Protection of hepatocytes from apoptosis by a novel substance from actinomycetes culture medium

A novel substance, #675, found from an Streptomyces sp. SM675 culture medium, dose-dependently stimulates the proliferation of human functional liver cell 4 (FLC4). When FLC4 cells were incubated under conditions without fetal bovine serum (FBS), typical features of apoptotic cell death such as shrinkage and nuclear condensation appeared; high molecular weight (HMW) DNA fragments were found; and caspase-3 and poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) proteins were cleaved. When FLC4 cells were incubated with #675 and without FBS, the cells grew healthy, no HMW DNA fragments were found, and caspase-3 and PARP cleavage weakened, suggesting that #675 protects FLC4 cells from apoptosis induced by FBS-deprivation. The quantitative reverse-transcribed polymerase chain reaction did not show differences in PARP or Bcl-2 mRNA expression in FLC4 cells incubated with or without #675, indicating other genes may be involved in this anti-apoptosis effect. These results show that #675 enhances FLC4 proliferation via an apoptosis-inhibition pathway, implying potential pharmacological and clinical applications.     

Overexpression of CD82 on human T cells enhances LFA-1 / ICAM-1-mediated cell-cell adhesion: functional association between CD82 and LFA-1 in T cell activation

We previously demonstrated that CD82, expressed on both T cells and antigen-presenting cells (APC), plays an important role as a co-stimulatory molecule especially in the early phase of T cell activation. We also showed that the CD82 expression level is up-regulated on activated T cells and memory T cells. This up-regulation enhances both T cell-T cell and T cell-APC interactions. In this study, we further investigated the mechanism of CD82-mediated cell-cell adhesion. The enhanced adhesion between CD82-overexpressing Jurkat cells was completely blocked by anti-ICAM-1 / LFA-1 monoclonal antibodies. Increased interaction of LFA-1 with ICAM-1 was further confirmed by enhanced adhesion of CD82-overexpressing Jurkat cells to immobilized ICAM-1-Ig. CD82 co-immunoprecipitated with LFA-1 from Jurkat cells and CD82 and LFA-1 colocalized at an adhesion foci. These results suggest that the T cell stimulation via anti-CD3 cross-linking or phorbol myristate acetate treatment up-regulates CD82 expression, leading to the colocalization of CD82 and LFA-1, and results in enhanced interaction between LFA-1 and ICAM-1. In addition, a blocking experiment using monoclonal antibodies suggested that CD82 and LFA-1 molecules on APC are also important for the optimal activation of T cells. This is the first report that describes the enhancement of cell-cell interaction through LFA-1 and ICAM-1 by the overexpression of another cell surface molecule, CD82.     

Polymorphic metabolizing genes and susceptibility to atherosclerosis among cigarette smokers

Atherosclerosis (AR) is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the US and cigarette smoking is a major contributing factor to the disease. Like cigarette smoking in lung cancer, genetic susceptibility may be an important factor in determining who is more likely to develop AR. However, the current emphasis has been on susceptibility based on altered cardiovascular homeostasis. In this investigation, we studied 120 AR patients and 90 matched controls to elucidate the association between polymorphisms in some metabolizing genes (GSTM1, GSTT1, CYP2E1, mEH, PON1, and MPO) and susceptibility to AR. We found that the GSTT1 null allele and the fast allele of mEH(*) (exon 4) are associated with risk for AR. Furthermore, the combined genotypes GSTM1 null/ CYP2E1(*)5B, GSTM1 null/mEH YY, and GSTT1 null/mEH YY are significantly associated with susceptibility to AR (OR = 15.42, 95% CI = 1.33-77.93, P = 0.021; OR = 3.48, 95% CI = 1.63-8.04, P = 0.0008; OR = 3.4; 95% CI = 0.99-17.38, P = 0.05; respectively). We have also conducted cytogenetic analysis to elucidate if induction of chromosome aberrations (CAs) is a biomarker of AR susceptibility. We found that among cigarette smokers (AR patients and smoker controls), individuals having the GSTM1 null allele had a significantly higher frequency of CAs compared to those with the normal allele (P < 0.05). This association was not found among nonsmokers. In addition, individuals who had inherited the CYP2E1(*)5B allele exhibited a significantly higher CA frequency (8.0 +/- 0.82) compared to those with the CYP2E1 wild-type genotype (4.31 +/- 0.35). Since the analysis of genetic susceptibility factors is still in its infancy, our study may stimulate additional investigations to understand the roles of genetic susceptibility and cigarette smoking in AR.     

Activities of single precentral neurons of the monkey during different tasks of forelimb movements

The neuronal activity in the motor cortex of the rhesus monkey was investigated in three different tasks performed with finger, wrist, and arm movements. A total of 125 neuronal activities were analysed. They were classified into five groups in terms of muscular contractions provoked by intracortical stimulation; neurons related to contractions of finger, wrist, elbow, shoulder, or trunk muscles. The neuronal activities in three tasks performed with finger, wrist, or arm movements were investigated for each group. Most of the neurons related to the contractions of elbow, shoulder, or trunk muscles were associated solely with arm movement. Smaller numbers of neuronal activities changed their firing frequencies in association with two or three tasks. Neurons related to the contractions of finger and wrist muscles showed various firing patterns in the three tasks; some responded to a single task with wrist or arm movement, while others changed their activities in association with more than one task. The presence of multi-task related neurons is discussed with respect to the multisegmental termination of corticospinal axons in the spinal cord.     

Antidromic latency of the monkey pyramidal tract neuron related to ipsileteral hand movements

During three different motor tasks of finger, wrist and arm movements on either side, 80 pyramidal tract neuron (PTN) activities were recorded in the monkey motor cortex. They were divided into three groups; PTNs related to controlateral movement (contra-PTNs), those related to ipsilateral movementt lateral movement (bilaterai-PTNs) and those related to ipsilateral movement (ipsi-PTNs). The latency histogram of the antidromic activation was similar for contra-PTNs as well as ipsi- and bilateral-PTNs in the fast PTN group, but most of slow PTNs appeared among contra-PTNs. Intracortical microstimulation (ICMS) was delivered to correlate muscular contraction with PTN acticity. Most of slow PTNs were related to proximal muscular contraction and PTNs related to proximal muscles appeared more in ipsi- and bilateral-PTNs than in contra-PTNs.     

Effects of symmetry groups on complexity and goodness in visual pattern

Two experiments were performed to investigate stimulus determinants of pattern complexity and pattern goodness. Two hundred and ninety-six undergraduates rated complexity and goodness of two-dimensional patterns, which consisted of solid and/or open circles. The patterns were invariant under transformations of reflection or rotation, and they formed cyclic groups or dihedral ones. The results were summarized as follows. (1) Goodness of patterns increased with the order of cyclic and dihedral groups with different weights. (2) Complexity of patterns having line-segments decreased with the order of cyclic and dihedral groups with equal weights, whereas that of patterns having no line-segments was medium regardless of the order. (3) Simplicity and goodness of patterns with a vertical axis of reflection were higher than those with the other orientation axes. (4) Patterns consisting of solid circles were rated more complex than those of open ones. (5) Complexity increased as a positively accelerated function of the number of circles, whereas goodness increased as a negatively accelerated function. It was concluded that complexity and goodness were determined by compound factors, which are processed at different stages of human visual system.     

Apoptosis signaling pathways in lung diseases

Evidence that apoptosis plays an important role in the pathophysiology of lung diseases has been accumulated. Apoptosis signaling is classically composed of two principle pathways. One is a direct pathway from death receptor ligation to caspase cascade activation and cell death. Death receptor ligation triggers recruitment of the precursor form of caspase-8 to a death-inducing complex, through the adaptor protein FADD, which leads to caspase-8 activation. The other pathway triggered by stimuli such as drugs, radiation, infectious agents and reactive oxygen species is initiated in mitochondria. After cytochrome c is released into the cytosol from the mitochondria, it binds to Apaf1 and ATP, which then activate caspase-9. Recently, endoplasmic reticulum has also been shown to be the organelle to execute apoptosis. Further understanding of molecular mechanisms of apoptosis and its regulation by novel drugs may lead to the development of effective strategies against lung diseases. We overview the signaling pathways of apoptosis and discuss the involvement of apoptosis in the pathophysiology of various lung diseases.     

Enhancement of CD3-mediated thymocyte apoptosis by the cross-linkage of heat-stable antigen.

Heat-stable antigen (HSA) is a murine differentiating antigen that is expressed on both CD4-CD8- double-negative and CD4+CD8+ double-positive thymocytes but not CD4+ or CD8+ single-positive thymocytes. Effects of anti-HSA monoclonal antibody, R13, on thymocyte apoptosis induced by various stimulations were investigated by a single-cell suspension culture system. Immobilized R13 enhanced the CD3-mediated DNA fragmentation and killing of thymocytes but not the dexamethasone-induced or phorbol myristate acetate-induced killing of thymocytes. Immobilized R13 by itself could not induce thymocyte apoptosis. Soluble R13 enhanced CD3-mediated apoptosis when HSA and T-cell receptor (TCR)/CD3 were co-cross-linked by a cross-reactive secondary antibody. Even without the cross-reactive secondary antibody, soluble R13 enhanced CD3-mediated apoptosis, although a greater than 100-fold increase in the amount of R13 was needed to give a similar enhancement compared with immobilized R13. Neither R13 by itself nor R13 plus secondary antibody induced cytosolic calcium influx, whereas R13 enhanced CD3-mediated cytosolic calcium increase. These results suggest a functional role of HSA in promoting the activation-induced apoptosis of thymocytes and the involvement of HSA in negative selection.     

Peripheral T-cell Lymphomas Immunologic and Enzyme Histochemical Analysis of 15 Cases

Ffteen cases of peripheral T cell lymphoma were studied to evaluate the respective properties of various histologic types using enzyme histochemical and ultrastructural examinations in addition to immunological methods. Eleven cases in an ATLA negative group manifested various histologic patterns such as IBL like, pleomorphic and Lennert's lymphomas in comparison with the relatively monomorphic proliferation of neoplastic lymphoid cells in the 4 ATLA positive cases. The presence of neoplastic clear cells is characteristic of peripheral T-cell malignancies, and is likely to be found in CD4 lymphomas. There is an occasional reaction of epithelioid histiocytes and plasma cells with eosinophils, the former being designated Lennert's lymphoma and the latter IBL like T-cell lymphoma. Immunological examination revealed four immunophenotypic patterns: (1) CD2⁺3⁺4⁺8⁺, (2) CD2⁺ 3⁻4⁺8⁻, (3) CD2⁺3⁺4⁻8⁺, and (4) CD2⁺3⁺4⁺8⁺, but did not provide information concerning the intimate relationship between histologic types and immuno phenotyes. β-Glucuronidase reactivity, however, contributed to the distinction between helper and suppressor T cell malignancies, suggesting its usefulness for distinguishing these two cell types and their malignant counterparts.