Differential expression of Toll-like receptor (TLR)-2 and TLR-4 on monocytes in human sepsis.

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are a recently described family of immune receptors involved in the recognition of pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs). The central role of TLR-2 and TLR-4 in microbial responses suggests they may be implicated in the pathogenesis of human sepsis. We hypothesized that the incidence and outcome of sepsis would be influenced by the expression of TLR-2 and TLR-4 on monocytes. We have examined the expression of TLR-2 and TLR-4 mRNA and protein and their response to pro- and anti-inflammatory agents on monocytes from subjects in the intensive therapy unit (ITU) with and without Gram-negative, Gram-positive or polymicrobial sepsis. We compared these data to ITU and healthy control subjects. TLR-2 mRNA was significantly up-regulated on monocytes from subjects with both Gram-positive and Gram-negative sepsis. Similarly, we detected increased levels of TLR-2 protein on the surface of monocytes from sepsis subjects relative to ITU controls. TLR-4 mRNA was increased in Gram-positive subjects; however, there was no corresponding increase in TLR-4 protein. Although TLR-4 mRNA expression in healthy control monocytes could be modulated in vitro by culture with lipopolysaccharide or interleukin-10, this was not observed in monocytes obtained from sepsis and ITU control subjects, suggesting that septic and ITU control milieus may alter the immunoregulation of TLR-4 mRNA expression on monocytes. TLR-2 mRNA was not modulated in culture by any stimulus in any group. We suggest that expression and regulatory response of monocyte TLR-2, and to a lesser extent TLR-4 may be abnormal in human sepsis.

Polyamine and thiol metabolism in Trypanosoma granulosum: similarities with Trypanosoma cruzi.

Concentrations of free polyamines were investigated in Trypanosoma granulosum cultured in a semidefined medium containing traces of polyamines. Spermidine content peaked in early logarithmic growth while putrescine was not detectable. Unlike African trypanosomes and Leishmania, spermine was measured at equivalent amounts to spermidine in mid to late logarithmic stage cells. Addition of d,l-alpha-difluoromethylornithine to cultures did not decrease polyamine content nor was ornithine decarboxylase activity detected. In contrast, incubation of parasites with tritiated putrescine showed rapid uptake and subsequent conversion to spermidine and spermine. At late logarithmic growth, parasites contained glutathione (77% of total sulphydryl groups) and ovothiol A as major low molecular mass thiols with glutathionylpolyamine conjugates undetectable. However, the addition of exogenous putrescine elevated trypanothione and glutathionylspermidine content to 48% of total sulphydryl groups. Correspondingly, the addition of exogenous cadaverine increased homotrypanothione content. This first report of polyamines and low molecular mass thiols in Trypanosoma granulosum indicates intriguing similarities with the metabolism of the human pathogen Trypanosoma cruzi.

The photoreduction of H(2)O(2) by Synechococcus sp. PCC 7942 and UTEX 625.

It has been claimed that the sole H(2)O(2)-scavenging system in the cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. PCC 7942 is a cytosolic catalase-peroxidase. We have measured in vivo activity of a light-dependent peroxidase in Synechococcus sp. PCC 7942 and UTEX 625. The addition of small amounts of H(2)O(2) (2.5 microM) to illuminated cells caused photochemical quenching (qP) of chlorophyll fluorescence that was relieved as the H(2)O(2) was consumed. The qP was maximal at about 50 microM H(2)O(2) with a Michaelis constant of about 7 microM. The H(2)O(2)-dependent qP strongly indicates that photoreduction can be involved in H(2)O(2) decomposition. Catalase-peroxidase activity was found to be almost completely inhibited by 10 microM NH(2)OH with no inhibition of the H(2)O(2)-dependent qP, which actually increased, presumably due to the light-dependent reaction now being the only route for H(2)O(2)-decomposition. When (18)O-labeled H(2)O(2) was presented to cells in the light there was an evolution of (16)O(2), indicative of H(2)(16)O oxidation by PS 2 and formation of photoreductant. In the dark (18)O(2) was evolved from added H(2)(18)O(2) as expected for decomposition by the catalase-peroxidase. This evolution was completely blocked by NH(2)OH, whereas the light-dependent evolution of (16)O(2) during H(2)(18)O(2) decomposition was unaffected.

Effect of haloallylamines on polyamine oxidase activity and spermine levels in Ascaris suum.

In parasitic nematodes the rate-limiting step in the polyamine interconversion pathway is catalysed by polyamine oxidase. MDL 72527, the specific inhibitor of mammalian polyamine oxidase, had no effect on the Ascaris suum enzyme, whereas its activity was inhibited in a time-dependent manner by the haloallylamine MDL 72145, originally designed as a specific inhibitor of monoamine oxidase A and B. The dissociation constant (Ki) was found to be 0.9 microM and the enzyme half-life under saturation conditions (t50) was determined to be 0.8 min. Incubation of A. suum in vitro in the presence of 50 microM MDL 72145 for 6 h resulted in a decrease in polyamine oxidase activity to about 20% of the control value, and spermine concentrations simultaneously increased about 200%. Both results suggest that MDL 72145 might be a chemical lead compound for the design of new chemotherapeutic agents against nematode infections.

Crithidia fasciculata as feeder cells for malaria parasites.

Crithidia fasciculata was used to replace murine peritoneal wash cells as feeder cells for the adaptation of Plasmodium falciparum isolates to continuous culture in vitro, thus avoiding the need to sacrifice animals. Fourteen of 17 malaria parasite isolates in one study, and 12 of 12 isolates in a second study, were successfully adapted to continuous culture in the presence of C. fasciculata, while only 5 of 17 parallel control isolates in the first study, and 2 of 12 isolates in the second study, were adapted in the absence of any feeder cells. Biochemical assays were performed to investigate various hypotheses put forward to explain the mode of action of feeder cells. No effect of C. fasciculata feeder cells was observed on lactate removal, osmotic pressure, or glucose or amino acid content of the malaria culture media. This feeder cell system was shown to reduce the pH of the malaria culture medium. Neither this feeder system nor another system, murine peritoneal macrophages, had any effect on the cysteine content of the culture medium. C. fasciculata was shown to reduce the redox potential of the culture medium, as were other malaria growth enhancers including cysteine and glutathione. This effect on the redox potential of the culture medium is proposed to be a possible mode of action for the feeder cell systems studied.

Identification and biosynthesis of N1,N9-bis(glutathionyl)aminopropylcadaverine (homotrypanothione) in Trypanosoma cruzi.

Radiolabelling studies using tritiated ornithine, arginine and lysine, together with the relevant amino acid decarboxylase enzyme assays, indicate that the epimastigote stage of Trypanosoma cruzi is unable to synthesise significant amounts of putrescine and cadaverine de novo, compared to the amounts of these diamines scavenged from the growth medium. Radiolabelled putrescine is readily incorporated into spermidine, spermine and the trypanosomatid-specific polyamine-glutathione conjugate trypanothione (N1,N8-bis(glutathionyl)spermidine). Likewise, radiolabelled cadaverine is incorporated into the analogous polyamines aminopropylcadaverine, bis(aminopropyl)cadaverine and another major unidentified component. Subsequent studies showed this major component to be a novel polyamine-thiol conjugate whose structure was confirmed by chemical synthesis to be N1,N9-bis(glutathionyl)aminopropylcadaverine (homotrypanothione). Kinetic analyses using recombinant T. cruzi trypanothione reductase demonstrated that homotrypanothione disulphide is readily reduced by this enzyme with kinetic parameters similar to trypanothione disulphide, suggesting that it is a physiological substrate in vivo. Thus the epimastigote form of T. cruzi differs significantly from the African trypanosomes and Leishmania in (a) being unable to synthesise significant amounts of diamines de novo, (b) converting significant amounts of putrescine and cadaverine to spermine and bis(aminopropyl)cadaverine, respectively and (c) the ability to synthesise homotrypanothione as well as trypanothione. The implications of these findings with respect to the prospective chemotherapy of Chagas' disease are discussed.

Phenotype of recombinant Leishmania donovani and Trypanosoma cruzi which over-express trypanothione reductase. Sensitivity towards agents that are thought to induce oxidative stress.

Trypanothione reductase is thought to be important in maintaining an intracellular reducing environment in trypanosomatids. To investigate the role of trypanothione reductase we transfected Leishmania donovani and Trypanosoma cruzi with an expression vector containing the L. donovani trypanothione reductase gene and achieved over-expression of enzyme activity (10-14-fold) in transformed cells. Following treatment of L. donovani cells with the thiol-oxidizing agent diamide, the ability to regenerate dihydrotrypanothione from trypanothione disulphide was considerably enhanced in cells which over-expressed trypanothione reductase. However, the growth of transformed and control cells was equally sensitive to inhibition by nifurtimox, nitrofurazone and gentian violet, drugs that are thought to act by inducing oxidative damage. Likewise, growth of transformed and control cells were equally susceptible to inhibition by hydrogen peroxide, and control and transformed L. donovani promastigotes metabolized hydrogen peroxide at comparable rates. Thus, these experiments suggest that the ability to regenerate dihydrotrypanothione from trypanothione disulphide is not a rate-limiting step in the metabolism of hydrogen peroxide.

The interaction of arsenical drugs with dihydrolipoamide and dihydrolipoamide dehydrogenase from arsenical resistant and sensitive strains of Trypanosoma brucei brucei.

D,L-dihydrolipoamide and D,L-dihydrolipoic acid react to form stable complexes with melarsen oxide with association constants of 5.47 x 10(9) and 4.51 x 10(9) M-1, respectively. These complexes possess 6-membered cyclic dithioarsenite rings which are 10-fold less stable than the 5-membered rings found in the trypanocidal drugs melarsoprol and trimelarsen, but 500-fold more stable than the 25-membered macrocyclic ring formed between melarsen oxide and dihydrotrypanothione. L-Lipoic acid concentrations in arsenical sensitive and resistant cloned lines of Trypanosoma brucei brucei have been determined by bioassay using a mutant of Escherichia coli auxotrophic for lipoate. The arsenical resistant strain was found to contain significantly less lipoic acid than the sensitive strain (19.2 +/- 4.3 and 9.7 +/- 2.9 pmol (10(8) cells)-1, respectively). The activity of the plasma membrane-associated dihydrolipoamide dehydrogenase was found to be slightly, but significantly increased in the arsenical resistant strain (34.7 +/- 1.4 and 47.8 +/- 3.7 mU mg-1, respectively). However, the Km for dihydrolipoamide and the inactivation kinetics with melarsen oxide were not significantly different between these strains. Estimates of the ratio of substrate to enzyme are of the order of 12:1 and 6:1 for arsenical sensitive and resistant strains, respectively, suggesting that these components are likely to be intimately associated with each other in the plasma membrane. These findings implicate lipoic acid, but not dihydrolipoamide dehydrogenase, in resistance to arsenical drugs, either through the mechanism of uptake or as the final target of these drugs.

Inhibition of polyamine biosynthesis in Crithidia fasciculata by D,L-alpha-difluoromethylornithine and D,L-alpha-difluoromethylarginine.

Using Crithidia fasciculata as a model organism for Trypanosoma cruzi, we have examined the effects of D,L-alpha-difluoromethylornithine (DFMO) and D,L-alpha-difluoromethylarginine (DFMA) on growth and polyamine synthesis. In a defined, polyamine-free medium growth was markedly inhibited by DFMO (94% at 50 mM; IC50 = 37 mM) and to a lesser extent by DFMA (65% at 50 mM). Addition of putrescine, but not agmatine, reverses inhibition of growth, suggesting that the site of inhibition is ornithine decarboxylase (ODC). Consistent with this conclusion, DFMO or DFMA results in a complete loss of putrescine and significant reductions in intracellular spermidine, glutathionylspermidine and N1,N8-bis(glutathionyl)spermidine (trypanothione). In addition, significant concentrations of DFMO (0.8 mM) were present in DFMA-treated cells. However, in contrast to other organisms, conversion of DFMA to DFMO is probably not catalysed by arginase. Substantial ornithine decarboxylase activity (63.1 pmol min-1 mg-1; ODC) was observed in control cells, sufficient to account for polyamine synthesis during growth. In addition, a trace arginine decarboxylase (ADC) activity (1.19 pmol min-1 mg-1) was found. Evidence is presented showing that the apparent ADC activity is actually due to the concerted action of arginase (1.5 nmol min-1 mg-1) and ODC. Thus DFMA appears to inhibit growth of C. fasciculata via conversion to DFMO and subsequent inhibition of ODC.

Separation and quantitation of the polyamine biosynthesis inhibitor D,L-alpha-difluoromethylarginine and other guanidine-containing compounds by high-performance liquid chromatography.

The arginine decarboxylase inhibitor difluoromethylarginine (DFMA) is an important tool in the study of polyamine metabolism, particularly with respect to the human pathogen Trypanosoma cruzi. This paper demonstrates a unique method for the detection and quantitation of intracellular DFMA using the fluorogenic agent 9,10-phenanthrenequinone. After separation of cell extracts by HPLC, DFMA can be accurately and reproducibly quantified with a lower sensitivity limit of 0.1 nmol by this simple fluorometric method. This assay can also be used to detect other guanidine-containing compounds such as arginine, agmatine, creatinine, and hirudonine, but not substituted guanidines such as aminoguanidine and creatine, or the structurally related amidines such as benzamidine and pentamidine.

Isolation and characterization of a cDNA clone for a novel serine-rich neutrophil protein.

A cDNA expression library from pig blood neutrophils was immunoscreened with a rabbit antiserum raised against a 32 kDa neutrophil membrane phosphoprotein. Previous work indicated this protein as a component of the superoxide-forming NADPH oxidase enzyme complex (1,2). Only one cDNA clone (B+) was highly positive. The B+ clone contained a 1109 bp insert, with an open reading frame encoding for 284 amino acids. The deduced B+ amino acid sequence contained a 72 amino acid domain with proline and glutamine repeats and two domains extremely enriched with serine residues. The isolated cDNA hybridizes with a 3.1 kb mRNA expressed in pig and human leukocytes.

Effect of alpha-difluoromethylornithine on 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea and cis-diamminedichloroplatinum(II) cytotoxicity, DNA interstrand cross-linking, and growth in human brain tumor cell lines in vitro.

The polyamine biosynthesis inhibitor alpha-difluoromethylornithine (DFMO) has been shown to potentiate the cytotoxicity of 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea (BCNU) in 9L rat brain tumor cells and in non-central nervous system human cancer cells in vitro, but the effects on a human brain tumor cell line have not been reported. Because BCNU is one of the main chemotherapeutic agents used clinically for the treatment of brain tumors, the effect of DFMO treatment on cell growth and potentiation of cytotoxicity was studied in vitro in U-251 MG and SF-126 cells, human tumor cell lines derived from malignant glioma tissue. Pretreatment of U-251 MG with 1 mM DFMO depleted cells of putrescine and spermidine within 48 h but did not sensitize cells to BCNU treatment even after a pretreatment of 72 h. DFMO treatment had no effect on the number of interstrand cross-links formed in BCNU-treated cells. Even treatment with 5 mM DFMO for 72 h caused only the suggestion of potentiation of BCNU cell kill. In contrast, a 72-h pretreatment with 1 mM DFMO decreased the cytotoxic effect of cis-diammine-dichloroplatinum(II) and caused a 38% decrease in the number of DNA interstrand cross-links formed. The glutathione content and cell cycle distribution of U-251 MG cells were not affected by DFMO pretreatment. Because Phase II clinical trials with DFMO and BCNU have shown promise for the treatment of anaplastic astrocytomas in humans, a second brain tumor cell line, SF-126, was studied. In this cell line a consistent potentiation of BCNU cytotoxicity (dose enhancement of 1.2 at the 10% survival level) was observed in cells pretreated with 1 mM DFMO for 72 h.

Reduction in cis-diamminedichloroplatinum(II)-induced cytotoxicity, sister chromatid exchange, and DNA interstrand cross-links in 9L cells treated with the polyamine biosynthesis inhibitor (2R,5R)-6-heptyne-2,5-diamine.

The effects of depletion of intracellular levels of the polyamines putrescine and spermidine on cis-diamminedichloroplatinum(II)-induced cytotoxicity, sister chromatid exchanges, DNA interstrand cross-linking, and intracellular glutathione levels were studied in 9L rat brain tumor cells pretreated with the ornithine decarboxylase inhibitor (2R,5R)-6-heptyne-2,5-diamine (R,R-MAP). Pretreatment of 9L cells with R,R-MAP for 48 h decreased cis-diamminedichloroplatinum(II) cytotoxicity with an average dose reduction ratio of 0.55 at both the 5 and 10% survival levels; addition of putrescine partially prevented this effect. The number of sister chromatid exchanges and DNA interstrand cross-links was also reduced (31 and 38%, respectively). Within 24 h of treatment with R,R-MAP, intracellular glutathione levels began to increase relative to untreated control cells and were significantly elevated in R,R-MAP-treated cells 48-72 h after addition of drug. We discuss several mechanisms by which polyamine depletion could reduce cis-diamminedichloroplatinum(II) toxicity.

Differential response to 1,3-bis (2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea in drug-resistant and -sensitive 9L rat brain tumor cells pretreated with alpha-difluoromethylornithine and 6-thioguanine.

Pretreatment of 9L cells with either alpha-difluoromethylornithine (DFMO), which depletes intracellular levels of polyamines, or 6-thioguanine (6TG), which substitutes for guanine in DNA, potentiates the cytotoxic effects of 1,3-bis (2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea (BCNU). We examined the effects of these 2 agents in combination on the cytotoxicity of BCNU in sensitive (9L) and resistant (BTRC-19) rat brain tumor cell lines. 9L cells were incubated with 0.2 microM 6TG for 72 hr; during the last 48 hr, 1 mM DFMO was added to cell cultures. The cytotoxicity of BCNU in pretreated cells was increased in an additive manner compared with the effects of each agent alone. Results of experiments in which the BCNU-resistant BTRC-19 cell line was treated similarly showed that only 6TG enhanced BCNU cytotoxicity. Flow cytometry studies showed that these effects are not related to cell-cycle processes.

Changes in the glutathione content of rat 9L cells induced by treatment with the ornithine decarboxylase inhibitor alpha-difluoromethylornithine.

Treatment of 9L cells with the ornithine decarboxylase inhibitor alpha-difluoromethylornithine (DFMO) depletes cells of putrescine and spermidine and sensitizes cells to the cytotoxic effects of the alkylating agent 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea. Because depletion of intracellular levels of the sulfhydryl compound glutathione also increases the cytotoxicity of alkylating agents, the effect of DFMO on intracellular glutathione content was investigated to determine whether DFMO-induced sensitization could be explained by a sulfhydryl-related mechanism. Treatment of 9L cells with 1 mM DFMO caused no change in the glutathione concentration within 48 h; sensitization of cells to 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea is generally studied after 48 h of treatment with DFMO. Incubation of cells with DFMO for longer periods caused an increase in glutathione that is related to the depletion of polyamines and not to a decrease in growth rate or a cell cycle effect. Increased glutathione content is not due to a decrease in glutathione catabolism, but rather to an apparent increase in the rate of synthesis of the tripeptide.