Decreased serum levels of acid-labile subunit in patients with anorexia nervosa.

One of the observations in malnutrition is that serum insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-I levels are decreased, and this decrease is associated with an altered profile of IGF binding proteins (IGFBPs). In human circulation, IGFs are mostly present as an approximately 150-kDa ternary protein complex consisting of IGFs, IGFBP-3, and acid-labile subunit (ALS). In the present study, to clarify the effect of nutrition on serum ALS levels, we investigated 33 patients with anorexia nervosa. Serum levels of ALS were measured by RIA. Furthermore, we measured serum IGF-I, IGF-II, IGFBP-2, and IGFBP-3 levels in the patients. From these data, we investigated which was the best predictor of body mass index (BMI) as a nutritional status marker. In the patients with anorexia nervosa, the serum ALS levels ranged from 0.7-16.9, with a mean of 10.6 +/- 0.7 mg/L, and the levels were significantly lower than those of normal subjects (13.8 +/- 0.8 mg/L, P < 0.05). Serum ALS levels positively correlated with BMI (r = 0.41, P < 0.05), and the levels increased during treatment. The serum IGFBP-2 levels in the patients were increased (871 +/- 91 microg/L), and the levels inversely correlated with BMI (r = -0.52, P < 0.01). The serum IGF-I and IGFBP-3 levels were low (152 +/- 14 microg/L and 2.56 +/- 0.12 mg/L, respectively), and the levels positively correlated with BMI (r = 0.46, P < 0.01; and r = 0.39, P < 0.05, respectively). The serum IGFBP-2, IGF-I, and IGFBP-3 levels returned toward normal ranges as BMI in the patients improved during treatment. Serum IGF-II levels did not correlate with BMI (r = 0.24, P = 0.17). Stepwise regression analysis revealed that serum IGFBP-2 was the best marker of BMI among these variables. The present study suggested that ALS was regulated by nutritional status, the same as IGF-I, IGFBP-2 and IGFBP-3; but the serum IGFBP-2 was the best predictor of BMI as nutritional status marker among the parameters in patients with anorexia nervosa.

The quinohemoprotein alcohol dehydrogenase of Gluconobacter suboxydans has ubiquinol oxidation activity at a site different from the ubiquinone reduction site.

Alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) of acetic acid bacteria functions as the primary dehydrogenase of the ethanol oxidase respiratory chain, where it donates electrons to ubiquinone. In addition to the reduction of ubiquinone, ADHs of Gluconobacter suboxydans and Acetobacter aceti were shown to have a novel function in the oxidation of ubiquinol. The oxidation activity of ubiquinol was detected as an ubiquinol:ferricyanide oxidoreductase activity, which can be monitored by selected wavelength pairs at 273 and 298 nm with a dual-wavelength spectrophotometer. The ubiquinol oxidation activity of G. suboxydans ADH was shown to be two times higher in 'inactive ADH', whose ubiquinone reductase activity is 10 times lower, than with normal 'active' ADH. No activity could be detected in the isolated subunit II or subunit I/III complex, but activity was detectable in the reconstituted ADH complex. Inactive and active ADHs exhibited a 2-3-fold difference in their affinity to ubiquinol despite having the same affinity to ubiquinone. Furthermore, the ubiquinol oxidation site in ADH could be distinguished from the ubiquinone reduction site by differences in their sensitivity to ubiquinone-related inhibitors and by their substrate specificity with several ubiquinone analogues. Thus, the results strongly suggest that the reactions occur at different sites. Furthermore, in situ reconstitution experiments showed that ADH is able to accept electrons from ubiquinol present in Escherichia coli membranes, suggesting the ubiquinol oxidation activity of ADH has a physiological function. Thus, ADH of acetic acid bacteria, which has ubiquinone reduction activity, was shown to have a novel ubiquinol oxidation activity, of which the physiological function in the respiratory chain of the organism is also discussed.

A probable case of Leishmaniasis (Espundia) acquired in Japan.

A case of mucocutaneous leishmaniasis is described in a Japanese patient who had never been abroad, suggesting either contact with an infected person from Brazil or the presence in Japan of indigenous cutaneous leishmaniasis. This case illustrates the value of electron microscopic examination in such infections, since it provided the definitive diagnosis.