Carboxylesterase catalyzed 18O-labeling of carboxylic acid and its potential application in LC-MS/MS based quantification of drug metabolites

LC-MS quantification of drug metabolites is sometimes impeded by the availability of internal standards that often requires customized synthesis and/or extensive purification. Although isotopically labeled internal standards are considered ideal for LC-MS/MS based quantification, de novo synthesis using costly isotope-enriched starting materials makes it impractical for early stage of drug discovery. Therefore, quick access to these isotope-enriched compounds without chemical derivatization and purification will greatly facilitate LC-MS/MS based quantification. Herein, we report a novel ¹⁸O-labeling technique using metabolizing enzyme carboxylesterase (CES) and its potential application in metabolites quantification study. Substrates of CES typically undergo a two-step oxygen exchange with H₂¹⁸O in the presence of the enzyme, generating singly- and doubly-¹⁸O-labeled carboxylic acids; however, unexpected hydrolytic behavior was observed for three of the test compounds – indomethacin, piperacillin and clopidogrel. These unusual observations led to the discovery of several novel hydrolytic mechanisms. Finally, when used as internal standard for LC-MS/MS based quantification, these in situ labeled compounds generated accurate quantitation comparable to the conventional standard curve method. The preliminary results suggest that this method has potential to eliminate laborious chemical synthesis of isotope-labeled internal standards for carboxylic acid-containing compounds, and can be developed to facilitate quantitative analysis in early-stage drug discovery.     

Learners’ acceptance of a webinar for continuing medical education

The aim of this study was to evaluate learners’ acceptance of a webinar for continuing medical education that was instigated by the International Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (IAOMS). A live, interactive webinar on orthognathic surgery was broadcast via the Internet. The learners’ acceptance of the webinar was evaluated using a standardized, validated questionnaire (Student Evaluation of Educational Quality, SEEQ). One hundred and fifty-three participants attended the webinar; 55 participants (46 male, nine female) completed the questionnaire. The mean age of the respondents was 41.6 ± 10.0 years. The age of male and female respondents did not differ significantly. The respondents were spread over five continents, with the highest number from Brazil. The SEEQ showed a high level of acceptance for almost all subscales. There was no statistically significant difference between male and female respondents concerning acceptance of the webinar (P = 0.614). The wide distribution of participants shows the potential for webinars as facilitators of barrier-free distribution of knowledge. The webinar was well accepted by the attendees independent of sex, specialty, and work experience. However, the sex ratio reflects the underrepresentation of women in oral and maxillofacial surgery.     

A facile synthesis of [14C]pyrithiobac‐sodium

Condensation of thiourea 1 with diethyl malonate 2 in the presence of sodium methoxide furnished 4,6‐dihydroxy‐2‐mercaptopyrimidine 3 . Compound 3 on methylation with diazomethane followed by oxidation with H₅IO₆/CrO₃ in ethyl acetate gave 4,6‐dimethoxy‐2‐methylsulphonylpyrimidine 5 . Compound 5 on condensation with 2‐mercapto‐6‐chlorobenzoic acid in the presence of a phase transfer catalyst, tetrabutylammonium bromide and sodium carbonate gave the title compound – pyrithiobac‐sodium 6 with an overall yield of > 35% starting from thiourea. Following the above standardized procedure, using [¹⁴C]‐thiourea in lieu of thiourea, ¹⁴C labelled product 6 , was synthesized with an overall radiochemical yield > 30% (with respect to [¹⁴C]‐thiourea) for further evaluations of environmental fate of 6 , in soils and plants. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The value of the acoustic analysis of pathological infant cry and breathing noise in everyday practice

During a period of twenty years [1969-1988] the author has observed 614 cases of congenital malformations and noninflammatory diseases of the larynx in infants and young children, Budapest. He summarizes the most characteristic symptoms of laryngeal pathology in infants, and discusses the diagnostic possibilities. Among the latter, spectrographic analyses complemented by auditory evaluation of pathological cry and different breathing noises play an important role. Based on his investigation author differentiates 20 kinds of pathological crying sounds and 4 basic forms of stridor. He describes the acoustic attributes of different pathological sound phenomena and summarizes characteristic voice changes.     

白细胞介素-18基因修饰的胎肝细胞经脾移植对小鼠免疫功能的影响

目的：观察表达mIL-18的重组腺病毒基因修饰的胎肝细胞（AdmIL-18/BNL.CL2)经脾移植对正常小鼠免疫功能的影响。方法：实验组小鼠经脾移植AdmIL-18/BNL.CL2，同时设LacZ病毒对照组（Ad-LacZ/BNL.CL2),BNL.CL2细胞对照组及空白对照组。2周后处死，留取血清，制备腹腔巨噬细胞、脾淋巴细胞、肝组织匀浆液，提取肝组织总RNA。采用ELISA法检测各组小鼠血清、腹腔Mφ和脾细胞培养上清、肝匀浆中细胞因子的含量；采用半定量RT－PCR法，检测肝组织细胞因子mRNA相对表达量；以LDH释放法测定腹腔Mφ杀伤活性和脾NK细胞活性，用MTT还原比色法测定脾淋巴细胞的增殖活性。结果：实验组小鼠血清、细胞培养上清及肝匀浆中，IL－18、IL－2、IFN－γ、TNF-α稔均高于其它对照组，而IL－4、IL－10水平则低于对照组；半定量RT－PCR结果与ELISA检测结果一致；同时，实验组腹腔Mφ的杀伤活性和脾NK细胞活性，及脾淋巴细胞增殖活性也明显高于对照组。结论：AdmIL-18能有效转染至胎肝细胞并稳定表达mIL-18;AdmIL-18基因修饰的胎肝细胞经脾移植后，可显著提高肝脏、脾脏免疫细胞活性，活化腹腔Mφ，促进Th1类细胞因子表达，抑制Th2类细胞因子的分泌。     

Synthesis of deramciclane* labeled with tritium in various positions

[(1R)‐endo]‐(+)‐3‐bromocamphor was dehalogenated with tritium gas to [3‐³H]camphor and via [3‐³H]phenylborneol converted to [3‐³H]deramciclane isolated as the fumarate salt (specific activity 51.8 GBq/mmol). This three step synthesis from [3‐³H]camphor gave an overall yield of 22%. Benzyloxy‐acetic acid methyl ester was reduced with sodium‐borotritide to 2‐benzyloxy‐ethanol‐[1‐³H], and through a four step procedure was converted to 2‐dimethylaminoethyl‐[2‐³H] chloride. The latter was condensed with the sodium derivative of 2‐phenylborneol giving rise to [2‐dimethylamino‐[2‐³H]ethoxy]deramciclane isolated as the fumarate (specific activity 8.177 GBq/mmol). This six step synthesis from [³H]NaBH₄ gave an overall yield of 6%. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

稳定性核素测定大鼠小肠蛋白质合成

目的：建立稳定性核素（[L-^15N]亮氨酸）测定大鼠小肠蛋白质合成率的方法。方法：分别测定静脉注射相同剂量[L-^15N]亮氨酸不同时相的大鼠小肠^15N丰度及不同剂量[L-^15N]亮氨酸同一时相的大鼠小肠^15N丰度。结果：大鼠小肠游离氨基酸池中^15N核素丰度在注射后0．5h内呈线性上升并达高峰，维持4h后缓慢下降，小肠蛋白质中的^15N丰度0．5h至12h基本维持不变；随着注射剂量的增加，大鼠小肠蛋白质分数合成率（FSR）亦增加，当[L-^15N]亮氨酸剂量在1．0mmol／kg以上，FSR并不随施加[L15N]亮氨酸剂量的加大而增加。结论：在进行大鼠小肠蛋白质合成率测定时，一次性静脉注射的测量最佳时限为0．5h，剂量为1．0mmol／kg。     

激素间歇冲击及小剂量维持治疗IgA肾病的随机对照研究

目的:探讨激素间歇冲击及小剂量维持与血管紧张素转换酶抑制剂治疗中度蛋白尿IgA肾病的疗效及其影响因素。方法:47例IgA肾病患者随机分为实验组和对照组。对照组(21例)给予ACEI药物治疗,实验组(26例)在此基础上口服泼尼松0.5mg/kg,隔日给药,治疗12个月,并在治疗的第1、3、5个月初分别给予甲基泼尼松龙0.5g/d,冲击3d。对肾脏病理改变进行WHO分级并对各种病变进行半定量分析。结果:两组间在性别、年龄、临床及病理资料间无统计学差异。平均随访14个月后,实验组尿蛋白完全缓解8例(30.8%),部分缓解14例(53.8%),无缓解4例(15.4%);而对照组分别为4例(19.1%),3例(23.8%),12例(57.1%),有统计学差异(P<0.01)。治疗前后,实验组血肌酐分别为(89.9±30.3)μmol/L及(88.2±32.8)μmol/L;对照组分别为(89.5±37.9)μmol/L及(104.0±49.7)μmol/L,但两者比较均无统计学意义(P>0.05)。多因素分析显示疗效与肾小球硬化率及肾小管间质病变呈负相关。结论:激素间歇冲击及小剂量维持治疗能显著减少蛋白尿,维持肾功能稳定。影响疗效的主要因素为肾小球硬化率及肾小管间质病变程度。     

In vivo kinetics and displacement study of a carbon-11-labeled hallucinogen,N,N-[11C]dimethyltryptamine

The endogenous hallucinogen, N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT), was labeled with carbon-11 and its regional distribution in rat brain studied. [¹¹C]DMT showed higher accumulation in the cerebral cortex, caudate putamen, and amygdaloid nuclei. Studies of the subcellular distribution of [¹¹C]DMT revealed the specific localization in the fractions enriched with serotonin receptors only when a very low dose was injected into rats. The proportions of the radioactivity in receptor-rich fractions were greatly enhanced by pretreatment with the monoamine oxidase inhibitor, pargyline. Specific binding of [¹¹C]DMT to serotonin receptors in dog brain was demonstrated by a positron emission tomographic study in which 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine caused approximately 20% displacement of the radioligand from the receptors.