Contact-Killing Antibacterial Polystyrene Polymerized Using a Quaternized Cationic Initiator.

Contact-killing antibacterial materials are attracting attention owing to their ability for sustained antibacterial activity. However, contact-killing antibacterial polystyrene (PS) has not been extensively studied because its chemically stable structure impedes chemical modification. In this study, we developed an antibacterial PS sheet with a contact-killing surface using PS synthesized from 2,2'-azobis-[2-(1,3-dimethyl-4,5-dihydro-1H-imidazol-3-ium-2-yl)]propane triflate (ADIP) as a radical initiator with cationic moieties. The PS sheet synthesized with ADIP (ADIP-PS) exhibited antibacterial activity in contrast to PS synthesized with other azo radical initiators. Surface ζ-potential measurements revealed that only ADIP-PS had a cationic surface, which contributed to its contact-killing antibacterial activity. The ADIP-PS sheets also exhibited antibacterial activity after washing. In contrast, PS sheets containing silver, a typical leachable antibacterial agent, lost all antibacterial activity after the same washing treatment. The antibacterial ADIP-PS sheet demonstrated strong broad-spectrum activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, including drug-resistant bacteria. Cytotoxicity tests using L929 cells showed that the ADIP-PS sheets were noncytotoxic. This contact-killing antibacterial PS synthesized with ADIP thus demonstrated good prospects as an easily producible antimicrobial material.

Enhancement of immunomodulative effect of lactic acid bacteria on plasmacytoid dendritic cells with sucrose palmitate.

Plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) play a key role in the immune response against viruses. In addition, recent research has suggested that pDCs possess direct and indirect tumoricidal activities. We previously found that a lactic acid bacteria strain, Lactococcus lactis JCM 5805 (LC-Plasma), stimulated pDCs and prevented viral infection in mouse and human studies. Meanwhile, emulsifiers have recently been highlighted as candidate adjuvants for some viral vaccines and cancer immunotherapies. In this study, we discovered some specific emulsifiers, mainly consisting of sucrose fatty acid esters, that drastically enhance the potency of LC-Plasma to activate pDCs in vitro. The emulsifiers promoted the efficient uptake of LC-Plasma by pDCs and the ratio of pDCs that took up LC-Plasma correlated with the activity of pDCs. In addition, an in vivo study showed that oral treatment with LC-Plasma mixed with an emulsifier induced a higher expression of genes related to anti-viral immunity in the lung compared to treatment with LC-Plasma alone. Both LC-Plasma and the emulsifiers used in this study have been confirmed to be safe for human use. Therefore, LC-Plasma mixed with an emulsifier might be a useful tool for certain anti-cancer and anti-viral therapies.

Metabolomic and transcriptomic analysis for rate-limiting metabolic steps in xylose utilization by recombinant Candida utilis.

We have reported that a recombinant Candida utilis strain expressing a Candida shehatae xylose reductase K275R/N277D, a C. shehatae xylitol dehydrogenase, and xylulokinase from Pichia stipitis produced ethanol from xylose, but its productivity was low. In the present study, metabolomic (CE-TOF MS) and transcriptomic (microarray) analyses were performed to characterize xylose metabolism by engineered C. utilis and to identify key genetic changes contributing to efficient xylose utilization. The metabolomic analysis revealed that the xylose-fermenting strain accumulated more pentose phosphate pathway intermediates, more NADH, and more glycolytic intermediates upstream of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate than the wild-type. Transcriptomic analysis of the strain grown on xylose indicated a significant increase in expression of the genes encoding tricarboxylic acid cycle enzymes, respiratory enzymes, and enzymes involved in ethanol oxidation. To decrease the NADH/NAD(+) ratio and increase the ethanol yield of the fermentation of xylose, ADH1 encoding NADH-dependent alcohol dehydrogenase was overexpressed. The resulting strain exhibited a 17% increase in ethanol production and a 22% decrease in xylitol accumulation relative to control.

Intracellular proteins of ethanol-treated yeast cells involved in iron sorption.

Iron is essential for human health, but it sometimes causes an unpleasant taste, rusty colour and a decrease in the stability of food products. Previously, we found that ethanol-treated yeast (ETY) cells could remove iron from wine and juice, and reduce the fishy aftertaste induced by iron in wine-seafood pairings. However, the mechanism of iron sorption by ETY cells is undefined; thus, there is no indicator that can be used to estimate the iron sorption capacity of these cells. In this study, we showed that cell wall components are not mainly associated with iron sorption by investigating ETY cells with the cell wall removed. Moreover, plasma membrane permeability was correlated with the iron sorbing capacity of the cells. Microscopic analysis showed that iron accumulated within ETY cells. Proteinase-treated ETY cells had no iron sorbing capacity. On the basis of these results, we conclude that intracellular proteins are involved in iron sorption by ETY cells.