Induction of favism-like symptoms in the rat: Effects of vicine and divicine in normal and buthionine sulphoximine-treated rats

Rats were fed an adequate or a deficient diet and offered water or buthionine sulphoximine (BSO) solution for 2 weeks, and then the same diets with vicine for another week in experiment 1. BSO in combination with the deficient diet caused a marked decrease in blood glutathione (GSH) and growth retardation but failed to show any effects resulting from supplementation with vicine. In experiment 2 the rats were given an adequate diet and BSO as before, and injected intravenously with divicine (DV). Here again, BSO depressed rat growth, and so did DV. Each of the insults also caused haematological changes, especially a fall in GSH, but the most severe changes appeared in the group treated with both BSO and DV. A decrease in haematocrit and increases in adrenal and spleen weight were also noted. In experiment 3 the rats were injected with different doses of DV, without pretreatment with BSO. The main effect was a drop in blood GSH and haematocrit, and an increase in adrenal and spleen weights, all of which were dose-related. Administration of the higher doses of DV resulted in a severe cyanosis followed by death within a relatively short period of time.     

Multimer formation as a consequence of separate homodimerization domains: the human c-Jun leucine zipper is a transplantable dimerization module

Human c-Jun and c-Fos leucine zipper domains were examined fortheir ability to serve as autonomous dimerization domains aspart of a heterologous protein construct. Schistosoma japonicumglutathione S-transferase (GST) was fused to recombinant Junleucine zipper (rJunLZ) and Fos leucine zipper (rFosLZ) domains.SDS–PAGE ‘snapshot’ analyses based on disulphidelinkage of monomers demonstrated the ability of rJunLZ to functionas a dimerization motif in a foreign protein environment. Sterichindrance prevented formation of rJunLZ–GST::rFosLZ–GSTheterodimers whereas rJunLZ–GST::rFosLZ and rJunLZ::rFosLZ–GSTformed readily. Furthermore, rJunLZ–GST generated homodimerssuggesting fusion protein heterodimers interact differentlyto homodimers. Gel filtration chromatography confirmed thatGST is a dimer in solution and that attachment of a leucinezipper domain allows further interactions to take place. Sedimentationequilibrium analyses showed that GST is a stable dimer (K_a >10⁶ M^-1) with no higher multimeric forms. rFosLZ–GST weaklyassociates beyond a dimer (K_a {small tilde}4x10⁵ M^-1) and rJunLZ–GSTassociates indefinitely (K_a {small tilde}4x10⁶ M^-1), consistentwith an isodesmic model of association. The interaction of theseleucine zippers independently of GST association demonstratestheir utility in the modification of proteins when multimerformation is desired.     

邻苯二甲醛同步荧光衍生化法测定微量指血中还原型谷胱甘肽

采用微升（μL）级微量指血为检测样品,在未对样品去蛋白的条件下,用邻苯二甲醛（OPA）荧光衍生化法测定了微量静脉血中还原型谷胱甘肽（GSH）的含量.利用标准曲线法和标准加入法进行3次测定的均值分别为4.415μmol/L和5.417 5μmol/L,加标回收率为95.28%～97.18%,检测限为3.6×10-8 mol/L,可基本满足微量成分分析所要求的准确度.本研究为灵敏、简便和快速测定微量血样中GSH的含量提供了实验和方法学的依据.     

还原型谷胱甘肽提取方法初探

还原型谷胱甘肽(GSH)是一种天然的活性短肽，具有清理体内自由基等生理功能。为了寻找适合实验室应用的简便、易行的提取GSH的方法，以安琪活性干酵母为研究对象，以相似相容原理为理论依据，用热水抽提、甲酸抽提、乙醇抽提、低温抽提方法提取GSH，分析比较不同提取方法的提取效果。结果表明，热水抽提是一种比较理想的从酵母中提取谷胱甘肽的方法，其特点是耗时少、仪器简单、抽提液中GSH质量浓度高、经济且无污染。     

Ex Vivo Antioxidant and Cholinesterase Inhibiting Effects of a Novel Galantamine–Curcumin Hybrid on Scopolamine-Induced Neurotoxicity in Mice

Oxidative stress is an essential factor in the development and progression of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). An excessive amount of reactive oxygen species (ROS) induces the peroxidation of lipid membranes, reduces the activity of antioxidant enzymes and causes neurotoxicity. In this study, we investigated the antioxidant and cholinesterase inhibitory potential of a novel galantamine–curcumin hybrid, named 4b, administered orally in two doses (2.5 mg/kg and 5 mg/kg) in scopolamine (SC)-induced neurotoxicity in mice. To evaluate the effects of 4b, we used galantamine (GAL) (3 mg/kg) and curcumin (CCN) (25 mg/kg) as positive controls. Ex vivo experiments on mouse brains showed that the higher dose of 4b (5 mg/kg) increased reduced glutathione (GSH) levels by 46%, catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity by 57%, and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity by 108%, compared with the SC-treated group. At the same time, 4b (5 mg/kg) significantly reduced the brain malondialdehyde (MDA) level by 31% and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) activities by 40% and 30%, respectively, relative to the SC-impaired group. The results showed that 4b acted as an antioxidant agent and brain protector, making it promising for further experimental research in the field of neurodegenerative diseases.     

The Role of the Glutathione System in Stress Adaptation,Morphogenesis and Virulence of Pathogenic Fungi

Morphogenesis and stress adaptation are key attributes that allow fungal pathogens to thrive and infect human hosts. During infection, many fungal pathogens undergo morphological changes, and this ability is highly linked to virulence. Furthermore, pathogenic fungi have developed multiple antioxidant defenses to cope with the host-derived oxidative stress produced by phagocytes. Glutathione is a major antioxidant that can prevent cellular damage caused by various oxidative stressors. While the role of glutathione in stress detoxification is known, studies of the glutathione system in fungal morphological switching and virulence are lacking. This review explores the role of glutathione metabolism in fungal adaptation to stress, morphogenesis, and virulence. Our comprehensive analysis of the fungal glutathione metabolism reveals that the role of glutathione extends beyond stressful conditions. Collectively, glutathione and glutathione-related proteins are necessary for vitality, cellular development and pathogenesis.     

定点突变的谷氨酰胺合成酶的表达条件和在酶法合成谷氨酰胺中的应用

针对酶法生产谷氨酰胺中高浓度铵盐条件下的谷氨酰胺合成酶（GS）腺苷酰化问题,从谷氨酸棒杆菌Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 14067调取编码GS的基因glnA,将GS的腺苷酰化位点Tyr405定点突变为Phe405,并在大肠杆菌中表达突变后的GS,优化产酶条件。用突变的GS在摇瓶中进行酶催化过程,通过补加酶催化底物谷氨酸钠和氯化铵,可以提高定点突变的GS生产谷氨酰胺的能力,谷氨酰胺产量达到16.8 g·L^-1;在5 L反应器规模的酶催化生产谷氨酰胺过程中,通过调控底物补加方案和反应条件,谷氨酰胺的产量达到34.2 g·L^-1,谷氨酰胺对谷氨酸的摩尔转化率为96.3%。     

Slc25a39 and Slc25a40 Expression in Mice with Bile Duct Ligation or Lipopolysaccharide Treatment

SLC25A39/40, involved in mitochondrial GSH (mGSH) import from the cytoplasm, is essential for protection against oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction. We examined the effects of cholestasis, through bile duct ligation (BDL) and lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammation in mice, on Slc25a39/40 expression. Additionally, we used human clear cell renal carcinoma (KMRC-1) cells to elucidate the mechanism of regulation of SLC25A39/40 expression in the kidneys after LPS treatment. BDL resulted in a decrease in Slc25a39 mRNA in the liver and a decrease in Slc25a39/40 mRNA and protein in the kidneys. Consequently, there was a significant decrease in mGSH levels in the kidneys of BDL mice compared with those in sham mice. LPS treatment resulted in increased Slc25a40 expression in the kidneys. In KMRC-1 cells, the combination treatment of LPS-RS or FPS-ZM1 with LPS suppressed the LPS-induced increase in SLC25A40, suggesting that SLC25A40 expression could be regulated by the signaling pathway via toll-like receptor 4 and the receptor for advanced glycation end products, respectively. Our findings contribute to understanding the role of mGSH in the maintenance of the mitochondrial redox state. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study that demonstrates the changes in Slc25a39/40 expression in mice with cholestasis-associated renal injury and LPS-induced inflammation.