Production of substrate for galactose oxidase by depolymerization of an arabinogalactan-peptide from wheat flour.

Water extractable arabinogalactan-peptide (WE-AGP) isolated from white wheat flour was depolymerized enzymatically to liberate substrate for a galactose oxidase from Dactylium dendroides. A crude liquid pectolytic preparation from Aspergillus niger (p70) displayed activities capable of converting WE-AGP into a substrate for galactose oxidase. The most favorable substrate was observed when WE-AGP was not fully depolymerized into galactose and arabinose. alpha-L-Arabinofuranosidase B from A. niger was also able to produce substrate from WE-AGP; arabinofuranosidase-treated WE-AGP was a better substrate for galactose oxidase than galactose. Treatment by the crude p70 and purified enzymes showed that alpha-L-arabinofuranosidase was partly responsible for the production of substrate, whereas beta-galactosidase did not result in any substrate production or improve the effect of alpha-L-arabinofuranosidase. However, the positive effect of alpha-L-arabinofuranosidase was increased when p70 was added at the same level of arabinofuranosidase activity, suggesting that additional enzyme activities present in p70 were responsible for production of substrate for galactose oxidase.

A clinical study of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome caused by Seoul virus infection.

The clinical findings of 29 patients with hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) caused by Seoul virus were evaluated and compared with the previously reported clinical findings of classic Korean hemorrhagic fever (KHF). The diagnoses of these patients were made by hemagglutination inhibition test. The results were as follows: 1) The disease occurred predominantly in males with a high incidence in the third and fourth decades of life. 2) The highest incidence of the disease occurred in October-December. 3) Major symptoms were fever, abdominal or flank pain, vomiting and myalgia. 4) Major signs were petechia, CVA tenderness, pharyngeal injection, and conjunctival infection, but these signs were much less common than in patients with classic KHF. 5) The treatments were mainly conservative and there was no fatal case in the study subjects. These findings suggest that the clinical course of Seoul virus infection may be much milder than that of classic KHF and the outcome may be more favorable.