter. Approximately 50% of the chromatin is protected from nuclease digestion, but this decreases when protease activity is not inhibited. The nucleosome contains 187 base pairs of DNA, including a 137-base-pair core and a 50-base-pair linker. The monomer nucleosome has an s20,w value of 11.5 S on isokinetic sucrose gradients. When the chromatin is melted, four transitions are observed, at 54.5 degrees, 66.7 degress, 74.9 degrees, and 79.7 degrees. The structure of Dictyostelium chromatin is very similar to that seen in higher eukaryotes.
Human mitochondrial DNA: analysis of 7S DNA from the origin of replication.
Authors: Brown W M , Shine J , Goodman H M
Published: May 2006

Heat-treated samples of human mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) exhibited a set of three low molecular weight DNA bands in addition to the major mtDNA band when electrophoresed in polyacrylamide gels. These DNA components were seen only after heat treatment or after relaxation of the mtDNA with a restriction endonuclease. The three components were single stranded and had sizes of 550, 585, and 629 nucleotides, close to the size (600 nucleotides) estimated from contour length measurements for the 7S DNA from the D loop of human mtDNA. Hybridization of the components with restriction endonuclease fragments of known position in the mtDNA confirmed this identification. Digestion of each 7S DNA component with the restriction endonuclease Hae III produced three fragments, two of which were identical in size among the components and the third of which varied. This third fragment, shown to be from the 5' end of each component, differed in length by approximately 35 nucleotides among the components. These results suggest that human 7S mtDNA synthesis is terminated at a distinct position and that it is either initiated at one of three possible sites in the same mtDNA or that the mtDNA population consists of three subpopulations, each differing from the others by the presence or absence of a nucleotide sequence immediately adjacent to the origin of replication.
Phosphate metabolites in lymphoid, Friend erythroleukemia, and HeLa cells observed by high-resolution 31P nuclear magnetic resonance.
Authors: Navon G , Navon R , Shulman R G , Yamane T
Published: May 2006

High-resolution phosphorus-31 nuclear magnetic resonance spectra were observed for cell lines from mammalian sources: lymphoid cells, Friend erythroleukemia cells, and HeLa cells. Some phosphate metabolites were identified and their concentrations were found to vary among the different cell lines. ATP/ADP ratios could be measured in the living cells. The phospholipid metabolites phosphorylcholine and phosphorylethanolamine and their glyceryl esters were present in relatively high concentrations in the cells, but their ratios varied considerably. Also, a high concentration of an unidentified diphosphodiester compound was observed in the Friend erythroleukemia and HeLa cells. No appreciable pH gradient across the cell membrance was observed in these three mammalian cell lines, in contrast to the large pH gradient detected in microorganisms.
Novel properties of bacterial elongation factor Tu.
Authors: Beck B D , Arscott P G , Jacobson A
Published: May 2006

We have characterized novel properties of the bacterial protein synthesis elongation factor Tu which indicate that it may function as a structural protein. Under appropriate conditions, elongation factor Tu polymerizes to form filaments and, more often, bundles of filaments. It is also the predominant component of a complex of proteins from Escherichia coli that undergoes reversible polymerization in the presence of KCl and MgCl2. In addition, purified elongation factor Tu binds tightly to DNase I in the presence of 10 mM MgCl2. In crude extracts the factor shows no binding in the presence or absence of MgCl2. These properties suggest that elongation factor Tu may have certain actin-like properties and that it has cellular functions other than its role in protein synthesis.
Intragenic DNA spacers interrupt the ovalbumin gene
Authors: Weinstock Ruth , Sweet Raymond , Weiss Michael , Cedar Howard , Axel Richard
Published: May 2006

We have performed restriction endonuclease mapping to examine the linear organization of the ovalbumin gene in chromosomal DNA. Treatment of genomic DNA with restriction endonucleases that do not cleave the ovalbumin mRNA sequence results in the generation of multiple DNA fragments capable of annealing with ovalbumin-specific probes in molecular hybridization reactions. These data strongly suggest that the linear order of DNA sequences coding for ovalbumin is interrupted by at least two intragenic DNA spacers absent from the corresponding RNA. At least one of these spacer sequences interrupts the coding sequence; therefore the chromosomal ovalbumin gene is not colinear with its translational product. We can discern no difference in the sequence organization about this gene in producer and nonproducer somatic cells, suggesting that the presence of intragenic spacers does not reflect that transcriptional activity of this gene. Furthermore, profiles obtained for gametes are identical to those observed for somatic cells, indicating that significant translocation during development is not responsible for the generation of this split sequence. Divergence of the intragenic spacer, however, is observed between individual chickens; thus multiple alleles may exist for this gene that are identifiable by differences in the organization of spacer with no apparent phenotypic evidence for their presence.
Regulation of acetylcholine release from neuroblastoma x glioma hybrid cells.
Authors: McGee R , Simpson P , Christian C , Mata M , Nelson P , Nirenberg M
Published: May 2006

Neuroblastoma x glioma NG108-15 hybrid cells exposed to N6, O2'-dibutyryladenosine 3':5'-cyclic monophosphate for several days release [3H]acetylcholine in response to serotonin, prostaglandin F2alpha, KCl, or veratridine. NG108-15 cells grown in the absence of dibutyrul cyclic AMP do not respond to an excitatory stimulus by releasing [3H]acetylcholine but can be shifted to a responsive state by treatment with dibutyryl cyclic AMP. Thus, the reactions that are required for acetylcholine release can be regulated in NG108-15 cells, thereby regulating the ability of cells to form synapses and the efficiency of synaptic communication.
Neoplastic transformation of human diploid fibroblast cells by chemical carcinogens
Authors: Kakunaga Takeo
Published: May 2006

Cultured fibroblast cells derived from a skin biopsy sample taken from normal human adult were exposed to a potent carcinogen, 4-nitroquinoline 1-oxide. Alterations of cell growth pattern such as higher density and piling up of cells were noticed in some fractions of cultures that were successively subcultured after nitroquinoline oxide treatment. Morphologically altered cells retained this growth pattern and became established lines of transformed cells without showing the limited life-span characteristic of normal cells in culture. The transformed cells showed a higher saturation density and the ability to grow in soft agar, properties that are usually correlated with neoplastic transformation of cells in culture. Selection of preexisting transformed human cells as a mechanism of this observed transformation seemed unlikely because clones of these normal cells could also be used to assess the transforming effect of nitroquinoline oxide. Preliminary results suggest that numerous cell divisions were required for the development of the transformation after nitroquinoline oxide treatment of these human cells.

When the transformed cell lines were injected subcutaneously into
nude
(athymic) mice, solid tumors were produced at the site of inoculation.

Treatment with
N
-methyl-
N
′-nitro-
N
-nitrosoguanidine also induced cell transformation, in a manner similar to treatment with nitroquinoline oxide. However, transformation was not induced with (
i
) 4-aminoquinoline 1-oxide (a noncarcinogenic derivative of 4-nitroquinoline 1-oxide), (
ii
) 3-methylcholanthrene (a carcinogen that cannot be metabolically activated by the target cells employed), or (
iii
) the solvent dimethyl sulfoxide.
Mechanism of the rapid antigonadotropic action of prostaglandins in cultured luteal cells
Authors: Thomas Jean-Pierre , Dorflinger Laneta J. , Behrman Harold R.
Published: May 2006

A reproducible method for dissociation and culture of rat luteal cells is described. The concentration of LH required to produce half-maximal stimulation of progesterone secretion was 50 ng/ml. The effects of prostaglandin E
2
(PGE
2
) and prostaglandin F
2α
(PGF
2α
) on basal and luteinizing hormone (LH)-stimulated progesterone production were examined. Both prostaglandins stimulated basal progesterone production but PGE
2
was about twice as active, showing a 2-fold maximal stimulation at 0.75 μM. When either prostaglandin was incubated simultaneously with LH, a dose-dependent inhibition of progesterone secretion occurred; PGF
2α
was 4 times more active than PGE
2
, showing 50% inhibition at a concentration of 40 × nM. Thus, both prostaglandins are more active as antagonists than as agonists of LH with respect to progesterone secretion. PGF
2α
also inhibited LH-stimulated adenylate cyclase activity and cyclic AMP accumulation. The block in progesterone secretion was reversed by addition of dibutyryl cyclic AMP (1 mM) but not by theophylline (5 mM) alone. These data and the finding that PGF
2α
did not affect the specific binding activity of the LH receptor in intact luteal cells indicate that the rapid action of prostaglandins in luteal cells is due to a block of LH-dependent production of cyclic AMP which results in a decrease in progesterone secretion.
Evolution of the nervous system: Role of ontogenetic mechanisms in the evolution of matching populations
Authors: Katz Michael J. , Lasek Raymond J.
Published: May 2006

Nervous systems are composed of populations of cells that are synaptically connected in a highly predictable manner, and we have called two interconnected populations a pair of
matching populations
. Heritable genetic changes that affect a pair of matching populations can be evolutionary only when this matching quality is not disrupted. We distinguish two types of heritable change. Concordant heritable changes autonomously preserve the match and are thus automatically candidates for what we call type I evolutionary change. Nonconcordant heritable changes, on the other hand, are those that do not autonomously preserve the match. Those nonconcordant heritable changes that can use other normally present ontogenetic mechanisms to preserve the match are candidates for what we call type II evolutionary change. One example of such an ontogenetic mechanism consists of the production of excess neuroblasts and the subsequent weeding out (via cell death) of those that do not successfully match. Because normal ontogeny is an integral part of type II evolutionary change, ontogenetic manipulations can give evolutionary insights. Embryonic graft experiments, in particular, can elucidate the nature of ontogenetic mechanisms that participate in type II changes. Thus, some developmental experiments can be considered to be evolutionary experiments.
Symmetry and causality properties of physical fields
Authors: Jakobsen H. P. , Ørsted B. , Segal I. E. , Speh B. , Vergne M.
Published: May 2006

Representations of groups of causality-preserving transformations on locally Minkowskian space-times, by actions on classes of wave functions of designated transformation properties, are analyzed, in extension of the conventional theoretical treatment of free relativistic particles. In particular, the constraints of positivity of the energy and finiteness of propagation velocity are developed, and the concept of mass is explored, within the indicated framework.
DNA-dependent single-step addition reactions catalyzed by Escherichia coli RNA polymerase.
Authors: Oen H , Wu C W
Published: May 2006

The addition of a single nucleotide to a short oligonucleotide, catalyzed by RNA polymerase (nucleosidetriphosphate:RNA nucleotidyltransferase, EC 2.7.7.6) in the presence of synthetic DNA templates, has been studied. The reactions A-U + ATP leads to A-U-A and U-A + UTP leads to U-A-U occur in the presence of poly[d(A-T)], while the reactions G-C + GTP leads to G-C-G and C-G + CTP leads to C-G-C take place in the presence of poly[d(I-C)]. These reactions proceed with a turnover of enzyme. The products U-A-U and C-G-C are formed rapidly, while A-U-A and G-C-G are formed much more slowly. Another poly[d(A-T)]-dependent reaction, which occurs with a turnover of enzyme, is U-A-U + ATP leads to U-A-U-A. All of these reactions are only partially inhibited by rifampicin. ATP can be replaced by 3'-deoxyadenosine 5'-triphosphate in the reactions A-U + ATP leads to A-U-A and U-A-U + ATP leads to U-A-U-A, though the rate of formation of the products becomes somewhat slower. The reactions involving 3'-deoxyadenosine 5'-triphosphate are almost completely inhibited by rifampicin, indicating that the 3'-hydroxyl group is necessary for these reactions to occur in the presence of rifampicin.
Role of surface in surface-dependent activation of Hageman factor (blood coagulation Factor XII)
Authors: Griffin John H.
Published: May 2006

The mechanism by which negatively charged substances such as celite, kaolin, or ellagic acid contribute to the surface-dependent activation of Hageman factor (Factor XII) was studied. Kinetic studies of the proteolytic activation of
125
I-labeled human Hageman factor by human plasma kallikrein, plasma, activated Factor XI, and trypsin were performed in the presence and absence of high molecular weight kininogen and surface materials such as celite, kaolin, or ellagic acid. The results showed that surface-bound Hageman factor was 500 times more susceptible than soluble Hageman factor to proteolytic activation by kallikrein in the presence of high molecular weight kininogen. Surface binding of Hageman factor enhanced its cleavage by plasmin, activated Factor XI, and trypsin by 100-fold, 30-fold, and 5-fold, respectively. On a molar basis, trypsin was twice as potent as kallikrein in the cleavage of the surface-bound Hageman factor, while plasmin and activated Factor XI were an order of magnitude less potent than kallikrein. Kallikrein even at concentrations as low as 0.5 nM (i.e., 1/1000th of the concentration of prekallikrein in plasma) was very potent in the limited proteolysis of the surface-bound Hageman factor. These results suggest that substances classically known as “activating surfaces” promote the activation of Hageman factor indirectly by altering its structure such that it is much more susceptible to proteolytic activation by other plasma or cellular proteases.
Nitrogen electron nuclear double resonance and proton triple resonance experiments on the bacteriochlorophyll cation in solution.
Authors: Hoff A J , Möbius K
Published: May 2006

Electron nuclear double resonance signals of the pyrrole nitrogens of bacteriochlorophyll alpha cation in a solution of CH2Cl2/CH3OH (6:1) have been observed. The nitrogens are inequivalent: the hyperfine coupling constants were determined to be 2.36 and 3.18 MHz (0.84 and 1.14 G, respectively). Triple electron nuclear double resonance experiments have yielded the signs and values of nine proton hyperfine coupling constants. The assignment based on these data agrees well with previous work (Borg, D.C., Forman, A. & Fajer, J. (1976) J. Amer. Chem. Soc. 98, 6889-6893); in addition, two methine protons have been identified. Spin densities calculated from the hyperfine couplings are compared to reported molecular orbital calculations.
Role of Na
+
in α-aminoisobutyric acid uptake by membrane vesicles from mouse fibroblasts transformed by simian virus 40
Authors: Nishino Hoyoku , Schiller Robert M. , Parnes Jane R. , Isselbacher Kurt J.
Published: May 2006

The uptake of α-amino[
3
H]isobutyric acid (AIB) was studied in membrane vesicles from mouse fibroblasts transformed by simian virus 40 to examine the features of the Na
+
-stimulated and Na
+
-dependent AIB transport process. The simultaneous addition of NaCl and AIB to these vesicles produced a transient accumulation, or “overshoot,” of amino acid 3-4 times the equilibrium value. Both the initial rate of uptake and the rate of fall of intravesicular AIB after maximal accumulation were sensitive to the temperature of incubation.

The overshoot of AIB uptake was enhanced with Na
+
salts of highly permeant lipophilic anions, such as SCN
-
and NO
3
-
, and was decreased by the addition of SO
4
2-
, a relatively impermeant ion. Gramicidin D, which enhances the membrane conductance of Na
+
electrogenically, decreased the overshoot, while a potassium diffusion potential, induced by valinomycin (in K
+
-preloaded membrane vesicles), produced a Na
+
-dependent overshoot of AIB uptake.

When vesicles were preincubated with both Na
+
and AIB, followed by the generation of an interior negative membrane potential (by the addition of SCN
-
), an overshoot of AIB uptake resulted. However, this did not occur in the absence of Na
+
. It is concluded that, apart from its role in the generation of a transmembrane electrochemical potential, Na
+
is essential for the overshoot of AIB uptake.
Model for the incidence of embryonal cancers: application to retinoblastoma.
Authors: Hethcote H W , Knudson A G
Published: May 2006

The two-mutation theory of cancer initiation hypothesizes that some cancers originate after two successive mutations, of which the second mutation is always somatic and the first mutation may be germinal (hereditary cases) or somatic (nonhereditary cases). A quantitative model using the Poisson distribution is developed for ages at diagnosis for hereditary and nonhereditary cases. This model relates age-specific incidence data explicitly to the number of divisions of embryonal cells and to rates of somatic mutations per cell division. A good fit is obtained when the model is applied to data on ages at diagnosis for one such embryonal tumor, retinoblastoma.