Effect of diethyl ether on phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis in hamster organs

The effect of diethyl ether anesthesia on phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis in hamster organs was investigated. Ether administration did not affect the incorporation of radioactive choline into phosphatidylcholine in the liver, heart, lung, brain and spleen. A significant (29%) decrease in the labeling of phosphatidylcholine was detected in the kidney of ether-treated hamsters. Reduction in phosphatidylcholine labeling was not due to a diminished radioactive choline uptake but a decrease in the conversion of phosphocholine to CDP-choline. The accumulation of labeled phosphocholine was caused by the translocation of CTP:phosphocholine cytidylyltransferase from microsomal (more-active) form to cytosolic (less-active) form. Ether administration appears to modulate the cytidylyltransferase in hamster kidney differently than that in other hamster organs.     

Biphasic modulation of choline uptake and phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis by vasopressin in rat cardiac myocytes

The effect of vasopressin on choline uptake and phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis in isolated rat heart myocytes was investigated. Myocytes were incubated with labelled choline in the presence of 0.05–1.0 μM vasopressin. Uptake of choline was enhanced (25%) by a low concentration (0.2 μM) of vasopressin, but was attenuated (19%) by a higher vasopressin concentration (1.0 μM). The biosynthesis of phosphatidylcholine was also affected by vasopressin in a biphasic manner. At low concentrations of vasopressin, a general increase in cytosine triphosphate:phosphocholine cytidylyltranferase activity was observed that caused an enhanced conversion of phosphocholine to phosphatidylcholinevia the cytidine diphosphocholine pathway. At high vasopressin concentrations, a decrease in the activity of cytidylyltransferase was detected, which was caused by the translocation of the enzyme from the microsomal fraction to the cytosolic fraction. The decrease in enzyme activity coincides with a reduction in the conversion of labelled phosphocholine to phosphatidylcholine. In view of the fact that phospholipid biosynthesis in rat hepatocytes is inhibited by vasopressin at all concentrations, the biphasic modulation of phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis in rat heart myocytes illustrates the diverse effects of this hormone in different mammalian tissues.     

The effect of amino acids on choline uptake and phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis in mammalian hearts

The uptake of choline in mammalian hearts in the presence of amino acids was examined. Isolated hamster, guinea pig, rat and rabbit hearts were perfused with labeled choline in the presence and absence of amino acids. Neutral amino acids enhanced choline uptake in the hamster heart, but not in the guinea pig, rat and rabbit hearts. Phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis in these hearts was not affected by the presence of amino acids. Choline uptake in the hamster myocytes was also enhanced by neutral amino acid. The enhancement of choline uptake suggests a direct interaction between the amino acid and the transport of choline into the myocardiac cells. The different responses in choline uptake to neutral amino acids indicate that the regulation of choline uptake in the hearts may be different between mammalian species.     

Characterization and catalytic activity of coal mineral matter: 1. Effect of hydrogen pretreatment and exposure to sulphur and nitrogen compounds

Low temperature ash (LTA) samples prepared from nine US coals were characterized by X-ray diffraction. X-ray fluorescence, and surface area analyses. The results showed that illite, kaolinite, quartz and pyrite are major components in LTAs and that $\text{S}\text{Fe}$ ratios of some LTAs decreased significantly after H₂ treatment implying the occurrence of a partial reduction of pyrite during this treatment. Surface areas of LTAs increased drastically on H₂ treatment but decreased after exposure to sulphur and nitrogen compounds in activity testing. Correlations for the surface areas of LTAs before and after H₂ treatment were found in terms of clay content and element concentrations.     

The effect of two synthetic phospholipids on cell proliferation and phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis in Madin-Darby canine kidney cells

The concentration-dependent effects of two different synthetic phospholipids on cell proliferation and phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis were compared in Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) cells. The alkyllysophospholipid 1-O-octadecyl-2-O-methyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine and the alkylphosphocholine, hexadecylphosphocholine, inhibited cell proliferation with half-inhibitory concentrations (IC₅₀) of 75 and 135 μmol/L, respectively. The agents also inhibited phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis in confluent and proliferating MDCK cells. The IC₅₀ of 1-O-octadecyl-2-O-methyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine was 40 μmol/L in confluent cells and 20 μmol/L in proliferating cells, whereas the IC₅₀ of hexadecylphosphocholine was higher in both experimental systems (67 μmol/L in confluent cells and 40 μmol/L in proliferating cells). Further experiments revealed that the effect of both agents on phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis was reversible and that the inhibition was mediated by translocation of the rate-limiting enzyme of this pathway, CTP: phosphocholine cytidylyltransferase (EC 2.7.7.15), from membranes to the cytosol, where it is inactive. The present findings suggest that the inhibition of phosphatidylcholine biosynthesis by both synthetic phospholipids might be related, in part, to their antiproliferative effects.     

Age-related accumulation of phosphatidylcholine hydroperoxide in cultured human diploid cells and its prevention by α-tocopherol

The levels of phosphatidylcholine hydroperoxide in serially cultured human fetal diploid fibroblasts at various population doubling levels were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography combined with chemiluminescence detections. This methodology utilizes a mixture of cytochromec and luminol as post-column hydroperoxide group specific luminescent reagents. The cellular hydroperoxide content increased with age from 0.34 to 27.72 pmol/10⁶ cells. At the end of the cells'in vitro lifespan (51st population doubling level), the hydroperoxide content per 10⁶ cells reached about 80 times the level found in cells of the 20th population doubling level. Supplementation of exogenous α-tocopherol to the culture medium prevented hydroperoxide accumulation, but did not extent the lifespanin vitro. The results indicate that substantial intracellular phospholipid hydroperoxide accumulation occurred in the course of aging of human fetal liploid fibroblasts.     

Lipids of cultured hepatoma cells: VIII. Utilization of D-[1-14C] glucose for lipid biosynthesis

Minimal deviation hepatoma 7288C cells (HTC) were incubated in serum-supplemented and serum-free Swim’s 77 medium in the presence of D-[1-¹⁴C] glucose for 1, 2, 4, 8, 12 and 24 hr. Glucose oxidation to CO₂, incorporation into total cell mass, and incorporation into cell and medium lipids were determined. The percentage distribution of total cell lipid radioactivity in individual neutral and polar lipid classes was followed as a function of time. Degradation studies of individual lipid classes were performed to ascertain the percentage of radioactivity in acyl and glycerol moieties. The percentage of D-[1-¹⁴C] glucose oxidized to¹⁴CO₂, incorporated into cell matter and cell lipids was elevated in cells incubated in serum-free medium as opposed to serum-supplemented medium. The percentage distribution of total cell lipid radioactivity into individual neutral lipid classes from both serum-free and serum-supplemented cultures was as follows: sterols > triglycerides > free fatty acids > sterol esters. The percentage distribution of total cell lipid radioactivity into individual polar lipid classes of serum-supplemented cultures was as follows: phosphatidylcholine > phosphatidylinositol > sphingomyelin > phosphatidylethanolamine > phosphatidylserine. The distribution of glucose radiolabel into individual polar lipid classes of serum-free HTC cells was different from their serum-supplemented counterparts: sphingomyelin > phosphatidylcholine > phosphatidylinositol > phosphatidylethanolamine > phosphatidylserine. Glycerol from glyceride classes contained a higher percentage of radioactivity than the acyl moieties, with this percentage significantly elevated in serum-free cultures. The data indicate that, although glucose is a substrate for HTC cell lipids, other precursors present in the culture system also contribute to the lipid constituency of this hepatoma cell line.     

Lipids of cultured hepatoma cells: III. Triglyceride and phosphoglyceride biosynthesis in minimal deviation hepatoma 7288C

Minimal deviation hepatoma 7288 C cells were cultured on media containing 25% serum to the confluent stage. The growth media was replaced with serumfree media containing 1-¹⁴C-palmitate, and incubations were continued for 0.75, 1.5, 3, 6, 12, and 24 hr. The distribution of radioactivity among the major neutral lipids and phosphoglycerides was determined for cells and culture media. Radioactivity in individual fatty acids of cellular triglyceride, phosphatidylcholine, and phosphatidylethanolamine also was determined. After 24 hr, more than 95% of the administered radioactivity was recovered in neutral and phosphoglycerides, indicating that only a small amount of the fatty acid was oxidized. At any time period examined, over 80% of the incorporated radioactivity was found in triglyceride, phosphatidylcholine, and phosphatidylethanolamine. Incorporation of the label into cellular triglyceride and phosphatidylcholine plateaued at 12 hr, whereas incorporation of radioactivity into phosphatidylethanolamine still was increasing at 24 hr. In contrast, during the entire incubation period the relative distribution of¹⁴C among esterified lipid classes in the culture media remained constant. Elongation of palmitic acid to stearic acid and its subsequent desaturation to oleic acid suggests that these cells possess an active elongation and monoenoic desaturation system. Labeled glycerol ether diesters were not detected in the cells or culture media. Positional distribution of the¹⁴C label in the triglyceride and phosphatidylcholine suggests that minimal deviation hepatoma cells do not exhibit diglyceride selectivity in the biosynthesis of these two lipid classes.     

Lipids of cultured hepatoma cells: VI. Glycerolipid and monoenoic fatty acid biosynthesis in minimal deviation hepatoma 7288C

1-14C-Acetic, 1-14C-palmitic, or 1-14C-stearic acid was incubated with minimal deviation hepatoma 7288C cells grown in culture to assess: de novo fatty acid synthesis, oxidation, desaturation, and elongation of saturated fatty acids, as well as the ability of media fatty acids to serve as precursors of cellular glycerolipids. Distribution of radioactivity in the individual lipid classes and the various fatty acids of triglyceride, phosphatidyl choline, and phosphatidyl ethanolamine was determined. The radioactivity among the monoenoic acid isomers derived from triglyceride, phosphatidyl choline, and phosphatidyl ethanolamine was analyzed by reductive ozonolysis. Only small amounts of the labeled substrates were oxidized to carbon dioxide. Except for labeled stearic acid, which also was incorporated heavily into phosphatidyl inositol and phosphatidyl serine, most radioactivity was recovered in triglyceride, phosphatidyl choline, and phosphatidyl ethanolamine. Synthesis of cholesterol and long chain fatty acids from labeled acetic acid demonstrated that these cells can perform de novo synthesis of fatty acids and cholesterol. Both labeled palmitic and stearic acids were desaturated to the corresponding delta9 monoenes, and palmitic and palmitoleic acids were elongated. The nexadecenoic acid fraction isolated from triglyceride, phosphatidyl choline, and phosphatidyl ethanolamine, when acetic or palmitic acid was the labeled substrate, showed that greater than 70 percent of the labeled acids were the delta9 isomer. Radioactivity of the octadecenoic acid fraction derived from labeled acetic or palmitic acids was nearly equally divided between the delta9 isomer, oleic acid, and the delta11 isomer, vaccenic acid. Desaturation of labeled stearic acid produced only oleic acid. These data demonstrate that the biosynthesis of vaccenic acid in these cultured neoplastic cells proceeds via the elongation of palmitoleic acid. The relatively high level of vaccenic acid synthesis in these cells suggests that the reported elevation of "oleic acid" in many neoplasms may result from increased concentration of vaccenic acid.     

Effect of dietary fatty acids on Δ5 desaturase activity and biosynthesis of arachidonic acid in rat liver microsomes

The effect of different fatty acids supplemented to a fat-free diet on the activity of Δ5 desaturase was studied. Fat-free diet produces a reduction in the conversion of eicosa-8,11,14-trienoic acid to arachidonic acid. The addition of thecis-ω6 acids, linoleic, γ-linolenic or arachidonic to the diet produces an increase of eicosatrienoic acid desaturation, shifting Δ5 desaturase activity towards the controls on a balanced diet. This reactivation is apparently produced by induction of enzyme biosynthesis since linoleate effect was suppressed by simultaneous cycloheximide injection. On the contrary, no changes in Δ5 desaturation activity were found when the diet was supplemented with palmitic or 9-trans,12-trans-linoleic acid. The changes on the activity of Δ5 desaturase were compared with the fatty acid composition of plasma and liver microsomes.     

Characterization and catalytic activity of coal mineral matter: 2. Hydrodesulfurization of thiophene

Intrinsic catalytic activity was evaluated for nine low-temperature ash samples (LTAs) from U.S. coals, a sample of SRC solids, and reference constituents of coal for the hydrodesulfurization (HDS) of thiophene. A pulse micro-reactor, gas-chromatograph system was used to determine conversion by measuring the C₄s produced at 673 K. Activity ranking placed Kentucky Homestead as the best HDS catalyst by a factor of 14.3 times the activity of the lignite, which gave the lowest conversion. SRC solids from a Pittsburgh seam coal were evaluated and showed moderate HDS activity. This activity was similar to that of the mineral matter of two other Pittsburgh seam coals (Ireland and Bruceton). The catalytic activity of the LTAs was much smaller than measured conversions using a commercial cobalt molybdate catalyst. The SRC solids gave the highest hydrogenation activity (HA) of all the LTAs tested. The LTAs were found to be very poor hydrogenation catalysts. The worst HDS catalysts, lignite, gave the highest HA while Kentucky No. 11 had the lowest HA activity. More than 95% of the products were butenes or 1,3-butadiene. Surface area for the LTAs increased after catalyst testing, and the HDS activity correlated strongly with surface area while hydrogenation activity showed no such correlation. Favorable element correlations showed potassium to be the most favored for predicting HDS activity. The potassium in the LTAs was present as illite or feldspar. Results are also given for several reference clays and a synthetic mixture of mineral matter constituents.     

The biosynthesis of cholesterol and other sterols by brain tissue: I. Subcellular biosynthesis in vitro

The biosynthesis of cholesterol by subcellular particles from rat brain was studied with several labeled cholesterol precursors as substrates. Rats from two age groups were used for preparation of the subcellular fractions: 15-day-old and adult. Microsomes and a soluble fraction were required for maximum biosynthesis of¹⁴C-nonsaponifiable material. The latter was synthesized in good yield by subcellular fractions from both age groups, but 90% or more was present as¹⁴C-squalene, when either U-¹⁴C-glucose, 2-¹⁴C-sodium acetate or 2-¹⁴C-mevalonic acid was the radioactive substrate. Neither³H-squalene oxide nor¹⁴C-lanosterol was converted to sterol when incubated with microsomal+soluble preparations, but some 4% of¹⁴C-desmosterol was converted to cholesterol by adult preparations. Thus a metabolic block, largely between squalene to desmosterol, exists in isolated microsomal+soluble preparations from both 15-day-old and adult rat brain. One of 12 papers to be published from the Sterol Symposium presented at the AOCS Meeting, New Orleans, April 1970.     

Characterization of Several Metalloporphyrins in Unusual Oxidation States. The Effect of Axial and Equatorial Ligands

The effect of axial and equatorial ligands on the generation of unusual oxidation states in metalloporphyrins is discussed. Selected examples have been taken from the literature. These include the generation of Ni(III) and Ru(III) porphyrins from Ni(II) and Ru(II) complexes containing specific axial and equatorial ligands as well as the generatoin of a Cu(I) metalloporphyrin dianion which is produced upon the overall three-electron reduction of Cu(II) tetracyanoporphyrin. Special emphasis is placed on the oxidation and reduction of σ bonded iron phenyl porphyrins. These complexes, which are stable as Fe(III), may be oxidized by a single electron to yield unstable compounds characterized as containing a great deal of Fe(IV) character, or reduced by a single electron to produce stable species which resemble, in part, radical anions of Fe(III). This singly deduced species may be described by a resonance equilibria between an Fe(III) porphyrin anion radical and an Fe(II) porphyrin anion. Likewise, the singly oxidized complex may be described by a resonance equilibria between an Fe(IV) porphyrin cation and an Fe(III) cation radical.     

Pharmacological modulation of fatty acid desaturation and of cholesterol biosynthesis in THP-1 cells

In THP-1 cells, simvastatin decreases, in a concentration-dependent manner, cholesterol synthesis and increases linoleic acid (LA) conversion to its long-chain derivatives, in particular to arachidonic acid, activating Δ6 and Δ5 fatty acid (FA) desaturases. The intermediates in cholesterol synthesis, mevalonate and geranylgeraniol, partially reverse the effects of simvastatin on the LA conversion. The aims of this work were to evaluate: (i) the correlation between cholesterol synthesis and desaturase activity and (ii) the possible involvement of protein isoprenylation in desaturase activity, assessed through pharmacological treatments. THP-1 cells were incubated with [1-¹⁴C]LA or with [1-¹⁴C]di-homo-γ-linolenic acid (DHGLA) and treated with simvastatin or with curcumin and nicardipine, inhibitors of desaturases. Curcumin was more active than nicardipine in inhibiting LA and DHGLA conversion: 20 μM curcumin, alone or with simvastatin, totally inhibited Δ6 and Δ5 desaturation steps; 10 μM nicardipine only partially inhibited the enzymes, being more active on Δ5 desaturase. Simvastatin treatment decreased the incorporation of acetate in cholesterol (−93.8%) and cholesterol esters (−70.2%), as expected. Curcumin and nicardipine also decreased cholesterol synthesis and potentiated simvastatin. Finally, the isoprenylation inhibitors (perillic acid and GGTI-286) neither affected the conversion of LA nor inhibited the Δ5 desaturase activity. In conclusion, our results indicate that there is no direct relationship between cholesterol synthesis and desaturase activity. In fact, simvastatin decreased cholesterol synthesis and enhanced LA conversion (mainly Δ5 desaturation), whereas curcumin and nicardipin decreased Δ5 desaturation, with a limited effect on cholesterol synthesis.     

Derivatives of benzimidazol-2-ylquinoline and benzimidazol-2-ylisoquinoline as selective A1 adenosine receptor antagonists with stimulant activity on human colon motility

A number of quinolines and isoquinolines connected in various ways to a substituted benzimidazol-2-yl system were synthesized and evaluated as novel antagonists of adenosine receptors (ARs) by competition experiments using human A(1), A(2A), and A(3) ARs. The new compounds were designed based on derivatives of 2-(benzimidazol-2-yl)quinoxaline, previously reported as potent and selective antagonists of A(1) and A(3) ARs. Among these, 3-[4-(ethylthio)-1H-benzimidazol-2-yl]isoquinoline 4b exhibited the best combination of potency toward the A(1) AR (K(i) =1.4 nM) and selectivity against the A(2A) (K(i) >10 μM), A(2B) (K(i)>10 μM), and A(3) ARs (K(i)>1 μM). Functional experiments in circular smooth muscle preparations of isolated human colon showed that 4b behaves as a potent and selective antagonist of the A(1) AR in the neuromuscular compartment of this intestinal region. Biological and pharmacological data suggest that 4b is a suitable starting point for the development of novel agents endowed with stimulant properties on colonic activity.     

Hydrogen-bonding. Part 22. Characterization of soybean oil and prediction of activity coefficients in soybean oil from inverse gas chromatographic data

Previously reported results on twenty-two gaseous compounds with soybean oil as the stationary gas chromatographic phase have been used to characterize soybean oil in terms of dipolarity/polarizability, hydrogen-bond basicity and lipophilicity. The solubility of these gases in soybean oil has been factored into components that show exactly the compound-soybean oil interactions that favor solubility. The same equation used to obtain this information also can be used to predict the gas chromatographic specific retention volume and then the weight-fraction activity coefficient for numerous other compounds on soybean oil, thus leading to predictions of the solubility behavior of these compounds as bulk liquids with soybean oil.     

Characterization of a single gene cluster responsible for methylpendolmycin and pendolmycin biosynthesis in the deep sea bacterium Marinactinospora thermotolerans

The nine-membered indolactam antibiotics belong to a small group of antibiotics showing broad biological activities. However, the in vivo genetic engineering of compounds of this type has not been performed. Here we report the identification of a single gene cluster responsible for the biosynthesis of methylpendolmycin and pendolmycin, two members of this family of antibiotics, from the deep sea bacterium Marinactinospora thermotolerans SCSIO 00652. Bioinformatics analysis and gene inactivation, coupled with metabolite characterization, reveal that MpnB, a nonribosomal peptide synthetase, MpnC, a cytochrome P450, and MpnD, a prenyltransferase, are sufficient to catalyze the biosynthesis of the two antibiotics from L-Ile (or L-Val), L-Trp, and methionine. MpnD is the first identified enzyme that transfers a C5 prenyl unit in a reverse manner to the C-7 position of a Trp-derived natural product.