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Sample records for highly purified rat

  1. Studies on a novel peptide isolated and purified from rat insulinoma tissue

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Al-Akhras, G N

    1987-01-01

    Rat insulinoma peptide (RIP) which appears to be either a fragment of, or an altered rat C-peptide was isolated and purified by dialysis. The purity of this peptide was investigated using polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis with sodium dodecyl sulfate, isoelectric focusing, and high performance liquid chromatography. RIP may contain two peptides similar to each other but differing in their isoelectric points. The molecular weight of RIP was found to be 1982 daltons by fast atoms bombardment mass spectrometry giving a chain length of approximately 22 amino acid residues. From information obtained using radioimmunoassay employing antiserum R901, RIP appears to share a common C-terminus with rat C-peptide. A radioimmunoassay for RIP was developed using the purified RIP as immunogen and for standards and tracers. An indirect enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for rat insulinoma peptide was developed using purified RIP for immunogen and semi-purified RIP as a standard.

  2. Naloxone-sensitive, haloperidol-sensitive, [3H](+)SKF-10047-binding protein partially purified from rat liver and rat brain membranes: an opioid/sigma receptor?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsao, L I; Su, T P

    1997-02-01

    A naloxone-sensitive, haloperidol-sensitive, [3H](+)SKF-10047-binding protein was partially purified from rat liver and rat brain membranes in an affinity chromatography originally designed to purify sigma receptors. Detergent-solubilized extracts from membranes were adsorbed to Sephadex G-25 resin containing an affinity ligand for sigma receptors: N-(2- 3,4-dichlorophenyl]ethyl)-N-(6-aminohexyl)-(2-[1-pyrrolidinyl]) ethylamine (DAPE). After eluting the resin with haloperidol, a protein that bound [3H](+)SKF-10047 was detected in the eluates. However, the protein was not the sigma receptor. [3H](+)SKF-10047 binding to the protein was inhibited by the following compounds in the order of decreasing potency: (+)pentazocine > (-) pentazocine > (+/-)cyclazocine > (-)morphine > (-)naloxone > haloperidol > (+)SKF-10047 > DADLE > (-)SKF-10047. Further, the prototypic sigma receptor ligands, such as 1,3-di-o-tolylguanidine (DTG), (+)3-PPP, and progesterone, bound poorly to the protein. Tryptic digestion and heat treatment of the affinity-purified protein abolished radioligand binding. Sodium dodecyl sulfate/polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS/PAGE) of the partially-purified protein from the liver revealed a major diffuse band with a molecular mass of 31 kDa, a polypeptide of 65 kDa, and another polypeptide of > 97 kDa. This study demonstrates the existence of a novel protein in the rat liver and rat brain which binds opioids, benzomorphans, and haloperidol with namomolar affinity. The protein resembles the opioid/sigma receptor originally proposed by Martin et al. [(1976): J. Pharmacol. Exp. Ther., 197:517-532.]. A high degree of purification of this protein has been achieved in the present study.

  3. Effect of purified gambir leaves extract to prevent atherosclerosis in rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nanang Yunarto

    2016-03-01

    , antiaterosklerosis AbstractBackground: Atherosclerosis is a risk factor for coronary heart disease (CHD. Catechin have highantioxidant activity that can prevent atherosclerosis. Gambir (Uncaria gambir, Roxb. leaves extract havehigh catechin content thereby potentially inhibiting atherosclerosis. This research was aimed to examineeffect of purified gambir leaves extract to prevent atherosclerosis in rats.Methods: The experimental laboratory study was conducted in Pharmacy Laboratory and Animal Laboratory,National Institute of Health Research and Development, Ministry of Health, Republic of Indonesia in 2014.Gambir leaves extract were purified to gain optimum catechin. Afterwards, antioxidant activity was testedusing 2.2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH method, with ascorbic acid as positive control. Thirty six whitemale Sprague Dawley rats aged 2.5 months were randomly divided into six groups, i.e. normal control group,negative control group (aquadest, positive control group (atorvastatin 2 mg/200 g bw,extract dose I (20mg/200 g bw, dose II (40 mg/200 g bw and dose III (80 mg/200 g bw. The rats were given high fat diet andtreatment according to their group for 60 days, except for normal control group.Results: Catechin content in the purified gambir leaves extract was 92,69%. From antioxidant activity test, IC50 wasfound to be 11,76 μg/mL. Anti-atherosclerotic activity study shown that compared to negative control, all three dosesof purified gambir leaves extract were able to prevent atherosclerosis through inhibition of aortic wall thickening andfoam cell formation due to high fat diet (p<0.05. Anti-atherosclerotic activity increased with increasing dose.Conclusion: Gambir leaves purified extract had the effect of preventing the thickening of the walls andfoam cell formation rat aorta. (Health Science Journal of Indonesia 2015;6:105-10Keywords: gambir, catechin, antiatherosclerosis

  4. Neuropeptide Y binding sites in rat brain identified with purified neuropeptide Y-I125

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Walker, M.W.; Miller, R.J.

    1986-01-01

    Neuropeptide Y (NPY) is a widely distributed neuronally localized peptide with 36 amino acids, 5 of which are tyrosines. The authors wished to investigate the properties of specific receptors for NPY. They therefore labeled the tyrosines with I125 using chloramine T and then purified the peptide using HPLC. A single mono-iodinated species of NPY which yielded > 85% specific binding in rat forebrain synaptosomes was selected as the ligand for all subsequent experiments. A time course of binding showed that equilibrium conditions were reached in 60 minutes at 21 0 C. Scatchard plots revealed a single class of binding sites with a Kd and a Bmax of 3 x 10-10 M and 28 pmol/mg, respectively. Competition binding with unlabeled NPY showed 50% displacement of bound ligand at 1 x 10-10 M NPY. Competition binding with rat pancreatic polypeptide (RPP), a homologous peptide possessing little NPY-like activity, showed 50% displacement of bound ligand at 2 x 10 -7 M RPP. No binding was observed on F-11 or PC12 neuronal cell lines, or on HSWP fibroblast cells. They conclude that NPY-I125 purified to homogeneity with HPLC is a highly selective ligand for NPY receptor sites. They are currently investigating such sites in brain, gut, and other tissues

  5. Characterization of a purified nicotinic receptor from rat brain by using idiotypic and anti-idiotypic antibodies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Abood, L.G.; Langone, J.J.; Bjercke, R.; Lu, X.; Banerjee, S.

    1987-01-01

    The availability of an anti-nicotine monoclonal antibody has made it possible to further establish the nature of the nicotine recognition proteins purified from rat brain by affinity chromatography and to provide a highly sensitive assay for determining [ 3 H]nicotine binding to the purified material. An enantiomeric analogue of nicotine. (-)-6-hydroxymethylnicotine, was used to prepare the affinity column. In addition, with the use of an anti-idiotypic monoclonal antibody, it was confirmed that the recognition site for nicotine resides on a protein complex composed of two components with molecular masses of 62 and 57 kDa. It was also demonstrated that the same two proteins could be purified by immunoaffinity chromatography with the use of an anti-idiotypic monoclonal antibody. With the use of the anti-nicotine antibody to measure [ 3 H]nicotine binding, the purified material was shown to bind 250 pmol/mg of protein. By utilizing a procedure in which the purified receptor protein was conjugated to membranes by disulfide bonds, a binding activity of 80 pmol/mg was obtained. With the availability of sterospecific monoclonal antibodies to (-)-nicotine as well as monoclonal anti-idiotypic antibodies derived when the anti-nicotine antibodies were used as immunogens, additional procedures became available for the further characterization of the purified nicotine receptor and examining its (-)-[ 3 H]nicotine-binding characteristics

  6. Cultured rat and purified human Pneumocystis carinii stimulate intra- but not extracellular free radical production in human neutrophils

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, T; Aliouat, E M; Lundgren, B

    1998-01-01

    The production of free radicals in human neutrophils was studied in both Pneumocystis carinii derived from cultures of L2 rat lung epithelial-like cells and Pneumocystis carinii purified from human lung. Using the cytochrome C technique, which selectively measured extracellular superoxide...... generation, hardly any free radical production was observed after stimulation with cultured rat-derived P. carinii. A chemiluminescence technique, which separately measured intra- and extracellular free radical production, was subsequently employed to differentiate the free radical generation....... It was established that 1) P. carinii stimulated intra- but not extracellular free radical production in human neutrophils, 2) opsonized cultured rat-derived P. carinii stimulated human neutrophils to a strong intracellular response of superoxide production, and 3) opsonized P. carinii, purified from human lung also...

  7. Affinity-purified human interleukin I is cytotoxic to isolated islets of Langerhans

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mandrup-Poulsen, T; Bendtzen, K; Nerup, J

    1986-01-01

    Addition of highly purified human Interleukin-1 to the culture medium of isolated rat islets of Langerhans for 6 days led to 88% inhibition of glucose-induced insulin-release, reduction of islet contents of insulin and glucagon to 31% and 8% respectively, and disintegration of the islets. These e......Addition of highly purified human Interleukin-1 to the culture medium of isolated rat islets of Langerhans for 6 days led to 88% inhibition of glucose-induced insulin-release, reduction of islet contents of insulin and glucagon to 31% and 8% respectively, and disintegration of the islets...

  8. Leukotriene formation by purified 5-lipoxygenase from rat basophilic leukemia cells

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hogaboom, G.K.; Cook, M.; Sarau, H.M.; Newton, J.F.; Crooke, S.T.

    1986-01-01

    Arachidonate 5-lipoxygenase (5-LO) from rat basophilic leukemia (RBL-1) cell high speed (105,000 x g for 60 min) supernatants was purified to electrophoretic homogeneity by gel filtration and anion-exchange protein-high pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC). The 5-LO rapidly converted [ 14 C]arachidonate at 20 0 C to [ 14 C]5-hydroperoxyeicosate-traenoic acid (HPETE) as determined by reversed phase-HPLC, scanning spectrophotometry and radiochemical detection. In addition, 5-LO converted both 5-HPETE and arachidonate to 5,12-dihydroxyeicosatetraenoic acids (diHETEs). The 5,12-diHETEs were identified as 6-trans-leukotriene (LT) B4 and 6-trans-12-epi-LTB4 as determined by reversed phase HPLC, scanning spectrophotometry and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. These data indicate that the RBL-1 5-LO and LTA4 synthetase activities reside on the same protein and that it catalyzes the bioconversion of arachidonate to not only 5-HPETE but also to LTA4. The results suggest that a critical regulatory step in LT biosynthesis in mammalian systems involves the intricate coupling of the enzymes 5-LO and LTA4 synthetase and the interactions of their respective cofactors, substrates and reaction products

  9. Rat hepatic β2-adrenergic receptor: structural similarities to the rat fat cell β1-adrenergic receptor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Graziano, M.P.

    1984-01-01

    The mammalian β 2 -adrenergic receptor from rat liver has been purified by sequential cycles of affinity chromatography followed by steric-exclusion high performance liquid chromatography. Electrophoresis of highly purified receptor preparations on polyacrylamide gels in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate under reducing conditions reveals a single peptide M/sub r/ = 67,000, as judged by silver staining. Purified β 2 -adrenergic receptor migrates on steric-exclusion high performance liquid chromatography in two peaks, with M/sub r/ = 140,000 and 67,000. Specific binding of the high affinity, β-adrenergic receptor antagonists (-)[ 3 H]dihydroalprenolol and (-)[ 125 I]iodocyanopindolol to purified rat liver β-adrenergic receptor preparations displays stereoselectivity for (-)isomers of agonists and a rank order of potencies for agonists characteristics of a β 2 -adrenergic receptor. Radioiodinated, β 1 -adrenergic receptors from rat fat cells and β 2 -adrenergic receptors from rat liver purified in the presence of protease inhibitors comigrate in electrophoretic separations on polyacrylamide gels in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate as 67,000-M/sub r/ peptides. Autoradiograms of two dimensional partial proteolytic digests of the purified, radioiodinated rat liver β 2 -adrenergic receptor, generated with α-chymotrypsin, S. aureus V8 protease and elastase reveal a pattern of peptide fragments essentially identical to those generated by partial proteolytic digests of the purified, radioiodinated β 1 -adrenergic receptor from rat fat cells, by these same proteases. These data indicate that a high degree of homology exists between these two pharmacologically distinct mammalian β-adrenergic receptor proteins

  10. Antidiabetic and antihiperlipidemic effect of Andrographis paniculata (Burm. f.) Nees and andrographolide in high-fructose-fat-fed rats

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nugroho, Agung Endro; Andrie, Mohamad; Warditiani, Ni Kadek; Siswanto, Eka; Pramono, Suwidjiyo; Lukitaningsih, Endang

    2012-01-01

    Objectives: Andrographis paniculata (Burm. f.) Nees originates from India and grows widely in many areas in Southeast Asian countries. Andrographis paniculata (Burm. f.) Nees has shown an antidiabetic effect in type 1 DM rats. The present study investigates the purified extract of the plant and its active compound andrographolide for antidiabetic and antihyperlipidemic effects in high-fructose-fat-fed rats, a model of type 2 DM rats. Materials and Methods: Hyperglycemia in rats was induced by high-fructose-fat diet containing 36% fructose, 15% lard, and 5% egg yolks in 0.36 g/200 gb.wt. 55 days. The rats were treated with the extract or test compound on the 50th day. Antidiabetic activity was measured by estimating mainly the pre– and postprandial blood glucose levels and other parameters such as cholesterol, LDL, triglyceride, and body weight. Results: The purified extract and andrographolide significantly (PAndrographis paniculata (Burm. f.) Nees or its active compound andrographolide showed hypoglycemic and hypolipidemic effects in high-fat-fructose-fed rat. PMID:22701250

  11. Analysis of purified gp96 preparations from rat and mouse livers using 2-D gel electrophoresis and tandem mass spectrometry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fairburn, B; Muthana, M; Hopkinson, K; Slack, L K; Mirza, S; Georgiou, A S; Espigares, E; Wong, C; Pockley, A G

    2006-09-01

    The stress protein gp96 exhibits a number of immunological activities, the majority of studies into which have used gp96 purified from a variety of tissues. On the basis of 1-D gel electrophoresis, the purity of these preparations has been reported to range between 70% and 99%. This study analyzed gp96 preparations from rat and mouse livers using 2-D gel electrophoresis and liquid chromatography electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (MS-MS). The procedure for purifying gp96 was reproducible, as similar protein profiles were observed in replicate gels of gp96 preparations. The purity of the preparations was typically around 70%, with minor co-purified proteins of varying molecular weights and mobilities being present. Dominant bands at 95-100 kDa in preparations from Wistar rats and C57BL/6 mice were identified as gp96 by ECL Western blotting. Multiple bands having similar, yet distinct molecular weights and differing pI mobility on ECL Western blots were confirmed as being gp96 in preparations from Wistar rats using MS-MS. The most striking feature of the 2-D gel analysis was the presence of additional dominant bands at 55 kDa in preparations from Wistar rats, and at 75-90 kDa in preparations from C57BL/6 mice. These were identified as gp96 by ECL Western blotting and, in the case of preparations from Wistar rats, by MS-MS. Although the lower molecular weight, gp96-related molecules might be partially degraded gp96, their reproducible presence, definition and characteristics suggest that they are alternative, species-specific isoforms of the molecule. A 55 kDa protein which exhibited a lower pI value than gp96 was present in all preparations and this was identified as calreticulin, another putative immunoregulatory molecule. This study confirms the reproducibility of the gp96 purification protocol and reveals the presence of multiple gp96 isoforms, some of which likely result from post-translational modifications such as differential glycosylation and

  12. The effect of low ambient temperature on the febrile responses of rats to semi-purified human endogenous pyrogen.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stitt, J T; Shimada, S G

    1985-01-01

    The febrile responses of Sprague-Dawley rats to semi-purified human endogenous pyrogen were studied at a thermoneutral ambient temperature (26 degrees C) and in the cold (3 degrees C). It was found that while rats developed typical monophasic febrile responses at thermoneutrality, febrile responses were absent in the cold-exposed rats. Experiments were conducted to determine whether this lack of febrile responses in cold-exposed rats was due to an inability of these animals to generate or retain heat in the cold. Thermogenesis and vasoconstriction were stimulated in cold-exposed rats by selectively cooling the hypothalamus, using chronically implanted thermodes. It was shown that, using this stimulus, metabolic rate could be increased by more than 50 percent and body temperature could be driven up at a rate of 5 degrees C/hour in rats exposed to the cold. Therefore, it was concluded that the lack of febrile responses of cold-exposed rats to pyrogen is in no way due to a physical or physiological inability to retain heat. Instead, it appears that in some manner cold exposure suppresses the sensitivity or responsiveness of the rat to pyrogenic stimuli.

  13. Effect of partially purified angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitory ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This study evaluated the effect of partially-purified angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory proteins obtained from the leaves of Moringa oleifera on blood glucose, serum ACE activity and lipid profile of alloxaninduced diabetic rats. Twenty-five apparently healthy male albino rats were divided into five groups of five ...

  14. Steroidogenesis in amlodipine treated purified Leydig cells

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Latif, Rabia, E-mail: rabialatif08@hotmail.com [Department of Physiology, Army Medical College, National University of Sciences and Technology, Islamabad (Pakistan); Lodhi, Ghulam Mustafa, E-mail: drmustafa786@gmail.com [Department of Physiology, Wah Medical College, Wah (Pakistan); Hameed, Waqas, E-mail: waqham@hotmail.com [Department of Physiology, Rehman Medical College, Peshawar (Pakistan); Aslam, Muhammad, E-mail: professormaslam@yahoo.com [Department of Physiology, Shifa College of Medicine, Islamabad (Pakistan)

    2012-01-01

    Drugs have been shown to adversely affect male fertility and recently anti-hypertensive drugs were added to the list. The anti-fertility effects of amlodipine, a calcium channel blocker, are well-illustrated in in vivo experiments but lack an in vitro proof. The present study was designed to experimentally elucidate the effects of amlodipine on Leydig cell steroidogenesis and intracellular calcium in vitro. Leydig cells of Sprague–Dawley rats were isolated and purified by Percoll. Cells were incubated for 3 h with/without amlodipine in the presence/absence of LH, dbcAMP, Pregnenolone and 25-Hydroxycholesterol. Cytosolic calcium was measured in purified Leydig cells by fluorometric technique. The results showed significantly reduced (P < 0.05) steroidogenesis and intracellular calcium in amlodipine exposed rats. The site of amlodipine induced steroidogenic inhibition seems to be prior to the formation of Pregnenolone at the level of StAR protein. -- Highlights: ► Inhibition of steroidogenesis in isolated and purified Leydig cells by amlodipine. ► Site of inhibition was before Pregnenolone formation, at the level of StAR protein. ► Inhibition of LH stimulated rise in cytosolic calcium by amlodipine.

  15. Metabolism of benzene and phenol by a reconstituted purified phenobarbital induced rat liver mixed function oxidase system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Griffiths, J.C.

    1986-01-01

    Cytochrome P-450 and the electron-donor, NADPH-cytochrome c reductase were isolated from phenobarbital induced rat liver microsomes. Both benzene and its primary metabolite phenol, were substrates for the reconstituted purified phenobarbital induced rat liver mixed function oxidase system. Benzene was metabolized to phenol and the polyhydroxylated metabolites; catechol, hydroquinone and 1,2,4 benzenetriol. Benzene elicited a Type I spectral change upon its interaction with the cytochrome P-450 while phenol's interaction with the cytochrome P-450 produced a reverse Type I spectra. The formation of phenol showed a pH optimum of 7.0 compared with 6.6-6.8 for the production of the polyhyrdoxylated metabolites. Cytochrome P-450 inhibitors, such as metyrapone and SKF 525A, diminished the production of phenol from benzene but not the production of the polyhydroxylated metabolites from phenol. The radical trapping agents, DMSO, KTBA and mannitol, decreased the recovery of polyhydroxylated metabolites, from 14 C-labeled benzene and/or phenol. As KTBA and DMSO interacted with OH. There was a concomitant release of ethylene and methane, which was measured. Desferrioxamine, an iron-chelator and catalase also depressed the recovery of polyhydroxylated metabolites. In summary, benzene and phenol were both substrates for this reconstituted purified enzyme system, but they differed in binding to cytochrome P-450, pH optima and mode of hydroxylation

  16. Influence of a highly purified senna extract on colonic epithelium

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Gorkom, B A; Karrenbeld, A; van Der Sluis, T; Koudstaal, J; de Vries, E G; Kleibeuker, J H

    2000-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Chronic use of sennoside laxatives often causes pseudomelanosis coli. A recent study suggested that pseudomelanosis coli is associated with an increased colorectal cancer risk. A single high dose of highly purified senna extract increased proliferation rate and reduced crypt length in

  17. Synthesis and characterization of highly purified nanosilica from pyrophyllite ores

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fuad, Abdulloh, E-mail: abdulloh.fuad.fmipa@um.ac.id; Mufti, Nandang; Diantoro, Markus; Subakti,; Septa Kurniawati, S. [Jurusan Fisika FMIPA Universitas Negeri Malang. Jl. Semarang No. 5 Malang, east Java (Indonesia)

    2016-03-11

    A simple method based on alkaline extraction followed by acid precipitation and acid dissolution has been developed to produce highly purified nanosilica from pyrophyllite materials. The reaction parameters such as molar ratio NaOH/SiO{sub 2}, reaction time and reaction temperature are varied for obtaining maximum nanosilica convertion. About 99,45% highly purified precipitated nanosilica measure with ICP, 259 m{sup 2}/gr measure with BET surface area, 97% whiteness and 3 ml/gr oil absorbtion from pyrophyllite materials has been achieved in closed system at 150°C within 180 min. The physicals and chemical properties (such as X-Ray Diffraction from PANalytical, X-Ray Fluorescence Minipal4 from PANanalytical, BET surface area, Forier Transform Infra Red Spectroscopy from Hitachi, and SEM-EDS Inspect-S50 from FEI Company) of the highly purity nanosilica were studied.

  18. Hydrolysis of triolein in phospholipid vesicles and microemulsions by a purified rat liver acid lipase.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burrier, R E; Brecher, P

    1983-10-10

    An acid lipase was purified from rat liver lysosomes. Lipase purification involved affinity chromatography, gel filtration, and stabilization of the purified preparation using ethylene glycol and Triton X-100. A molecular weight of 67,000-69,000 was determined independently using density gradient centrifugation, sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, and gel filtration. To study enzyme action, model substrates were prepared by incorporating radiolabeled triolein into either unilamellar vesicles or microemulsions. Substrates were prepared by cosonicating aqueous dispersions of lecithin and triolein. Formation of vesicles or emulsions depended on the relative amount of each lipid and on sonication conditions. Vesicles were prepared at molar ratios between 70:1 and 26:1 (lecithin:triolein) and the microemulsion preparation at a molar ratio of 1:1. The substrate particles were of similar size (220-250 A) as determined by Bio-Gel A-15m chromatography. Hydrolysis of triolein contained in vesicles or emulsions was similar with respect to pH, temperature, and reaction products. Kinetic studies on vesicles with increasing triolein content showed progressively greater Vmax values (0-0.6 mumol/min/mg), and Vmax for the emulsion was 3.1 mumol/min/mg. Addition of human very low or low density lipoprotein produced a dose-dependent inhibition with both substrates. The results show that synthetically prepared microemulsions are stable and effective substrates for the acid lipase and indicate that surface-oriented triolein is hydrolyzed in both preparations.

  19. Synthesis and characterization of nano-sized CaCO3 in purified diet

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mulyaningsih, N. N.; Tresnasari, D. R.; Ramahwati, M. R.; Juwono, A. L.; Soejoko, D. S.; Astuti, D. A.

    2017-07-01

    The growth and development of animals depend strongly on the balanced nutrition in the diet. This research aims is to characterize the weight variations of nano-sized calcium carbonate (CaCO3) in purified diet that to be fed to animal model of rat. The nano-sized CaCO3 was prepared by milling the calcium carbonate particles for 20 hours at a rotation speed of 1000 rpm and resulting particle size in a range of 2-50 nm. Nano-sized CaCO3 added to purified diet to the four formulas that were identified as normal diet (N), deficiency calcium (DC), rich in calcium (RC), and poor calcium (PC) with containing in nano-sized CaCO3 much as 0.50 %, 0.00 %, 0.75 % and 0.25 % respectively. The nutritional content of the purified diet was proximate analyzed, it resulted as followed moisture, ash, fat, protein, crude fiber. The quantities of chemical element were analyzed by atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS), it resulted iron, magnesium, potassium and calcium. The results showed that N diet (Ca: 16,914.29 ppm) were suggested for healthy rats and RC diet (Ca: 33,696.13 ppm) for conditioned osteoporosis rats. The crystalline phases of the samples that were examined by X-ray diffraction showed that crystalline phase increased with the increasing concentration of CaCO3.

  20. Mixed protocols: Multiple ratios of FSH and LH bioactivity using highly purified, human-derived FSH (BRAVELLE and highly purified hMG (MENOPUR are unaltered by mixing together in the same syringe

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Raike Elizabeth

    2005-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The use of mixed or blended protocols, that utilize both FSH and hMG, for controlled ovarian hyperstimulation is increasing in use. To reduce the number of injections a patient must administer, many physicians instruct their patients to mix their FSH and hMG together to be given as a single injection. Therefore, the goal of this study was to definitively determine if the FSH and LH bioactivities of highly purified, human-derived FSH (Bravelle(R and highly purified hMG (Menopur(R were altered by reconstituting in 0.9% saline and mixing in the same syringe. Methods Bravelle(R and Menopur(R were reconstituted in 0.9% saline and mixed in a Becton Dickinson plastic syringe. The FSH and LH bioactivities of the products were determined after injecting female and male rats, respectively, with Bravelle(R, Menopur(R, or a mixture of Bravelle(R and Menopur(R. Ratios of FSH:LH activity tested were 150:75 IU (1 vial Bravelle(R: 1 vial Menopur(R, 300:75 IU (3 vials Bravelle(R: 1 vial Menopur(R or 300:225 IU (1 vial Bravelle(R: 3 vials of Menopur(R. Results There were no statistically significant changes in either FSH or LH bioactivity that occurred after mixing Bravelle(R with Menopur(R in the same syringe. The theoretical vs. actual FSH bioactivity for Bravelle(R and Menopur(R were 75 vs. 76.58 IU/mL and 75 vs. 76.0 IU/mL, respectively. For the 3 ratios of FSH:LH activity tested, 150:75 IU (1 vial Bravelle(R: 1 vial Menopur(R, 300:75 IU (3 vials Bravelle(R: 1 vial Menopur(R or 300:225 IU (1 vial Bravelle(R: 3 vials of Menopur(R tested, the theoretical vs. actual FSH bioactivities were 150 vs. 156.86 IU/mL, 300 vs. 308.69 IU/mL and 300 vs. 306.58 IU/mL, respectively. The theoretical vs. actual LH bioactivity for Menopur(R in the above mentioned ratios tested were 75 vs. 77.50 IU/mL. For the 3 ratios of FSH:LH activity tested, 150:75 IU (1 vial Bravelle(R: 1 vial Menopur(R, 300:75 IU (3 vials Bravelle(R: 1 vial Menopur(R or 300:225 IU (1

  1. High-level water purifying technology. Kodo josui shori gijutsu

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tsugura, H; Tsukiashi, K [Meidensha Corp., Tokyo (Japan)

    1993-07-01

    Research and development have been carried out on a high-level water purifying system using ozone and activated charcoals to supply drinking water free of carcinogenic matters and odors. This system comprises a system to utilize ozone by using silent discharge and oxygen enriching device, and a living organism/activated charcoal treatment system. The latter system utilizes living organisms deposited on activated charcoal surfaces to remove polluting substances including ammonia. The treatment experimenting equipment comprises an ozone generating system, an ozone treating column, an activated charcoal treating column, an ozone/activated charcoal control device, and a water amount and quality measuring system. An experiment was carried out using an experimental plant with a capacity of 20 m[sup 3]/day on water taken from the sedimentation process at an actual water purifying plant. As a result, trihalomethane formation potential was removed at about 40% in the ozone treatment, and at 70% in the whole treatment combining the ozone and living organism/activated charcoal treatments. For parameterization of palatability of water, a method is being studied that utilizes nuclear magnetic resonance to investigate degrees of water cluster. The method is regarded promising. 1 ref., 4 figs.

  2. Influence of a highly purified senna extract on colonic epithelium.

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Gorkom, B A; Karrenbeld, A; van Der Sluis, T; Koudstaal, J; de Vries, E G; Kleibeuker, J H

    2000-01-01

    Chronic use of sennoside laxatives often causes pseudomelanosis coli. A recent study suggested that pseudomelanosis coli is associated with an increased colorectal cancer risk. A single high dose of highly purified senna extract increased proliferation rate and reduced crypt length in the sigmoid colon compared to historical controls. To evaluate in a controlled study the effects of highly purified senna extract on cell proliferation and crypt length in the entire colon and on p53 and bcl-2 expression. Addition of a senna extract to colonic lavage was studied in 184 consecutive outpatients. From 32 randomised patients, 15 with sennosides (Sen), 17 without (NSen), biopsies were taken. Proliferative activity was studied in 4 areas of the colon, using 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine labelling and immunohistochemistry (labelling index, LI). Expression of p53 and bcl-2 in the sigmoid colon was determined immunohistochemically. Crypts were shorter in Sen than in NSen in the transverse and sigmoid colon. LI was higher in Sen than in NSen in the entire colon. No difference in p53 expression was seen. Bcl-2 expression was higher in both groups when crypts were shorter and/or proliferation was increased. Sennosides induce acute massive cell loss probably by apoptosis, causing shorter crypts, and increased cell proliferation and inhibition of apoptosis to restore cellularity. These effects may reflect the mechanism for the suggested cancer-promoting effect of chronic sennoside use. Copyright 2000 S. Karger AG, Basel

  3. Effects of Simulated Hypogravity and Diet on Estrous Cycling in Rats

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tou, Janet C.; Grindeland, Richard E.; Baer, Lisa A.; Wade, Charles E.

    2003-01-01

    Environmental factors can disrupt ovulatory cycles. The study objective was to determine the effect of diet and simulated hypogravity on rat estrous cycles. Age 50 d Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to he fed either a purified or chow diet. Only normal cycling rats were used. Experimental rats (n=9-10/group) were kept as ambulatory controls (AC) or subjected to 40 d simulated hypogravity using a disuse atrophy hindlimb suspension (HLS) model. There was no effect on estrous cycles of AC fed either diet. At day 18, HLS rats fed either diet, had lengthened estrous cycles due to prolonged diestrus. HLS rats fed purified diet also had reduced time in estrus. Plasma estradiol was reduced in HLS rats fed purified diet but there was no effect on progesterone. This may have occurred because blood was collected from rats in estrus. Urinary progesterone collected during initial HLS was elevated in rats fed purified diet. In AC, corticosterone was elevated in chow vs purified diet fed rats. Differences were particularly striking following the application of a stressor with HLS/chow-fed rats displaying an enhanced stress response. Results emphasize the importance of diet selection when measuring endocrine-sensitive endpoints. HLS is a useful model for investigating the effects of environment on reproduction and providing insight about the impact extreme environment such as spaceflight on female reproductive health.

  4. Extraction and characterization of highly purified collagen from bovine pericardium for potential bioengineering applications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Santos, Maria Helena; Silva, Rafael M.; Dumont, Vitor C.; Neves, Juliana S.; Mansur, Herman S.; Heneine, Luiz Guilherme D.

    2013-01-01

    Bovine pericardium is widely used as a raw material in bioengineering as a source of collagen, a fundamental structural molecule. The physical, chemical, and biocompatibility characteristics of these natural fibers enable their broad use in several areas of the health sciences. For these applications, it is important to obtain collagen of the highest possible purity. The lack of a method to produce these pure biocompatible materials using simple and economically feasible techniques presents a major challenge to their production on an industrial scale. This study aimed to extract, purify, and characterize the type I collagen protein originating from bovine pericardium, considered to be an abundant tissue resource. The pericardium tissue was collected from male animals at slaughter age. Pieces of bovine pericardium were enzymatically digested, followed by a novel protocol developed for protein purification using ion-exchange chromatography. The material was extensively characterized by electrophoresis, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and infrared spectroscopy. The results showed a purified material with morphological properties and chemical functionalities compatible with type I collagen and similar to a highly purified commercial collagen. Thus, an innovative and relatively simple processing method was developed to extract and purify type I collagen from bovine tissue with potential applications as a biomaterial for regenerative tissue engineering. - Highlights: ► Type I collagen was obtained from bovine pericardium, an abundant tissue resource. ► A simple and feasible processing technique was developed to purify bovine collagen. ► The appropriate process may be performed on industrial scale. ► The pure collagen presented appropriate morphological and molecular characteristics. ► The purify collagen has shown potential use as a biomaterial in tissue engineering.

  5. Follitropin receptors in rat testis. Characterization with enzymatically 125I-labeled human follitropin.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ketelslegers, J M; Catt, K J

    1978-07-03

    The interaction between enzymatically radioiodinated human follitropin and the follitropin receptors in testis homogenate was investigated in immature and adult rats. The 125I-labeled human follitropin exhibited high binding activity with specific binding of up to 17% in the presence of an excess of testis homogenate. Approx. 50% of the bound hormone could be eluted at pH 5, and the receptor purified tracer exhibited a 3.6-fold increase in binding activity when compared with the original tracer preparation. Quantitative analysis of equilibrium binding data was performed with corrections for the measured specific activity and maximum binding activity of the tracer hormone. The equilibrium association constants (Ka) determined 24 degrees C were not significantly different in immature and adult rat testis, and the mean value for Ka was 3.9 . 10(9) M-1. At 37 degrees C, the Ka value obtained using immature rat testis was 1.3 . 10(10) M-1. The association of 125I-labeled human follitropin with immature rat testis homogenate was time and temperature dependent. In the presence of an excess of unlabeled hormone, 30--60% of the preformed hormone . receptor complex was dissociated after 24 h incubation. A specific and sensitive radioligand-receptor assay for follitropin was developed using immature rat testis homogenate. The minimum detectable dose of purified human follitropin was 0.6 ng, and human urinary and pituitary follitropin, ovine follitropin and pregnant mare serum gonadotropin reacted in the assay with equivalent slopes. The potencies of highly purified pregnent mare serum gonadotropin and highly purified human follitropin were similar in the radioligand-receptor assay, consistent with the follitropin bioactivity of the equine gonadotropin.

  6. Extraction and characterization of highly purified collagen from bovine pericardium for potential bioengineering applications

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Santos, Maria Helena, E-mail: mariahelena.santos@gmail.com [Department of Dentistry, Federal University of Vales do Jequitinhonha e Mucuri-UFVJM, Diamantina/MG 39100-000 (Brazil); Center for Assessment and Development of Biomaterials-BioMat, Federal University of Vales do Jequitinhonha e Mucuri-UFVJM, Diamantina/MG 39100-000 (Brazil); Silva, Rafael M.; Dumont, Vitor C. [Department of Dentistry, Federal University of Vales do Jequitinhonha e Mucuri-UFVJM, Diamantina/MG 39100-000 (Brazil); Center for Assessment and Development of Biomaterials-BioMat, Federal University of Vales do Jequitinhonha e Mucuri-UFVJM, Diamantina/MG 39100-000 (Brazil); Neves, Juliana S. [Center for Assessment and Development of Biomaterials-BioMat, Federal University of Vales do Jequitinhonha e Mucuri-UFVJM, Diamantina/MG 39100-000 (Brazil); Mansur, Herman S. [Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Federal University of Minas Gerais-UFMG, Belo Horizonte/MG 31270-901 (Brazil); Heneine, Luiz Guilherme D. [Department of Health Science, Ezequiel Dias Foundation-FUNED, Belo Horizonte/MG 30510-010 (Brazil)

    2013-03-01

    Bovine pericardium is widely used as a raw material in bioengineering as a source of collagen, a fundamental structural molecule. The physical, chemical, and biocompatibility characteristics of these natural fibers enable their broad use in several areas of the health sciences. For these applications, it is important to obtain collagen of the highest possible purity. The lack of a method to produce these pure biocompatible materials using simple and economically feasible techniques presents a major challenge to their production on an industrial scale. This study aimed to extract, purify, and characterize the type I collagen protein originating from bovine pericardium, considered to be an abundant tissue resource. The pericardium tissue was collected from male animals at slaughter age. Pieces of bovine pericardium were enzymatically digested, followed by a novel protocol developed for protein purification using ion-exchange chromatography. The material was extensively characterized by electrophoresis, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and infrared spectroscopy. The results showed a purified material with morphological properties and chemical functionalities compatible with type I collagen and similar to a highly purified commercial collagen. Thus, an innovative and relatively simple processing method was developed to extract and purify type I collagen from bovine tissue with potential applications as a biomaterial for regenerative tissue engineering. - Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Type I collagen was obtained from bovine pericardium, an abundant tissue resource. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer A simple and feasible processing technique was developed to purify bovine collagen. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The appropriate process may be performed on industrial scale. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The pure collagen presented appropriate morphological and molecular characteristics. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The purify

  7. Copper metabolism and its interactions with dietary iron, zinc, tin and selenium in rats

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Yu, S.

    1993-01-01

    This thesis describes various studies on copper metabolism and its interactions with selected dietary trace elements in rats. The rats were fed purified diets throughout. High intakes of iron or tin reduced copper concentrations in plasma, liver and kidneys. The dietary treatments also

  8. Impact of basal diet on dextran sodium sulphate (DSS)-induced colitis in rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boussenna, Ahlem; Goncalves-Mendes, Nicolas; Joubert-Zakeyh, Juliette; Pereira, Bruno; Fraisse, Didier; Vasson, Marie-Paule; Texier, Odile; Felgines, Catherine

    2015-12-01

    Dextran sodium sulphate (DSS)-induced colitis is a widely used model for inflammatory bowel disease. However, various factors including nutrition may affect the development of this colitis. This study aimed to compare and characterize the impact of purified and non-purified basal diets on the development of DSS-induced colitis in the rat. Wistar rats were fed a non-purified or a semi-synthetic purified diet for 21 days. Colitis was then induced in half of the rats by administration of DSS in drinking water (4% w/v) during the last 7 days of experimentation. At the end of the experimental period, colon sections were taken for histopathological examination, determination of various markers of inflammation (myeloperoxidase: MPO, cytokines) and oxidative stress (superoxide dismutase: SOD, catalase: CAT, glutathione peroxidase: GPx and glutathione reductase: GRed activities), and evaluation of the expression of various genes implicated in this disorder. DSS ingestion induced a more marked colitis in animals receiving the purified diet, as reflected by higher histological score and increased MPO activity. A significant decrease in SOD and CAT activities was also observed in rats fed the purified diet. Also, in these animals, administration of DSS induced a significant increase in interleukin (IL)-1α, IL-1β and IL-6. In addition, various genes implicated in inflammation were over-expressed after ingestion of DSS by rats fed the purified diet. These results show that a purified diet promotes the onset of a more severe induced colitis than a non-purified one, highlighting the influence of basal diet in colitis development.

  9. Purifying Nanomaterials

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hung, Ching-Cheh (Inventor); Hurst, Janet (Inventor)

    2014-01-01

    A method of purifying a nanomaterial and the resultant purified nanomaterial in which a salt, such as ferric chloride, at or near its liquid phase temperature, is used to penetrate and wet the internal surfaces of a nanomaterial to dissolve impurities that may be present, for example, from processes used in the manufacture of the nanomaterial.

  10. Purified human somatomedin A and rat multiplication stimulating activity

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rechler, M M; Fryklund, L; Nissley, S P; Hall, K; Podskalny, J M; Skottner, A; Moses, A C [National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Md. (USA); Kabi AB, Stockholm [Sweden; National Inst. of Arthritis, Metabolism and Digestive Diseases, Bethesda, Md. (USA). Diabetes Branch)

    1978-01-01

    Specific receptors for MSA and/or somatomedin A could be demonstrated in intact cells or membranes from chick embryo fibroblasts, human fibroblasts, human placenta, rat liver, and the BRL 3A2 cell line, a subclone of the line that produces MSA. Unlabeled MSA and somatomedin A inhibited the binding of /sup 125/I-labeled MSA and /sup 125/I-labeled somatomedin A to each of these receptors with comparable potency. In chick embryo fibroblasts, human fibroblasts, and human placental membranes, the binding of both radioactive ligands also was inhibited by insulin, consistent with the interpretation that /sup 125/I-labeled MSA and /sup 125/I-labeled somatomedin A were binding to the same receptor. By contrast, in the BRL 3A2 cell line, insulin inhibited the binding of /sup 125/I-labeled somatomedin A, but not the binding of /sup 125/I-labeled MSA, suggesting that the two labeled peptides were binding to different receptors in this cell line. Moreover, /sup 125/I-labeled MSA, but not /sup 125/I-labeled somatomedin A, bound specifically to rat liver plasma membranes. These results indicate that human somatomedin A and rat MSA are closely related, but not identical, peptides.

  11. LH-RH binding to purified pituitary plasma membranes: absence of adenylate cyclase activation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clayton, R N; Shakespear, R A; Marshall, J C

    1978-06-01

    Purified bovine pituitary plasma membranes possess two specific LH-RH binding sites. The high affinity site (2.5 X 10(9) l/mol) has low capacity (9 X 10(-15) mol/mg membrane protein) while the low affinity site 6.1 X 10(5) l/mol) has a much higher capacity (1.1 X 10(-10) mol/mg). Specific LH-RH binding to plasma membranes is increased 8.5-fold during purification from homogenate whilst adenylate cyclase activity is enriched 7--8-fold. Distribution of specific LH-RH binding to sucrose density gradient interface fractions parallels that of adenylate cyclase activity. Mg2+ and Ca2+ inhibit specific [125I]LH-RH binding at micromolar concentrations. Synthetic LH-RH, up to 250 microgram/ml, failed to stimulate adenylase cyclase activity of the purified bovine membranes. Using a crude 10,800 g rat pituitary membrane preparation, LH-RH similarly failed to activate adenylate cyclase even in the presence of guanyl nucleotides. These data confirm the presence of LH-RH receptor sites on pituitary plasma membranes and suggest that LH-RH-induced gonadotrophin release may be mediated by mechanisms other than activation of adenylate cyclase.

  12. Properties of the ATPase activity associated with peroxisome-enriched fractions from rat liver: comparison with mitochondrial F1F0-ATPase

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Wolvetang, E. J.; Wanders, R. J.; Schutgens, R. B.; Berden, J. A.; Tager, J. M.

    1990-01-01

    Highly purified peroxisomal fractions from rat liver contain ATPase activity (18.8 +/- 0.1 nmol/min per mg, n = 6). This activity is about 2% of that found in purified mitochondrial fractions. Measurement of marker enzyme activities and immunoblotting of the peroxisomal fraction with an antiserum

  13. Requirements for growth and IL-10 expression of highly purified human T regulatory cells

    OpenAIRE

    Bonacci, Benedetta; Edwards, Brandon; Jia, Shuang; Williams, Calvin; Hessner, Martin J.; Gauld, Stephen; Verbsky, James

    2012-01-01

    Human regulatory T cells (TR) cells have potential for the treatment of a variety of immune mediated diseases but the anergic phenotype of these cells makes them difficult to expand in vitro. We have examined the requirements for growth and cytokine expression from highly purified human TR cells, and correlated these findings with the signal transduction events of these cells. We demonstrate that these cells do not proliferate or secrete IL-10 even in the presence of high doses of IL-2. Stimu...

  14. Requirements for growth and IL-10 expression of highly purified human T regulatory cells

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bonacci, Benedetta; Edwards, Brandon; Jia, Shuang; Williams, Calvin; Hessner, Martin J.; Gauld, Stephen; Verbsky, James

    2013-01-01

    Human regulatory T cells (TR) cells have potential for the treatment of a variety of immune mediated diseases but the anergic phenotype of these cells makes them difficult to expand in vitro. We have examined the requirements for growth and cytokine expression from highly purified human TR cells, and correlated these findings with the signal transduction events of these cells. We demonstrate that these cells do not proliferate or secrete IL-10 even in the presence of high doses of IL-2. Stimulation with a superagonistic anti-CD28 antibody (clone 9D4) and IL-2 partially reversed the proliferative defect, and this correlated with reversal of the defective calcium mobilization in these cells. Dendritic cells were effective at promoting TR cell proliferation, and under these conditions the proliferative capacity of TR cells was comparable to conventional CD4 lymphocytes. Blocking TGF-β activity abrogated IL-10 expression from these cells, while addition of TGF-β resulted in IL-10 production. These data demonstrate that highly purified populations of TR cells are anergic even in the presence of high doses of IL-2. Furthermore, antigen presenting cells provide proper co-stimulation to overcome the anergic phenotype of TR cells, and under these conditions they are highly sensitive to IL-2. In addition, these data demonstrate for the first time that TGF-β is critical to enable human TR cells to express IL-10. PMID:22562448

  15. Dietary heme injures surface epithelium resulting in hyperproliferation, inhibition of apoptosis and crypt hyperplasia in rat colon

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    de Vogel, Johan; van-Eck, Wytske Boersma; Sesink, Aloys L. A.; Jonker-Termont, Denise S. M. L.; Kleibeuker, Jan; van der Meer, Roelof

    Epidemiological and animal model studies suggest that a high intake of heme, present in red meat, is associated with an increased risk of colon cancer. The aim of this study was to elucidate the effects of dietary heme on colonic cell homeostasis in rats. Rats were fed a purified, humanized, control

  16. Radiolabeling of codeine with 131I and its biodistribution in rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Enginar, H.

    2009-01-01

    Codeine which was extracted from dry capsules of the opium poppy (Papaver somniferum) was purified by HPLC (High Performance Liquid Chromatography) and characterized by NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance) and IR (Infrared) spectroscopy techniques. The purified compound was labeled with 131 I and biodistribution studies were performed in rats. Radioiodinated codeine distributed uniformly in the cerebellum, m.pons, striatum and hypothalamus while the other branch of brain and Stomach, urinary bladder, and small intestine uptakes were significantly higher than other tissues. (author)

  17. Endurance Pump Test with MIL-PRF-83282 Hydraulic Fluid, Purified with Malabar Purifier

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Sharma, Shashi

    2004-01-01

    .... Endurance aircraft hydraulic pump tests under carefully controlled conditions were previously conducted using hydraulic fluid purified with a rotating-disk and vacuum type purifier, the portable...

  18. Biocompatibility evaluation of HDPE-UHMWPE reinforced β-TCP nanocomposites using highly purified human osteoblast cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shokrgozar, M A; Farokhi, M; Rajaei, F; Bagheri, M H A; Azari, Sh; Ghasemi, I; Mottaghitalab, F; Azadmanesh, K; Radfar, J

    2010-12-15

    Biocompatibility of β-TCP/HDPE-UHMWPE nanocomposite as a new bone substitute material was evaluated by using highly purified human osteoblast cells. Human osteoblast cells were isolated from bone tissue and characterized by immunofluorescence Staining before and after purification using magnetic bead system. Moreover, proliferation, alkaline phosphatase production, cell attachment, calcium deposition, gene expression, and morphology of osteoblast cells on β-TCP/HDPE-UHMWPE nanocomposites were evaluated. The results have shown that the human osteoblast cells were successfully purified and were suitable for subsequent cell culturing process. The high proliferation rate of osteoblast cells on β-TCP/HDPE-UHMWPE nanocomposite confirmed the great biocompatibility of the scaffold. Expression of bone-specific genes was taken place after the cells were incubated in composite extract solutions. Furthermore, osteoblast cells were able to mineralize the matrix next to composite samples. Scanning electron microscopy demonstrated that cells had normal morphology on the scaffold. Thus, these results indicated that the nanosized β-TCP/HDPE-UHMWPE blend composites could be potential scaffold, which is used in bone tissue engineering. Copyright © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  19. Handbook of purified gases

    CERN Document Server

    Schoen, Helmut

    2015-01-01

    Technical gases are used in almost every field of industry, science and medicine and also as a means of control by government authorities and institutions and are regarded as indispensable means of assistance. In this complete handbook of purified gases the physical foundations of purified gases and mixtures as well as their manufacturing, purification, analysis, storage, handling and transport are presented in a comprehensive way. This important reference work is accompanied with a large number of Data Sheets dedicated to the most important purified gases.  

  20. Inhibition of vitamin D2-induced arteriosclerosis in rats by depletion of complement with cobra venom factor.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pang, A S; Minta, J O

    1980-01-01

    Widespread calcerous deposits developed in the aorta, heart and kidneys of rats fed for 4 days with purina chow and high doses of vitamin D2 (200,000 IU/kg body wt/day). Decomplementation of rats with highly purified cobra venom factor (CoF) prior to vitamin D2 feeding, almost completely prevented calcium deposition in the aorta and arteritis. The mortality rate in the CoF-treated vitamin D2-fed rats was much lower than in untreated rats. These findings suggest that the complement system may be recruited in the pathogenesis of vitamin D2-induced arteriosclerosis.

  1. Quantitative determination of albumin in microlitre amounts of rat serum: With a short note on serum albumin levels in ageing rats

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Leeuw-Israel, F.R. de; Arp-Neefjes, J.M.; Hollander, C.F.

    1967-01-01

    A simple dye binding method for determining rat serum albumin, which employs the anionic dye 2-(4′-hydroxybenzneeazo) benzoic acid (HBABA) is described. Albumin in 5μ1 of serum is determined colorimetrically. Purified rat albumin is used as a primary standard and rat serum as a reference sample.

  2. Binding protein for vitamin D and its metabolites in rat mesenteric lymph

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dueland, S.; Bouillon, R.; Van Baelen, H.; Pedersen, J.I.; Helgerud, P.; Drevon, C.A.

    1985-01-01

    A protein with high affinity for vitamin D3 and 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 in rat mesenteric lymph has been studied. Mesenteric lymph was collected after duodenal instillation of radiolabeled vitamin D3 and 25-hydroxyvitamin D3. As previously described, approximately 10% of vitamin D3 and 95% of 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 recovered in mesenteric lymph were associated with the alpha-globulin fractions. The radioactive vitamin D3 recovered in the lymph fraction with d greater than 1.006 (free of chylomicrons) coeluted with purified rat serum binding protein for vitamin D and its metabolites (DBP) from an antirat DBP column. The results obtained by immunoblotting after sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis showed that this protein in mesenteric lymph had molecular weight and immunological properties identical with purified serum DBP. Purified serum DBP labeled with 125 I was injected intravenously and mesenteric lymph was collected. results suggesting that DBP may be transferred from blood to mesenteric lymph and that plasma and lymph DBP may have a similar origin

  3. An Experiment with Air Purifiers in Delhi during Winter 2015-2016.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vyas, Sangita; Srivastav, Nikhil; Spears, Dean

    2016-01-01

    Particulate pollution has important consequences for human health, and is an issue of global concern. Outdoor air pollution has become a cause for alarm in India in particular because recent data suggest that ambient pollution levels in Indian cities are some of the highest in the world. We study the number of particles between 0.5μm and 2.5μm indoors while using affordable air purifiers in the highly polluted city of Delhi. Though substantial reductions in indoor number concentrations are observed during air purifier use, indoor air quality while using an air purifier is frequently worse than in cities with moderate pollution, and often worse than levels observed even in polluted cities. When outdoor pollution levels are higher, on average, indoor pollution levels while using an air purifier are also higher. Moreover, the ratio of indoor air quality during air purifier use to two comparison measures of air quality without an air purifier are also positively correlated with outdoor pollution levels, suggesting that as ambient air quality worsens there are diminishing returns to improvements in indoor air quality during air purifier use. The findings of this study indicate that although the most affordable air purifiers currently available are associated with significant improvements in the indoor environment, they are not a replacement for public action in regions like Delhi. Although private solutions may serve as a stopgap, reducing ambient air pollution must be a public health and policy priority in any region where air pollution is as high as Delhi's during the winter.

  4. Obesity And Laboratory Diets Affects Tissue Malondialdehyde (MDA) Levels In Obese Rats

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chowdhury, Parimal; Scott, Joseph; Holley, Andy; Hakkak, Reza

    2010-04-01

    This study was conducted to investigate the interaction of obesity and laboratory diets on tissue malondialdehyde levels in rats. Female Zucker obese and lean rats were maintained on either regular grain-based diet or purified casein diet for two weeks, orally gavaged at day 50 with 65 mg/kg DMBA and sacrificed 24 hrs later. Malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were measured in blood and harvested tissues. Data were recorded as mean ± SEM and analyzed statistically. Results show that the obese group on purified casein diet had reduction of MDA levels in the brain, duodenum, liver, lung and kidney tissues as compared to lean group, p <0.05. Obese group on grain-based diet showed significant increase in MDA levels only in the duodenum, p <0.05. We conclude that dietary intervention differentially affects the oxidative markers in obese rats. It appears that purified casein diets were more effective than grain-based diet in reduction of oxidative stress in obese rats.

  5. Highly purified HMG versus recombinant FSH for ovarian stimulation in IVF cycles

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Platteau, P.; Nyboe, Andersen A.; Loft, A.

    2008-01-01

    The objective of this study was to compare the live birth rates resulting from ovarian stimulation with highly purified human menopausal gonadotrophin (HP-HMG), which combines FSH and human chorionic gonadotrophin-driven LH activities, or recombinant FSH (rFSH) alone in women undergoing IVF cycles....... An integrated analysis was performed of the raw data from two randomized controlled trials that were highly comparable in terms of eligibility criteria and post-randomization treatment regimens with either HP-HMG or rFSH for ovarian stimulation in IVF, following a long down-regulation protocol. All randomized...... subjects who received at least one dose of gonadotrophin in an IVF cycle (HP-HMG, n = 491; rFSH, n = 495) were included in the analysis. Subjects who underwent intracytoplasmic sperm injection cycles were excluded. The superiority of one gonadotrophin preparation over the other was tested using...

  6. Statin Drugs Markedly Inhibit Testosterone Production by Rat Leydig Cells In Vitro: Implications for Men

    Science.gov (United States)

    Statin drugs lower blood cholesterol by inhibiting hepatic 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-Coenzyme-A reductase. During drug development it was shown that statins inhibit production of cholesterol in the testis. We evaluated testosterone production in vitro, using highly purified rat ...

  7. A Rapid and Efficient Method for Purifying High Quality Total RNA from Peaches (Prunus persica for Functional Genomics Analyses

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    LEE MEISEL

    2005-01-01

    Full Text Available Prunus persica has been proposed as a genomic model for deciduous trees and the Rosaceae family. Optimized protocols for RNA isolation are necessary to further advance studies in this model species such that functional genomics analyses may be performed. Here we present an optimized protocol to rapidly and efficiently purify high quality total RNA from peach fruits (Prunus persica. Isolating high-quality RNA from fruit tissue is often difficult due to large quantities of polysaccharides and polyphenolic compounds that accumulate in this tissue and co-purify with the RNA. Here we demonstrate that a modified version of the method used to isolate RNA from pine trees and the woody plant Cinnamomun tenuipilum is ideal for isolating high quality RNA from the fruits of Prunus persica. This RNA may be used for many functional genomic based experiments such as RT-PCR and the construction of large-insert cDNA libraries.

  8. Guanine nucleotide regulatory protein co-purifies with the D2-dopamine receptor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Senogles, S.E.; Caron, M.G.

    1986-01-01

    The D 2 -dopamine receptor from bovine anterior pituitary was purified ∼1000 fold by affinity chromatography on CMOS-Sepharose. Reconstitution of the affinity-purified receptor into phospholipid vesicles revealed the presence of high and low affinity agonist sites as detected by N-n-propylnorapomorphine (NPA) competition experiments with 3 H-spiperone. High affinity agonist binding could be converted to the low affinity form by guanine nucleotides, indicating the presence of an endogenous guanine nucleotide binding protein (N protein) in the affinity-purified D 2 receptor preparations. Furthermore, this preparation contained an agonist-sensitive GTPase activity which was stimulated 2-3 fold over basal by 10 μM NPA. 35 S-GTPγS binding to these preparations revealed a stoichiometry of 0.4-0.7 mole N protein/mole receptor, suggesting the N protein may be specifically coupled with the purified D 2 -dopamine receptor and not present as a contaminant. Pertussis toxin treatment of the affinity purified receptor preparations prevented high affinity agonist binding, as well as agonist stimulation of the GTPase activity, presumably by inactivating the associated N protein. Pertussis toxin lead to the ADP-ribosylation of a protein of 39-40K on SDS-PAGE. These findings indicate that an endogenous N protein, N/sub i/ or N/sub o/, co-purifies with the D 2 -dopamine receptor which may reflect a precoupling of this receptor with an N protein within the membranes

  9. Purifying hydrocarbons

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dunstan, A E

    1918-06-03

    Ligroin, kerosene, and other distillates from petroleum and shale oil, are purified by treatment with a solution of a hypochlorite containing an excess of alkali. The hydrocarbon may be poured into brine, the mixture stirred, and an electric current passed through. Heat may be applied.

  10. Pentacene field-effect transistors by in situ and real time electrical characterization: Comparison between purified and non-purified thin films

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Liu, Shun-Wei; Wen, Je-Min; Lee, Chih-Chien; Su, Wei-Cheng; Wang, Wei-Lun; Chen, Ho-Chien; Lin, Chun-Feng

    2013-01-01

    We present an electrical characterization of the organic field-effect transistor with purified and non-purified pentacene by using in situ and real time measurements. The field-effect phenomenon was observed at the thickness of 1.5 nm (approximately one monolayer of pentacene) for purified pentacene, as compared to 3.0 nm for the non-purified counterpart. Moreover, the hole mobility is improved from 0.13 to 0.23 cm 2 /V s after the sublimation process to purify the pentacene. With atomic force microscopic measurements, the purified pentacene thin film exhibits a larger grain size and film coverage, resulting in better crystallinity of the thin film structure due to the absence of the impurities. This is further confirmed by X-ray diffraction patterns, which show higher intensities for the purified pentacene. - Highlights: • We present in-situ characterization for pentacene field-effect transistors. • The hole mobility is improved after the sublimation process to purify the pentacene. • Purified pentacene thin film exhibits a larger grain size and film coverage. • Hole mobility of pentacene is improved from 0.13 to 0.23 cm 2 /V s. • The discontinuity of grain boundary may cause the shift of threshold voltage

  11. Pentacene field-effect transistors by in situ and real time electrical characterization: Comparison between purified and non-purified thin films

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Liu, Shun-Wei, E-mail: swliu@mail.mcut.edu.tw [Department of Electronic Engineering, Ming Chi University of Technology, New Taipei City 24301, Taiwan, ROC (China); Wen, Je-Min; Lee, Chih-Chien; Su, Wei-Cheng; Wang, Wei-Lun; Chen, Ho-Chien [Department of Electronic Engineering, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taipei, 10607 Taiwan, ROC (China); Lin, Chun-Feng [Department of Electronic Engineering, Ming Chi University of Technology, New Taipei City 24301, Taiwan, ROC (China)

    2013-05-01

    We present an electrical characterization of the organic field-effect transistor with purified and non-purified pentacene by using in situ and real time measurements. The field-effect phenomenon was observed at the thickness of 1.5 nm (approximately one monolayer of pentacene) for purified pentacene, as compared to 3.0 nm for the non-purified counterpart. Moreover, the hole mobility is improved from 0.13 to 0.23 cm{sup 2}/V s after the sublimation process to purify the pentacene. With atomic force microscopic measurements, the purified pentacene thin film exhibits a larger grain size and film coverage, resulting in better crystallinity of the thin film structure due to the absence of the impurities. This is further confirmed by X-ray diffraction patterns, which show higher intensities for the purified pentacene. - Highlights: • We present in-situ characterization for pentacene field-effect transistors. • The hole mobility is improved after the sublimation process to purify the pentacene. • Purified pentacene thin film exhibits a larger grain size and film coverage. • Hole mobility of pentacene is improved from 0.13 to 0.23 cm{sup 2}/V s. • The discontinuity of grain boundary may cause the shift of threshold voltage.

  12. E.coli and investigation of antibody titer in rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    masoud abdollahi

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: Plant ribosome inactivating proteins act as N-glycosidase enzyme and produce by several family of Caryophyllaceae such as Saponaria Officinalis. Different Isoforms of RIPs expressed by Saponaria Officinalis. SO6 isoform depurinate Adenine 4324 in the conserved GAGA loop of 28SrRNA and disrupts protein synthesis. The aim of this study was expression of SO6 isoform in E.coli and investigation of antibody titer in rats. Methods: In this experimental study, SO6 synthetic gene was excised from recombinant pUC57- SO6 plasmid with BamHI and SalI restriction enzymes and subcloned into pET28a (+ expression vector. The expression of recombinant protein was induced by IPTG. Recombinant SO6 was purified by nickel affinity chromatography. Western blotting was performed to confirm the recombinant protein. Rats were immunized intraperitoneal with purified protein and IgG serum titer was assayed by ELISA. Results: PCR reaction and enzyme digestion confirmed subcloning of SO6 gene into pET28a (+ expression vector. A 29.5kDa protein band on SDS-PAGE showed a high level of recombinant protein expression. Polyclonal antibodies recognized SO6. ELISA confirmed significant antibody titer after injection of protein in test group compared with the control group. Conclusion: The recombinant purified SO6 antigen can be used for anti-cancer and vaccine candidate research.

  13. Isolation of rat adrenocortical mitochondria

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Solinas, Paola [Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106 (United States); Department of Medicine, Center for Mitochondrial Disease, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106 (United States); Fujioka, Hisashi [Electron Microscopy Facility, Department of Pharmacology, Center for Mitochondrial Disease, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106 (United States); Tandler, Bernard [Department of Biological Sciences, School of Dental Medicine, Center for Mitochondrial Disease, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106 (United States); Hoppel, Charles L., E-mail: charles.hoppel@case.edu [Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106 (United States); Department of Medicine, Center for Mitochondrial Disease, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106 (United States)

    2012-10-12

    Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer A method for isolation of adrenocortical mitochondria from the adrenal gland of rats is described. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The purified isolated mitochondria show excellent morphological integrity. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The properties of oxidative phosphorylation are excellent. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The method increases the opportunity of direct analysis of adrenal mitochondria from small animals. -- Abstract: This report describes a relatively simple and reliable method for isolating adrenocortical mitochondria from rats in good, reasonably pure yield. These organelles, which heretofore have been unobtainable in isolated form from small laboratory animals, are now readily accessible. A high degree of mitochondrial purity is shown by the electron micrographs, as well as the structural integrity of each mitochondrion. That these organelles have retained their functional integrity is shown by their high respiratory control ratios. In general, the biochemical performance of these adrenal cortical mitochondria closely mirrors that of typical hepatic or cardiac mitochondria.

  14. Behavioral and neural effects of intra-striatal infusion of anti-streptococcal antibodies in rats

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lotan, Dafna; Benhar, Itai; Alvarez, Kathy; Mascaro-Blanco, Adita; Brimberg, Lior; Frenkel, Dan; Cunningham, Madeleine W.; Joel, Daphna

    2014-01-01

    Group A β-hemolytic streptococcal (GAS) infection is associated with a spectrum of neuropsychiatric disorders. The leading hypothesis regarding this association proposes that a GAS infection induces the production of auto-antibodies, which cross-react with neuronal determinants in the brain through the process of molecular mimicry. We have recently shown that exposure of rats to GAS antigen leads to the production of anti-neuronal antibodies concomitant with the development of behavioral alterations. The present study tested the causal role of the antibodies by assessing the behavior of naïve rats following passive transfer of purified antibodies from GAS-exposed rats. Immunoglobulin G (IgG) purified from the sera of GAS-exposed rats was infused directly into the striatum of naïve rats over a 21-day period. Their behavior in the induced-grooming, marble burying, food manipulation and beam walking assays was compared to that of naïve rats infused with IgG purified from adjuvant-exposed rats as well as of naïve rats. The pattern of in vivo antibody deposition in rat brain was evaluated using immunofluorescence and colocalization. Infusion of IgG from GAS-exposed rats to naïve rats led to behavioral and motor alterations partially mimicking those seen in GAS-exposed rats. IgG from GAS-exposed rats reacted with D1 and D2 dopamine receptors and 5HT-2A and 5HT-2C serotonin receptors in vitro. In vivo, IgG deposits in the striatum of infused rats colocalized with specific brain proteins such as dopamine receptors, the serotonin transporter and other neuronal proteins. Our results demonstrate the potential pathogenic role of autoantibodies produced following exposure to GAS in the induction of behavioral and motor alterations, and support a causal role for autoantibodies in GAS-related neuropsychiatric disorders. PMID:24561489

  15. Effect of high dietary calcium on weight management in rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mohamad, M.T.

    2012-01-01

    The present study was undertaken to find out a suitable dietary regime to maintain a lower prevalence of overweight or obesity by adjusting the diet components. Therefore, male Swiss albino rats were selected according to their ages and divided into two main groups, i.e., premature and mature groups. Each rat group was divided into 4 subgroups and each subgroup was fed on a diet of varied composition. Serum levels of lipids, calcium, phosphorous and testosterone were determined in addition to body weight measurement. The results indicate non-significant decrease of percentage of body weight gain in premature rats fed on high-calcium diets while significant decrease of percentage of body weight gain in mature rats fed on the same diet composition. The levels of serum HDL-C, LDL-C, triglycerides and testosterone were significantly decreased in premature rats fed high- calcium diets. In premature rats, only rat subgroup fed on high calcium from milk, showed a significant decrease in serum cholesterol levels. Calcium and phosphorus levels exhibited non- significant change between premature rats. In mature rats, LDL-C data demonstrate nonsignificant changes while cholesterol and triglyceride levels were significantly decreased in rats fed high -calcium diet compared to control. HDL-C level revealed a significant decrease in sera of mature rats fed on high calcium from milk. Serum testosterone levels were significantly decreased in mature rats fed low- fat diets or low fat diets supplemented with high- calcium level. In general, one would suggest to consume low fat diet (4%) supplemented with high calcium from dry skimmed milk fortified with hydroxyapatite as suitable dietary program to avoid overweight or obesity.

  16. THERAPEUTIC EFFECTS OF HIGHLY PURIFIED DE-GLYCOSYLATED GCMAF IN THE IMMUNOTHERAPY OF PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC DISEASES

    OpenAIRE

    Lynda Thyer; Emma Ward; Rodney Smith; Jacopo J.V. Branca; Gabriele Morucci; Massimo Gulisano; David Noakes; Stefania Pacini

    2013-01-01

    The de-Glycosylated vitamin D binding protein is a powerful Macrophage Activating Factor (GcMAF) that shows multiple biological effects that could be exploited in the immunotherapy of tumours, viral infections and autism. Here we report the observation of a series of clinical cases describing the results obtained administering highly purified GcMAF to patients with diverse types of chronic diseases. These are heterogeneous and refer to patients with different types of diseases at different s...

  17. Metallothionein metabolism in the streptozotocin-diabetic rat

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen, M.L.; Failla, M.L.

    1986-01-01

    Earlier reports from their laboratory showed the induction of the insulin-deficient diabetic state in adult rats was associated with an accumulation of zinc, copper, and a metallothionein-like zinc and copper binding protein in the soluble fraction of liver and kidney. Based upon chromatographic and electrophoretic properties, -SH to metal ratio and amino acid composition, they now report that elevated concentrations of metallothioneins (MT)-I and -II are indeed present in diabetic rat liver and kidney cytosol. The relative rates of MT synthesis in tissues from diabetic and control rats were measured by comparing incorporation of 35 S-cysteine into MT vs. total cytoplasmic proteins at 5 h after injection of the precursor. The relative rates of MT synthesis in livers from rats diabetic for 10 d and fed either chow or purified diet containing 13 or 35 ppm copper were 1.4, 2.3 and 2.8 times greater, respectively, than control rats fed the same diets. Higher relative rates of MT synthesis were also observed in kidneys from diabetic rats fed purified diets compared to controls. Maximal relative rates of MT synthesis in diabetic liver and kidney were observed at 4 and 10 d, respectively, after onset of diabetes. The half-lives of cytoplasmic MT in liver and kidney from diabetic (10 d) rats were 1.3 and 2.6 days, respectively; half-lives of MT in control liver and kidney were 5.0 and 2.1 days, respectively

  18. Methods for Purifying Enzymes for Mycoremediation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cullings, Kenneth W. (Inventor); DeSimone, Julia C. (Inventor); Paavola, Chad D. (Inventor)

    2014-01-01

    A process for purifying laccase from an ectomycorrhizal fruiting body is disclosed. The process includes steps of homogenization, sonication, centrifugation, filtration, affinity chromatography, ion exchange chromatography, and gel filtration. Purified laccase can also be separated into isomers.

  19. Identification and subcellular localization of a 21-kilodalton molecule using affinity-purified antibodies against α-transforming growth factor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hazarika, P.; Pardue, R.L.; Earls, R.; Dedman, J.R.

    1987-01-01

    Monospecific antibodies were generated against each of six different peptide sequences derived from rat and human α-transforming growth factor (α-TGF). The affinity-purified antibody to the 17 amino acid carboxyl-terminal portion of the molecule proved most useful in detecting α-TGF. When used in a peptide-based radioimmunoassay, it was possible to measure nanogram quantities of native α-TGF in conditioned cell culture media. When used to analyze cell lysate, these antibodies specifically recognized a 21-kilodalton protein species. Indirect immunofluorescence localization procedures revealed a high concentration of α-TCF in a perinuclear ring with a diffuse cytoplasmic distribution. These results suggest that a precursor form of α-TGF has a cellular role beyond that of an autocrine growth factor

  20. Saccharomyces boulardii protease inhibits Clostridium difficile toxin A effects in the rat ileum.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Castagliuolo, I; LaMont, J T; Nikulasson, S T; Pothoulakis, C

    1996-01-01

    Saccharomyces boulardii, a nonpathogenic yeast, is effective in treating some patients with Clostridium difficile diarrhea and colitis. We have previously reported that S. boulardii inhibits rat ileal secretion in response to C. difficile toxin A possibly by releasing a protease that digests the intestinal receptor for this toxin (C. Pothoulakis, C. P. Kelly, M. A. Joshi, N. Gao, C. J. O'Keane, I. Castagliuolo, and J. T. LaMont, Gastroenterology 104: 1108-1115, 1993). The aim of this study was to purify and characterize this protease. S. boulardii protease was partially purified by gel filtration on Sephadex G-50 and octyl-Sepharose. The effect of S. boulardii protease on rat ileal secretion, epithelial permeability, and morphology in response to toxin A was examined in rat ileal loops in vivo. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of the purified S. boulardii protease revealed a major band at 54 kDa. Pretreatment of rat ileal brush border (BB) membranes with partially purified protease reduced specific toxin A receptor binding (by 26%). Partially purified protease digested the toxin A molecule and significantly reduced its binding to BB membranes in vitro (by 42%). Preincubation of toxin A with S. boulardii protease inhibited ileal secretion (46% inhibition, P < 0.01), mannitol permeability (74% inhibition, P < 0.01), and histologic damage caused by toxin A. Thus, S. boulardii protease inhibits the intestinal effects of C. difficile toxin A by proteolysis of the toxin and inhibition of toxin A binding to its BB receptor. Our results may be relevant to the mechanism by which S. boulardii exerts its protective effects in C. difficile infection in humans. PMID:8945570

  1. Identification of rat brain opioid (enkephalin) receptor by photoaffinity labeling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yeung, C.W.

    1986-01-01

    A photoreactive, radioactive enkephalin derivative was prepared and purified by high performance liquid chromatography. Rat brain and spinal cord plasma membranes were incubated with this radioiodinated photoprobe and were subsequently photolysed. Autoradiography of the sodium dodecyl sulfate gel electrophoresis of the solubilized and reduced membranes showed that a protein having an apparent molecular weight of 46,000 daltons was specifically labeled, suggesting that this protein may be the opioid (enkephalin) receptor

  2. Identification, purification, and localization of tissue kallikrein in rat heart.

    OpenAIRE

    Xiong, W; Chen, L M; Woodley-Miller, C; Simson, J A; Chao, J

    1990-01-01

    A tissue kallikrein has been isolated from rat heart extracts by DEAE-Sepharose and aprotinin-affinity column chromatography. The purified cardiac enzyme has both N-tosyl-L-arginine methyl ester esterolytic and kinin-releasing activities, and displays parallelism with standard curves in a kallikrein radioimmunoassay, indicating it to have immunological identity with tissue kallikrein. The enzyme is inhibited by aprotinin, antipain, leupeptin and by high concentrations of soybean trypsin inhib...

  3. Hyperproteic diet and pregnancy of rat.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Greco, A M; Sticchi, R; Gambardella, P; D'Aponte, D; Ferrante, P

    1986-01-01

    We have studied the effects of a purified diet enriched with animal protein (casein 40%, lactalbumin 20%) on different stages of rat pregnancy. We observed that hyperproteic diet, especially when administered from the first day of pregnancy, induces morphological alterations of liver, adrenal cortex, heart and kidney. Moreover, haematic dosages, carried out on 15th day of pregnancy, have shown moderate but significant increase of glucose and triglycerides and significant decrease of circulating aldosterone and corticosterone as well. Finally an early administration of hyperproteic diet causes less numerous litters and high mortality rate at birth.

  4. Effects of Acidic Polysaccharides from Gastrodia Rhizome on Systolic Blood Pressure and Serum Lipid Concentrations in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats Fed a High-Fat Diet

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Ok-Hwan; Kim, Kyung-Im; Han, Chan-Kyu; Kim, Young-Chan; Hong, Hee-Do

    2012-01-01

    The effects of acidic polysaccharides purified from Gastrodia rhizome on blood pressure and serum lipid levels in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) fed a high-fat diet were investigated. Acidic polysaccharides were purified from crude polysaccharides by DEAE-Sepharose CL-6B. Thirty-six male SHR were randomly divided into three groups: Gastrodia rhizome crude polysaccharide (A), acidic polysaccharide (B) groups, and a control group (C). A 5-week oral administration of all treatment groups was performed daily in 3- to 8-week-old SHRs with a dose of 6 mg/kg of body weight/day. After 5 weeks of treatment, total cholesterol in the acidic polysaccharide group, at 69.7 ± 10.6 mg/dL, was lower than in the crude polysaccharide group (75.0 ± 6.0 mg/dL) and the control group (89.2 ± 7.4 mg/dL). In addition, triglyceride and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in the acidic polysaccharide group were lower than in the crude polysaccharide and control groups. The atherogenic index of the acidic polysaccharide group was 46.3% lower than in the control group. Initial blood pressure after the initial three weeks on the high-fat diet averaged 195.9 ± 3.3 mmHg among all rats. Compared with the initial blood pressure, the final blood pressure in the control group was increased by 22.8 mmHg, whereas it decreased in the acidic polysaccharide group by 14.9 mmHg. These results indicate that acidic polysaccharides from Gastrodia rhizome reduce hypertension and improve serum lipid levels. PMID:22312280

  5. Effects of Acidic Polysaccharides from Gastrodia Rhizome on Systolic Blood Pressure and Serum Lipid Concentrations in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats Fed a High-Fat Diet

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hee-Do Hong

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available The effects of acidic polysaccharides purified from Gastrodia rhizome on blood pressure and serum lipid levels in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR fed a high-fat diet were investigated. Acidic polysaccharides were purified from crude polysaccharides by DEAE-Sepharose CL-6B. Thirty-six male SHR were randomly divided into three groups: Gastrodia rhizome crude polysaccharide (A, acidic polysaccharide (B groups, and a control group (C. A 5-week oral administration of all treatment groups was performed daily in 3- to 8-week-old SHRs with a dose of 6 mg/kg of body weight/day. After 5 weeks of treatment, total cholesterol in the acidic polysaccharide group, at 69.7 ± 10.6 mg/dL, was lower than in the crude polysaccharide group (75.0 ± 6.0 mg/dL and the control group (89.2 ± 7.4 mg/dL. In addition, triglyceride and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in the acidic polysaccharide group were lower than in the crude polysaccharide and control groups. The atherogenic index of the acidic polysaccharide group was 46.3% lower than in the control group. Initial blood pressure after the initial three weeks on the high-fat diet averaged 195.9 ± 3.3 mmHg among all rats. Compared with the initial blood pressure, the final blood pressure in the control group was increased by 22.8 mmHg, whereas it decreased in the acidic polysaccharide group by 14.9 mmHg. These results indicate that acidic polysaccharides from Gastrodia rhizome reduce hypertension and improve serum lipid levels.

  6. Effect of sardine proteins on hyperglycaemia, hyperlipidaemia and lecithin:cholesterol acyltransferase activity, in high-fat diet-induced type 2 diabetic rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benaicheta, Nora; Labbaci, Fatima Z; Bouchenak, Malika; Boukortt, Farida O

    2016-01-14

    Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is a major risk factor of CVD. The effects of purified sardine proteins (SP) were examined on glycaemia, insulin sensitivity and reverse cholesterol transport in T2D rats. Rats fed a high-fat diet (HFD) for 5 weeks, and injected with a low dose of streptozotocin, were used. The diabetic rats were divided into four groups, and they were fed casein (CAS) or SP combined with 30 or 5% lipids, for 4 weeks. HFD-induced hyperglycaemia, insulin resistance and hyperlipidaemia in rats fed HFD, regardless of the consumed protein. In contrast, these parameters lowered in rats fed SP combined with 5 or 30% lipids, and serum insulin values reduced in SP v. CAS. HFD significantly increased total cholesterol and TAG concentrations in the liver and serum, whereas these parameters decreased with SP, regardless of lipid intake. Faecal cholesterol excretion was higher with SP v. CAS, combined with 30 or 5% lipids. Lecithin:cholesterol acyltransferase (LCAT) activity and HDL3-phospholipids (PL) were higher in CAS-HF than in CAS, whereas HDL2-cholesteryl esters (CE) were lower. Otherwise, LCAT activity and HDL2-CE were higher in the SP group than in the CAS group, whereas HDL3-PL and HDL3-unesterified cholesterol were lower. Moreover, LCAT activity lowered in the SP-HF group than in the CAS-HF group, when HDL2-CE was higher. In conclusion, these results indicate the potential effects of SP to improve glycaemia, insulin sensitivity and reverse cholesterol transport, in T2D rats.

  7. In vivo and in vitro conversion of 7-dehydrocholesterol into vitamin D3 in rat skin by ultraviolet ray's irradiation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Okano, Toshio; Yasumura, Mitsue; Mizuno, Kumiko; Kobayashi, Tadashi

    1978-01-01

    The photochemical conversion of 7-dehydrocholesterol (7-DHC) into vitamin D 3 in rat skin was experimentally studied. The skin stripped off from a sacrificed normal rat was irradiated with an ultraviolet light for a constant period in the first in vitro experiment. The normal rat irradiated under the same conditions mentioned above was sacrificed and then the skin was stripped off in the second in vivo experiment. Lipids were individually extracted with chloroformmethanol (1:1) from the skin obtained in the two experiments and the solvent was evaporated. The resulting residue was saponified and the unsaponified matter extracted with benzene was purified by application to hydroxyalkoxypropyl (HAP) Sephadex column chromatography. The resulting purified vitamin D 3 fraction was applied to high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) in order to estimate vitamin D 3 . No peak, aside from that of alphanaphthol as an initial standard, was observed in the HPLC chromatogram on the skin obtained from the non-irradiated rat, whereas the peak corresponding to vitamin D 3 was observed in each HPLC chromatogram on both the irradiated skin (in vitro experiment) and the skin obtained from the irradiated rat (in vivo experiment). The result shows that 7-DHC in rat skin was photochemically converted into vitamin D 3 . (Iwakiri, K.)

  8. Development of a biogas purifier for rural areas in Japan

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kimura, Y.; Hinata, T. [Hokkaido Central Agricultural Experiment Station, Hokkaido (Japan); Yasui, S. [Zukosha Co. Ltd., Obihiro, Hokkaido (Japan); Noguchi, N. [Hokkaido Univ., Sapporo, Hokkaido (Japan); Tsukamoto, T. [IHI Shibaura. Co. Ltd., Obihiro, Hokkaido (Japan); Imai, T. [Green Plan Co. Ltd., Sapporo, Hokkaido (Japan); Kanai, M. [Air Water Co. Ltd, Sakai, Osaka (Japan); Matsuda, Z. [Hokuren Agricultural Research Center, Sapporo, Hokkaido (Japan)

    2010-07-01

    Although the biogas that is currently produced for dairy farms in Japan is a carbon-neutral energy, its use is restricted to farming areas only because there is no effective method of transporting unused biogas. There is a need for establishing practical methods for biogas removal from operating systems. In this study, a gas separation membrane was used in order to modify biogas to city gas 12A specifications, and to develop a biogas purifier equipped with a device to fill high pressure purified gas into cylinders to be taken outside the farming area. The objective was to expand the use of biogas produced from stand-alone gas plants. The amount of purified gas produced at a newly created refining-compression-filling (RCF) facility was approximately 97.0 Nm{sup 3}/day, for a raw material amount of about 216.0 Nm{sup 3}/day. The heat quantity of the purified gas was 38.9 MJ/Nm{sup 3}, which was within city gas 12A specifications. A total of 14.3 cylinders were filled each day with the manufactured purified gas. Test calculations along with a simulation exercise revealed that it would be possible to provide purified gas to approximately 6 per cent of common residences in a town in northern Japan. It was concluded that the newly created RCF facility allowed the modification of carbon-neutral biogas to conform to city gas 12A specifications, and allowed the transport of this gas out of the farming area.

  9. Hydrogen purifier module with membrane support

    Science.gov (United States)

    A hydrogen purifier utilizing a hydrogen-permeable membrane to purify hydrogen from mixed gases containing hydrogen is disclosed. Improved mechanical support for the permeable membrane is described, enabling forward or reverse differential pressurization of the membrane, which further stabilizes the membrane from wrinkling upon hydrogen uptake.

    2012-07-24

    A hydrogen purifier utilizing a hydrogen-permeable membrane to purify hydrogen from mixed gases containing hydrogen is disclosed. Improved mechanical support for the permeable membrane is described, enabling forward or reverse differential pressurization of the membrane, which further stabilizes the membrane from wrinkling upon hydrogen uptake.

  10. Rat liver contains a limited number of binding sites for hepatic lipase

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    G.C. Schoonderwoerd (Kees); A.J.M. Verhoeven (Adrie); H. Jansen (Hans)

    1994-01-01

    textabstractThe binding of hepatic lipase to rat liver was studied in an ex vivo perfusion model. The livers were perfused with media containing partially purified rat hepatic lipase or bovine milk lipoprotein lipase. The activity of the enzymes was determined in the

  11. Biological studies on albino rats fed with Sorghum bicolor starch ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Partially purified amylase was extracted from the culture medium of Rhizopus sp. grown in potato dextrose broth for 48 h at room temperature by precipitation with 96.9% ethanol. The enzyme was used to hydrolyze sorghum starch. The hydrolyzed product was afterwards formulated into rat feed, which was fed to albino rats ...

  12. Thyroid function and deiodinase activities in rats with marginal iodine deficiency

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    K.P.L.T.M.K. Janssen (Karin); D. van der Heide (Daan); T.J. Visser (Theo); E. Kaptein (Ellen); A.C. Beynen (Anton)

    1994-01-01

    textabstractThe hypothesis tested was whether marginal iodine deficiency for a period of 6 wk affects iodothyronine deiodinase activities in liver and brain of rats. Male rats were fed purified diets either deficient or sufficient in iodine; the diets were fed on a restricted basis (60% of ad

  13. Inhibition of Epithelial TNF-α Receptors by Purified Fruit Bromelain Ameliorates Intestinal Inflammation and Barrier Dysfunction in Colitis

    OpenAIRE

    Zhou, Zijuan; Wang, Liang; Feng, Panpan; Yin, Lianhong; Wang, Chen; Zhi, Shengxu; Dong, Jianyi; Wang, Jingyu; Lin, Yuan; Chen, Dapeng; Xiong, Yongjian; Peng, Jinyong

    2017-01-01

    Activation of the TNF-α receptor (TNFR) leads to an inflammatory response, and anti-TNF therapy has been administered to reduce inflammation symptoms and heal mucosal ulcers in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Bromelain, a complex natural mixture of proteolytic enzymes, has been shown to exert anti-inflammatory effects. This study aimed to investigate the effect of purified fruit bromelain (PFB)-induced inhibition of epithelial TNFR in a rat colitis model. Colitis was established by intracol...

  14. Identification of high-affinity calmodulin-binding proteins in rat liver

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hanley, R.M.; Dedman, J.R.; Shenolikar, S.

    1987-01-01

    The Ca 2+ -dependent binding of [ 125 I] calmodulin (CaM) to hepatic proteins separated by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) was utilized to identify CaM binding or acceptor proteins or CAPs. Two proteins of apparent molecular weight of 60,000 (CAP-60) and 45,000 (CAP-45) comprised > 80% of the Ca 2+ -dependent CaM binding in rat liver cytosol. CAP-60 and CAP-45 were partially purified by a variety of chromatographic steps, including affinity chromatography on CaM Sepharose. CAP-60 possessed a native molecular size of 400,000, indicating it to be the CaM-binding subunit of a larger oligomeric complex. In contrast, CAP-45 was monomeric as judged by gel filtration. Neither CAP-60 nor CAP-45 possessed chromatographic properties consistent with known CaM-dependent enzymes reported in the literature. Two-dimensional peptide mapping provided convincing evidence that CAP-60 and CAP-45 were unrelated to other well-characterized CAPs, namely Ca 2+ (CaM)-dependent protein kinase II, calcineurin, or the CaM-dependent cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase. The relative abundance and high affinity for CaM could suggest that these novel target proteins, CAP-60 and CAP-45, represent a dominant pathway for CaM action in the mammalian liver

  15. 21 CFR 880.6710 - Medical ultraviolet water purifier.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Medical ultraviolet water purifier. 880.6710... Miscellaneous Devices § 880.6710 Medical ultraviolet water purifier. (a) Identification. A medical ultraviolet water purifier is a device intended for medical purposes that is used to destroy bacteria in water by...

  16. Isolation, culture and intraportal transplantation of rat marrow stromal cell

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang Ping; Wang Jianhua; Yan Zhiping; Li Wentao; Lin Genlai; Hu Meiyu; Wang Yanhong

    2004-01-01

    Objective: To observe the tracing and evolution of marrow stromal cell (MSC) after intraportal transplantation into the liver of homogenous rats, and to provide experimental data for MSC differentiation to hepatocyte in vivo. Methods: The MSC was isolated from the leg bone marrow of adult SD rats, and purified by culture-expanded in vitro. Before transplantation, MSC was labeled with DAPI. Then 10 5 MSC were intraportally transplanted into the homogenous rat liver. Rats were killed at 2 hours and 1, 2, 3 and 4 weeks after transplantation. The cryosection samples of liver and lung were observed under fluorescence microscopy. Results: MSC in vitro culture had high ability of proliferation. Except 4 rats were dead because of abdominal bleeding or infection, other recipients were healthy until sacrificed. The implantation cells were detected by identifying the DAPI labeled MSC in the host livers, but not in the host lungs. Conclusion: Intraportal transplanted MSC could immigrate and survive in the host livers at least for 4 weeks. They could immigrate from the small branches of portal veins to hepatic parenchyma

  17. Preparation of a dopamine transporter imaging agent 18F-FP-β-CIT and its biodistribution in rat brain

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen Zhengping; Wu Chunying; Li Xiaomin; Zhang Tongxing; Wang Songpei; Lu Chunxiong; Fu Ronggeng; Zhang Zhengwei; Guan Yihui

    2003-01-01

    Objective: To develop a simple and easy protocol of preparing 18 F-N-3-fluoropropyl-2β-carbomethoxy-3β-(4-iodophenyl) nortropane (FP-β-CIT) as a dopamine transporter imaging agent, and to study the distribution of this agent in rat brain. Methods: 18 F-FP-β-CIT was prepared by direct reaction in CH 3 CN between K 18 F and the labeling precursor, N-(3-(mesyloxy) propyl )-2β-carbomethoxy-3β-(4-iodophenyl) nortropane (MsOP-CIT), in which Kryptofix 222 was used as phase transfer catalyst. 18 F-FP-β-CIT was purified through a Sep-Pak SiO 2 cartridge and eluted with ethyl ether. The purified 18 F-FP-β-CIT was injected into the rat's tail vein. These rats were sacrificed by cervical dislocation at different time points (5, 30, 60, 120, 180 min) after injection. The brain tissue of interest was removed, weighed, and radiocounted. Results: The radiochemical purity of 18 F-FP-β-CIT was over 95%, and the radiochemical yield from starting 18 F-fluoride was about 10%. 18 F-FP-β-CIT was absorbed rapidly in rat brain and was cleaned gradually (1.49, 0.59, 0.31, 0.21, 0.17%ID at 5, 30, 60, 120, 180 min, respectively). Radiouptake of striatum was more than that of other tissues and was cleaned slower than in other tissues at 60 min. Ratios of radiouptake of striatum /cerebellum were 1.75, 3.38, 3.73, 3.71 and 3.20 at 5, 30, 60, 120, 180 min, respectively. Conclusions: 18 F-FP-β-CIT is synthesized by a one-step protocol in which the preparative high performance liquid chromatography is not necessary in purifying procedure. The dominant distribution of 18 F-FP-β-CIT in rat striatum indicates that it is a potential dopamine transporter imaging agent

  18. Identification and subcellular localization of a 21-kilodalton molecule using affinity-purified antibodies against. cap alpha. -transforming growth factor

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hazarika, P.; Pardue, R.L.; Earls, R.; Dedman, J.R.

    1987-04-07

    Monospecific antibodies were generated against each of six different peptide sequences derived from rat and human ..cap alpha..-transforming growth factor (..cap alpha..-TGF). The affinity-purified antibody to the 17 amino acid carboxyl-terminal portion of the molecule proved most useful in detecting ..cap alpha..-TGF. When used in a peptide-based radioimmunoassay, it was possible to measure nanogram quantities of native ..cap alpha..-TGF in conditioned cell culture media. When used to analyze cell lysate, these antibodies specifically recognized a 21-kilodalton protein species. Indirect immunofluorescence localization procedures revealed a high concentration of ..cap alpha..-TCF in a perinuclear ring with a diffuse cytoplasmic distribution. These results suggest that a precursor form of ..cap alpha..-TGF has a cellular role beyond that of an autocrine growth factor.

  19. Regulation of rat liver cytochrome P450j, a high affinity N-nitrosodimethylamine demethylase (NDMAD)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thomas, P.E.; Bandiera, S.; Maines, S.L.; Ryan, D.E.; Levin, W.

    1987-01-01

    Purified IgG from sera of rabbits immunized with homogeneous P450j was absorbed to produce monospecific anti-P450j. Results using anti-P450j in ELISA show that rat liver microsomal P450j content decreases between 3 and 6 wks of age in both sexes. Several xenobiotics (Aroclor 1254, mirex and 3-methylcholanthrene) repressed P450j levels when administered to male rats. In contrast, hepatic levels of P450j were induced by isoniazid, dimethylsulfoxide, pyrazole, 4-methylpyrazole, ethanol and chemically-induced diabetes. P450j levels were measurable in kidney, whereas this isozyme was barely detectable in lung, ovaries and testes; however, extra-hepatic P450j was inducible by isoniazid. Between 80-90% of microsomal NDMAD was inhibited by anti-P450j whether the microsomes were isolated from untreated rats or animals administered inducers or repressors of P450j. Results obtained with the reconstituted system suggest that the remaining microsomal NDMAD resistant to antibody inhibition is the result of the inaccessibility of a certain proportion of P450j due to interference by NADPH-P450 reductase. P450j content and NDMAD activity correlated well in microsomes from rats of all treatment groups. The evidence indicates that P450j is the primary, and possibly only, microsomal catalyst of NDMAD at substrate concentrations relevant to hepatocarcinogenesis induced by NDMA

  20. Respirators: Air Purifying, Self-Study, Course 40723

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chochoms, Michael [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

    2017-12-21

    Respirators: Air Purifying Self-Study (COURSE 40723) is designed for Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) workers, support services subcontractors, and other LANL subcontractors who work under the LANL Respiratory Protection Program (RPP). This course also meets the air-purifying respirators (APRs) retraining requirement.

  1. Metabolic and cardiac changes in high cholesterol-fructose-fed rats

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Axelsen, Lene N; Pedersen, Henrik D; Petersen, Jørgen S

    2010-01-01

    Introduction: High cholesterol-fructose (HCF) fed rats have previously been described as an animal model of impaired cardiac insulin signaling and decreased contractile performance. In this study, we evaluated the metabolic and cardiac effects of a HCF diet in rats. Methods: Male Sprague-Dawley r......Introduction: High cholesterol-fructose (HCF) fed rats have previously been described as an animal model of impaired cardiac insulin signaling and decreased contractile performance. In this study, we evaluated the metabolic and cardiac effects of a HCF diet in rats. Methods: Male Sprague...

  2. Endothelial dysfunction in high fructose containing diet fed rats: Increased nitric oxide and decreased endothelin-1 levels in liver tissue

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zeki Arı

    2010-09-01

    Full Text Available Objectives: Dietary high fructose consumption which is closely associated with endothelial dysfunction via insulin re-sistance has recently increased in developed countries. Insulin resistance has a promoter effect on many metabolic disorders such as syndrome X, polycystic ovary syndrome, Type 2 diabetes mellitus etc. Our aim in this study is to understand the impact of increased fructose intake on metabolisms of glucose, insulin and endothelial dysfunction by measuring nitric oxide (NO and endothelin-1 (ET-1 levels in hepatic tissue which is crucial in fructose metabolism.Materials and Methods: We designed an animal study to understand increased fructose intake on hepatic endothe-lium. Twenty adult male albino rats were divided into two groups; the study group (group 1, n=10 received isocaloric fructose enriched diet (fructose-fed rats, containing 18.3% protein, 60.3% fructose and 5.2% fat while the control group received purified regular chow (group 2, n=10 for 2 weeks. After feeding period, blood and hepatic tissue samples were collected and glucose, insulin, NO and ET-1 levels were analysed.Results: We found increased fasting glucose and insulin levels and impaired glucose tolerance in fructose fed rats. Higher NO and lower ET–1 levels were also detected in hepatic tissue samples of the group 1.Conclusion: Increased fructose consumption has deleterious effects on glucose tolerance, insulin resistance and may cause to endothelial dysfunction.

  3. Simultaneous purifying of Hg0, SO2, and NOx from flue gas by Fe3+/H2O2: the performance and purifying mechanism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xing, Yi; Li, Liuliu; Lu, Pei; Cui, Jiansheng; Li, Qianli; Yan, Bojun; Jiang, Bo; Wang, Mengsi

    2018-03-01

    Hg 0 , SO 2 , and NOx result in heavily global environmental pollution and serious health hazards. Up to now, how to efficiently remove mercury with SO 2 and NOx from flue gas is still a tough task. In this study, series of high oxidizing Fenton systems were employed to purify the pollutants. The experimental results showed that Fe 3+ /H 2 O 2 was more suitable to purify Hg 0 than Fe 2+ /H 2 O 2 and Cu 2+ /H 2 O 2. The optimal condition includes Fe 3+ concentration of 0.008 mol/L, Hg 0 inlet concentration of 40 μg/m 3 , solution temperature of 50 °C, pH of 3, H 2 O 2 concentration of 0.7 mol/L, and O 2 percentage of 6%. When SO 2 and NOx were taken into account under the optimal condition, Hg 0 removal efficiency could be enhanced to 91.11% while the removal efficiency of both NOx and SO 2 was slightly declined, which was consistent to the analysis of purifying mechanism. The removal efficiency of Hg 0 was stimulated by accelerating the conversion of Fe 2+ to Fe 3+ , which resulted from the existence of SO 2 and NOx. The results of this study suggested that simultaneously purifying Hg 0 , SO 2 , and NOx from flue gas is feasible.

  4. Effects of pectin-containing diets on the hepatic macromolecular covalent binding of 2,6-dinitro-[3H]toluene in Fischer-344 rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    deBethizy, J.D.; Sherrill, J.M.; Rickert, D.E.; Hamm, T.E. Jr.

    1983-01-01

    The influence of diets varying in pectin content on intestinal microfloral metabolic capacity of rats has been investigated as a possible mechanism for the alteration of toxicity of 2,6-dinitrotoluene (2,6-DNT) produced by these diets. Male F-344 rats were fed a purified diet (AIN-76A), AIN-76A plus 5% or 10% citrus pectin, or either of two cereal-based diets that vary in pectin content, NIH-07 or Purina Chow 5002. After 28 days, rats were given tritium-labeled 2,6-DNT (10 or 75 mg/kg po) and killed 12 hr later. Total hepatic macromolecular covalent binding (CVB) was determined by exhaustive extraction. The CVB of 2,6-DNT was found to be independent of diet at 10 mg/kg. However, at 75 mg/kg CVB was increased 40% by feeding 5% pectin in the purified diet and 90% by feeding 10% pectin in the purified diet. Animals fed Purina 5002 and NIH-07 had 135 and 150% higher CVB, respectively, than animals fed the purified diet alone and significantly greater CVB than animals fed the pectin supplemented diets. Elevated (two- to threefold) beta-glucuronidase and nitroreductase activities, microfloral enzymes proposed to be involved in the activation of 2,6-DNT to a toxicant, were found in the cecal contents of animals fed the pectin-containing diets which correlated with a two- to threefold increase in total number of cecal anaerobes. These results suggest that pectin-induced changes in microflora may enhance hepatoxicity after high doses of 2,6-DNT

  5. Wnt/RANKL-mediated bone growth promoting effects of blueberries in weanling rats

    Science.gov (United States)

    We studied the effects of dietary blueberry supplementation on bone growth in weanling rats. Weanling male and female rats were fed AIN-93G semi-purified diets supplemented with 10% whole blueberry powder for 14 and 30 days beginning on PND 21. In both sexes tibial bone mineral density and content a...

  6. Purification and characterization of the V1 vasopressin receptor from rat liver

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fishman, J.B.; Dickey, B.F.; Attisano, C.; Fine, R.E.

    1987-01-01

    The rat liver V1 vasopressin receptor was purified approximately 21,000-fold from rat liver microsomes. The receptor was solubilized from membranes using the zwitterionic detergent CHAPS (3-[(3-cholamidopropyl) dimethylammonio]-1-propanesulfonate). Since the V1 receptor loses its ability to bind ligand when solubilized, the authors devised a liposome reconstitution system to assay vasopressin binding activity during purification. The purified receptor exhibits a K/sub d/ of 6 nm, when, prior to solubilization, the membranes were exposed to 1 μm vasopressin. This resulted in the association of a pertussis-toxin insensitive guanine-nucleotide binding protein with the receptor during most of the purification procedure. The authors are further characterizing the V1-associated G-proteins. In the absence of this association, the receptor has a K/sub d/ of 30 nM. Crosslinking of 125 I-vasopressin to a partially purified preparation of receptor demonstrated that the receptor had a molecular weight of approximately 68,000 under reducing conditions, and 58,000 under non-reducing conditions. The purification procedure may prove useful in purifying a number of small peptide hormone receptors (e.g., bradykinin, angiotensin II) and perhaps their associated G-proteins as well

  7. Vaccination promotes TH1-like inflammation and survival in chronic Pseudomonas aeruginosa pneumonia in rats

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Johansen, H K; Hougen, H P; Cryz, S J

    1995-01-01

    In a rat model of chronic Pseudomonas aeruginosa lung infection mimicking cystic fibrosis (CF) we studied whether the inflammatory response could be altered by vaccination. Rats were immunized with either a depolymerized alginate toxin A conjugate (D-ALG toxin A), purified alginate, an O-polysacc......In a rat model of chronic Pseudomonas aeruginosa lung infection mimicking cystic fibrosis (CF) we studied whether the inflammatory response could be altered by vaccination. Rats were immunized with either a depolymerized alginate toxin A conjugate (D-ALG toxin A), purified alginate, an O......-polysaccharide toxin A conjugate, or sterile saline. After challenge none of the rats immunized with D-ALG toxin A died, in contrast to the other two vaccine groups combined (p = 0.03). A significant reduction in the severity of the macroscopic lung inflammation was seen in rats immunized with D-ALG toxin A, compared...... predominantly PMNs (TH2-like) to a chronic-type inflammation dominated by mononuclear leukocytes (TH1-like). In accordance, the antibody titers induced by the D-ALG toxin A vaccine were not different from those of the control rats after challenge. This study identifies a possible new way of modifying...

  8. Ultrasonic-resonator-combined apparatus for purifying nuclear aerosol particles

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hou, Suxia; Zhang, Quanhu; Li, Sufen; Chen, Chen; Su, Xianghua [Xi' an Hi-Tech Institute, Xi' an (China)

    2017-12-15

    The radiation hazards of radionuclides in the air arising from the storage room of nuclear devices to the operators cannot be ignored. A new ultrasonic-resonator-combined method for purifying nuclear aerosol particles is introduced. To remove particles with diameters smaller than 0.3 μm, an ultrasonic chamber is induced to agglomerate these submicron particles. An apparatus which is used to purify the nuclear aerosol particles is described in the article. The apparatus consists of four main parts: two filtering systems, an ultrasonic chamber and a high-pressure electrostatic precipitator system. Finally, experimental results demonstrated the effectiveness of the implementation of the ultrasonic resonators. The feasibility of the method is proven by its application to the data analysis of the experiments.

  9. Increased susceptibility of post-weaning rats on high-fat diet to metabolic syndrome

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hong Sheng Cheng

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available The present study aimed to examine the effects of the types of high-calorie diets (high-fat and high-fat-high-sucrose diets and two different developmental stages (post-weaning and young adult on the induction of metabolic syndrome. Male, post-weaning and adult (3- and 8-week old, respectively Sprague Dawley rats were given control, high-fat (60% kcal, and high-fat-high-sucrose (60% kcal fat + 30% sucrose water diets for eight weeks (n = 6 to 7 per group. Physical, biochemical, and transcriptional changes as well as liver histology were noted. Post-weaning rats had higher weight gain, abdominal fat mass, fasting glucose, high density lipoprotein cholesterol, faster hypertension onset, but lower circulating advanced glycation end products compared to adult rats. This is accompanied by upregulation of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR α and γ in the liver and receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGE in the visceral adipose tissue. Post-weaning rats on high-fat diet manifested all phenotypes of metabolic syndrome and increased hepatic steatosis, which are linked to increased hepatic and adipocyte PPARγ expression. Adult rats on high-fat-high-sucrose diet merely became obese and hypertensive within the same treatment duration. Thus, it is more effective and less time-consuming to induce metabolic syndrome in male post-weaning rats with high-fat diet compared to young adult rats. As male rats were selectively included into the study, the results may not be generalisable to all post-weaning rats and further investigation on female rats is required.

  10. Dietary fat content modulates the hypolipidemic effect of dietary inulin in rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Han, Kyu-Ho; Yamamoto, Aiko; Shimada, Ken-Ichiro; Kikuchi, Hiroto; Fukushima, Michihiro

    2017-08-01

    Dietary fat content (low versus high fat) may modulate the serum lipid-lowering effect of high-performance (HP)-inulin. This study investigated the effect of dietary HP-inulin on metabolism in rats fed a low- or high-fat diet. Rats were fed a diet of 5% fat with 5% cellulose or 5% HP-inulin (average degree of polymerization = 24) (low-fat diet) or of 20% fat with 5% cellulose or 5% HP-inulin (high-fat diet) for 28 days. Total, HDL, and non-HDL cholesterols, and triglyceride concentrations in the serum were measured along with total lipid content of liver and feces. Hepatic triglyceride and cholesterol, and fecal neutral and acidic sterol concentrations in total lipid were assessed. In addition, cecum SCFA levels and bacterial profiles were determined. The hypolipidemic effect of HP-inulin differed depending on dietary fat content (5% versus 20%). Specifically, 5% inulin instead of cellulose in a semi-purified diet significantly reduced serum lipid levels in rats fed a high-fat diet, which was strongly associated with increased total lipid and neutral sterol excretion. Dietary fat content modulates the hypolipidemic effect of dietary inulin. © 2017 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  11. Berberine improves insulin resistance induced by high fat diet in rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhou Libin; Yang Ying; Shang Wenbin; Li Fengying; Tang Jinfeng; Wang Xiao; Liu Shangquan; Yuan Guoyue; Chen Mingdao

    2005-01-01

    Objective: To observe the effect of berberine on insulin resistance induced by high fat diet in rats. Methods: Normal male SD rats (8 weeks old) were divided into two groups taking either normal chow (NC, n=9) or high fat diet (HF, n=20). After fourteen weeks, HF rats were divided into two groups. Ten rats continued to take high fat diet. Another ten rats took additional berberine gavage (HF+B, 150mg/kg weight once a day). Six weeks later, oral glucose tolerance test and insulin tolerance test were performed for estimating insulin sensitivity. Results: The body weight, liver weight and epididyaml fat pads weight of HF group were significantly higher than those of HF+B group and NC group (all P<0.01). Fasting plasma glucose, insulin and plasma glucose, insulin 2h after taking glucose in HF+B rats were significantly lower than those in HF rats (all P<0.01). Plasma glucose and insulin levels at all time points in HF rats were significantly higher than those in NC rats. Homa-IR of HF group was markedly higher than that of HF+B group (P<0.01). The glucose-lowering effects after the administration of insuin (0.5u/kg intrapenitoneally) at all time points in HF+B rats were stronger than those in HF rats with 23% and 7% reduction at 15min respectively. Conclusion: Long term high fat diet resulted in insulin resistance. Berberine was able to reverse insulin resistance through promoting peripheral tissue up taking of glucose and decreasing insulin, which would be quite ideal for the intervention of IGT. (authors)

  12. Cooling performance of R510A in domestic water purifiers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Park, Ki Jung; Lee, Yo Han; Jung, Dong Soo

    2010-01-01

    Cooling performance of R510A is examined both numerically and experimentally in an effort to replace HFC134a in the refrigeration system of domestic water purifiers. Although the use of HFC134a is currently dominant, it is being phased out in Europe and most developed countries due to its high potential contribution to global warming. To solve this problem, cycle simulation and experimental measurements are conducted with a new refrigerant mixture of 88%RE170/12%R600a using actual domestic water purifiers. This mixture has been recently numbered and listed as R510A by ASHRAE. Test results show that, due to the small internal volume of the refrigeration system of the domestic water purifiers, system performance with R510A is greatly influenced by the amount of charge. With the optimum charge amount of 20 to 21 g, approximately 50% that of HFC134a, the energy consumption of R510A is 22.3% lower than that of HFC134a. The compressor discharge temperature of R510A is 3.7 .deg. C lower than that of HFC134a at the optimum charge. Overall, R510A, a new, long term, and environmentally safe refrigerant, is a good alternative for HFC134a. Furthermore, it requires only minor changes in the refrigeration system of the domestic water purifiers

  13. Methods for purifying carbon materials

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dailly, Anne [Pasadena, CA; Ahn, Channing [Pasadena, CA; Yazami, Rachid [Los Angeles, CA; Fultz, Brent T [Pasadena, CA

    2009-05-26

    Methods of purifying samples are provided that are capable of removing carbonaceous and noncarbonaceous impurities from a sample containing a carbon material having a selected structure. Purification methods are provided for removing residual metal catalyst particles enclosed in multilayer carbonaceous impurities in samples generate by catalytic synthesis methods. Purification methods are provided wherein carbonaceous impurities in a sample are at least partially exfoliated, thereby facilitating subsequent removal of carbonaceous and noncarbonaceous impurities from the sample. Methods of purifying carbon nanotube-containing samples are provided wherein an intercalant is added to the sample and subsequently reacted with an exfoliation initiator to achieve exfoliation of carbonaceous impurities.

  14. Decreased autophosphorylation of EGF receptor in insulin-deficient diabetic rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Okamoto, M.; Kahn, C.R.; Maron, R.; White, M.F.

    1988-01-01

    The authors have previously reported that despite an increase in receptor concentration, there is a decrease in autophosphorylation and tyrosine kinase activity of the insulin receptor in insulin-deficient diabetic rats. To determine if other tyrosine kinases might be altered, they have studied the epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor kinase in wheat germ agglutinin-purified, Triton X-100-solubilized liver membranes from streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats and the insulin-deficient BB rat. They find that autophosphorylation of EGF receptor is decreased in proportion to the severity of the diabetic state in STZ rats with a maximal decrease of 67%. A similar decrease in autophosphorylation was observed in diabetic BB rats that was partially normalized by insulin treatment. Separation of tryptic phosphopeptides by reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography revealed a decrease in labeling at all sites of autophosphorylation. A parallel decrease in EGF receptor phosphorylation was also found by immunoblotting with an antiphosphotyrosine antibody. EGF receptor concentration, determined by Scatchard analysis of 125 I-labeled EGF binding, was decreased by 39% in the STZ rat and 27% in the diabetic BB rat. Thus autophosphorylation of EGF receptor, like that of the insulin receptor, is decreased in insulin-deficient rat liver. In the case of EGF receptor, this is due in part to a decrease in receptor number and in part to a decrease in the specific activity of the kinase

  15. Rat muscle blood flows during high-speed locomotion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Armstrong, R.B.; Laughlin, M.H.

    1985-01-01

    We previously studied blood flow distribution within and among rat muscles as a function of speed from walking (15 m/min) through galloping (75 m/min) on a motor-driven treadmill. The results showed that muscle blood flows continued to increase as a function of speed through 75 m/min. The purpose of the present study was to have rats run up to maximal treadmill speeds to determine if blood flows in the muscles reach a plateau as a function of running speed over the animals normal range of locomotory speeds. Muscle blood flows were measured with radiolabeled microspheres at 1 min of running at 75, 90, and 105 m/min in male Sprague-Dawley rats. The data indicate that even at these relatively high treadmill speeds there was still no clear evidence of a plateau in blood flow in most of the hindlimb muscles. Flows in most muscles continued to increase as a function of speed. These observed patterns of blood flow vs. running speed may have resulted from the rigorous selection of rats that were capable of performing the high-intensity exercise and thus only be representative of a highly specific population of animals. On the other hand, the data could be interpreted to indicate that the cardiovascular potential during exercise is considerably higher in laboratory rats than has normally been assumed and that inadequate blood flow delivery to the muscles does not serve as a major limitation to their locomotory performance

  16. Cellular cytotoxic response induced by highly purified multi-wall carbon nanotube in human lung cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tsukahara, Tamotsu; Haniu, Hisao

    2011-06-01

    Carbon nanotubes, a promising nanomaterial with unique characteristics, have applications in a variety of fields. The cytotoxic effects of carbon nanotubes are partially due to the induction of oxidative stress; however, the detailed mechanisms of nanotube cytotoxicity and their interaction with cells remain unclear. In this study, the authors focus on the acute toxicity of vapor-grown carbon fiber, HTT2800, which is one of the most highly purified multi-wall carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) by high-temperature thermal treatment. The authors exposed human bronchial epithelial cells (BEAS-2B) to HTT2800 and measured the cellular uptake, mitochondrial function, cellular LDH release, apoptotic signaling, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation and pro-inflammatory cytokine release. The HTT2800-exposed cells showed cellular uptake of the carbon nanotube, increased cell death, enhanced DNA damage, and induced cytokine release. However, the exposed cells showed no obvious intracellular ROS generation. These cellular and molecular findings suggest that HTT2800 could cause a potentially adverse inflammatory response in BEAS-2B cells.

  17. Purification and characterization of rat liver minoxidil sulphotransferase.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hirshey, S J; Falany, C N

    1990-01-01

    Minoxidil (Mx), a pyrimidine N-oxide, is used therapeutically as an antihypertensive agent and to induce hair growth in patients with male pattern baldness. Mx NO-sulphate has been implicated as the agent active in producing these effects. This paper describes the purification of a unique sulphotransferase (ST) from rat liver cytosol that is capable of catalysing the sulphation of Mx. By using DEAE-Sepharose CL-6B chromatography, hydroxyapatite chromatography and ATP-agarose affinity chromatography, Mx-ST activity was purified 240-fold compared with the activity in cytosol. The purified enzyme was also capable of sulphating p-nitrophenol (PNP) at low concentrations (less than 10 microM). Mx-ST was purified to homogeneity, as evaluated by SDS/PAGE and reverse-phase h.p.l.c. The active form of the enzyme had a molecular mass of 66,000-68,000 Da as estimated by gel exclusion chromatography and a subunit molecular mass of 35,000 Da. The apparent Km values for Mx, 3'-phosphoadenosine 5'-phosphosulphate and PNP were 625 microM, 5.0 microM and 0.5 microM respectively. However, PNP displayed potent substrate inhibition at concentrations above 1.2 microM. Antibodies raised in rabbits to the pure enzyme detected a single band in rat liver cytosol with a subunit molecular mass of 35,000 Da, as determined by immunoblotting. The anti-(rat Mx-ST) antibodies also reacted with the phenol-sulphating form of human liver phenol sulphotransferase, suggesting some structural similarity between these proteins. Images Fig. 5. Fig. 6. Fig. 7. PMID:2241904

  18. Study of hot corrosion of flakes of non purified graphite and of purified graphite

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Boule, Michel

    1967-01-01

    The author reports the study of hot corrosion of the Ticonderoga graphite. He reports the study of the defects of graphite flakes (structure defects due to impurities), the dosing of these impurities, and then their removal by purification. Flakes have then been oxidised by means of a specially designed apparatus. Based on photographs taken by optical and electronic microscopy, the author compares the oxidation features obtained in dry air and in humid air, between purified and non purified flakes. He also reports the study of the evolution of oxidation with respect to the initial rate of impurities, and the study of the evolution of oxidation features in humid air during oxidation. All these comparisons are made while taking the oxidation rate into account [fr

  19. T-cell proliferative responses following sepsis in neonatal rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dallal, Ousama; Ravindranath, Thyyar M; Choudhry, Mashkoor A; Kohn, Annamarie; Muraskas, Jonathan K; Namak, Shahla Y; Alattar, Mohammad H; Sayeed, Mohammed M

    2003-01-01

    Both experimental and clinical evidence suggest a suppression of T-cell function in burn and sepsis. The objective of the present study was to evaluate splenocyte and purified T-cell proliferative response and IL-2 production in septic neonatal rats. We also examined if alterations in T-cell proliferation and IL-2 production in neonatal sepsis is due to elevation in PGE2. PGE2 is known to play a significant role in T-cell suppression during sepsis in adults. Sepsis was induced in 15-day-old neonatal Sprague-Dawley rats by implanting 0.1 cm3 of fecal pellet impregnated with Escherichia coli (50 CFU) and Bacteroides fragilis (10(3) CFU). Animals receiving fecal pellets without the bacteria were designated as sterile. A group of septic and sterile rats were treated with PGE2 synthesis inhibitors, NS398 and resveratrol. These treatments of animals allowed us to evaluate the role of PGE2 in T-cell suppression during neonatal sepsis. Splenocytes as well as purified T cells were prepared and then proliferative response and IL-2 productive capacities were measured. A significant suppression of splenocyte proliferation and IL-2 production was noticed in both sterile and septic animals compared to the T cells from unoperated control rats. In contrast, the proliferation and IL-2 production by nylon wool purified T cells in sterile rats was not significantly different from control rats, whereas, a significant suppression in Con A-mediated T-cell proliferation and IL-2 production noticed in septic rat T cells compared to the sterile and control rat T cells. Such decrease in T-cell proliferation and IL-2 production was accompanied with 20-25% deaths in neonates implanted with septic pellets. No mortality was noted in sterile-implanted neonates. Treatment of animals with COX-1 inhibitor had no effect on T-cell proliferation response in both septic and sterile groups, whereas COX-2 inhibitor abrogated the decrease in T-cell proliferative response in the septic group. The treatment

  20. Influence of high glycine diets on the activity of glycine-catabolizing enzymes and on glycine catabolism in rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Petzke, K.J.; Albrecht, V.; Przybilski, H.

    1986-01-01

    Male albino rats were adapted to isocaloric purified diets that differed mainly in their glycine and casein contents. Controls received a 30% casein diet. In experimental diets gelatin or gelatin hydrolysate was substituted for half of the 30% casein. An additional group was fed a glycine-supplemented diet, which corresponded in glycine level to the gelatin diet but in which the protein level was nearly the same as that of the casein control diet. Another group received a 15% casein diet. Rat liver glycine cleavage system, serine hydroxymethyltransferase and serine dehydratase activities were measured. 14 CO 2 production from the catabolism of 14 C-labeled glycine was measured in vivo and in vitro (from isolated hepatocytes). Serine dehydratase and glycine cleavage system activities were higher in animals fed 30% casein diets than in those fed 15% casein diets. Serine hydroxymethyltransferase activity of the cytosolic and mitochondrial fractions was highest when a high glycine diet (glycine administered as pure, protein bound in gelatin or peptide bound in gelatin hydrolysate) was fed. 14 CO 2 formation from [1- 14 C]- and [2- 14 C]glycine both in vivo and in isolated hepatocytes was higher when a high glycine diet was fed than when a casein diet was fed. These results suggest that glycine catabolism is dependent on and adaptable to the glycine content of the diet. Serine hydroxymethyltransferase appears to play a major role in the regulation of glycine degradation via serine and pyruvate

  1. High Temperature- and High Pressure-Processed Garlic Improves Lipid Profiles in Rats Fed High Cholesterol Diets

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sohn, Chan Wok; Kim, Hyunae; You, Bo Ram; Kim, Min Jee; Kim, Hyo Jin; Lee, Ji Yeon; Sok, Dai-Eun; Kim, Jin Hee; Lee, Kun Jong

    2012-01-01

    Abstract Garlic protects against degenerative diseases such as hyperlipidemia and cardiovascular diseases. However, raw garlic has a strong pungency, which is unpleasant. In this study, we examined the effect of high temperature/high pressure-processed garlic on plasma lipid profiles in rats. Sprague–Dawley rats were fed a normal control diet, a high cholesterol (0.5% cholesterol) diet (HCD) only, or a high cholesterol diet supplemented with 0.5% high temperature/high pressure-processed garlic (HCP) or raw garlic (HCR) for 10 weeks. The body weights of the rats fed the garlic-supplemented diets decreased, mostly because of reduced fat pad weights. Plasma levels of total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and triglyceride (TG) in the HCP and HCR groups decreased significantly compared with those in the HCD group. Additionally, fecal TC and TG increased significantly in the HCP and HCR groups. It is notable that no significant differences in plasma or fecal lipid profiles were observed between the HCP and HCR groups. High temperature/high pressure-processed garlic contained a higher amount of S-allyl cysteine than raw garlic (Pgarlic may be useful as a functional food to improve lipid profiles. PMID:22404600

  2. Antiulcer effects of aqueous extract and a fraction of phyllanthus embelic fruit on gastric acid secretion and mucosal defence factors in albino rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Akhtar, M.S.; Zaman, R.U.; Khan, M.S.

    2004-01-01

    Phyllanthus emblica (Euphorbiaceae) fruit has been empirically used since centuries in folkloric medicine to treat gastrointestinal disorders including the gastric ulcers. In the present study, anti-ulcerogenic properties of the fruit, its aqueous extract and a purified fraction were determined in albino rats. Aqueous extract of the fruit protected rats against gastric ulcers induced by indomethacin. Partition of the water extract yielded fractions for which anti-ulcerogenic activity evaluation studies were conducted to find out the most effective fraction. Thin layer chromatography yielded the most purified active fraction, which was found to exert anti-ulcerogenic activity in the chemically induced and stress-induced gastric ulcers in albino rats. In addition, effect of the purified fraction on gastric secretion volume, pH, acid output, ulcer index, mucus secretion and peptic activity revealed it to be the most potent anti-ulcer fraction with efficacy comparable to the reference drug, famotidine. It may be suggested that anti-ulcerogenic activities of P. emblica fruit, Its aqueous extract and the purified fraction could be due to elevation of gastric mucus secretion and inhibition of gastric acid secretion. (author)

  3. Light aging of reactive fuels purified by various methods

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Khodzhaeva, M G; Burtyshev, N Ya; Molodozhenyuk, T B; Ryabovda, N D

    1976-01-01

    A study of the effect of uv-radiation on aging of Fergana fuel TS-1 has been extended to the uv-effect on alkali-purified fuels (e.g., Krasnovodsk, Omsk, and Orsk TS-1), on hydro-purified (Syzran T-8, Syzran T-7, and Novokuybyshev T-7) and on adsorption-purified Fergana TS-1. The PRK-4 lamp was employed. Aging criteria were formation of insoluble gums, soluble gums separable on silicagel, acidity, and optical density. Fuels purified in the same manner aged practically identically; after 6 months storage the greatest gum formation was seen in the fuels Orsk TS-1 and Syzran T-8. 3 references, 1 figure, 1 table.

  4. Lipoprotein receptors in copper-deficient rats: in vitro binding of high-density lipoprotein subfractions to liver membranes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hassel, C.A.

    1986-01-01

    Three studies were conducted to determine whether the elevated plasma and HDL cholesterol levels observed in copper-deficient rats could be explained by the interaction of 125 I-HDL subfractions with liver membrane preparations in vitro. Rats from all studies were randomly divided into two dietary treatments, copper-deficient and adequate (0.7 mg and 8.0 mg Cukg diet, respectively). Total binding data and computer derived estimates (K/sub d/ and B/sub max/) were used to compare differences between treatments. Binding data from all experiments conformed to a one-site model. In all cases, binding was saturable and EDTA and pronase insensitive. Treatment differences were observed in Study I ( 125 I-apo E-free HDL binding to crude liver membranes). Significantly lower total binding and B/sub max/ were observed when lipoproteins and membranes from copper-deficient animals were used in the assay. Competition experiments from Studies II and III demonstrate that the different HDL subfractions competed effectively with one another for binding sites, indicating that apo E is not a determinant in binding of rat 125 I-HDL subfractions to purified liver plasma membranes

  5. Crystallization and preliminary X-ray diffraction analysis of rat protein tyrosine phosphatase η

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Matozo, Huita C.; Nascimento, Alessandro S.; Santos, Maria A. M. [Instituto de Física de São Carlos, Departamento de Física e Informática, Universidade de São Paulo, Avenida Trabalhador São Carlense 400, CEP 13566-590 São Carlos, SP (Brazil); Iuliano, Rodolfo [Dipartimento di Medicina Sperimentale e Clinica, Facoltà di Medicina e Chirurgia, Università di Catanzaro, 88100 Catanzaro (Italy); Fusco, Alfredo [Dipartimento di Biologia e Patologia Cellulare e Molecolare, c/o Instituto di Endocrinologia ed Oncologia Sperimentale del CNR, Facolta di Medicina e Chirurgia, Università degli Studi di Napoli ‘Federico II’, Via Pansini 5, 80131 Naples (Italy); NOGEC (Naples Oncogenomocs Center)-CEINGE, Biotecnologie Avanzate, Via Comunale Margherita 482, 80145 Naples (Italy); Polikarpov, Igor, E-mail: ipolikarpov@if.sc.usp.br [Instituto de Física de São Carlos, Departamento de Física e Informática, Universidade de São Paulo, Avenida Trabalhador São Carlense 400, CEP 13566-590 São Carlos, SP (Brazil); Laboratório Nacional de Luz Síncrotron, Campinas, SP (Brazil)

    2006-09-01

    In this study, the catalytic domain of rat protein tyrosine phosphatase η was produced in Escherichia coli in soluble form and purified to homogeneity. Crystals were obtained by the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion method. The rat protein tyrosine phosphatase η (rPTPη) is a cysteine-dependent phosphatase which hydrolyzes phosphoester bonds in proteins and other molecules. rPTPη and its human homologue DEP-1 are involved in neoplastic transformations. Thus, expression of the protein is reduced in all oncogene-transformed thyroid cell lines and is absent in highly malignant thyroid cells. Moreover, consistent with the suggested tumour suppression role of PTPη, inhibition of the tumorigenic process occurs after its exogenous reconstitution, suggesting that PTPη might be important for gene therapy of cancers. In this study, the catalytic domain of rPTPη was produced in Escherichia coli in soluble form and purified to homogeneity. Crystals were obtained by the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion method. Diffraction data were collected to 1.87 Å resolution. The crystal belongs to space group P2{sub 1}2{sub 1}2{sub 1}, with unit-cell parameters a = 46.46, b = 63.07, c = 111.64 Å, and contains one molecule per asymmetric unit.

  6. Crystallization and preliminary X-ray diffraction analysis of rat protein tyrosine phosphatase η

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Matozo, Huita C.; Nascimento, Alessandro S.; Santos, Maria A. M.; Iuliano, Rodolfo; Fusco, Alfredo; Polikarpov, Igor

    2006-01-01

    In this study, the catalytic domain of rat protein tyrosine phosphatase η was produced in Escherichia coli in soluble form and purified to homogeneity. Crystals were obtained by the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion method. The rat protein tyrosine phosphatase η (rPTPη) is a cysteine-dependent phosphatase which hydrolyzes phosphoester bonds in proteins and other molecules. rPTPη and its human homologue DEP-1 are involved in neoplastic transformations. Thus, expression of the protein is reduced in all oncogene-transformed thyroid cell lines and is absent in highly malignant thyroid cells. Moreover, consistent with the suggested tumour suppression role of PTPη, inhibition of the tumorigenic process occurs after its exogenous reconstitution, suggesting that PTPη might be important for gene therapy of cancers. In this study, the catalytic domain of rPTPη was produced in Escherichia coli in soluble form and purified to homogeneity. Crystals were obtained by the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion method. Diffraction data were collected to 1.87 Å resolution. The crystal belongs to space group P2 1 2 1 2 1 , with unit-cell parameters a = 46.46, b = 63.07, c = 111.64 Å, and contains one molecule per asymmetric unit

  7. Purification of lysosomal phospholipase A and demonstration of proteins that inhibit phospholipase A in a lysosomal fraction from rat kidney cortex

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hostetler, K.Y.; Gardner, M.F.; Giordano, J.R.

    1986-01-01

    Phospholipase A has been isolated from a crude lysosomal fraction from rat kidney cortex and purified 7600-fold with a recovery of 9.8% of the starting activity. The purified enzyme is a glycoprotein having an isoelectric point of pH 5.4 and an apparent molecular weight of 30,000 by high-pressure liquid chromatography gel permeation. Naturally occurring inhibitors of lysosomal phospholipase A are present in two of the lysosomal-soluble protein fractions obtained in the purification. They inhibit hydrolysis of 1,2-di[1- 14 C]oleoylphosphatidylcholine by purified phospholipase A 1 with IC 50 values of 7-11 μg. The inhibition is abolished by preincubation with trypsin at 37 0 C, but preincubation with trypsin at 4 0 C has no effect, providing evidence that the inhibitors are proteins. The results suggest that the activity of lysosomal phospholipase A may be regulated in part by inhibitory proteins. Lysosomal phospholipase A from rat kidney hydrolyzes the sn-1 acyl group of phosphatidylcholine, does not require divalent cations for full activity, and is not inhibited by ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid. It has an acid pH optimum of 3.6-3.8. Neither rho-bromophenacyl bromide, diisopropyl fluorophosphate, nor mercuric ion inhibits phospholipase A 1 . In contrast to rat liver, which has two major isoenzymes of acid phospholipase A 1 , kidney cortex has only one isoenzyme of lysosomal phospholipase A 1

  8. Purification of lysosomal phospholipase A and demonstration of proteins that inhibit phospholipase A in a lysosomal fraction from rat kidney cortex

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hostetler, K.Y.; Gardner, M.F.; Giordano, J.R.

    1986-10-21

    Phospholipase A has been isolated from a crude lysosomal fraction from rat kidney cortex and purified 7600-fold with a recovery of 9.8% of the starting activity. The purified enzyme is a glycoprotein having an isoelectric point of pH 5.4 and an apparent molecular weight of 30,000 by high-pressure liquid chromatography gel permeation. Naturally occurring inhibitors of lysosomal phospholipase A are present in two of the lysosomal-soluble protein fractions obtained in the purification. They inhibit hydrolysis of 1,2-di(1-/sup 14/C)oleoylphosphatidylcholine by purified phospholipase A/sub 1/ with IC/sub 50/ values of 7-11 ..mu..g. The inhibition is abolished by preincubation with trypsin at 37/sup 0/C, but preincubation with trypsin at 4/sup 0/C has no effect, providing evidence that the inhibitors are proteins. The results suggest that the activity of lysosomal phospholipase A may be regulated in part by inhibitory proteins. Lysosomal phospholipase A from rat kidney hydrolyzes the sn-1 acyl group of phosphatidylcholine, does not require divalent cations for full activity, and is not inhibited by ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid. It has an acid pH optimum of 3.6-3.8. Neither rho-bromophenacyl bromide, diisopropyl fluorophosphate, nor mercuric ion inhibits phospholipase A/sub 1/. In contrast to rat liver, which has two major isoenzymes of acid phospholipase A/sub 1/, kidney cortex has only one isoenzyme of lysosomal phospholipase A/sub 1/.

  9. Isoforms of purified methyltransferase from human blood platelets ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    ... purification from normal human blood platelets have not been investigated, hence, the aim of this study was to purify, characterise the enzyme from human blood platelets and determine its possible role in phospholipid transmethylation. The plasma membranes were purified by velocity and sucrose gradient centrifugation ...

  10. Phosphorylation of rat brain purified mitochondrial Voltage-Dependent Anion Channel by c-Jun N-terminal kinase-3 modifies open-channel noise.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gupta, Rajeev

    2017-09-02

    The drift kinetic energy of ionic flow through single ion channels cause vibrations of the pore walls which are observed as open-state current fluctuations (open-channel noise) during single-channel recordings. Vibration of the pore wall leads to transitions among different conformational sub-states of the channel protein in the open-state. Open-channel noise analysis can provide important information about the different conformational sub-state transitions and how biochemical modifications of ion channels would affect their transport properties. It has been shown that c-Jun N-terminal kinase-3 (JNK3) becomes activated by phosphorylation in various neurodegenerative diseases and phosphorylates outer mitochondrion associated proteins leading to neuronal apoptosis. In our earlier work, JNK3 has been reported to phosphorylate purified rat brain mitochondrial voltage-dependent anion channel (VDAC) in vitro and modify its conductance and opening probability. In this article we have compared the open-state noise profile of the native and the JNK3 phosphorylated VDAC using Power Spectral Density vs frequency plots. Power spectral density analysis of open-state noise indicated power law with average slope value α ≈1 for native VDAC at both positive and negative voltage whereas average α value open-state noise arises due to coupling of ionic transport and conformational sub-states transitions in open-state and this coupling is perturbed as a result of channel phosphorylation. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  11. Ellagic acid attenuates high-carbohydrate, high-fat diet-induced metabolic syndrome in rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Panchal, Sunil K; Ward, Leigh; Brown, Lindsay

    2013-03-01

    Fruits and nuts may prevent or reverse common human health conditions such as obesity, diabetes and hypertension; together, these conditions are referred to as metabolic syndrome, an increasing problem. This study has investigated the responses to ellagic acid, present in many fruits and nuts, in a diet-induced rat model of metabolic syndrome. Eight- to nine-week-old male Wistar rats were divided into four groups for 16-week feeding with cornstarch diet (C), cornstarch diet supplemented with ellagic acid (CE), high-carbohydrate, high-fat diet (H) and high-carbohydrate, high-fat diet supplemented with ellagic acid (HE). CE and HE rats were given 0.8 g/kg ellagic acid in food from week 8 to 16 only. At the end of 16 weeks, cardiovascular, hepatic and metabolic parameters along with protein levels of Nrf2, NF-κB and CPT1 in the heart and the liver were characterised. High-carbohydrate, high-fat diet-fed rats developed cardiovascular remodelling, impaired ventricular function, impaired glucose tolerance, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease with increased protein levels of NF-κB and decreased protein levels of Nrf2 and CPT1 in the heart and the liver. Ellagic acid attenuated these diet-induced symptoms of metabolic syndrome with normalisation of protein levels of Nrf2, NF-κB and CPT1. Ellagic acid derived from nuts and fruits such as raspberries and pomegranates may provide a useful dietary supplement to decrease the characteristic changes in metabolism and in cardiac and hepatic structure and function induced by a high-carbohydrate, high-fat diet by suppressing oxidative stress and inflammation.

  12. Reproducible in vitro regeneration system for purifying sugarcane ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This procedure may be considered as one of the best ever published report on regeneration from in vitro grown plants to purify clones without subjecting the plants to field conditions and harvesting the mature cane. This technique was used to purify transgenic sugarcane plants carrying Bacillus thuringiensis gene.

  13. Gastroprotective effects of arctigenin of Arctium lappa L. on a rat model of gastric ulcers

    OpenAIRE

    Li, Xiao-Mei; Miao, Yu; Su, Qin-Yong; Yao, Jing-Chun; Li, Hong-Hua; Zhang, Gui-Min

    2016-01-01

    In the present study, the gastroprotective effects of arctigenin of Fructus Arctii were evaluated and the possible underlying mechanisms of action were elucidated. Arctigenin (high-performance liquid chromatography purity, >99.0%) was isolated and purified from the seeds of Arctium lappa L. The anti-ulcerogenic activity of arctigenin against ulcers induced by absolute ethanol and acetic acid was evaluated in a Sprague-Dawley rat model. In addition, the antioxidant activity was assessed by mea...

  14. Structure and composition of synaptonemal complexes, isolated from rat spermatocytes

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Heyting, C.; Dietrich, A. J.; Redeker, E. J.; Vink, A. C.

    1985-01-01

    Synaptonemal complexes (SCs) (structures involved in chromosome pairing during meiosis) were isolated and purified from rat spermatocytes for the purpose of biochemical and morphological analysis. Spermatocytes were lysed in a medium, containing Triton X-100, EDTA and DTT; the resulting swollen

  15. Purifying hydrocarbon oils

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rostin, H

    1938-08-11

    A process is described for continuously purifying hydrocarbon oils consisting in conducting the vapors of the same at a temperature of 300 to 400/sup 0/C over the oelitic ore minette together with reducing gases in presence of steam the proportion of the reducing gases and steam being such that the sulfur of the hydrocarbons escapes from the reaction chamber in the form of sulfuretted hydrogen without permanent sulfide of iron being formed.

  16. DIETARY FISH OIL-INDUCED CHANGES IN INTRAHEPATIC CHOLESTEROL TRANSPORT AND BILE-ACID SYNTHESIS IN RATS

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    SMIT, MJ; TEMMERMAN, AM; WOLTERS, H; KUIPERS, F; BEYNEN, AC; VONK, RJ

    Hepatic cholesterol metabolism was studied in rats fed purified diets supplemented (9% wt/wt) with either fish oil (FO) (n-3 fatty acids) or corn oil (CO) (n-6 fatty acids) for 4 wk. Rats were equipped with permanent catheters in heart, bile duct, and duodenum to allow studies under normal feeding

  17. Analyses of residual iron in carbon nanotubes produced by camphor/ferrocene pyrolysis and purified by high temperature annealing

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Antunes, E.F., E-mail: ericafa@las.inpe.br [Instituto Tecnologico de Aeronautica (ITA), Praca Marechal Eduardo Gomes, 50, CEP 12.228-900, Sao Jose dos Campos, SP (Brazil); Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais (INPE), Av. dos Astronautas, 1758, CEP 12.227-010, Sao Jose dos Campos, SP (Brazil); Resende, V.G. de; Mengui, U.A. [Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais (INPE), Av. dos Astronautas, 1758, CEP 12.227-010, Sao Jose dos Campos, SP (Brazil); Cunha, J.B.M. [Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Av. Bento Goncalves, 9500, CEP 91.501-970, Porto Alegre, RS (Brazil); Corat, E.J.; Massi, M. [Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais (INPE), Av. dos Astronautas, 1758, CEP 12.227-010, Sao Jose dos Campos, SP (Brazil)

    2011-07-01

    A detailed analysis of iron-containing phases in multiwall carbon nanotube (MWCNT) powder was carried out. The MWCNTs were produced by camphor/ferrocene and purified by high temperature annealing in an oxygen-free atmosphere (N{sub 2} or VC). Thermogravimetric analysis, Moessbauer spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy enabled the evaluation of the residual iron in MWCNTs after purification. The VC treatments provided MWCNTs with a purity degree higher than 99%. Moreover, Raman spectroscopy revealed a significant improvement in graphitic ordering after thermal annealing. A brief description of the mechanism of iron removal was included. We highlight the mobility of iron atoms through graphitic sheets and the large contact angle of iron clusters formed on MWCNT surfaces at high temperatures.

  18. Purification and characterization of the reconstitutively active P/sub i//H/sup +/ symporter from rat liver mitochondria

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kaplan, R.S.; Pratt, R.D.; Pedersen, P.L.

    1986-05-01

    A highly purified preparation of reconstitutively active P/sub i//H/sup +/ symporter has been obtained from rat liver mitochondria. The carrier is isolated by extraction of hypotonically shocked mitoplasts with Triton X-114 in the presence of cardiolipin followed by sequential chromatography on hydroxylapatite, DEAE-Sepharose CL-6B, and Affi-Gel 501. Upon incorporation of the final Affi-Gel eluate into phospholipid vesicles, an N-ethylmaleimide (NEM)-sensitive P/sub i//P/sub i/ exchange of greater than 15 ..mu..mol/min/mg protein has been measured. This exchange is characterized by a first order rate constant of 0.85 min/sup -1/ and a t/sub 1/2/ of 49 sec. Furthermore, /sup 32/P/sub i/ uptake into vesicles can be inhibited by SH reagents and by the lysine reactive reagent dansyl chloride. Coomassie-stained SDS polyacrylamide gradient gels verify the high purity of this fraction and indicate the presence of two bands, of nearly equivalent staining intensity, at 33 kDa and 35 kDa. A small amount of higher molecular weight material also appears at approx. 61 kDa. Alkylation of the purified fraction with NEM causes the two lower molecular weight protein bands to migrate as a single species at 35 kDa which binds (/sup 3/H)NEM. It is concluded that the purifed protein represents a nearly homogeneous form of the NEM-sensitive P/sub i//H/sup +/ symporter of rat liver mitochondria. Additionally, the purified carrier appears to contain cysteine and lysine residues that are essential for activity.

  19. Method and device for feeding purified water to a pressure vessel

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hirato, Miharu.

    1982-01-01

    Purpose: To prevent thermal wear at the junction of feedwater pipes and purified water pipes, as well as maintain the function of the purified water feeding system by stopping the introduction of purified water to the heated water feeding system and introducing purified water to the recycling water system upon transient operation or start-up. Constitution: Since a feedwater heater does not function well during transient operation or upon start-up, the temperature of heated water flowing through the feedwater pipe is reduced to produce a temperature difference relative to the set temperature for the purified water feeding system. The temperature difference is detected by a temperature sensor and, when it arrives at a predetermined difference, an operation valve is switched to interrupt the feed of the purified water to the heated water feeding system and it is sent to a water recycling system. Then, the purified water is sent from the water recycling system by way of the discharge portion to the inside of a pressure vessel. Thus, since only the heated water flows to the junction between the cleaned water pipes and the heated water pipes, neither shocks are generated nor the performance of the purified water feeding system is impaired. (Moriyama, K.)

  20. Extract of mangosteen increases high density lipoprotein levels in rats fed high lipid

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dwi Laksono Adiputro

    2013-04-01

    Full Text Available Background In cardiovascular medicine, Garcinia mangostana has been used as an antioxidant to inhibit oxidation of low density lipoproteins and as an antiobesity agent. The effect of Garcinia mangostana on hyperlipidemia is unknown. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of an ethanolic extract of Garcinia mangostana pericarp on lipid profile in rats fed a high lipid diet. Methods A total of 40 rats were divided into five groups control, high lipid diet, and high lipid diet + ethanolic extract of Garcinia mangostana pericarp at dosages of 200, 400, and 800 mg/kg body weight. The control group received a standard diet for 60 days. The high lipid diet group received standard diet plus egg yolk, goat fat, cholic acid, and pig fat for 60 days with or without ethanolic extract of Garcinia mangostana pericarp by the oral route. After 60 days, rats were anesthesized with ether for collection of blood by cardiac puncture. Analysis of blood lipid profile comprised colorimetric determination of cholesterol, triglyceride, low density lipoprotein (LDL, and high density lipoprotein (HDL. Results From the results of one-way ANOVA it was concluded that there were significant between-group differences in cholesterol, trygliceride, LDL, and HDL levels (p=0.000. Ethanolic extract of Garcinia mangostana pericarp significantly decreased cholesterol, trygliceride, and LDL levels, starting at 400 mg/kg body weight (p=0.000. Ethanolic extract of Garcinia mangostana pericarp significantly increased HDL level starting at 200 mg/kg body weight (p=0.000. Conclusion Ethanolic extract of Garcinia mangostana pericarp has a beneficial effect on lipid profile in rats on a high lipid diet.

  1. Extract of mangosteen increases high density lipoprotein levels in rats fed high lipid

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dwi Laksono Adiputro

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND In cardiovascular medicine, Garcinia mangostana has been used as an antioxidant to inhibit oxidation of low density lipoproteins and as an antiobesity agent. The effect of Garcinia mangostana on hyperlipidemia is unknown. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of an ethanolic extract of Garcinia mangostana pericarp on lipid profile in rats fed a high lipid diet. METHODS A total of 40 rats were divided into five groups control, high lipid diet, and high lipid diet + ethanolic extract of Garcinia mangostana pericarp at dosages of 200, 400, and 800 mg/kg body weight. The control group received a standard diet for 60 days. The high lipid diet group received standard diet plus egg yolk, goat fat, cholic acid, and pig fat for 60 days with or without ethanolic extract of Garcinia mangostana pericarp by the oral route. After 60 days, rats were anesthesized with ether for collection of blood by cardiac puncture. Analysis of blood lipid profile comprised colorimetric determination of cholesterol, triglyceride, low density lipoprotein (LDL, and high density lipoprotein (HDL. RESULTS From the results of one-way ANOVA it was concluded that there were significant between-group differences in cholesterol, trygliceride, LDL, and HDL levels (p=0.000. Ethanolic extract of Garcinia mangostana pericarp significantly decreased cholesterol, trygliceride, and LDL levels, starting at 400 mg/kg body weight (p=0.000. Ethanolic extract of Garcinia mangostana pericarp significantly increased HDL level starting at 200 mg/kg body weight (p=0.000. CONCLUSION Ethanolic extract of Garcinia mangostana pericarp has a beneficial effect on lipid profile in rats on a high lipid diet.

  2. Assay of partially purified glutamate dehydrogenase isolated from ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Glutamate dehydrogenase (E C 1.4.1.1) isolated from the seeds of asparagus beans was partially purified to a factor of 22 by dialysis after fractional precipitation with solid ammonium sulphate at 40 and 60% saturation. A specific activity of 11.78μmol min-1 mg-1 protein was calculated for the partially purified enzyme when ...

  3. Partially purified polygalacturonase from Aspergillus niger (SA6 ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Polygalacturonase (PG) was isolated from Aspergillus niger (A. niger) (SA6), partially purified and characterized. The PG showed two bands on SDS-PAGE suggesting an “endo and exo PG with apparent molecular weights of 35 and 40 KDa, respectively. It was purified 9-fold with a yield of 0.18% and specific activity of 246 ...

  4. A purified inactivated Japanese encephalitis virus vaccine made in Vero cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Srivastava, A K; Putnak, J R; Lee, S H; Hong, S P; Moon, S B; Barvir, D A; Zhao, B; Olson, R A; Kim, S O; Yoo, W D; Towle, A C; Vaughn, D W; Innis, B L; Eckels, K H

    2001-08-14

    A second generation, purified, inactivated vaccine (PIV) against Japanese encephalitis (JE) virus was produced and tested in mice where it was found to be highly immunogenic and protective. The JE-PIV was made from an attenuated strain of JE virus propagated in certified Vero cells, purified, and inactivated with formalin. Its manufacture followed current GMP guidelines for the production of biologicals. The manufacturing process was efficient in generating a high yield of virus, essentially free of contaminating host cell proteins and nucleic acids. The PIV was formulated with aluminum hydroxide and administered to mice by subcutaneous inoculation. Vaccinated animals developed high-titered JE virus neutralizing antibodies in a dose dependent fashion after two injections. The vaccine protected mice against morbidity and mortality after challenge with live, virulent, JE virus. Compared with the existing licensed mouse brain-derived vaccine, JE-Vax, the Vero cell-derived JE-PIV was more immunogenic and as effective as preventing encephalitis in mice. The JE-PIV is currently being tested for safety and immunogenicity in volunteers.

  5. Sex-dependent effects of high-fat-diet feeding on rat pancreas oxidative stress.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gómez-Pérez, Yolanda; Gianotti, Magdalena; Lladó, Isabel; Proenza, Ana M

    2011-07-01

    The objective of the study was to investigate whether sex differences in oxidative stress-associated insulin resistance previously reported in rats could be attributed to a possible sex dimorphism in pancreas redox status. Fifteen-month-old male and female Wistar rats were fed a control diet or a high-fat diet for 14 weeks. Serum glucose, lipids, and hormone levels were measured. Insulin immunohistochemistry and morphometric analysis of islets were performed. Pancreas triglyceride content, oxidative damage, and antioxidant enzymatic activities were determined. Lipoprotein lipase, hormone-sensitive lipase, and uncoupling protein 2 (UCP2) levels were also measured. Male rats showed a more marked insulin resistance profile than females. In control female rats, pancreas Mn-superoxide dismutase activity and UCP2 levels were higher, and oxidative damage was lower compared with males. High-fat-diet feeding decreased pancreas triglyceride content in female rats and UCP2 levels in male rats. High-fat-diet female rats showed larger islets than both their control and sex counterparts. These results confirm the existence of a sex dimorphism in pancreas oxidative status in both control and high-fat-diet feeding situations, with female rats showing higher protection against oxidative stress, thus maintaining pancreatic function and contributing to a lower risk of insulin resistance.

  6. Rat beta-LPH, gamma-LPH and beta-endorphin biosynthesized by isolated cells of pars intermedia and pars distalis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gianoulakis, C.; Seidah, N.G.; Routhier, R.; Chretien, M.

    1980-01-01

    Rats pars intermedia cells were incubated for 3 h with the following amino-acids: a) 35 S-methionine and 3 H-phenylalamine; b) 3 H-valine; and c) 3 H-valine and 3 H-lysine. Radioactive gamma-lipotropin, beta-lipotropin and beta-endorphin were purified on carboxy- methyl-cellulose and characterized by polyacrylamide disc gel electrophoresis af pH 4.5, molecular weight estimation and microsequencing. Rat gamma-lipotropin was shown to differ slightly from ovine gamma-lipotropin in its NH 2 -terminal amino acid sequence, in containing no methionine and having phenylalanine at position 6, valine at positions 13 and 27, and lysine at position 20. The same variations were observed in the sequence of rat beta-lipotropin, while rat beta-endorphin was shown to be identical to the ovine beta-endorphin. Following a 3-h pulse of rat pars distalis, the cells were extracted with care to avoid beta-lipotropin degradation by proteolytic enzymes. A peptide was purified and identified to be rat beta-endorphin, thus demonstrating that beta-endorphin is biosynthesized in pars distalis and is not an extraction artifact. (author)

  7. Purified blueberry anthocyanins and blueberry juice alter development of obesity in mice fed an obesogenic high-fat diet.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prior, Ronald L; E Wilkes, Samuel; R Rogers, Theodore; Khanal, Ramesh C; Wu, Xianli; Howard, Luke R

    2010-04-14

    Male C57BL/6J mice (25 days of age) were fed either a low-fat diet (10% kcal from fat) (LF) or a high-fat diet (45% kcal from fat) (HF45) for a period of 72 days. Blueberry juice or purified blueberry anthocyanins (0.2 or 1.0 mg/mL) in the drinking water were included in LF or HF45 treatments. Sucrose was added to the drinking water of one treatment to test if the sugars in blueberry juice would affect development of obesity. Total body weights (g) and body fat (%) were higher and body lean tissue (%) was lower in the HF45 fed mice compared to the LF fed mice after 72 days, but in mice fed HF45 diet plus blueberry juice or blueberry anthocyanins (0.2 mg/mL), body fat (%) was not different from those mice fed the LF diet. Anthocyanins (ACNs) decreased retroperitoneal and epididymal adipose tissue weights. Fasting serum glucose concentrations were higher in mice fed the HF45 diet. However, it was reduced to LF levels in mice fed the HF45 diet plus 0.2 mg of ACNs/mL in the drinking water, but not with blueberry juice. beta cell function (HOMA-BCF) score was lowered with HF45 feeding but returned to normal levels in mice fed the HF45 diet plus purified ACNs (0.2 mg/mL). Serum leptin was elevated in mice fed HF45 diet, and feeding either blueberry juice or purified ACNs (0.2 mg/mL) decreased serum leptin levels relative to HF45 control. Sucrose in drinking water, when consumption was restricted to the volume of juice consumed, produced lower serum leptin and insulin levels, leptin/fat, and retroperitoneal and total fat (% BW). Blueberry juice was not as effective as the low dose of anthocyanins in the drinking water in preventing obesity. Additional studies are needed to determine factors responsible for the differing responses of blueberry juice and whole blueberry in preventing the development of obesity.

  8. Purifying hydrocarbons

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Demoulins, H D; Garner, F H

    1923-02-07

    Hydrocarbon distillates, including natural gases and vapors produced by cracking hydrocarbon oils, are desulfurized etc. by treating the vapor with an aqueous alkaline solution of an oxidizing agent. The hydrocarbons may be previously purified by sulfuric acid. In examples aqueous solutions of sodium or calcium hydrochlorite containing 1.5 to 5.0 grams per liter of available chlorine and sufficient alkali to give an excess of 0.1 percent in the spent reagent are preheated to the temperature of the vapor, and either sprayed or atomized into the vapors near the outlet of the dephlegmator or fractionating tower, or passed in countercurrent to the vapors through one or a series of scrubbers.

  9. Fatty acid biosynthesis VII. Substrate control of chain-length of products synthesised by rat liver fatty acid synthetase

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hansen, Heinz Johs. Max; Carey, E.M.; Dils, R.

    1970-01-01

    - 1. Gas-liquid and paper chromatography have been used to determine the chain-lengths of fatty acids synthesised by purified rat liver fatty acid synthetase from [1-14C]acetyl-CoA, [1,3-14C2]malonyl-CoA and from [1-14C]acetyl-CoA plus partially purified rat liver acetyl-CoA carboxylase. - 2....... A wide range (C4:0–C18:0) of fatty acids was synthesised and the proportions were modified by substrate concentrations in the same manner as for purified rabbit mammary gland fatty acid synthetase. - 3. The relative amount of radioactivity incorporated from added acetyl-CoA and malonyl-CoA depended...... of long-chain fatty acids was synthesised from carboxylated acetyl-CoA than from added malonyl-CoA. - 5. It is suggested that acetyl-CoA carboxylase may carboxylate acetate bound to fatty acid synthetase....

  10. Enhanced flavor-nutrient conditioning in obese rats on a high-fat, high-carbohydrate choice diet.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wald, Hallie S; Myers, Kevin P

    2015-11-01

    Through flavor-nutrient conditioning rats learn to prefer and increase their intake of flavors paired with rewarding, postingestive nutritional consequences. Since obesity is linked to altered experience of food reward and to perturbations of nutrient sensing, we investigated flavor-nutrient learning in rats made obese using a high fat/high carbohydrate (HFHC) choice model of diet-induced obesity (ad libitum lard and maltodextrin solution plus standard rodent chow). Forty rats were maintained on HFHC to induce substantial weight gain, and 20 were maintained on chow only (CON). Among HFHC rats, individual differences in propensity to weight gain were studied by comparing those with the highest proportional weight gain (obesity prone, OP) to those with the lowest (obesity resistant, OR). Sensitivity to postingestive food reward was tested in a flavor-nutrient conditioning protocol. To measure initial, within-meal stimulation of flavor acceptance by post-oral nutrient sensing, first, in sessions 1-3, baseline licking was measured while rats consumed grape- or cherry-flavored saccharin accompanied by intragastric (IG) water infusion. Then, in the next three test sessions they received the opposite flavor paired with 5 ml of IG 12% glucose. Finally, after additional sessions alternating between the two flavor-infusion contingencies, preference was measured in a two-bottle choice between the flavors without IG infusions. HFHC-OP rats showed stronger initial enhancement of intake in the first glucose infusion sessions than CON or HFHC-OR rats. OP rats also most strongly preferred the glucose-paired flavor in the two-bottle choice. These differences between OP versus OR and CON rats suggest that obesity is linked to responsiveness to postoral nutrient reward, consistent with the view that flavor-nutrient learning perpetuates overeating in obesity. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  11. High level of microsynteny and purifying selection affect the evolution of WRKY family in Gramineae.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jin, Jing; Kong, Jingjing; Qiu, Jianle; Zhu, Huasheng; Peng, Yuancheng; Jiang, Haiyang

    2016-01-01

    The WRKY gene family, which encodes proteins in the regulation processes of diverse developmental stages, is one of the largest families of transcription factors in higher plants. In this study, by searching for interspecies gene colinearity (microsynteny) and dating the age distributions of duplicated genes, we found 35 chromosomal segments of subgroup I genes of WRKY family (WRKY I) in four Gramineae species (Brachypodium, rice, sorghum, and maize) formed eight orthologous groups. After a stepwise gene-by-gene reciprocal comparison of all the protein sequences in the WRKY I gene flanking areas, highly conserved regions of microsynteny were found in the four Gramineae species. Most gene pairs showed conserved orientation within syntenic genome regions. Furthermore, tandem duplication events played the leading role in gene expansion. Eventually, environmental selection pressure analysis indicated strong purifying selection for the WRKY I genes in Gramineae, which may have been followed by gene loss and rearrangement. The results presented in this study provide basic information of Gramineae WRKY I genes and form the foundation for future functional studies of these genes. High level of microsynteny in the four grass species provides further evidence that a large-scale genome duplication event predated speciation.

  12. Food quality and motivation: a refined low-fat diet induces obesity and impairs performance on a progressive ratio schedule of instrumental lever pressing in rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blaisdell, Aaron P; Lau, Yan Lam Matthew; Telminova, Ekatherina; Lim, Hwee Cheei; Fan, Boyang; Fast, Cynthia D; Garlick, Dennis; Pendergrass, David C

    2014-04-10

    Purified high-fat diet (HFD) feeding causes deleterious metabolic and cognitive effects when compared with unrefined low-fat diets in rodent models. These effects are often attributed to the diet's high content of fat, while less attention has been paid to other mechanisms associated with the diet's highly refined state. Although the effects of HFD feeding on cognition have been explored, little is known about the impact of refined vs. unrefined food on cognition. We tested the hypothesis that a refined low-fat diet (LFD) increases body weight and adversely affects cognition relative to an unrefined diet. Rats were allowed ad libitum access to unrefined rodent chow (CON, Lab Diets 5001) or a purified low-fat diet (REF, Research Diets D12450B) for 6 months, and body weight and performance on an instrumental lever pressing task were recorded. After six months on their respective diets, group REF gained significantly more weight than group CON. REF rats made significantly fewer lever presses and exhibited dramatically lower breaking points than CON rats for sucrose and water reinforcement, indicating a chronic reduction of motivation for instrumental performance. Switching the rats' diet for 9 days had no effect on these measures. Diet-induced obesity produces a substantial deficit in motivated behavior in rats, independent of dietary fat content. This holds implications for an association between obesity and motivation. Specifically, behavioral traits comorbid with obesity, such as depression and fatigue, may be effects of obesity rather than contributing causes. To the degree that refined foods contribute to obesity, as demonstrated in our study, they may play a significant contributing role to other behavioral and cognitive disorders. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  13. Steroid metabolism by purified adult rat Leydig cells in primary culture

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Browning, J.Y.; Tcholakian, R.K.; Kessler, M.J.; Grotjan, H.E. Jr.

    1982-01-01

    To characterize Leydig cell steroidogensis, we examined the metabolism of [3H]pregnenolone (3 beta-hydroxy-5-pregnen-20-one) to androgens in the presence and absence of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) as a function of culture duration. Approximately 20-30% of the (3H)pregnenolone was converted to testosterone (17 beta-hydroxy-4-androsten-3-one) by purified Leydig cells at 0, 3 and 5 days (d) of culture. Androstenedione (4-androstene-3,17-dione) and dihydrotestosterone (17 beta-hydroxy-5 alpha-androstan-3-one) were also produced while on day 5 of culture, significant amounts of progesterone (4-pregnene-3,20-dione) were isolated. The delta 5 intermediates, 17-hydroxypregnenolone (3 beta, 17-dihydroxy-5-pregnen-20-one) and dehydroepiandrosterone (3 beta-hydroxy-5-androsten-17-one), accounted for less than 1% of substrate conversion, indicating a clear preference for Leydig cells to metabolize (3H)pregnenolone via the delta 4 pathway. On day 0 of culture, unidentified metabolites considered of predominately polar steroids while on day 5 of culture, the unidentified metabolites consisted of predominately nonpolar steroids. In the presence of hCG, (3H-pregnenolone metabolism did not differ from basal on day 0 or 3 of culture. HCG increased the conversion of pregnenolone to progesterone and 17-hydroxyprogesterone (17-hydroxy-4-pregnene-3,20-dione) on 5d. This suggests that Leydig cells cultured for 5d have decreased C17-20 desmolase activity or that hCG acutely stimulates 3 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase and delta 5-delta 5 isomerase activities

  14. High-protein diets and renal status in rats

    OpenAIRE

    Aparicio, V. A.; Nebot, E.; García-del Moral, R.; Machado-Vílchez, M.; Porres, J. M.; Sánchez, C.; Aranda, P.

    2013-01-01

    Introduction: High-protein (HP) diets might affect renal status. We aimed to examine the effects of a HP diet on plasma, urinary and morphological renal parameters in rats. Material and methods: Twenty Wistar rats were randomly distributed in 2 experimental groups with HP or normal-protein (NP) diets over 12 weeks. Results and discussion: Final body weight was a 10% lower in the HP group (p < 0.05) whereas we have not observed differences on food intake, carcass weight and muscle ashes conten...

  15. Oxidative Stability of Dispersions Prepared from Purified Marine Phospholipid and the Role of α-Tocopherol

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lu, Henna Fung Sieng; Nielsen, Nina Skall; Baron, Caroline P.

    2012-01-01

    , respectively, during 32 days of storage at 2 °C. Nonenzymatic browning was investigated through measurement of Strecker aldehydes, color changes, and pyrrole content. Dispersions containing α-tocopherol or higher levels of purified marine PL showed a lower increment of volatiles after 32 days storage......The objective of this study was to investigate the oxidative stability of dispersions prepared from different levels of purified marine phospholipid (PL) obtained by acetone precipitation, with particular focus on the interaction between α-tocopherol and PL in dispersions. This also included...... the investigation of nonenzymatic browning in purified marine PL dispersions. Dispersions were prepared by high-pressure homogenizer. The oxidative and hydrolytic stabilities of dispersions were investigated by determination of hydroperoxides, secondary volatile oxidation products, and free fatty acids...

  16. The influence of high iron diet on rat lung manganese absorption

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Thompson, Khristy; Molina, Ramon; Donaghey, Thomas; Brain, Joseph D.; Wessling-Resnick, Marianne

    2006-01-01

    Individuals chronically exposed to manganese are at high risk for neurotoxic effects of this metal. A primary route of exposure is through respiration, although little is known about pulmonary uptake of metals or factors that modify this process. High dietary iron levels inversely affect intestinal uptake of manganese, and a major goal of this study was to determine if dietary iron loading could increase lung non-heme iron levels and alter manganese absorption. Rats were fed a high iron (1% carbonyl iron) or control diet for 4 weeks. Lung non-heme iron levels increased ∼2-fold in rats fed the high iron diet. To determine if iron-loading affected manganese uptake, 54 Mn was administered by intratracheal (it) instillation or intravenous (iv) injection for pharmacokinetic studies. 54 Mn absorption from the lungs to the blood was lower in it-instilled rats fed the 1% carbonyl iron diet. Pharmacokinetics of iv-injected 54 Mn revealed that the isotope was cleared more rapidly from the blood of iron-loaded rats. In situ analysis of divalent metal transporter-1 (DMT1) expression in lung detected mRNA in airway epithelium and bronchus-associated lymphatic tissue (BALT). Staining of the latter was significantly reduced in rats fed the high iron diet. In situ analysis of transferrin receptor (TfR) mRNA showed staining in BALT alone. These data demonstrate that manganese absorption from the lungs to the blood can be modified by iron status and the route of administration

  17. High resolution diffraction imaging of mercuric iodide: Demonstration of the necessity for alternate crystal processing techniques for highly purified material

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Steiner, B.; Berg, L. van den; Laor, U.

    1995-01-01

    The overall crystalline lattice uniformity in recently available, highly purified mercuric iodide single crystals has been shown to be impacted by crystal handling techniques that were previously satisfactory. High resolution diffraction imaging of the surface regularity of crystals of various levels of purity and growth orientation shows: (1) that the newer materials have a generally lower level of precipitates, (2) that the incidence of these precipitates is now closely correlated with growth direction, and (3) that the deformation resistance and resulting sensitivity to crystal handling procedures are also closely correlated with these factors in this soft material. As a result, gentler cutting and polishing procedures have been developed and are shown to be effective in preserving overall lattice regularity in the new material. The polishing required to remove residual surface scratches affect the lattice orientation of the softer, precipitate-free regions, while not affecting those regions with detectable levels of precipitates. These results correlate closely with the electrical properties of devices made from these crystals. Mercuric iodide single crystals have proved to be particularly useful for x and γ ray detectors because their room temperature operation allow for simple, efficient, and compact instrumentation

  18. Occurrence of Conjugated Linolenic Acids in Purified Soybean Oil

    OpenAIRE

    Kinami, Tomohisa; Horii, Naoto; Narayan, Bhaskar; Arato, Shingo; Hosokawa, Masashi; Miyashita, Kazuo; Negishi, Hironori; Ikuina, Junichi; Noda, Ryuji; Shirasawa, Seiichi

    2007-01-01

    A high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method is described for the determination of conjugated linoleic acids (CLA) and conjugated linolenic acids (CLN). Methyl esters prepared from purified lipid fractions of soybean oil were analyzed using an HPLC system equipped with photodiode-array detector to detect peaks having maximum absorption around 233 and 275 nm. These peaks were concentrated by AgNO3-silicic acid column chromatography and reversed-phase HPLC. The structural analysis, o...

  19. Moderate High Fat Diet Increases Sucrose Self-Administration In Young Rats

    OpenAIRE

    Figlewicz, Dianne P.; Jay, Jennifer L.; Acheson, Molly A.; Magrisso, Irwin J.; West, Constance H.; Zavosh, Aryana; Benoit, Stephen C.; Davis, Jon F.

    2012-01-01

    We have previously reported that a moderately high fat diet increases motivation for sucrose in adult rats. In this study, we tested the motivational, neurochemical, and metabolic effects of the high fat diet in male rats transitioning through puberty, during 5-8 weeks of age. We observed that the high fat diet increased motivated responding for sucrose, which was independent of either metabolic changes or changes in catecholamine neurotransmitter metabolites in the nucleus accumbens. However...

  20. Voluntary Running Aids to Maintain High Body Temperature in Rats Bred for High Aerobic Capacity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Karvinen, Sira M.; Silvennoinen, Mika; Ma, Hongqiang; Törmäkangas, Timo; Rantalainen, Timo; Rinnankoski-Tuikka, Rita; Lensu, Sanna; Koch, Lauren G.; Britton, Steven L.; Kainulainen, Heikki

    2016-01-01

    The production of heat, i.e., thermogenesis, is a significant component of the metabolic rate, which in turn affects weight gain and health. Thermogenesis is linked to physical activity (PA) level. However, it is not known whether intrinsic exercise capacity, aging, and long-term voluntary running affect core body temperature. Here we use rat models selectively bred to differ in maximal treadmill endurance running capacity (Low capacity runners, LCR and High capacity Runners, HCR), that as adults are divergent for aerobic exercise capacity, aging, and metabolic disease risk to study the connection between PA and body temperature. Ten high capacity runner (HCR) and ten low capacity runner (LCR) female rats were studied between 9 and 21 months of age. Rectal body temperature of HCR and LCR rats was measured before and after 1-year voluntary running/control intervention to explore the effects of aging and PA. Also, we determined whether injected glucose and spontaneous activity affect the body temperature differently between LCR and HCR rats at 9 vs. 21 months of age. HCRs had on average 1.3°C higher body temperature than LCRs (p temperature level of HCRs to similar levels with LCRs. The opportunity to run voluntarily had a significant impact on the body temperature of HCRs (p temperature at a similar level as when at younger age. Compared to LCRs, HCRs were spontaneously more active, had higher relative gastrocnemius muscle mass and higher UCP2, PGC-1α, cyt c, and OXPHOS levels in the skeletal muscle (p temperature of LCRs. However, glucose injection resulted in a lowering of the body temperature of LCRs (p temperature compared to rats born with low exercise capacity and disease risk. Voluntary running allowed HCRs to maintain high body temperature during aging, which suggests that high PA level was crucial in maintaining the high body temperature of HCRs. PMID:27504097

  1. Long term highly saturated fat diet does not induce NASH in Wistar rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Filippi Céline

    2007-02-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Understanding of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH is hampered by the lack of a suitable model. Our aim was to investigate whether long term high saturated-fat feeding would induce NASH in rats. Methods 21 day-old rats fed high fat diets for 14 weeks, with either coconut oil or butter, and were compared with rats feeding a standard diet or a methionine choline-deficient (MCD diet, a non physiological model of NASH. Results MCDD fed rats rapidly lost weight and showed NASH features. Rats fed coconut (86% of saturated fatty acid or butter (51% of saturated fatty acid had an increased caloric intake (+143% and +30%. At the end of the study period, total lipid ingestion in term of percentage of energy intake was higher in both coconut (45% and butter (42% groups than in the standard (7% diet group. No change in body mass was observed as compared with standard rats at the end of the experiment. However, high fat fed rats were fattier with enlarged white and brown adipose tissue (BAT depots, but they showed no liver steatosis and no difference in triglyceride content in hepatocytes, as compared with standard rats. Absence of hepatic lipid accumulation with high fat diets was not related to a higher lipid oxidation by isolated hepatocytes (unchanged ketogenesis and oxygen consumption or hepatic mitochondrial respiration but was rather associated with a rise in BAT uncoupling protein UCP1 (+25–28% vs standard. Conclusion Long term high saturated fat feeding led to increased "peripheral" fat storage and BAT thermogenesis but did not induce hepatic steatosis and NASH.

  2. Multilineage potential of STRO-1+ rat dental pulp cells in vitro.

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Yang, X.; Zhang, W.; Dolder, J. van den; Walboomers, X.F.; Bian, Z.; Fan, M.; Jansen, J.A.

    2007-01-01

    The aim of the current study was to determine whether STRO-1 selection is an effective approach for purifying rat dental pulp stem cells, and especially whether such selection is beneficial on the multilineage differentiation capacity, i.e. whether selection will account for a higher rate of

  3. Use of ion exchange during preparation of raw materials for production of molybdenum and tungsten of high purify

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Blokhin, A.A.; Rumyantsev, V.K.; Taushkanov, V.P.; Maksimkov, S.M.; Majorov, D.Yu.; Pak, V.I.

    1988-01-01

    The data on the application of selective ionites for the steep purification of ammonium molybdate and tungstate solutions, are given. It is shown that to purify molybdenum and ammonium tungstate solutions from the impuerities of alkali earth and two- and threevalent transition metals, iminodiacetate ampholites of the ANKB-35 type are the most effective sorbents. To purify from phosphorus, silicon and arsenic impurities composition ionites on the base of hydrated oxides of multivalent metals introduced in the granules of porous cationites should be used. To extract phosphorus, silicon, arsenic impurities from ammonium molybdate and tungstate solutions and tungsten from ammonium molybdate solutions the method of their coprecipitation with iron (3) hydroxide can also be used. The best results on the purification of ammonium molybdate from tungstate provides for the application of structural organomineral ionites as well as weak-basicity anionites of the AN-31 type and its different modifications containing hydroxyl groups along with aminogroups. To purity ammonium tungstate solutions from molybdate a method is developed which transforms molybdenum in the form of thiocomplexes and the following selective sorption by strong-basicity anionites. The data on the quality of molybdenum monocrystals which are taken from the raw material purified using ionites, are given

  4. A sucrose-rich diet induces mutations in the rat colon

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dragsted, Lars O.; Daneshvar, Bahram; Vogel, Ulla

    2002-01-01

    A sucrose-rich diet has repeatedly been observed to have cocarcinogenic actions in the colon and liver of rats and to increase the number of aberrant crypt foci in rat colon. To investigate whether sucrose-rich diets might directly increase the genotoxic response in the rat colon or liver, we have...... added sucrose to the diet of Big Blue rats, a strain of Fischer rats carrying 40 copies of the lambda-phage on chromosome 4. Dietary sucrose was provided to the rats for 3 weeks at four dose levels including the background level in the purified diet [3.4% (control), 6.9%, 13.8%, or 34.5%] without...... of a sucrose-rich diet. No significant increase in mutations was observed in the liver. To seek an explanation for this finding, a variety of parameters were examined representing different mechanisms, including increased oxidative stress, changes in oxidative defense, effects on DNA repair, or changes...

  5. Effects of human low and high density lipoproteins on the binding of rat intermediate density lipoproteins to rat liver membranes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brissette, L.; Nol, S.P.

    1986-01-01

    Upon incubation with rat liver membranes, radioiodinated rat intermediate density lipoproteins (IDL) interacted with at least two binding sites having a low and a high affinity as demonstrated by the curvilinear Scatchard plots obtained from the specific binding data. The purpose of our work was to identify the nature of these binding sites. Human low density lipoproteins (LDL), contain apolipoprotein B only, and human high density lipoproteins (HDL3), containing neither apolipoprotein B nor E, were both capable of decreasing the specific binding of rat 125 I-IDL. The Scatchard analysis clearly revealed that only the low affinity component was affected by the addition of these human lipoproteins. In fact, the low affinity binding component gradually decreased as the amount of human LDL or HDL3 increased in the binding assay. At a 200-fold excess of human LDL or HDL3, the low affinity binding was totally masked, and the Scatchard plot of the specific 125 I-IDL binding became linear. Only the high affinity binding component was left, enabling a precise measurement of its binding parameters. In a series of competitive displacement experiments in which the binding assay contained a 200-fold excess of human LDL or HDL3, only unlabeled rat IDL effectively displaced the binding of rat 125 I-IDL. We conclude that the low affinity binding of rat IDL to rat liver membranes is due to weak interactions with unspecified lipoprotein binding sites. The camouflage of these sites by human lipoproteins makes possible the study of IDL binding to the high affinity component which likely represents the combined effect of IDL binding to both the remnant and the LDL receptors

  6. Purification and characterization of mu-specific opioid receptor from rat brain

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hasegawa, J.; Cho, T.M.; Ge, B.L.; Loh, H.H.

    1986-03-05

    A mu-specific opioid receptor was purified to apparent homogeneity from rat brain membranes by 6-succinylmorphine affinity chromatography, Ultrogel filtration, wheat germ agglutinin affinity chromatography, and isoelectric focusing. The purified receptor had a molecular weight of 58,000 as determined by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, and was judged to be homogeneous by the following criteria: (1) a single band on the SDS gel; and (2) a specific opioid binding activity of 17,720 pmole/mg protein, close to the theoretical value. In addition, the 58,000 molecular weight value agrees closely with that determined by covalently labelling purified receptor with bromoacetyl-/sup 3/H-dihydromorphine or with /sup 125/I-beta-endorphin and dimethyl suberimidate. To their knowledge, this is the first complete purification of an opioid receptor that retains its ability to bind opiates.

  7. Investigating the characteristic strength of flocs formed from crude and purified Hibiscus extracts in water treatment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jones, Alfred Ndahi; Bridgeman, John

    2016-10-15

    The growth, breakage and re-growth of flocs formed using crude and purified seed extracts of Okra (OK), Sabdariffa (SB) and Kenaf (KE) as coagulants and coagulant aids was assessed. The results showed floc size increased from 300 μm when aluminium sulphate (AS) was used as a coagulant to between 696 μm and 722 μm with the addition of 50 mg/l of OK, KE and SB crude samples as coagulant aids. Similarly, an increase in floc size was observed when each of the purified proteins was used as coagulant aid at doses of between 0.123 and 0.74 mg/l. The largest floc sizes of 741 μm, 460 μm and 571 μm were obtained with a 0.123 mg/l dose of purified Okra protein (POP), purified Sabdariffa (PSP) and purified Kenaf (PKP) respectively. Further coagulant aid addition from 0.123 to 0.74 mg/l resulted in a decrease in floc size and strength in POP and PSP. However, an increase in floc strength and reduced d50 size was observed in PKP at a dose of 0.74 mg/l. Flocs produced when using purified and crude extract samples as coagulant aids exhibited high recovery factors and strength. However, flocs exhibited greater recovery post-breakage when the extracts were used as a primary coagulant. It was observed that the combination of purified proteins and AS improved floc size, strength and recovery factors. Therefore, the applications of Hibiscus seeds in either crude or purified form increases floc growth, strength, recoverability and can also reduce the cost associated with the import of AS in developing countries. Crown Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  8. Purifying Synthetic High-Strength Wastewater by Microalgae Chlorella Vulgaris Under Various Light Emitting Diode Wavelengths and Intensities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhigang Ge

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available The high-strength wastewater is now well known as a threat to the natural water since it is highly possible to arouse water eutrophication or algal blooms. The effects of various light emitting diode wavelengths and intensities on the microalgae biological wastewater treatment system was studied in this research. The various nutrient removals and economic efficiencies represented similar variation trends, and these variations under both high C and N loading treatments were similar too. The order for microalgae C. vulgaris reproduction in terms of dry weight and nutrient removal efficiency both were red > white > yellow > blue, under high carbon and nitrogen loading treatments, indicating that the red light was the optimum light wavelength. Furthermore, considering the optimal light intensity in terms of nutrient removal efficiency was 2500 and 2000 μmol/m2•s, while in terms of economic efficiency was 1000, 1500 and 2000 μmol/m2•s. Therefore, the optimum light intensity was found to be 2000 μmol/m2•s. In addition, the optimal experimental illumination time was determined as 120 h. The Chlorella vulgaris microalgae biological wastewater treatment system utilized in this research was able to purify the high-strength carbon and nitrogen wastewater effectively under optimum light wavelength and intensity.

  9. Effects of Shiitake Intake on Serum Lipids in Rats Fed Different High-Oil or High-Fat Diets.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Asada, Norihiko; Kairiku, Rumi; Tobo, Mika; Ono, Akifumi

    2018-04-27

    Shiitake (Lentinula edodes) extract, eritadenine, has been shown to reduce cholesterol levels, and its hypocholesterolemic actions are involved in the metabolism of methionine. However, the mechanisms by which eritadenine affects cholesterol metabolism in animals fed a high-fat diet containing different sources of lipids have not yet been elucidated in detail. This study was conducted to investigate the effects of shiitake supplementation on serum lipid concentrations in rats fed a diet including a high amount of a plant oil (HO [high oil] and HOS [high oil with shiitake] groups), animal fat (HF [high fat] and HFS [high fat with shiitake] groups), or MCT- (medium-chain triglyceride-) rich plant oil (HM [high MCT] and HMS [high MCT with shiitake] groups). Rats in the HOS, HFS, and HMS groups were fed shiitake. When rats were fed a diet containing shiitake, serum triglyceride, cholesterol levels, and LCAT (lecithin-cholesterol acyltransferase) activities were lower in rats given MCT-rich plant oil than in those that consumed lard. The lipid type in the diet with shiitake also affected serum cholesterol levels and LCAT activities. The diet containing MCT-rich plant oil showed the greatest rates of decrease in all serum lipid profiles and LCAT activities. These results suggest that shiitake and MCT-rich plant oil work together to reduce lipid profiles and LCAT activity in serum.

  10. Bitistatin-functionalized fluorescent nanodiamond particles specifically bind to purified human platelet integrin receptor αIIbβ3 and activated platelets.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marcinkiewicz, Cezary; Gerstenhaber, Jonathan A; Sternberg, Mark; Lelkes, Peter I; Feuerstein, Giora

    2017-01-01

    Thromboembolic events (TEE) underwrite key causes of death in developed countries. While advanced imaging technologies such as computed tomography scans serve to diagnose blood clots during acute cardiovascular events, no such technology is available in routine primary care for TEE risk assessment. Here, we describe an imaging platform technology based on bioengineered fluorescent nanodiamond particles (F-NDPs) functionalized with bitistatin (Bit), a disintegrin that specifically binds to the α IIb β 3 integrin, platelet fibrinogen receptor (PFR) on activated platelets. Covalent linkage of purified Bit to F-NDP was concentration-dependent and saturable, as validated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay using specific anti-Bit antibodies. F-NDP-Bit interacted with purified PFR, either in immobilized or soluble form. Lotrafiban, a nonpeptide, α IIb β 3 receptor antagonist, specifically blocked F-NDP-Bit-PFR complex formation. Moreover, F-NDP-Bit specifically binds to activated platelets incorporated into a clot generated by thrombin-activated rat platelet-rich plasma (PRP). Our results suggest that engineered F-NDP-Bit particles could serve as noninvasive, "real-time" optical diagnostics for clots present in blood vessels.

  11. Characterization of purified bacterial cellulose focused on its use on paper restoration.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Santos, Sara M; Carbajo, José M; Quintana, Ester; Ibarra, David; Gomez, Nuria; Ladero, Miguel; Eugenio, M Eugenia; Villar, Juan C

    2015-02-13

    Bacterial cellulose (BC) synthesized by Gluconacetobacter sucrofermentans CECT 7291 seems to be a good option for the restoration of degraded paper. In this work BC layers are cultivated and purified by two different methods: an alkaline treatment when the culture media contains ethanol and a thermal treatment if the media is free from ethanol. The main goal of these tests was the characterization of BC layers measured in terms of tear and burst indexes, optical properties, SEM, X-ray diffraction, FTIR, degree of polymerization, static and dynamic contact angles, and mercury intrusion porosimetry. The BC layers were also evaluated in the same terms after an aging treatment. Results showed that BC has got high crystallinity index, low internal porosity, good mechanical properties and high stability over time, especially when purified by the alkaline treatment. These features make BC an adequate candidate for degraded paper reinforcement. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Experimental treatment of diabetic mice with microencapsulated rat islet cells transplantation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Luo Yun; Xue Yilong; Li Yanling; Li Xinjian

    2006-01-01

    To observe treatment effects of diabetic mice with microcapsulated and non-microcapsulated rat islet cell transplantation, pancreas of SD rat was perfused with collagenase through cloledchus, and then the pancreatic tissues were isolated and digested. Histopaque-1077 was used to purify the digested pancreas. Islet cells were collected and implanted into the peritoneal cavity of diabetic mice. The isolated islets had a response upon glucose stimulation. When the microcapsulated islets and non- microcapsulated islets were transplanted into diabetic mices the high blood glucose level could be decreased to normal. The normal blood glucose level in the diabetic mice transpanted with microcapsulated islets could be maintained for over 30 days,but it could be mainlained only for 2-3 days in the diabetic mice transplanted with non-microcapsulated islets. Thus it is believed that microcapsulated islet cell transplantation exerts good effect on diabetic mice and the microcapsules possessed good immunoisolating function. (authors)

  13. Depletion of brain alpha-MSH alters prostaglandin and interleukin fever in rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martin, S M; Malkinson, T J; Veale, W L; Pittman, Q J

    1990-09-03

    Alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone (alpha-MSH), a putative endogenous antipyretic agent, is synthesized largely within neurons in the arcuate nucleus. To test the hypothesis that destruction of this area would increase the febrile response, male Wistar rats, treated as neonates with intraperitoneal injections of monosodium glutamate (MSG) or saline, were given intracerebroventricular (i.c.v.) injections of prostaglandin E1 (20 ng; 200 ng) or purified interleukin-1 (20 U) and body temperature was monitored. The fevers displayed by the MSG-treated animals were significantly greater (P less than 0.05) than those of the controls for the lower dose of PGE1 at 10-30 min and for IL-1 at 3-6 h after the injections. MSG-treated rats showed significant reduction (P less than 0.01) in alpha-MSH content of the medial basal hypothalamus and lateral septum when compared to saline controls. Body temperature response of non-febrile animals to high ambient temperature was not affected by the MSG treatment. These data support the hypothesis that alpha-MSH is an endogenous antipyretic in the rat.

  14. High fructose diet feeding accelerates diabetic nephropathy in Spontaneously Diabetic Torii (SDT) rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Toyoda, Kaoru; Suzuki, Yusuke; Muta, Kyotaka; Masuyama, Taku; Kakimoto, Kochi; Kobayashi, Akio; Shoda, Toshiyuki; Sugai, Shoichiro

    2018-01-01

    Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is one of the complications of diabetes and is now the most common cause of end-stage renal disease. Fructose is a simple carbohydrate that is present in fruits and honey and is used as a sweetener because of its sweet taste. Fructose has been reported to have the potential to progress diabetes and DN in humans even though fructose itself does not increase postprandial plasma glucose levels. In this study, we investigated the effects of high fructose intake on the kidney of the Spontaneously Diabetic Torii (SDT) rats which have renal lesions similar to those in DN patients and compared these with the effects in normal SD rats. This study revealed that a 4-week feeding of the high fructose diet increased urinary excretion of kidney injury makers for tubular injury and accelerated mainly renal tubular and interstitial lesions in the SDT rats but not in normal rats. The progression of the nephropathy in the SDT rats was considered to be related to increased internal uric acid and blood glucose levels due to the high fructose intake. In conclusion, high fructose intake exaggerated the renal lesions in the SDT rats probably due to effects on the tubules and interstitium through metabolic implications for uric acid and glucose.

  15. High-molecular-mass hyaluronan mediates the cancer resistance of the naked mole rat.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tian, Xiao; Azpurua, Jorge; Hine, Christopher; Vaidya, Amita; Myakishev-Rempel, Max; Ablaeva, Julia; Mao, Zhiyong; Nevo, Eviatar; Gorbunova, Vera; Seluanov, Andrei

    2013-07-18

    The naked mole rat (Heterocephalus glaber) displays exceptional longevity, with a maximum lifespan exceeding 30 years. This is the longest reported lifespan for a rodent species and is especially striking considering the small body mass of the naked mole rat. In comparison, a similarly sized house mouse has a maximum lifespan of 4 years. In addition to their longevity, naked mole rats show an unusual resistance to cancer. Multi-year observations of large naked mole-rat colonies did not detect a single incidence of cancer. Here we identify a mechanism responsible for the naked mole rat's cancer resistance. We found that naked mole-rat fibroblasts secrete extremely high-molecular-mass hyaluronan (HA), which is over five times larger than human or mouse HA. This high-molecular-mass HA accumulates abundantly in naked mole-rat tissues owing to the decreased activity of HA-degrading enzymes and a unique sequence of hyaluronan synthase 2 (HAS2). Furthermore, the naked mole-rat cells are more sensitive to HA signalling, as they have a higher affinity to HA compared with mouse or human cells. Perturbation of the signalling pathways sufficient for malignant transformation of mouse fibroblasts fails to transform naked mole-rat cells. However, once high-molecular-mass HA is removed by either knocking down HAS2 or overexpressing the HA-degrading enzyme, HYAL2, naked mole-rat cells become susceptible to malignant transformation and readily form tumours in mice. We speculate that naked mole rats have evolved a higher concentration of HA in the skin to provide skin elasticity needed for life in underground tunnels. This trait may have then been co-opted to provide cancer resistance and longevity to this species.

  16. High molecular weight hyaluronan mediates the cancer resistance of the naked mole-rat

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tian, Xiao; Azpurua, Jorge; Hine, Christopher; Vaidya, Amita; Myakishev-Rempel, Max; Ablaeva, Julia; Mao, Zhiyong; Nevo, Eviatar; Gorbunova, Vera; Seluanov, Andrei

    2013-01-01

    The naked mole-rat displays exceptional longevity, with a maximum lifespan exceeding 30 years1–3. This is the longest reported lifespan for a rodent species and is especially striking considering the small body mass of the naked mole-rat. In comparison, a similarly sized house mouse has a maximum lifespan of 4 years4,5. In addition to their longevity, naked mole-rats show an unusual resistance to cancer. Multi-year observations of large naked mole-rat colonies did not detect a single incidence of cancer2,6. Here we identify a mechanism responsible for the naked mole-rat’s cancer resistance. We found that naked mole-rat fibroblasts secrete extremely high molecular weight hyaluronan (HA), which is over five times larger than human or mouse HA. This high molecular weight HA accumulates abundantly in naked mole rat tissues due to the decreased activity of HA-degrading enzymes and a unique sequence of hyaluronan synthase 2 (HAS2). Furthermore, the naked mole-rat cells are more sensitive to HA signaling, as the naked mole rat cells have a higher affinity to HA than the mouse or human cells. Perturbation of the signaling pathways sufficient for malignant transformation of mouse fibroblasts fails to transform naked mole-rat cells. However, once high molecular weight HA is removed by either knocking down HAS2 or overexpressing the HA-degrading enzyme, Hyal2, naked mole-rat cells become susceptible to malignant transformation and readily form tumors in mice. We speculate that naked mole-rats have evolved a higher concentration of HA in the skin to provide skin elasticity needed for life in underground tunnels. This trait may have then been co-opted to provide cancer resistance and longevity to this species. PMID:23783513

  17. Studies on growth, nitrogen and energy metabolism in rats

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Thorbek, G; Chwalibog, André; Eggum, B O

    1982-01-01

    Feed intake, growth, nitrogen retention and energy metabolism were measured in 12 male Wistar rats fed ad lib. for 14 weeks with non-purified diets. The feed intake increased rapidly in 4 weeks time from 16 g/d to 25 g/d, and then it was constant in the following 10 weeks. In relation to metabolic...

  18. Inulin oligofructose attenuates metabolic syndrome in high-carbohydrate, high-fat diet-fed rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kumar, Senthil A; Ward, Leigh C; Brown, Lindsay

    2016-11-01

    Prebiotics alter bacterial content in the colon, and therefore could be useful for obesity management. We investigated the changes following addition of inulin oligofructose (IO) in the food of rats fed either a corn starch (C) diet or a high-carbohydrate, high-fat (H) diet as a model of diet-induced metabolic syndrome. IO did not affect food intake, but reduced body weight gain by 5·3 and 12·3 % in corn starch+inulin oligofructose (CIO) and high-carbohydrate, high-fat with inulin oligofructose (HIO) rats, respectively. IO reduced plasma concentrations of free fatty acids by 26·2 % and TAG by 75·8 % in HIO rats. IO increased faecal output by 93·2 %, faecal lipid excretion by 37·9 % and weight of caecum by 23·4 % and colon by 41·5 % in HIO rats. IO improved ileal morphology by reducing inflammation and improving the density of crypt cells in HIO rats. IO attenuated H diet-induced increases in abdominal fat pads (C 275 (sem 19), CIO 264 (sem 40), H 688 (sem 55), HIO 419 (sem 32) mg/mm tibial length), fasting blood glucose concentrations (C 4·5 (sem 0·1), CIO 4·2 (sem 0·1), H 5·2 (sem 0·1), HIO 4·3 (sem 0·1) mmol/l), systolic blood pressure (C 124 (sem 2), CIO 118 (sem 2), H 152 (sem 2), HIO 123 (sem 3) mmHg), left ventricular diastolic stiffness (C 22·9 (sem 0·6), CIO 22·9 (sem 0·5), H 27·8 (sem 0·5), HIO 22·6 (sem 1·2)) and plasma alanine transaminase (C 29·6 (sem 2·8), CIO 32·1 (sem 3·0), H 43·9 (sem 2·6), HIO 33·6 (sem 2·0) U/l). IO attenuated H-induced increases in inflammatory cell infiltration in the heart and liver, lipid droplets in the liver and plasma lipids as well as impaired glucose and insulin tolerance. These results suggest that increasing soluble fibre intake with IO improves signs of the metabolic syndrome by decreasing gastrointestinal carbohydrate and lipid uptake.

  19. Purification and characterization of a small dermatan sulphate proteoglycan implicated in the dilatation of the rat uterine cervix.

    OpenAIRE

    Kokenyesi, R; Woessner, J F

    1989-01-01

    A small dermatan sulphate proteoglycan (DSPG) was extracted from rat cervices and was purified by using DEAE-Sephacel ion-exchange chromatography, gel filtration on Sepharose CL-2B and CsCl-density-gradient centrifugation. Sedimentation-equilibrium centrifugation gave a weight-average Mr of 95,000. Amino acid analysis showed a high content of aspartic acid, glutamic acid, glycine and leucine. The glycosaminoglycan chains had Mr 50,000 as determined by gel filtration. Chondroitin AC lyase and ...

  20. Establishment of cell lines with rat spermatogonial stem cell characteristics

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Pelt, Ans M. M.; Roepers-Gajadien, Hermien L.; Gademan, Iris S.; Creemers, Laura B.; de Rooij, Dirk G.; van Dissel-Emiliani, Federica M. F.

    2002-01-01

    Spermatogonial cell lines were established by transfecting a mixed population of purified rat A(s) (stem cells), A(pr) and A(al) spermatogonia with SV40 large T antigen. Two cell lines were characterized and found to express Hsp90alpha and oct-4, specific markers for germ cells and A spermatogonia,

  1. Method for purifying bidentate organophosphorus compounds

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Schulz, W.W.

    1977-01-01

    Bidentate organophosphorus compounds useful for extracting actinide elements from acidic nuclear waste solutions are purified of undesirable acidic impurities by contacting the compounds with ethylene glycol which preferentially extracts the impurities found in technical grade bidentate compounds

  2. Gamma ray irradiation to semi-purified diet

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Takigawa, Akihiro; Danbara, Hiroshi; Ohyama, Yoshinobu

    1976-01-01

    Semi-purified diet containing 10% soybean oil was irradiated with gamma rays at levels of 0.6, 3 and 6 Mrad and was fed to chicks. Crude fat contents of the diets decreased and a considerable amount of peroxide was formed with high doses of irradiation. Feed consumption and feed efficiency of the highly irradiated diets were less than those of control. Metabolizable energy and digestibility of the diets, especially of fat, were decreased with the irradiation. The chicks fed with irradiated diets showed marked dilatation of the small intestine and the liver, and their erythrocytes were more fragile than those of control. The same phenomena were found with the chicks fed the diet containing the oil highly oxidized by autoxidation. Irradiation of the diet excluding oil showed little effect on the growth of chicks. It was considered that these phenomena were caused by the peroxide or other oxidation products of fat which were formed with gamma ray irradiation. (auth.)

  3. Process for purifying zirconium sponge

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Abodishish, H.A.M.; Kimball, L.S.

    1992-01-01

    This patent describes a Kroll reduction process wherein a zirconium sponge contaminated with unreacted magnesium and by-product magnesium chloride is produced as a regulus, a process for purifying the zirconium sponge. It comprises: distilling magnesium and magnesium chloride from: a regulus containing a zirconium sponge and magnesium and magnesium chloride at a temperature above about 800 degrees C and at an absolute pressure less than about 10 mmHg in a distillation vessel to purify the zirconium sponge; condensing the magnesium and the magnesium chloride distilled from the zirconium sponge in a condenser; and then backfilling the vessel containing the zirconium sponge and the condenser containing the magnesium and the magnesium chloride with a gas; recirculating the gas between the vessel and the condenser to cool the zirconium sponge from above about 800 degrees C to below about 300 degrees C; and cooling the recirculating gas in the condenser containing the condensed magnesium and the condensed magnesium chloride as the gas cools the zirconium sponge to below about 300 degrees C

  4. Measurement of Ozone Emission and Particle Removal Rates from Portable Air Purifiers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mang, Stephen A.; Walser, Maggie L.; Nizkorodov, Sergey A.; Laux, John M.

    2009-01-01

    Portable air purifiers are popular consumer items, especially in areas with poor air quality. Unfortunately, most users of these air purifiers have minimal understanding of the factors affecting their efficiency in typical indoor settings. Emission of the air pollutant ozone (O[subscript 3]) by certain air purifiers is of particular concern. In an…

  5. Purifying hydrocarbons in the gaseous stage

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1937-02-01

    Gaseous tar oils are subjected, at temperatures of 320 to 380/sup 0/C, to the action of a mixture of activated carbon mixed with powdered metal which removes the sulfur contamination from the substance to be purified.

  6. Nuclear microscopy of rat colon epithelial cells

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ren, M.; Rajendran, Reshmi; Ng, Mary; Udalagama, Chammika; Rodrigues, Anna E.; Watt, Frank; Jenner, Andrew Michael

    2011-01-01

    Using Nuclear microscopy, we have investigated iron distributions in the colons of Sprague Dawley rats, in order to elucidate heme uptake. Four groups of five Sprague Dawley rats (mean weight 180 g) were fed different purified diets containing either heme diet (2.5% w/w hemoglobin), high fat diet (HFD) (18% w/w fat, 1% w/w cholesterol), 'western' diet (combination of hemoglobin 2.5% and 18% fat, 1% cholesterol) or control diet (7% w/w fat). After 4 weeks, animals were sacrificed by exsanguination after anaesthesia. Thin sections of frozen colon tissue were taken, freeze dried and scanned using nuclear microscopy utilising the techniques PIXE, RBS and STIM. The new data acquisition system (IonDaq) developed in CIBA was used to obtain high resolution images and line scans were used to map the iron distributions across the colon boundaries. The nuclear microscope results indicate that when HFD is given in addition to heme, the iron content of the epithelial cells that line the colon decreases, and the zinc in the smooth muscle wall increases. This implies that the level of heme and fat in diet has an important role in colon health, possibly by influencing epithelial cells directly or changing luminal composition such as bacterial flora or levels of metabolites and cytotoxins.

  7. Nuclear microscopy of rat colon epithelial cells

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ren, M.; Rajendran, Reshmi; Ng, Mary; Udalagama, Chammika; Rodrigues, Anna E.; Watt, Frank; Jenner, Andrew Michael

    2011-10-01

    Using Nuclear microscopy, we have investigated iron distributions in the colons of Sprague Dawley rats, in order to elucidate heme uptake. Four groups of five Sprague Dawley rats (mean weight 180 g) were fed different purified diets containing either heme diet (2.5% w/w hemoglobin), high fat diet (HFD) (18% w/w fat, 1% w/w cholesterol), 'western' diet (combination of hemoglobin 2.5% and 18% fat, 1% cholesterol) or control diet (7% w/w fat). After 4 weeks, animals were sacrificed by exsanguination after anaesthesia. Thin sections of frozen colon tissue were taken, freeze dried and scanned using nuclear microscopy utilising the techniques PIXE, RBS and STIM. The new data acquisition system (IonDaq) developed in CIBA was used to obtain high resolution images and line scans were used to map the iron distributions across the colon boundaries. The nuclear microscope results indicate that when HFD is given in addition to heme, the iron content of the epithelial cells that line the colon decreases, and the zinc in the smooth muscle wall increases. This implies that the level of heme and fat in diet has an important role in colon health, possibly by influencing epithelial cells directly or changing luminal composition such as bacterial flora or levels of metabolites and cytotoxins.

  8. Nuclear microscopy of rat colon epithelial cells

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ren, M., E-mail: phyrenmq@nus.edu.sg [Centre for Ion Beam Applications (CIBA), Department of Physics, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117542 (Singapore); Rajendran, Reshmi [Lab of Molecular Imaging, Singapore Bioimaging Consotium, 11 Biopolis Way, 02-02 Helios, Singapore 138667 (Singapore); Ng, Mary [Department of Pharmacology, National University of Singapore (Singapore); Udalagama, Chammika; Rodrigues, Anna E.; Watt, Frank [Centre for Ion Beam Applications (CIBA), Department of Physics, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117542 (Singapore); Jenner, Andrew Michael [Illawara Health and Medical Research Institute (IHMRI), University of Wollongong, NSW 2522 (Australia)

    2011-10-15

    Using Nuclear microscopy, we have investigated iron distributions in the colons of Sprague Dawley rats, in order to elucidate heme uptake. Four groups of five Sprague Dawley rats (mean weight 180 g) were fed different purified diets containing either heme diet (2.5% w/w hemoglobin), high fat diet (HFD) (18% w/w fat, 1% w/w cholesterol), 'western' diet (combination of hemoglobin 2.5% and 18% fat, 1% cholesterol) or control diet (7% w/w fat). After 4 weeks, animals were sacrificed by exsanguination after anaesthesia. Thin sections of frozen colon tissue were taken, freeze dried and scanned using nuclear microscopy utilising the techniques PIXE, RBS and STIM. The new data acquisition system (IonDaq) developed in CIBA was used to obtain high resolution images and line scans were used to map the iron distributions across the colon boundaries. The nuclear microscope results indicate that when HFD is given in addition to heme, the iron content of the epithelial cells that line the colon decreases, and the zinc in the smooth muscle wall increases. This implies that the level of heme and fat in diet has an important role in colon health, possibly by influencing epithelial cells directly or changing luminal composition such as bacterial flora or levels of metabolites and cytotoxins.

  9. Purified water quality study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Spinka, H.; Jackowski, P.

    2000-01-01

    Argonne National Laboratory (HEP) is examining the use of purified water for the detection medium in cosmic ray sensors. These sensors are to be deployed in a remote location in Argentina. The purpose of this study is to provide information and preliminary analysis of available water treatment options and associated costs. This information, along with the technical requirements of the sensors, will allow the project team to determine the required water quality to meet the overall project goals

  10. Moderate high fat diet increases sucrose self-administration in young rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Figlewicz, Dianne P; Jay, Jennifer L; Acheson, Molly A; Magrisso, Irwin J; West, Constance H; Zavosh, Aryana; Benoit, Stephen C; Davis, Jon F

    2013-02-01

    We have previously reported that a moderately high fat diet increases motivation for sucrose in adult rats. In this study, we tested the motivational, neurochemical, and metabolic effects of the high fat diet in male rats transitioning through puberty, during 5-8 weeks of age. We observed that the high fat diet increased motivated responding for sucrose, which was independent of either metabolic changes or changes in catecholamine neurotransmitter metabolites in the nucleus accumbens. However, AGRP mRNA levels in the hypothalamus were significantly elevated. We demonstrated that increased activation of AGRP neurons is associated with motivated behavior, and that exogenous (third cerebroventricular) AGRP administration resulted in significantly increased motivation for sucrose. These observations suggest that increased expression and activity of AGRP in the medial hypothalamus may underlie the increased responding for sucrose caused by the high fat diet intervention. Finally, we compared motivation for sucrose in pubertal vs. adult rats and observed increased motivation for sucrose in the pubertal rats, which is consistent with previous reports that young animals and humans have an increased preference for sweet taste, compared with adults. Together, our studies suggest that background diet plays a strong modulatory role in motivation for sweet taste in adolescent animals. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  11. Lean rats gained more body weight than obese ones from a high-fibre diet.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Shaoting; Zhang, Cheng; Gu, Yingyi; Chen, Long; Ou, Shiyi; Wang, Yong; Peng, Xichun

    2015-10-28

    There is controversy over previous findings that a high ratio of Firmicutes to Bacteriodetes helps obese animals harvest energy from the diet. To further investigate the relationship between microbial composition and energy harvest, microbial adaptation to diet and time should be considered. In this study, lean and obese rats were successfully induced with low-fat and high-fat diets. An 8-week high soyabean fibre (HSF)-containing diet was then fed to investigate the interaction between the diet and the rats' gut microbiota, as well as their influence on rats' growth. Rats' body weight (BW) was recorded weekly; their plasma lipids and their gut microbiota at week 11, 15 and 19 were analysed. After the consumption of the HSF diet, BW of lean rats increased significantly (Pcontent of plasma cholesterol was lowered and that of TAG was upgraded in both the groups when fed the HSF diet. There was no significant difference observed at each period between lean and obese rats. In the group of lean rats, the diversity of gut microbiota was elevated strongly (Pbacterial diversity and composition in obese rats were less altered after the HSF diet control. In conclusion, the increased Firmicutes and Bacteriodetes might relate to lean rats' higher BW gain; 'obese microbiota' could not help the hosts harvest more energy from the HSF diet.

  12. Purifying oils

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    1930-04-15

    Gasoline, lamp oils, and lubricating or other mineral or shale oils are refined by contacting the vapor with a hot aqueous solution of salts of zinc, cadmium, or mercury, or mixtures thereof which may contain 0-5-3-0 percent of oxide or hydroxide in solution or suspension. Chlorides, bromides, iodides, sulfates, nitrates, and sulfonates of benzol, toluol, xylol, and petroleum are specified. Washing with a solution of sodium or potassium hydroxide or carbonate of calcium hydroxide may follow. The oil may first be purified by sulfuric acid or other known agent, or afterwards caustic alkali and sulfuric acid. The Specification as open to inspection under Sect. 91 (3) (a) describes also the use of salts of copper, iron, chromium, manganese, aluminum, nickel, or cobalt, with or without their oxides or hydroxides. This subject-matter does not appear in the Specification as accepted.

  13. Optoacoustic tomography in preclinical research: in vivo distribution of highly purified PEG-coated gold nanorods

    Science.gov (United States)

    Su, Richard; Liopo, Anton; Brecht, Hans-Peter; Ermilov, Sergey; Larin, Kirill; Oraevsky, Alexander A.

    2011-07-01

    We report on the optoacoustic (OA) imaging of the whole mouse body using a biocompatible contrast agent - highly purified, pegylated gold nanorods (GNR) - which has strong optical absorption in the near-infrared region and low level of toxicity. In vitro toxicity studies showed no significant change in survival rates of the cultured normal epithelium IEC-6 cells when incubated for 24 hours with up to 1 nM of GNR. In vivo toxicity studies in nude mice showed no pathological changes in liver 1 month after the IV injection of GNR with intra-body concentration around 0.25-0.50 nM. In order to study the enhancement of the OA contrast and accumulation of GNR in different tissues, we performed 3D OA imaging of live nude mice with IV-injected GNR. The enhancement of the OA contrast in comparison with the images of the untreated mice was visible starting 1 hour after the GNR injection. The OA contrast of kidneys, liver, and spleen peaked at about 2-3 days after the administration of the GNR, and then was gradually reducing.

  14. Enzymatic conversion of all-trans-β-carotene to retinal by a cytosolic enzyme from rabbit and rat intestinal mucosa

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lakshman, M.R.; Mychkovsky, I.; Attlesey, M.

    1989-01-01

    Enzymatic conversion of all-trans-β-carotene to retinal by a partially purified enzyme from rabbit and rat intestinal mucosa was demonstrated. The enzymatic product was characterized based on the following evidence: (i) the product gave rise to its O-ethyloxime by treatment with O-ethylhydroxylamine with an absorption maximum at 363 nm in ethanol characteristics of authentic retinal O-ethyloxime. High-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) of this derivative yielded a sharp peak with a retention time of 7.99 min corresponding to the authentic compound; (ii) the mass spectrum of the O-ethyloxime of the enzymatic product was identical to that of authentic retinal O-ethyloxime; (iii) the specific activity of the enzymatically formed [ 14 C]retinal O-ethyloxime remained constant even after repeated crystallization; (iv) the enzymatic product exhibited an absorption maximum at 370 nm in light petroleum characteristic of authentic retinal. This retinol was enzymatically esterified to retinyl palmitate by rat pancreatic esterase with a retention time of 10 min on HPLC corresponding to authentic retinyl palmitate. Thus, the enzymatic product of β-carotene cleavage by the partially purified intestinal enzyme was unequivocally confirmed to be retinal

  15. Studying placental transfer of highly purified non-dioxin-like PCBs in two models of the placental barrier

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Correia Carreira, S; Cartwright, L; Mathiesen, L

    2011-01-01

    Currently, toxicology and toxicokinetics of purified non-dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (NDL-PCBs) are poorly characterised. Transplacental kinetics of NDL-PCBs can be studied in a variety of models, but careful validation of each model is crucial. We aimed to develop a standard operating...

  16. Impossibility criterion for obtaining pure entangled states from mixed states by purifying protocols

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen Pingxing; Liang Linmei; Li Chengzu; Huang Mingqiu

    2002-01-01

    Purifying noisy entanglement is a protocol that can increase the entanglement of a mixed state (as a source) at the expense of the entanglement of others (such as an ancilla) by collective measurement. A protocol with which one can get a pure entangled state from a mixed state is defined as purifying mixed states. We address a basic question: can one get a pure entangled state from a mixed state? We give a necessary and sufficient condition of purifying a mixed state by fit local operations and classical communication and show that for a class of source states and ancilla states in arbitrary bipartite systems purifying mixed states is impossible by finite rounds of purifying protocols. For 2x2 systems, it is proved that arbitrary states cannot be purified by individual measurement. The possible application and meaning of the conclusion are discussed

  17. Hypolipidemic effect of fruit fibers in rats fed with high dietary fat.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Esmael, O A; Sonbul, S N; Kumosani, T A; Moselhy, S S

    2015-03-01

    The hypolipidemic effect of 10% fruit fibers in rats fed with high-fat diet (HFD) was evaluated. This study was conducted on a total of 50 male Albino rats divided into 10 equal groups fed with different types of dietary fruits. The feeding period lasted for 24 weeks. Fasting blood samples were collected and sera separated and subjected to lipid profile assay and atherogenic index. In addition, total antioxidant activity of different fruits was determined. The results obtained showed that pomegranate had higher content of antioxidants followed by apple, strawberry and guava compared with other fruits. Rats fed with 20% coconut oil showed a highly significant elevation in the levels of serum total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol and atherogenic factor while the level of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol was significantly decreased when compared with control rats. Histological examination revealed that there was a large lipid and cholesterol deposition in the livers of rats fed with HFD. The potential in lowering the levels of plasma total cholesterol and triglyceride is in the following order: pomegranate > apple > strawberry > guava > papaya > mandarin and orange. Accumulation of hepatic lipid droplets was diminished when compared with the HFD group. Also, antiatherogenic is better than the untreated groups. Accordingly these hypolipidemic effects may be due to high-fiber content and antioxidant activity of these fruits. © The Author(s) 2012.

  18. Utilization of highly purified single wall carbon nanotubes dispersed in polymer thin films for an improved performance of an electrochemical glucose sensor

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Goornavar, Virupaxi [Molecular Toxicology Laboratory, Center for Biotechnology and Biomedical Sciences, Norfolk State University, 700 Park Avenue, Norfolk, VA 23504 (United States); Center for Materials Research, Norfolk State University, 555 Park Avenue, Norfolk, VA 23504 (United States); Jeffers, Robert [Molecular Toxicology Laboratory, Center for Biotechnology and Biomedical Sciences, Norfolk State University, 700 Park Avenue, Norfolk, VA 23504 (United States); Luna Innovations, Inc., 706 Forest St., Suite A, Charlottesville, VA 22902 (United States); Biradar, Santoshkumar [RICE University, 6100 Main St, Houston, TX 77251 (United States); Ramesh, Govindarajan T., E-mail: gtramesh@nsu.edu [Molecular Toxicology Laboratory, Center for Biotechnology and Biomedical Sciences, Norfolk State University, 700 Park Avenue, Norfolk, VA 23504 (United States); Center for Materials Research, Norfolk State University, 555 Park Avenue, Norfolk, VA 23504 (United States)

    2014-07-01

    In this work we report the improved performance an electrochemical glucose sensor based on a glassy carbon electrode (GCE) that has been modified with highly purified single wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) dispersed in polyethyleneimine (PEI), polyethylene glycol (PEG) and polypyrrole (PPy). The single wall carbon nanotubes were purified by both thermal and chemical oxidation to achieve maximum purity of ∼ 98% with no damage to the tubes. The SWCNTs were then dispersed by sonication in three different organic polymers (1.0 mg/ml SWCNT in 1.0 mg/ml of organic polymer). The stable suspension was coated onto the GCE and electrochemical characterization was performed by Cyclic Voltammetry (CV) and Amperometry. The electroactive enzyme glucose oxidase (GOx) was immobilized on the surface of the GCE/(organic polymer–SWCNT) electrode. The amperometric detection of glucose was carried out at 0.7 V versus Ag/AgCl. The GCE/(SWCNT–PEI, PEG, PPY) gave a detection limit of 0.2633 μM, 0.434 μM, and 0.9617 μM, and sensitivities of 0.2411 ± 0.0033 μA mM{sup −1}, r{sup 2} = 0.9984, 0.08164 ± 0.001129 μA mM{sup −1}, r{sup 2} = 0.9975, 0.04189 ± 0.00087 μA mM{sup −1}, and r{sup 2} = 0.9944 respectively and a response time of less than 5 s. The use of purified SWCNTs has several advantages, including fast electron transfer rate and stability in the immobilized enzyme. The significant enhancement of the SWCNT modified electrode as a glucose sensor can be attributed to the superior conductivity and large surface area of the well dispersed purified SWCNTs. - Highlights: • Purification method employed here use cheap and green oxidants. • The method does not disrupt the electronic structure of nanotubes. • This method removes nearly < 2% metallic impurities. • Increases the sensitivity and performance of glassy carbon electrode • This system can detect as low as 0.066 μM of H{sub 2}O{sub 2} and 0.2633 μM of glucose.

  19. Increased Hypothalamic Inflammation Associated with the Susceptibility to Obesity in Rats Exposed to High-Fat Diet

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xiaoke Wang

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Inflammation has been implicated in the hypothalamic leptin and insulin resistance resulting defective food intake during high fat diet period. To investigate hypothalamic inflammation in dietary induced obesity (DIO and obesity resistant (DIO-R rats, we established rat models of DIO and DIO-R by feeding high fat diet for 10 weeks. Then we switched half of DIO and DIO-R rats to chow food and the other half to high fat diet for the following 8 weeks to explore hypothalamic inflammation response to the low fat diet intervention. Body weight, caloric intake, HOMA-IR, as well as the mRNA expression of hypothalamic TLR4, NF-κB, TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6 in DIO/HF rats were significantly increased compared to DIO-R/HF and CF rats, whereas IL-10 mRNA expression was lower in both DIO/HF and DIO-R/HF rats compared with CF rats. Switching to chow food from high fat diet reduced the body weight and improved insulin sensitivity but not affecting the expressions of studied inflammatory genes in DIO rats. Take together, upregulated hypothalamic inflammation may contribute to the overeating and development of obesity susceptibility induced by high fat diet. Switching to chow food had limited role in correcting hypothalamic inflammation in DIO rats during the intervention period.

  20. MUSCARINIC ACETYLCHOLINE RECEPTOR-EXPRESSION IN ASTROCYTES IN THE CORTEX OF YOUNG AND AGED RATS

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    VANDERZEE, EA; DEJONG, GI; STROSBERG, AD; LUITEN, PGM

    The present report describes the cellular and subcellular distribution pattern of immunoreactivity to M35, a monoclonal antibody raised against purified muscarinic acetylcholine receptor protein, in astrocytes in the cerebral cortex of young and aged rats. Most M35-positive astrocytes were localized

  1. Effects of an overload of animal protein on the rat: brain DNA alterations and tissue morphological modifications during fetal and post-natal stage.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Greco, A M; Sticchi, R; Boschi, G; Vetrani, A; Salvatore, G

    1985-01-01

    On account of many literature reports about the definite correlation between high animal protein intake and cardiovascular diseases, we have studied the effect of a hyperproteic purified diet (casein 40%, lactalbumin 20%) on fetal and post-natal (not further than 40th day) stage of the rat, when cell subdivision process is faster and therefore damage by nutritional imbalance is certainly more serious. Litters of rats were grouped according to mother's (either hyperproteic or common basic) and rat's (after lactation) diet. Brain DNA and histology of various organs were studied. Hyperproteic diet during fetal stage and lactation would inhibit brain cell subdivision since overall content of brain DNA would be decreased on autoptic finding. Structural changes were also shown in liver, heart, kidney and adrenal cortex, especially when hyperproteic diet was continued even after lactation.

  2. Production of High Viscosity Chitosan from Biologically Purified Chitin Isolated by Microbial Fermentation and Deproteinization

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ekkalak Ploydee

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The objective of this study was to produce high viscosity chitosan from shrimp chitin prepared by using a two-step biological treatment process: decalcification and deproteinization. Glucose was fermented with Lactobacillus pentosus L7 to lactic acid. At a pH of 3.9±0.1, the calcium carbonate of the shells was solubilized in 48 hours. The amounts of residual calcium in the form of ash (1.4±0.5% and crude protein (23.2±2.5% were further eliminated by the activity of proteolytic Bacillus thuringiensis SA. After decalcification and deproteinization of the shrimp shells, residual calcium and crude protein of shrimp chitin flakes were 1.7±0.4% and 3.8±1.3%, respectively. Chitin was deacetylated with 50% NaOH at 121°C for 5 hours. After deacetylation, the chitosan had residual calcium, crude protein content, and degree of acetylation of 1.6±0.6%, 0.4±0.3%, and 83.2±1.5%, respectively. The viscosity of chitosan prepared from chitin extracted by this two-step biological process was 1,007±14.7 mPa·s, whereas chitosan prepared from chemically processed chitin had a viscosity of 323±15.6   mPa·s, indicating that biologically purified chitin gave chitosan with a high quality.

  3. Very low-carbohydrate versus isocaloric high-carbohydrate diet in dietary obese rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Axen, Kathleen V; Axen, Kenneth

    2006-08-01

    The effects of a very low-carbohydrate (VLC), high-fat (HF) dietary regimen on metabolic syndrome were compared with those of an isocaloric high-carbohydrate (HC), low-fat (LF) regimen in dietary obese rats. Male Sprague-Dawley rats, made obese by 8 weeks ad libitum consumption of an HF diet, developed features of the metabolic syndrome vs. lean control (C) rats, including greater visceral, subcutaneous, and hepatic fat masses, elevated plasma cholesterol levels, impaired glucose tolerance, and fasting and post-load insulin resistance. Half of the obese rats (VLC) were then fed a popular VLC-HF diet (Weeks 9 and 10 at 5% and Weeks 11 to 14 at 15% carbohydrate), and one-half (HC) were pair-fed an HC-LF diet (Weeks 9 to 14 at 60% carbohydrate). Energy intakes of pair-fed VLC and HC rats were less than C rats throughout Weeks 9 to 14. Compared with HC rats, VLC rats exhibited impaired insulin and glycemic responses to an intraperitoneal glucose load at Week 10 and lower plasma triacylglycerol levels but retarded loss of hepatic, retroperitoneal, and total body fat at Week 14. VLC, HC, and C rats no longer differed in body weight, plasma cholesterol, glucose tolerance, or fasting insulin resistance at Week 14. Progressive decreases in fasting insulin resistance in obese groups paralleled concomitant reductions in hepatic, retroperitoneal, and total body fat. When energy intake was matched, the VLC-HF diet provided no advantage in weight loss or in improving those components of the metabolic syndrome induced by dietary obesity and may delay loss of hepatic and visceral fat as compared with an HC-LF diet.

  4. Immobilized Metal Affinity Chromatography Co-Purifies TGF-β1 with Histidine-Tagged Recombinant Extracellular Proteins

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kaur, Jasvir; Reinhardt, Dieter P.

    2012-01-01

    Extracellular recombinant proteins are commonly produced using HEK293 cells as histidine-tagged proteins facilitating purification by immobilized metal affinity chromatography (IMAC). Based on gel analyses, this one-step purification typically produces proteins of high purity. Here, we analyzed the presence of TGF-β1 in such IMAC purifications using recombinant extracellular fibrillin-1 fragments as examples. Analysis of various purified recombinant fibrillin-1 fragments by ELISA consistently revealed the presence of picomolar concentrations of active and latent TGF-β1, but not of BMP-2. These quantities of TGF-β1 were not detectable by Western blotting and mass spectrometry. However, the amounts of TGF-β1 were sufficient to consistently trigger Smad2 phosphorylation in fibroblasts. The purification mechanism was analyzed to determine whether the presence of TGF-β1 in these protein preparations represents a specific or non-specific co-purification of TGF-β1 with fibrillin-1 fragments. Control purifications using conditioned medium from non-transfected 293 cells yielded similar amounts of TGF-β1 after IMAC. IMAC of purified TGF-β1 and the latency associated peptide showed that these proteins bound to the immobilized nickel ions. These data clearly demonstrate that TGF-β1 was co-purified by specific interactions with nickel, and not by specific interactions with fibrillin-1 fragments. Among various chromatographic methods tested for their ability to eliminate TGF-β1 from fibrillin-1 preparations, gel filtration under high salt conditions was highly effective. As various recombinant extracellular proteins purified in this fashion are frequently used for experiments that can be influenced by the presence of TGF-β1, these findings have far-reaching implications for the required chromatographic schemes and quality controls. PMID:23119075

  5. Visualization of cholinoceptive neurons in the rat neocortex : colocalization of muscarinic and nicotinic acetylcholine receptors

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Zee, E.A. van der; Streefland, C.; Strosberg, A.D.; Schröder, H.; Luiten, P.G.M.

    The present investigation analyzes the cellular distribution of muscarinic and nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in rat neocortex, by use of monoclonal antibodies raised against purified receptor proteins. The degree of colocalization of both types of receptors was determined by way of

  6. α-Amyrin attenuates high fructose diet-induced metabolic syndrome in rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prabhakar, Pankaj; Reeta, K H; Maulik, Subir Kumar; Dinda, Amit Kumar; Gupta, Yogendra Kumar

    2017-01-01

    This study investigated the effect of α-amyrin (a pentacyclic triterpene) on high-fructose diet (HFD)-induced metabolic syndrome in rats. Male Wistar rats were randomly distributed into different groups. The control group was fed normal rat chow diet. The HFD group was fed HFD (60%; w/w) for 42 days. Pioglitazone (10 mg/kg, orally, once daily) was used as a standard drug. α-Amyrin was administered in 3 doses (50, 100, and 200 mg/kg, orally, once daily along with HFD). Plasma glucose, total cholesterol, triglycerides, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) were estimated. Changes in blood pressure, oral glucose tolerance, and insulin tolerance were measured. Hepatic oxidative stress as well as messenger RNA (mRNA) and protein levels of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPAR-α) were analyzed. A significant increase in systolic blood pressure, plasma glucose, total cholesterol, and plasma triglycerides and a significant decrease in HDL-C were observed in HFD rats as compared with control rats. Glucose tolerance and insulin tolerance were also significantly impaired with HFD. α-Amyrin prevented these changes in a dose-dependent manner. Hepatic oxidative stress as well as micro- and macrovesicular fatty changes in hepatocytes caused by HFD were also attenuated by α-amyrin. α-Amyrin preserved the hepatic mRNA and protein levels of PPAR-α, which was reduced in HFD group. This study thus demonstrates that α-amyrin attenuates HFD-induced metabolic syndrome in rats.

  7. Heterotrimeric G protein subunits are located on rat liver endosomes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Van Dyke Rebecca W

    2004-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Rat liver endosomes contain activated insulin receptors and downstream signal transduction molecules. We undertook these studies to determine whether endosomes also contain heterotrimeric G proteins that may be involved in signal transduction from G protein-coupled receptors. Results By Western blotting Gsα, Giα1,2, Giα3 and Gβ were enriched in both canalicular (CM and basolateral (BLM membranes but also readily detectable on three types of purified rat liver endosomes in the order recycling receptor compartment (RRC > compartment for uncoupling of receptor and ligand (CURL > multivesicular bodies (MVB >> purified secondary lysosomes. Western blotting with antibodies to Na, K-ATPase and to other proteins associated with plasma membranes and intracellular organelles indicated this was not due to contamination of endosome preparations by CM or BLM. Adenylate cyclase (AC was also identified on purified CM, BLM, RRC, CURL and MVB. Percoll gradient fractionation of liver postnuclear supernatants demonstrated co-occurrence of endosomes and heterotrimeric G protein subunits in fractions with little plasma membrane markers. By confocal microscopy, punctate staining for Gsα, Giα3 and Gβ corresponded to punctate areas of endocytosed Texas red-dextran in hepatocytes from control and cholera toxin-treated livers. Conclusion We conclude that heterotrimeric G protein subunits as well as AC likely traffic into hepatocytes on endosome membranes, possibly generating downstream signals spatially separate from signalling generated at the plasma membrane, analogous to the role(s of internalized insulin receptors.

  8. Hypothyroidism Exacerbates Thrombophilia in Female Rats Fed with a High Fat Diet

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Harald Mangge

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available Clotting abnormalities are discussed both in the context with thyroid dysfunctions and obesity caused by a high fat diet. This study aimed to investigate the impact of hypo-, or hyperthyroidism on the endogenous thrombin potential (ETP, a master indicator of clotting activation, on Sprague Dawley rats fed a normal or high fat diet. Female Sprague Dawley rats (n = 66 were grouped into normal diet (ND; n = 30 and high-fat diet (HFD; n = 36 groups and subdivided into controls, hypothyroid and hyperthyroid groups, induced through propylthiouracil or triiodothyronine (T3 treatment, respectively. After 12 weeks of treatment ETP, body weight and food intake were analyzed. Successfully induced thyroid dysfunction was shown by T3 levels, both under normal and high fat diet. Thyroid dysfunction was accompanied by changes in calorie intake and body weight. In detail, compared to euthyroid controls, hypothyroid rats showed significantly increased—and hyperthyroid animals significantly decreased—ETP levels. High fat diet potentiated these effects in both directions. In summary, we are the first to show that hypothyroidism and high fat diet potentiate the thrombotic capacity of the clotting system in Sprague Dawley rats. This effect may be relevant for cardiovascular disease where thyroid function is poorly understood as a pathological contributor in the context of clotting activity and obesogenic nutrition.

  9. [Biomaterials for bone filling: comparisons between autograft, hydroxyapatite and one highly purified bovine xenograft].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chappard, D; Zhioua, A; Grizon, F; Basle, M F; Rebel, A

    1993-12-01

    Bone grafts are becoming increasingly common in orthopaedics, neurosurgery and periodontology. Twenty one New Zealand rabbits were used in the present study comparing several materials usable as bone substitutes. A 4.5 mm hole was drilled in the inner femoral condyles. Holes were filled with either an autograft (from the opposite condyle), an hydroxylapatite (Bioapatite), or a highly purified bovine xenograft (T650 Lubboc). Animals were sacrificed at 1, 3 and 6 months post implantation and a quantitative analysis of newly-formed bone volume (BNF/IV) and remaining biomaterials (BMAT/IV) was done. In addition, some holes were left unfilled and served as controls. At 6 months, there was no tendency for spontaneous repair in the control animals. The autografted animals have repaired their trabecular mass and architecture within the first month. Hydroxylapatite appeared unresorbed at six months and only thin and scanty new trabeculae were observed. The xenograft induced woven bone trabeculae formation on the first month. This was associated with resorption of the material by two multinucleated cell populations. At six months, the epiphyseal architecture was restored and the biomaterial has disappeared in most cases. Xenografts appear a promising alternative to autografts and allografts, whose infectious risks and ethical problems should always be borne in mind.

  10. NMR-based metabolomics reveals urinary metabolome modifications in female Sprague-Dawley rats by cranberry procyanidins.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Haiyan; Tayyari, Fariba; Edison, Arthur S; Su, Zhihua; Gu, Liwei

    2016-08-01

    A (1)H NMR global metabolomics approach was used to investigate the urinary metabolome changes in female rats gavaged with partially purified cranberry procyanidins (PPCP) or partially purified apple procyanidins (PPAP). After collecting 24-h baseline urine, 24 female Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly separated into two groups and gavaged with PPCP or PPAP twice using a dose of 250 mg extracts per kilogram body weight. The 24-h urine samples were collected after the gavage. Urine samples were analyzed using (1)H NMR. Multivariate analyses showed that the urinary metabolome in rats was modified after administering PPCP or PPAP compared to baseline urine metabolic profiles. 2D (1)H-(13)C HSQC NMR was conducted to assist identification of discriminant metabolites. An increase of hippurate, lactate and succinate and a decrease of citrate and α-ketoglutarate were observed in rat urine after administering PPCP. Urinary levels of d-glucose, d-maltose, 3-(3'-hydroxyphenyl)-3-hydroxypropanoic acid, p-hydroxyphenylacetic acid, formate and phenol increased but citrate, α-ketoglutarate and creatinine decreased in rats after administering PPAP. Furthermore, the NMR analysis showed that the metabolome in the urine of rats administered with PPCP differed from those gavaged with PPAP. Compared to PPAP, PPCP caused an increase of urinary excretion of hippurate but a decrease of 3-(3'-hydroxyphenyl)-3-hydroxypropanoic acid, p-hydroxyphenylacetic acid and phenol. These metabolome changes caused by cranberry procyanidins may help to explain its reported health benefits and identify biomarkers of cranberry procyanidin intake. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  11. Activity/inactivity circadian rhythm shows high similarities between young obesity-induced rats and old rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bravo Santos, R; Delgado, J; Cubero, J; Franco, L; Ruiz-Moyano, S; Mesa, M; Rodríguez, A B; Uguz, C; Barriga, C

    2016-03-01

    The objective of the present study was to compare differences between elderly rats and young obesity-induced rats in their activity/inactivity circadian rhythm. The investigation was motivated by the differences reported previously for the circadian rhythms of both obese and elderly humans (and other animals), and those of healthy, young or mature individuals. Three groups of rats were formed: a young control group which was fed a standard chow for rodents; a young obesity-induced group which was fed a high-fat diet for four months; and an elderly control group with rats aged 2.5 years that was fed a standard chow for rodents. Activity/inactivity data were registered through actimetry using infrared actimeter systems in each cage to detect activity. Data were logged on a computer and chronobiological analysis were performed. The results showed diurnal activity (sleep time), nocturnal activity (awake time), amplitude, acrophase, and interdaily stability to be similar between the young obesity-induced group and the elderly control group, but different in the young control group. We have concluded that obesity leads to a chronodisruption status in the body similar to the circadian rhythm degradation observed in the elderly.

  12. Seaweed supplements normalise metabolic, cardiovascular and liver responses in high-carbohydrate, high-fat fed rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kumar, Senthil Arun; Magnusson, Marie; Ward, Leigh C; Paul, Nicholas A; Brown, Lindsay

    2015-02-02

    Increased seaweed consumption may be linked to the lower incidence of metabolic syndrome in eastern Asia. This study investigated the responses to two tropical green seaweeds, Ulva ohnoi (UO) and Derbesia tenuissima (DT), in a rat model of human metabolic syndrome. Male Wistar rats (330-340 g) were fed either a corn starch-rich diet or a high-carbohydrate, high-fat diet with 25% fructose in drinking water, for 16 weeks. High-carbohydrate, high-fat diet-fed rats showed the signs of metabolic syndrome leading to abdominal obesity, cardiovascular remodelling and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Food was supplemented with 5% dried UO or DT for the final 8 weeks only. UO lowered total final body fat mass by 24%, systolic blood pressure by 29 mmHg, and improved glucose utilisation and insulin sensitivity. In contrast, DT did not change total body fat mass but decreased plasma triglycerides by 38% and total cholesterol by 17%. UO contained 18.1% soluble fibre as part of 40.9% total fibre, and increased magnesium, while DT contained 23.4% total fibre, essentially as insoluble fibre. UO was more effective in reducing metabolic syndrome than DT, possibly due to the increased intake of soluble fibre and magnesium.

  13. Seaweed Supplements Normalise Metabolic, Cardiovascular and Liver Responses in High-Carbohydrate, High-Fat Fed Rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Senthil Arun Kumar

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available Increased seaweed consumption may be linked to the lower incidence of metabolic syndrome in eastern Asia. This study investigated the responses to two tropical green seaweeds, Ulva ohnoi (UO and Derbesia tenuissima (DT, in a rat model of human metabolic syndrome. Male Wistar rats (330–340 g were fed either a corn starch-rich diet or a high-carbohydrate, high-fat diet with 25% fructose in drinking water, for 16 weeks. High-carbohydrate, high-fat diet-fed rats showed the signs of metabolic syndrome leading to abdominal obesity, cardiovascular remodelling and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Food was supplemented with 5% dried UO or DT for the final 8 weeks only. UO lowered total final body fat mass by 24%, systolic blood pressure by 29 mmHg, and improved glucose utilisation and insulin sensitivity. In contrast, DT did not change total body fat mass but decreased plasma triglycerides by 38% and total cholesterol by 17%. UO contained 18.1% soluble fibre as part of 40.9% total fibre, and increased magnesium, while DT contained 23.4% total fibre, essentially as insoluble fibre. UO was more effective in reducing metabolic syndrome than DT, possibly due to the increased intake of soluble fibre and magnesium.

  14. Seaweed Supplements Normalise Metabolic, Cardiovascular and Liver Responses in High-Carbohydrate, High-Fat Fed Rats

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kumar, Senthil Arun; Magnusson, Marie; Ward, Leigh C.; Paul, Nicholas A.; Brown, Lindsay

    2015-01-01

    Increased seaweed consumption may be linked to the lower incidence of metabolic syndrome in eastern Asia. This study investigated the responses to two tropical green seaweeds, Ulva ohnoi (UO) and Derbesia tenuissima (DT), in a rat model of human metabolic syndrome. Male Wistar rats (330–340 g) were fed either a corn starch-rich diet or a high-carbohydrate, high-fat diet with 25% fructose in drinking water, for 16 weeks. High-carbohydrate, high-fat diet-fed rats showed the signs of metabolic syndrome leading to abdominal obesity, cardiovascular remodelling and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Food was supplemented with 5% dried UO or DT for the final 8 weeks only. UO lowered total final body fat mass by 24%, systolic blood pressure by 29 mmHg, and improved glucose utilisation and insulin sensitivity. In contrast, DT did not change total body fat mass but decreased plasma triglycerides by 38% and total cholesterol by 17%. UO contained 18.1% soluble fibre as part of 40.9% total fibre, and increased magnesium, while DT contained 23.4% total fibre, essentially as insoluble fibre. UO was more effective in reducing metabolic syndrome than DT, possibly due to the increased intake of soluble fibre and magnesium. PMID:25648511

  15. Effects of dietary high fructose corn syrup on regulation of energy intake and leptin gene expression in rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Guadalupe López-Rodríguez

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: To evaluate in Wistar rats the effect of chronic use of high fructose corn syrup on serum lipids, body weight, energy intake regulation, and expression of associated genes. METHODS: For 11 weeks, male rats were fed a standard diet with either water (control or 15% high fructose corn syrup solution, or fed a high-fat diet. The rats' food intake and body weight were measured weekly. Expression of leptin and fatty acid synthase genes was quantified in their brain and adipose tissue upon sacrifice at age 119 days using real-time polymerase chain reaction. RESULTS: The intake of 15% high fructose corn syrup did not affect the rats' weight, only the rats on the high-fat diet gained significant weight. The rats in both diets had lower levels of leptin expression and high levels of fatty acid synthase in the brain, which were associated with high serum triglycerides. CONCLUSION: Fifteen percent high fructose corn syrup intake and the high-fat diet reduced leptin gene expression in the brain of Wistar rats, with differential effects on weight gain.

  16. Photovoltaic performance of TiO2 electrode adsorbed with gardenia yellow purified by nonionic polymeric sorbent in dye-sensitized solar cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kwon, Oh Oun; Kim, Eui Jin; Lee, Jae Hyeok; Kim, Tae Young; Park, Kyung Hee; Kim, Sang Yook; Suh, Hwa Jin; Lee, Hyo Jung; Lee, Jae Wook

    2015-02-05

    To improve the photovoltaic conversion efficiency in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), TiO2 electrode adsorbed with gardenia yellow purified by nonionic polymeric sorbent was successfully formulated on nanoporous TiO2 surface. Adsorption and desorption properties of crude gardenia yellow solution on a macroporous resin, XAD-1600, were investigated to purify gardenia yellow because of its strong adsorption and desorption abilities as well as high selectivity. To this end, adsorption equilibrium and kinetic data were measured and fitted using adsorption isotherms and kinetic models. Adsorption and desorption breakthrough curves in a column packed with XAD-1600 resin was obtained to optimize the separation process of gardenia yellow. The photovoltaic performance of the photo-electrode adsorbed with the crude and purified gardenia yellow in DSSCs was compared from current-voltage measurements. The results showed that the photovoltaic conversion efficiency was highly dependent on how to separate and purify gardenia yellow as a photosensitizer. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  17. Directed growth of graphene nanomesh in purified argon via chemical vapor deposition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sun, Haibin; Fu, Can; Shen, Xia; Yang, Wenchao; Guo, Pengfei; Lu, Yang; Luo, Yongsong; Yu, Benhai; Wang, Xiaoge; Wang, Chunlei; Xu, Junqi; Liu, Jiangfeng; Song, Fengqi; Wang, Guanghou; Wan, Jianguo

    2017-06-16

    Graphene nanomeshes (GNMs), new graphene nanostructures with tunable bandgaps, are potential building blocks for future electronic or photonic devices, and energy storage and conversion materials. In previous works, GNMs have been successfully prepared on Cu foils by the H 2 etching effect. In this paper, we investigated the effect of Ar on the preparation of GNMs, and how the mean density and shape of them vary with growth time. In addition, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and high resolution transmission electron microscopy (TEM) revealed the typical hexagonal structure of GNM. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) indicated that large copper oxide nanoparticles produced by oxidization in purified Ar can play an essential catalytic role in preparing GNMs. Then, we exhibited the key reaction details for each growth process and proposed a growth mechanism of GNMs in purified Ar.

  18. The effect of a photocatalytic air purifier on indoor air quality quantified using different measuring methods

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kolarik, Barbara; Wargocki, Pawel; Skorek-Osikowska, A.

    2010-01-01

    The effect on indoor air quality of an air purifier based on photocatalytic oxidation (PCO) was determined by different measuring techniques: sensory assessments of air quality made by human subjects, Proton-Transfer-Reaction Mass Spectrometry (PTR-MS) and chromatographic methods (Gas......, additional measurements were made with no pollution sources present in the office. All conditions were tested with the photocatalytic air purifier turned on and off. The results show that operation of the air purifier in the presence of pollutants emitted by building materials and furniture improves indoor...... Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry and High-Pressure Liquid Chromatography with UV detection). The experiment was conducted in a simulated office, ventilated with 0.6 h(-1), 2.5 h(-1) and 6 h(-1), in the presence of additional pollution sources (carpet, chipboard and linoleum). At the lowest air change rate...

  19. Effect of triiodothyronine on rat liver chromatin protein kinase

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kruh, J.; Tichonicky, L.

    1976-01-01

    1) Injection of triiodothyronine to rats stimulates protein kinase activity in liver chromatin nonhistone proteins. A significant increase was found after two daily injections. A 4-fold increase was observed with the purified enzyme after eight daily injections of the hormone. No variations were observed in cytosol protein kinase activity. Electrophoretic pattern, effect of heat denaturation, effect of p-hydroxymercuribenzoate seem to indicate that the enzyme present in treated rats is not identical to the enzyme in control animals, which suggests that thyroid hormone has induced nuclear protein kinase. Diiodothyronine, 3, 3', 5'-triiodothyronine have no effect on protein kinase. 2) Chromatin non-histone proteins isolated from rats injected with triiodothyronine incorporated more 32 P when incubated with [γ- 32 P]ATP than the chromatin proteins from untreated rats. Thyroidectomy reduced the in vitro 32 P incorporation. It is suggested that some of the biological activity of thyroid hormone could be mediated through its effect on chromatin non-histone proteins. (orig.) [de

  20. High fat diet promotes achievement of peak bone mass in young rats

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Malvi, Parmanand; Piprode, Vikrant; Chaube, Balkrishna; Pote, Satish T. [National Centre for Cell Science, Savitribai Phule Pune University Campus, Ganeshkhind, Pune 411 007 (India); Mittal, Monika; Chattopadhyay, Naibedya [Division of Endocrinology and Center for Research in Anabolic Skeletal Targets in Health and Illness (ASTHI), CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Jankipuram Extension, Sitapur Road, Lucknow 226 031 (India); Wani, Mohan R. [National Centre for Cell Science, Savitribai Phule Pune University Campus, Ganeshkhind, Pune 411 007 (India); Bhat, Manoj Kumar, E-mail: manojkbhat@nccs.res.in [National Centre for Cell Science, Savitribai Phule Pune University Campus, Ganeshkhind, Pune 411 007 (India)

    2014-12-05

    Highlights: • High fat diet helps in achieving peak bone mass at younger age. • Shifting from high fat to normal diet normalizes obese parameters. • Bone parameters are sustained even after withdrawal of high fat diet. - Abstract: The relationship between obesity and bone is complex. Epidemiological studies demonstrate positive as well as negative correlation between obesity and bone health. In the present study, we investigated the impact of high fat diet-induced obesity on peak bone mass. After 9 months of feeding young rats with high fat diet, we observed obesity phenotype in rats with increased body weight, fat mass, serum triglycerides and cholesterol. There were significant increases in serum total alkaline phosphatase, bone mineral density and bone mineral content. By micro-computed tomography (μ-CT), we observed a trend of better trabecular bones with respect to their microarchitecture and geometry. This indicated that high fat diet helps in achieving peak bone mass and microstructure at younger age. We subsequently shifted rats from high fat diet to normal diet for 6 months and evaluated bone/obesity parameters. It was observed that after shifting rats from high fat diet to normal diet, fat mass, serum triglycerides and cholesterol were significantly decreased. Interestingly, the gain in bone mineral density, bone mineral content and trabecular bone parameters by HFD was retained even after body weight and obesity were normalized. These results suggest that fat rich diet during growth could accelerate achievement of peak bone mass that is sustainable even after withdrawal of high fat diet.

  1. High fat diet promotes achievement of peak bone mass in young rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Malvi, Parmanand; Piprode, Vikrant; Chaube, Balkrishna; Pote, Satish T.; Mittal, Monika; Chattopadhyay, Naibedya; Wani, Mohan R.; Bhat, Manoj Kumar

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • High fat diet helps in achieving peak bone mass at younger age. • Shifting from high fat to normal diet normalizes obese parameters. • Bone parameters are sustained even after withdrawal of high fat diet. - Abstract: The relationship between obesity and bone is complex. Epidemiological studies demonstrate positive as well as negative correlation between obesity and bone health. In the present study, we investigated the impact of high fat diet-induced obesity on peak bone mass. After 9 months of feeding young rats with high fat diet, we observed obesity phenotype in rats with increased body weight, fat mass, serum triglycerides and cholesterol. There were significant increases in serum total alkaline phosphatase, bone mineral density and bone mineral content. By micro-computed tomography (μ-CT), we observed a trend of better trabecular bones with respect to their microarchitecture and geometry. This indicated that high fat diet helps in achieving peak bone mass and microstructure at younger age. We subsequently shifted rats from high fat diet to normal diet for 6 months and evaluated bone/obesity parameters. It was observed that after shifting rats from high fat diet to normal diet, fat mass, serum triglycerides and cholesterol were significantly decreased. Interestingly, the gain in bone mineral density, bone mineral content and trabecular bone parameters by HFD was retained even after body weight and obesity were normalized. These results suggest that fat rich diet during growth could accelerate achievement of peak bone mass that is sustainable even after withdrawal of high fat diet

  2. Home drinking-water purifiers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pizzichini, Massimo; Pozio, Alfonso; Russo, Claudio

    2005-01-01

    To salve the widespread problem of contaminated drinking water, home purifiers are now sold in Italy as well as other countries. This article describes how these devices work, how safe they are to use and how safe the water they produce, in the broad context of regulations on drinking water and mineral water. A new device being developed by ENEA to treat municipal water and ground water could provide greater chemical and bacteriological safety. However, the appearance of these new systems makes it necessary to update existing regulations [it

  3. Eating high fat chow enhances the locomotor-stimulating effects of cocaine in adolescent and adult female rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baladi, Michelle G; Koek, Wouter; Aumann, Megan; Velasco, Fortino; France, Charles P

    2012-08-01

    Dopamine systems vary through development in a manner that can impact drugs acting on those systems. Dietary factors can also impact the effects of drugs acting on dopamine systems. This study examined whether eating high fat chow alters locomotor effects of cocaine (1-56 mg/kg) in adolescent and adult female rats. Cocaine was studied in rats (n = 6/group) with free access to standard (5.7% fat) or high fat (34.3%) chow or restricted access to high fat chow (body weight matched to rats eating standard chow). After 1 week of eating high fat chow (free or restricted access), sensitivity to cocaine was significantly increased in adolescent and adult rats, compared with rats eating standard chow. Sensitivity to cocaine was also increased in adolescent rats with restricted, but not free, access to high fat chow for 4 weeks. When adolescent and adult rats that previously ate high fat chow ate standard chow, sensitivity to cocaine returned to normal. In adolescent and adult female rats eating high fat chow, but not those eating standard chow, sensitivity to cocaine increased progressively over once weekly tests with cocaine (i.e., sensitization) in a manner that was not statistically different between adolescents and adults. These results show that eating high fat chow alters sensitivity of female rats to acutely administered cocaine and also facilitates the development of sensitization to cocaine. That the type of food consumed can increase drug effects might have relevance to vulnerability to abuse cocaine in the female population.

  4. Stimulation of phosphoinositide hydrolysis by a novel substance partially purified from rat and bovine brain

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Schoepp, D.; Wilson, T.; Elliott, C.; Wright, G.; McCumbee, W.

    1986-01-01

    This study demonstrates the partial purification of a potentially novel substance from rat and bovine brain. Whole brains were homogenized in distilled water, then heated at 100 0 C for 30 min. The water extract was dialyzed and the 3 H-inositol monophosphate ( 3 H-IP) using lithium-treated slices of rat cerebral cortex prelabelled with 3 H-myo-inositol. A major peak of activity was observed in fractions from the molecular weight range of 800-1300 daltons. Stimulation of phosphoinositide hydrolysis by this material was time-dependent and dose-related. Maximal stimulation of 3 H-IP (323% of control) required 10mg/ml of bovine material and was observed at 30 minutes. These effects could not be mimicked by a number of substances of similar molecular weight (e.g. substance P, neurotensin, angiotensin II, bradykinin). Furthermore, the effects of this material were not blocked by antagonist drugs which act at the alpha-adrenoceptor, muscarinic cholinoceptor, 5-HT2 receptor, substance P receptor, or neurotensin receptor. These results indicate that the substance isolated may be a novel neuroactive molecule which has receptors coupled to phosphoinositide hydrolysis in brain

  5. Basement membrane heparan sulfate proteoglycan from the L2 rat yolk sac carcinoma

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Fenger, M; Wewer, U; Albrechtsen, R

    1984-01-01

    Heparan sulfate proteoglycan from the L2 rat yolk sac carcinoma has been purified and partially characterized. The proteoglycan has an apparent Mr of 750 000, 35% of which represents the core protein. The core protein seems to be homogeneous, whereas the heparan sulfate chains are heterogeneous...... with an Mr of about 50 000-70 000, with 30% of the glucosamine being N-sulfated. Antibodies raised against the core protein of the heparan sulfate proteoglycan reacted with basement membranes of various rat and human tissue....

  6. Hypolipidemic activity of Piper betel in high fat diet induced hyperlipidemic rat

    OpenAIRE

    Thirunavukkarasu Thirumalai; Narayanaswamy Tamilselvan; Ernest David

    2014-01-01

    Objective: To evaluate the hypolipidemic effect of Piper betel (P. betel) in high fat diet induced hyperlipidemia rat. Methods: The methanol leaf extract was tested for hypolipidemic effect in the albino rats at the selected optimum dosage of 250 mg/kg body weight and administered orally. Adult male albino rats of six numbers in each group were undertaken study and evaluated. Results: In group II animals, the activity levels of serum total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides (TG), low densi...

  7. A long-term aging study of honeycomb drift tubes for the HERA-B Outer Tracker using a circulated and purified CF$_{4}$ gas mixture

    CERN Document Server

    Capéans-Garrido, M; Hohlmann, M; Schmidt, B

    2003-01-01

    The Outer Tracker of HERA-B uses a gas mixture containing CF/sub 4/ to obtain high electron drift velocities. The high cost of this gas makes it necessary to circulate the gas mixture which must then be purified to avoid accumulation of air and pollutants. However, the usage of gas purifiers poses the danger of outgassing pollutants from the purifiers themselves into the gas stream. Purifiers could also be attacked chemically by the aggressive products from the cracking of CF/sub 4/ molecules in the plasma avalanches of the detector. This could potentially release further harmful pollutants into the gas stream. To test for such effects, a long-term irradiation study of about 3000 h was carried out with the honeycomb drift tubes that are used in the Outer Tracker. This provided a check of the long-term stability of the gas purifiers before putting them into operation for the full-size detector. We report on the experimental setup, procedures and the results obtained. (8 refs).

  8. High-sodium intake prevents pregnancy-induced decrease of blood pressure in the rat.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beauséjour, Annie; Auger, Karine; St-Louis, Jean; Brochu, Michéle

    2003-07-01

    Despite an increase of circulatory volume and of renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) activity, pregnancy is paradoxically accompanied by a decrease in blood pressure. We have reported that the decrease in blood pressure was maintained in pregnant rats despite overactivation of RAAS following reduction in sodium intake. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of the opposite condition, e.g., decreased activation of RAAS during pregnancy in the rat. To do so, 0.9% or 1.8% NaCl in drinking water was given to nonpregnant and pregnant Sprague-Dawley rats for 7 days (last week of gestation). Increased sodium intakes (between 10- and 20-fold) produced reduction of plasma renin activity and aldosterone in both nonpregnant and pregnant rats. Systolic blood pressure was not affected in nonpregnant rats. However, in pregnant rats, 0.9% sodium supplement prevented the decreased blood pressure. Moreover, an increase of systolic blood pressure was obtained in pregnant rats receiving 1.8% NaCl. The 0.9% sodium supplement did not affect plasma and fetal parameters. However, 1.8% NaCl supplement has larger effects during gestation as shown by increased plasma sodium concentration, hematocrit level, negative water balance, proteinuria, and intrauterine growth restriction. With both sodium supplements, decreased AT1 mRNA levels in the kidney and in the placenta were observed. Our results showed that a high-sodium intake prevents the pregnancy-induced decrease of blood pressure in rats. Nonpregnant rats were able to maintain homeostasis but not the pregnant ones in response to sodium load. Furthermore, pregnant rats on a high-sodium intake (1.8% NaCl) showed some physiological responses that resemble manifestations observed in preeclampsia.

  9. Cardamom powder supplementation prevents obesity, improves glucose intolerance, inflammation and oxidative stress in liver of high carbohydrate high fat diet induced obese rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rahman, Md Mizanur; Alam, Mohammad Nazmul; Ulla, Anayt; Sumi, Farzana Akther; Subhan, Nusrat; Khan, Trisha; Sikder, Bishwajit; Hossain, Hemayet; Reza, Hasan Mahmud; Alam, Md Ashraful

    2017-08-14

    Cardamom is a well-known spice in Indian subcontinent, used in culinary and traditional medicine practices since ancient times. The current investigation was untaken to evaluate the potential benefit of cardamom powder supplementation in high carbohydrate high fat (HCHF) diet induced obese rats. Male Wistar rats (28 rats) were divided into four different groups such as Control, Control + cardamom, HCHF, HCHF + cardamom. High carbohydrate and high fat (HCHF) diet was prepared in our laboratory. Oral glucose tolerance test, organs wet weight measurements and oxidative stress parameters analysis as well as liver marker enzymes such as alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activities were assayed on the tissues collected from the rats. Plasma lipids profiles were also measured in all groups of animals. Moreover, histological staining was also performed to evaluate inflammatory cells infiltration and fibrosis in liver. The current investigation showed that, HCHF diet feeding in rats developed glucose intolerance and increased peritoneal fat deposition compared to control rats. Cardamom powder supplementation improved the glucose intolerance significantly (p > 0.05) and prevented the abdominal fat deposition in HCHF diet fed rats. HCHF diet feeding in rats also developed dyslipidemia, increased fat deposition and inflammation in liver compared to control rats. Cardamom powder supplementation significantly prevented the rise of lipid parameters (p > 0.05) in HCHF diet fed rats. Histological assessments confirmed that HCHF diet increased the fat deposition and inflammatory cells infiltration in liver which was normalized by cardamom powder supplementation in HCHF diet fed rats. Furthermore, HCHF diet increased lipid peroxidation, decreased antioxidant enzymes activities and increased advanced protein oxidation product level significantly (p > 0.05) both in plasma and liver tissue which were modulated by

  10. High-frequency electroacupuncture evidently reinforces hippocampal synaptic transmission in Alzheimer's disease rats

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Wei; Kong, Li-hong; Wang, Hui; Shen, Feng; Wang, Ya-wen; Zhou, Hua; Sun, Guo-jie

    2016-01-01

    The frequency range of electroacupuncture in treatment of Alzheimer's disease in rats is commonly 2–5 Hz (low frequency) and 50–100 Hz (high frequency). We established a rat model of Alzheimer's disease by injecting β-amyloid 1–42 (Aβ1–42) into the bilateral hippocampal dentate gyrus to verify which frequency may be better suited in treatment. Electroacupuncture at 2 Hz or 50 Hz was used to stimulate Baihui (DU20) and Shenshu (BL23) acupoints. The water maze test and electrophysiological studies demonstrated that spatial memory ability was apparently improved, and the ranges of long-term potentiation and long-term depression were increased in Alzheimer's disease rats after electroacupuncture treatment. Moreover, the effects of electroacupuncture at 50 Hz were better than that at 2 Hz. These findings suggest that high-frequency electroacupuncture may enhance hippocampal synaptic transmission and potentially improve memory disorders in Alzheimer's disease rats. PMID:27335565

  11. Oral insulin improves metabolic parameters in high fat diet fed rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    LEANDRO C. LIPINSKI

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available ABSTRACT Introduction/Aim: The gut has shown to have a pivotal role on the pathophysiology of metabolic disease. Food stimulation of distal intestinal segments promotes enterohormones secretion influencing insulin metabolism. In diabetic rats, oral insulin has potential to change intestinal epithelium behavior. This macromolecule promotes positive effects on laboratorial metabolic parameters and decreases diabetic intestinal hypertrophy. This study aims to test if oral insulin can influence metabolic parameters and intestinal weight in obese non-diabetic rats. Methods: Twelve weeks old Wistar rats were divided in 3 groups: control (CTRL standard chow group; high fat diet low carbohydrates group (HFD and HFD plus daily oral 20U insulin gavage (HFD+INS. Weight and food consumption were weekly obtained. After eight weeks, fasting blood samples were collected for laboratorial analysis. After euthanasia gut samples were isolated. Results: Rat oral insulin treatment decreased body weight gain (p<0,001, fasting glucose and triglycerides serum levels (p<0,05 an increased intestinal weight of distal ileum (P<0,05. Animal submitted to high fat diet presented higher levels of HOMA-IR although significant difference to CT was not achieved. HOMA-beta were significantly higher (p<0.05 in HFD+INS. Visceral fat was 10% lower in HFD+INS but the difference was not significant. Conclusions: In non-diabetic obese rats, oral insulin improves metabolic malfunction associated to rescue of beta-cell activity.

  12. Protective role of marine macroalgae extracts against STZ induced diabetic rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marine macroalgae

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Objective: To study the anti-diabetic activity of marine macroalgae extracts (n = 31, purification and characterization of sulphated galactopyran (SGP from Gracilaria opuntia (FM4 in diabetic rats. Methods: The animals were separated into groups and STZ (55 mg/kg body weight was used to induce diabetics. Glucose, HbA1c, insulin, C-peptide levels and in vivo antioxidant levels were estimated and histopathological studies were done in STZ-induced diabetic and marine macroalgae treated rats. Results: Based on glucose and HbA1c levels and in vivo antioxidant levels, among the 31 marine macroalgae extracts, FM4 has showed high anti-diabetic activity. Hence, FM4 was purified and characterized by 1H-NMR spectra and FT-IR as sulphated galactopyran. During the survival analysis, SGP at dose of 100 mg/kg showed significant (P < 0.05 survival rate and elevations in C-peptide and insulin levels. The histopathological modulations of SGP were observed in diabetic rat tissues such as liver, kidney and brain. Hence obtained results reveal that SGP treated diabetic rats has significant changes in C-peptide and insulin levels which regulates the blood glucose levels and recovered the histopathological changes. Conclusions: Marine macroalgae have significant anti-diabetic activity. Hence, they could be used as nutraceutical supplement or natural green remedy against diabetes mellitus.

  13. Robust sparse image reconstruction of radio interferometric observations with PURIFY

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pratley, Luke; McEwen, Jason D.; d'Avezac, Mayeul; Carrillo, Rafael E.; Onose, Alexandru; Wiaux, Yves

    2018-01-01

    Next-generation radio interferometers, such as the Square Kilometre Array, will revolutionize our understanding of the Universe through their unprecedented sensitivity and resolution. However, to realize these goals significant challenges in image and data processing need to be overcome. The standard methods in radio interferometry for reconstructing images, such as CLEAN, have served the community well over the last few decades and have survived largely because they are pragmatic. However, they produce reconstructed interferometric images that are limited in quality and scalability for big data. In this work, we apply and evaluate alternative interferometric reconstruction methods that make use of state-of-the-art sparse image reconstruction algorithms motivated by compressive sensing, which have been implemented in the PURIFY software package. In particular, we implement and apply the proximal alternating direction method of multipliers algorithm presented in a recent article. First, we assess the impact of the interpolation kernel used to perform gridding and degridding on sparse image reconstruction. We find that the Kaiser-Bessel interpolation kernel performs as well as prolate spheroidal wave functions while providing a computational saving and an analytic form. Secondly, we apply PURIFY to real interferometric observations from the Very Large Array and the Australia Telescope Compact Array and find that images recovered by PURIFY are of higher quality than those recovered by CLEAN. Thirdly, we discuss how PURIFY reconstructions exhibit additional advantages over those recovered by CLEAN. The latest version of PURIFY, with developments presented in this work, is made publicly available.

  14. Effects of red pitaya juice supplementation on cardiovascular and hepatic changes in high-carbohydrate, high-fat diet-induced metabolic syndrome rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ramli, Nurul Shazini; Brown, Lindsay; Ismail, Patimah; Rahmat, Asmah

    2014-06-12

    The fruit of Hylocereus polyrhizus, also known as red pitaya, and buah naga in Malay, is one of the tropical fruits of the cactus family, Cactaceae. Red pitaya has been shown to protect aorta from oxidative damage and improve lipid profiles in hypercholesterolemic rats probably due to phytochemicals content including phenolics and flavonoids. The aim of this study was to investigate the changes in cardiac stiffness, hepatic and renal function in high-carbohydrate, high-fat diet-induced obese rats following supplementation of red pitaya juice. Total 48 male Wistar rats were divided into 4 groups: corn-starch group (CS), corn-starch+red pitaya juice group (CRP), high-carbohydrate, high fat group (HCHF) and high-carbohydrate, high fat+red pitaya juice (HRP). The intervention with 5% red pitaya juice was started for 8 weeks after 8 weeks initiation of the diet. Heart function was determined ex vivo with Langendorff hearts while plasma liver enzymes, uric acid and urea were measured using commercial kits. Total fat mass was determined with Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scan. Glucose uptake was measured with Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT). Liver and cardiac structures were defined by histology. Supplementation of red pitaya juice for 8 weeks increased energy intake and abdominal circumference but no change in body fat and lean mass respectively. Also, there were a trend of uric acid and glucose normalization for HRP as compared to H-fed rats. Red pitaya juice treatment reduced ALP and ALT but caused significant increment in AST. Diastolic stiffness of the heart was reduced after supplementation of red pitaya juice in corn starch fed rats. However, the reduction was not significant in HRP rats in comparison with H rats. The present study concluded that red pitaya juice may serve as a complimentary therapy for attenuating some signs of metabolic syndrome.

  15. Initiation of glycogen biosynthesis in rat heart. Studies with a purified preparation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Blumenfeld, M.L.; Krisman, C.R.

    1985-01-01

    Two fractions of glycogen synthase were isolated from rat cardiac muscle on the basis of a different affinity for DEAE-cellulose and omega-aminobutyl-agarose. One of these fractions was able to transfer glucosyl residues from UDP-glucose not only to glycogen (GS-1 activity) but also to an endogenous acceptor. The latter reaction (GS-2 activity) occurred in the absence of added glycogen, and its reaction product was insoluble in trichloroacetic acid. This compound was degraded by amylolytic enzymes, thus showing that the product synthesized on the endogenous acceptor was an alpha 1,4-glucan. After incubation with alpha-amylase-free proteolytic enzyme, the compound was rendered trichloroacetic acid-soluble. Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, under both native and denaturing conditions, showed that GS-2 reaction products moved electrophoretically associated to protein. The results give further evidence for the association between an alpha 1,4-glucan and protein, which the authors postulate is related to the initiation of glycogen biosynthesis

  16. Melatonin counteracts changes in hypothalamic gene expression of signals regulating feeding behavior in high-fat fed rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ríos-Lugo, María J; Jiménez-Ortega, Vanesa; Cano-Barquilla, Pilar; Mateos, Pilar Fernández; Spinedi, Eduardo J; Cardinali, Daniel P; Esquifino, Ana I

    2015-03-01

    Previous studies indicate that the administration of melatonin caused body weight and abdominal visceral fat reductions in rodent models of hyperadiposity. The objective of the present study performed in high-fat fed rats was to evaluate the activity of melatonin on gene expression of some medial basal hypothalamus (MBH) signals involved in feeding behavior regulation, including neuropeptide Y (NPY), proopiomelanocortin (POMC), prolactin-releasing peptide (PrRP), leptin- and insulin-receptors (R) and insulin-R substrate (IRS)-1 and -2. Blood levels of leptin and adiponectin were also measured. Adult Wistar male rats were divided into four groups (n=16 per group): (i) control diet (3% fat); (ii) high-fat (35%) diet; (iii) high-fat diet+melatonin; (iv) control diet+melatonin. Rats had free access to high-fat or control chow and one of the following drinking solutions: (a) tap water; (b) 25 μg/mL of melatonin. After 10 weeks, the high-fat fed rats showed augmented MBH mRNA levels of NPY, leptin-R, PrRP, insulin-R, IRS-1 and IRS-2. The concomitant administration of melatonin counteracted this increase. Feeding of rats with a high-fat diet augmented expression of the MBH POMC gene through an effect insensitive to melatonin treatment. The augmented levels of circulating leptin and adiponectin seen in high-fat fed rats were counteracted by melatonin as was the augmented body weight: melatonin significantly attenuated a body weight increase in high-fat fed rats without affecting chow or water consumption. Melatonin augmented plasma leptin and adiponectin in control rats. The results indicate that an effect on gene expression of feeding behavior signals at the central nervous system (CNS) may complement a peripheral rise of the energy expenditure produced by melatonin to decrease body weight in high-fat fed rats.

  17. The design and commissioning of cold trap purifying system of hydrogen meter sodium loop

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhao Zhaoyi; Jia Baoshan; Chen Xiaoming; Pan Fengguo

    1993-01-01

    The design feature and parameters of cold trap purifying system of hydrogen meter sodium loop and its commissioning results are reported and discussed. In order to adjust the flow easily,. the cold trap purifying system is arranged in the exit of the electromagnetic pump. It is composed of regenerator and the cold trap. The regenerator is above the cold trap. The high temperature sodium in the main-loop flows through the regenerator, in the entrance of the cold trap, its temperature is reduced to 180 degree C. After entering into the cold trap, the sodium flows to the purifying region by side, when it arrives the bottom of the trap, its temperature is reduced to 110 degree C. The cold trap is cooled by air. The temperature of the clean sodium rises nearby the main-loop's by the regenerator, and then it returns to the entrance of the electromagnetic pump. According to the commissioning results, the sodium's temperature of the cold trap could be reduced to 110 degree C by reducing the flow of the cold trap purifying system and the temperature of the main-loop, or increasing the air flow and cutting off the power supply of its heating. The authors think that the latter is more conformable with the design stipulation and with the requirement of the hydrogen meter experiment, and it can meet the requirements of the operation of the Nuclear Power Plant

  18. Insulin Resistance Induced by a High Fructose Diet in Rats Due to Hepatic Disturbance

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Heibashy, M.I.A.; Mazen, G.M.A.; Kelada, N.A.H.

    2013-01-01

    High consumption of dietary fructose is accused of being responsible for the development of the insulin resistance (IR) syndrome. Concern has arisen because of the realization that fructose, at elevated concentrations, can promote metabolic changes that are potentially deleterious. Among these changes is IR which manifests as a decreased biological response to normal levels of plasma insulin. Therefore, this experiment was designed to evaluate the role of high fructose diet on metabolic syndrome in rats. The experimental animals were divided into two batches. The control batch received a control diet; the second batch was given a high-fructose diet as the sole source of carbohydrate. The rats were continued on the dietary regimen for 1, 2 and 3 months. After the experimental periods, fructose fed rats groups showed significant elevations in the levels of glucose, insulin sensitivity, liver function tests, nitric oxide and tumor necrosis factor-α when compared to their corresponding values in the rats fed normal diet. Moreover, liver lipid peroxidation [thiobarbituric acid-reactive substance (TBARS) and lipid hydroperoxide concentrations were remarkably increased in high-fructose-fed rats according to the time of administration (1, 2 and 3 months). On the other hand, the activities of enzymatic antioxidants (glutathione reductase and glutathione peroxidase) and glyoxalase I and II were significantly declined in this group. In conclusion, high fructose feeding raises liver dysfunction and causes the features of metabolic syndrome (insulin resistance) in rats dependent on the time of administration due to different mechanisms which were discussed in this work according to available recent researches

  19. Process for purifying graphite

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Clausius, R.A.

    1985-01-01

    A process for purifying graphite comprising: comminuting graphite containing mineral matter to liberate at least a portion of the graphite particles from the mineral matter; mixing the comminuted graphite particles containing mineral matter with water and hydrocarbon oil to form a fluid slurry; separating a water phase containing mineral matter and a hydrocarbon oil phase containing grahite particles; and separating the graphite particles from the hydrocarbon oil to obtain graphite particles reduced in mineral matter. Depending upon the purity of the graphite desired, steps of the process can be repeated one or more times to provide a progressively purer graphite

  20. Home Air Purifiers Eradicate Harmful Pathogens

    Science.gov (United States)

    2014-01-01

    Marshall Space Flight Center funded the University of Madison-Wisconsin to develop ethylene scrubbers to keep produce fresh in space. Akida Holdings of Jacksonville, Florida, licensed the technology and developed Airocide, an air purifier that can kill airborne pathogens. Previously designed for industrial spaces, there is now a specially designed unit for home use.

  1. Anti-glomerular basement membrane autoantibodies in the Brown Norway rat: detection by a solid-phase radioimmunoassay

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bowman, C.; Peters, D.K.; Lockwood, C.M.

    1983-01-01

    A solid-phase radioimmunoassay (RIA) is described for the detection of IgG autoantibodies to glomerular basement membrane (GBM) induced in the Brown Norway rat by mercuric chloride. The assay involves the adsorption of a collagenase digest of GBM to plastic microtitre plates and detection of bound antibody with affinity purified radiolabelled rabbit anti-rat IgG. Comparison with existing immunofluorescence methods for detection of anti-GBM antibody showed that the solid-phase RIA is highly sensitive, allowing detection of antibody in solutions with as low as 0.5 ng protein/ml. The assay is suitable for detection of anti-GBM antibody both in serum and in eluates from nephritic kidneys. The assay proved to be specific in competitive studies of inhibition brought about by GBM, keyhole limpet antigen and ovalbumin. This solid-phase RIA is reproducible, robust and easy to perform. (Auth.)

  2. Lipid Lowering Effect of Punica granatum L. Peel in High Lipid Diet Fed Male Rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alireza Sadeghipour

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Many herbal medicines have been recommended for the treatment of dyslipidemia. The antilipidemic effect of hydroethanolic extract of pomegranate peel (Punica granatum L. was investigated in high lipid diet fed male rats. Intraperitoneally administration of pomegranate peel extract (50, 100, 200, and 300 mg/kg body weight for 23 days on the levels of serum cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL, HDL, alkaline phosphatase (AP, aspartate aminotransferase (AST, and alanine aminotransferase (ALT in high lipid diet fed male rats was evaluated. Treatment of pomegranate extract decreased body weight in treated rats, significantly. Administration of the plant extract significantly decreased serum total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL-C, alkaline phosphatise, AST, and ALT levels, whereas it increased serum HDL-C in high lipid diet fed rats in comparison to saline control group. Also, histopathological study showed that treatment of pomegranate peel extract attenuates liver damage in high lipid diet fed rats in comparison to saline group. It is concluded that the plant should be considered as an excellent candidate for future studies on dyslipidemia.

  3. Lipid Lowering Effect of Punica granatum L. Peel in High Lipid Diet Fed Male Rats

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sadeghipour, Alireza; Ilchizadeh Kavgani, Ali; Ghahramani, Reza; Shahabzadeh, Saleh; Anissian, Ali

    2014-01-01

    Many herbal medicines have been recommended for the treatment of dyslipidemia. The antilipidemic effect of hydroethanolic extract of pomegranate peel (Punica granatum L.) was investigated in high lipid diet fed male rats. Intraperitoneally administration of pomegranate peel extract (50, 100, 200, and 300 mg/kg body weight) for 23 days on the levels of serum cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL, HDL, alkaline phosphatase (AP), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) in high lipid diet fed male rats was evaluated. Treatment of pomegranate extract decreased body weight in treated rats, significantly. Administration of the plant extract significantly decreased serum total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL-C, alkaline phosphatise, AST, and ALT levels, whereas it increased serum HDL-C in high lipid diet fed rats in comparison to saline control group. Also, histopathological study showed that treatment of pomegranate peel extract attenuates liver damage in high lipid diet fed rats in comparison to saline group. It is concluded that the plant should be considered as an excellent candidate for future studies on dyslipidemia. PMID:25295067

  4. Rodent malaria in rats exacerbated by milk protein, attenuated by low-protein vegetable diet

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Doorne, C.W. van; Eling, W.M.C.; Luyken, R.

    1998-01-01

    Young male Wistar rats were fed a purified, vegetable, low-protein diet containing 6% protein from maize gluten and 2% from soy protein isolate, or comparable diets in which maize gluten was replaced partly or completely by the equivalent amount of a milk protein concentrate. Diets with adequate

  5. Haloperidol and Rimonabant Increase Delay Discounting in Rats Fed High-Fat and Standard-Chow Diets

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boomhower, Steven R.; Rasmussen, Erin B.

    2016-01-01

    The dopamine and endocannabinoid neurotransmitter systems have been implicated in delay discounting, a measure of impulsive choice, and obesity. The current study was designed to determine the extent to which haloperidol and rimonabant affected delay discounting in rats fed standard-chow and high-fat diets. Sprague-Dawley rats were allowed to free-feed under a high-fat diet (4.73 kcal/g) or a standard-chow diet (3.0 kcal/g) for three months. Then, operant sessions began in which rats (n = 9 standard chow; n = 10 high-fat) chose between one sucrose pellet delivered immediately vs. three sucrose pellets after a series of delays. In another condition, carrot-flavored pellets replaced sucrose pellets. After behavior stabilized, acute injections of rimonabant (0.3-10 mg/kg) and haloperidol (0.003-0.1 mg/kg) were administered i.p. before some choice sessions in both pellet conditions. Haloperidol and rimonabant increased discounting in both groups of rats by decreasing percent choice for the larger reinforcer and area-under-the-curve (AUC) values. Rats in the high-fat diet condition demonstrated increased sensitivity to haloperidol compared to chow-fed controls: haloperidol increased discounting in both dietary groups in the sucrose condition,, but only in the high-fat-fed rats in the carrot-pellet condition. These findings indicate that blocking D2 and CB1 receptors results in increased delay discounting, and that a high-fat diet may alter sensitivity to dopaminergic compounds using the delay-discounting task. PMID:25000488

  6. Eating high-fat chow enhances sensitization to the effects of methamphetamine on locomotion in rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McGuire, Blaine A; Baladi, Michelle G; France, Charles P

    2011-05-11

    Eating high-fat chow can modify the effects of drugs acting directly or indirectly on dopamine systems and repeated intermittent drug administration can markedly increase sensitivity (i.e., sensitization) to the behavioral effects of indirect-acting dopamine receptor agonists (e.g., methamphetamine). This study examined whether eating high-fat chow alters the sensitivity of male Sprague Dawley rats to the locomotor stimulating effects of acute or repeated administration of methamphetamine. The acute effects of methamphetamine on locomotion were not different between rats (n=6/group) eating high-fat or standard chow for 1 or 4 weeks. Sensitivity to the effects of methamphetamine (0.1-10mg/kg, i.p.) increased progressively across 4 once per week tests; this sensitization developed more rapidly and to a greater extent in rats eating high-fat chow as compared with rats eating standard chow. Thus, while eating high-fat chow does not appear to alter sensitivity of rats to acutely-administered methamphetamine, it significantly increases the sensitization that develops to repeated intermittent administration of methamphetamine. These data suggest that eating certain foods influences the development of sensitization to drugs acting on dopamine systems. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  7. High Dietary Fructose Intake on Cardiovascular Disease Related Parameters in Growing Rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yoo, SooYeon; Ahn, Hyejin; Park, Yoo Kyoung

    2016-12-26

    The objective of this study was to determine the effects of a high-fructose diet on cardiovascular disease (CVD)-related parameters in growing rats. Three-week-old female Sprague Dawley rats were randomly assigned to four experimental groups; a regular diet group (RD: fed regular diet based on AIN-93G, n = 8), a high-fructose diet group (30Frc: fed regular diet with 30% fructose, n = 8), a high-fat diet group (45Fat: fed regular diet with 45 kcal% fat, n = 8) or a high fructose with high-fat diet group (30Frc + 45Fat, fed diet 30% fructose with 45 kcal% fat, n = 8). After an eight-week treatment period, the body weight, total-fat weight, serum glucose, insulin, lipid profiles and pro-inflammatory cytokines, abdominal aortic wall thickness, and expressions of eNOS and ET-1 mRNA were analyzed. The result showed that total-fat weight was higher in the 30Frc, 45Fat, and 30Frc + 45Fat groups compared to the RD group ( p fructose consumption and high fat consumption in growing rats had similar negative effects on CVD-related parameters.

  8. Equisetum sylvaticum base reduces atherosclerosis risk factors in rats fed a high-fat diet

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cheng-He Lin

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available We identify an Equisetum sylvaticum alkaloid (ESA derived from E. hyemale, which has robust antihyperlipidemic effects in rats fed a high-fat diet. ESA was isolated from E. hyemale and identified by IR, 13C NMR and 1H NMR. Rats were induced to hyperlipidemia and subjected to ESA treatment. In hyperlipidemic model, fed with a high-fat diet, the blood levels of TC, TG and LDL-C were increased. The administration of ESA (20 or 40 mg/kg to those rats significantly improved the HDL-C level and reduced the levels of TC, TG, LDL-C. The atherosclerosis index and atherosclerosis risk of these rats were significantly reduced by ESA. In addition, the administration of ESA in rats increased the activity of SOD and decreased the level of MDA. These results reveal the antihyperlipidemic and anti-oxidative effects of ESA in vivo.

  9. Sensory-specific satiety is intact in rats made obese on a high-fat high-sugar choice diet.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Myers, Kevin P

    2017-05-01

    Sensory-specific satiety (SSS) is the temporary decreased pleasantness of a recently eaten food, which inhibits further eating. Evidence is currently mixed whether SSS is weaker in obese people, and whether such difference precedes or follows from the obese state. Animal models allow testing whether diet-induced obesity causes SSS impairment. Female rats (n = 24) were randomly assigned to an obesogenic high-fat, high-sugar choice diet or chow-only control. Tests of SSS involved pre-feeding a single palatable, distinctively-flavored food (cheese- or cocoa-flavored) prior to free choice between both foods. Rats were tested for short-term SSS (2 h pre-feeding immediately followed by 2 h choice) and long-term SSS (3 day pre-feeding prior to choice on day 4). In both short- and long-term tests rats exhibited SSS by shifting preference towards the food not recently eaten. SSS was not impaired in obese rats. On the contrary, in the long-term tests they showed stronger SSS than controls. This demonstrates that neither the obese state nor a history of excess energy consumption fundamentally causes impaired SSS in rats. The putative impaired SSS in obese people may instead reflect a specific predisposition, properties of the obesogenic diet, or history of restrictive dieting and bingeing. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Antiobesity Effect of Codonopsis lanceolata in High-Calorie/High-Fat-Diet-Induced Obese Rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hye-Kyung Choi

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available The antiobesity effects of Codonopsis lanceolata (CL were evaluated in a high-calorie/high-fat-diet (HFD- induced obesity rat model and 3T3-L1 cells. The Sprague-Dawley male rats were fed a normal diet (ND or a HFD for a period of 12 weeks. The rats were subdivided into groups: ND, ND + wild Codonopsis lanceolata (wCL (900 mg/kg/day, p.o., ND + cultivated Codonopsis lanceolata (cCL (900 mg/kg/day, p.o., HFD, HFD + wCL (100, 300, or 900 mg/kg/day, p.o., HFD + cCL (100, 300, or 900 mg/kg/day, p.o., and HFD + sibutramine. The body weight gains of the administered HFD + CL (wCL or CCL were lower than those of the rats fed with only the HFD group. Moreover, the weight of adipose pads and the serum levels of triglycerides, total cholesterol, and low density lipoprotein cholesterol in the group administered HDL + CL were significantly lower than in the HFD group. The inhibitory effect of lipid accumulation in 3T3-L1 cells was measured by Oil Red O staining and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR. Treatment of 3T3-L1 cells with wCL inhibited lipid accumulation and expression of C/EBPα and PPARγ. These results suggest that CL has a great potential as a functional food with anti-obesity effects and as a therapeutic alternative in the treatment of obesity.

  11. Mine water purify from radium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lebecka, J.

    1996-01-01

    The article describes purification of radium containing water in coal mines. Author concludes that water purification is relatively simple and effective way to decrease environmental pollution caused by coal mining. The amount of radium disposed with type A radium water has been significantly decreased. The results of investigations show that it will be soon possible to purify also type B radium water. Article compares the amounts of radium disposed by coal mines in 1990, 1995 and forecast for 2000

  12. High fat diet-fed obese rats are highly sensitive to doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mitra, Mayurranjan S.; Donthamsetty, Shashikiran; White, Brent; Mehendale, Harihara M.

    2008-01-01

    Often, chemotherapy by doxorubicin (Adriamycin) is limited due to life threatening cardiotoxicity in patients during and posttherapy. Recently, we have shown that moderate diet restriction remarkably protects against doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity. This cardioprotection is accompanied by decreased cardiac oxidative stress and triglycerides and increased cardiac fatty-acid oxidation, ATP synthesis, and upregulated JAK/STAT3 pathway. In the current study, we investigated whether a physiological intervention by feeding 40% high fat diet (HFD), which induces obesity in male Sprague-Dawley rats (250-275 g), sensitizes to doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity. A LD 10 dose (8 mg doxorubicin/kg, ip) administered on day 43 of the HFD feeding regimen led to higher cardiotoxicity, cardiac dysfunction, lipid peroxidation, and 80% mortality in the obese (OB) rats in the absence of any significant renal or hepatic toxicity. Doxorubicin toxicokinetics studies revealed no change in accumulation of doxorubicin and doxorubicinol (toxic metabolite) in the normal diet-fed (ND) and OB hearts. Mechanistic studies revealed that OB rats are sensitized due to: (1) higher oxyradical stress leading to upregulation of uncoupling proteins 2 and 3, (2) downregulation of cardiac peroxisome proliferators activated receptor-α, (3) decreased plasma adiponectin levels, (4) decreased cardiac fatty-acid oxidation (666.9 ± 14.0 nmol/min/g heart in ND versus 400.2 ± 11.8 nmol/min/g heart in OB), (5) decreased mitochondrial AMP-α2 protein kinase, and (6) 86% drop in cardiac ATP levels accompanied by decreased ATP/ADP ratio after doxorubicin administration. Decreased cardiac erythropoietin and increased SOCS3 further downregulated the cardioprotective JAK/STAT3 pathway. In conclusion, HFD-induced obese rats are highly sensitized to doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity by substantially downregulating cardiac mitochondrial ATP generation, increasing oxidative stress and downregulating the JAK/STAT3

  13. Silicon Alleviates Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis by Reducing Apoptosis in Aged Wistar Rats Fed a High-Saturated Fat, High-Cholesterol Diet.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garcimartín, Alba; López-Oliva, M Elvira; Sántos-López, Jorge A; García-Fernández, Rosa A; Macho-González, Adrián; Bastida, Sara; Benedí, Juana; Sánchez-Muniz, Francisco J

    2017-06-01

    Background: Lipoapoptosis has been identified as a key event in the progression of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and hence, antiapoptotic agents have been recommended as a possible effective treatment for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Silicon, included in meat as a functional ingredient, improves lipoprotein profiles and liver antioxidant defenses in aged rats fed a high-saturated fat, high-cholesterol diet (HSHCD). However, to our knowledge, the antiapoptotic effect of this potential functional meat on the liver has never been tested. Objective: This study was designed to evaluate the effect of silicon on NASH development and the potential antiapoptotic properties of silicon in aged rats. Methods: One-year-old male Wistar rats weighing ∼500 g were fed 3 experimental diets containing restructured pork (RP) for 8 wk: 1 ) a high-saturated fat diet, as an NAFLD control, with 16.9% total fat, 0.14 g cholesterol/kg diet, and 46.8 mg SiO 2 /kg (control); 2 ) the HSHCD as a model of NASH, with 16.6% total fat, 16.3 g cholesterol/kg diet, and 46.8 mg SiO 2 /kg [high-cholesterol diet (Chol-C)]; and 3 ) the HSHCD with silicon-supplemented RP with amounts of fat and cholesterol identical to those in the Chol-C diet, but with 750 mg SiO 2 /kg (Chol-Si). Detailed histopathological assessments were performed, and the NAFLD activity score (NAS) was calculated. Liver apoptosis and damage markers were evaluated by Western blotting and immunohistochemical staining. Results: Chol-C rats had a higher mean NAS (7.4) than did control rats (1.9; P silicon substantially affects NASH development in aged male Wistar rats fed an HSHCD by partially blocking apoptosis. These results suggest that silicon-enriched RP could be used as an effective nutritional strategy in preventing NASH. © 2017 American Society for Nutrition.

  14. Sensitivity to apomorphine-induced yawning and hypothermia in rats eating standard or high-fat chow.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baladi, Michelle G; Thomas, Yvonne M; France, Charles P

    2012-07-01

    Feeding conditions modify sensitivity to indirect- and direct-acting dopamine receptor agonists as well as the development of sensitization to these drugs. This study examined whether feeding condition affects acute sensitivity to apomorphine-induced yawning or changes in sensitivity that occur over repeated drug administration. Quinpirole-induced yawning was also evaluated to see whether sensitization to apomorphine confers cross-sensitization to quinpirole. Drug-induced yawning was measured in different groups of male Sprague Dawley rats (n = 6/group) eating high (34.3%) fat or standard (5.7% fat) chow. Five weeks of eating high-fat chow rendered otherwise drug-naïve rats more sensitive to apomorphine- (0.01-1.0 mg/kg, i.p.) and quinpirole- (0.0032-0.32 mg/kg, i.p.) induced yawning, compared with rats eating standard chow. In other rats, tested weekly with apomorphine, sensitivity to apomorphine-induced yawning increased (sensitization) similarly in rats with free access to standard or high-fat chow; conditioning to the testing environment appeared to contribute to increased yawning in both groups of rats. Food restriction decreased sensitivity to apomorphine-induced yawning across five weekly tests. Rats with free access to standard or high-fat chow and sensitized to apomorphine were cross-sensitized to quinpirole-induced yawning. The hypothermic effects of apomorphine and quinpirole were not different regardless of drug history or feeding condition. Eating high-fat chow or restricting access to food alters sensitivity to direct-acting dopamine receptor agonists (apomorphine, quinpirole), although the relative contribution of drug history and dietary conditions to sensitivity changes appears to vary among agonists.

  15. Des-acyl ghrelin prevents heatstroke-like symptoms in rats exposed to high temperature and high humidity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Inoue, Yoshiyuki; Hayashi, Yujiro; Kangawa, Kenji; Suzuki, Yoshihiro; Murakami, Noboru; Nakahara, Keiko

    2016-02-26

    We have shown previously that des-acyl ghrelin decreases body temperature in rats through activation of the parasympathetic nervous system. Here we investigated whether des-acyl ghrelin ameliorates heatstroke in rats exposed to high temperature. Peripheral administration of des-acyl ghrelin significantly attenuated hyperthermia induced by exposure to high-temperature (35°C) together with high humidity (70-80%). Although biochemical analysis revealed that exposure to high temperature significantly increased hematocrit and the serum levels of aspartate amino transferase (AST), alanine transaminase (ALT), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), creatinine and electrolytes (Na(+), K(+), Cl(-)), most of these heatstroke-associated reactions were significantly reduced by treatment with des-acyl ghrelin. The level of des-acyl ghrelin in plasma was also found to be significantly increased under high-temperature conditions. These results suggest that des-acyl ghrelin could be useful for preventing heatstroke under high temperature condition. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. High-fat diet induced insulin resistance in pregnant rats through pancreatic pax6 signaling pathway.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Hao; Liu, Yunyun; Wang, Hongkun; Xu, Xianming

    2015-01-01

    To explore the changes in pancreas islet function of pregnant rats after consumption of high-fat diet and the underlying mechanism. Thirty pregnant Wistar rats were randomly divided into two groups: high-fat diet group and normal control group. Twenty days after gestation, fasting blood glucose concentration (FBG) and fasting serum insulin concentration (FINS) were measured. Then, oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) and insulin release test (IRT) were performed. Finally, all the rats were sacrificed and pancreas were harvested. Insulin sensitivity index (ISI) and insulin resistance index (HOMA-IR) were calculated according to FBG and FINS. RT-PCR and Real-time PCR were performed to study the expression of paired box 6 transcription factor (Pax6) and its target genes in pancreatic tissues. The body weight was significantly increased in the high-fat diet group compared with that of normal control rats (Pinsulin concentration between the two groups. OGTT and IRT were abnormal in the high-fat diet group. The high-fat diet rats were more prone to impaired glucose tolerance and insulin resistance. The level of the expression of Pax6 transcription factor and its target genes in pancreas, such as pancreatic and duodenal homeobox factor-1 (Pdx1), v-maf musculoaponeurotic fibrosarcoma oncogene homolog A (MafA) and glucose transporter 2 (Glut2) were decreased significantly compared with those of normal control group. High-fat diet feeding during pregnancy may induce insulin resistance in maternal rats by inhibiting pancreatic Pax6 and its target genes expression.

  17. CHARACTER OF THE CHANGES IN FEAR MOTIVATED DECLARATIVE MEMORY IN THE HIGH IMMOBILIZATION "DEPRESSIVE" RATS.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nachkebia, N; Shavgulidze, M; Babilodze, M; Chkhartishvili, E; Rogava, N

    2016-10-01

    Present study investigated possible differences in the learning and memory of declarative memory task in rats selected according to the differences in immobilization response that is in high immobilization "depressive" and low immobilization "non-depressive" rats. Understanding the character of learning and memory disturbances in basal conditions of animal models of depression is still very topical for more intimate definition of the pathophysiology of major depressive disorder and appropriate searching the ways of its correction. Experiments were carried out on the adult white wild rats (with the weight 200-250 g, n=20). Selection of rats according to the level of immobilization was made by means of forced swim test. Learning and memory disturbances were studied using passive avoidance test that is fear motivated one trial declarative memory task. It was shown by us that 100% of low immobilization "non-depressive" rats remember painful stimulation and therefore they are not enter in the dark compartment during whole period of observation during testing session. Behavior of high immobilization "depressive" rats is not similar in passive avoidance camera; 50% of "depressive" rats, with long escape latency during training session (92±10 sec), remember painful stimulation during testing session and therefore they are not enter in the dark compartment during whole observation period. The remaining 50%, that are not differ significantly from the low immobility "non-depressive" rats by the latency of escape (5±1 sec) during training session, are not able to remember painful stimulation during testing session and therefore they enter in the dark compartment with shortest escape latency (6±1 sec). In conclusion, high immobility "depressive" rats perform passive avoidance declarative memory task at the chance level that is a direct indicator for the serious disturbances of declarative memory mechanisms in "depressive" rats selected in forced swim test according to the

  18. High affinity binding of [3H]cocaine to rat liver microsomes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    El-Maghrabi, E.A.; Calligaro, D.O.; Eldefrawi, M.E.

    1988-01-01

    ] 3 H]cocaine bound reversible, with high affinity and stereospecificity to rat liver microsomes. Little binding was detected in the lysosomal, mitochondrial and nuclear fractions. The binding kinetics were slow and the kinetically calculated K/sub D/ was 2 nM. Induction of mixed function oxidases by phenobarbital did not produce significant change in [ 3 H]cocaine binding. On the other hand, chronic administration of cocaine reduced [ 3 H]cocaine binding drastically. Neither treatment affected the affinity of the liver binding protein for cocaine. Microsomes from mouse and human livers had less cocaine-binding protein and lower affinity for cocaine than those from rat liver. Binding of [ 3 H]cocaine to rat liver microsomes was insensitive to monovalent cations and > 10 fold less sensitive to biogenic amines than the cocaine receptor in rat striatum. However, the liver protein had higher affinity for cocaine and metabolites except for norcocaine. Amine uptake inhibitors displaced [ 3 H]cocaine binding to liver with a different rank order of potency than their displacement of [ 3 H]cocaine binding to striatum. This high affinity [ 3 H]cocaine binding protein in liver is not likely to be monooxygenase, but may have a role in cocaine-induced hepatotoxicity

  19. Cardiac Hypertrophy and Brain Natriuretic Peptide Levels in an Ovariectomized Rat Model Fed a High-Fat Diet

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goncalves, Gleisy Kelly; de Oliveira, Thiago Henrique Caldeira; de Oliveira Belo, Najara

    2017-01-01

    Background Heart failure in women increases around the time of menopause when high-fat diets may result in obesity. The heart produces brain natriuretic peptide (BNP), also known as B-type natriuretic peptide. This aims of this study were to assess cardiac hypertrophy and BNP levels in ovariectomized rats fed a high-fat diet. Material/Methods Forty-eight female Wistar rats were divided into four groups: sham-operated rats fed a control diet (SC) (n=12); ovariectomized rats fed a control diet (OC) (n=12); sham-operated rats fed a high-fat diet (SF) (n=12); and ovariectomized rats fed a high-fat diet (OF) (n=12). Body weight and blood pressure were measured weekly for 24 weeks. Rats were then euthanized, and plasma samples and heart tissue were studied for gene expression, hydroxyproline levels, and histological examination. Results A high-fat diet and ovariectomy (group OF) increased the weight body and the systolic blood pressure after three months and five months, respectively. Cardiomyocyte hypertrophy was associated with increased expression of ventricular BNP, decreased natriuretic peptide receptor (NPR)-A and increased levels of hydroxyproline and transforming growth factor (TGF)-β. The plasma levels of BNP and estradiol were inversely correlated; expression of estrogen receptor (ER)β and ERα were reduced. Conclusions The findings of this study showed that, in the ovariectomized rats fed a high-fat diet, the BNP-NPR-A receptor complex was involved in cardiac remodeling. BNP may be a marker of cardiac hypertrophy in this animal model. PMID:29249795

  20. Phleum pratense pollen starch granules induce humoral and cell-mediated immune responses in a rat model of allergy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Motta, A; Peltre, G; Dormans, J A M A; Withagen, C E T; Lacroix, G; Bois, F; Steerenberg, P A

    2004-02-01

    Timothy grass (Phleum pratense) pollen allergens are an important cause of allergic symptoms. However, pollen grains are too large to penetrate the deeper airways. Grass pollen is known to release allergen-bearing starch granules (SG) upon contact with water. These granules can create an inhalable allergenic aerosol capable of triggering an early asthmatic response and are implicated in thunderstorm-associated asthma. We studied the humoral (IgE) and bronchial lymph node cells reactivities to SG from timothy grass pollen in pollen-sensitized rats. Brown-Norway rats were sensitized (day 0) and challenged (day 21) intratracheally with intact pollen and kept immunized by pollen intranasal instillation by 4 weeks intervals during 3 months. Blood and bronchial lymph nodes were collected 7 days after the last intranasal challenge. SG were purified from fresh timothy grass pollen using 5 microm mesh filters. To determine the humoral response (IgE) to SG, we developed an original ELISA inhibition test, based on competition between pollen allergens and purified SG. The cell-mediated response to SG in the bronchial lymph node cells was determined by measuring the uptake of [3H]thymidine in a proliferation assay. An antibody response to SG was induced, and purified SG were able to inhibit the IgE ELISA absorbance by 45%. Pollen extract and intact pollen gave inhibitions of 55% and 52%, respectively. A cell-mediated response was also found, as pollen extract, intact pollen and SG triggered proliferation of bronchial lymph node cells. It was confirmed that timothy grass pollen contains allergen-loaded SG, which are released upon contact with water. These granules were shown to be recognized by pollen-sensitized rats sera and to trigger lymph node cell proliferation in these rats. These data provide new arguments supporting the implication of grass pollen SG in allergic asthma.

  1. High intraocular pressure produces learning and memory impairments in rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yuan, Yuxiang; Chen, Zhiqi; Li, Lu; Li, Xing; Xia, Qian; Zhang, Hong; Duan, Qiming; Zhao, Yin

    2017-11-15

    Primary open angle glaucoma (POAG) is a leading cause of irreversible blindness worldwide. Previous MRI studies have revealed that POAG can be associated with alterations in hippocampal function. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate a relationship between chronic high intraocular pressure (IOP) and hippocampal changes in a rat model. We used behavioural tests to assess learning and memory ability, and additionally investigated the hippocampal expression of pathological amyloid beta (Aβ), phospho-tau, and related pathway proteins. Chronic high IOP impaired learning and memory in rats and concurrently increased Aβ and phospho-tau expression in the hippocampus by altering the activation of different kinase (GSK-3β, BACE1) and phosphatase (PP2A) proteins in the hippocampus. This study provides novel evidence for the relationship between high IOP and hippocampal alterations, especially in the context of learning and memory. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  2. Purification and properties of a 3 alpha-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase of rat liver cytosol and its inhibition by anti-inflammatory drugs.

    OpenAIRE

    Penning, T M; Mukharji, I; Barrows, S; Talalay, P

    1984-01-01

    An NAD(P)-dependent 3 alpha-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (EC 1.1.1.50) was purified to homogeneity from rat liver cytosol, where it is responsible for most if not all of the capacity for the oxidation of androsterone, 1-acenaphthenol and benzenedihydrodiol (trans-1,2-dihydroxycyclohexa-3,5-diene). The dehydrogenase has many properties (substrate specificity, pI, Mr, amino acid composition) in common with the dihydrodiol dehydrogenase (EC 1.3.1.20) purified from the same source [Vogel, Bentley...

  3. Glomerular sieving of high molecular weight proteins in proteinuric rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bertolatus, J.A.; Abuyousef, M.; Hunsicker, L.G.

    1987-01-01

    To characterize the permeability of the glomerular capillary wall to high molecular weight proteins in normal and proteinuric rats, we determined the glomerular sieving coefficients (GSC) of radioiodinated marker proteins of known size and charge by means of a paired label, tissue accumulation method previously validated in this laboratory. In one group of rats (Series A) the GSCs of 125 I-anionic IgG (aIgG-molecular weight [mol wt] 150,000, pI 4.9) and 131 I-neutral IgG (nIgG-pI 7.4 to 7.6) were measured simultaneously. In Series B, the GSC of a second anionic marker, 131 I-human ceruloplasmin (Crp-mol wt 137,000, pI 4.9) was compared to that of 125 I-nIgG. As in the previous report, the labeled proteins were not degraded or deiodinated during the 20 minute clearance period for GSC determination. Within Series A and B, three subgroups of rats were studied: control saline-infused rats, rats made acutely proteinuric by infusion of the polycation hexadimethrine (HDM), and rats with chronic doxorubicin (Adriamycin-Adria) nephrosis. In the control rats, GSCs for the anionic markers aIgG (Series A) or Crp (Series B) were significantly greater than that of nIgG (both series). These large proteins crossed the filtration barrier by a different pathway from that available to smaller neutral molecules the size of albumin, which in our previous study had a much higher GSC than a native, anionic albumin marker. In a third group of control rats only (Series C), the GSCs of native anionic bovine albumin (BSA) and nIgG were compared directly. The GSC of BSA (0.0029) was only slightly larger than the GSC of nIgG (0.0025), indicating that most of the native albumin crosses the glomerular capillary wall via a nonselective pathway similar to that available to nIgG. The results in the control groups are compatible with recently-described heteroporous models of glomerular size selectivity

  4. Hydrodynamic and Membrane Binding Properties of Purified Rous Sarcoma Virus Gag Protein

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dick, Robert A.; Datta, Siddhartha A.K.; Nanda, Hirsh; Fang, Xianyang; Wen, Yi; Barros, Marilia; Wang, Yun-Xing; Rein, Alan; Vogt, Volker M. (NCI); (Cornell); (CM); (NIST)

    2016-05-06

    Previously, no retroviral Gag protein has been highly purified in milligram quantities and in a biologically relevant and active form. We have purified Rous sarcoma virus (RSV) Gag protein and in parallel several truncation mutants of Gag and have studied their biophysical properties and membrane interactionsin vitro. RSV Gag is unusual in that it is not naturally myristoylated. From its ability to assemble into virus-like particlesin vitro, we infer that RSV Gag is biologically active. By size exclusion chromatography and small-angle X-ray scattering, Gag in solution appears extended and flexible, in contrast to previous reports on unmyristoylated HIV-1 Gag, which is compact. However, by neutron reflectometry measurements of RSV Gag bound to a supported bilayer, the protein appears to adopt a more compact, folded-over conformation. At physiological ionic strength, purified Gag binds strongly to liposomes containing acidic lipids. This interaction is stimulated by physiological levels of phosphatidylinositol-(4,5)-bisphosphate [PI(4,5)P2] and by cholesterol. However, unlike HIV-1 Gag, RSV Gag shows no sensitivity to acyl chain saturation. In contrast with full-length RSV Gag, the purified MA domain of Gag binds to liposomes only weakly. Similarly, both an N-terminally truncated version of Gag that is missing the MA domain and a C-terminally truncated version that is missing the NC domain bind only weakly. These results imply that NC contributes to membrane interactionin vitro, either by directly contacting acidic lipids or by promoting Gag multimerization.

    Retroviruses like HIV assemble at and bud from the plasma membrane of cells. Assembly requires the interaction between thousands of Gag molecules to form a lattice. Previous work indicated that lattice formation at the plasma membrane is influenced by the conformation of monomeric HIV. We have extended this work to the more tractable RSV Gag. Our

  5. Vagus nerve contributes to metabolic syndrome in high-fat diet-fed young and adult rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barella, Luiz F; Miranda, Rosiane A; Franco, Claudinéia C S; Alves, Vander S; Malta, Ananda; Ribeiro, Tatiane A S; Gravena, Clarice; Mathias, Paulo C F; de Oliveira, Júlio C

    2015-01-01

    What is the central question of this study? Different nerve contributes periods of life are known for their differential sensitivity to interventions, and increased parasympathetic activity affects the development and maintenance of obesity. Thus, we evaluated the involvement of the vagus nerve by performing a vagotomy in young or adult rats that were offered an obesogenic high-fat diet. What is the main finding and its importance? Although the accumulation of adipose tissue decreased in both younger and older groups, the younger rats showed a greater response to the effects of vagotomy in general. In addition to the important role of the parasympathetic activity, we suggest that the vagus nerve contributes to the condition of obesity. Obesity has become a global problem, and this condition develops primarily because of an imbalance between energy intake and expenditure. The high complexity involved in the regulation of energy metabolism results from several factors besides endocrine factors. It has been suggested that obesity could be caused by an imbalance in the autonomous nervous system, which could lead to a condition of high parasympathetic activity in counterpart to low sympathetic tonus. High-fat (HF) diets have been used to induce obesity in experimental animals, and their use in animals leads to insulin resistance, hyperinsulinaemia and high parasympathetic activity, among other disorders. The aim of this work was to evaluate the effects of a vagotomy performed at the initiation of a HF diet at two different stages of life, weaning and adulthood. The vagotomy reduced parasympathetic activity (-32 and -51% in normal fat-fed rats and -43 and -55% in HF diet-fed rats; P fat depots (-17 and -33%, only in HF diet-fed rats; P fat diet-fed rats exhibited fasting hyperinsulinaemia (fivefold higher in young rats and threefold higher in older rats; P diet-fed groups was not altered in the vagotomized rats. We suggest that the vagus nerve, in addition to the

  6. Photoaffinity labeling of opiate (enkephalin) receptor of rat brain plasma membranes with 125I(D-Ala2, p-N3-Phe4-Met5)-enkephalin

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yeung, C.W.T.

    1986-01-01

    A photoreactive (D-Ala 2 , p-N 3 -Phe 4 -Met 5 )enkephalin derivative was prepared, iodinated with carrier free 125 I and then purified by high performance liquid chromatography. The purified radioactive photoprobe was monoiodinated at the amino terminal tyrosine residue. This radioactive photoprobe was used to photoaffinity label plasma membranes prepared from rat brain, spinal cord and cerebellum. The photolabeled plasma membranes were analyzed by sodium dodecyl sulfate gel electrophoresis. A 46,000-daltons band was specifically photolabeled in the plasma membranes of brain and spinal cord but not in the plasma membranes from cerebellum. The photolabeling of this band was inhibited by peptides related to enkephalin by not but substance P or gastrin tetrapeptide. These data demonstrate that the labeled 46,000-daltons band is a protein of the opiate (enkephalin)receptor

  7. [Effects of octreotide on fatty infiltration of the pancreas in high-fat diet induced obesity rats].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yu, Tao; Liu, Rui; Li, Mao; Li, Xian; Qiang, Ou; Huang, Wei; Tang, Chengwei

    2014-03-01

    To investigate effects of octreotide on fatty infiltration of the pancreas in high-fat diet induced obesity rats. SD rats were divided into control group (n = 14) and high-fat diet group (n = 36). Obese rats from the high-fat diet group were further divided into 2 groups: the obese group (n = 14) and the octreotide-treated group (n = 16). Rats in the octreotide-treated group were subcutaneously injected with octreotide per 12 h (40 mg/kg BW) for 8 days. Body weight, fasting plasma glucose (FPG), fasting serum insulin, triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels, pancreatic TG and FFA content were measured. Homeostatic model assessment (HOMA) index was calculated. Somatostatin (SST) and the expression of adipose differentiation-related protein (ADFP) in pancrea were measured. Pathological changes of pancreas were examined with light microscopy. Body weight, Lee's index, FPG, fasting serum insulin, TG, TC levels and HOMA index in the obese group were higher than those in the control group (P pancreas, and lowering the levels of plasma glucose and lipid in the high-fat diet induced obesity rats.

  8. Characterization and treatment of cyanide in MGP purifier wastes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Theis, T.L. [Clarkson University, Potsdam, NY (United States). Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering

    1995-12-31

    Purifier wastes were generated from the clean-up gaseous impurities, principally hydrogen sulfide and hydrogen cyanide, contained in raw gas from MGP operations through retention by iron oxide solids. These materials were generated at a rate of about 10-20 kg/1000 m{sup 3} of gas produced, and although regeneration was sometimes practised, eventual disposal as fill material, usually on site, was eventually necessary. The remediation of MGP sites generally requires that the disposition of these waste solids be addressed. The effective treatment of purifier wastes presents special problems due to the acid-base properties of the material, its elevated sulfur content, and the significant quantities of carbon both added as wood shavings and present as compounds generated as a result of gas manufacture. In broad terms, treatment approaches can be divided into two classes, those aimed at destroying the cyanide and objectionable carbon compounds and otherwise disposing of the residual, and those which attempt to isolate the waste from its surroundings. The latter approach attempts to take advantage of the natural insolubility of most of the constituents of concern found in purifier wastes, while destructive technologies limit potential liability. 9 refs.

  9. Purification and partial characterization of analogous 26-kDa rat submandibular and parotid gland integral membrane phosphoproteins that may have a role in exocytosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Quissell, D O; Deisher, L M

    1992-04-01

    Rat submandibular and parotid gland exocytosis is primarily controlled by beta-adrenergic receptor stimulation. Although its precise role in the regulation of salivary gland exocytosis is not fully understood, protein phosphorylation, mediated by the activation of cAMP-dependent protein kinase, may be directly involved. Previous studies suggest that analogous 26-kDa integral membrane phosphoproteins may play a direct role in regulating exocytosis. Studies were here undertaken to purify and partially characterize both phosphoproteins. After endogenous phosphorylation with 32P, subcellular fraction and solubilization of the microsomal fraction in n-octyl beta-glucopyranoside, the 26-kDa integral membrane phosphoproteins were purified by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), followed by sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and electroelution of the proteins. Amino acid analysis indicated a significant number of serine amino acids: N-terminal sequence data demonstrated a high level of homology; and trypsin digestion followed by reversed-phase HPLC indicated the possibility of multiple phosphorylation sites.

  10. Effects of high-intensity swimming training on the bones of ovariectomized rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oh, Taewoong; Tanaka, Sakura; Naka, Tatsuki; Igawa, Shoji

    2016-09-01

    This study was performed to assess the effects of high-intensity intermittent swimming training(HIT) on bone in ovariectomized rats. Six-week-old female Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to either sham operation or bilateral ovariectomy. After surgery, they were divided into the following four groups: 1) sham-operated sedentary (S), 2) sham-operated exercise training (SE), 3) OVX sedentary (O), 4) OVX exercise training (OE) 5) OVX given 17β-estradiol (OE2) and 6) OVX exercise training and given 17β-estradiol (OEE). SE, OE and OEE rats were used extremely high-intensity swim exercise. The rats repeated fourteen 20-s swimming bouts with a weight equivalent to 14, 15, and 16% of body weight for the first 5, the next 9, and the last 5 days, respectively. Between exercise bouts, a 10-s pause was allowed. HIT was originally designed as an exercise method; a method that very quickly induces an increase in the maximum oxygen intake (Tabata I et al., 1996). OEE and OE2 rats were subcutaneously injected ethanol with 25μg/kg body weight 17β-estradiol 3 times per week. Bone strength, bone mineral density and trabecular bone parameters were measured after a 8-weeks experimental period. Bone strength was significantly higher in the SE, OE, OE2 and OEE group compared with the O group. BV/TV was significant increase in the SE, OE groups compared with the O group. BMD showed no difference in the OE group compared with the O group. This study demonstrate some beneficial effects of postmenopausal osteoporosis of high-intensity intermittent swimming training on bone structure and strength.

  11. Docosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid are positively associated with insulin sensitivity in rats fed high-fat and high-fructose diets.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Jiung-Pang; Cheng, Mei-Ling; Hung, Cheng-Yu; Wang, Chao-Hung; Hsieh, Po-Shiuan; Shiao, Ming-Shi; Chen, Jan-Kan; Li, Dai-Er; Hung, Li-Man

    2017-10-01

    The aim of the present study was to compare insulin resistance and metabolic changes using a global lipidomic approach. Rats were fed a high-fat diet (HFD) or a high-fructose diet (HFrD) for 12 weeks to induce insulin resistance (IR) syndrome. After 12 weeks feeding, physiological and biochemical parameters were examined. Insulin sensitivity and plasma metabolites were evaluated using a euglycemic-hyperinsulinemic clamp and mass spectrometry, respectively. Pearson's correlation coefficient was used to investigate the strength of correlations. Rats on both diets developed IR syndrome, characterized by hypertension, hyperlipidemia, hyperinsulinemia, impaired fasting glucose, and IR. Compared with HFrD-fed rats, non-esterified fatty acids were lower and body weight and plasma insulin levels were markedly higher in HFD-fed rats. Adiposity and plasma leptin levels were increased in both groups. However, the size of adipocytes was greater in HFD- than HFrD-fed rats. Notably, the lipidomic heat map revealed metabolites exhibiting greater differences in HFD- and HFrD-fed rats compared with controls. Plasma adrenic acid levels were higher in HFD- than HFrD-fed rats. Nevertheless, linoleic and arachidonic acid levels decreased in HFrD-fed rats compared with controls. Plasma concentrations of docosapentaenoic acid (DPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) were significantly reduced after feeding of both diets, particularly the HFrD. There was a strong positive correlation between these two fatty acids and the insulin sensitivity index. The systemic lipidomic analysis indicated that a reduction in DHA and DPA was strongly correlated with IR in rats under long-term overnutrition. These results provide a potential therapeutic target for IR and metabolic syndrome. © 2016 Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine and John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.

  12. Vitamin D-dependent rat renal calcium-binding protein: development of a radioimmunoassay, tissue distribution, and immunologic identification

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sonnenberg, J.; Pansini, A.R.; Christakos, S.

    1984-01-01

    A sensitive double antibody RIA has been developed for the 28,000 mol wt rat renal vitamin D-dependent calcium-binding protein. Using this assay, concentrations of calcium-binding protein (CaBP) as low as 30 ng can be measured. The assay is precise (intraassay variability, 5.0%) and reproductible (interassay variability, 8.2%). Measurements of renal CaBP by RIA showed a good correlation with measurements of CaBP by the chelex resin assay and by polyacrylamide gel analysis by densitometric tracing using a purified CaBP marker. The concentration of CaBP in the vitamin D-replete rat kidney is 7.3 +/- 1.0 (mean +/- SEM) micrograms/mg protein. In vitamin D-deficient rats the level of renal CaBP is 2.6 +/- 0.3 micrograms/mg protein. Tissue distribution of immunoreactive rat renal CaBP showed the highest concentration of CaBP in the rat cerebellum (38.3 +/- 5.1 micrograms/mg protein). Lower concentrations of immunoreactive CaBP were detected in several other rat tissues. No immunoreactive CaBP was detected in rat or human serum. In necropsy human kidney and cerebellum, high levels of immunoreactive CaBP were also detected (1.5 +/- 0.1 and 27.3 +/- 2.1 micrograms/mg protein, respectively). When extracts of rat kidney and brain and human cerebellum and kidney were assayed at several dilutions, immunodisplacement curves parallel to that of pure renal CaBP were observed, indicating immunochemical similarity. Fractionation of extracts of rat cerebellum, human kidney, and human cerebellum on Sephadex G-100 revealed immunoreactivity and calcium-binding activity in the 28,000 mol wt region similar to rat kidney

  13. A cannabigerol-rich Cannabis sativa extract, devoid of [INCREMENT]9-tetrahydrocannabinol, elicits hyperphagia in rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brierley, Daniel I; Samuels, James; Duncan, Marnie; Whalley, Benjamin J; Williams, Claire M

    2017-06-01

    Nonpsychoactive phytocannabinoids (pCBs) from Cannabis sativa may represent novel therapeutic options for cachexia because of their pleiotropic pharmacological activities, including appetite stimulation. We have recently shown that purified cannabigerol (CBG) is a novel appetite stimulant in rats. As standardized extracts from Cannabis chemotypes dominant in one pCB [botanical drug substances (BDSs)] often show greater efficacy and/or potency than purified pCBs, we investigated the effects of a CBG-rich BDS, devoid of psychoactive [INCREMENT]-tetrahydrocannabinol, on feeding behaviour. Following a 2 h prefeed satiation procedure, 16 male Lister-hooded rats were administered CBG-BDS (at 30-240 mg/kg) or vehicle. Food intake, meal pattern microstructure and locomotor activity were recorded over 2 h. The total food intake was increased by 120 and 240 mg/kg CBG-BDS (1.53 and 1.36 g, respectively, vs. 0.56 g in vehicle-treated animals). Latency to feeding onset was dose dependently decreased at all doses, and 120 and 240 mg/kg doses increased both the number of meals consumed and the cumulative size of the first two meals. No significant effect was observed on ambulatory activity or rearing behaviour. CBG-BDS is a novel appetite stimulant, which may have greater potency than purified CBG, despite the absence of [INCREMENT]-tetrahydrocannabinol in the extract.

  14. Biological response of rats fed with tofu treated with high hydrostatic pressure.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Préstamo, G; Arroyo, G

    2000-10-01

    Emerging technologies for food preservation have arisen in recent years, such as high-pressure (HP) hydrostatic treatment, and the biological response for this kind of food preservation is not well-known. Forty female rats (six weeks old) were used in the experiment to evaluate the biological effects of HP treatment of tofu. The animals were divided into groups that were fed with tofu (untreated), tofu treated with HP, and conventional food (as control) for 28 days. The glucose level, mineral content (calcium, potassium, zinc, and magnesium), shinbone maximum shear force, weight of the body, and weight of organs (heart, liver, spleen, and kidneys) were analyzed. The biological response for the rats was that significant differences were found in the calcium amount determined on the serum of the rats fed with untreated tofu and those fed with tofu treated with HP, and the calcium amount was lower on the rats fed with tofu treated with HP. Also, there were significant differences in the weight of the liver, and it was lower in the rats fed with tofu treated with HP. It was quite remarkable how the weight of the body and organs were smaller in the rats fed with tofu in comparison to the weight of the control rats. In the other components assayed no significant differences were found. HP produces a potential effect on tofu as it is observed in the rats response to the tofu treated with HP.

  15. Effect of IgG subclasses on in vivo bioavailability and metabolic fate of immune-complexed insulin in Lewis rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Arquilla, E.R.; Stenger, D.; McDougall, B.; Ulich, T.R.

    1987-01-01

    The bioavailability, distribution, and metabolic fate of 125 I-labeled insulin complexed to antibodies in guinea pig antiserum, purified guinea pig IgG1, IgG2, a mixture of IgG1 and IgG2, and homologous Lou/m rat antiserum were studied in inbred Lewis rats. 125 I-insulin complexed to purified guinea pig IgG2 antibodies was rapidly cleared from the blood and sequestered in increasing amounts with time in the liver. Large amounts of the 125 I-insulin complexed to guinea pig IgG1 antibodies remained in the blood for at least 30 min. The bioavailability of 125 I-insulin bound to IgG1 and IgG2 antibodies was inhibited for at least 30 min because significantly less was available for rapid binding to insulin receptors on hepatocytes and renal tubular cells and its subsequent rapid degradation. The bioavailability of 125 I-insulin was further decreased when bound to antibodies in native guinea pig antiserum or a mixture of IgG1 and IgG2 antibodies compared with the 125 I-insulin complexed to either purified IgG1 or IgG2 antibodies alone. The 125 I-insulin bound to antibodies in native guinea pig antiserum or a mixture of IgG1 and IgG2 antibodies was distributed in vivo in a manner reflecting the relative concentrations of the IgG1 and IgG2 antibodies present. The bioavailability, distribution, and metabolic fate of 125 I-insulin in immune complexes prepared with homologous Lou/m rat insulin antiserum was qualitatively similar to that observed with immune complexes prepared with guinea pig insulin antiserum. It appears that the Lewis rat can be used as an in vivo model to study the bioavailability,distribution,and metabolic fate of insulin bound to xenogenic or homologous insulin antibodies

  16. Dietary intake of high-dose biotin inhibits spermatogenesis in young rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sawamura, Hiromi; Ikeda, Chieko; Shimada, Ryoko; Yoshii, Yui; Watanabe, Toshiaki

    2015-02-01

    To characterize a new function of the water-soluble vitamin, biotin, in reproduction and early growth in mammals, the effects of high dietary doses of biotin on early spermatogenesis were biochemically and histologically investigated in male rats. Weaned rats were fed a CE-2 (control) diet containing 0.00004% biotin, or a control diet supplemented with 0.01%, 0.1%, or 1.0% biotin. Pair-fed rats were fed a control diet that was equal in calories to the amount ingested by the 1.0% biotin group, because food intake was decreased in the 1.0% biotin group. Food intake and body weight gain were lower in the 1.0% biotin group than in the control group. The kidney, brain and testis weights were significantly lower in the 1.0% biotin group than in the pair-fed group after 6 weeks of feeding. The accumulation of biotin in the liver and testis increased in a dose-dependent manner. In the 1.0% biotin group, the number of mature sperm was markedly lower, that of sperm with morphologically abnormal heads, mainly consisting of round heads, had increased. In addition, the development of seminiferous tubules was inhibited, and few spermatogonia and no spermatocytes were histologically observed. These results demonstrated that the long-term intake of high-dose biotin inhibited spermatogenesis in young male rats. © 2014 Japanese Teratology Society.

  17. Full scale demonstration of air-purifying pavement

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ballari, M.; Brouwers, H.J.H.

    2013-01-01

    Experiments concerning a full-scale demonstration of air purifying pavement in Hengelo, The Netherlands, are reported. The full width of the street was provided with concrete pavement containing TiO2 over a length of 150 m ("DeNOx street"). Another part of the street, about 100 m, was paved with

  18. Nutritional Evaluation of Whole Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L. Seed Meal in Rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Olubayo Michael Odetola

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available The study reported herein evaluates with rats the nutritional quality of raw and roasted kenaf seed as sources of nitrogen. Some safety aspects regarding possible feed use were also investigated. Wistar rats were fed four purified diets viz: a basal diet (nitrogen-free, a reference diet that contains casein and two diets made of kenaf seeds. Dietary treatments significantly influenced performance, biological indices and blood parameters (P<0.05. The performance of rats on kenaf based diets was inferior to that of rats on casein diets. The levels of serum glucose were significantly elevated for rats on kenaf based diets compared to rats on casein diet. However, the levels of serum total protein, globulin and albumin/globulin ratio were significantly elevated for rats on the casein diet compared to rats on kenaf based diets. Among the kenaf test proteins, Protein Efficiency Ratio (PER values of 1.87 and 1.65; Net Protein Ratio (NPR values of 0.56 and 0.50; Biological Value (BV of 65.04 and 63.05 and Net Protein Utilization (NPU values of 44.23 and 42.56 were obtained respectively for a raw kenaf seed meal RKM and roasted kenaf seed meal (HKM. There was no significant difference in results obtained for both RKM and HKM.

  19. [Studies on the process of Herba Clinopodii saponins purified with macroporous adsorption resin].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Yi; Yan, Dan; Han, Yumei

    2005-10-01

    To study the technological parameters of the purification process of saponins with macroporous adsorption resin. The adsorptive characteristics and elutive parameters of the process were studied by taking the elutive and purified ratio of saponins as markers. 11.4 ml of the extraction of Herba Clinopodii (crude drugs 0.2 g/ml) was purified with a column of macroporous adsorption resin (phi15 mm x H90 mm, dry weight 2.5 g) and washed with 3BV of distilled water, then eluted with 3BV of 30% ethanol and 3BV of 70% ethanol. Most of saponins were collected in the 70% ethanol. With macroporous adsorption resin adsorbing and purifying,the elutive ratio of saponins is 86.8% and the purity reaches 153.2%. So this process of applying macroporous adsorption resin to adsorb and purify Saponins is feasible.

  20. 76 FR 29191 - Purified Carboxymethylcellulose From Finland and the Netherlands: Continuation of Antidumping...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-05-20

    ... Carboxymethylcellulose From Finland and the Netherlands: Continuation of Antidumping Duty Orders AGENCY: Import... antidumping duty orders on purified carboxymethylcellulose from Finland and the Netherlands would likely lead...) from Finland and the Netherlands. See Notice of Antidumping Duty Orders: Purified...

  1. Neuromyelitis optica study model based on chronic infusion of autoantibodies in rat cerebrospinal fluid.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marignier, R; Ruiz, A; Cavagna, S; Nicole, A; Watrin, C; Touret, M; Parrot, S; Malleret, G; Peyron, C; Benetollo, C; Auvergnon, N; Vukusic, S; Giraudon, P

    2016-05-18

    Devic's neuromyelitis optica (NMO) is an autoimmune astrocytopathy, associated with central nervous system inflammation, demyelination, and neuronal injury. Several studies confirmed that autoantibodies directed against aquaporin-4 (AQP4-IgG) are relevant in the pathogenesis of NMO, mainly through complement-dependent toxicity leading to astrocyte death. However, the effect of the autoantibody per se and the exact role of intrathecal AQP4-IgG are still controversial. To explore the intrinsic effect of intrathecal AQP4-IgG, independent from additional inflammatory effector mechanisms, and to evaluate its clinical impact, we developed a new animal model, based on a prolonged infusion of purified immunoglobulins from NMO patient (IgG(AQP4+), NMO-rat) and healthy individual as control (Control-rat) in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of live rats. We showed that CSF infusion of purified immunoglobulins led to diffusion in the brain, spinal cord, and optic nerves, the targeted structures in NMO. This was associated with astrocyte alteration in NMO-rats characterized by loss of aquaporin-4 expression in the spinal cord and the optic nerves compared to the Control-rats (p = 0.001 and p = 0.02, respectively). In addition, glutamate uptake tested on vigil rats was dramatically reduced in NMO-rats (p = 0.001) suggesting that astrocytopathy occurred in response to AQP4-IgG diffusion. In parallel, myelin was altered, as shown by the decrease of myelin basic protein staining by up to 46 and 22 % in the gray and white matter of the NMO-rats spinal cord, respectively (p = 0.03). Loss of neurofilament positive axons in NMO-rats (p = 0.003) revealed alteration of axonal integrity. Then, we investigated the clinical consequences of such alterations on the motor behavior of the NMO-rats. In a rotarod test, NMO-rats performance was lower compared to the controls (p = 0.0182). AQP4 expression, and myelin and axonal integrity were preserved in AQP4-Ig

  2. An Experiment with Air Purifiers in Delhi during Winter 2015-2016

    OpenAIRE

    Vyas, Sangita; Srivastav, Nikhil; Spears, Dean

    2016-01-01

    Particulate pollution has important consequences for human health, and is an issue of global concern. Outdoor air pollution has become a cause for alarm in India in particular because recent data suggest that ambient pollution levels in Indian cities are some of the highest in the world. We study the number of particles between 0.5μm and 2.5μm indoors while using affordable air purifiers in the highly polluted city of Delhi. Though substantial reductions in indoor number concentrations are ob...

  3. 78 FR 9884 - Purified Carboxymethylcellulose From the Netherlands: Final Results of Antidumping Duty...

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-02-12

    ... Carboxymethylcellulose From the Netherlands: Final Results of Antidumping Duty Administrative Review and Final No... carboxymethylcellulose (purified CMC) from the Netherlands.\\1\\ This review covers two respondents, Akzo Nobel Functional... Review'' section of this notice. \\1\\ See Purified Carboxymethylcellulose From the Netherlands...

  4. Endocytosis of heat-denatured albumin by cultured rat Kupffer cells

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brouwer, A.; Knook, D.L.

    1982-01-01

    Purified Kupffer cells were obtained by centrifugal elutriation of sinusoidal cells isolated by pronase treatment of the rat liver. The endocytosis of radioactively labeled heat-aggregated colloidal albumin (CA 125 I) was investigated in maintenance cultures of the purified Kupffer cells. The endocytic capacity of the cells was studied during 4 days of culture. Maximum uptake was observed after 24 hr of culture, with a gradual decline during the following days. When the uptake was measured after incubation with increasing concentrations of CA 125 I, a saturation effect was observed. This finding and the observed high rate of uptake are strong indications that receptor sites on the cell membrane are involved in the mechanism of endocytosis. The uptake of CA 125 I by Kupffer cells was inhibited by the metabolic inhibitors fluoride and antimycin A, indicating that endocytosis of CA 125 I is dependent on energy derived from both glycolysis and mitochondrial respiration. The mechanism of internalization may also require the action of microfilaments as well as intact microtubules, since both cytochalasin B and colchicine inhibited the uptake of CA 125 I. The intracellular degradation of CA 125 I by Kupffer cells was strongly inhibited by chloroquine but not by colchicine. The degradation of ingested CA 125 I occurred within the Kupffer cell lysosomes

  5. Rat silicone hydrogel contact lens model: effects of high- versus low-Dk lens wear.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Yunfan; Gabriel, Manal M; Mowrey-McKee, Mary F; Barrett, Ronald P; McClellan, Sharon; Hazlett, Linda D

    2008-11-01

    This study used a rat contact lens (CL) model to test if high- versus low-Dk lens wear caused changes in (1) conjunctival Langerhans cell (LC) number or location; (2) Bcl-2 expression; and (3) infection risk. Female, Lewis rats wore a high- or low-Dk CL continuously for 2 weeks. Afterward, corneas were harvested and processed for ADPase activity to identify LCs, for immunostaining and for real time-polymerase chain reaction. Contact lens-wearing rats also were challenged with Pseudomonas aeruginosa by placing a bacterial-soaked CL on the eye followed by topical delivery of bacteria. After 48 hrs, slit lamp examination and real time-polymerase chain reaction were used to evaluate the corneal response. Conjunctival LC were significantly increased after low- versus high-Dk CL wear (PDk lens wearing group. Bcl-2 mRNA levels were significantly decreased in low- versus high-Dk CL wearing rats, while Bax, FasL, caspase 3, and caspase 9 levels were unchanged. Immunostaining for Bcl-2 showed fewer positively stained epithelial cells in the low- versus high-Dk lens wearing group. After bacterial challenge, 30% of low- versus none of the high-Dk CL wearing corneas became infected and showed increased mRNA levels for several proinflammatory cytokines/chemokines, inducible nitric oxide synthase and matrix metalloproteinase-9. Low- versus high-Dk or non-CL wear led to an increased number of conjunctival LC, decreased Bcl-2 levels, and increased the risk of bacterial infection.

  6. Supplementation of Syzygium cumini seed powder prevented obesity, glucose intolerance, hyperlipidemia and oxidative stress in high carbohydrate high fat diet induced obese rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ulla, Anayt; Alam, Md Ashraful; Sikder, Biswajit; Sumi, Farzana Akter; Rahman, Md Mizanur; Habib, Zaki Farhad; Mohammed, Mostafe Khalid; Subhan, Nusrat; Hossain, Hemayet; Reza, Hasan Mahmud

    2017-06-02

    Obesity and related complications have now became epidemic both in developed and developing countries. Cafeteria type diet mainly composed of high fat high carbohydrate components which plays a significant role in the development of obesity and metabolic syndrome. This study investigated the effect of Syzygium cumini seed powder on fat accumulation and dyslipidemia in high carbohydrate high fat diet (HCHF) induced obese rats. Male Wistar rats were fed with HCHF diet ad libitum, and the rats on HCHF diet were supplemented with Syzygium cumini seed powder for 56 days (2.5% w/w of diet). Oral glucose tolerance test, lipid parameters, liver marker enzymes (AST, ALT and ALP) and lipid peroxidation products were analyzed at the end of 56 days. Moreover, antioxidant enzyme activities were also measured in all groups of rats. Supplementation with Syzygium cumini seed powder significantly reduced body weight gain, white adipose tissue (WAT) weights, blood glucose, serum insulin, and plasma lipids such as total cholesterol, triglyceride, LDL and HDL concentration. Syzygium cumini seed powder supplementation in HCHF rats improved serum aspartate amino transferase (AST), alanine amino transferase (ALT), and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activities. Syzygium cumini seed powder supplementation also reduced the hepatic thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and elevated the antioxidant enzyme superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) activities as well as increased glutathione (GSH) concentration. In addition, histological assessment showed that Syzygium cumini seed powder supplementation prevented inflammatory cell infiltration; fatty droplet deposition and fibrosis in liver of HCHFD fed rats. Our investigation suggests that Syzygium cumini seed powder supplementation prevents oxidative stress and showed anti-inflammatory and antifibrotic activity in liver of HCHF diet fed rats. In addition, Syzygium cumini seed powder may be beneficial in ameliorating insulin

  7. EFFECTS OF DIETARY CORN AND OLIVE OIL VERSUS COCONUT FAT ON BILIARY CHOLESTEROL SECRETION IN RATS

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    SMIT, MJ; WOLTERS, H; TEMMERMAN, AM; KUIPERS, F; BEYNEN, AC; VONK, RJ

    1994-01-01

    We have studied the effects of dietary corn and olive oil versus coconut fat on bile formation and fluidity of hepatic plasma membranes in rats. After 4 weeks of feeding the purified diets containing 9% (w/w) of the test fats, there was no difference in plasma cholesterol concentration between the

  8. Expression, purification and crystallization of the ecto-enzymatic domain of rat E-NTPDase1 CD39

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhong, Xiaotian; Buddha, Madhavan; Guidotti, Guido; Kriz, Ron; Somers, Will; Mosyak, Lidia

    2008-01-01

    The ecto-enzymatic domain of rat E-NTPDase1 CD39 was expressed and purified and diffraction-quality crystals of the enzyme were obtained. CD39 is a prototype member of the ecto-nucleoside triphosphate diphosphohydrolase family that hydrolyzes extracellular nucleoside diphosphates and triphosphates in the presence of divalent cations. Here, the expression, purification and crystallization of the ecto-enzymatic domain of rat CD39, sCD39, are described. The 67 kDa secreted soluble glycoprotein was recombinantly overexpressed in a glycosylation mutant CHO line, Lec.3.2.8.1, and purified from conditioned media. Diffraction-quality crystals of sCD39 were produced by the vapor-diffusion method using PEG 3350 and ammonium dihydrogen phosphate as precipitants. The enzyme crystallized in a primitive trigonal form in space group P3 2 , with unit-cell parameters a = b = 118.1, c = 81.6 Å and with two sCD39 copies in the asymmetric unit. Several low- to medium-resolution diffraction data sets were collected using an in-house X-ray source. Analysis of the intensity statistics showed that the crystals were invariably merohedrally twinned with a high twin fraction. For initial phasing, a molecular-replacement search was performed against the complete 3.2 Å data set using a maximum-likelihood molecular-replacement method as implemented in Phaser. The initial model of the two sCD39 monomers was placed into the P3 2 lattice and rigid-body refined and position-minimized with PHENIX

  9. Effects of NS lactobacillus strains on lipid metabolism of rats fed a high-cholesterol diet

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-01-01

    Background Elevated serum cholesterol level is generally considered to be a risk factor for the development of cardiovascular diseases which seriously threaten human health. The cholesterol-lowering effects of lactic acid bacteria have recently become an area of great interest and controversy for many researchers. In this study, we investigated the effects of two NS lactobacillus strains, Lactobacillus plantarum NS5 and Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus NS12, on lipid metabolism of rats fed a high cholesterol diet. Methods Thirty-two SD rats were assigned to four groups and fed either a normal or a high-cholesterol diet. The NS lactobacillus treated groups received the high-cholesterol diet supplemented with Lactobacillus plantarum NS5 or Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus NS12 in drinking water. The rats were sacrificed after a 6-week feeding period. Body weights, visceral organ and fat weights, serum and liver cholesterol and lipid levels, intestinal microbiota and liver mRNA expression levels related to cholesterol metabolism were analyzed. Liver lipid deposition and adipocyte size were evaluated histologically. Results Compared with rats fed a high cholesterol diet, serum total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, apolipoprotein B and free fatty acids levels were decreased and apolipoprotein A-I level was increased in NS5 or NS12 strain treated rats, and with no significant change in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol level. Liver cholesterol and triglyceride levels were also significantly decreased in NS lactobacillus strains treated groups. Meanwhile, the NS lactobacillus strains obviously alleviated hepatic injuries, decreased liver lipid deposition and reduced adipocyte size of high cholesterol diet fed rats. NS lactobacillus strains restored the changes in intestinal microbiota compositions, such as the increase in Bacteroides and the decrease in Clostridium. NS lactobacillus strains also regulated the mRNA expression

  10. Ouabain enhancement of compound 48/80 induced histamine secretion from rat peritoneal mast cells: dependence on extracellular sodium

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Knudsen, T; Bertelsen, Niels Haldor; Johansen, Torben

    1992-01-01

    Purified populations of rat peritoneal mast cells were used to study the effect of ouabain on compound 48/80-induced histamine secretion and on 86Rb+ uptake. 86Rb+ was used as a tracer for extracellular K+. The calculated value of the ouabain-sensitive uptake of K+ and 86Rb+ was considered...... on the secretion occurs in the presence of sodium but not when sodium was replaced by lithium. Preservation by ouabain of a high intracellular sodium content in sodium-loaded cells was associated with preservation of the secretory response in a calcium-free medium. In the presence of lanthanum in a calcium...

  11. Effect of high-intensity intermittent swimming training on fatty acid oxidation enzyme activity in rat skeletal muscle.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Terada, Shin; Tabata, Izumi; Higuchi, Mitsuru

    2004-02-01

    We previously reported that high-intensity exercise training significantly increased citrate synthase (CS) activity, a marker of oxidative enzyme, in rat skeletal muscle to a level equaling that attained after low-intensity prolonged exercise training (Terada et al., J Appl Physiol 90: 2019-2024, 2001). Since mitochondrial oxidative enzymes and fatty acid oxidation (FAO) enzymes are often increased simultaneously, we assessed the effect of high-intensity intermittent swimming training on FAO enzyme activity in rat skeletal muscle. Male Sprague-Dawley rats (3 to 4 weeks old) were assigned to a 10-day period of high-intensity intermittent exercise training (HIT), low-intensity prolonged exercise training (LIT), or sedentary control conditions. In the HIT group, the rats repeated fourteen 20 s swimming sessions with a weight equivalent to 14-16% of their body weight. Between the exercise sessions, a 10 s pause was allowed. Rats in the LIT group swam 6 h/day in two 3 h sessions separated by 45 min of rest. CS activity in the triceps muscle of rats in the HIT and LIT groups was significantly higher than that in the control rats by 36 and 39%, respectively. Furthermore, 3-beta hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase (HAD) activity, an important enzyme in the FAO pathway in skeletal muscle, was higher in the two training groups than in the control rats (HIT: 100%, LIT: 88%). No significant difference in HAD activity was observed between the two training groups. In conclusion, the present investigation demonstrated that high-intensity intermittent swimming training elevated FAO enzyme activity in rat skeletal muscle to a level similar to that attained after 6 h of low-intensity prolonged swimming exercise training.

  12. The biological and immunological properties of fractionated atrial extracts from young and old rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wilfinger, W.W.; Banks, R.O.; Inscho, E.W.

    1989-01-01

    The present study was undertaken to further evaluate the natriuretic, hypotensive and immunological properties of fractionated and HPLC purified atrial extracts prepared from young and old rats. Acetic acid extracts were prepared and subsequently fractionated by gel permeation chromatography. The high and low molecular weight fractions were collected, lyophilized and assayed. Radioimmunoassay competitive binding curves of the initial and fractionated extracts were parallel to the synthetic ANP 101-126 standard. No differences in parallelism were observed in the natriuretic activity of the initial extracts, the low molecular weight (LMW) fractions from both age groups, the 290 day high molecular weight (HMW) fraction or the synthetic ANP standard. However, the natriuretic activity of the 15 day HMW fraction was significantly attenuated compared to the other treatment groups. The initial 15 day extract was also significantly more hypotensive than the 290 day extract. HMW extracts were subjected to HPLC and the resulting immunoreactive ANP peak was reassayed. Based on SDS-PAGE and immuno blot analysis, the HPLC purified fraction was found to contain only immunoreactive proANP. Subsequent bioassay revealed greater hypotension and reduced natriuretic activity in the 15 day proANP fraction in comparison to a similarly prepared extract from older animals

  13. Proteomic analysis of purified coronavirus infectious bronchitis virus particles

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shu Dingming

    2010-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Infectious bronchitis virus (IBV is the coronavirus of domestic chickens causing major economic losses to the poultry industry. Because of the complexity of the IBV life cycle and the small number of viral structural proteins, important virus-host relationships likely remain to be discovered. Toward this goal, we performed two-dimensional gel electrophoresis fractionation coupled to mass spectrometry identification approaches to perform a comprehensive proteomic analysis of purified IBV particles. Results Apart from the virus-encoded structural proteins, we detected 60 host proteins in the purified virions which can be grouped into several functional categories including intracellular trafficking proteins (20%, molecular chaperone (18%, macromolcular biosynthesis proteins (17%, cytoskeletal proteins (15%, signal transport proteins (15%, protein degradation (8%, chromosome associated proteins (2%, ribosomal proteins (2%, and other function proteins (3%. Interestingly, 21 of the total host proteins have not been reported to be present in virions of other virus families, such as major vault protein, TENP protein, ovalbumin, and scavenger receptor protein. Following identification of the host proteins by proteomic methods, the presence of 4 proteins in the purified IBV preparation was verified by western blotting and immunogold labeling detection. Conclusions The results present the first standard proteomic profile of IBV and may facilitate the understanding of the pathogenic mechanisms.

  14. High dietary fat-induced obesity in Wistar rats and type 2 diabetes in nonobese Goto-Kakizaki rats differentially affect retinol binding protein 4 expression and vitamin A metabolism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shirai, Tomomi; Shichi, Yuta; Sato, Miyuki; Tanioka, Yuri; Furusho, Tadasu; Ota, Toru; Tadokoro, Tadahiro; Suzuki, Tsukasa; Kobayashi, Ken-Ichi; Yamamoto, Yuji

    2016-03-01

    Obesity is a major risk factor for type 2 diabetes, which is caused mainly by insulin resistance. Retinol binding protein 4 (RBP4) is the only specific transport protein for retinol in the serum. RBP4 level is increased in the diabetic state and high-fat condition, indicating that retinol metabolism may be affected under these conditions. However, the precise effect of diabetes and high fat-induced obesity on retinol metabolism is unknown. In this study, we examined differences in retinol metabolite levels in rat models of diet-induced obesity and type 2 diabetes (Goto-Kakizaki [GK] rat). Four-week-old male Wistar and GK rats were given either a control diet (AIN-93G) or a high-fat diet (HFD, 40% fat kJ). After 15 weeks of feeding, the RBP4 levels increased by 2-fold in the serum of GK rats but not HFD-fed rats. The hepatic retinol concentration of HFD-fed rats was approximately 50% that of the controls (P type 2 diabetes mellitus. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  15. Characterisation of a novel proteolytic enzyme localised to goblet cells in rat and man

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Poulsen, Steen Seier

    1984-01-01

    A proteolytic enzyme, ingobsin , purified from rat duodenal extracts is shown to be localised to intestinal goblet cells of both man and rat. Enzyme positive cells decrease in number from duodenum to colon. The enzyme is a 33 000 Mr protein with an isoelectric point of 5.1. The pH optimum...... for enzymatic activity is 7.4-8.0. Based on substrate specificity for arg-x, lys-x and to a lesser degree tyr-x, on the effect of diisopropylphosphorofluoride , Trasylol and phenylmethylsulfonylfluoride and on proteolytic activity towards intact proteins, ingobsin is classified as a serine proteinase...

  16. Rats bred for high alcohol drinking are more sensitive to delayed and probabilistic outcomes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilhelm, C J; Mitchell, S H

    2008-10-01

    Alcoholics and heavy drinkers score higher on measures of impulsivity than nonalcoholics and light drinkers. This may be because of factors that predate drug exposure (e.g. genetics). This study examined the role of genetics by comparing impulsivity measures in ethanol-naive rats selectively bred based on their high [high alcohol drinking (HAD)] or low [low alcohol drinking (LAD)] consumption of ethanol. Replicates 1 and 2 of the HAD and LAD rats, developed by the University of Indiana Alcohol Research Center, completed two different discounting tasks. Delay discounting examines sensitivity to rewards that are delayed in time and is commonly used to assess 'choice' impulsivity. Probability discounting examines sensitivity to the uncertain delivery of rewards and has been used to assess risk taking and risk assessment. High alcohol drinking rats discounted delayed and probabilistic rewards more steeply than LAD rats. Discount rates associated with probabilistic and delayed rewards were weakly correlated, while bias was strongly correlated with discount rate in both delay and probability discounting. The results suggest that selective breeding for high alcohol consumption selects for animals that are more sensitive to delayed and probabilistic outcomes. Sensitivity to delayed or probabilistic outcomes may be predictive of future drinking in genetically predisposed individuals.

  17. Cocaine self-administration and reinstatement in female rats selectively bred for high and low voluntary running.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smethells, J R; Zlebnik, N E; Miller, D K; Will, M J; Booth, F; Carroll, M E

    2016-10-01

    Previous research has found that rats behaviorally screened for high (vs. low) wheel running were more vulnerable to cocaine abuse. To assess the extent to which a genetic component is involved in this drug-abuse vulnerability, rats selectively bred for high or low voluntary running (HVR or LVR, respectively) were examined for differences in cocaine seeking in the present study. Female rats were trained to lever press for food and then were assessed for differences in acquisition of cocaine (0.4mg/kg; i.v.) self-administration across 10 sessions. Once acquired, rats self-administered cocaine for a 14-day maintenance phase, followed by a 14-day extinction phase when cocaine was no longer available. Subsequently, reinstatement of cocaine seeking was examined with priming injections of cocaine (5, 10 & 15mg/kg), caffeine (30mg/kg), yohimbine (2.5mg/kg) and cocaine-paired cues. A greater percentage of LVR rats met the acquisition criteria for cocaine self-administration and in fewer sessions than HVR rats. No differences in responding for cocaine were observed between phenotypes during maintenance. However, during extinction LVR rats initially responded at higher rates and persisted in cocaine seeking for a greater number of sessions. No phenotype differences were observed following drug and cue-primed reinstatement of cocaine seeking. In general, LVR rats were more sensitive to the reinforcing effects of cocaine than HVR rats during periods of transition into and out of cocaine self-administration. Thus, LVR rats sometimes showed a greater vulnerability cocaine seeking than HVR rats. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

  18. Teratogenicity following inhalation exposure of rats to a high-boiling coal liquid

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Springer, D.L.; Poston, K.A.; Mahlum, D.D.; Sikov, M.R.

    1982-01-01

    On days 12 to 16 of gestation pregnant rats were exposed to heavy distillate (hd), the highest-boiling material derived from the solvent refined coal-II (SRC-II) process, and the litters were examined at day 21. Adverse biological effects were observed in the group of animals exposed to an aerosol concentration of 0.66 mg 1/sup -1/ (1.8 ..mu..m, mass medium aerodynamic diameter); groups of animals exposed to lower aerosol concentrations (0.084 and 0.017 mg 1/sup -1/) were largely unaffected. Embryolethality during mid- and late gestation appeared attributable to the coal liquid exposure. Fetuses from pregnant rats in the high exposure group were smaller in weight and length than fetuses from control animals, and skeletal ossification was reduced. Increased incidences of small lungs and cleft palate were observed in fetuses from the high exposure group. Pregnant rats in the high-exposure group gained less weight than controls during gestation; the reduced weight gain was accounted for by the reduced size of the fetuses and placentas. Even though maternal body weight (exclusive of the products of conception) was unaffected by the exposure, the weights of the maternal thymus, lung and spleen were altered in the high exposure group.

  19. Teratogenicity following inhalation exposure of rats to a high-boiling coal liquid

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Springer, D.L.; Poston, K.A.; Mahlum, D.D.; Sikov, M.R.

    1982-01-01

    On days 12-16 of gestation pregnant rats were exposed to heavy distillate (HD), the highest-boiling material derived from the solvent refined coal-II (SRC-II) process, and the litters were examined at day 21. Adverse biological effects were observed in the group of animals exposed to an aerosol concentration of 0.66 mg 1/sup -1/ (1.8 ..mu..m, mass medium aerodynamic diameter (MMAD)); groups of animals exposed to lower aerosol concentrations (0.084 and 0.017 mg 1/sup -1/) were largely unaffected. Embryolethality during mid- and late gestation appeared attributable to the coal liquid exposure. Fetuses from pregnant rats in the high exposure group were smaller in weight and length than fetuses from control animals, and skeletal ossification was reduced. Increased incidences of small lungs and cleft palate were observed in fetuses from the high exposure group. Pregnant rats in the high-exposure group gained less weight than controls during gestation; the reduced weight gain was accounted for by the reduced size of the fetuses and placentas. Even though maternal body weight (exclusive of the products of conception) was unaffected by the exposure, the weights of the maternal thymus, lung and spleen were altered in the high exposure group.

  20. Induction of histamine release in vitro from rat peritoneal mast cells by extracts of grain dust.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Warren, C P; Holford-Strevens, V

    1986-01-01

    The ability of extracts of grain dust and wheat to induce histamine release from rat peritoneal cells was investigated. Some grain dusts, with a high endotoxin content, were found to produce cytotoxic histamine release. Extract of wheat dust, with a low endotoxin release, produced noncytotoxic histamine release from peritoneal cells but not from purified mast cells. This reaction was dependent on the presence of phosphatidyl serine. The agent did not appear to be a lectin because histamine release was not enhanced by passive sensitization of mast cells with IgE. The activity occurred only over a narrow range of concentrations of the extract of wheat. The cause was unclear. PMID:2423321

  1. Effects of medium-chain triglycerides on gluconeogenesis and ureagenesis in weaned rats fed a high fat diet

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chitose Sugiyama

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available We explored the effects of Medium-chain triglycerides (MCT on gluconeogenesis and ureagenesis in the liver of weaned male rats fed high fat, carbohydrate-free diets. The rats of three experimental groups and control were fed for 10 days. The diets were high fat, carbohydrate-free diets consisting either of a corn oil or MCT, and high protein carbohydrate-free diet and a control (high carbohydrate diet. The hepatic glucose-6-phosphatase (G6Pase activity increased in the experimental groups. Despite the elevated G6Pase activity in these groups, hepatic activities of glutamic alanine transaminase (GAT, pyruvate carboxylase (PC and arginase differed among the experimental groups. The HF-corn oil rats showed elevation of PC activity, but no elevation of GAT activity, and the lowest arginase activity among the three groups. The HF-MCT diet-fed rats showed higher GAT and arginase activities than the HF-corn oil group. In the HP diet-fed rats, GAT and arginase activities enhanced, PC did not.

  2. Eating high-fat chow increases the sensitivity of rats to quinpirole-induced discriminative stimulus effects and yawning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baladi, Michelle G; France, Charles P

    2010-10-01

    Discriminative stimulus effects of direct acting dopamine receptor agonists (e.g. quinpirole) appear to be mediated by D3 receptors in free-feeding rats. Free access to high-fat chow increases sensitivity to quinpirole-induced yawning, and this study examined whether eating high-fat chow increases sensitivity to the discriminative stimulus effects of quinpirole. Five rats discriminated between 0.032 mg/kg quinpirole and vehicle while responding under a continuous reinforcement schedule of stimulus shock termination. When rats had free access to high-fat chow (discrimination training was suspended), the quinpirole discrimination dose-response curve shifted leftward, possibly indicating enhanced sensitivity at D3 receptors. In the same rats, both the ascending (mediated by D3 receptors) and descending (mediated by D2 receptors) limbs of the dose-response curve for quinpirole-induced yawning shifted leftward. When rats had free access to a standard chow (discrimination training was suspended), the quinpirole discrimination and yawning dose-response curves did not change. Together with published data showing that the discriminative stimulus effects of quinpirole in free-feeding rats are mediated by D3 receptors and the insensitivity of this effect of quinpirole to food restriction (shown to increase sensitivity to D2 but not D3-mediated effects), these results suggest that the leftward shift of the discrimination dose-response curve when rats eat high-fat chow is likely because of enhanced sensitivity at D3 receptors. Thus, eating high-fat food enhances drug effects in a manner that might impact clinical effects of drugs or vulnerability to drug abuse.

  3. Eating high fat chow increases the sensitivity of rats to quinpirole-induced discriminative stimulus effects and yawning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baladi, Michelle G; France, Charles P

    2010-01-01

    Discriminative stimulus effects of directly-acting dopamine receptor agonists (e.g. quinpirole) appear to be mediated by D3 receptors in free-feeding rats. Free access to high fat chow increases sensitivity to quinpirole-induced yawning and the current study examined whether eating high fat chow increases sensitivity to the discriminative stimulus effects of quinpirole. Five rats discriminated between 0.032 mg/kg quinpirole and vehicle while responding under a continuous reinforcement schedule of stimulus shock termination. When rats had free access to high fat chow (discrimination training was suspended), the quinpirole discrimination dose-response curve shifted leftward, possibly indicating enhanced sensitivity at D3 receptors. In the same rats, both the ascending (mediated by D3 receptors) and descending (mediated by D2 receptors) limbs of the dose- response curve for quinpirole-induced yawning shifted leftward. When rats had free access to a standard chow (discrimination training was suspended), the quinpirole discrimination and yawning dose-response curves did not change. Together with published data showing that the discriminative stimulus effects of quinpirole in free- feeding rats are mediated by D3 receptors and the insensitivity of this effect of quinpirole to food restriction (shown to increase sensitivity to D2 but not D3-mediated effects), these results suggest that the leftward shift of the discrimination dose-response curve when rats eat high fat chow is likely due to enhanced sensitivity at D3 receptors. Thus, eating high fat food enhances drug effects in a manner that might impact clinical effects of drugs or vulnerability to drug abuse. PMID:20729718

  4. The snacking rat as model of human obesity: effects of a free-choice high-fat high-sugar diet on meal patterns.

    Science.gov (United States)

    la Fleur, S E; Luijendijk, M C M; van der Zwaal, E M; Brans, M A D; Adan, R A H

    2014-05-01

    Rats subjected to a free-choice high-fat high-sugar (fcHFHS) diet persistently overeat, exhibit increased food-motivated behavior and become overtly obese. Conversely, several studies using a non-choice (nc) high-energy diet showed only an initial increase in food intake with unaltered or reduced food-motivated behavior. This raises the question of the importance of choice in the persistence of hyperphagia in rats on a fcHFHS diet. Meal patterns, food intake and body weight gain were studied in male Wistar rats on free-choice diets with fat and/or sugar and in rats on nc diets with fat and sugar (custom made with ingredients similar to the fcHFHS diet). Rats on a ncHFHS diet initially overconsumed, but reduced intake thereafter, whereas rats on a fcHFHS diet remained hyperphagic. Because half of the sugar intake in the fcHFHS group occurred during the inactive period, we next determined whether sugar intake during the light phase was a necessary requirement for hyperphagia, by restricting access to liquid sugar to either the light or dark period with unlimited access to fat and chow. Results showed that hyperphagia occurred irrespective of the timing of sugar intake. Meal pattern analysis revealed consumption of larger but fewer meals in the ncHFHS group, as well as the fcHF group. Interestingly, meal number was increased in all rats drinking liquid sugar (whether on a fcHFHS or a fcHS diet), whereas a compensatory decrease in meal size was only observed in the fcHS group, but not the fcHFHS group. We hereby show the importance of choice in the observation of fcHFHS diet-induced hyperphagia, which results in increases in meal number due to sugar drinking without any compensatory decrease in meal size. We thus provide a novel dietary model in rats that mimics important features of human overconsumption that have been ignored in rodent models of obesity.

  5. An economic evaluation of highly purified HMG and recombinant FSH based on a large randomized trial.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wechowski, Jaroslaw; Connolly, Mark; McEwan, Philip; Kennedy, Richard

    2007-11-01

    Public funding for IVF is increasingly being challenged by health authorities in an attempt to minimize health service costs. In light of treatment rationing, the need to consider costs in relation to outcomes is paramount. To assess the cost implications of gonadotrophin treatment options, an economic evaluation comparing highly purified human menopausal gonadotrophin (HP-HMG) and recombinant FSH (rFSH) has been conducted. The analysis is based on individual patient data from a large randomized controlled trial (n = 731) in a long agonist IVF protocol. The economic evaluation uses a discrete event simulation model to assess treatment costs in relation to live births for both treatments based on published UK costs. After one cycle the mean costs per IVF treatment for HP-HMG and rFSH were pound2396 (95% CI pound2383-2414) and pound2633 ( pound2615-2652), respectively. The average cost-saving of pound237 per IVF cycle using HP-HMG allows one additional cycle to be delivered for every 10 cycles. With maternal and neonatal costs applied, the median cost per IVF baby delivered with HP-HMG was pound8893 compared with pound11,741 for rFSH (P cost-saving potential of HP-HMG in IVF was still apparent after varying critical cost parameters in the probabilistic sensitivity analysis.

  6. The effect of tartrazine on histamine release from rat peritoneal mast cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Safford, R J; Goodwin, B F

    1984-01-01

    The release of histamine from purified rat peritoneal mast cells induced by specific antigen (egg albumin), compound 48/80 and calcium ionophore A23187 was modified by tartrazine. Histamine release induced by 48/80 and antigen was inhibited by the presence of 10(-5) to 10(-2)M tartrazine. The inhibitory effect on egg albumin induced histamine release was maximal when the tartrazine was added simultaneously with egg albumin, and was reduced by increased preincubation of the cells with tartrazine. Tartrazine had a small inhibitory effect on ionophore induced release at high concentrations, but augmented histamine release at tartrazine concentrations of 10(-3) and 10(-4)M. Augmentation of ionophore induced release was maximal at between 0-5 min preincubation of the cells with tartrazine.

  7. Homing pattern of indium-111 T-lymphocytes in normal and tumor bearing rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kasi, L.P.; Glenn, H.J.; Mehta, K.; Teckemeyer, I.C.; Wong, W.; Haynie, T.P.

    1985-01-01

    T-lymphocytes play an important role in tumor immunology and possess cytotoxic capabilities. Purified T-lymphocytes were obtained by incubating mononuclear cells separated from peripheral blood of Fisher 344 rats in a nylon wool column at 37 0 C. The non-adherent T-lymphocytes which were eluted from the column had > 95% viability. About 1 x 10/sup 7/ purified T-lymphocytes were labeled with 30 μCi In-111 oxine (Labeling yield: 75 +-5%, viability >95%). The function of the labeled cells as estimated by their graft versus host reaction ability remained unaltered. To evaluate the distribution pattern, 1 x 10/sup 6/ In-111 T-lymphocytes (per 100g wt) were injected via tail vein in normal and in transplanted (right flank) solid hepatoma bearing Fisher 344 rats, and the percent uptake of activity of the total injected dose per organ and per gm tissue was estimated at 2, 24 and 48 hours post injection. In normal rats maximum uptakes were in the liver (24%-33%) with increasing uptakes in the spleen (6.8%-11%) and minimum uptakes in the kidneys, lungs, muscles, and blood from 2 to 48 hours after injection. The uptake pattern in tumor bearing rats were significantly different during the same time period: lower in the liver (17%-19%) and a decrease in the spleen (9%-0.4%). All other tissues displayed similar uptake patterns as in normal animals. Maximum tumor:muscle ratio (18.4) was found at 48 hours post injection. Further studies are indicated for the possible use of In-111 T-lymphocytes in T-lymphocyte disorders, inflammations, and as an additional tool in the diagnosis of tumors

  8. [Study on the phase II metabolites of phenoprolamine hydrochloride in rat bile by LC/DAD/MSD].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ding, L; Zhang, Z X; Ni, P Z; Wang, G J; An, D K

    2001-06-01

    To study the phase II metabolites of phenoprolamine hydrochloride (DDPH) in rat bile. DDPH was administered by i.p. to bile duct-cannulated rats. Bile samples were collected before drug administration and up to 12 h after drug administration. After being purified and enriched with C-18 SPE columns the rat bile samples were analyzed by LC/DAD/MSD to identify the peaks of phase II metabolites. The fractions of phase II metabolites were prepared by HPLC and treated with beta-glucuronidase, and then were purified and enriched with C-18 SPE columns and analyzed by LC/DAD/MSD. The corresponding reference standards of DDPH phase I metabolites were analyzed by LC/DAD/MSD under identical conditions. The peaks M7, M8 and M9 in the chromatograms of rat bile samples were the phase II metabolites of DDPH and the enzymatic hydrolysates of M7, M8 and M9 were 1-(2, 6-dimethyl-4-hydroxyphenoxy)-2-(3, 4-methoxyphenylethylamino)-propane (M3), 1-(2, 6-dimethyl-3-hydroxyphenoxy)-2-(3, 4-methoxyphenylethylamino)-propane (M2) and 1-(2,6-dimethylphenoxy)-2-(3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylethyl-amino)-propane (M1) respectively. beta-1-O-[3,5-dimethyl-4-[-2-methyl-2-(3,4-dimethoxy-phenylethylamino)- ethoxy]-phenyl]-glucuronic acid (M7, glucuronide of M3), beta-1-O-[2, 4-dimethyl-3-[2-methyl-2-(3, 4-dimethoxy-phenylethylamino)-ethoxy]-phenyl]-glucuronic acid (M8, glucuronide of M2) and beta-1-O-[2-methoxy-4-[1-methyl-2-(2, 6-dimethylphenoxy)-ethylamino-ethyl]-phenyl]-glucuronic acid (M9, glucuronide of M1) were the phase II metabolites of DDPH in rat bile.

  9. Modulatory effects of dietary supplementation by Vernonia amygdalina on high-fat-diet-induced obesity in Wistar rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ekeleme-Egedigwe, Chima A; Ijeh, Ifeoma I; Okafor, Polycarp N

    2017-01-01

    Obesity is a growing public health problem arising from energy imbalance. The effect of 10% dietary incorporation of Vernonia amygdalina (VA) leaves into high-fat diets on some biological markers of adiposity and dyslipidaemia was investigated. Experimental diets consisted of the following – CD (control diet); HFD (high-fat diet); and HFD- VA (HFD containing 10% Vernonia amygdalina leaves) supplementation. Fifteen male Wistar rats were randomly divided into three groups of five animals each. After twelve weeks of feeding, serum lipid profile, blood glucose concentrations, body weight, adiposity index, feed intake, fecal loss and relative organ weight were investigated. Vernonia amygdalina (VA) inhibited HFD-induced weight gain and adiposity in rats. HFD-induced obese rats showed a significant increase in the levels of serum TG and TC compared to rats on a normal diet. However, the levels of serum TG, TC, LDL-C in HFDVA rats reduced significantly relative to the levels in HFD rats. Our results indicate that HFDVA reversed fatty infiltration leading to decreased body weight and fat tissue mass in the rats. These results suggested that incorporation of Vernonia amygdalina into high-fat diets may have therapeutic potentials for obesity and related metabolic disorders. Further studies to explore its possibility as an alternative pharmacologic agent to treat obesity are warranted.

  10. 21 CFR 880.6500 - Medical ultraviolet air purifier.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 21 Food and Drugs 8 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Medical ultraviolet air purifier. 880.6500 Section 880.6500 Food and Drugs FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES... to ultraviolet radiation. (b) Classification. Class II (performance standards). ...

  11. Efficient Ex Vivo Engineering and Expansion of Highly Purified Human Hematopoietic Stem and Progenitor Cell Populations for Gene Therapy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zonari, Erika; Desantis, Giacomo; Petrillo, Carolina; Boccalatte, Francesco E; Lidonnici, Maria Rosa; Kajaste-Rudnitski, Anna; Aiuti, Alessandro; Ferrari, Giuliana; Naldini, Luigi; Gentner, Bernhard

    2017-04-11

    Ex vivo gene therapy based on CD34 + hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) has shown promising results in clinical trials, but genetic engineering to high levels and in large scale remains challenging. We devised a sorting strategy that captures more than 90% of HSC activity in less than 10% of mobilized peripheral blood (mPB) CD34 + cells, and modeled a transplantation protocol based on highly purified, genetically engineered HSCs co-infused with uncultured progenitor cells. Prostaglandin E 2 stimulation allowed near-complete transduction of HSCs with lentiviral vectors during a culture time of less than 38 hr, mitigating the negative impact of standard culture on progenitor cell function. Exploiting the pyrimidoindole derivative UM171, we show that transduced mPB CD34 + CD38 - cells with repopulating potential could be expanded ex vivo. Implementing these findings in clinical gene therapy protocols will improve the efficacy, safety, and sustainability of gene therapy and generate new opportunities in the field of gene editing. Copyright © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. The surface activity of purified ocular mucin at the air-liquid interface and interactions with meibomian lipids.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Millar, Thomas J; Tragoulias, Sophia T; Anderton, Philip J; Ball, Malcolm S; Miano, Fausto; Dennis, Gary R; Mudgil, Poonam

    2006-01-01

    Ocular mucins are thought to contribute to the stability of the tear film by reducing surface tension. The purpose of this study was to compare the effect of different mucins and hyaluronic acid (HA) alone and mixed with meibomian lipids on the surface pressure at an air-liquid interface. A Langmuir trough and Wilhelmy balance were used to measure and compare the surface activity of bovine submaxillary gland mucin (BSM), purified BSM, purified bovine ocular mucin and HA, and mixtures of these with meibomian lipids, phosphatidylcholine, and phosphatidylglycerol. Their appearance at the surface of an air-buffer interface was examined using epifluorescence microscopy. Purified ocular mucin had no surface activity even at concentrations that were 100 times more than normally occur in tears. By contrast, commercial BSM caused changes to surface pressure that were concentration dependent. The surface pressure-area profiles showed surface activity with maximum surface pressures of 12.3-22.5 mN/m depending on the concentration. Purified BSM showed no surface activity at low concentrations, whereas higher concentrations reached a maximum surface pressure of 25 mN/m. HA showed no surface activity, at low or high concentrations. Epifluorescence showed that the mucins were located at the air-buffer interface and changed the appearance of lipid films. Purified bovine ocular mucin and HA have no surface activity. However, despite having no surface activity in their own right, ocular mucins are likely to be present at the surface of the tear film, where they cause an increase in surface pressure by causing a compression of the lipids (a reorganization of the lipids) and alter the viscoelastic properties at the surface.

  13. N-Acetylneuraminic acid attenuates hypercoagulation on high fat diet-induced hyperlipidemic rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhang Yida

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Background and objective: N-Acetylneuraminic acid (Neu5Ac, a type of sialic acid, has close links with cholesterol metabolism and is often used as a biomarker in evaluating the risk of cardiovascular diseases. However, most studies on the health implications of Neu5Ac have focused on its effects on the nervous system, while its effects on cardiovascular risk factors have largely been unreported. Thus, the effects of Neu5Ac on coagulation status in high fat diet (HFD-induced hyperlipidemic rats were evaluated in this study. Methods: Sprague Dawley male rats were divided into five different groups and fed with HFD alone, HFD low-dose Neu5Ac, HFD high-dose Neu5Ac, HFD simvastatin (10 mg/kg day, and normal pellet alone. Food was given ad libitum while body weight of rats was measured weekly. After 12 weeks of intervention, rats were sacrificed and serum and tissue samples were collected for biochemistry and gene expression analysis, respectively. Results: The results showed that Neu5Ac could improve lipid metabolism and hyperlipidemia-associated coagulation. Neu5Ac exerted comparable or sometimes better physiological effects than simvastatin, at biochemical and gene expression levels. Conclusions: The data indicated that Neu5Ac prevented HFD-induced hyperlipidemia and associated hypercoagulation in rats through regulation of lipid-related and coagulation-related genes and, by extension, induced metabolite and protein changes. The implications of the present findings are that Neu5Ac may be used to prevent coagulation-related cardiovascular events in hyperlipidemic conditions. These findings are worth studying further.

  14. Immunocytochemical localization of the [3H]estradiol-binding protein in rat pancreatic acinar cells

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Grossman, A.; Oppenheim, J.; Grondin, G.; St Jean, P.; Beaudoin, A.R.

    1989-01-01

    Significant amounts of an estradiol-binding protein (EBP) are present in pancreatic acinar cells. This protein differs from the one found in female reproductive tissues and secondary sex organs (which is commonly referred to as estrogen receptor). EBP has now been purified from rat pancreas and was used as an antigen to induce polyclonal antibodies in rabbits. The antiserum obtained was purified initially by ammonium sulfate fractionation and then still further by interaction with a protein fraction from pancreas that was devoid of estradiol-binding activity. The latter procedure was used to precipitate nonspecific immunoglobulin Gs. Western blot analysis demonstrated that the anti-EBP antibody reacted specifically with a doublet of protein bands having mol wt of 64K and 66K. When this purified antibody was used as an immunocytochemical probe in conjunction with protein-A-gold, acinar cells were labeled on the surface of the endoplasmic reticulum, on the plasma membrane, and in mitochondria. This specific labeling pattern was not observed when preimmune serum was used. No labeling was observed over the nucleus, Golgi apparatus, or zymogen granules with purified anti-EBP antibodies. The unexpected distribution of EBP in both the endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria is discussed

  15. Erythrocyte phosphofructokinase in rat strains with genetically determined differences in 2,3-diphosphoglycerate levels.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Noble, N A; Tanaka, K R

    1981-02-01

    We have studied the erythrocyte enzyme phosphofructokinase (PFK) from two strains of Long-Evans rats with genetically determined differences in erythrocyte 2,3-diphosphoglycerate (DPG) levels. The DPG difference is due to two alleles at one locus. With one probable exception, the genotype at this locus is always associated with the hemoglobin (Hb) electrophoretic phenotype, due to a polymorphism at the III beta-globin locus. The enzyme PFK has been implicated in the DPG difference because glycolytic intermediate levels suggest that this enzyme has a higher in vivo activity in High-DPG strain rats, although the total PFK activity does not differ. We report here that partially purified erythrocyte PFK from Low-DPG strain cells is inhibited significantly more at physiological levels of DPG (P less than 0.01) than PFK from High-DPG strain erythrocytes. Citrate and adenosine triphosphate also inhibit the Low-DPG enzyme more than the High-DPG enzyme. Therefore, a structurally different PFK, with a greater sensitivity to inhibitors, may explain the lower DPG and ATP levels observed in Low-DPG strain animals. These data support a two-locus (Hb and PFK) hypothesis and provide a gene marker to study the underlying genetic and physiologic relationships of these loci.

  16. Tocotrienols Reverse Cardiovascular, Metabolic and Liver Changes in High Carbohydrate, High Fat Diet-Fed Rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Weng-Yew Wong

    2012-10-01

    Full Text Available Tocotrienols have been reported to improve lipid profiles, reduce atherosclerotic lesions, decrease blood glucose and glycated haemoglobin concentrations, normalise blood pressure in vivo and inhibit adipogenesis in vitro, yet their role in the metabolic syndrome has not been investigated. In this study, we investigated the effects of palm tocotrienol-rich fraction (TRF on high carbohydrate, high fat diet-induced metabolic, cardiovascular and liver dysfunction in rats. Rats fed a high carbohydrate, high fat diet for 16 weeks developed abdominal obesity, hypertension, impaired glucose and insulin tolerance with increased ventricular stiffness, lower systolic function and reduced liver function. TRF treatment improved ventricular function, attenuated cardiac stiffness and hypertension, and improved glucose and insulin tolerance, with reduced left ventricular collagen deposition and inflammatory cell infiltration. TRF improved liver structure and function with reduced plasma liver enzymes, inflammatory cell infiltration, fat vacuoles and balloon hepatocytes. TRF reduced plasma free fatty acid and triglyceride concentrations but only omental fat deposition was decreased in the abdomen. These results suggest that tocotrienols protect the heart and liver, and improve plasma glucose and lipid profiles with minimal changes in abdominal obesity in this model of human metabolic syndrome.

  17. Effect of streamer plasma air purifier on sbs symptoms and performance of office work

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zhang, X.J.; Fang, Lei; Wargocki, Pawel

    2011-01-01

    Subjective experiments were conducted to evaluate the effect of a streamer plasma air purifier on perceived air quality, SBS symptoms and performance of office work during 5-hour exposure of 32 recruited subjects in field laboratory in which real materials were used to establishing a realistic...... level of air pollution. Intensity of SBS symptoms were indicated using visual-analogue scales. Subjects’ performance was evaluated with several computer tasks. The results show that operation of the air purifiers improved perceived air quality and reduced the odor intensity of indoor air. Eye dryness...... symptom was found significantly improved when the air purifiers were used but no other SBS symptoms or performance of office work were improved when the air purifiers were in operation compared to the condition when they were off....

  18. Effects of high-intensity swimming training on the bones of ovariectomized rats

    OpenAIRE

    Oh, Taewoong; Tanaka, Sakura; Naka, Tatsuki; Igawa, Shoji

    2016-01-01

    [Purpose] This study was performed to assess the effects of high-intensity intermittent swimming training(HIT) on bone in ovariectomized rats. [Methods] Six-week-old female Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to either sham operation or bilateral ovariectomy. After surgery, they were divided into the following four groups: 1) sham-operated sedentary (S), 2) sham-operated exercise training (SE), 3) OVX sedentary (O), 4) OVX exercise training (OE) 5) OVX given 17?-estradiol (OE2) and 6) ...

  19. Comparison of single-step and two-step purified coagulants from Moringa oleifera seed for turbidity and DOC removal.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sánchez-Martín, J; Ghebremichael, K; Beltrán-Heredia, J

    2010-08-01

    The coagulant proteins from Moringa oleifera purified with single-step and two-step ion-exchange processes were used for the coagulation of surface water from Meuse river in The Netherlands. The performances of the two purified coagulants and the crude extract were assessed in terms of turbidity and DOC removal. The results indicated that the optimum dosage of the single-step purified coagulant was more than two times higher compared to the two-step purified coagulant in terms of turbidity removal. And the residual DOC in the two-step purified coagulant was lower than in single-step purified coagulant or crude extract. (c) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Fructo-oligosaccharides reduce energy intake but do not affect adiposity in rats fed a low-fat diet but increase energy intake and reduce fat mass in rats fed a high-fat diet.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hadri, Zouheyr; Rasoamanana, Rojo; Fromentin, Gilles; Azzout-Marniche, Dalila; Even, Patrick C; Gaudichon, Claire; Darcel, Nicolas; Bouras, Abdelkader Dilmi; Tomé, Daniel; Chaumontet, Catherine

    2017-12-01

    The ingestion of low or high lipid diets enriched with fructo-oligosaccharide (FOS) affects energy homeostasis. Ingesting protein diets also induces a depression of energy intake and decreases body weight. The goal of this study was to investigate the ability of FOS, combined or not with a high level of protein (P), to affect energy intake and body composition when included in diets containing different levels of lipids (L). We performed two studies of similar design over a period of 5weeks. During the first experiment (exp1), after a 3-week period of adaptation to a normal protein-low fat diet, the rats received one of the following four diets for 5weeks (6 rats per group): (i) normal protein (14% P/E (Energy) low fat (10% L/E) diet, (ii) normal protein, low fat diet supplemented with 10% FOS, (iii) high protein (55%P/E) low fat diet, and (iv) high protein, low fat diet supplemented with 10% FOS. In a second experiment (exp2) after the 3-week period of adaptation to a normal protein-high fat diet, the rats received one of the following 4 diets for 5weeks (6 rats per group): (i) normal protein, high fat diet (35% of fat), (ii) normal protein, high fat diet supplemented with 10% FOS, (iii) high protein high fat diet and (iv) high protein high fat diet supplemented with 10% FOS. In low-fat fed rats, FOS did not affect lean body mass (LBM) and fat mass but the protein level reduced fat mass and tended to reduce adiposity. In high-fat fed rats, FOS did not affect LBM but reduced fat mass and adiposity. No additive or antagonistic effects between FOS and the protein level were observed. FOS reduced energy intake in low-fat fed rats, did not affect energy intake in normal-protein high-fat fed rats but surprisingly, and significantly, increased energy intake in high-protein high-fat fed rats. The results thus showed that FOS added to a high-fat diet reduced body fat and body adiposity. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  1. Carbamoyl-phosphate synthase (ammonia) of rat and axolotl liver: determination of immunological cross-reactivity without purification of the axolotl enzyme

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Lamers, W. H.; de Graaf, A.; Mooren, P. G.; Moorman, A. F.; Charles, R.

    1982-01-01

    A method has been developed to establish the degree of cross-reactivity of an antiserum raised against purified carbamoyl-phosphate synthase (ammonia) from adult rat liver, toward a homologous enzyme from another species without purification of the latter enzyme. For that purpose the ratio between

  2. Chronic dietary supplementation with soy protein improves muscle function in rats.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ramzi J Khairallah

    Full Text Available Athletes as well as elderly or hospitalized patients use dietary protein supplementation to maintain or grow skeletal muscle. It is recognized that high quality protein is needed for muscle accretion, and can be obtained from both animal and plant-based sources. There is interest to understand whether these sources differ in their ability to maintain or stimulate muscle growth and function. In this study, baseline muscle performance was assessed in 50 adult Sprague-Dawley rats after which they were assigned to one of five semi-purified "Western" diets (n = 10/group differing only in protein source, namely 19 kcal% protein from either milk protein isolate (MPI, whey protein isolate (WPI, soy protein isolate (SPI, soy protein concentrate (SPC or enzyme-treated soy protein (SPE. The diets were fed for 8 weeks at which point muscle performance testing was repeated and tissues were collected for analysis. There was no significant difference in food consumption or body weights over time between the diet groups nor were there differences in terminal organ and muscle weights or in serum lipids, creatinine or myostatin. Compared with MPI-fed rats, rats fed WPI and SPC displayed a greater maximum rate of contraction using the in vivo measure of muscle performance (p<0.05 with increases ranging from 13.3-27.5% and 22.8-29.5%, respectively at 60, 80, 100 and 150 Hz. When the maximum force was normalized to body weight, SPC-fed rats displayed increased force compared to MPI (p<0.05, whereas when normalized to gastrocnemius weight, WPI-fed rats displayed increased force compared to MPI (p<0.05. There was no difference between groups using in situ muscle performance. In conclusion, soy protein consumption, in high-fat diet, resulted in muscle function comparable to whey protein and improved compared to milk protein. The benefits seen with soy or whey protein were independent of changes in muscle mass or fiber cross-sectional area.

  3. Insulin stimulation of phospholipid methylation in isolated rat adipocyte plasma membranes.

    OpenAIRE

    Kelly, K L; Kiechle, F L; Jarett, L

    1984-01-01

    Partially purified plasma membranes prepared from rat adipocytes contain N-methyltransferase(s) that utilize(s) S-adenosyl-L-methionine to synthesize phosphatidylcholine from phosphatidylethanolamine. The incorporation of [3H]methyl from S-adenosyl-L-[methyl-3H]methionine into plasma membrane phospholipids was linear with incubation time and plasma membrane protein concentration and was inhibited in a dose-dependent manner by both S-adenosyl-L-homocysteine and 3-deazadenosine. The addition of...

  4. EFFECT OF FERMENTED CHUB MACKEREL EXTRACT ON LIPID METABOLISM OF DIABETIC RATS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    U. Santoso

    2014-10-01

    Full Text Available The present study was conducted to evaluate the effect of fermented chub mackerel extract(FCME on lipid metabolism in diabetic rats. Four week-old male Wistar rats were divided into threegroups based on weight. All rats were induced with diabetes mellitus by single intraperitoneal injectionof streptozotocin at 45 mg/kg body weight. Thereafter, they were randomly distributed to threetreatments with 7 rats assigned to each treatment. One group was the control with no additive, and twotreatmentgroups were given the purified diets supplemented with 1% or 2% FCME. Experimentalresults showed that in comparison to the control, diabetic rats fed FCME increased feed intake (P<0.01and body weight gain (P<0.05. FCME inclusion significantly reduced the activities of acetyl-CoAcarboxylase (P<0.01 and fatty acid synthetase (P<0.05 in diabetic rats. FCME significantly increasedcholesterol 7 -hydroxylase with no effect on HMG-CoA reductase activity. FCME had no effect onhepatic triglyceride, free cholesterol and phospholipid. FCME inclusion at 1% level significantlyreduced serum triglyceride. FCME significantly increased HDL-cholesterol (P<0.05 with no effect onLDL + VLDL-cholesterol, and significantly reduced atherogenic index. FCME did not significantlyaffect serum insulin and glucose concentration. In conclusion, FCME supplementation altered lipidmetabolism in diabetic rats. FCME supplementation reduced the risk of atherosclerosis in diabetic rats.

  5. α-Glucosidase inhibitory activities of fatty acids purified from the internal organ of sea cucumber Stichopus japonicas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nguyen, T H; Kim, S M

    2015-04-01

    α-Glucosidase inhibitory activities of the various solvent fractions (n-hexane, CHCl3 , EtOAc, BuOH, and water) of sea cucumber internal organ were investigated. 1,3-Dipalmitolein (1) and cis-9-octadecenoic acid (2) with potent α-glucosidase inhibitory activity were purified from the n-hexane fraction of sea cucumber internal organ. IC50 values of compounds 1 and 2 were 4.45 and 14.87 μM against Saccharomyces cerevisiae α-glucosidase. These compounds mildly inhibited rat-intestinal α-glucosidase. In addition, both compounds showed a mixed competitive inhibition against S. cerevisiae α-glucosidase and were very stable at pH 2 up to 60 min. The KI values of compounds 1 and 2 were 0.48 and 1.24 μM, respectively. Therefore, the internal organ of sea cucumber might be a potential new source of α-glucosidase inhibitors suitably used for prevention of obesity and diabetes mellitus. © 2015 Institute of Food Technologists®

  6. Removal efficiency of water purifier and adsorbent for iodine, cesium, strontium, barium and zirconium in drinking water.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sato, Itaru; Kudo, Hiroaki; Tsuda, Shuji

    2011-01-01

    The severe incident of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station has caused radioactive contamination of environment including drinking water. Radioactive iodine, cesium, strontium, barium and zirconium are hazardous fission products because of the high yield and/or relatively long half-life. In the present study, 4 pot-type water purifiers and several adsorbents were examined for the removal effects on these elements from drinking water. Iodide, iodate, cesium and barium were removed by all water purifiers with efficiencies about 85%, 40%, 75-90% and higher than 85%, respectively. These efficiencies lasted for 200 l, which is near the recommended limits for use of filter cartridges, without decay. Strontium was removed with initial efficiencies from 70% to 100%, but the efficiencies were slightly decreased by use. Zirconium was removed by two models, but hardly removed by the other models. Synthetic zeolite A4 efficiently removed cesium, strontium and barium, but had no effect on iodine and zirconium. Natural zeolite, mordenite, removed cesium with an efficiency as high as zeolite A4, but the removal efficiencies for strontium and barium were far less than those of zeolite A4. Activated carbon had little removal effects on these elements. In case of radioactive contamination of tap water, water purifiers may be available for convenient decontamination of drinking water in the home.

  7. A high-fructose diet induces changes in pp185 phosphorylation in muscle and liver of rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. Ueno

    2000-12-01

    Full Text Available Insulin stimulates the tyrosine kinase activity of its receptor resulting in the tyrosine phosphorylation of pp185, which contains insulin receptor substrates IRS-1 and IRS-2. These early steps in insulin action are essential for the metabolic effects of insulin. Feeding animals a high-fructose diet results in insulin resistance. However, the exact molecular mechanism underlying this effect is unknown. In the present study, we determined the levels and phosphorylation status of the insulin receptor and pp185 (IRS-1/2 in liver and muscle of rats submitted to a high-fructose diet evaluated by immunoblotting with specific antibodies. Feeding fructose (28 days induced a discrete insulin resistance, as demonstrated by the insulin tolerance test. Plasma glucose and serum insulin and cholesterol levels of the two groups of rats, fructose-fed and control, were similar, whereas plasma triacylglycerol concentration was significantly increased in the rats submitted to the fructose diet (P<0.05. There were no changes in insulin receptor concentration in the liver or muscle of either group. However, insulin-stimulated receptor autophosphorylation was reduced to 72 ± 4% (P<0.05 in the liver of high-fructose rats. The IRS-1 protein levels were similar in both liver and muscle of the two groups of rats. In contrast, there was a significant decrease in insulin-induced pp185 (IRS-1/2 phosphorylation, to 83 ± 5% (P<0.05 in liver and to 77 ± 4% (P<0.05 in muscle of the high-fructose rats. These data suggest that changes in the early steps of insulin signal transduction may have an important role in the insulin resistance induced by high-fructose feeding.

  8. Effects of high-altitude exercise training on contractile function of rat skinned cardiomyocyte.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cazorla, O; Aït Mou, Y; Goret, L; Vassort, G; Dauzat, M; Lacampagne, A; Tanguy, S; Obert, P

    2006-09-01

    Previous studies have questioned whether there is an improved cardiac function after high-altitude training. Accordingly, the present study was designed specifically to test whether this apparent blunted response of the whole heart to training can be accounted for by altered mechanical properties at the cellular level. Adult rats were trained for 5 weeks under normoxic (N, NT for sedentary and trained animals, respectively) or hypobaric hypoxic (H, HT) conditions. Cardiac morphology and function were evaluated by echocardiography. Calcium Ca2+ sensitivity of the contractile machinery was estimated in skinned cardiomyocytes isolated from the left ventricular (LV) sub-epicardium (Epi) and sub-endocardium (Endo) at short and long sarcomere lengths (SL). Cardiac remodelling was harmonious (increase in wall thickness with chamber dilatation) in NT rats and disharmonious (hypertrophy without chamber dilatation) in HT rats. Contrary to NT rats, HT rats did not exhibit enhancement in global cardiac performance evaluated by echocardiography. Stretch- dependent Ca2+ sensitization of the myofilaments (cellular index of the Frank-Starling mechanism) increased from Epi to Endo in N rats. Training in normoxic conditions further increased this stretch-dependent Ca2+ sensitization. Chronic hypoxia did not significantly affect myofibrilar Ca2+ sensitivity. In contrast, high-altitude training decreased Ca2+ sensitivity of the myofilaments at both SL, mostly in Endo cells, resulting in a loss of the transmural gradient of the stretch-dependent Ca2+ sensitization. Expression of myosin heavy chain isoforms was affected both by training and chronic hypoxia but did not correlate with mechanical data. Training at sea level increased the transmural gradient of stretch-dependent Ca2+ sensitization of the myofilaments, accounting for an improved Frank-Starling mechanism. High-altitude training depressed myofilament response to Ca2+, especially in the Endo layer. This led to a reduction in

  9. A comparative study on the effect of high cholesterol diet on the hippocampal CA1 area of adult and aged rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abo El-Khair, Doaa M; El-Safti, Fatma El-Nabawia A; Nooh, Hanaa Z; El-Mehi, Abeer E

    2014-06-01

    Dementia is one of the most important problems nowadays. Aging is associated with learning and memory impairments. Diet rich in cholesterol has been shown to be detrimental to cognitive performance. This work was carried out to compare the effect of high cholesterol diet on the hippocampus of adult and aged male albino rats. Twenty adult and twenty aged male rats were used in this study. According to age, the rats were randomly subdivided into balanced and high cholesterol diet fed groups. The diet was 15 g/rat/day for adult rats and 20 g/rat/day for aged rats for eight weeks. Serial coronal sections of hippocampus and blood samples were taken from each rat. For diet effect evaluation, Clinical, biochemical, histological, immunohistochemical, and morphometric assessments were done. In compare to a balanced diet fed rat, examination of Cornu Ammonis 1 (CA 1) area in the hippocampus of the high cholesterol diet adult rats showed degeneration, a significant decrease of the pyramidal cells, attenuation and/or thickening of small blood vessels, apparent increase of astrocytes and apparent decrease of Nissl's granules content. Moreover, the high cholesterol diet aged rats showed aggravation of senility changes of the hippocampus together with Alzheimer like pathological changes. In conclusion, the high cholesterol diet has a significant detrimental effect on the hippocampus and aging might pronounce this effect. So, we should direct our attention to limit cholesterol intake in our food to maintain a healthy life style for a successful aging.

  10. Eating high fat chow increases the sensitivity of rats to 8-OH-DPAT-induced lower lip retraction.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Jun-Xu; Ju, Shutian; Baladi, Michelle G; Koek, Wouter; France, Charles P

    2011-12-01

    Eating high fat food can alter sensitivity to drugs acting on dopamine systems; this study examined whether eating high fat food alters sensitivity to a drug acting on serotonin (5-HT) systems. Sensitivity to (+)-8-hydroxy-2-(dipropylamino) tetralin hydrobromide (8-OH-DPAT; 5-HT1A receptor agonist)-induced lower lip retraction was examined in separate groups (n=8-9) of rats with free access to standard (5.7% fat) or high fat (34.3% fat) chow; sensitivity to quinpirole (dopamine D3/D2 receptor agonist)-induced yawning was also examined. Rats eating high fat chow gained more body weight than rats eating standard chow and, after 6 weeks of eating high fat chow, they were more sensitive to 8-OH-DPAT (0.01-0.1 mg/kg)-induced lower lip retraction and quinpirole (0.0032-0.32 mg/kg)-induced yawning. These changes were not reversed when rats that previously ate high fat chow were switched to eating standard chow and sensitivity to 8-OH-DPAT and quinpirole increased when rats that previously ate standard chow ate high fat chow. These data extend previous results showing changes in sensitivity to drugs acting on dopamine systems in animals eating high fat chow to a drug acting at 5-HT1A receptors and they provide support for the notion that eating certain foods impacts sensitivity to drugs acting on monoamine systems.

  11. Structural Identification of 19 Purified Isomers of the OPV Acceptor Material bisPCBM by 13C NMR and UV-Vis Absorption Spectroscopy and High-Performance Liquid Chromatography.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Tong; Abrahams, Isaac; Dennis, T John S

    2018-04-26

    The molecular structures of 19 purified isomers of bis-phenyl-C 62 -butyric acid methyl ester were identified by a combination of 13 C NMR and UV-vis absorption spectroscopies and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) retention time analysis. All 19 isomers are dicyclopropafullerenes (none are homofullerenes). There were seven isomers with C 1 molecular point-group symmetry, four with C s , six with C 2 , one with C 2 v , and one with C 2 h symmetry. The C 2 h , C 2 v , and all five nonequatorial C 1 isomers were unambiguously assigned to their respective HPLC fractions. For the other 12 isomers, the 13 C NMR and UV-vis spectra placed them in six groups of two same-symmetry isomers. On the basis of the widely spaced HPLC retention times of the two isomers within each of these six groups, and the empirical inverse correlation between retention time and addend spacing, each isomer was assigned to its corresponding HPLC fraction. In addition, the missing trans-1 isomer was found, purified, and characterized.

  12. Temporal microbiota changes of high-protein diet intake in a rat model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mu, Chunlong; Yang, Yuxiang; Luo, Zhen; Zhu, Weiyun

    2017-10-01

    Alterations of specific microbes serve as important indicators that link gut health with specific diet intake. Although a six-week high-protein diet (45% protein) upregulates the pro-inflammatory response and oxidative stress in colon of rats, the dynamic alteration of gut microbiota remains unclear. To dissect temporal changes of microbiota, dynamic analyses of fecal microbiota were conducted using a rat model. Adult rats were fed a normal-protein diet or an HPD for 6 weeks, and feces collected at different weeks were used for microbiota and metabolite analysis. The structural alteration of fecal microbiota was observed after 4 weeks, especially for the decreased appearance of bands related to Akkermansia species. HPD increased numbers of Escherichia coli while decreased Akkermansia muciniphila, Bifidobacterium, Prevotella, Ruminococcus bromii, and Roseburia/Eubacterium rectale (P protein diet. HPD also decreased the copies of genes encoding butyryl-CoA:acetate CoA-transferase and Prevotella-associated methylmalonyl-CoA decarboxylase α-subunit (P high-protein diet. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. Diet composition modifies embryotoxic effects induced by experimental diabetes in rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Giavini, E; Broccia, M L; Prati, M; Domenico Roversi, G

    1991-01-01

    Despite improvements in prenatal care, the incidence of congenital malformations in diabetic pregnancies is still 3-4 times higher than in normal pregnancies. These defects could be attributed to alterations of intrauterine environment due to disorder of the maternal metabolism. If this were true, the quality of food could play a role in diabetes-induced embryotoxicity. To check this hypothesis, female CD rats were made diabetic by injecting intravenously 50 mg/kg of streptozotocin 2 weeks before mating. From the first day of pregnancy they were divided into three groups and maintained on the following diets: (1) standard diet (Italiana Mangimi); (2) purified high protein diet (protein 55%, carbohydrates 25.5%, fat 7.5%, fiber 4.5%, ash 7.5%); (3) purified normoprotein diet (protein 19%, carbohydrates 62.5%, fat 7.5%, fiber 4%, ash 7%). Nondiabetic pregnant females fed with standard diet served as negative control. No significant differences were observed in blood glucose levels among the groups (range 410-500 mg/dl). The group fed on normoprotein diet showed at term of pregnancy: (1) higher rate of resorptions; (2) lower fetal weight; (3) higher frequency of major malformations than the groups fed standard and hyperproteic diets. Although we are not able at this time to discriminate between a protective effect of a diet with a high protein content and a disruptive effect of a diet containing high quantity of carbohydrates, the results of this trial support the hypothesis of a fuel-mediated teratogenesis in diabetic pregnancy.

  14. Effect of high-fructose and high-fat diets on pulmonary sensitivity, motor activity, and body composition of brown Norway rats exposed to ozone

    Science.gov (United States)

    pulmonary parameters, BALF biomarkers, body composition, motor activity data collected from rats exposed to ozone after high fructose or high fat diets.This dataset is associated with the following publication:Gordon , C., P. Phillips , A. Johnstone , T. Beasley , A. Ledbetter , M. Schladweiler , S. Snow, and U. Kodavanti. Effect of High Fructose and High Fat Diets on Pulmonary Sensitivity, Motor Activity, and Body Composition of Brown Norway Rats Exposed to Ozone. INHALATION TOXICOLOGY. Taylor & Francis, Inc., Philadelphia, PA, USA, 28(5): 203-15, (2016).

  15. Neuroprotective effects of phytosterol esters against high cholesterol-induced cognitive deficits in aged rat.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rui, Xu; Wenfang, Li; Jing, Cheng; Meng, Chen; Chengcheng, Ding; Jiqu, Xu; Shuang, Rong

    2017-03-22

    Accumulating epidemiological and experimental studies have confirmed that a high-cholesterol diet is detrimental to cognitive performance in animal models. Phytosterols, a class of naturally occurring structural components in plant foods, have been demonstrated to possess cholesterol-lowering and antioxidant effects. Phytosterol esters (PSE) are esters of phytosterol. The aim of this study was to evaluate the neuroprotective effects of PSE on cognitive deficit induced by a cholesterol-enriched diet in aged rats, and to explore their underlying mechanisms for these effects. Based on their Morris water maze performance, the latencies differed by <1.5 standard deviations (SDs) on days 3-5 of testing, 60 rats were chosen from 12-month-old female Sprague Dawley aged rats and were randomized into three groups, which were fed either a control diet, a high cholesterol diet (HCD) or a high-cholesterol diet supplemented with 2% PSE (HCD + PSE) for 6 months. In our study, we found that PSE treatment maintained the body weight balance, reduced the serum lipid levels, and improved the cognitive performance of aged rats in the Morris water maze test, as evaluated by shortened escape latencies. Importantly, histological and immunohistochemical results in the brain showed that PSE supplementation may have a neuroprotective effect that alleviates neuroinflammation in aged rats. This neuroprotective effect significantly inhibited degeneration, resulting in a significant increase in the number of pyramidal cells and an apparent decrease in the number of astrocytes compared to rats that were fed only a HCD. Furthermore, PSE improved cholinergic activities by restoring the acetylcholine (ACh) content and decreasing acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity in the cerebral cortex, as well as by elevating choline acetyl transferase (ChAT) activity in the hippocampus and the cerebral cortex. These results suggest that PSE can play a useful role in alleviating cognitive deficit induced by a

  16. Binding characteristics of 9-fluoropropyl-(+)-dihydrotetrabenzazine (AV-133) to the vesicular monoamine transporter type 2 in rats

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tsao, H.-H. [Department of Medical Imaging and Radiological Sciences, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan (China); Lin, K.-J. [Department of Medical Imaging and Radiological Sciences, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan (China); Department of Nuclear Medicine, Chang Gung University and Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan, Taiwan (China); Juang, J.-H. [Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Chung Gung University and Chung Gung Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan, Taiwan (China); Skovronsky, Daniel M. [Avid Radiopharmaceuticals, Philadelphia, PA (United States); Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104 (United States); Yen, T.-C. [Department of Nuclear Medicine, Chang Gung University and Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan, Taiwan (China); Wey, S.-P. [Department of Medical Imaging and Radiological Sciences, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan (China); Kung, M.-P. [Department of Medical Imaging and Radiological Sciences, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan (China); Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104 (United States)], E-mail: kungmp@sunmac.spect.upenn.edu

    2010-05-15

    The vesicular monoamine transporter type 2 (VMAT2) is highly expressed in pancreatic {beta}-cells and thus has been proposed to be a potential target for measuring {beta}-cell mass (BCM) by molecular imaging. C-11- and F-18-labeled tetrabenazine derivatives targeting VMAT2 have shown some promising results as potential biomarkers for BCM. In the present study, we examined the binding characteristics of 9-fluoropropyl-(+)-dihydrotetrabenzazine ([{sup 18}F]AV-133), a potential PET tracer for BCM imaging, in rat pancreas and rat brain. Methods: Pancreatic exocrine cells and pancreatic islet cells were isolated and purified from Sprague-Dawley rats. Membrane homogenates, prepared from both pancreatic exocrine and islet cells as well as from brain striatum and hypothalamus regions, were used for in vitro binding studies. In vitro and ex vivo autoradiography studies with [{sup 18}F]AV-133 were performed on rat brain and rat pancreas sections. Immunohistochemistry studies were performed to confirm the distribution of VMAT2 on islet {beta}-cells. Results: Excellent binding affinities of [{sup 18}F]AV-133 were observed in rat striatum and hypothalamus homogenates with K{sub d} values of 0.19 and 0.25 nM, respectively. In contrast to single-site binding observed in rat striatum homogenates, rat islet cell homogenates showed two saturable binding sites (site A: K{sub d}=6.76 nM, B{sub max}=60 fmol/mg protein; site B: K{sub d}=241 nM, B{sub max}=1500 fmol/mg protein). Rat exocrine pancreas homogenates showed only a single low-affinity binding site (K{sub d}=209 nM), which was similar to site B in islet cells. In vitro autoradiography of [{sup 18}F]AV-133 using frozen sections of rat pancreas showed specific labeling of islets, as evidenced by co-localization with anti-insulin antibody. Ex vivo VMAT2 pancreatic autoradiography in the rat, however, was not successful, in contrast to the excellent ex vivo autoradiography of VMAT2 binding sites in the brain. In vivo/ex vivo islet

  17. Coenzyme Q Metabolism Is Disturbed in High Fat Diet-Induced Non Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease in Rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kathleen M Botham

    2012-02-01

    Full Text Available Oxidative stress is believed to be a major contributory factor in the development of non alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD, the most common liver disorder worldwide. In this study, the effects of high fat diet-induced NAFLD on Coenzyme Q (CoQ metabolism and plasma oxidative stress markers in rats were investigated. Rats were fed a standard low fat diet (control or a high fat diet (57% metabolizable energy as fat for 18 weeks. The concentrations of total (reduced + oxidized CoQ9 were increased by > 2 fold in the plasma of animals fed the high fat diet, while those of total CoQ10 were unchanged. Reduced CoQ levels were raised, but oxidized CoQ levels were not, thus the proportion in the reduced form was increased by about 75%. A higher percentage of plasma CoQ9 as compared to CoQ10 was in the reduced form in both control and high fat fed rats. Plasma protein thiol (SH levels were decreased in the high fat-fed rats as compared to the control group, but concentrations of lipid hydroperoxides and low density lipoprotein (LDL conjugated dienes were unchanged. These results indicate that high fat diet-induced NAFLD in rats is associated with altered CoQ metabolism and increased protein, but not lipid, oxidative stress.

  18. Rice bran protein hydrolysates reduce arterial stiffening, vascular remodeling and oxidative stress in rats fed a high-carbohydrate and high-fat diet.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Senaphan, Ketmanee; Sangartit, Weerapon; Pakdeechote, Poungrat; Kukongviriyapan, Veerapol; Pannangpetch, Patchareewan; Thawornchinsombut, Supawan; Greenwald, Stephen E; Kukongviriyapan, Upa

    2018-02-01

    Rice bran protein hydrolysates (RBPH) contain highly nutritional proteins and antioxidant compounds which show benefits against metabolic syndrome (MetS). Increased arterial stiffness and the components of MetS have been shown to be associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. This study aimed to investigate whether RBPH could alleviate the metabolic disorders, arterial stiffening, vascular remodeling, and oxidative stress in rats fed a high-carbohydrate and high-fat (HCHF) diet. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were fed either a standard chow and tap water or a HCHF diet and 15 % fructose solution for 16 weeks. HCHF rats were treated orally with RBPH (250 or 500 mg/kg/day) for the final 6 weeks of the experimental period. Rats fed with HCHF diet had hyperglycemia, insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, hypertension, increased aortic pulse wave velocity, aortic wall hypertrophy and vascular remodeling with increased MMP-2 and MMP-9 expression. RBPH supplementation significantly alleviated these alterations (P stress was also alleviated after RBPH treatment by decreasing plasma malondialdehyde, reducing superoxide production and suppressing p47 phox NADPH oxidase expression in the vascular tissues of HCHF rats. RBPH increased plasma nitrate/nitrite level and up-regulated eNOS expression in the aortas of HCHF-diet-fed rats, indicating that RBPH increased NO production. RBPH mitigate the deleterious effects of HCHF through potential mechanisms involving enhanced NO bioavailability, anti-ACE, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. RBPH could be used as dietary supplements to minimize oxidative stress and vascular alterations triggered by MetS.

  19. Delonix regia Rat. (Gulmohar) is a highly ornamental tree largely ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Delonix regia Rat. (Gulmohar) is a highly ornamental tree largely cultivated on roadsides and in gardens for its beautiful foliage and scarlet red (lowers. Gulmohar trees in full bloom and new leaves dominate other flora in summer months. The infusion of flowers is used in bronchitis, asthma and malaria.

  20. Effect of high-fat diet during gestation, lactation, or postweaning on physiological and behavioral indexes in borderline hypertensive rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mitra, Anaya; Alvers, Kristin M; Crump, Erica M; Rowland, Neil E

    2009-01-01

    Maternal obesity is becoming more prevalent. We used borderline hypertensive rats (BHR) to investigate whether a high-fat diet at different stages of development has adverse programming consequences on metabolic parameters and blood pressure. Wistar dams were fed a high- or low-fat diet for 6 wk before mating with spontaneously hypertensive males and during the ensuing pregnancy. At birth, litters were fostered to a dam from the same diet group as during gestation or to the alternate diet condition. Female offspring were weaned on either control or "junk food" diets until about 6 mo of age. Rats fed the high-fat junk food diet were hyperphagic relative to their chow-fed controls. The junk food-fed rats were significantly heavier and had greater fat pad mass than those rats maintained on chow alone. Importantly, those rats suckled by high-fat dams had heavier fat pads than those suckled by control diet dams. Fasting serum leptin and insulin levels differed as a function of the gestational, lactational, and postweaning diet histories. Rats gestated in, or suckled by high-fat dams, or maintained on the junk food diet were hyperleptinemic compared with their respective controls. Indirect blood pressure did not differ as a function of postweaning diet, but rats gestated in the high-fat dams had lower mean arterial blood pressures than those gestated in the control diet dams. The postweaning dietary history affected food-motivated behavior; junk food-fed rats earned less food pellets on fixed (FR) and progressive (PR) ratio cost schedules than chow-fed controls. In conclusion, the effects of maternal high-fat diet during gestation or lactation were mostly small and transient. The postweaning effects of junk food diet were evident on the majority of the parameters measured, including body weight, fat pad mass, serum leptin and insulin levels, and operant performance.

  1. Can a photocatalytic air purifier be used to improve the perceived air quality indoors?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kolarik, Jakub; Wargocki, Pawel

    2010-01-01

    The effect of a photocatalytic air purifier on perceived air quality(PAQ) was examined in rooms polluted by typical sources of indoor pollution.The rooms were ventilated at three different outdoor air supply rates. The air quality was assessed by a sensory panel when the purifier was in operation...... as well as when it was off. Operation of the purifier significantly improved PAQ in the rooms polluted by building materials (used carpet, old linoleum, and old chip-board), and a used ventilation filter as well as a mixture of building materials, used ventilation filter and cathode-ray tube computer...... monitors. The effect cor-responded to approximately doubling the outdoor air supply rate. Operation of the purifier significantly worsened the PAQ in rooms with human bioeffluents, probably due to incomplete oxidation of alcohols which are one of the main pollutants emitted by humans. Present results show...

  2. LOCALIZATION OF POLYSOME-BOUND ALBUMIN AND SERINE DEHYDRATASE IN RAT LIVER CELL FRACTIONS

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ikehara, Yukio; Pitot, Henry C.

    1973-01-01

    The polysomes involved in albumin and serine dehydratase synthesis were identified and localized by the binding to rat liver polysomes of anti-rat serum albumin and anti-serine dehydratase [125I]Fab dimer and monomer. Techniques were developed for the isolation of undegraded free and membrane-bound polysomes and for the preparation of [125I]Fab monomers and dimers from the IgG obtained from the antisera to the two proteins, rat serum albumin and serine dehydratase. The distribution of anti-rat serum albumin [125I]Fab dimer in the polysome profile is in accordance with the size of polysomes that are expected to be synthesizing albumin. By direct precipitation, it has been demonstrated that nascent chains isolated from the membrane-bound polysomes by puromycin were precipitated by anti-rat serum albumin-IgG at a level of 5–6 times those released from free polysomes. Anti-rat serum albumin-[125I]Fab dimer reacted with membrane-bound polysomes almost exclusively compared to the binding of nonimmune, control [125I]Fab dimer; a significant degree of binding of anti-rat serum albumin-[125I]Fab to free polysomes was also obtained. The [125I]Fab dimer made from normal control rabbit serum does not react with polysomes from liver at all and this preparation will not interact with polysomes extracted from tissues that do not synthesize rat serum albumin. Both anti-serine dehydratase-[125I]Fab monomer and dimer react with free and bound polysomes from livers of animals fed a chow diet or those fed a high 90% protein diet and given glucagon. In the latter instance, however, it is clear that the majority of the binding occurs to the bound polysomes. Furthermore, the specificity of this reaction may be further shown by the use of kidney polysomes that do not normally synthesize serine dehydratase. When these latter polysomes are isolated, even after the addition of crude and purified serine dehydratase, no reaction with anti-serine dehydratase-Fab fragments could be

  3. High-frequency attenuation and backscatter measurements of rat blood between 30 and 60 MHz

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Huang, Chih-Chung

    2010-01-01

    There has recently been a great deal of interest in noninvasive high-frequency ultrasound imaging of small animals such as rats due to their being the preferred animal model for gene therapy and cancer research. Improving the interpretation of the obtained images and furthering the development of the imaging devices require a detailed knowledge of the ultrasound attenuation and backscattering of biological tissue (e.g. blood) at high frequencies. In the present study, the attenuation and backscattering coefficients of the rat red blood cell (RBC) suspensions and whole blood with hematocrits ranging from 6% to 40% were measured between 30 and 60 MHz using a modified substitution approach. The acoustic parameters of porcine blood under the same conditions were also measured in order to compare differences in the blood properties between these two animals. For porcine blood, both whole blood and RBC suspension were stirred at a rotation speed of 200 rpm. Three different rotation speeds of 100, 200 and 300 rpm were carried out for rat blood experiments. The attenuation coefficients of both rat and porcine blood were found to increase linearly with frequency and hematocrit (the values of coefficients of determination (r 2 ) are around 0.82-0.97 for all cases). The average attenuation coefficient of rat whole blood with a hematocrit of 40% increased from 0.26 Nepers mm -1 at 30 MHz to 0.47 Nepers mm -1 at 60 MHz. The maximum backscattering coefficients of both rat and porcine RBC suspensions were between 10% and 15% hematocrits at all frequencies. The fourth-power dependence of backscatter on frequency was approximately valid for rat RBC suspensions with hematocrits between 6% and 40%. However, the frequency dependence of the backscatter estimate deviates from a fourth-power law for porcine RBC suspension with hematocrit higher than 20%. The backscattering coefficient plateaued for hematocrits higher than 15% in porcine blood, but for rat blood it was maximal around a

  4. Arctium lappa ameliorates endothelial dysfunction in rats fed with high fat/cholesterol diets.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lee, Yun Jung; Choi, Deok Ho; Cho, Guk Hyun; Kim, Jin Sook; Kang, Dae Gill; Lee, Ho Sub

    2012-08-06

    Arctium lappa L. (Asteraceae), burdock, is a medicinal plant that is popularly used for treating hypertension, gout, hepatitis, and other inflammatory disorders. This study was performed to test the effect of ethanol extract of Arctium lappa L. (EAL) seeds on vascular reactivity and inflammatory factors in rats fed a high fat/cholesterol diet (HFCD). EAL-I (100 mg·kg-1/day), EAL-II (200 mg·kg-1/day), and fluvastatin (3 mg·kg-1/day) groups initially received HFCD alone for 8 weeks, with EAL supplementation provided during the final 6 weeks. Treatment with low or high doses of EAL markedly attenuated plasma levels of triglycerides and augmented plasma levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) in HFCD-fed rats. Chronic treatment with EAL markedly reduced impairments of acetylcholine (ACh)-induced relaxation of aortic rings. Furthermore, chronic treatment with EAL significantly lowered systolic blood pressure (SBP) and maintained smooth and flexible intimal endothelial layers in HFCD-fed rats. Chronic treatment with EAL suppressed upregulation of intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-1, vascular cell adhesion molecule (VCAM)-1, and E-selectin in the aorta. Chronic treatment with EAL also suppressed increases in matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 expression. These results suggested that EAL can inhibit HFCD-induced vascular inflammation in the rat model. The present study provides evidence that EAL ameliorates HFCD-induced vascular dysfunction through protection of vascular relaxation and suppression of vascular inflammation.

  5. Arctium lappa ameliorates endothelial dysfunction in rats fed with high fat/cholesterol diets

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lee Yun

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Arctium lappa L. (Asteraceae, burdock, is a medicinal plant that is popularly used for treating hypertension, gout, hepatitis, and other inflammatory disorders. This study was performed to test the effect of ethanol extract of Arctium lappa L. (EAL seeds on vascular reactivity and inflammatory factors in rats fed a high fat/cholesterol diet (HFCD. Method EAL-I (100 mg·kg−1/day, EAL-II (200 mg·kg−1/day, and fluvastatin (3 mg·kg−1/day groups initially received HFCD alone for 8 weeks, with EAL supplementation provided during the final 6 weeks. Results Treatment with low or high doses of EAL markedly attenuated plasma levels of triglycerides and augmented plasma levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL in HFCD-fed rats. Chronic treatment with EAL markedly reduced impairments of acetylcholine (ACh-induced relaxation of aortic rings. Furthermore, chronic treatment with EAL significantly lowered systolic blood pressure (SBP and maintained smooth and flexible intimal endothelial layers in HFCD-fed rats. Chronic treatment with EAL suppressed upregulation of intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM-1, vascular cell adhesion molecule (VCAM-1, and E-selectin in the aorta. Chronic treatment with EAL also suppressed increases in matrix metalloproteinase (MMP-2 expression. These results suggested that EAL can inhibit HFCD-induced vascular inflammation in the rat model. Conclusion The present study provides evidence that EAL ameliorates HFCD-induced vascular dysfunction through protection of vascular relaxation and suppression of vascular inflammation.

  6. Effect of Ethanolic Extract of Emblica officinalis (Amla on Glucose Homeostasis in Rats Fed with High Fat Diet

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pallavi S. Kanthe

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Background: Emblica officinalis contains many biological active components which are found to have some medicinal properties against diseases. Aim and Objectives: To assess hypolipidemic and glucose regulatory actions of Ethanolic Extract of Emblica officinalis (EEO on High Fat Diet (HFD fed experimental rats. Material and Methods: Twenty four rats were divided into four groups, having six rats in each group as following; Group I- Control (20% fat; Group II (EEO 100 mg/kg/b w; Group III (30% fat and Group IV (30% fat + EEO 100 mg/kg/b w. The treatment was continued for 21 days. Gravimetric parameters and lipid profiles of all the groups were measured. Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT, fasting and postprandial glucose and fasting insulin levels were estimated. Homeostasis Model Assessment of Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR was calculated. Statistical analysis was done. Results: Significant alteration in serum lipid profile, fasting and post prandial blood glucose levels and fasting insulin level were observed in rats of Group III fed with high fat diet. Supplementation of EEO improved both of glycemic and lipid profiles in rats of Group IV fed with high fat diet. Conclusion: Results from the study indicate the beneficial role of EEO on dyslipidemia and glucose homeostasis in rats treated with high fat diet.

  7. High blood pressure in transgenic mice carrying the rat angiotensinogen gene.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kimura, S; Mullins, J J; Bunnemann, B; Metzger, R; Hilgenfeldt, U; Zimmermann, F; Jacob, H; Fuxe, K; Ganten, D; Kaling, M

    1992-01-01

    Transgenic mice were generated by injecting the entire rat angiotensinogen gene into the germline of NMRI mice. The resulting transgenic animals were characterized with respect to hemodynamics, parameters of the renin angiotension system, and expression of the transgene. The transgenic line TGM(rAOGEN)123 developed hypertension with a mean arterial blood pressure of 158 mmHg in males and 132 mmHg in females. In contrast, the transgenic line TGM(rAOGEN)92 was not hypertensive. Rat angiotensinogen was detectable only in plasma of animals of line 123. Total plasma angiotensinogen and plasma angiotensin II concentrations were about three times as high as those of negative control mice. In TGM(rAOGEN)123 the transgene was highly expressed in liver and brain. Transcripts were also detected in heart, kidney and testis. In TGM(rAOGEN)92 the brain was the main expressing organ. In situ hybridization revealed an mRNA distribution in the brain of TGM(rAOGEN)123 similar to the one in rat. In TGM(rAOGEN)92 the expression pattern in the brain was aberrant. These data indicate that overexpression of the angiotensinogen gene in liver and brain leads to the development of hypertension in transgenic mice. The TGM(rAOGEN)123 constitutes a high angiotensin II type of hypertension and may provide a new experimental animal model to study the kinetics and function of the renin angiotensin system. Images PMID:1547785

  8. Butter improves glucose tolerance compared with at highly polyunsaturated diet in the rat

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hellgren, Lars

    in epidemiological studies, where the typical fatty acid composition of milk-fat, i.e. a high level of saturated fatty acids (SFA) and low concentration of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), has been correlated to increased insulin-resistance. It is therefore essential to characterize the impact of milk......-fat on glucose-tolerance in intervention studies. Methods: 16 rats were divided into two groups and fed a semisynthetic diet containing 31 E-% fat, either as butter or highly polyunsaturated grapeseed oil. After 12 weeks on the diets, glucose-tolerance was assayed with the oral-glucose tolerance test (OGTT......). Results and Discussion: The OGTT revealed that the rats on the butter-containing diet, had a substantially higher glucose tolerance than the rats, which were fed grapeseed oil (area under the curve =195  31 mM*min-2 vs. 310  13 mM*min-2, n= 8, p=0.004). There were no differences in serum triacylglycerol...

  9. Preparation of rat gastric heavy and light microsomal membranes enriched in (H+-K+)-ATPase using 2H2O and Percoll gradients

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Im, W.B.; Davis, J.P.; Blakeman, D.P.

    1985-01-01

    Gastric heavy microsomal membranes highly enriched in (H + -K + )-ATPase were obtained from cimetidine- or carbachol-treated rats through 2 H 2 O and Percoll gradient centrifugations. Both the resting (cimetidine-treated) and the stimulated (carbachol-treated) heavy membranes which presumably represent the apical membrane of gastric parietal cells were enriched with the polypeptides of 81,000 and 45,000 besides that of 93,000 representing (H + -K + )-ATPase. No apparent differences could be detected between the resting and the stimulated heavy membranes in their polypeptide profiles or their specific activity of (H + -K + )-ATPase. Nevertheless, the level of 86 RbCl uptake was greater in the stimulated than the resting heavy microsomal membrane vesicles. The light gastric microsomes which abound in intracellular tubulovesicles containing reserve (H + -K + )-ATPase as isolated from cimetidine-treated rats were similarly purified with respect to (H + -K + )-ATPase. The purified light gastric membranes were largely devoid of the polypeptides of 81,000 and 45,000 found in the heavy gastric membranes. These observations further support the current hypothesis that secretagogues bring about changes in the environment of (H + -K + )-ATPase and induce KCl permeability in the apical membrane of the parietal cells, although at present the authors have been unable to identify the polypeptide(s) responsible for the KCl pathway

  10. Antihypertensive Effect of Radix Paeoniae Alba in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats and Excessive Alcohol Intake and High Fat Diet Induced Hypertensive Rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chen Su-Hong

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Radix Paeoniae Alba (Baishao, RPA has long been used in traditional Chinese medicine formulation to treat hypertension by repression the hyperfunction of liver. However, whether the RPA itself has the antihypertensive effect or not is seldom studied. This study was to evaluate the protective effect of RPA on hypertensive rats. Alcohol in conjunction with a high fat diet- (ACHFD- induced hypertensive rats and spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR was constantly received either RPA extract (25 or 75 mg/kg or captopril (15 mg/kg all along the experiments. As a result, RPA extract (75 mg/kg could significantly reduce systolic blood pressure of both ACHFD-induced hypertensive rats and SHR after 9-week or 4-week treatment. In ACHFD-induced hypertensive rats, the blood pressure was significantly increased and the lipid profiles in serum including triglyceride, total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, and HDL-cholesterol were significantly deteriorated. Also, hepatic damage was manifested by a significant increase in alanine transaminase (ALT and aspartate transaminase (AST in serum. The RPA extract significantly reversed these parameters, which revealed that it could alleviate the liver damage of rats. In SHR, our result suggested that the antihypertensive active of RPA extract may be related to its effect on regulating serum nitric oxide (NO and endothelin (ET levels.

  11. Ameliorating effects of goby fish protein hydrolysates on high-fat-high-fructose diet-induced hyperglycemia, oxidative stress and deterioration of kidney function in rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nasri, Rim; Abdelhedi, Ola; Jemil, Ines; Daoued, Ines; Hamden, Khaled; Kallel, Choumous; Elfeki, Abdelfattah; Lamri-Senhadji, Myriem; Boualga, Ahmed; Nasri, Moncef; Karra-Châabouni, Maha

    2015-12-05

    This study investigated the therapeutic potential of undigested goby fish (Zosterisessor ophiocephalus) muscle proteins (UGP) and their hydrolysates on high-fat-high-fructose diet (HFFD)-fed rats. HFFD induced hyperglycemia, manifested by a significant increase in the levels of glucose and glycogen as well as α-amylase activity when compared to normal rats. The administration of GPHs to HFFD-fed rats significantly decreased α-amylase activity and the contents of blood glucose and hepatic glycogen. By contrast, the UGP increased the glucose metabolic disorders in HFFD-fed rats. Furthermore, HFFD-fed rats showed oxidative stress, as evidenced by decreased antioxidant enzyme activities and glutathione (GSH) levels and increased concentration of the lipid peroxidation product malondialdehyde in liver and kidney. Interestingly, the daily gavage of UGP and GPHs improved the redox status in liver and kidney of HFFD-rats by ameliorating or reversing the above-mentioned changes. Moreover, GPHs exhibited a renal protective role by reversing the HFFD-induced decease of uric acid and increase of creatinine levels in serum and preventing some HFFD-induced changes in kidney architecture. The results demonstrate that GPHs contain bioactive peptides that possess significant hypoglycemic and antioxidant properties, and ameliorate renal damage in rats fed hypercaloric diet. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Comparison of hydrogenated vegetable shortening and nutritionally complete high fat diet on limited access-binge behavior in rats

    OpenAIRE

    Davis, Jon F.; Melhorn, Susan J.; Heiman, Justin U.; Tschöp, Matthias H.; Clegg, Deborah J.; Benoit, Stephen C.

    2007-01-01

    Previous studies have suggested that intermittent exposure to hydrogenated vegetable shortening yields a binge/compensate pattern of feeding in rats. The present study was designed to assess whether rats would exhibit similar patterns of intake when given intermittent access to a nutritionally complete high-fat diet. Four groups of rats received varying exposure to either hydrogenated vegetable shortening or high-fat diet for 8 consecutive weeks. Animals were given daily and intermittent acce...

  13. A rat osteogenic cell line (UMR 106-01) synthesizes a highly sulfated form of bone sialoprotein

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Midura, R.J.; McQuillan, D.J.; Benham, K.J.; Fisher, L.W.; Hascall, V.C.

    1990-01-01

    The rat osteosarcoma cell line (UMR 106-01) synthesizes and secretes relatively large amounts of a sulfated glycoprotein into its culture medium (approximately 240 ng/10(6) cells/day). This glycoprotein was purified, and amino-terminal sequence analysis identified it as bone sialoprotein (BSP). [35S]Sulfate, [3H]glucosamine, and [3H]tyrosine were used as metabolic precursors to label the BSP. Sulfate esters were found on N- and O-linked oligosaccharides and on tyrosine residues, with about half of the total tyrosines in the BSP being sulfated. The proportion of 35S activity in tyrosine-O-sulfate (approximately 70%) was greater than that in N-linked (approximately 20%) and O-linked (approximately 10%) oligosaccharides. From the deduced amino acid sequence for rat BSP, the results indicate that on average approximately 12 tyrosine residues, approximately 3 N-linked, and approximately 2 O-linked oligosaccharides are sulfated/molecule. The carboxyl-terminal quarter of the BSP probably contains most, if not all, of the sulfated tyrosine residues because this region of the polypeptide contains the necessary requirements for tyrosine sulfation. Oligosaccharide analyses indicated that for every N-linked oligosaccharide on the BSP, there are also approximately 2 hexa-, approximately 5 tetra-, and approximately 2 trisaccharides O-linked to serine and threonine residues. On average, the BSP synthesized by UMR 106-01 cells would contain a total of approximately 3 N-linked and approximately 25 of the above O-linked oligosaccharides. This large number of oligosaccharides is in agreement with the known carbohydrate content (approximately 50%) of the BSP.A

  14. Effects of endogenous pyrogen and prostaglandin E2 on hypothalamic neurons in rat brain slices.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Watanabe, T; Morimoto, A; Murakami, N

    1987-06-01

    We investigated the effects of endogenous pyrogen and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) on the preoptic and anterior hypothalamic (POAH) neurons using brain slice preparations from the rat. Partially purified endogenous pyrogen did not change the activities of most of the neurons in the POAH region when applied locally through a micropipette attached to the recording electrode in proximity to the neurons. This indicates that partially purified endogenous pyrogen does not act directly on the neuronal activity in the POAH region. The partially purified endogenous pyrogen, applied into a culture chamber containing a brain slice, facilitated the activities in 24% of the total neurons tested, regardless of the thermal specificity of the neurons. Moreover, PGE2 added to the culture chamber facilitated 48% of the warm-responsive, 33% of the cold-responsive, and 29% of the thermally insensitive neurons. The direction of change in neuronal activity induced by partially purified endogenous pyrogen appears to be almost the same as that induced by PGE2 when these substances were applied by perfusion to the same neuron in the culture chamber. These results suggest that partially purified pyrogen applied to the perfusate of the culture chamber stimulates some constituents of brain tissue to synthesize and release prostaglandin, which in turn affects the neuronal activity of the POAH region.

  15. [Therapeutic efficacy of compound Xuanju capsule on autoimmune prostatitis in rats: an experimental study].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Tian-Fu; Wu, Qiu-Yue; Li, Wei-Wei; Zhang, Cui; Li, Na; Shang, Xue-Jun; Xia, Xin-Yi; Xu, Hao-Qin; Huang, Yu-Feng

    2014-05-01

    To evaluate the therapeutic effect of Compound Xuanju Capsule (CXC) on autoimmune prostatitis in rat models. Sixty healthy male Wistar rats were randomly divided into five groups of equal number: blank control, low-concentration purified prostate protein (low-conc PPP), low-conc PPP + CXC treatment, high-concentration PPP (hi-con PPP), and hi-conc PPP + CXC treatment. Autoimmune prostatitis models were established by intragastric administration of PPP solution at 15 mg/ml (low concentration) and 80 mg/ml, respectively. At 30 days after modeling, the rats in the blank control and low-conc and hi-conc PPP model groups were treated with normal saline, and those in the other two groups with CXC at a daily dose of 0.068 g/ml. At 30, 45, and 60 days, all the animals were sacrificed for observation of pathological changes in the prostate tissue and determination of the levels of IL-8, IL-10, and TNF-alpha in the serum. Compared with the PPP models, the hi-conc PPP + CXC group showed significantly reduced levels of IL-8 and TNF-alpha in the serum at 45 days ([148.54 +/- 17.23] and [62.14 +/- 5.59] pg/ml vs [100.77 +/- 11.08] and [32.63 +/- 2.91] pg/ml, P microscope. Compound Xuanju Capsule is efficacious on autoimmune prostatis in rats by reducing inflammatory changes in the prostate tissue and improving the expression of inflammatory factors.

  16. Surface plasmon resonance sensing: from purified biomolecules to intact cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Su, Yu-Wen; Wang, Wei

    2018-04-12

    Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) has become a well-recognized label-free technique for measuring the binding kinetics between biomolecules since the invention of the first SPR-based immunosensor in 1980s. The most popular and traditional format for SPR analysis is to monitor the real-time optical signals when a solution containing ligand molecules is flowing over a sensor substrate functionalized with purified receptor molecules. In recent years, rapid development of several kinds of SPR imaging techniques have allowed for mapping the dynamic distribution of local mass density within single living cells with high spatial and temporal resolutions and reliable sensitivity. Such capability immediately enabled one to investigate the interaction between important biomolecules and intact cells in a label-free, quantitative, and single cell manner, leading to an exciting new trend of cell-based SPR bioanalysis. In this Trend Article, we first describe the principle and technical features of two types of SPR imaging techniques based on prism and objective, respectively. Then we survey the intact cell-based applications in both fundamental cell biology and drug discovery. We conclude the article with comments and perspectives on the future developments. Graphical abstract Recent developments in surface plasmon resonance (SPR) imaging techniques allow for label-free mapping the mass-distribution within single living cells, leading to great expansions in biomolecular interactions studies from homogeneous substrates functionalized with purified biomolecules to heterogeneous substrates containing individual living cells.

  17. Efficacy of phytosterols and fish-oil supplemented high-oleic-sunflower oil rich diets in hypercholesterolemic growing rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alsina, Estefania; Macri, Elisa V; Lifshitz, Fima; Bozzini, Clarisa; Rodriguez, Patricia N; Boyer, Patricia M; Friedman, Silvia M

    2016-06-01

    Phytosterols (P) and fish-oil (F) efficacy on high-oleic-sunflower oil (HOSO) diets were assessed in hypercholesterolemic growing rats. Controls (C) received a standard diet for 8 weeks; experimental rats were fed an atherogenic diet (AT) for 3 weeks, thereafter were divided into four groups fed for 5 weeks a monounsaturated fatty acid diet (MUFA) containing either: extra virgin olive oil (OO), HOSO or HOSO supplemented with P or F. The diets did not alter body weight or growth. HOSO-P and HOSO-F rats showed reduced total cholesterol (T-chol), non-high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (non-HDL-chol) and triglycerides and increased HDL-chol levels, comparably to the OO rats. Total body fat (%) was similar among all rats; but HOSO-F showed the lowest intestinal, epididymal and perirenal fat. However, bone mineral content and density, and bone yield stress and modulus of elasticity were unchanged. Growing hypercholesterolemic rats fed HOSO with P or F improved serum lipids and fat distribution, but did not influence material bone quality.

  18. Protective Effects of Tamarillo (Cyphomandra betacea Extract against High Fat Diet Induced Obesity in Sprague-Dawley Rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Noor Atiqah Aizan Abdul Kadir

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available This study aims to investigate the protective effect of Cyphomandra betacea in adult male Sprague-Dawley rats fed with high fat diet. Rats were fed on either normal chow or high fat diet for 10 weeks for obesity induction phase and subsequently received C. betacea extract at low dose (150 mg kg−1, medium dose (200 mg kg−1, or high dose (300 mg kg−1 or placebo via oral gavages for another 7 weeks for treatment phase. Treatment of obese rats with C. betacea extracts led to a significant decrease in total cholesterol and significant increase in HDL-C (p<0.05. Also there was a trend of positive reduction in blood glucose, triglyceride, and LDL-C with positive reduction of body weight detected in medium and high dosage of C. betacea extract. Interestingly, C. betacea treated rats showed positive improvement of superoxide dismutase (SOD activity and glutathione peroxidase (GPx activity along with a significant increase of total antioxidant status (TAS (p<0.05. Further, rats treated with C. betacea show significantly lower in TNF-α and IL-6 activities (p<0.05. This study demonstrates the potential use of Cyphomandra betacea extract for weight maintenance and complimentary therapy to suppress some obesity complication signs.

  19. Effects of 3,5-diiodo-L-thyronine on the liver of high fat diet fed rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marco Giammanco

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Experimental studies have highlighted that the administration of 3,5-diiodo-L-thyronine (T2 to rats fed diets rich in lipids induces a decrease of cholesterol and triglycerides plasma levels and body weight (BW without inducing liver steatosis. On the basis of these observations we carried out some experimental in vivo studies to assess the effects of multiple high doses of T2 on the pituitary thyroid axis of rats fed diet rich in lipids. Fifteen male Wistar rats were divided into three groups of five animals each. The first group (N group received standard diet, the second group was fed with a high fat diet (HFD group, while the third group (HFDT2 group was additionally given T2 intraperitoneally at a dose level of 70 µg/100 g of BW three times a week up to four weeks. At the end of the treatment, blood sample from each animal was collected, centrifuged and the serum was stored at -20°C. The serum concentrations of thyroidstimulating hormone (TSH, triiodothyronine, thyroxine, adrenocorticotropic hormone, triglycerides, cholesterol, glucose, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase were then determined. In addition, liver of rats was examined by histology in order to assess the presence and degree of steatosis. The administration of T2 to rats fed with a high fat diet suppressed TSH secretion (P=0.013 while no steatosis was observed in the liver of these animals. Our data show that multiple administrations of high doses of T2 to rats fed diets rich in lipid inhibit TSH secretion and prevent the onset of liver steatosis in these animals.

  20. A High-Fructose-High-Coconut Oil Diet Induces Dysregulating Expressions of Hippocampal Leptin and Stearoyl-CoA Desaturase, and Spatial Memory Deficits in Rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lin, Ching-I; Shen, Chu-Fu; Hsu, Tsui-Han; Lin, Shyh-Hsiang

    2017-06-16

    We investigated the effects of high-fructose-high-fat diets with different fat compositions on metabolic parameters, hippocampal-dependent cognitive function, and brain leptin (as well as stearoyl-CoA desaturase (SCD1) mRNA expressions). Thirty-two male Wistar rats were divided into 3 groups, a control group ( n = 8), a high-fructose soybean oil group (37.5% of fat calories, n = 12), and a high-fructose coconut oil group (37.5% of fat calories, n = 12) for 20 weeks. By the end of the study, the coconut oil group exhibited significantly higher serum fasting glucose, fructosamine, insulin, leptin, and triglyceride levels compared to those of the control and soybean oil groups. However, hippocampal leptin expression and leptin receptor mRNA levels were significantly lower, while SCD1 mRNA was significantly higher in rats fed the high-fructose-high-coconut oil diet than in rats fed the other experimental diets. In addition, the coconut oil group spent significantly less time in the target quadrant on the probe test in the Morris water maze (MWM) task. Rats fed the high-fructose-high-coconut oil diet for 20 weeks were prone to develop hyperglycemia, hyperinsulinemia, hyperleptinemia, and hypertriglyceridemia. These metabolic consequences may contribute to hippocampal-dependent memory impairment, accompanied by a lower central leptin level, and a higher SCD1 gene expression in the brain.

  1. Effect of Amphiphilic Alkyl Chain Length Upon Purified LATEX Stability

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Amira Amir Hassan; Amir Hashim Mohd Yatim

    2015-01-01

    Rubber particles in purified latex (PL) are stabilized by a film of protein and fatty acid soap (surfactant). Saturated straight-chain fatty acid soaps can assist an enhancement of latex stability. However, whether the alkyl chain length plays an important role in increasing the stability is still an issue. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of alkyl chain length of anionic surfactant on the stability of purified latex. The fatty acid soap of decanoate (9), laurate (11), sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS) (12) and palmitate (15) were used. The numbers in parentheses indicating the number of carbon present in alkyl chain of the soap. The results showed that the impact of alkyl chain length on the stability of latex is in the order of laurate > decanoate > SDS > palmitate > purified latex accordingly. The alkyl chain length does giving a significant effect on latex stability after longer stirring time. The particle size of latex with the presence of surfactant is greater compare to a single particle itself due to extension of particles diameter. Thus suitable interaction of the nonpolar tail of surfactant with the hydrophobic regions of latex surface played a major role in maintaining a stable latex system. (author)

  2. Alternate-Day High-Fat Diet Induces an Increase in Mitochondrial Enzyme Activities and Protein Content in Rat Skeletal Muscle.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Xi; Higashida, Kazuhiko; Kawamura, Takuji; Higuchi, Mitsuru

    2016-04-06

    Long-term high-fat diet increases muscle mitochondrial enzyme activity and endurance performance. However, excessive calorie intake causes intra-abdominal fat accumulation and metabolic syndrome. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of an alternating day high-fat diet on muscle mitochondrial enzyme activities, protein content, and intra-abdominal fat mass in rats. Male Wistar rats were given a standard chow diet (CON), high-fat diet (HFD), or alternate-day high-fat diet (ALT) for 4 weeks. Rats in the ALT group were fed a high-fat diet and standard chow every other day for 4 weeks. After the dietary intervention, mitochondrial enzyme activities and protein content in skeletal muscle were measured. Although body weight did not differ among groups, the epididymal fat mass in the HFD group was higher than those of the CON and ALT groups. Citrate synthase and beta-hydroxyacyl CoA dehydrogenase activities in the plantaris muscle of rats in HFD and ALT were significantly higher than that in CON rats, whereas there was no difference between HFD and ALT groups. No significant difference was observed in muscle glycogen concentration or glucose transporter-4 protein content among the three groups. These results suggest that an alternate-day high-fat diet induces increases in mitochondrial enzyme activities and protein content in rat skeletal muscle without intra-abdominal fat accumulation.

  3. Dietary HMB and β-alanine co-supplementation does not improve in situ muscle function in sedentary, aged male rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Russ, David W; Acksel, Cara; Boyd, Iva M; Maynard, John; McCorkle, Katherine W; Edens, Neile K; Garvey, Sean M

    2015-12-01

    This study evaluated the effects of dietary β-hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate (HMB) combined with β-alanine (β-Ala) in sedentary, aged male rats. It has been suggested that dietary HMB or β-Ala supplementation may mitigate age-related declines in muscle strength and fatigue resistance. A total of 20 aged Sprague-Dawley rats were studied. At age 20 months, 10 rats were administered a control, purified diet and 10 rats were administered a purified diet supplemented with both HMB and β-Ala (HMB+β-Ala) for 8 weeks (approximately equivalent to 3 and 2.4 g per day human dose). We measured medial gastrocnemius (MG) size, force, fatigability, and myosin composition. We also evaluated an array of protein markers related to muscle mitochondria, protein synthesis and breakdown, and autophagy. HMB+β-Ala had no significant effects on body weight, MG mass, force or fatigability, myosin composition, or muscle quality. Compared with control rats, those fed HMB+β-Ala exhibited a reduced (41%, P = 0.039) expression of muscle RING-finger protein 1 (MURF1), a common marker of protein degradation. Muscle from rats fed HMB+β-Ala also exhibited a 45% reduction (P = 0.023) in p70s6K phosphorylation following fatiguing stimulation. These data suggest that HMB+β-Ala at the dose studied may reduce muscle protein breakdown by reducing MURF1 expression, but has minimal effects on muscle function in this model of uncomplicated aging. They do not, however, rule out potential benefits of HMB+β-Ala co-supplementation at other doses or durations of supplementation in combination with exercise or in situations where extreme muscle protein breakdown and loss of mass occur (e.g., bedrest, cachexia, failure-to-thrive).

  4. The effect of purified sewage discharge from a sewage treatment plant on the physicochemical state of water in the receiver

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kanownik Włodzimierz

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available The paper presents changes in the contents of physicochemical indices of the Sudół stream water caused by a discharge of purified municipal sewage from a small mechanical-biological treatment plant with throughput of 300 m3·d−1 and a population equivalent (p.e. – 1,250 people. The discharge of purified sewage caused a worsening of the stream water quality. Most of the studied indices values increased in water below the treatment plant. Almost a 100-fold increase in ammonium nitrogen, 17-fold increase in phosphate concentrations and 12-fold raise in BOD5 concentrations were registered. Due to high values of these indices, the water physicochemical state was below good. Statistical analysis revealed a considerable effect of the purified sewage discharge on the stream water physicochemical state. A statistically significant increase in 10 indices values (BOD5, COD-Mn, EC, TDS, Cl−, Na+, K+, PO43−, N-NH4+ and N-NO2 as well as significant decline in the degree of water saturation with oxygen were noted below the sewage treatment plant. On the other hand, no statistically significant differences between the water indices values were registered between the measurement points localised 150 and 1,000 m below the purified sewage discharge. It evidences a slow process of the stream water self-purification caused by an excessive loading with pollutants originating from the purified sewage discharge.

  5. Dynamic high resolution imaging of rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Miyaoka, R.S.; Lewellen, T.K.; Bice, A.N.

    1990-01-01

    A positron emission tomography with the sensitivity and resolution to do dynamic imaging of rats would be an invaluable tool for biological researchers. In this paper, the authors determine the biological criteria for dynamic positron emission imaging of rats. To be useful, 3 mm isotropic resolution and 2-3 second time binning were necessary characteristics for such a dedicated tomograph. A single plane in which two objects of interest could be imaged simultaneously was considered acceptable. Multi-layered detector designs were evaluated as a possible solution to the dynamic imaging and high resolution imaging requirements. The University of Washington photon history generator was used to generate data to investigate a tomograph's sensitivity to true, scattered and random coincidences for varying detector ring diameters. Intrinsic spatial uniformity advantages of multi-layered detector designs over conventional detector designs were investigated using a Monte Carlo program. As a result, a modular three layered detector prototype is being developed. A module will consist of a layer of five 3.5 mm wide crystals and two layers of six 2.5 mm wide crystals. The authors believe adequate sampling can be achieved with a stationary detector system using these modules. Economical crystal decoding strategies have been investigated and simulations have been run to investigate optimum light channeling methods for block decoding strategies. An analog block decoding method has been proposed and will be experimentally evaluated to determine whether it can provide the desired performance

  6. Inhibition of serum cholesterol oxidation by dietary vitamin C and selenium intake in high fat fed rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Menéndez-Carreño, M; Ansorena, D; Milagro, F I; Campión, J; Martínez, J A; Astiasarán, I

    2008-04-01

    Cholesterol oxidation products (COPs) have been considered as specific in vivo markers of oxidative stress. In this study, an increased oxidative status was induced in Wistar rats by feeding them a high-fat diet (cafeteria diet). Another group of animals received the same diet supplemented with a combination of two different antioxidants, ascorbic acid (100 mg/kg rat/day) and sodium selenite (200 microg/kg rat/day) and a third group fed on a control diet. Total and individual COPs analysis of the different diets showed no differences among them. At the end of the experimental trial, rats were sacrificed and serum cholesterol, triglycerides and COPs were measured. None of the diets induced changes in rats body weight, total cholesterol and triglycerides levels. Serum total COPs in rats fed on the high-fat diet were 1.01 microg/ml, two times the amount of the control rats (0.47 microg/ml). When dietary antioxidant supplementation was given, serum total COPs concentration (0.44 microg/ml) showed the same levels than those of the rats on control diet. 7beta-hydroxycholesterol, formed non-enzymatically via cholesterol peroxidation in the presence of reactive oxygen species, showed slightly lower values in the antioxidant-supplemented animals compared to the control ones. This study confirms the importance of dietary antioxidants as protective factors against the formation of oxysterols.

  7. A high fat meal activates blood coagulation factor vii in rats

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Olsen, A. K.; Bladbjerg, E. M.; Kornerup Hansen, A.

    2002-01-01

    In humans, high fat meals cause postprandial activation of blood coagulation factor VII (FVII), but human studies have not provided definite evidence for a prothrombotic effect of dietary FVII activation. An animal model would be an attractive way to pursue this question and therefore we tested...... the LEW/Mol rat. We gavaged 3 mL of a fat emulsion (n = 42) or 3 mL isotonic glucose (n = 42). Blood was sampled by heart puncture 2, 4 and 6 h (n = 14/group at each time) after the fat/glucose load. Furthermore, blood was sampled from 16 untreated rats to determine the baseline levels. Triglyceride...

  8. Studying the fate of non-volatile organic compounds in a commercial plasma air purifier

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Schmid, Stefan [ETH Zürich, Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences, CH-8093 Zürich (Switzerland); Seiler, Cornelia; Gerecke, Andreas C. [Swiss Federal Laboratories for Material Science and Technology (EMPA), CH-8600 Dübendorf (Switzerland); Hächler, Herbert [University of Zürich, Institute for Food Safety and Hygiene, National Centre for Enteropathogenic Bacteria and Listeria (NENT), CH-8057 Zürich (Switzerland); Hilbi, Hubert [Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München Max von Pettenkofer-Institut, D-80336 München (Germany); Frey, Joachim [University of Bern, Institute for Veterinary Bacteriology, CH-3001 Bern (Switzerland); Weidmann, Simon; Meier, Lukas; Berchtold, Christian [ETH Zürich, Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences, CH-8093 Zürich (Switzerland); Zenobi, Renato, E-mail: zenobi@org.chem.ethz.ch [ETH Zürich, Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences, CH-8093 Zürich (Switzerland)

    2013-07-15

    Highlights: • Degradation of environmental toxins, a protein, and bioparticles were studied. • A commercial air purifier based on a cold plasma was used. • Passage through the device reduced the concentration of the compounds/particles. • Deposition inside the plasma air purifier was the main removal process. -- Abstract: Degradation of non-volatile organic compounds–environmental toxins (methyltriclosane and phenanthrene), bovine serum albumin, as well as bioparticles (Legionella pneumophila, Bacillus subtilis, and Bacillus anthracis)–in a commercially available plasma air purifier based on a cold plasma was studied in detail, focusing on its efficiency and on the resulting degradation products. This system is capable of handling air flow velocities of up to 3.0 m s{sup −1} (3200 L min{sup −1}), much higher than other plasma-based reactors described in the literature, which generally are limited to air flow rates below 10 L min{sup −1}. Mass balance studies consistently indicated a reduction in concentration of the compounds/particles after passage through the plasma air purifier, 31% for phenanthrene, 17% for methyltriclosane, and 80% for bovine serum albumin. L. pneumophila did not survive passage through the plasma air purifier, and cell counts of aerosolized spores of B. subtilis and B. anthracis were reduced by 26- and 15-fold, depending on whether it was run at 10 Hz or 50 Hz, respectively. However rather than chemical degradation, deposition on the inner surfaces of the plasma air purifier occured. Our interpretation is that putative “degradation” efficiencies were largely due to electrostatic precipitation rather than to decomposition into smaller molecules.

  9. Bitistatin-functionalized fluorescent nanodiamond particles specifically bind to purified human platelet integrin receptor αIIbβ3 and activated platelets

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marcinkiewicz C

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available Cezary Marcinkiewicz,1,2 Jonathan A Gerstenhaber,1 Mark Sternberg,2 Peter I Lelkes,1 Giora Feuerstein1,2 1Department of Bioengineering, College of Engineering, Temple University, Philadelphia, 2Debina Diagnostic, Inc., Newton Square, PA, USA Abstract: Thromboembolic events (TEE underwrite key causes of death in developed countries. While advanced imaging technologies such as computed tomography scans serve to diagnose blood clots during acute cardiovascular events, no such technology is available in routine primary care for TEE risk assessment. Here, we describe an imaging platform technology based on bioengineered fluorescent nanodiamond particles (F-NDPs functionalized with bitistatin (Bit, a disintegrin that specifically binds to the αIIbβ3 integrin, platelet fibrinogen receptor (PFR on activated platelets. Covalent linkage of purified Bit to F-NDP was concentration-dependent and saturable, as validated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay using specific anti-Bit antibodies. F-NDP–Bit interacted with purified PFR, either in immobilized or soluble form. Lotrafiban, a nonpeptide, αIIbβ3 receptor antagonist, specifically blocked F-NDP–Bit–PFR complex formation. Moreover, F-NDP–Bit specifically binds to activated platelets incorporated into a clot generated by thrombin-activated rat platelet-rich plasma (PRP. Our results suggest that engineered F-NDP–Bit particles could serve as noninvasive, “real-time” optical diagnostics for clots present in blood vessels. Keywords: carbon nanoparticles, blood clots, imaging, platelet fibrinogen receptor, fluorescence, disintegrin, thromboembolic complications, thrombosis

  10. Effects of high-intensity swimming training on GLUT-4 and glucose transport activity in rat skeletal muscle.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Terada, S; Yokozeki, T; Kawanaka, K; Ogawa, K; Higuchi, M; Ezaki, O; Tabata, I

    2001-06-01

    This study was performed to assess the effects of short-term, extremely high-intensity intermittent exercise training on the GLUT-4 content of rat skeletal muscle. Three- to four-week-old male Sprague-Dawley rats with an initial body weight ranging from 45 to 55 g were used for this study. These rats were randomly assigned to an 8-day period of high-intensity intermittent exercise training (HIT), relatively high-intensity intermittent prolonged exercise training (RHT), or low-intensity prolonged exercise training (LIT). Age-matched sedentary rats were used as a control. In the HIT group, the rats repeated fourteen 20-s swimming bouts with a weight equivalent to 14, 15, and 16% of body weight for the first 2, the next 4, and the last 2 days, respectively. Between exercise bouts, a 10-s pause was allowed. RHT consisted of five 17-min swimming bouts with a 3-min rest between bouts. During the first bout, the rat swam without weight, whereas during the following four bouts, the rat was attached to a weight equivalent to 4 and 5% of its body weight for the first 5 days and the following 3 days, respectively. Rats in the LIT group swam 6 h/day for 8 days in two 3-h bouts separated by 45 min of rest. In the first experiment, the HIT, LIT, and control rats were compared. GLUT-4 content in the epitrochlearis muscle in the HIT and LIT groups after training was significantly higher than that in the control rats by 83 and 91%, respectively. Furthermore, glucose transport activity, stimulated maximally by both insulin (2 mU/ml) (HIT: 48%, LIT: 75%) and contractions (25 10-s tetani) (HIT: 55%, LIT: 69%), was higher in the training groups than in the control rats. However, no significant differences in GLUT-4 content or in maximal glucose transport activity in response to both insulin and contractions were observed between the two training groups. The second experiment demonstrated that GLUT-4 content after HIT did not differ from that after RHT (66% higher in trained rats than

  11. Biological properties of purified recombinant HCV particles with an epitope-tagged envelope

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Takahashi, Hitoshi; Akazawa, Daisuke [Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo (Japan); Toray Industries, Inc., Kanagawa (Japan); Kato, Takanobu; Date, Tomoko [Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo (Japan); Shirakura, Masayuki [Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo (Japan); Toray Industries, Inc., Kanagawa (Japan); Nakamura, Noriko; Mochizuki, Hidenori [Toray Industries, Inc., Kanagawa (Japan); Tanaka-Kaneko, Keiko; Sata, Tetsutaro [Department of Pathology, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo (Japan); Tanaka, Yasuhito [Department of Clinical Molecular Informative Medicine, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya (Japan); Mizokami, Masashi [Research Center for Hepatitis and Immunology, Kohnodai Hospital, International Medical Center of Japan, Chiba (Japan); Suzuki, Tetsuro [Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo (Japan); Wakita, Takaji, E-mail: wakita@nih.go.jp [Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo (Japan)

    2010-05-14

    To establish a simple system for purification of recombinant infectious hepatitis C virus (HCV) particles, we designed a chimeric J6/JFH-1 virus with a FLAG (FL)-epitope-tagged sequence at the N-terminal region of the E2 hypervariable region-1 (HVR1) gene (J6/JFH-1/1FL). We found that introduction of an adaptive mutation at the potential N-glycosylation site (E2N151K) leads to efficient production of the chimeric virus. This finding suggests the involvement of glycosylation at Asn within the envelope protein(s) in HCV morphogenesis. To further analyze the biological properties of the purified recombinant HCV particles, we developed a strategy for large-scale production and purification of recombinant J6/JFH-1/1FL/E2N151K. Infectious particles were purified from the culture medium of J6/JFH-1/1FL/E2N151K-infected Huh-7 cells using anti-FLAG affinity chromatography in combination with ultrafiltration. Electron microscopy of the purified particles using negative staining showed spherical particle structures with a diameter of 40-60 nm and spike-like projections. Purified HCV particle-immunization induced both an anti-E2 and an anti-FLAG antibody response in immunized mice. This strategy may contribute to future detailed analysis of HCV particle structure and to HCV vaccine development.

  12. Biological properties of purified recombinant HCV particles with an epitope-tagged envelope

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Takahashi, Hitoshi; Akazawa, Daisuke; Kato, Takanobu; Date, Tomoko; Shirakura, Masayuki; Nakamura, Noriko; Mochizuki, Hidenori; Tanaka-Kaneko, Keiko; Sata, Tetsutaro; Tanaka, Yasuhito; Mizokami, Masashi; Suzuki, Tetsuro; Wakita, Takaji

    2010-01-01

    To establish a simple system for purification of recombinant infectious hepatitis C virus (HCV) particles, we designed a chimeric J6/JFH-1 virus with a FLAG (FL)-epitope-tagged sequence at the N-terminal region of the E2 hypervariable region-1 (HVR1) gene (J6/JFH-1/1FL). We found that introduction of an adaptive mutation at the potential N-glycosylation site (E2N151K) leads to efficient production of the chimeric virus. This finding suggests the involvement of glycosylation at Asn within the envelope protein(s) in HCV morphogenesis. To further analyze the biological properties of the purified recombinant HCV particles, we developed a strategy for large-scale production and purification of recombinant J6/JFH-1/1FL/E2N151K. Infectious particles were purified from the culture medium of J6/JFH-1/1FL/E2N151K-infected Huh-7 cells using anti-FLAG affinity chromatography in combination with ultrafiltration. Electron microscopy of the purified particles using negative staining showed spherical particle structures with a diameter of 40-60 nm and spike-like projections. Purified HCV particle-immunization induced both an anti-E2 and an anti-FLAG antibody response in immunized mice. This strategy may contribute to future detailed analysis of HCV particle structure and to HCV vaccine development.

  13. Magnetism for understanding catalyst analysis of purified carbon nanotubes

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bellouard, Christine; Mercier, Guillaume; Cahen, Sébastien; Ghanbaja, Jaafar; Medjahdi, Ghouti [Institut Jean Lamour, CNRS-Université de Lorraine, BP 70239, 54506 Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy (France); Gleize, Jérôme [Laboratoire de Chimie Physique-Approche Multi-échelle de Milieux Complexes-Université de Lorraine, 1 Bd Arago, 57078 Metz (France); Lamura, Gianrico [CNR-SPIN – Dipartimento di Fisica, via Dodecaneso 33, 16146 Genova (Italy); Hérold, Claire [Institut Jean Lamour, CNRS-Université de Lorraine, BP 70239, 54506 Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy (France); Vigolo, Brigitte, E-mail: Brigitte.Vigolo@univ-lorraine.fr [Institut Jean Lamour, CNRS-Université de Lorraine, BP 70239, 54506 Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy (France)

    2016-08-01

    The precise quantification of catalyst residues in purified carbon nanotubes is often a major issue in view of any fundamental and/or applicative studies. More importantly, since the best CNTs are successfully grown with magnetic catalysts, their quantification becomes strictly necessary to better understand intrinsic properties of CNT. For these reasons, we have deeply analyzed the catalyst content remained in nickel–yttrium arc-discharge single walled carbon nanotubes purified by both a chlorine-gas phase and a standard acid-based treatment. The study focuses on Ni analysis which has been investigated by transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, thermogravimetry analysis, and magnetic measurements. In the case of the acid-based treatment, all quantifications result in a decrease of the nanocrystallized Ni by a factor of two. In the case of the halogen gas treatment, analysis and quantification of Ni content is less straightforward: a huge difference appears between X-ray diffraction and thermogravimetry results. Thanks to magnetic measurements, this disagreement is explained by the presence of Ni{sup 2+} ions, belonging to NiCl{sub 2} formed during the Cl-based purification process. In particular, NiCl{sub 2} compound appears under different magnetic/crystalline phases: paramagnetic or diamagnetic, or well intercalated in between carbon sheets with an ordered magnetic phase at low temperature. - Highlights: • Cl-gas treatment of Ni catalyst of carbon nanotubes leads to NiCl{sub 2} residue. • Magnetic measurements show the transformation of Ni{sup 0} in Ni{sup 2+}through a purification process. • High temperature Cl treatment removes 75% of metallic impurities. • Cl-purification yields to an amount of metal of 1.5% in arc-discharge CNT samples.

  14. Expression of phosphorylated extracellular signal-regulated kinase in rat kidneys exposed to high +Gz

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hyun-Soo Kim

    2012-11-01

    Full Text Available Exposure to high gravitational acceleration forces acting along the body axis from the head to the feet (+Gz severely reduces blood flow to the visceral organs, including the kidneys. Extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK figures predominantly in mediating kidney cell responses to a wide variety of stress-related stimuli. Though previous studies have shown the activation of ERK in some experimental models, the regulation of ERK associated with +Gz exposure has not yet been investigated. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of high +Gz exposure on ERK activation in the kidneys. Using a small animal centrifuge, eight male Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to +10Gz or +13Gz three times for 3 minutes each. The bilateral kidneys were obtained from each rat, and the expression levels of phosphorylated ERK (p-ERK were evaluated using immunohistochemistry. In the control group, the collecting duct epithelium displayed faint cytoplasmic staining with no nuclear staining of p-ERK. By contrast, rats exposed to +10Gz showed strong nuclear staining intensity for p-ERK. In the renal papilla, the epithelial cells of collecting ducts and thin segments of the loop of Henle exhibited strong nuclear immunoreactivity for p-ERK. Rats exposed to +13Gz also showed the same staining intensity and distribution of p-ERK expression as that of rats exposed to +10Gz. This study is the first to describe +Gz exposure-induced alteration in the expression of p-ERK in the kidneys. Our finding suggests that high +Gz exposure leads to the activation of ERK in the renal papilla.

  15. Differences in Monoamine Oxidase Activity in the Brain of Wistar and August Rats with High and Low Locomotor Activity: A Cytochemical Study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sergutina, A V; Rakhmanova, V I

    2016-06-01

    Monoamine oxidase activity was quantitatively assessed by cytochemical method in brain structures (layers III and V of the sensorimotor cortex, caudate nucleus, nucleus accumbens, hippocampal CA3 field) of rats of August line and Wistar population with high and low locomotor activity in the open fi eld test. Monoamine oxidase activity (substrate tryptamine) predominated in the nucleus accumbens of Wistar rats with high motor activity in comparison with rats with low locomotor activity. In August rats, enzyme activity (substrates tryptamine and serotonin) predominated in the hippocampus of animals with high motor activity. Comparison of August rats with low locomotor activity and Wistar rats with high motor activity (i.e. animals demonstrating maximum differences in motor function) revealed significantly higher activity of the enzyme (substrates tryptamine and serotonin) in the hippocampus of Wistar rats. The study demonstrates clear-cut morphochemical specificity of monoaminergic metabolism based on the differences in the cytochemical parameter "monoamine oxidase activity", in the studied brain structures, responsible for the formation and realization of goal-directed behavior in Wistar and August rats.

  16. Geraniin Protects High-Fat Diet-Induced Oxidative Stress in Sprague Dawley Rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alexis Panny Y. S. Chung

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Geraniin, a hydrolysable polyphenol derived from Nephelium lappaceum L. fruit rind, has been shown to possess significant antioxidant activity in vitro and recently been recognized for its therapeutic potential in metabolic syndrome. This study investigated its antioxidative strength and protective effects on organs in high-fat diet (HFD-induced rodents. Rats were fed HFD for 6 weeks to induce obesity, followed by 10 and 50 mg/kg of geraniin supplementation for 4 weeks to assess its protective potential. The control groups were maintained on standard rat chows and HFD for the same period. At the 10th week, oxidative status was assessed and the pancreas, liver, heart and aorta, kidney, and brain of the Sprague Dawley rats were harvested and subjected to pathological studies. HFD rats demonstrated changes in redox balance; increased protein carbonyl content, decreased levels of superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase, and glutathione reductase with a reduction in the non-enzymatic antioxidant mechanisms and total antioxidant capacity, indicating a higher oxidative stress (OS index. In addition, HFD rats demonstrated significant diet-induced changes particularly in the pancreas. Four-week oral geraniin supplementation, restored the OS observed in the HFD rats. It was able to restore OS biomarkers, serum antioxidants, and the glutathione redox balance (reduced glutathione/oxidized glutathione ratio to levels comparable with that of the control group, particularly at dosage of 50 mg geraniin. Geraniin was not toxic to the HFD rats but exhibited protection against glucotoxicity and lipotoxicity particularly in the pancreas of the obese rodents. It is suggested that geraniin has the pharmaceutical potential to be developed as a supplement to primary drugs in the treatment of obesity and its pathophysiological sequels.

  17. Mechanical performance of HMA-2 modified with purified and unpurified carbon nanotubes and nanofibers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mario Rodrigo Rubio

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available The present study evaluates the mechanical performance of a Hot Mix Asphalt – Type II (HMA-2 modified with carbon nanotubes and carbon nanofibers (CNTF. CNTF were made by means the Catalytic Vapor Deposition (CVD technique at 700° C using a Nickel, Copper and Aluminum (NiCuAl catalyst with a Cu/Ni molar relation of 0,33. In order to properly assess HMA-2 performance, three different mixtures were analyzed: 1 HMA-2 modified with purified CNTF; 2 HMA-2 modified with non-purified CNTF and, 3 a Conventional HMA-2 (control. Samples manufactured in accordance with the Marshall Mix Design were tested in the laboratory to study rutting, resilient modulus (Mr and fatigue. In addition to the aforementioned dynamic characterization, the effect of CNTF purification on the asphalt mixture’s mechanical properties was analyzed. In short, a comparative study was designed to determine whether or not CNTF should be purified before introduction into the HMA-2. This investigation responds to the growing demand for economical materials capable of withstanding traffic loads while simultaneously enhancing pavement durability and mechanical properties. Although purified CNTF increased HMA-2 stiffness and elastic modulus, non-purified CNTF increased the asphalt mixture’s elastic modulus without considerable increases in stiffness. Thus, the latter modification is deemed to help address fatiguerelated issues and improve the long-term durability of flexible pavements.

  18. Simultaneous extraction of. beta. -endorphin and leu- and met-enkephalins from human and rat plasma

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bhathena, S.J.; Smith, P.M.; Kennedy, B.W. (Dept. of Agriculture, Beltsville, MD (USA)); Voyles, N.R.; Recant, L. (Diabetes Research Laboratory, Washington, DC (USA))

    1989-01-01

    A simple, rapid and reliable procedure is described to simultaneously concentrated and purify {beta}-endorphin, leu-and met-enkephalins from small volumes of human and rat plasma before radioimmunoassay is performed. It uses C{sub 18} Sep-Pak reverse phase cartridges. The effectiveness of different protease inhibitors in preventing degradation of opiates by plasma and different solvent systems for eluting opiates is also evaluated.

  19. Insulin binding to brain capillaries is reduced in genetically obese, hyperinsulinemic Zucker rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Schwartz, M.W.; Figlewicz, D.F.; Kahn, S.E.; Baskin, D.G.; Greenwood, M.R.; Porte, D. Jr.

    1990-01-01

    In order to study the role of plasma insulin in regulating the binding of insulin to the endothelium of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), insulin binding to a purified preparation of brain capillaries was measured in both genetically obese Zucker rats and lean Zucker controls. We found a reduction of 65% in brain capillary insulin binding site number in the obese compared to lean rats with no change in receptor affinity. Furthermore, specific insulin binding to brain capillaries was negatively correlated (p less than 0.05) to the plasma insulin level, suggesting a role for plasma insulin in regulating insulin binding. A similar relationship was observed between insulin receptor number in liver membranes and the plasma insulin level. We conclude that obese, hyperinsulinemic Zucker rats exhibit a reduction in the number of BBB insulin receptors, which parallels the reduction seen in other peripheral tissues. Since insulin receptors have been hypothesized to participate in the transport of insulin across the BBB, the reduction observed in the obese rats may account for the decrease in cerebrospinal fluid insulin uptake previously demonstrated in these animals

  20. Evidence for oral agmatine sulfate safety--a 95-day high dosage pilot study with rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gilad, Gad M; Gilad, Varda H

    2013-12-01

    Agmatine, decarboxylated arginine, exerts beneficial effects in various experimental disease models. Clinical trials indicate the safety and effectiveness of short-term (up to 21 days) high dose regimens of oral agmatine sulfate, but longer term studies are lacking. This pilot study undertook to assess the safety of a longer term high dosage oral agmatine sulfate in laboratory rats. Adult Wistar rats consumed 5.3 g/l agmatine sulfate in their drinking water for 95 days, a regimen estimated to result in a daily dosage of absorbed agmatine of about 100mg/kg. Animals' body weight, water consumption and blood pressure were periodically measured, and general cage behavior, fur appearance, urination and feces appearance monitored. These parameters were also determined at 20 days after treatment cessation (day 115). On days 95 and 115, animals were euthanized for gross necropsy assessment. Agmatine-treated rats showed slight, but significant reductions in body weight and blood pressure, and reduced water consumption during treatment, which recovered completely within 20 days after treatment cessation. Otherwise, no abnormal behaviors or organ pathologies were observed. These findings are first to suggest apparent safety of sub-chronic high dosage dietary agmatine sulfate in laboratory rats, thus lending further support to the therapeutic applications of agmatine. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. A diet containing grape powder ameliorates the cognitive decline in aged rats with a long-term high-fructose-high-fat dietary pattern.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chou, Liang-Mao; Lin, Ching-I; Chen, Yue-Hwa; Liao, Hsiang; Lin, Shyh-Hsiang

    2016-08-01

    Research has suggested that the consumption of foods rich in polyphenols is beneficial to the cognitive functions of the elderly. We investigated the effects of grape consumption on spatial learning, memory performance and neurodegeneration-related protein expression in aged rats fed a high-fructose-high-fat (HFHF) diet. Six-week-old Wistar rats were fed an HFHF diet to 66 weeks of age to establish a model of an HFHF dietary pattern, before receiving intervention diets containing different amounts of grape powder for another 12 weeks in the second part of the experiment. Spatial learning, memory performance and cortical and hippocampal protein expression levels were assessed. After consuming the HFHF diet for a year, results showed that the rats fed a high grape powder-containing diet had significantly better spatial learning and memory performance, lower expression of β-amyloid and β-secretase and higher expression of α-secretase than the rats fed a low grape powder-containing diet. Therefore, long-term consumption of an HFHF diet caused a decline in cognitive functions and increased the risk factors for neurodegeneration, which could subsequently be ameliorated by the consumption of a polyphenol-rich diet. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. Evaluation of protection factors of a breath-responsive-powered air-purifying respirator

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nakagawa, Masahiro; Nojima, Shun; Fujii, Katsutoshi; Shishido, Nobuhito; Sakai, Toshiya; Umehara, Takashi; Shimizu, Isamu

    2012-01-01

    It is essential to wear an air-purifying respirator in the radiation works in a contaminated atmosphere. A breath-responsive-powered air-purifying respirator (BR-PAPR) has been recently developed. However, no research has yet been conducted to determine the protection factor (PF) of the BR-PAPR in actual workplaces. In this study, the PFs of the BR-PAPR were measured by a man-test apparatus and compared with those of a non-powered full face mask. The PFs were measured under three different situations; normal wearing condition, clogging the filter and leaving a gap between the face and the mask. Under these situations, it was found that the PFs of the BR-PAPR are higher than those of the non-powered full face mask. PFs greater than 4,000 were obtained for 95% of the subjects who wear the BR-PAPR, and PFs over 6,667, the upper limit of the man-test apparatus, were obtained for 49% of them. The questionnaire survey was conducted for workers. The results showed that the workers feel a reduced burden when they wear the BR-PAPR. The results of this study showed high protection performance and operation efficiency of the BR-PAPR. (author)

  3. Selective excretion of IgA in rat bronchial secretions: lack of significant contribution from plasma IgA

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lemaitre-Coelho, I.; Yamakido, M.; Montgomery, P.C.; Langendries, A.E.; Vaerman, J.P.

    1982-01-01

    Concentrated rat bronchial washings (BW) were analyzed by gel-filtration and immunochemical methods. BW contained mainly albumin, transferrin and IgG. Free secretory component and secretory IgA were identified in BW; the BW-IgA had the same three sedimentation coefficients, i.e. +/- 11 S, 13 S, 15 S by sucrose density gradient ultracentrifugation, as rat milk and rat bile IgA; the three peaks were secretory IgA. Compared to serum, and relatively to albumin, BW were significantly enriched in IgA, although much less than rat bile. Purified polyclonal rat polymeric 125 I-IgA was injected intravenously into normal rats, and into rats with bile duct ligation or partial hepatectomy, which decrease the liver plasma-to-bile transfer of IgA. BW were then collected, one or four hours later, to assess the recovery of the 125 I-IgA in BW and to estimate the contribution of serum IgA to BW-IgA. Very little 125 I-IgA (less than 0.2%) was recovered in all BW. The specific activity, measured only in the rat with the highest recovery in BW, was 20 times lower in BW than in serum. The data demonstrate that rat serum IgA does not contribute significantly to IgA in BW

  4. Effects of diet on growth and survival of rats fed toxic levels of tartrazine (FD & C Yellow No. 5) and sunset yellow FCF (FD & C Yellow No. 6).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ershoff, B H

    1977-05-01

    Tests were conducted on the effects of diet on the response of immature male rats to massive doses of tartrazine (FD&C Yellow No.5) and Sunset Yellow FCF (FD&C Yellow No. 6). When incorporated at a 5% level in a stock diet, tartrazine and Sunset Yellow FCF had no grossly observable toxic effects. When fed with a purified diet, however, both tartrazine and Sunset Yellow FCF at 5% level in the diet resulted in a marked retardation in growth, an unthrifty appearance of the fur and death of 50% or more of the rats within an experimental period of 14 days. The toxic effects obtained by feeding the latter diets were counteracted by the concurrent feeding of blond psyllium seed powder, carrot root powder, alfalfa leaf meal and wheat bran. Supplements of the known nutrients had little if any protective effect. Supplements of purified cellulose were without protective effect for the rats fed tartrazine but had a moderate protective effect for those fed Sunset Yellow FCF.

  5. Metabolic and oxidative stress markers in Wistar rats after 2?months on a high-fat diet

    OpenAIRE

    Auberval, Nathalie; Dal, St?phanie; Bietiger, William; Pinget, Michel; Jeandidier, Nathalie; Maillard-Pedracini, Elisa; Schini-Kerth, Val?rie; Sigrist, S?verine

    2014-01-01

    Background Metabolic syndrome is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular and hepatic complications. Oxidative stress in metabolic tissues has emerged as a universal feature of metabolic syndrome and its co-morbidities. We aimed to develop a rapidly and easily induced model of metabolic syndrome in rats to evaluate its impact on plasma and tissue oxidative stress. Materials and methods Metabolic syndrome was induced in rats using a high-fat diet (HFD), and these rats were compared ...

  6. Isoflavone and Protein Constituents of Lactic Acid-Fermented Soy Milk Combine to Prevent Dyslipidemia in Rats Fed a High Cholesterol Diet

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kobayashi, Maki; Egusa, Shintaro; Fukuda, Mitsuru

    2014-01-01

    A high cholesterol diet induces dyslipidemia. This study investigated whether isoflavone aglycones in lactic acid-fermented soy milk (LFS) improve lipid metabolism in rats fed a high cholesterol diet. Male Sprague-Dawley rats aged seven weeks were fed an AIN-93G diet, a 1% cholesterol diet (a high cholesterol diet), a high-cholesterol diet containing 4% isoflavone extract of LFS (LFS extract diet), a high-cholesterol diet containing 19.4% ethanol-washed LFS (ethanol-washed LFS diet, isoflavone-poor diet), or a high cholesterol diet containing 23.2% intact LFS (intact LFS diet) for five weeks. The plasma total cholesterol (TC) level was increased in the rats fed the LFS extract diet compared with those fed the high cholesterol diet. The TC level was decreased by the intact LFS and ethanol-washed LFS diets. The cholesterol-lowering effect was stronger in the rats fed the intact LFS diet than those fed the ethanol-washed LFS diet. The plasma triglyceride (TG) level was unchanged in the rats fed the LFS extract diet, but it decreased in rats fed the intact LFS and ethanol-washed LFS diets. Although, compared with the high cholesterol diet, the LFS extract and ethanol-washed LFS diets did not reduce hepatic cholesterol and TG, both levels were remarkably lowered by the intact LFS diet. These results suggest that the improvement in lipid metabolism of rats fed a high-cholesterol diet containing LFS isoflavone aglycones is not due to an independent effect but due to a cooperative effect with soy protein. PMID:25514389

  7. Isoflavone and Protein Constituents of Lactic Acid-Fermented Soy Milk Combine to Prevent Dyslipidemia in Rats Fed a High Cholesterol Diet

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maki Kobayashi

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available A high cholesterol diet induces dyslipidemia. This study investigated whether isoflavone aglycones in lactic acid-fermented soy milk (LFS improve lipid metabolism in rats fed a high cholesterol diet. Male Sprague-Dawley rats aged seven weeks were fed an AIN-93G diet, a 1% cholesterol diet (a high cholesterol diet, a high-cholesterol diet containing 4% isoflavone extract of LFS (LFS extract diet, a high-cholesterol diet containing 19.4% ethanol-washed LFS (ethanol-washed LFS diet, isoflavone-poor diet, or a high cholesterol diet containing 23.2% intact LFS (intact LFS diet for five weeks. The plasma total cholesterol (TC level was increased in the rats fed the LFS extract diet compared with those fed the high cholesterol diet. The TC level was decreased by the intact LFS and ethanol-washed LFS diets. The cholesterol-lowering effect was stronger in the rats fed the intact LFS diet than those fed the ethanol-washed LFS diet. The plasma triglyceride (TG level was unchanged in the rats fed the LFS extract diet, but it decreased in rats fed the intact LFS and ethanol-washed LFS diets. Although, compared with the high cholesterol diet, the LFS extract and ethanol-washed LFS diets did not reduce hepatic cholesterol and TG, both levels were remarkably lowered by the intact LFS diet. These results suggest that the improvement in lipid metabolism of rats fed a high-cholesterol diet containing LFS isoflavone aglycones is not due to an independent effect but due to a cooperative effect with soy protein.

  8. Highly purified, multi-wall carbon nanotubes induce light-chain 3B expression in human lung cells

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tsukahara, Tamotsu; Matsuda, Yoshikazu; Usui, Yuki; Haniu, Hisao

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: •HTT2800-treated BEAS-2B cells induced LC3B in a time-dependent manner. •HTT2800-treated BEAS-2B cells showed decreased cell proliferation that was both time- and dose-dependent. •Addition of 3-MA, LC3B-II protein and mRNA levels were significantly decreased. •3-MA and E64-d + pepstatin A, but not brefeldin A, provided protection against HTT2800-induced cell death. •These results suggest that HTT2800 predominantly causes autophagy rather than apoptotic cell death in BEAS-2B cells. -- Abstract: Bronchial epithelial cells are targets of inhalation and play a critical role in the maintenance of mucosal integrity as mechanical barriers against various particles. Our previous result suggest that vapor-grown carbon fiber, HTT2800, which is one of the most highly purified multi-wall carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) showed cellular uptake of the carbon nanotube, increased cell death, enhanced DNA damage, and induced cytokine release. Increasing evidence suggests that autophagy may critically influence vital cellular processes such as apoptosis, cell proliferation and inflammation and thereby may play a critical role in pulmonary diseases. Autophagy was recently recognized as a critical cell death pathway, and autophagosome accumulation has been found to be associated with the exposure of various nanoparticles. In this study, the authors focus on the autophagic responses of HTT2800 exposure. The HTT2800-exposed cells induced LC3B expression and induced cell growth inhibition

  9. Highly purified, multi-wall carbon nanotubes induce light-chain 3B expression in human lung cells

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tsukahara, Tamotsu, E-mail: ttamotsu@kanazawa-med.ac.jp [Department of Hematology and Immunology, Kanazawa Medical University, 1-1 Daigaku, Uchinada, Ishikawa 920-0293 (Japan); Matsuda, Yoshikazu [Clinical Pharmacology Educational Center, Nihon Pharmaceutical University, Ina-machi, Saitama 362-0806 (Japan); Usui, Yuki [Research Center for Exotic Nanocarbons, Shinshu University, 4-17-1 Wakasato, Nagano-shi, Nagano 380-8553 (Japan); Haniu, Hisao [Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Shinshu University School of Medicine, 3-1-1 Asahi, Matsumoto, Nagano 390-8621 (Japan)

    2013-10-18

    Highlights: •HTT2800-treated BEAS-2B cells induced LC3B in a time-dependent manner. •HTT2800-treated BEAS-2B cells showed decreased cell proliferation that was both time- and dose-dependent. •Addition of 3-MA, LC3B-II protein and mRNA levels were significantly decreased. •3-MA and E64-d + pepstatin A, but not brefeldin A, provided protection against HTT2800-induced cell death. •These results suggest that HTT2800 predominantly causes autophagy rather than apoptotic cell death in BEAS-2B cells. -- Abstract: Bronchial epithelial cells are targets of inhalation and play a critical role in the maintenance of mucosal integrity as mechanical barriers against various particles. Our previous result suggest that vapor-grown carbon fiber, HTT2800, which is one of the most highly purified multi-wall carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) showed cellular uptake of the carbon nanotube, increased cell death, enhanced DNA damage, and induced cytokine release. Increasing evidence suggests that autophagy may critically influence vital cellular processes such as apoptosis, cell proliferation and inflammation and thereby may play a critical role in pulmonary diseases. Autophagy was recently recognized as a critical cell death pathway, and autophagosome accumulation has been found to be associated with the exposure of various nanoparticles. In this study, the authors focus on the autophagic responses of HTT2800 exposure. The HTT2800-exposed cells induced LC3B expression and induced cell growth inhibition.

  10. Anti-oxidant and anti-hyperlipidemic activity of Hemidesmus indicus in rats fed with high-fat diet

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Suganya Venkateshan

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available Objective: Dietary changes playmajor risk roles in oxidative stress andcardiovascular disease and modulate normal metabolic function. The present study was designed to investigate the ameliorative potential of different extracts of Hemidesmus indicus to experimental high-fat diet in wistar rats, and their possible mechanism of action.  Materials and Methods: Male wistar rats were divided into 6 groups (n=6/group andfed with a standard diet (control, high-fat diet (HFD, high-fat diet supplemented with different extracts and positive control for 9 weeks. High-fat diet induced changes in average body weight andoxidative stress and elevated levels of plasma lipid profilein rats. Results: Oral administration of methanolic extract of H. indicus(200 mg/kg offered a significant dose-dependent protection against HFD-induced oxidative stress, as reflected in the levels of catalase (pConclusion: The present study revealed that the methanolic extract of H.indicus protects against oxidative stress, hyperlipidemia and liver damage.

  11. Process for purifying molybdenum

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cheresnowsky, J.

    1989-01-01

    This patent describes a process for purifying molybdenum containing arsenic and phosphorus. The process comprising: adding to an acidic slurry of molybdenum trioxide, a source of magnesium ions in a solid form, with the amount of magnesium and the magnesium ion concentration in the subsequently formed ammonium molybdate solution being sufficient to subsequently form insoluble compounds containing greater than about 80% by weight of the arsenic and greater than about 80% by weight of the phosphorus, and ammonia in an amount sufficient to subsequently dissolve the molybdenum and subsequently form the insoluble compounds, with the source of magnesium ions being added prior to the addition of the ammonia; digesting the resulting ammoniated slurry at a temperature sufficient to dissolve the molybdenum and form an ammonium molybdate solution while the pH is maintained at from bout 9 to about 10 to form a solid containing the insoluble compounds; and separating the solid from the ammonium molybdate solution

  12. Imaging of dopamine transporters in rats using high-resolution pinhole single-photon emission tomography

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Booij, Jan; Bruin, Kora de; Habraken, Jan B.A. [Department of Nuclear Medicine, F2N, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, Meibergdreef 9, 1105 AZ Amsterdam (Netherlands); Voorn, Pieter [Department of Anatomy, Vrije Universiteit Medical Center, Amsterdam (Netherlands)

    2002-09-01

    To date, the vast majority of investigations on the dopaminergic system in small animals have been in vitro studies. In comparison with in vitro studies, single-photon emission tomography (SPET) or positron emission tomography (PET) imaging of the dopaminergic system in small animals has the advantage of permitting repeated studies within the same group of animals. Dopamine transporter imaging is a valuable non-invasive tool with which to investigate the integrity of dopaminergic neurons. The purpose of this study was to investigate the feasibility of assessing dopamine transporter density semi-quantitatively in rats using a recently developed high-resolution pinhole SPET system. This system was built exclusively for imaging of small animals. In this unique single-pinhole system, the animal rotates instead of the collimated detector. The system has proven to have a high spatial resolution. We performed SPET imaging with [{sup 123}I]FP-CIT to quantify striatal dopamine transporters in rat brain. In all seven studied control rats, symmetrical striatal binding to dopamine transporters was seen 2 h after injection of the radiotracer, with striatal-to-cerebellar binding ratios of approximately 3.5. In addition, test/retest variability of the striatal-to-cerebellar binding ratios was studied and found to be 14.5%. Finally, in unilaterally 6-hydroxydopamine-lesioned rats, striatal binding was only visible on the non-lesioned side. Quantitative analysis revealed that striatal-to-cerebellar SPET ratios were significantly lower on the lesioned (mean binding ratio 2.2{+-}0.2) than on the non-lesioned (mean ratio 3.1{+-}0.4) side. The preliminary results of this study indicate that semi-quantitative assessment of striatal dopamine transporter density using our recently developed high-resolution single-pinhole SPET system is feasible in living rat brain. (orig.)

  13. Method of purifying phosphoric acid after solvent extraction

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kouloheris, A.P.; Lefever, J.A.

    1979-01-01

    A method of purifying phosphoric acid after solvent extraction is described. The phosphoric acid is contacted with a sorbent which sorbs or takes up the residual amount of organic carrier and the phosphoric acid separated from the organic carrier-laden sorbent. The method is especially suitable for removing residual organic carrier from phosphoric acid after solvent extraction uranium recovery. (author)

  14. High-level expression and purification of soluble recombinant FGF21 protein by SUMO fusion in Escherichia coli

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Huang Yadong

    2010-02-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21 is a promising drug candidate to combat metabolic diseases. However, high-level expression and purification of recombinant FGF21 (rFGF21 in Escherichia coli (E. coli is difficult because rFGF21 forms inclusion bodies in the bacteria making it difficult to purify and obtain high concentrations of bioactive rFGF21. To overcome this problem, we fused the FGF21 with SUMO (Small ubiquitin-related modifier by polymerase chain reaction (PCR, and expressed the fused gene in E. coli BL21(DE3. Results By inducing with IPTG, SUMO-FGF21 was expressed at a high level. Its concentration reached 30% of total protein, and exceeded 95% of all soluble proteins. The fused protein was purified by DEAE sepharose FF and Ni-NTA affinity chromatography. Once cleaved by the SUMO protease, the purity of rFGF21 by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC was shown to be higher than 96% with low endotoxin level (in vivo animal experiments showed that rFGF21 produced by using this method, could decrease the concentration of plasma glucose in diabetic rats by streptozotocin (STZ injection. Conclusions This study demonstrated that SUMO, when fused with FGF21, was able to promote its soluble expression of the latter in E. coli, making it more convenient to purify rFGF21 than previously. This may be a better method to produce rFGF21 for pharmaceutical research and development.

  15. 78 FR 69361 - Development of Inward Leakage Standards for Half-Mask Air-Purifying Particulate Respirators

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-11-19

    ... DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 42 CFR Part 84 [Docket No. CDC-2013-0017; NIOSH-250] Development of Inward Leakage Standards for Half-Mask Air- Purifying Particulate Respirators AGENCY: Centers... regarding the development of inward leakage performance standards for half-mask air- purifying particulate...

  16. Ixeris dentata Extract Increases Salivary Secretion through the Regulation of Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress in a Diabetes-Induced Xerostomia Rat Model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bhattarai, Kashi Raj; Lee, Hwa-Young; Kim, Seung-Hyun; Kim, Hyung-Ryong; Chae, Han-Jung

    2018-04-02

    This study aimed to investigate the molecular mechanism of diabetes mellitus (DM)-induced dry mouth and an application of natural products from Ixeris dentata (IXD), a recently suggested regulator of amylase secretion in salivary cells. Vehicle-treated or diabetic rats were orally treated with either water or an IXD extract for 10 days to observe the effect on salivary flow. We found that the IXD extract increased aquaporin 5 (AQP5) and alpha-amylase protein expression in the submandibular gland along with salivary flow rate. Similarly, the IXD extract and its purified compound increased amylase secretion in high glucose-exposed human salivary gland cells. Furthermore, increased endoplasmic reticulum stress response in the submandibular gland of diabetic rats was inhibited by treatment with the IXD extract, suggesting that IXD extract treatment improves the ER environment by increasing the protein folding capacity. Thus, pharmacological treatment with the IXD extract is suggested to relieve DM-induced dry mouth symptoms.

  17. Ixeris dentata Extract Increases Salivary Secretion through the Regulation of Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress in a Diabetes-Induced Xerostomia Rat Model

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kashi Raj Bhattarai

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available This study aimed to investigate the molecular mechanism of diabetes mellitus (DM-induced dry mouth and an application of natural products from Ixeris dentata (IXD, a recently suggested regulator of amylase secretion in salivary cells. Vehicle-treated or diabetic rats were orally treated with either water or an IXD extract for 10 days to observe the effect on salivary flow. We found that the IXD extract increased aquaporin 5 (AQP5 and alpha-amylase protein expression in the submandibular gland along with salivary flow rate. Similarly, the IXD extract and its purified compound increased amylase secretion in high glucose-exposed human salivary gland cells. Furthermore, increased endoplasmic reticulum stress response in the submandibular gland of diabetic rats was inhibited by treatment with the IXD extract, suggesting that IXD extract treatment improves the ER environment by increasing the protein folding capacity. Thus, pharmacological treatment with the IXD extract is suggested to relieve DM-induced dry mouth symptoms.

  18. Photoaffinity labeling of rat liver microsomal morphine UDP-glucuronosyltransferase by ( sup 3 H)flunitrazepam

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Thomassin, J.; Tephly, T.R. (Univ. of Iowa, Iowa City (USA))

    1990-09-01

    Benzodiazepines have been shown to competitively inhibit morphine glucuronidation in rat and human hepatic microsomes. Flunitrazepam exerted a potent competitive inhibition of rat hepatic morphine UDP-glucuronosyltransferase (UDPGT) activity (Ki = 130 microM). It has no effect on the activity of p-nitrophenol, 17 beta-hydroxysteroid, 3 alpha-hydroxysteroid, or 4-hydroxybiphenyl UDPGTs. Because flunitrazepam is an effective photoaffinity label for benzodiazepine receptors, studied were performed in solubilized rat hepatic microsomes and with partially purified preparations of morphine UDPGT to determine the enhancement of flunitrazepam inhibition and binding to morphine UDPGT promoted by exposure to UV light. Under UV light, flunitrazepam inhibition was markedly enhanced. UV light exposure also led to a marked increase in binding of (3H)flunitrazepam to microsomal protein, which was protected substantially by preincubation with morphine. Testosterone, androsterone, and UDP-glucuronic acid did not protect against UV-enhanced flunitrazepam binding, and morphine did not reverse flunitrazepam binding once binding had occurred. As morphine UDPGT was purified, a good correlation was found between the increases in specific activity of morphine UDPGT and flunitrazepam binding to protein. Chromatofocusing chromatography showed that flunitrazepam bound only to fractions containing active morphine UDPGT, and no binding to 4-hydroxybiphenyl UDPGT was observed. Fluorography of a sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide electrophoresis gel of solubilized hepatic microsomes that had been treated with (3H) flunitrazepam under UV light revealed a band with a monomeric molecular weight between 54,000 and 58,000. This monomeric molecular weight compares favorably with the reported monomeric molecular weight of homogeneous morphine UDPGT (56,000).

  19. Basis of aggravated hepatic lipid metabolism by chronic stress in high-fat diet-fed rat.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Han, Ying; Lin, Min; Wang, Xiaobin; Guo, Keke; Wang, Shanshan; Sun, Mengfei; Wang, Jiao; Han, Xiaoyu; Fu, Ting; Hu, Yang; Fu, Jihua

    2015-03-01

    Our previous study has demonstrated that long-term stress, known as chronic stress (CS), can aggravate nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in high-fat diet (HFD)-fed rat. In this study, we tried to figure out which lipid metabolic pathways were impacted by CS in the HFD-fed rat. Male Sprague-Dawley rats (6 weeks of age, n = 8 per group) were fed with either standard diet or HFD with or without CS exposure for 8 weeks. Hepatic lipidosis, biochemical, hormonal, and lipid profile markers in serum and liver, and enzymes involved in de novo lipogenesis (DNL) of fatty acids (FAs) and cholesterol, β-oxidation, FAs uptake, triglycerides synthesis, and very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) assembly in the liver were detected. CS exposure reduced hepatic lipidosis but further elevated hepatic VLDL content with aggravated dyslipidemia in the HFD-fed rats. There was a synergism between CS and HFD on VLDL production and dyslipidemia. PCR and western blot assays showed that CS exposure significantly promoted hepatic VLDL assembly in rats, especially in the HFD-fed rats, while it had little impact on DNL, β-oxidation, FAs uptake, and triglycerides synthesis in the HFD-fed rats. This phenomenon was in accordance with elevated serum glucocorticoid level. The critical influence of CS exposure on hepatic lipid metabolism in the HFD-fed rats is VLDL assembly which might be regulated by glucocorticoid.

  20. High novelty-seeking rats are resilient to negative physiological effects of the early life stress.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clinton, Sarah M; Watson, Stanley J; Akil, Huda

    2014-01-01

    Exposure to early life stress dramatically impacts adult behavior, physiology, and neuroendocrine function. Using rats bred for novelty-seeking differences and known to display divergent anxiety, depression, and stress vulnerability, we examined the interaction between early life adversity and genetic predisposition for high- versus low-emotional reactivity. Thus, bred Low Novelty Responder (bLR) rats, which naturally exhibit high anxiety- and depression-like behavior, and bred High Novelty Responder (bHR) rats, which show low anxiety/depression together with elevated aggression, impulsivity, and addictive behavior, were subjected to daily 3 h maternal separation (MS) stress postnatal days 1-14. We hypothesized that MS stress would differentially impact adult bHR/bLR behavior, physiology (stress-induced defecation), and neuroendocrine reactivity. While MS stress did not impact bHR and bLR anxiety-like behavior in the open field test and elevated plus maze, it exacerbated bLRs' already high physiological response to stress - stress-induced defecation. In both tests, MS bLR adult offspring showed exaggerated stress-induced defecation compared to bLR controls while bHR offspring were unaffected. MS also selectively impacted bLRs' (but not bHRs') neuroendocrine stress reactivity, producing an exaggerated corticosterone acute stress response in MS bLR versus control bLR rats. These findings highlight how genetic predisposition shapes individuals' response to early life stress. Future work will explore neural mechanisms underlying the distinct behavioral and neuroendocrine consequences of MS in bHR/bLR animals.

  1. Jinlida reduces insulin resistance and ameliorates liver oxidative stress in high-fat fed rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Yixuan; Song, An; Zang, Shasha; Wang, Chao; Song, Guangyao; Li, Xiaoling; Zhu, Yajun; Yu, Xian; Li, Ling; Wang, Yun; Duan, Liyuan

    2015-03-13

    Jinlida (JLD) is a compound preparation formulated on the basis of traditional Chinese medicine and is officially approved for the treatment of type 2 diabetes (T2DM) in China. We aimed to elucidate the mechanism of JLD treatment, in comparison to metformin treatment, on ameliorating insulin sensitivity in insulin resistant rats and to reveal its anti-oxidant properties. Rats were fed with standard or high-fat diet for 6 weeks. After 6 weeks, the high-fat fed rats were subdivided into five groups and orally fed with JLD or metformin for 8 weeks. Fasting blood glucose (FBG), fasting blood insulin, blood lipid and antioxidant enzymes were measured. Intraperitoneal glucose tolerance test (IPGTT) and hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamp technique were carried out to measure insulin sensitivity. Gene expression of the major signaling pathway molecules that regulate glucose uptake, including insulin receptor (INSR), insulin receptor substrate-1 (IRS-1), phosphoinositide-3-kinase (PI3K), protein kinase beta (AKT), and glucose transporter type 2 (GLUT2), were assessed by quantitative RT-PCR. The totle and phosphorylation expression of IRS-1, AKT, JNK and p38MAPK were determined by Western blot. Treatment with JLD effectively ameliorated the high-fat induced hyperglycemia, hyperinsulinemia and hyperlipidemia. Similar to metformin, the high insulin resistance in high-fat fed rats was significantly decreased by JLD treatment. JLD displayed anti-oxidant effects, coupled with up-regulation of the insulin signaling pathway. The attenuation of hepatic oxidative stress by JLD treatment was associated with reduced phosphorylation protein levels of JNK and p38MAPK. Treatment with JLD could moderate glucose and lipid metabolism as well as reduce hepatic oxidative stress, most likely through the JNK and p38MAPK pathways. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Centrally administered urocortin 2 decreases gorging on high-fat diet in in both diet induced obesity-prone and -resistant rats

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cottone, Pietro; Sabino, Valentina; Nagy, Tim R.; Coscina, Donald V.; Levin, Barry E.; Zorrilla, Eric P.

    2013-01-01

    Objective Obesity is a costly, deadly public health problem for which new treatments are needed. Individual differences in meal pattern have been proposed to play a role in obesity risk. The present study tested the hypothesis that i) the microstructure of chronic high-fat diet intake differs between genetically selected Diet-Induced Obesity (DIO) and Diet Resistant (DR) rats, and ii) central administration of urocortin 2 (Ucn 2), a corticotropin-releasing factor type 2 (CRF2) agonist, decreases high-fat diet intake not only in lean DR rats, but also in obese DIO rats. Design Male, selectively bred DIO and DR rats (n=10/genotype) were chronically fed a high-fat diet. Food and water intake as well as ingestion microstructure were then compared under baseline conditions and following third intracerebroventricular injection of Ucn 2 (0, 0.1, 0.3, 1, 3 µg). Results Irrespective of genotype, Ucn 2 reduced nocturnal food intake with a minimum effective dose of 0.3 µg, suppressing high-fat diet intake by ~40% at the 3 µg dose. Ucn 2 also made rats of both genotypes eat smaller and briefer meals, including at doses that did not reduce drinking. Obese DIO rats ate fewer but larger meals than DR rats, which they ate more quickly and consumed with 2/3rd less water. Conclusions Unlike leptin and insulin, Ucn 2 retains its full central anorectic efficacy to reduce high-fat diet intake even in obese, genetically-prone DIO rats, which otherwise show a “gorging” meal pattern. These results open new opportunities of investigation towards treating some forms of diet-induced obesity. PMID:23478425

  3. A rat osteogenic cell line (UMR 106-01) synthesizes a highly sulfated form of bone sialoprotein.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Midura, R J; McQuillan, D J; Benham, K J; Fisher, L W; Hascall, V C

    1990-03-25

    The rat osteosarcoma cell line (UMR 106-01) synthesizes and secretes relatively large amounts of a sulfated glycoprotein into its culture medium (approximately 240 ng/10(6) cells/day). This glycoprotein was purified, and amino-terminal sequence analysis identified it as bone sialoprotein (BSP). [35S]Sulfate, [3H]glucosamine, and [3H]tyrosine were used as metabolic precursors to label the BSP. Sulfate esters were found on N- and O-linked oligosaccharides and on tyrosine residues, with about half of the total tyrosines in the BSP being sulfated. The proportion of 35S activity in tyrosine-O-sulfate (approximately 70%) was greater than that in N-linked (approximately 20%) and O-linked (approximately 10%) oligosaccharides. From the deduced amino acid sequence for rat BSP (Oldberg, A., Franzén, A., and Heinegård, D. (1988) J. Biol. Chem. 263, 19430-19432), the results indicate that on average approximately 12 tyrosine residues, approximately 3 N-linked, and approximately 2 O-linked oligosaccharides are sulfated/molecule. The carboxyl-terminal quarter of the BSP probably contains most, if not all, of the sulfated tyrosine residues because this region of the polypeptide contains the necessary requirements for tyrosine sulfation. Oligosaccharide analyses indicated that for every N-linked oligosaccharide on the BSP, there are also approximately 2 hexa-, approximately 5 tetra-, and approximately 2 trisaccharides O-linked to serine and threonine residues. On average, the BSP synthesized by UMR 106-01 cells would contain a total of approximately 3 N-linked and approximately 25 of the above O-linked oligosaccharides. This large number of oligosaccharides is in agreement with the known carbohydrate content (approximately 50%) of the BSP.

  4. Inhibition of angiotensin-1-converting enzyme activity by two varieties of ginger (Zingiber officinale) in rats fed a high cholesterol diet.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Akinyemi, Ayodele Jacob; Ademiluyi, Adedayo Oluwaseun; Oboh, Ganiyu

    2014-03-01

    Angiotensin-1-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors are widely used in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. This study sought to investigate the inhibitory effect of two varieties of ginger (Zingiber officinale) commonly consumed in Nigeria on ACE activity in rats fed a high cholesterol diet. The inhibition of ACE activity of two varieties of ginger (Z. officinale) was investigated in a high cholesterol (2%) diet fed to rats for 3 days. Feeding high cholesterol diets to rats caused a significant (Pginger varieties. Rats that were fed 4% white ginger had the greatest inhibitory effect as compared with a control diet. Furthermore, there was a significant (Pginger (either 2% or 4%) caused a significant (Pginger had the greatest reduction as compared with control diet. In conclusion, both ginger varieties exhibited anti-hypercholesterolemic properties in a high cholesterol diet fed to rats. This activity of the gingers may be attributed to its ACE inhibitory activity. However, white ginger inhibited ACE better in a high cholesterol diet fed to rats than red ginger. Therefore, both gingers could serve as good functional foods/nutraceuticals in the management/treatment of hypertension and other cardiovascular diseases.

  5. Effect of L-Carnitine on Skeletal Muscle Lipids and Oxidative Stress in Rats Fed High-Fructose Diet

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Panchamoorthy Rajasekar

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available There is evidence that high-fructose diet induces insulin resistance, alterations in lipid metabolism, and oxidative stress in rat tissues. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of L-carnitine (CAR on lipid accumulation and peroxidative damage in skeletal muscle of rats fed high-fructose diet. Fructose-fed animals (60 g/100 g diet displayed decreased glucose/insulin (G/I ratio and insulin sensitivity index (ISI0,120 indicating the development of insulin resistance. Rats showed alterations in the levels of triglycerides, free fatty acids, cholesterol, and phospholipids in skeletal muscle. The condition was associated with oxidative stress as evidenced by the accumulation of lipid peroxidation products, protein carbonyls, and aldehydes along with depletion of both enzymic and nonenzymic antioxidants. Simultaneous intraperitoneal administration of CAR (300 mg/kg/day to fructose-fed rats alleviated the effects of fructose. These rats showed near-normal levels of the parameters studied. The effects of CAR in this model suggest that CAR supplementation may have some benefits in patients suffering from insulin resistance.

  6. Immune responsiveness associated with experimental Encephalitozoon intestinalis infection in immunocompetent rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Omalu ICJ

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available Purpose: Microsporidial infections have been recognized as an increasingly important infection in immuncompromised patients, particularly those infected with HIV/AIDS. This study was designed to study immune responses associated with experimental Encephalitozoon intestinalis infection in immunocompetent rats. Materials and Methods: Thirty-four Rats in 3 groups, A (Control, B (Intraperitoneal and C (Oral were given injections of 0.5 ml of 2 x 10 6 of purified spores of Encephalitotozoon intestinalis spores and were observed for serum specific IgG for 21 days using both direct and indirect ELISA. Results: In indirect ELISA, specific lgG were detected on days 7, 14 and 21 for the group B rats and on day 21 for group C and in direct ELISA method, specific lgG were detected in-group B rats on days 7 and 21, for group C rats on day 21 only, while in the control rats, specific lgG were not detected. There was no significant difference between the direct and indirect methods (df=1, X 2 , P>0.05. E. intestinalis was observed in stool samples of rats in 1/12 (08.33% on days 14 and 21 in group B, and in 4/10 (33.33%, 3/10 (25.00% and 2/10 (16.67% on days 7, 14 and 21 respectively in group C. In group A, which is the control rats, no microsporidia were observed on days 0, 7, 14 and 21. Conclusions: There were no changes in the T-lymphocyte counts of rats prior to and after inoculation with spores. Extensive lesions were observed along the intestinal walls especially on the middle and lower sections of group C rats only.

  7. In vitro and in vivo inhibitory effects of some fungicides on catalase produced and purified from white-rot fungus Phanerochaete chrysosporium.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kavakçıoğlu, Berna; Tarhan, Leman

    2014-10-01

    In this study, in vitro and in vivo effects of some commonly used fungicides, antibiotics, and various chemicals on isolated and purified catalase from Phanerochaete chrysosporium were investigated. The catalase was purified 129.10-fold by using 60% ammonium sulfate and 60% ethanol precipitations, DEAE-cellulose anion exchange and Sephacryl-S-200 gel filtration chromatographies from P. chrysosporium growth in carbon- and nitrogen-limited medium for 12 days. The molecular weight of native purified catalase from P. chrysosporium was found to be 290 ± 10 kDa, and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-PAGE results indicated that enzyme consisted of four apparently identical subunits, with a molecular weight of 72.5 ± 2.5 kDa. Kinetic characterization studies showed that optimum pH and temperature, Km and Vmax values of the purified catalase which were stable in basic region and at comparatively high temperatures were 7.5, 30°C, 289.86 mM, and 250,000 U/mg, respectively. The activity of purified catalase from P. chrysosporium was significantly inhibited by dithiothreitol (DTT), 2-mercaptoethanol, iodoacetamide, EDTA, and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS). It was found that while antibiotics had no inhibitory effects, 45 ppm benomyl, 144 ppm captan, and 47.5 ppm chlorothalonil caused 14.52, 10.82, and 38.86% inhibition of purified catalase, respectively. The inhibition types of these three fungicides were found to be non-competitive inhibition with the Ki values of 1.158, 0.638, and 0.145 mM and IC50 values of 0.573, 0.158, 0.010 mM, respectively. The results of in vivo experiments also showed that benomyl, captan and chlorothalonil caused 15.25, 1.96, and 36.70% activity decreases after 24-h treatments compared to that of the control.

  8. Direct binding of autoimmune disease related T cell epitopes to purified Lewis rat MHC class II molecules

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Joosten, I; Wauben, M H; Holewijn, M C

    1994-01-01

    New strategies applied in the treatment of experimental autoimmune disease models involve blocking or modulation of MHC-peptide-TCR interactions either at the level of peptide-MHC interaction or, alternatively, at the level of T cell recognition. In order to identify useful competitor peptides one...... characteristics of the Lewis rat MHC class II RT1.B1 molecule. We have now developed a biochemical binding assay which enables competition studies in which the relative MHC binding affinity of a set of non-labelled peptides can be assessed while employing detection of biotinylated marker peptides...

  9. Hypocaloric high-protein diet improves fatty liver and hypertriglyceridemia in sucrose-fed obese rats via two pathways.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Uebanso, Takashi; Taketani, Yutaka; Fukaya, Makiko; Sato, Kazusa; Takei, Yuichiro; Sato, Tadatoshi; Sawada, Naoki; Amo, Kikuko; Harada, Nagakatsu; Arai, Hidekazu; Yamamoto, Hironori; Takeda, Eiji

    2009-07-01

    The mechanism by which replacement of some dietary carbohydrates with protein during weight loss favors lipid metabolism remains obscure. In this study, we investigated the effect of an energy-restricted, high-protein/low-carbohydrate diet on lipid metabolism in obese rats. High-sucrose-induced obese rats were assigned randomly to one of two energy-restricted dietary interventions: a carbohydrate-based control diet (CD) or a high-protein diet (HPD). Lean rats of the same age were assigned as normal control. There was significantly greater improvement in fatty liver and hypertriglyceridemia with the HPD diet relative to the CD diet. Expression of genes regulated by fibroblast growth factor-21 (FGF21) and involved in liver lipolysis and lipid utilitization, such as lipase and acyl-CoA oxidase, increased in obese rats fed the HPD. Furthermore, there was an inverse correlation between levels of FGF21 gene expression (regulated by glucagon/insulin balance) and increased triglyceride concentrations in liver from obese rats. Expression of hepatic stearoyl-CoA desaturase-1 (SCD1), regulated primarily by the dietary carbohydrate, was also markedly reduced in the HPD group (similar to plasma triglyceride levels in fasting animals) relative to the CD group. In conclusion, a hypocaloric high-protein diet improves fatty liver and hypertriglyceridemia effectively relative to a carbohydrate diet. The two cellular pathways at work behind these benefits include stimulation of hepatic lipolysis and lipid utilization mediated by FGF21 and reduction of hepatic VLDL-TG production by SCD1 regulation.

  10. Inbred Rats as a Model to Study Persistent Renal Leptospirosis and Associated Cellular Immune Responsiveness

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jarlath E. Nally

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Pathogenic species of Leptospira cause leptospirosis, a bacterial zoonotic disease with a global distribution affecting over one million people annually. Rats are regarded as one of the most significant reservoir hosts of infection for human disease, and in the absence of clinical signs of infection, excrete large numbers of organisms in their urine. A unique biological equilibrium exists between pathogenic leptospires and reservoir hosts of infection, but surprisingly, little is known concerning the host's cellular immune response that facilitates persistent renal colonization. To address this deficiency, we established and applied an immunocompetent inbred rat model of persistent renal colonization; leptospires were detected in urine of experimentally infected rats by 3 weeks post-infection and remained positive until 8 weeks post-infection. However, there was little, if any, evidence of inflammation in colonized renal tubules. At 8 weeks post-infection, a robust antibody response was detected against lipopolysaccharide and protein outer membrane (OM components. Purified B and T cells derived from the spleen of infected and non-infected rats proliferated in response to stimulation with 0.5 μg of OM fractions of Leptospira, including CD4+ T cells, which comprised 40% of proliferating cells, compared to 25% in non-infected controls. However, analysis of gene expression did not determine which immunoregulatory pathways were activated. Lymphocytes purified from the lymph node draining the site of colonization, the renal lymph node, also showed an increase in percentage of proliferating B and T cells. However, in contrast to a phenotype of 40% CD4+ T cells in the spleen, the phenotype of proliferating T cells in the renal lymph node comprised 65% CD4+ T cells. These results confirm that the renal lymph node, the local lymphoid organ, is a dominant site containing Leptospira reactive CD4+ T cells and highlight the need to consider the local, vs

  11. One-electron reduction of mitomycin c by rat liver : role of cytochrome P-450 and NADPH-cytochrome P-450 reductase

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Vromans, R M; Van de Straat, R; Groeneveld, M.; Vermeulen, N P

    1. The role of cytochrome P-450 in the one-electron reduction of mitomycin c was studied in rat hepatic microsomal systems and in reconstituted systems of purified cytochrome P-450. Formation of H2O2 from redox cycling of the reduced mitomycin c in the presence of O2 and the alkylation of

  12. Eating high fat chow decreases dopamine clearance in adolescent and adult male rats but selectively enhances the locomotor stimulating effects of cocaine in adolescents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baladi, Michelle G; Horton, Rebecca E; Owens, William A; Daws, Lynette C; France, Charles P

    2015-03-24

    Feeding conditions can influence dopamine neurotransmission and impact behavioral and neurochemical effects of drugs acting on dopamine systems. This study examined whether eating high fat chow alters the locomotor effects of cocaine and dopamine transporter activity in adolescent (postnatal day 25) and adult (postnatal day 75) male Sprague-Dawley rats. Dose-response curves for cocaine-induced locomotor activity were generated in rats with free access to either standard or high fat chow or restricted access to high fat chow (body weight matched to rats eating standard chow). Compared with eating standard chow, eating high fat chow increased the sensitivity of adolescent, but not adult, rats to the acute effects of cocaine. When tested once per week, sensitization to the locomotor effects of cocaine was enhanced in adolescent rats eating high fat chow compared with adolescent rats eating standard chow. Sensitization to cocaine was not different among feeding conditions in adults. When adolescent rats that previously ate high fat chow ate standard chow, sensitivity to cocaine returned to normal. As measured by chronoamperometry, dopamine clearance rate in striatum was decreased in both adolescent and adult rats eating high fat chow compared with age-matched rats eating standard chow. These results suggest that high fat diet-induced reductions in dopamine clearance rate do not always correspond to increased sensitivity to the locomotor effects of cocaine, suggesting that mechanisms other than dopamine transporter might play a role. Moreover, in adolescent but not adult rats, eating high fat chow increases sensitivity to cocaine and enhances the sensitization that develops to cocaine. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of CINP.

  13. Performance during a strenuous swimming session is associated with high blood lactate: pyruvate ratio and hypoglycemia in fasted rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Travassos, P B; Godoy, G; De Souza, H M; Curi, R; Bazotte, R B

    2018-03-26

    The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of lactatemia elevation and glycemia reduction on strenuous swimming performance in fasted rats. Three rats were placed in a swimming tank at the same time. The first rat was removed immediately (control group) and the remaining ones were submitted to a strenuous swimming session. After the second rat was exhausted (Exh group), the third one was immediately removed from the water (Exe group). According to the period of time required for exhaustion, the rats were divided into four groups: low performance (3-7 min), low-intermediary performance (8-12 min), high-intermediary performance (13-17 min), and high performance (18-22 min). All rats were removed from the swimming tanks and immediately killed by decapitation for blood collection or anesthetized for liver perfusion experiments. Blood glucose, lactate, and pyruvate concentrations, blood lactate/pyruvate ratio, and liver lactate uptake and its conversion to glucose were evaluated. Exhaustion in low and low-intermediary performance were better associated with higher lactate/pyruvate ratio. On the other hand, exhaustion in high-intermediary and high performance was better associated with hypoglycemia. Lactate uptake and glucose production from lactate in livers from the Exe and Exh groups were maintained. We concluded that there is a time sequence in the participation of lactate/pyruvate ratio and hypoglycemia in performance during an acute strenuous swimming section in fasted rats. The liver had an important participation in preventing hyperlactatemia and hypoglycemia during swimming through lactate uptake and its conversion to glucose.

  14. Apoptosis induced by a low-carbohydrate and high-protein diet in rat livers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Monteiro, Maria Emília L; Xavier, Analucia R; Oliveira, Felipe L; Filho, Porphirio Js; Azeredo, Vilma B

    2016-06-14

    To determine whether high-protein, high-fat, and low-carbohydrate diets can cause lesions in rat livers. We randomly divided 20 female Wistar rats into a control diet group and an experimental diet group. Animals in the control group received an AIN-93M diet, and animals in the experimental group received an Atkins-based diet (59.46% protein, 31.77% fat, and 8.77% carbohydrate). After 8 wk, the rats were anesthetized and exsanguinated for transaminases analysis, and their livers were removed for flow cytometry, immunohistochemistry, and light microscopy studies. We expressed the data as mean ± standard deviation (SD) assuming unpaired and parametric data; we analyzed differences using the Student's t-test. Statistical significance was set at P diet group and 3.73% ± 0.50% for early apoptosis, 5.67% ± 0.72% for late apoptosis, and 3.82% ± 0.28% for non-apoptotic death in the control diet group. The mean percentage of early apoptosis was higher in the experimental diet group than in the control diet group. Immunohistochemistry for autophagy was negative in both groups. Sinusoidal dilation around the central vein and small hepatocytes was only observed in the experimental diet group, and fibrosis was not identified by hematoxylin-eosin or Trichrome Masson staining in either group. Eight weeks of an experimental diet resulted in cellular and histopathological lesions in rat livers. Apoptosis was our principal finding; elevated plasma transaminases demonstrate hepatic lesions.

  15. Effects of High-sugar and High-fat Diet on Fat Deposition and Blood Vessel Wall on Sprague Dawley Rats Liver

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vera Citra Setiawan Hoei

    2013-11-01

    Full Text Available People nowadays tend to consume more fast food and sweetened beverages. These foods usually contain high amount sugar and fat that have effects on the body including liver.This study was conducted to explore the effects of extensive intake of sugar and fat on blood glucose and  cholesterol level as well as changes in liver. Research was conducted with experimental method using 20 Sprague Dawley rats which were divided into 4 groups; 2 controls and 2 treatments. Rats were given 5 ml sugar or lard alternatively every 2 consecutive days for 1-month and 2-month respectively. Data was retrieved include blood glucose and cholesterol level, fatty liver percentage and blood vessel thickening after intervention through HE staining. The results showed that both 1-month and 2-month intervention group has significant increase in blood glucose and cholesterol level. However, the enhancement of fatty liver percentage and number of thickened blood vessels (p<0.05 were only foundsignificant (p<0.05 in 1-month intervention group.  We concluded that high intake of sugar and fat within 1-monthintervention have significant effects on the rat body including liver. Nevertheless, it was not found significant in 2-months intervention. Further studies are still needed to analyze this incongruent result.Key words: high-sugar diet, high-fat diet, fatty liver, atherosclerosis 

  16. Improved detection of a staphylococcal infection by monomeric and protein A-purified polyclonal human immunoglobulin

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Calame, W.

    1993-01-01

    The present study was undertaken to compare the technetium-99m labelled non-specific polyclonal human immunoglobulin (Ig) with 99m Tc-labelled monomeric human immunoglobulin (m-Ig), 99m Tc-labelled, protein A-purified, human immunoglobulin (A-IG) and 99m Tc-labelled monomeric, protein A-purified, human immunoglobulin (mA-Ig) as tracer agents for the detection of a thigh infection with Staphylococcus aureus. In vitro the binding of the various tracer agents to bacteria at various intervals was determined. For the in vivo evaluation, mice were infected and received one of the various labelled proteins. Scintigrams were made 0.25, 1, 4 and 24 h later. All 99m Tc-labelled Igs bound to bacteria in vitro: The percentages of binding for the m-Ig (from 1 h onwards) and A-Ig and mA-Ig (from 3 h onwards) were significantly higher than that for Ig. The in vivo target-to-non-target (T/NT) ratios were significantly higher from 4 h onwards for all purified Igs than for Ig. Protein A-purified Ig yielded higher T/NT ratios than m-Ig. Furthermore, the amount of activity in the liver was significantly lower 24 h after administration of m-Ig, A-Ig and mA-Ig than after administration of Ig. It is concluded that in this experimental infection 99m Tc-labelled monomeric Ig localizes a staphylococcal thigh infection better and faster than 99m Tc-labelled unpurified Ig. However, the accumulation obtained with protein A-purified Ig or protein A-purified monomeric Ig was the highest of all tracer agents tested. (orig.)

  17. Characterization of an endoprotease from rat small intestinal mucosal secretory granules which generates somatostatin-28 from prosomatostatin by cleavage after a single arginine residue

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Beinfeld, M. C.; Bourdais, J.; Kuks, P.; Morel, A.; Cohen, P.

    1989-01-01

    We have extracted, characterized, and partially purified an enzyme from secretory granules from rat small intestinal mucosa which cleaves a synthetic prosomatostatin substrate on the carboxyl side of a single arginine residue. This substrate Leu-Gln-Arg-Ser-Ala-Asn-Ser-NH2 contains the monobasic

  18. Chitosanase purified from bacterial isolate Bacillus licheniformis of ruined vegetables displays broad spectrum biofilm inhibition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muslim, Sahira Nsayef; Al-Kadmy, Israa M S; Hussein, Nadheema Hammood; Mohammed Ali, Alaa Naseer; Taha, Buthainah Mohammed; Aziz, Sarah Naji; Kheraif, Abdulaziz Abdullah Al; Divakar, Darshan Devang; Ramakrishnaiah, Ravikumar

    2016-11-01

    A number of bacterial species produces chitosanases which has variety of applications because of its high biodegradability, non-toxicity and antimicrobial assets. In the present study chitosanase is purified from new bacterial species Bacillus licheniformis from spoiled vegetable. This novel strain of Bacillus licheniformis isolated from spoilt cucumber and pepper samples has the ability to produce the chitosanase enzyme when grown on chitosan substrate. Study also examined its antibiofilm properties against diverse bacterial species with biofilm forming ability. The purified chitosanase inhibited the biofilm formation ability for all Gram-negative and Gram-positive biofilm-forming bacteria [biofilm producers] tested in this study in congo red agar and microtiter plate's methods. Highly antibiofilm activity of chitosanase was recorded against Pseudomonas aeruginosa followed by Klebsiella pneumoniae with reduction of biofilm formation upto 22 and 29%, respectively compared with [100] % of control. Biofilm formation has multiple role including ability to enhance resistance and self-protection from external stress. This chitosanase has promising benefit as antibiofilm agent against biofilm forming pathogenic bacteria and has promising application as alternative antibiofilm agents to combat the growing number of multidrug resistant pathogen-associated infections, especially in situation where biofilms are involved. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. On the presence of prostatic secretion protein in rat seminal fluid

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Borgstroem, E.; Pousette, A.; Bjoerk, P.; Hoegberg, B.; Carlstroem, K.; Sundelin, B.; Gustafsson, J.A.

    1981-01-01

    The copulating plug collected from the tip of the penis from rats immediately after decapitation contains a protein very similar and probably identical to PSP (prostatic secretion protein); this protein has earlier been purified from rat prostatic cytosol and characterized. The protein present in the copulating plug interacts with [3H]estramustine and binds to the antibody raised against rat PSP. The concentration of the protein in the copulating plug is 400 ng/mg of total protein, when measured using the radioimmunoassay technique developed earlier for measurement of PSP in rat prostate. The [3H]estramustine-protein complex formed in a preparation of the copulating plug has an apparent molecular weight of about 50,000 and a sedimentation coefficient of about 3S when analyzed using sucrose density gradient centrifugation. The complex was retained on Concanavalin-A Sepharose indicating that the protein is a glycoprotein. Binding of the complex was also observed on hydroxylapatite and DEAE-Sephadex columns, from which it was eluted at 0.18 M KCl. Light microscope autoradiograms of rat sperms incubated with 125I-labeled PSP indicated that PSP is bound to all parts of the sperms. A macromolecule interacting with the PSP-antibodies is also present in human seminal fluid but at a concentration considerably lower than in rat seminal fluid. The present study shows that a macromolecule probably identical to prostatic secretion protein is present in the copulating plug from the rat. The biological role of this protein in normal male fertility is discussed

  20. [Rosuvastatin improves insulin sensitivity in overweight rats induced by high fat diet. Role of SIRT1 in adipose tissue].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Valero-Muñoz, María; Martín-Fernández, Beatriz; Ballesteros, Sandra; Cachofeiro, Victoria; Lahera, Vicente; de Las Heras, Natalia

    2014-01-01

    To study the effects of rosuvastatin on insulin resistance in overweight rats induced by high fat diet, as well as potential mediators. We used male Wistar rats fed with a standard diet (CT) or high fat diet (33.5% fat) (HFD); half of the animals HFD were treated with rosuvastatin (15mg/kg/day) (HFD+Rosu) for 7 weeks. HFD rats showed increased body, epididymal and lumbar adipose tissue weights. Treatment with Rosu did not modify body weight or the weight of the adipose packages in HFD rat. Plasma glucose and insulin levels and HOMA index were higher in HFD rats, and rosuvastatin treatment reduced them. Leptin/adiponectin ratio in plasma and lumbar adipose tissue were higher in HDF rats, and were reduced by rosuvastatin. SIRT-1, PPAR-γ and GLUT-4 protein expression in lumbar adipose tissue were lower in HFD rats and Rosu normalized expression of the three mediators. Rosuvastatin ameliorates insulin sensitivity induced by HFD in rats. This effect is mediated by several mechanisms including reduction of leptin and enhancement of SIRT-1, PPAR-γ and GLUT-4 expression in white adipose tissue. SIRT1 could be considered a major mediator of the beneficial effects of rosuvastatin on insulin sensitivity in overweight rats induced by diet. Copyright © 2013 Sociedad Española de Arteriosclerosis. Published by Elsevier España. All rights reserved.

  1. Protective effects of prescription n-3 fatty acids against impairment of spatial cognitive learning ability in amyloid β-infused rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hashimoto, Michio; Tozawa, Ryuichi; Katakura, Masanori; Shahdat, Hossain; Haque, Abdul Md; Tanabe, Yoko; Gamoh, Shuji; Shido, Osamu

    2011-07-01

    Deposition of amyloid β peptide (Aβ) into the brain causes cognitive impairment. We investigated whether prescription pre-administration of n-3 fatty acids improves cognitive learning ability in young rats and whether it protects against learning ability impairments in an animal model of Alzheimer's disease that was prepared by infusion of Aβ(1-40) into the cerebral ventricles of rats. Pre-administration of TAK-085 (highly purified and concentrated n-3 fatty acids containing eicosapentaenoic acid ethyl ester and docosahexaenoic acid ethyl ester) at 300 mg kg(-1) day(-1) for 12 weeks significantly reduced the number of reference memory errors in an 8-arm radial maze, suggesting that long-term administration of TAK-085 improves cognitive leaning ability in rats. After pre-administration, the control group was divided into the vehicle and Aβ-infused groups, whereas the TAK-085 pre-administration group was divided into the TAK-085 and TAK-085 + Aβ groups (TAK-085-pre-administered Aβ-infused rats). Aβ(1-40) or vehicle was infused into the cerebral ventricle using a mini osmotic pump. Pre-administration of TAK-085 to the Aβ-infused rats significantly suppressed the number of reference and working memory errors and decreased the levels of lipid peroxide and reactive oxygen species in the cerebral cortex and hippocampus of Aβ-infused rats, suggesting that TAK-085 increases antioxidative defenses. The present study suggests that long-term administration of TAK-085 is a possible therapeutic agent for protecting against Alzheimer's disease-induced learning deficiencies. This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2011

  2. Nucleus accumbens neuronal maturation differences in young rats bred for low versus high voluntary running behaviour

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roberts, Michael D; Toedebusch, Ryan G; Wells, Kevin D; Company, Joseph M; Brown, Jacob D; Cruthirds, Clayton L; Heese, Alexander J; Zhu, Conan; Rottinghaus, George E; Childs, Thomas E; Booth, Frank W

    2014-01-01

    We compared the nucleus accumbens (NAc) transcriptomes of generation 8 (G8), 34-day-old rats selectively bred for low (LVR) versus high voluntary running (HVR) behaviours in rats that never ran (LVRnon-run and HVRnon-run), as well as in rats after 6 days of voluntary wheel running (LVRrun and HVRrun). In addition, the NAc transcriptome of wild-type Wistar rats was compared. The purpose of this transcriptomics approach was to generate testable hypotheses as to possible NAc features that may be contributing to running motivation differences between lines. Ingenuity Pathway Analysis and Gene Ontology analyses suggested that ‘cell cycle’-related transcripts and the running-induced plasticity of dopamine-related transcripts were lower in LVR versus HVR rats. From these data, a hypothesis was generated that LVR rats might have less NAc neuron maturation than HVR rats. Follow-up immunohistochemistry in G9–10 LVRnon-run rats suggested that the LVR line inherently possessed fewer mature medium spiny (Darpp-32-positive) neurons (P running wheel access in our G9–10 LVRs uniquely increased their Darpp-32-positive and Dcx-positive neuron densities. In summary, NAc cellularity differences and/or the lack of running-induced plasticity in dopamine signalling-related transcripts may contribute to low voluntary running motivation in LVR rats. PMID:24665095

  3. Caspase inhibitors of the P35 family are more active when purified from yeast than bacteria.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ingo L Brand

    Full Text Available Many insect viruses express caspase inhibitors of the P35 superfamily, which prevent defensive host apoptosis to enable viral propagation. The prototypical P35 family member, AcP35 from Autographa californica M nucleopolyhedrovirus, has been extensively studied. Bacterially purified AcP35 has been previously shown to inhibit caspases from insect, mammalian and nematode species. This inhibition occurs via a pseudosubstrate mechanism involving caspase-mediated cleavage of a "reactive site loop" within the P35 protein, which ultimately leaves cleaved P35 covalently bound to the caspase's active site. We observed that AcP35 purifed from Saccharomyces cerevisae inhibited caspase activity more efficiently than AcP35 purified from Escherichia coli. This differential potency was more dramatic for another P35 family member, MaviP35, which inhibited human caspase 3 almost 300-fold more potently when purified from yeast than bacteria. Biophysical assays revealed that MaviP35 proteins produced in bacteria and yeast had similar primary and secondary structures. However, bacterially produced MaviP35 possessed greater thermal stability and propensity to form higher order oligomers than its counterpart purified from yeast. Caspase 3 could process yeast-purified MaviP35, but failed to detectably cleave bacterially purified MaviP35. These data suggest that bacterially produced P35 proteins adopt subtly different conformations from their yeast-expressed counterparts, which hinder caspase access to the reactive site loop to reduce the potency of caspase inhibition, and promote aggregation. These data highlight the differential caspase inhibition by recombinant P35 proteins purified from different sources, and caution that analyses of bacterially produced P35 family members (and perhaps other types of proteins may underestimate their activity.

  4. Synthesis of sialoglycopolypeptide for potentially blocking influenza virus infection using a rat α2,6-sialyltransferase expressed in BmNPV bacmid-injected silkworm larvae

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ogata Makoto

    2009-06-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Sialic acid is a deoxy uronic acid with a skeleton of nine carbons which is mostly found on cell surface in animals. This sialic acid on cell surface performs various biological functions by acting as a receptor for microorganisms, viruses, toxins, and hormones; by masking receptors; and by regulating the immune system. In order to synthesize an artificial sialoglycoprotein, we developed a large-scale production of rat α2,6-sialyltransferase (ST6Gal1. The ST6Gal1 was expressed in fifth instar silkworm larval hemolymph using recombinant both cysteine protease- and chitinase-deficient Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV-CP--Chi- bacmid. The expressed ST6Gal1 was purified, characterized and used for sialylation of asialoglycopolypeptide. We tested the inhibitory effect of the synthesized α2,6-sialoglycopolypeptide on hemagglutination by Sambucus nigra (SNA lectin. Results FLAG-tagged recombinant ST6Gal1 was expressed efficiently and purified by precipitation with ammonium sulphate followed by affinity chromatography on an anti-FLAG M2 column, generating 2.2 mg purified fusion protein from only 11 silkworm larvae, with a recovery yield of 64%. The purified ST6Gal1 was characterized and its N-glycan patterns were found to be approximately paucimannosidic type by HPLC mapping method. Fluorescently-labelled N-acetyllactosamine (LacNAc glycoside containing dansyl group was synthesized chemo-enzymatically as high-sensitivity acceptor substrate for ST6Gal1. The acceptor substrate specificity of the enzyme was similar to that of rat liver ST6Gal1. The fluorescent glycoside is useful as a substrate for a highly sensitive picomole assay of ST6Gal1. Asialoglycopolypeptide was regioselectively and quantitatively sialylated by catalytic reaction at the terminal Gal residue to obtain α2,6-sialoglycopolypeptide using ST6Gal1. The α2,6-sialoglycopolypeptide selectively inhibited hemagglutination induced by Sambucus nigra (SNA lectin

  5. Aspartic acid racemisation in purified elastin from arteries as basis for age estimation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dobberstein, R C; Tung, S-M; Ritz-Timme, S

    2010-07-01

    Aspartic acid racemisation (AAR) results in an age-dependent accumulation of D: -aspartic acid in durable human proteins and can be used as a basis for age estimation. Routinely, age estimation based on AAR is performed by analysis of dentine. However, in forensic practise, teeth are not always available. Non-dental tissues for age estimation may be suitable for age estimation based on AAR if they contain durable proteins that can be purified and analysed. Elastin is such a durable protein. To clarify if purified elastin from arteries is a suitable sample for biochemical age estimation, AAR was determined in purified elastin from arteries from individuals of known age (n = 68 individuals, including n = 15 putrefied corpses), considering the influence of different stages of atherosclerosis and putrefaction on the AAR values. AAR was found to increase with age. The relationship between AAR and age was good enough to serve as basis for age estimation, but worse than known from dentinal proteins. Intravital and post-mortem degradation of elastin may have a moderate effect on the AAR values. Age estimation based on AAR in purified elastin from arteries may be a valuable additional tool in the identification of unidentified cadavers, especially in cases where other methods cannot be applied (e.g., no available teeth and body parts).

  6. Improvement of thoracic aortic vasoreactivity by continuous and intermittent exercise in high-fat diet-induced obese rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Hongpeng; Yang, Zhen; Hu, Jian; Luo, Yan; Zhu, Lingqin; Yang, Huifang; Li, Guanghua

    2015-07-01

    The aim of the present study was to explore the effects of continuous and intermittent exercise on the thoracic aortic vasoreactivity and free radical metabolism in rats fed with a high-fat diet (HD). Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into four groups (n=8, each group): Conventional diet (CD), HD, HD with continuous exercise (HCE) and HD with intermittent exercise (HIE). HCE rats swam once/day for 90 min; HIE rats performed swimming exercises 3 times/day, 30 min each time with an interval of 4 h. In these two groups, the exercise was conducted 5 days a week for 8 weeks. Rats in the CD and HD groups were fed without swimming training. At the end of the exercise, all the rats were sacrificed and the blood, thoracic aorta and myocardium were collected immediately. The thoracic aortic vasoreactivity, the plasma total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), low-density lipoprotein (LDL), superoxide dismutase (SOD), malondialdehyde (MDA) and vascular endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) gene expression were measured. Compared to the control group, in the HD group the enhanced contractile response of the thoracic aortic rings to noradrenaline (NA) was observed (Pimprove the activity of the thoracic aorta in obese rats, which may be associated with enhanced antioxidant enzyme activity and reduced free radical generating. Additionally, intermittent exercise is better than the continuous exercise in improving the thoracic aorta vasoreactivity.

  7. Improvement of attention with amphetamine in low- and high-performing rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Turner, Karly M; Burne, Thomas H J

    2016-09-01

    Attentional deficits occur in a range of neuropsychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Psychostimulants are one of the main treatments for attentional deficits, yet there are limited reports of procognitive effects of amphetamine in preclinical studies. Therefore, task development may be needed to improve predictive validity when measuring attention in rodents. This study aimed to use a modified signal detection task (SDT) to determine if and at what doses amphetamine could improve attention in rats. Sprague-Dawley rats were trained on the SDT prior to amphetamine challenge (0.1, 0.25, 0.75 and 1.25 mg/kg). This dose range was predicted to enhance and disrupt cognition with the effect differing between individuals depending on baseline performance. Acute low dose amphetamine (0.1 and 0.25 mg/kg) improved accuracy, while the highest dose (1.25 mg/kg) significantly disrupted performance. The effects differed for low- and high-performing groups across these doses. The effect of amphetamine on accuracy was found to significantly correlate with baseline performance in rats. This study demonstrates that improvement in attentional performance with systemic amphetamine is dependent on baseline accuracy in rats. Indicative of the inverted U-shaped relationship between dopamine and cognition, there was a baseline-dependent shift in performance with increasing doses of amphetamine. The SDT may be a useful tool for investigating individual differences in attention and response to psychostimulants in rodents.

  8. Iron supplementation at high altitudes induces inflammation and oxidative injury to lung tissues in rats

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Salama, Samir A., E-mail: salama.3@buckeyemail.osu.edu [High Altitude Research Center, Taif University, Al-Haweiah, Taif 21974 (Saudi Arabia); Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Al-Azhar University, Cairo 11751 (Egypt); Department of Pharmacology and GTMR Unit, College of Clinical Pharmacy, Taif University, Al-Haweiah, Taif 21974 (Saudi Arabia); Omar, Hany A. [Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Beni-Suef University, Beni-Suef 62514 (Egypt); Maghrabi, Ibrahim A. [Department of Clinical Pharmacy, College of Clinical Pharmacy, Taif University, Al-Haweiah, Taif 21974 (Saudi Arabia); AlSaeed, Mohammed S. [Department of Surgery, College of Medicine, Taif University, Al-Haweiah, Taif 21974 (Saudi Arabia); EL-Tarras, Adel E. [High Altitude Research Center, Taif University, Al-Haweiah, Taif 21974 (Saudi Arabia)

    2014-01-01

    Exposure to high altitudes is associated with hypoxia and increased vulnerability to oxidative stress. Polycythemia (increased number of circulating erythrocytes) develops to compensate the high altitude associated hypoxia. Iron supplementation is, thus, recommended to meet the demand for the physiological polycythemia. Iron is a major player in redox reactions and may exacerbate the high altitudes-associated oxidative stress. The aim of this study was to explore the potential iron-induced oxidative lung tissue injury in rats at high altitudes (6000 ft above the sea level). Iron supplementation (2 mg elemental iron/kg, once daily for 15 days) induced histopathological changes to lung tissues that include severe congestion, dilatation of the blood vessels, emphysema in the air alveoli, and peribronchial inflammatory cell infiltration. The levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α), lipid peroxidation product and protein carbonyl content in lung tissues were significantly elevated. Moreover, the levels of reduced glutathione and total antioxidant capacity were significantly reduced. Co-administration of trolox, a water soluble vitamin E analog (25 mg/kg, once daily for the last 7 days of iron supplementation), alleviated the lung histological impairments, significantly decreased the pro-inflammatory cytokines, and restored the oxidative stress markers. Together, our findings indicate that iron supplementation at high altitudes induces lung tissue injury in rats. This injury could be mediated through excessive production of reactive oxygen species and induction of inflammatory responses. The study highlights the tissue injury induced by iron supplementation at high altitudes and suggests the co-administration of antioxidants such as trolox as protective measures. - Highlights: • Iron supplementation at high altitudes induced lung histological changes in rats. • Iron induced oxidative stress in lung tissues of rats at high altitudes. • Iron

  9. Iron supplementation at high altitudes induces inflammation and oxidative injury to lung tissues in rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Salama, Samir A.; Omar, Hany A.; Maghrabi, Ibrahim A.; AlSaeed, Mohammed S.; EL-Tarras, Adel E.

    2014-01-01

    Exposure to high altitudes is associated with hypoxia and increased vulnerability to oxidative stress. Polycythemia (increased number of circulating erythrocytes) develops to compensate the high altitude associated hypoxia. Iron supplementation is, thus, recommended to meet the demand for the physiological polycythemia. Iron is a major player in redox reactions and may exacerbate the high altitudes-associated oxidative stress. The aim of this study was to explore the potential iron-induced oxidative lung tissue injury in rats at high altitudes (6000 ft above the sea level). Iron supplementation (2 mg elemental iron/kg, once daily for 15 days) induced histopathological changes to lung tissues that include severe congestion, dilatation of the blood vessels, emphysema in the air alveoli, and peribronchial inflammatory cell infiltration. The levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α), lipid peroxidation product and protein carbonyl content in lung tissues were significantly elevated. Moreover, the levels of reduced glutathione and total antioxidant capacity were significantly reduced. Co-administration of trolox, a water soluble vitamin E analog (25 mg/kg, once daily for the last 7 days of iron supplementation), alleviated the lung histological impairments, significantly decreased the pro-inflammatory cytokines, and restored the oxidative stress markers. Together, our findings indicate that iron supplementation at high altitudes induces lung tissue injury in rats. This injury could be mediated through excessive production of reactive oxygen species and induction of inflammatory responses. The study highlights the tissue injury induced by iron supplementation at high altitudes and suggests the co-administration of antioxidants such as trolox as protective measures. - Highlights: • Iron supplementation at high altitudes induced lung histological changes in rats. • Iron induced oxidative stress in lung tissues of rats at high altitudes. • Iron

  10. Proconvulsant effects of high doses of venlafaxine in pentylenetetrazole-convulsive rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J.G. Santos Junior

    2002-04-01

    Full Text Available Venlafaxine, an atypical antidepressant drug, has been used to treat several neurological disorders, presenting excellent efficacy and tolerability. Clinical seizures after venlafaxine treatment have occasionally been reported when the drug was used at very high doses or in combination with other medications. The aim of the present study was to investigate the convulsant effects of venlafaxine in rats under controlled laboratory conditions. Adult male Wistar rats (8 per group receiving venlafaxine or saline at the doses of 25-150 mg/kg were subjected 30 min later to injections of pentylenetetrazole at the dose of 60 mg/kg. The animals receiving 75, 100 and 150 mg/kg venlafaxine presented increased severity of convulsion when compared to controls (P = 0.02, P = 0.04, and P = 0.0004, respectively. Indeed, an increased percentage of death was observed in these groups (50, 38, and 88%, respectively when compared to the percentage of death in the controls (0%. The group receiving 150 mg/kg showed an reduction in death latency (999 ± 146 s compared to controls (1800 ± 0 s; cut-off time. Indeed, in this group, all animals developed seizures prior to pentylenetetrazole administration. Surprisingly, the groups receiving venlafaxine at the doses of 25 and 50 mg/kg showed a tendency towards an increase in the latency to the first convulsion. These findings suggest that venlafaxine at doses of 25 and 50 mg/kg has some tendency to an anticonvulsant effect in the rat, whereas doses of 75, 100 and 150 mg/kg presented clear proconvulsant effects in rats submitted to the pentylenetetrazole injection. These findings are the first report in the literature concerning the role of venlafaxine in seizure genesis in the rat under controlled conditions.

  11. Effects of high dose olive leaf extract on haemodynamic and oxidative stress parameters in normotensive and spontaneously hypertensive rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dekanski Dragana

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Antihypertensive activity of natural antioxidant, olive leaf extract (OLE is known, but its influence on cardiovascular system when administered in a high dose has not been investigated yet. Our aim was to determine the acute effects of excessive intake of standardized OLE on blood pressure, heart rate and oxidative status in both spontaneously hypertensive rats and normotensive Wistar rats. Systolic arterial pressure and heart rate were measured using a tail-cuff, pneumatic pulse detector, before, 60 and 120 minutes after intragastric OLE administration. Activities of catalase, glutathione peroxidase, superoxide dismutase (SOD and glutathione reductase in erythrocytes, as well as lipid peroxidation in plasma (pTBARS were measured at the same time points, spectrophotometrically. High-dose OLE did not influence blood pressure, heart rate and pTBARS in normotensive rats, while SOD, catalase, and glutathione reductase activities significantly increased. The same dose significantly decreased blood pressure in hypertensive rats, but increased pTBARS and SOD activity. Excessive oral intake of OLE induced moderate hypotensive effects in spontaneously hypertensive rats only, suggesting absence of harmful haemodynamic effects after oral overdose in both rats strain. However, its prooxidative role when given in high dose in hypertensive organism should not be neglected. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 175096

  12. Effect of potato on acid-base and mineral homeostasis in rats fed a high-sodium chloride diet.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Narcy, Agnès; Robert, Laetitia; Mazur, Andrzej; Demigné, Christian; Rémésy, Christian

    2006-05-01

    Excessive dietary NaCl in association with a paucity of plant foods, major sources of K alkaline salts, is a common feature in Western eating habits which may lead to acid-base disorders and to Ca and Mg wasting. In this context, to evaluate the effects of potato, rich in potassium citrate, on acid-base homeostasis and mineral retention, Wistar rats were fed wheat starch (WS) or cooked potato (CP) diets with a low (0.5 %) or a high (2 %) NaCl content during 3 weeks. The replacement of WS by CP in the diets resulted in a significant urinary alkalinisation (pH from 5.5 to 7.3) parallel to a rise in citrate and K excretion. Urinary Ca and Mg elimination represented respectively 17 and 62 % of the daily absorbed mineral in rats fed the high-salt WS diet compared with 5 and 28 % in rats fed the high-salt CP diet. The total SCFA concentration in the caecum was 3-fold higher in rats fed the CP diets compared with rats fed the WS diets, and it led to a significant rise in Ca and Mg intestinal absorption (Ca from 39 to 56 %; Mg from 37 to 60 %). The present model of low-grade metabolic acidosis indicates that CP may be effective in alkalinising urine, enhancing citrate excretion and ameliorating Ca and Mg balance.

  13. The effects of silver ions on copper metabolism in rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ilyechova, E Yu; Saveliev, A N; Skvortsov, A N; Babich, P S; Zatulovskaia, Yu A; Pliss, M G; Korzhevskii, D E; Tsymbalenko, N V; Puchkova, L V

    2014-10-01

    The influence of short and prolonged diet containing silver ions (Ag-diet) on copper metabolism was studied. Two groups of animals were used: one group of adult rats received a Ag-diet for one month (Ag-A1) and another group received a Ag-diet for 6 months from birth (Ag-N6). In Ag-A1 rats, the Ag-diet caused a dramatic decrease of copper status indexes that was manifested as ceruloplasmin-associated copper deficiency. In Ag-N6 rats, copper status indexes decreased only 2-fold as compared to control rats. In rats of both groups, silver entered the bloodstream and accumulated in the liver. Silver was incorporated into ceruloplasmin (Cp), but not SOD1. In the liver, a prolonged Ag-diet caused a decrease of the expression level of genes, associated with copper metabolism. Comparative spectrophotometric analysis of partially purified Cp fractions has shown that Cp from Ag-N6 rats was closer to holo-Cp by specific enzymatic activities and tertiary structure than Cp from Ag-A1 rats. However, Cp of Ag-N6 differs from control holo-Cp and Cp of Ag-A1 in its affinity to DEAE-Sepharose and in its binding properties to lectins. In the bloodstream of Ag-N6, two Cp forms are present as shown in pulse-experiments on rats with the liver isolated from circulation. One of the Cp isoforms is of hepatic origin, and the other is of extrahepatic origin; the latter is characterized by a faster rate of secretion than hepatic Cp. These data allowed us to suggest that the disturbance of holo-Cp formation in the liver was compensated by induction of extrahepatic Cp synthesis. The possible biological importance of these effects is discussed.

  14. The snacking rat as model of human obesity: effects of a free-choice high-fat high-sugar diet on meal patterns

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    La Fleur, S. E.; Luijendijk, M. C. M.; van der Zwaal, E. M.; Brans, M. A. D.; Adan, R. A. H.

    2014-01-01

    Rats subjected to a free-choice high-fat high-sugar (fcHFHS) diet persistently overeat, exhibit increased food-motivated behavior and become overtly obese. Conversely, several studies using a non-choice (nc) high-energy diet showed only an initial increase in food intake with unaltered or reduced

  15. Immunomodulatory activity of purified arabinoxylans from finger millet (Eleusine coracana, v. Indaf 15) bran.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Savitha Prashanth, M R; Shruthi, R R; Muralikrishna, G

    2015-09-01

    Biological activities of alkali extracted (Barium hydroxide: BE-480 kDa, Potassium hydroxide: KE1-1080 and KE2-40 kDa), purified arabinoxylans (AX) from the finger millet bran varying in their molecular weight, phenolic acid content, arabinose to xylose ratios were evaluated for their immune-stimulatory activities using murine lymphocytes and peritoneal exudate macrophages. All three purified AX displayed significant (p 2 fold) and macrophage phagocytosis than KE1 and KE2. The above results clearly documented that the immunostimulatory activity of arabinoxylans is directly proportional to the amount of ferulic acid content (0.11 mg/100 g), whereas molecular weight as well as arabinose/xylose ratio, did not have any bearing. Purified AX from the finger millet bran can be explored as a potent natural immunomodulator.

  16. Decreased expression of CD36 in circumvallate taste buds of high-fat diet induced obese rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Xiao-Juan; Zhou, Li-Hong; Ban, Xiang; Liu, Dian-Xin; Jiang, Wei; Liu, Xiao-Min

    2011-10-01

    Mammals spontaneously prefer lipid rich foods. Overconsumption of high-fat diet leads to obesity and related diseases. Recent findings indicate that taste may participate in the orosensory perception of dietary lipids and the fatty taste may contribute to a preference for and excessive consumption of dietary fat. CD36, a trans-membrane glycoprotein, which is located in the taste buds of circumvallate papillae of rodents, appears to be a plausible receptor for this fatty taste. Obese subjects present a stronger preference for fatty foods, though the mechanisms involved are complex and are not fully investigated. Our data from immunofluorescence and real-time RT-PCR showed that the expression levels of CD36 in circumvallate taste buds were significantly lower in high-fat diet induced obese rats as compared with that of control rats fed a normal diet. These results suggest that decreased expression of CD36 in circumvallate taste buds of high-fat diet induced obese rats may be associated with diminished fatty taste sensitivity and in order to compensate the preference for dietary fat, rats consume more fatty foods. Therapeutic strategies designed to alter or manipulate CD36 expression or function in taste buds may have important implications in treating obesity and related diseases. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

  17. High-fructose diet during periadolescent development increases depressive-like behavior and remodels the hypothalamic transcriptome in male rats

    Science.gov (United States)

    Harrell, Constance S.; Burgado, Jillybeth; Kelly, Sean D.; Johnson, Zachary P.; Neigh, Gretchen N.

    2015-01-01

    Fructose consumption, which promotes insulin resistance, hypertension, and dyslipidemia, has increased by over 25% since the 1970s. In addition to metabolic dysregulation, fructose ingestion stimulates the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis leading to elevations in glucocorticoids. Adolescents are the greatest consumers of fructose, and adolescence is a critical period for maturation of the HPA axis. Repeated consumption of high levels of fructose during adolescence has the potential to promote long-term dysregulation of the stress response. Therefore, we determined the extent to which consumption of a diet high in fructose affected behavior, serum corticosterone, and hypothalamic gene expression using a whole-transcriptomics approach. In addition, we examined the potential of a high-fructose diet to interact with exposure to chronic adolescent stress. Male Wistar rats fed the periadolescent high-fructose diet showed increased anxiety-like behavior in the elevated plus maze and depressive-like behavior in the forced swim test in adulthood, irrespective of stress history. Periadolescent fructose-fed rats also exhibited elevated basal corticosterone concentrations relative to their chow-fed peers. These behavioral and hormonal responses to the high-fructose diet did not occur in rats fed fructose during adulthood only. Finally, rats fed the high-fructose diet throughout development underwent marked hypothalamic transcript expression remodeling, with 966 genes (5.6%) significantly altered and a pronounced enrichment of significantly altered transcripts in several pathways relating to regulation of the HPA axis. Collectively, the data presented herein indicate that diet, specifically one high in fructose, has the potential to alter behavior, HPA axis function, and the hypothalamic transcriptome in male rats. PMID:26356038

  18. Chronic blood pressure and appetite responses to central leptin infusion in rats fed a high fat diet.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dubinion, John H; da Silva, Alexandre A; Hall, John E

    2011-04-01

    Obesity has been suggested to induce selective leptin resistance whereby leptin's anorexic effects are attenuated, whereas the effects to increase sympathetic nervous system activity and blood pressure remain intact. Most studies, however, have tested only the acute responses to leptin administration. This study tested whether feeding a high-fat diet causes resistance to the appetite and cardiovascular responses to chronic central leptin infusion. Sprague-Dawley rats were fed high-fat diet (40% kcal from fat, n=5) or normal-fat diet (13% kcal from fat, n=5) for a year. Radiotelemeters were implanted for continuous monitoring of mean arterial pressure (MAP) and heart rate (HR). A 21G steel cannula was implanted in the lateral cerebral ventricle [intracerebroventricular (ICV)]. After recovery, leptin was infused ICV at 0.02 μg/kg per min for 10 days. High-fat rats were heavier than normal-fat rats (582±12 vs. 511±19 g) and exhibited significantly higher MAP (114±3 vs. 96±7 mmHg). Although the acute (24 h) effects of leptin were attenuated in high-fat rats, chronic ICV leptin infusion decreased caloric intake in both groups similarly (50±8 vs. 40±10%) by day 5. Despite decreased food intake and weight loss, leptin infusion significantly increased MAP and HR in both high-fat and normal-fat rats (7±2 and 5±1 mmHg; 18±11 and 21±10 b.p.m., respectively). These results suggest that obesity induced by feeding a high-fat diet blunts the acute anorexic effects of leptin but does not cause significant resistance to the chronic central nervous system effects of leptin on appetite, MAP, or HR.

  19. High-dose fasudil preserves postconditioning against myocardial infarction under hyperglycemia in rats: role of mitochondrial KATP channels

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ichinomiya Taiga

    2012-03-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background The current study was carried out to determine whether fasudil hydrochloride (fasudil, a Rho-kinase inhibitor, has myocardial postconditioning (PostC activity under hyperglycemia as well as normoglycemia, and if so, whether the effects could be mediated by mitochondrial ATP-sensitive potassium (m-KATP channels. Methods Male Sprague-Dawley rats were anesthetized with sodium pentobarbital. After opening the chest, all rats underwent 30-min coronary artery occlusion followed by 2-h reperfusion. The rats received low-dose (0.15 mg/kg or high-dose (0.5 mg/kg fasudil or diazoxide, an m-KATP channel opener, at 10 mg/kg, just before reperfusion under normoglycemic or hyperglycemic conditions. In another group, rats received 5-hydroxydecanoic acid (5HD, an m-KATP channel blocker, at 10 mg/kg, before high-dose fasudil. Myocardial infarct size was expressed as a percentage of area at risk (AAR. Results Under normoglycemia, low-dose and high-dose fasudil and diazoxide reduced myocardial infarct size (23 ± 8%, 21 ± 9% and 21 ± 10% of AAR, respectively compared with that in the control (42 ± 7%. Under hyperglycemia, low-dose fasudil (40 ± 11% and diazoxide (44 ± 14% could not exert this beneficial effect, but high-dose fasudil reduced myocardial infarct size in the same manner as under normoglycemia (21 ± 13%. 5HD prevented fasudil-induced reduction of myocardial infarct size (42 ± 13%. Conclusion Fasudil induces PostC against myocardial infarction via activation of m-KATP channels in the rat. Although hyperglycemia attenuates the PostC, high-dose fasudil can restore cardioprotection.

  20. [Investigation the Inhibitory Effects of Kaempferol on Rat Renalmesangial Cells Proliferation under High Glucose Condition].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Ni; Han, Peng-Ding; Chen, Wen; Deng, Yan

    2017-07-01

    To investigate the protective effects of kaempferol on rat renal mesangial cells under high glucose condition and explore its mechanism. The HBZY-1 cells were divided into normal glucose group (5.5 mmol/L), high glucose group (25 mmol/L), 10 μmol/L kaempferol+high glucose group, and 30 μmol/L kaempferol+high glucose group. Cell proliferative ability was measured by MTT; cell cycle was analyzed by flow cytometry; mRNA and protein levels were determined by Real-time PCR and Western blot, respectively. Kaempferol had no effect on the proliferative ability of rat renal mesangial cells under normal glucose (5.5 mmol/L) condition. High glucose (25 mmol/L) enhanced the cell proliferative ability, and this effect was antagonized by kaempferol (10-30 μmol/L) treatment. High glucose reduced the cell population at G 0 /G 1 phase with an associated increase in S phase, and had no effect on G₂/M phase; and kaempferol treatment restored high glucose-induced changes in cell cycle. Kaempferol also prevented high glucose-induced increase in fibronectin and connective tissue growth factor mRNA and protein expression levels. Kaempferol also prevented high glucose-induced increase in fibronectin and connective tissue growth factor mRNA and protein expression levels. Further, high glucose caused an increase in protein level of phosphorylated p38 mitogen-activated protein kinases (p38 MAPK), which was antagonized by kaempferol treatment. Our results suggest that kaempferol exerts its protective effect on rat renal mesangial cells under high glucose condition via p38 MAPK signaling pathway.

  1. Bovine pancreatic trypsin inhibitor immobilized onto sepharose as a new strategy to purify a thermostable alkaline peptidase from cobia (Rachycentron canadum) processing waste.

    Science.gov (United States)

    França, Renata Cristina da Penha; Assis, Caio Rodrigo Dias; Santos, Juliana Ferreira; Torquato, Ricardo José Soares; Tanaka, Aparecida Sadae; Hirata, Izaura Yoshico; Assis, Diego Magno; Juliano, Maria Aparecida; Cavalli, Ronaldo Olivera; Carvalho, Luiz Bezerra de; Bezerra, Ranilson Souza

    2016-10-15

    A thermostable alkaline peptidase was purified from the processing waste of cobia (Rachycentron canadum) using bovine pancreatic trypsin inhibitor (BPTI) immobilized onto Sepharose. The purified enzyme had an apparent molecular mass of 24kDa by both sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and mass spectrometry. Its optimal temperature and pH were 50°C and 8.5, respectively. The enzyme was thermostable until 55°C and its activity was strongly inhibited by the classic trypsin inhibitors N-ρ-tosyl-l-lysine chloromethyl ketone (TLCK) and benzamidine. BPTI column allowed at least 15 assays without loss of efficacy. The purified enzyme was identified as a trypsin and the N-terminal amino acid sequence of this trypsin was IVGGYECTPHSQAHQVSLNSGYHFC, which was highly homologous to trypsin from cold water fish species. Using Nα-benzoyl-dl-arginine ρ-nitroanilide hydrochloride (BApNA) as substrate, the apparent km value of the purified trypsin was 0.38mM, kcat value was 3.14s(-1), and kcat/km was 8.26s(-1)mM(-1). The catalytic proficiency of the purified enzyme was 2.75×10(12)M(-1) showing higher affinity for the substrate at the transition state than other fish trypsin. The activation energy (AE) of the BApNA hydrolysis catalyzed by this enzyme was estimated to be 11.93kcalmol(-1) while the resulting rate enhancement of this reaction was found to be approximately in a range from 10(9) to 10(10)-fold evidencing its efficiency in comparison to other trypsin. This new purification strategy showed to be appropriate to obtain an alkaline peptidase from cobia processing waste with high purification degree. According with N-terminal homology and kinetic parameters, R. canadum trypsin may gathers desirable properties of psychrophilic and thermostable enzymes. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  2. Modified high-sucrose diet-induced abdominally obese and normal-weight rats developed high plasma free fatty acid and insulin resistance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cao, Li; Liu, Xuehui; Cao, Hongyi; Lv, Qingguo; Tong, Nanwei

    2012-01-01

    Metabolically obese but normal-weight (MONW) individuals have metabolic features of overt obesity, and abdominal adiposity is common in them. Animal models of MONW individuals are lacking. We aimed to develop an abdominally obese and normal-weight (AONW) rat model. Young male Sprague-Dawley rats were fed chow or a modified high-sucrose (HS) diet for 20 weeks. The HS diet induced increased visceral adipose tissue without increased body weight, reduced glucose disposal rates, and increased hepatic glucose output during the hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp, increased plasma glucose during the intraperitoneal glucose tolerance test, and increased plasma free fatty acids. Hepatic lipidosis and hepatocyte mitochondria swelling were found in HS rats through light microscopy and transmission electron microscopy; similar impairments were not observed in muscle. RT-PCR showed that mRNA expression of uncoupling protein 3 and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma coactivator 1α increased in muscle of HS rats, while expression of mitochondrial transcription factor A, glucose transporter type 4, and insulin receptor substrate-1 did not change significantly. AONW rats developed metabolic disorders seen in MONW individuals. Steatosis, mitochondrial morphologic changes, and insulin resistance were more serious in liver than in muscle. Genes involved in fatty acid metabolism and mitochondrial function changed in less impaired muscle.

  3. Nature of elevated rat intestinal carbohydrase activities after high-carbohydrate diet feeding

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tsuboi, K.K.; Kwong, L.K.; Yamada, K.; Sunshine, P.; Koldovsky, O.

    1985-01-01

    Adult rats that were maintained on a low-carbohydrate intake showed rapid increase in the activities of sucrase, maltase, and lactase along the length of the small intestine when they were fed a high-starch diet. In the present study, the authors have identified these activity increases, and showed that they reflect proportional accumulations in enzyme-protein of sucrase-isomaltase, maltase-glucoamylase, and neutral lactase. It was determined that each of these enzymes exists in adult rat intestine in single immunoreactive form and accounts as a group for all sucrase, cellobiase, and most maltase and lactase activities. Dietary change from low to high carbohydrate (starch) resulted in an increase in [ 3 H]leucine accumulation in each of the enzymes, without a change in the amount of label accumulation in total intestinal proteins. The increase in label accumulation in the brush-border carbohydrase pools was matched generally by proportional elevation in the pool concentrations of sucrase-isomaltase and lactase but not maltase. These studies suggest that the elevation of intestinal carbohydrase concentrations induced by high-carbohydrate feeding may involve selective stimulation of their synthesis

  4. Influence of the Form of Administration of Chlorogenic Acids on Oxidative Stress Induced by High fat Diet in Rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Budryn, G; Zaczyńska, D; Żyżelewicz, D; Grzelczyk, J; Zduńczyk, Z; Juśkiewicz, J

    2017-06-01

    Green coffee is one of health-promoting supplements of the diet, applied in the form of either preparations or enriched food products. Its positive impact is manifested by mitigation of the development of certain tumors, e.g., in the colon and liver, and type 2 diabetes. Many studies proved that chlorogenic acids are the main active substances in green coffee. The bioavailability of these compounds depends among others on their interactions with other components of the diet, mainly proteins. When they are used as food ingredients, their bioavailability is additionally decreased because of the decomposition or interactions with other ingredients during food processing. The undesirable changes may be limited among others by microencapsulation, for example with β-cyclodextrin. In this study, rats were fed the pro-oxidative high fat diet, which was supplemented with chlorogenic acids from green coffee that were used in four forms such as: a purified extract, complexes of chlorogenic acids and β-cyclodextrin, and bread supplemented with either the extract or the β-cyclodextrin inclusion complex. Chlorogenic acids added to bread because of the reduced absorption from the crumb in the small intestine and increased passage to the colon, contributed to the beneficial modification of enzymatic activities of intestinal microbiota. When added directly to the diet, they contributed to the improved antioxidant status in the liver and kidneys, lowered glucose level and increased HDL level. A high ratio of reduced to oxidized glutathione in the liver and a high concentration of antioxidants in the blood serum were observed after administration of chlorogenic acids in the form of inclusion complexes with β-cyclodextrin, indicating that microencapsulation increased their bioaccessibility due to the limited interactions with other components of the diet.

  5. A Comparison of Food-grade Folium mori Extract and 1-Deoxynojirimycin for Glycemic Control and Renal Function in Streptozotocin-induced Diabetic Rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shiang-Suo Huang

    2014-07-01

    Full Text Available Folium mori (桑葉 Sāng Yè, leaf of Morus alba L.; FM is known to possess hypoglycemic effects, and 1-deoxynojirimycin (1-DNJ has been proposed as an important functional compound in FM. However, the hypoglycemic activity of purified 1-DNJ has been rarely studied. It is also not known how FM and 1-DNJ affect the development of DM nephropathy. This study compared the antidiabetic effect of a commercial FM product with that of purified 1-DNJ in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. Seven days after induction, the diabetic rats were gavaged with FM (1, 3, 10, and 30 mg/kg/day, 1-DNJ (30 mg/kg/day, or vehicle (distilled deionized water; 2 ml/kg/day for 7 days. All doses of FM ameliorated fasting and post-prandial blood glucose concomitantly with an increase in peripheral and pancreatic levels of insulin and improved homeostasis model assessment (HOMA-IR in diabetic rats in a dose-dependent manner. Increased thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS and nitrate/nitrite levels in the kidney, liver, and muscle of diabetic rats were reversed by all doses of FM. The renal function of the diabetic rats was normalized by all doses of FM, while blood pressure changes were reversed by FM at doses of 3 mg/kg and above. Moreover, most of the above-mentioned parameters were improved by FM at doses of 3 mg/kg and above to a similar extent as that of 1-DNJ. The results showed superior antidiabetic potential of the commercial FM product for glycemic control and protection against the development of diabetic nephropathy.

  6. High-NaCl intake impairs dynamic autoregulation of renal blood flow in ANG II-infused rats

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Saeed, Aso; Dibona, Gerald F; Marcussen, Niels

    2010-01-01

    The aim of this study was to investigate dynamic autoregulation of renal blood flow (RBF) in ANG II-infused rats and the influence of high-NaCl intake. Sprague-Dawley rats received ANG II (250 ng·kg(-1)·min(-1) sc) or saline vehicle (sham) for 14 days after which acute renal clearance experiments...

  7. Antiobesity Effects of the Ethanol Extract of Laminaria japonica Areshoung in High-Fat-Diet-Induced Obese Rat

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Woong Sun Jang

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Laminaria japonica Areshoung, a widely consumed marine vegetable, has traditionally been used in Korean maternal health. The present study investigated the antiobesity effects of Laminaria japonica Areshoung ethanol extract (LE and its molecular mechanism in high-fat-diet-induced obese rats. Six-week-old Sprague-Dawley male rats were separately fed a normal diet or a high-calorie high-fat diet for 6 weeks; then they were treated with LE or tea catechin for another 6 weeks. LE administration significantly decreased the body weight gain, fat-pad weights, and serum and hepatic lipid levels in HD-induced obese rats. The histological analysis revealed that LE-treated group showed a significantly decreased number of lipid droplets and size of adipocytes compared to the HD group. To elucidate the mechanism of action of LE, the levels of genes and proteins involved in obesity were measured in the liver and skeletal muscle. LE treatment resulted in an increased expression of fatty acid oxidation and thermogenesis-related genes in obese rats. Conversely, the expression of the fat intake-related gene (ACC2 and lipogenesis-related genes was reduced by LE treatment. Additionally, LE treatment increased the phosphorylation of AMP-activated protein kinase and its direct downstream protein, acetyl coenzyme A carboxylase, which is one of the rate-limiting enzymes in fatty acid synthesis pathway. These findings demonstrate that LE treatment has a protective effect against a high-fat-diet-induced obesity in rats through regulation of expression of genes and proteins involved in lipolysis and lipogenesis.

  8. High-NaCl Diet Aggravates Cardiac Injury in Rats with Adenine-Induced Chronic Renal Failure and Increases Serum Troponin T Levels

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kashioulis, Pavlos; Hammarsten, Ola; Marcussen, Niels

    2016-01-01

    AIMS: To examine the effects of 2 weeks of high-NaCl diet on left ventricular (LV) morphology and serum levels of cardiac troponin T (cTnT) in rats with adenine-induced chronic renal failure (ACRF). METHODS: Male Sprague-Dawley rats either received chow containing adenine or were pair......-fed an identical diet without adenine [controls (C)]. Approximately 10 weeks after the beginning of the study, the rats were randomized to either remain on a normal NaCl diet (NNa; 0.6%) or to be switched to high-NaCl chow (HNa; 4%) for 2 weeks, after which acute experiments were performed. RESULTS: Rats with ACRF...... showed statistically significant increases (p rats (p

  9. Effects of Yogurt Containing Fermented Pepper Juice on the Body Fat and Cholesterol Level in High Fat and High Cholesterol Diet Fed Rat.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yeon, Su-Jung; Hong, Go-Eun; Kim, Chang-Kyu; Park, Woo Joon; Kim, Soo-Ki; Lee, Chi-Ho

    2015-01-01

    This experiment investigated whether yogurt containing fermented pepper juice (FPJY) affects cholesterol level in high fat and high cholesterol diet (HFCD) fed rat. Twenty five Sprague-Dawley male rats of 7 wk were divided into 5 groups, and fed following diets for 9 wk; CON (control diet), HFCD (HFCD), PY (HFCD supplemented with 2% of plain yogurt), LFY (HFCD supplemented with 2% of FPJY), and HFY (HFCD supplemented with 5% of FPJY). In the LFY group, hepatic total lipid level decreased significantly compared to the HFCD group (p0.05). In HFY group, body weight and hepatic total lipid level significantly decreased over the HFCD group (p0.05). Liver weight decreased as FPJY content was increased. Results suggested FPJY would inhibit organ hypertrophy and accumulation of body fat, hepatic lipid, and cholesterol in HFCD fed rat.

  10. Activation of purified calcium channels by stoichiometric protein phosphorylation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nunoki, K.; Florio, V.; Catterall, W.A. (Univ. of Washington, Seattle (USA))

    1989-09-01

    Purified dihydropyridine-sensitive calcium channels from rabbit skeletal muscle were reconstituted into phosphatidylcholine vesicles to evaluate the effect of phosphorylation by cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase (PK-A) on their function. Both the rate and extent of {sup 45}Ca{sup 2+} uptake into vesicles containing reconstituted calcium channels were increased severalfold after incubation with ATP and PK-A. The degree of stimulation of {sup 45}Ca{sup 2+} uptake was linearly proportional to the extent of phosphorylation of the alpha 1 and beta subunits of the calcium channel up to a stoichiometry of approximately 1 mol of phosphate incorporated into each subunit. The calcium channels activated by phosphorylation were determined to be incorporated into the reconstituted vesicles in the inside-out orientation and were completely inhibited by low concentrations of dihydropyridines, phenylalkylamines, Cd{sup 2+}, Ni{sup 2+}, and Mg{sup 2+}. The results demonstrate a direct relationship between PK-A-catalyzed phosphorylation of the alpha 1 and beta subunits of the purified calcium channel and activation of the ion conductance activity of the dihydropyridine-sensitive calcium channels.

  11. Activation of purified calcium channels by stoichiometric protein phosphorylation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nunoki, K.; Florio, V.; Catterall, W.A.

    1989-01-01

    Purified dihydropyridine-sensitive calcium channels from rabbit skeletal muscle were reconstituted into phosphatidylcholine vesicles to evaluate the effect of phosphorylation by cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase (PK-A) on their function. Both the rate and extent of 45 Ca 2+ uptake into vesicles containing reconstituted calcium channels were increased severalfold after incubation with ATP and PK-A. The degree of stimulation of 45 Ca 2+ uptake was linearly proportional to the extent of phosphorylation of the alpha 1 and beta subunits of the calcium channel up to a stoichiometry of approximately 1 mol of phosphate incorporated into each subunit. The calcium channels activated by phosphorylation were determined to be incorporated into the reconstituted vesicles in the inside-out orientation and were completely inhibited by low concentrations of dihydropyridines, phenylalkylamines, Cd 2+ , Ni 2+ , and Mg 2+ . The results demonstrate a direct relationship between PK-A-catalyzed phosphorylation of the alpha 1 and beta subunits of the purified calcium channel and activation of the ion conductance activity of the dihydropyridine-sensitive calcium channels

  12. Effect of intravenous transplantation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells on neurotransmitters and synapsins in rats with spinal cord injury

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Shaoqiang; Wu, Bilian; Lin, Jianhua

    2012-01-01

    Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells were isolated, purified and cultured in vitro by Percoll density gradient centrifugation combined with the cell adherence method. Passages 3–5 bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells were transplanted into rats with traumatic spinal cord injury via the caudal vein. Basso-Beattie-Bresnahan scores indicate that neurological function of experimental rats was significantly improved over transplantation time (1–5 weeks). Expressions of choline acetyltransferase, glutamic acid decarboxylase and synapsins in the damaged spinal cord of rats was significantly increased after transplantation, determined by immunofluorescence staining and laser confocal scanning microscopy. Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells that had migrated into the damaged area of rats in the experimental group began to express choline acetyltransferase, glutamic acid decarboxylase and synapsins, 3 weeks after transplantation. The Basso-Beattie- Bresnahan scores positively correlated with expression of choline acetyltransferase and synapsins. Experimental findings indicate that intravenously transplanted bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells traverse into the damaged spinal cord of rats, promote expression of choline acetyltransferase, glutamic acid decarboxylase and synapsins, and improve nerve function in rats with spinal cord injury. PMID:25657678

  13. Receptors for vasoactive intestinal peptide in rat anterior pituitary glands: Localization of binding to lactotropes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wanke, I.E.; Rorstad, O.P.

    1990-01-01

    Vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) has been implicated as a physiological PRL-releasing factor; however, characterization of VIP receptors on normal pituitaries using radioligand-binding methods has been problematic. In this study we demonstrated specific receptors for VIP in anterior pituitary glands of female rats using HPLC-purified monoiodinated [Tyr(125I)10]VIP. Binding of VIP was reversible, saturable to receptor and radioligand, regulated by guanine nucleotides, and dependent on time and temperature. Scatchard analysis of competitive binding studies indicated high and low affinity binding sites, with equilibrium dissociation constants (Kd) of 0.19 +/- 0.03 and 28 +/- 16 nM, respectively. The corresponding maximum numbers of binding sites were 158 +/- 34 fmol/mg and 11.7 +/- 6.9 pmol/mg. Binding was specific, as peptides with structural homology to VIP were less than 100th as potent as VIP. The rank order of potency of the peptides tested was VIP greater than rat (r) peptide histidine isoleucine = human (h) PHI greater than rGRF greater than bovine GRF = porcine PHI = VIP-(10-28) greater than hGRF greater than secretin greater than apamin greater than glucagon. Radioligand binding was associated primarily with lactotrope-enriched fractions prepared by unit gravity sedimentation of dispersed anterior pituitary cells. VIP stimulated PRL release from cultured rat anterior pituitary cells, with an ED50 of 1 nM. These results, comprising the first identification of specific VIP receptors in normal rat anterior pituitary tissue using radioligand-binding methods, provide additional support for a biological role of VIP in lactotrope function

  14. High performing rats are more sensitive toward catecholaminergic activity enhancer (CAE) compounds than their low performing peers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Knoll, J; Knoll, B; Miklya, I

    1996-01-01

    Two breeds of rats, Charles River Wistar [Crl(Wi)Br.] and HSD Wistar [Wistar per LATI (Budapest) Br.], with remarkable difference in learning performance were selected. The rats were trained in the shuttle box with 100 trials per day and the number of conditioned avoidance responses (CARs), the escape failures (EFs) to the unconditioned stimulus and the intersignal reactions (IRs) were counted and evaluated by multi-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). Rats of the Crl (Wi) breed proved to be the 'low performing' (LP) animals and rats of the Wistar per LATI (Budapest) breed the 'high performing' (HP) ones. The HP rats produced higher number of CARs (pPPAP], which enhances action potential-transmitter release coupling in the catecholaminergic neurons, fully antagonized in a dose of 1 mg/kg, tetrabenazine-induced learning depression in HP rats and this dose was ineffective in LP rats. The findings were regarded as further support for the view that endogenous CAE substances regulate catecholaminergic activity in the brain and (-)PPAP acts via this regulation.

  15. Profiling the metabolome changes caused by cranberry procyanidins in plasma of female rats using (1) H NMR and UHPLC-Q-Orbitrap-HRMS global metabolomics approaches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Haiyan; Garrett, Timothy J; Tayyari, Fariba; Gu, Liwei

    2015-11-01

    The objective was to investigate the metabolome changes in female rats gavaged with partially purified cranberry procyanidins (PPCP) using (1) H NMR and UHPLC-Q-Orbitrap-HRMS metabolomics approaches, and to identify the contributing metabolites. Twenty-four female Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly separated into two groups and administered PPCP or partially purified apple procyanidins (PPAP) for three times using a 250 mg extracts/kg body weight dose. Plasma was collected 6 h after the last gavage and analyzed using (1) H NMR and UHPLC-Q-Orbitrap-HRMS. No metabolome difference was observed using (1) H NMR metabolomics approach. However, LC-HRMS metabolomics data show that metabolome in the plasma of female rats administered PPCP differed from those gavaged with PPAP. Eleven metabolites were tentatively identified from a total of 36 discriminant metabolic features based on accurate masses and/or product ion spectra. PPCP caused a greater increase of exogenous metabolites including p-hydroxybenzoic acid, phenol, phenol-sulphate, catechol sulphate, 3, 4-dihydroxyphenylvaleric acid, and 4'-O-methyl-(-)-epicatechin-3'-O-beta-glucuronide in rat plasma. Furthermore, the plasma level of O-methyl-(-)-epicatechin-O-glucuronide, 4-hydroxy-5-(hydroxyphenyl)-valeric acid-O-sulphate, 5-(hydroxyphenyl)-ϒ-valerolactone-O-sulphate, 4-hydroxydiphenylamine, and peonidin-3-O-hexose were higher in female rats administered with PPAP. The metabolome changes caused by cranberry procyanidins were revealed using an UHPLC-Q-Orbitrap-HRMS global metabolomics approach. Exogenous and microbial metabolites were the major identified discriminate biomarkers. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  16. Profiling the Metabolome Changes Caused by Cranberry Procyanidins in Plasma of Female Rats using 1H NMR and UHPLC-Q-Orbitrap-HRMS Global Metabolomics Approaches

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Haiyan; Garrett, Timothy J.; Tayyari, Fariba; Gu, Liwei

    2015-01-01

    Scope The objective was to investigate the metabolome changes in female rats gavaged with partially purified cranberry procyanidins (PPCP) using 1H NMR and UHPLC-Q-Orbitrap-HRMS metabolomics approaches, and to identify the contributing metabolites. Methods and results Twenty four female Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly separated into two groups and administered PPCP or partially purified apple procyanidins (PPAP) for 3 times using a 250 mg extracts/kg body weight dose. Plasma were collected six hours after the last gavage and analyzed using 1H NMR and UHPLC-Q-Orbitrap-HRMS. No metabolome difference was observed using 1H NMR metabolomics approach. However, LC-HRMS metabolomics data show that metabolome in plasma of female rats administered PPCP differed from those gavaged with PPAP. Eleven metabolites were tentatively identified from a total of 36 discriminant metabolic features based on accurate masses and/or product ion spectra. PPCP caused a greater increase of exogenous metabolites including p-hydroxybenzoic acid, phenol, phenol-sulfate, catechol sulphate, 3, 4-dihydroxyphenylvaleric acid, and 4′-O-methyl-(−)-epicatechin-3′-O-beta-glucuronide in rat plasma. Furthermore, the plasma level of O-methyl-(−)-epicatechin-O-glucuronide, 4-hydroxy-5-(hydroxyphenyl)-valeric acid-O-sulphate, 5-(hydroxyphenyl)-γ-valerolactone-O-sulphate, 4-hydroxydiphenylamine, and peonidin-3-O-hexose were higher in female rats administered with PPAP. Conclusion The metabolome changes caused by cranberry procyanidins were revealed using an UHPLC-Q-Orbitrap-HRMS global metabolomics approach. Exogenous and microbial metabolites were the major identified discriminate biomarkers. PMID:26264887

  17. High-NaCl diet impairs dynamic renal blood flow autoregulation in rats with adenine-induced chronic renal failure

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Saeed, Aso; DiBona, Gerald F; Grimberg, Elisabeth

    2014-01-01

    This study examined the effects of 2 wk of high-NaCl diet on kidney function and dynamic renal blood flow autoregulation (RBFA) in rats with adenine-induced chronic renal failure (ACRF). Male Sprague-Dawley rats received either chow containing adenine or were pair-fed an identical diet without...... arterial pressure variability (SAPV), and heart rate variability were assessed by spectral analytical techniques. Rats with ACRF showed marked reductions in glomerular filtration rate and renal blood flow (RBF), whereas mean arterial pressure and SAPV were significantly elevated. In addition, spontaneous...... adenine (controls). After 10 wk, rats were randomized to either remain on the same diet (0.6% NaCl) or to be switched to high 4% NaCl chow. Two weeks after randomization, renal clearance experiments were performed under isoflurane anesthesia and dynamic RBFA, baroreflex sensitivity (BRS), systolic...

  18. The effects of Mucuna pruriens on the renal oxidative stress and transcription factors in high-fructose-fed rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ulu, Ramazan; Gozel, Nevzat; Tuzcu, Mehmet; Orhan, Cemal; Yiğit, İrem Pembegül; Dogukan, Ayhan; Telceken, Hafize; Üçer, Özlem; Kemeç, Zeki; Kaman, Dilara; Juturu, Vijaya; Sahin, Kazim

    2018-05-31

    In the present study, we evaluated the effects of M. pruriens administration on metabolic parameters, oxidative stress and kidney nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) and nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like 2 (Nrf2) signaling pathways in high-fructose fed rats. Male rats (n = 28) were divided into 4 groups as control, M. pruriens, fructose, and M. pruriens plus fructose. All rats were fed a standard diet supplemented or no supplemented with M. pruriens (200 mg/kg/d by gavage). Fructose was given in drinking water for 8 weeks. High fructose consumption led to an increase in the serum level of glucose, triglyceride, urea and renal malondialdehyde (MDA) levels. Although M. pruriens treatment reduced triglyceride and MDA levels, it did not affect other parameters. M. pruriens supplementation significantly decreased the expression of NF-ҡB and decreased expression of Nrf2 and HO-1 proteins in the kidney. This study showed that the adverse effects of high fructose were alleviated by M. pruriens supplementation via modulation of the expression of kidney nuclear transcription factors in rats fed high fructose diet. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  19. Maternal Style Selectively Shapes Amygdalar Development and Social Behavior in Rats Genetically Prone to High Anxiety.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cohen, Joshua L; Glover, Matthew E; Pugh, Phyllis C; Fant, Andrew D; Simmons, Rebecca K; Akil, Huda; Kerman, Ilan A; Clinton, Sarah M

    2015-01-01

    The early-life environment critically influences neurodevelopment and later psychological health. To elucidate neural and environmental elements that shape emotional behavior, we developed a rat model of individual differences in temperament and environmental reactivity. We selectively bred rats for high versus low behavioral response to novelty and found that high-reactive (bred high-responder, bHR) rats displayed greater risk-taking, impulsivity and aggression relative to low-reactive (bred low-responder, bLR) rats, which showed high levels of anxiety/depression-like behavior and certain stress vulnerability. The bHR/bLR traits are heritable, but prior work revealed bHR/bLR maternal style differences, with bLR dams showing more maternal attention than bHRs. The present study implemented a cross-fostering paradigm to examine the contribution of maternal behavior to the brain development and emotional behavior of bLR offspring. bLR offspring were reared by biological bLR mothers or fostered to a bLR or bHR mother and then evaluated to determine the effects on the following: (1) developmental gene expression in the hippocampus and amygdala and (2) adult anxiety/depression-like behavior. Genome-wide expression profiling showed that cross-fostering bLR rats to bHR mothers shifted developmental gene expression in the amygdala (but not hippocampus), reduced adult anxiety and enhanced social interaction. Our findings illustrate how an early-life manipulation such as cross-fostering changes the brain's developmental trajectory and ultimately impacts adult behavior. Moreover, while earlier studies highlighted hippocampal differences contributing to the bHR/bLR phenotypes, our results point to a role of the amygdala as well. Future work will pursue genetic and cellular mechanisms within the amygdala that contribute to bHR/bLR behavior either at baseline or following environmental manipulations. © 2015 S. Karger AG, Basel.

  20. Impact of metformin treatment and swimming exercise on visfatin levels in high-fat-induced obesity rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gao, Ya; Wang, Changjiang; Pan, Tianrong; Luo, Li

    2014-02-01

    Visfatin is a recently discovered adipocytokine that contributes to glucose and obesity-related conditions. Until now, its responses to the insulin-sensitizing agent metformin and to exercise are largely unknown. We aim to investigate the impact of metformin treatment and/or swimming exercise on serum visfatin and visfatin levels in subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT), peri-renal adipose tissue (PAT) and skeletal muscle (SM) of high-fat-induced obesity rats. Sprague-Dawley rats were fed a normal diet or a high-fat diet for 16 weeks to develop obesity model. The high-fat-induced obesity model rats were then randomized to metformin (MET), swimming exercise (SWI), or adjunctive therapy of metformin and swimming exercise (MAS), besides high-fat obesity control group and a normal control group, all with 10 rats per group. Zoometric and glycemic parameters, lipid profile, and serum visfatin levels were assessed at baseline and after 6 weeks of therapy. Visfatin levels in SAT, PAT and SM were determined by Western Blot. Metformin and swimming exercise improved lipid profile, and increased insulin sensitivity and body weight reduction were observed. Both metformin and swimming exercise down-regulated visfatin levels in SAT and PAT, while the adjunctive therapy conferred greater benefits, but no changes of visfatin levels were observed in SM. Our results indicate that visfatin down-regulation in SAT and PAT may be one of the mechanisms by which metformin and swimming exercise inhibit obesity.

  1. Effect of berberine on the ratio of high-molecular weight adiponectin to total adiponectin and adiponectin receptors expressions in high-fat diet fed rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Yue-Yue; Zha, Ying; Liu, Jun; Wang, Fang; Xu, Jiong; Chen, Zao-Ping; Ding, He-Yuan; Sheng, Li; Han, Xiao-Jie

    2016-11-17

    To assess the effects of berberine (BBR) on high-molecular weight (HMW) adiponectin and adiponectin receptors (adipoR1/adipoR2) expressions in high-fat (HF) diet fed rats. Forty Wistar male rats were randomly assigned into a normal diet fed group and three HF diet (fat for 45% calories) fed groups (n=10 for each group). All rats underwent 12 weeks of feeding. After 4 weeks feeding, rats in the two of three HF diet fed groups were treated with 150 mg·kg -1 ·day -1 BBR (HF+LBBR group) and 380 mg·kg -1 ·day -1 BBR (HF+HBBR group) by gavage once a day respectively for the next 8 weeks while the rats in other groups treated with vehicle (NF+Veh and HF+Veh). Body weight and food intake were observed and recorded on daily basis. At the end of 12 weeks, the blood, liver, epididymal fat tissues and quadriceps femoris muscles were collected. Fasting insulin, plasma fasting glucose, serum free fatty acid (FFA), total adiponectin and HMW adiponectin levels were measured by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay method. Glucose tolerance test (GTT) and insulin tolerance test (ITT) were performed to determine the insulinsensitizing. Meanwhile the homeostasis model assessment (HOMA) method was used to determine insulin resistance (HOMA-IR). The expressions of adipoR1, adipoR2 and adenosine monophophate activated protein kinase (AMPK) phosphorylation level in skeletal muscle and liver tissue were detected by Western blot. Liver and kidney toxicity were evaluated during treatment. The body weight of rats in high- or low-dose BBR group reduced as well as HOMA-IR, FFA concentrations and fasting insulin levels decreased compared with HF+Veh group (Pinsulin resistance by increasing the expression of adiponectin receptors and the ratio of HMW to total adiponectin.

  2. Influence of Heat Treatment on the Corrosion Behavior of Purified Magnesium and AZ31 Alloy

    OpenAIRE

    Khalifeh, Sohrab; Burleigh, T. David

    2017-01-01

    Magnesium and its alloys are ideal for biodegradable implants due to their biocompatibility and their low-stress shielding. However, they can corrode too rapidly in the biological environment. The objective of this research was to develop heat treatments to slow the corrosion of high purified magnesium and AZ31 alloy in simulated body fluid at 37{\\deg}C. Heat treatments were performed at different temperatures and times. Hydrogen evolution, weight loss, PDP, and EIS methods were used to measu...

  3. Characterization of product RNAs synthesized in vitro by poliovirus RNA polymerase purified by chromatography on hydroxylapatite or poly(U) Sepharose.

    OpenAIRE

    Young, D C; Tobin, G J; Flanegan, J B

    1987-01-01

    The size of the product RNA synthesized by the poliovirus RNA polymerase and host factor was significantly affected by the type of column chromatography used to purify the polymerase. Dimer length product RNA was synthesized by the polymerase purified by chromatography on hydroxylapatite. This contrasted with the monomer length product RNA synthesized by the polymerase purified by chromatography on poly(U) Sepharose. The poly(U) Sepharose-purified polymerase was shown to contain oligo(U) that...

  4. Generation of highly purified neural stem cells from human adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells by Sox1 activation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feng, Nianhua; Han, Qin; Li, Jing; Wang, Shihua; Li, Hongling; Yao, Xinglei; Zhao, Robert Chunhua

    2014-03-01

    Neural stem cells (NSCs) are ideal candidates in stem cell-based therapy for neurodegenerative diseases. However, it is unfeasible to get enough quantity of NSCs for clinical application. Generation of NSCs from human adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hAD-MSCs) will provide a solution to this problem. Currently, the differentiation of hAD-MSCs into highly purified NSCs with biological functions is rarely reported. In our study, we established a three-step NSC-inducing protocol, in which hAD-MSCs were induced to generate NSCs with high purity after sequentially cultured in the pre-inducing medium (Step1), the N2B27 medium (Step2), and the N2B27 medium supplement with basic fibroblast growth factor and epidermal growth factor (Step3). These hAD-MSC-derived NSCs (adNSCs) can form neurospheres and highly express Sox1, Pax6, Nestin, and Vimentin; the proportion was 96.1% ± 1.3%, 96.8% ± 1.7%, 96.2% ± 1.3%, and 97.2% ± 2.5%, respectively, as detected by flow cytometry. These adNSCs can further differentiate into astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, and functional neurons, which were able to generate tetrodotoxin-sensitive sodium current. Additionally, we found that the neural differentiation of hAD-MSCs were significantly suppressed by Sox1 interference, and what's more, Step1 was a key step for the following induction, probably because it was associated with the initiation and nuclear translocation of Sox1, an important transcriptional factor for neural development. Finally, we observed that bone morphogenetic protein signal was inhibited, and Wnt/β-catenin signal was activated during inducing process, and both signals were related with Sox1 expression. In conclusion, we successfully established a three-step inducing protocol to derive NSCs from hAD-MSCs with high purity by Sox1 activation. These findings might enable to acquire enough autologous transplantable NSCs for the therapy of neurodegenerative diseases in clinic.

  5. Effect of preparation conditions on the characteristics and photocatalytic activity of TiO2/purified diatomite composite photocatalysts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sun, Zhiming; Hu, Zhibo; Yan, Yang; Zheng, Shuilin

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • TiO 2 /purified diatomite composites were synthesized under different conditions. • The optimum preparation conditions of composites were obtained. • The obtained photocatalyst showed good photocatalytic activity. • The dispersity and grain size of loaded TiO 2 NPs are the critical factors. - Abstract: TiO 2 /purified diatomite composite materials were prepared through a modified hydrolysis-deposition method under low temperature using titanium tetrachloride as precursor combined with a calcination crystallization process. The microstructure and crystalline phases of the obtained composites prepared under different preparation conditions were characterized by high resolution scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), respectively. The photocatalytic performance of TiO 2 /purified diatomite composites was evaluated by Rhodamine B as the target pollutant under UV irradiation, and the optimum preparation conditions of composites were obtained. The TiO 2 crystal form in composites prepared under optimum conditions was anatase, the grain size of which was 34.12 nm. The relationships between structure and property of composite materials were analyzed and discussed. It is indicated that the TiO 2 nanoparticles uniformly dispersed on the surface of diatoms, and the photocatalytic performance of the composite materials was mainly determined by the dispersity and grain size of loaded TiO 2 nanoparticles

  6. Grape powder consumption affects the expression of neurodegeneration-related brain proteins in rats chronically fed a high-fructose-high-fat diet.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liao, Hsiang; Chou, Liang-Mao; Chien, Yi-Wen; Wu, Chi-Hao; Chang, Jung-Su; Lin, Ching-I; Lin, Shyh-Hsiang

    2017-05-01

    Abnormal glucose metabolism in the brain is recognized to be associated with cognitive decline. Because grapes are rich in polyphenols that produce antioxidative and blood sugar-lowering effects, we investigated how grape consumption affects the expression and/or phosphorylation of neurodegeneration-related brain proteins in aged rats fed a high-fructose-high-fat (HFHF) diet. Wistar rats were maintained on the HFHF diet from the age of 8 weeks to 66 weeks, and then on an HFHF diet containing either 3% or 6% grape powder as an intervention for 12 weeks. Western blotting was performed to measure the expression/phosphorylation levels of several cortical and hippocampal proteins, including amyloid precursor protein (APP), tau, phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K), extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK), receptor for advanced glycation end products (RAGEs), erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). Inclusion of up to 6% grape powder in the diet markedly reduced RAGE expression and tau hyperphosphorylation, but upregulated the expression of Nrf2 and BDNF, as well as the phosphorylation of PI3K and ERK, in the brain tissues of aged rats fed the HFHF diet. Thus, grape powder consumption produced beneficial effects in HFHF-diet-fed rats, exhibiting the potential to ameliorate changes in neurodegeneration-related proteins in the brain. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. The Effects of Combination of High Intensity Intermittent Exercise and Supplement Flaxseed Oil 1 ICAM- Plasma Concentration in Male Rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Y Khademi

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: Prevalence of cardiovascular diseases is rooted in inflammation and inflammation is along with the increase of ICAM-1. The aim of the present study was to review the effect of combination of high interval training and flaxseed oil supplementation on plasma concentration of ICAM-1 of rats. Methods: In this experimental study, 30 rats were selected and divided into six groups of five male rats, including (1 control, (2 training, (3 10 mg/kg Flaxseed oil, (4 30 mg/kg Flaxseed oil, (5 training with 10 mg/kg Flaxseed oil and (6 training with 30 mg/kg Flaxseed oil. Groups of 2, 5 and 6 were trained with high intensity interval training for 10 weeks and five sessions per week, also groups 3 to 6 received flaxseed oil for 10 weeks. For statistical analysis of data two way ANOVA test was used (p≤0.05. Results: 10 weeks  treating high intensity interval training  for 10 weeks had significant effect on the increase of the plasma concentration of ICAM-1 of male rats (p=0.001. Nevertheless, Taking 10 weeks 10 and 30 mg/kg flaxseed oil supplementation for 10 weeks has significant effect on reducing  the plasma concentration of ICAM-1 of rats (p=0.001. Training and taking flaxseed oil supplementation have interactional effect on reduingc the plasma concentration of ICAM-1 of male rats (p=0.001. Conclusion: Combination of high intensity interval training and flaxseed oil supplementation has interactional effects on the improvement of plasma concentration of ICAM-1 in male rats.

  8. The regulatory effects of fish oil and chitosan on hepatic lipogenic signals in high-fat diet-induced obese rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chiu, Chen-Yuan; Chang, Tien-Chia; Liu, Shing-Hwa; Chiang, Meng-Tsan

    2017-10-01

    The present study investigated the regulatory effects of fish oil and chitosan on the signals of hepatic lipid metabolism and the postulated mechanism in high-fat diet-induced obese rats. Diet supplementation of chitosan and fish oil efficiently suppressed the increased weights in body and livers of high-fat diet-fed rats. Supplementation of chitosan and fish oil significantly decreased the activities of hepatic lipid biosynthesis-related enzymes and efficiently regulated plasma lipoprotein homeostasis. Both chitosan and fish oil significantly ameliorated the alterations in the protein expressions of hepatic lipogenic transcription factors (LXRα and PPARα), and could also significantly regulate the downstream hepatic lipogenic genes (FAS, HMGCR, CYP7A1, FATP, FABP, AOX, and ABCA) expressions in high-fat diet-fed rats. These results suggest that both fish oil and chitosan exerts downregulative effects on hepatic lipid metabolism in high-fat diet-induced obese rats via the LXRα inhibition and PPARα activation, which further affect the expressions of hepatic lipogenesis-associated genes. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  9. Dietary Shiitake Mushroom (Lentinus edodes Prevents Fat Deposition and Lowers Triglyceride in Rats Fed a High-Fat Diet

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    D. Handayani

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available High-fat diet (HFD induces obesity. This study examined the effects of Shiitake mushroom on the prevention of alterations of plasma lipid profiles, fat deposition, energy efficiency, and body fat index induced by HFD. Rats were given a low, medium, and high (7, 20, 60 g/kg = LD-M, MD-M, HD-M Shiitake mushroom powder in their high-fat (50% in kcal diets for 6 weeks. The results showed that the rats on the HD-M diet had the lowest body weight gain compared to MD-M and LD-M groups (P<0.05. The total fat deposition was significantly lower (−35%, P<0.05 in rats fed an HD-M diet than that of HFD group. Interestingly, plasma triacylglycerol (TAG level was significantly lower (−55%, P<0.05 in rats on HD-M than HFD. This study also revealed the existence of negative correlations between the amount of Shiitake mushroom supplementation and body weight gain, plasma TAG, and total fat masses.

  10. Dietary D-psicose reduced visceral fat mass in high-fat diet-induced obese rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chung, Young-Mee; Hyun Lee, Joo; Youl Kim, Deuk; Hwang, Se-Hee; Hong, Young-Ho; Kim, Seong-Bo; Jin Lee, Song; Hye Park, Chi

    2012-02-01

    D-Psicose, a C-3 epimer of D-fructose, has shown promise in reducing body fat accumulation in normal rats and plasma glucose level in genetic diabetic mice. Effects of D-psicose on diet-induced obesity are not clearly elucidated, and we investigated food intake, body weight, and fat accumulation in rats fed high-fat (HF) diet. Sprague-Dawley rats became obese by feeding HF diet for 4 wk, and were assigned either to normal or HF diet supplemented with or without D-psicose, sucrose, or erythritol for 8 wk. Changing HF to normal diet gained less body weight and adipose tissue due to different energy intake. D-psicose-fed rats exhibited lower weight gain, food efficiency ratio, and fat accumulation than erythritol- and sucrose-fed rats. This effect was more prominent in D-psicose-fed rats with normal diet than with HF diet, suggesting combination of psicose and calorie restriction further reduced obesity. There was no difference in serum cholesterol/high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-C and low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-C/HDL-C ratios between D-psicose group and other groups. Liver weight in 5% psicose group with normal diet was higher than in other groups, but histopathological examination did not reveal any psicose-related change. D-Psicose inhibited the differentiation of mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) to adipose tissue in a concentration-dependent manner. These results demonstrate that D-psicose produces a marked decrease, greater than erythritol, in weight gain and visceral fat in an established obesity model by inhibiting MSC differentiation to adipocyte. Thus, D-psicose can be useful in preventing and reducing obesity as a sugar substitute and food ingredient. We can develop D-psicose as a sugar substitute and food ingredient since it can prevent obesity in normal people, but also suppress adiposity as a sugar substitute or food ingredients with antiobesity effect in obese people. D-psicose can be unique functional sweetener because of its function of reducing visceral

  11. Dairy Attenuates Weight Gain to a Similar Extent as Exercise in Rats Fed a High-Fat, High-Sugar Diet.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Trottier, Sarah K; MacPherson, Rebecca E K; Knuth, Carly M; Townsend, Logan K; Peppler, Willem T; Mikhaeil, John S; Leveille, Cam F; LeBlanc, Paul J; Shearer, Jane; Reimer, Raylene A; Wright, David C

    2017-10-01

    To compare the individual and combined effects of dairy and endurance exercise training in reducing weight gain and adiposity in a rodent model of diet-induced obesity. An 8-week feeding intervention of a high-fat, high-sugar diet was used to induce obesity in male Sprague-Dawley rats. Rats were then assigned to one of four groups for 6 weeks: (1) casein sedentary (casein-S), (2) casein exercise (casein-E), (3) dairy sedentary (dairy-S), and (4) dairy exercise (dairy-E). Rats were exercise trained by treadmill running 5 d/wk. Dairy-E prevented weight gain to a greater extent than either dairy or exercise alone. Adipose tissue and liver mass were reduced to a similar extent in dairy-S, casein-E, and dairy-E groups. Differences in weight gain were not explained by food intake or total energy expenditure. The total amount of lipid excreted was greater in the dairy-S compared to casein-S and dairy-E groups. This study provides evidence that dairy limits weight gain to a similar extent as exercise training and the combined effects are greater than either intervention alone. While exercise training reduces weight gain through increases in energy expenditure, dairy appears to increase lipid excretion in the feces. © 2017 The Obesity Society.

  12. Effect of high-fructose and high-fat diets on pulmonary sensitivity, motor activity, and body composition of brown Norway rats exposed to ozone

    Data.gov (United States)

    U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — pulmonary parameters, BALF biomarkers, body composition, motor activity data collected from rats exposed to ozone after high fructose or high fat diets. This dataset...

  13. Comparison of cardiovascular protective effects of tropical seaweeds, Kappaphycus alvarezii, Caulerpa lentillifera, and Sargassum polycystum, on high-cholesterol/high-fat diet in rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Matanjun, Patricia; Mohamed, Suhaila; Muhammad, Kharidah; Mustapha, Noordin Mohamed

    2010-08-01

    This study was designed to investigate the comparative in vivo cardiovascular protective effects of red, green, and brown tropical seaweeds, namely, Kappaphycus alvarezii (or Eucheuma cottonii), Caulerpa lentillifera, and Sargassum polycystum, in rats fed on high-cholesterol/high-fat (HCF) diets. Male Sprague-Dawley rats (weighing 260-300 g) on the HCF diet had significantly increased body weight, plasma total cholesterol (TC), plasma low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), plasma triglycerides (TG), lipid peroxidation, and erythrocyte glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and superoxide dismutase levels after 16 weeks. Supplementing 5% seaweeds to HCF diet significantly reduced plasma TC (-11.4% to -18.5%), LDL-C (-22% to -49.3%), and TG (-33.7% to -36.1%) levels and significantly increased HDL-C levels (16.3-55%). Among the seaweeds, S. polycystum showed the best anti-obesity and blood GSH-Px properties, K. alvarezii showed the best antihyperlipemic and in vivo antioxidation effects, and C. lentillifera was most effective at reducing plasma TC. All seaweeds significantly reduced body weight gain, erythrocyte GSH-Px, and plasma lipid peroxidation of HCF diet rats towards the values of normal rats.

  14. Taurine ameliorates cholesterol metabolism by stimulating bile acid production in high-cholesterol-fed rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Murakami, Shigeru; Fujita, Michiko; Nakamura, Masakazu; Sakono, Masanobu; Nishizono, Shoko; Sato, Masao; Imaizumi, Katsumi; Mori, Mari; Fukuda, Nobuhiro

    2016-03-01

    This study was designed to investigate the effects of dietary taurine on cholesterol metabolism in high-cholesterol-fed rats. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into two dietary groups (n = 6 in each group): a high-cholesterol diet containing 0.5% cholesterol and 0.15% sodium cholate, and a high-cholesterol diet with 5% (w/w) taurine. The experimental diets were given for 2 weeks. Taurine supplementation reduced the serum and hepatic cholesterol levels by 37% and 32%, respectively. Faecal excretion of bile acids was significantly increased in taurine-treated rats, compared with untreated rats. Biliary bile acid concentrations were also increased by taurine. Taurine supplementation increased taurine-conjugated bile acids by 61% and decreased glycine-conjugated bile acids by 53%, resulting in a significant decrease in the glycine/taurine (G/T) ratio. Among the taurine-conjugated bile acids, cholic acid and deoxycholic acid were significantly increased. In the liver, taurine supplementation increased the mRNA expression and enzymatic activity of hepatic cholesterol 7α-hydroxylase (CYP7A1), the rate-limiting enzyme for bile acid synthesis, by three- and two-fold, respectively. Taurine also decreased the enzymatic activity of acyl-CoA:cholesterol acyltransferase (ACAT) and microsomal triglyceride transfer protein (MTP). These observations suggest that taurine supplementation increases the synthesis and excretion of taurine-conjugated bile acids and stimulates the catabolism of cholesterol to bile acid by elevating the expression and activity of CYP7A1. This may reduce cholesterol esterification and lipoprotein assembly for very low density lipoprotein (VLDL) secretion, leading to reductions in the serum and hepatic cholesterol levels. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.

  15. High fat diet disrupts endoplasmic reticulum calcium homeostasis in the rat liver.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wires, Emily S; Trychta, Kathleen A; Bäck, Susanne; Sulima, Agnieszka; Rice, Kenner C; Harvey, Brandon K

    2017-11-01

    Disruption to endoplasmic reticulum (ER) calcium homeostasis has been implicated in obesity, however, the ability to longitudinally monitor ER calcium fluctuations has been challenging with prior methodologies. We recently described the development of a Gaussia luciferase (GLuc)-based reporter protein responsive to ER calcium depletion (GLuc-SERCaMP) and investigated the effect of a high fat diet on ER calcium homeostasis. A GLuc-based reporter cell line was treated with palmitate, a free fatty acid. Rats intrahepatically injected with GLuc-SERCaMP reporter were fed a cafeteria diet or high fat diet. The liver and plasma were examined for established markers of steatosis and compared to plasma levels of SERCaMP activity. Palmitate induced GLuc-SERCaMP release in vitro, indicating ER calcium depletion. Consumption of a cafeteria diet or high fat pellets correlated with alterations to hepatic ER calcium homeostasis in rats, shown by increased GLuc-SERCaMP release. Access to ad lib high fat pellets also led to a corresponding decrease in microsomal calcium ATPase activity and an increase in markers of hepatic steatosis. In addition to GLuc-SERCaMP, we have also identified endogenous proteins (endogenous SERCaMPs) with a similar response to ER calcium depletion. We demonstrated the release of an endogenous SERCaMP, thought to be a liver esterase, during access to a high fat diet. Attenuation of both GLuc-SERCaMP and endogenous SERCaMP was observed during dantrolene administration. Here we describe the use of a reporter for in vitro and in vivo models of high fat diet. Our results support the theory that dietary fat intake correlates with a decrease in ER calcium levels in the liver and suggest a high fat diet alters the ER proteome. Lay summary: ER calcium dysregulation was observed in rats fed a cafeteria diet or high fat pellets, with fluctuations in sensor release correlating with fat intake. Attenuation of sensor release, as well as food intake was observed during

  16. Preventive effect of curcumin on inflammation, oxidative stress and insulin resistance in high-fat fed obese rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maithilikarpagaselvi, Nachimuthu; Sridhar, Magadi Gopalakrishna; Swaminathan, Rathinam Palamalai; Sripradha, Ramalingam

    2016-06-01

    The present study investigated the beneficial effects of curcumin on inflammation, oxidative stress and insulin resistance in high-fat fed male Wistar rats. Five-month-old male Wistar rats (n=20) were divided into two groups (10 rats in each group). Among the two groups, one group received 30 % high-fat diet (HFD) and another group received 30 % HFD with curcumin (200 mg/kg body weight). Food intake, body weight and biochemical parameters were measured at the beginning and at the end of the study. After 10 weeks, oxidative stress parameters in skeletal muscle and hepatic triacylglycerol (TAG) content were estimated. Histological examinations of the liver samples were performed at the end of the experiment. High-fat feeding caused increase in body weight, liver and adipose tissue mass. Rats fed with HFD showed increased levels of fasting plasma glucose, insulin, Homeostasis Model Assessment for Insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), total cholesterol (TC), TAG, very low density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL-c) and decreased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c). There was also increase in the plasma inflammatory markers [tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), C-reactive protein (CRP)] and skeletal muscle oxidative stress parameters [malondialdehyde (MDA), total oxidant status (TOS)] in these rats. In addition, high-fat feeding increased liver TAG content and caused fat accumulation in the liver. Treatment with curcumin significantly reduced body weight, relative organ weights (liver, adipose tissue), glucose, insulin and HOMA-IR. Curcumin supplementation decreased plasma levels of TC, TAG, VLDL-c, TNF-α and increased HDL-c. Administration of curcumin also reduced MDA, TOS in skeletal muscle, hepatic TAG content and liver fat deposition. Curcumin supplementation improved HFD-induced dyslipidemia, oxidative stress, inflammation and insulin resistance.

  17. Antioxidant and ACE Inhibitory Bioactive Peptides Purified from Egg Yolk Proteins

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marwa Yousr

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Protein by-products from the extraction of lecithin from egg yolk can be converted into value-added products, such as bioactive hydrolysates and peptides that have potential health enhancing antioxidant, and antihypertensive properties. In this study, the antioxidant and angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE inhibitory activities of peptides isolated and purified from egg yolk protein were investigated. Defatted egg yolk was hydrolyzed using pepsin and pancreatin and sequentially fractionated by ultrafiltration, followed by gel filtration to produce egg yolk gel filtration fractions (EYGF. Of these, two fractions, EYGF-23 and EYGF-33, effectively inhibited the peroxides and thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS in an oxidizing linoleic acid model system. The antioxidant mechanism involved superoxide anion and hydroxyl radicals scavenging and ferrous chelation. The presence of hydrophobic amino acids such as tyrosine (Y and tryptophan (W, in sequences identified by LC-MS as WYGPD (EYGF-23 and KLSDW (EYGF-33, contributed to the antioxidant activity and were not significantly different from the synthetic BHA antioxidant. A third fraction (EYGF-56 was also purified from egg yolk protein by gel filtration and exhibited high ACE inhibitory activity (69% and IC50 value (3.35 mg/mL. The SDNRNQGY peptide (10 mg/mL had ACE inhibitory activity, which was not significantly different from that of the positive control captopril (0.5 mg/mL. In addition, YPSPV in (EYGF-33 (10 mg/mL had higher ACE inhibitory activity compared with captopril. These findings indicated a substantial potential for producing valuable peptides with antioxidant and ACE inhibitory activity from egg yolk.

  18. Antioxidant and ACE Inhibitory Bioactive Peptides Purified from Egg Yolk Proteins.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yousr, Marwa; Howell, Nazlin

    2015-12-07

    Protein by-products from the extraction of lecithin from egg yolk can be converted into value-added products, such as bioactive hydrolysates and peptides that have potential health enhancing antioxidant, and antihypertensive properties. In this study, the antioxidant and angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory activities of peptides isolated and purified from egg yolk protein were investigated. Defatted egg yolk was hydrolyzed using pepsin and pancreatin and sequentially fractionated by ultrafiltration, followed by gel filtration to produce egg yolk gel filtration fractions (EYGF). Of these, two fractions, EYGF-23 and EYGF-33, effectively inhibited the peroxides and thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) in an oxidizing linoleic acid model system. The antioxidant mechanism involved superoxide anion and hydroxyl radicals scavenging and ferrous chelation. The presence of hydrophobic amino acids such as tyrosine (Y) and tryptophan (W), in sequences identified by LC-MS as WYGPD (EYGF-23) and KLSDW (EYGF-33), contributed to the antioxidant activity and were not significantly different from the synthetic BHA antioxidant. A third fraction (EYGF-56) was also purified from egg yolk protein by gel filtration and exhibited high ACE inhibitory activity (69%) and IC50 value (3.35 mg/mL). The SDNRNQGY peptide (10 mg/mL) had ACE inhibitory activity, which was not significantly different from that of the positive control captopril (0.5 mg/mL). In addition, YPSPV in (EYGF-33) (10 mg/mL) had higher ACE inhibitory activity compared with captopril. These findings indicated a substantial potential for producing valuable peptides with antioxidant and ACE inhibitory activity from egg yolk.

  19. Genetic signatures for enhanced olfaction in the African mole-rats.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sofia Stathopoulos

    Full Text Available The Olfactory Receptor (OR superfamily, the largest in the vertebrate genome, is responsible for vertebrate olfaction and is traditionally subdivided into 17 OR families. Recent studies characterising whole-OR subgenomes revealed a 'birth and death' model of evolution for a range of species, however little is known about fine-scale evolutionary dynamics within single-OR families. This study reports the first assessment of fine-scale OR evolution and variation in African mole-rats (Bathyergidae, a family of subterranean rodents endemic to sub-Saharan Africa. Because of the selective pressures of life underground, enhanced olfaction is proposed to be fundamental to the evolutionary success of the Bathyergidae, resulting in a highly diversified OR gene-repertoire. Using a PCR-sequencing approach, we analysed variation in the OR7 family across 14 extant bathyergid species, which revealed enhanced levels of functional polymorphisms concentrated across the receptors' ligand-binding region. We propose that mole-rats are able to recognise a broad range of odorants and that this diversity is reflected throughout their OR7 gene repertoire. Using both classic tests and tree-based methods to test for signals of selection, we investigate evolutionary forces across the mole-rat OR7 gene tree. Four well-supported clades emerged in the OR phylogeny, with varying signals of selection; from neutrality to positive and purifying selection. Bathyergid life-history traits and environmental niche-specialisation are explored as possible drivers of adaptive OR evolution, emerging as non-exclusive contributors to the positive selection observed at OR7 genes. Our results reveal unexpected complexity of evolutionary mechanisms acting within a single OR family, providing insightful perspectives into OR evolutionary dynamics.

  20. A high frequency of induction of chromosome aberrations in the bone marrow cells of LEC strain rats by X-irradiation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Okui, Toyo (Hokkaido Inst. of Public Health, Sapporo (Japan)); Hayashi, Masanobu; Watanabe, Tomomasa; Namioka, Shigeo (Dept. of Lab. Animal Science, Hokkaido Univ., Sapporo (Japan)); Endoh, Daiji; Sato, Fumiaki (Dept. of Radiation Biology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido Univ., Sapporo (Japan)); Kasai, Noriyuki (Inst. for Animal Experimentation, Hokkaido Univ., Sapporo (Japan))

    1994-08-01

    LEC strain rats, which have been known to develop hereditarily spontaneous fulminant hepatitis 4 to 5 months after birth, are highly sensitive to whole-body X-irradiation when compared to WKAH strain rats. The present results showed that the frequencies of all types of chromosome aberrations induced by X-irradiation in the bone marrow cells of LEC rats were approximately 2- to 3-fold higher than those of WKAH rats, though no significant difference was observed in the frequency of spontaneous chromosome aberrations between LEC and WKAH rats.

  1. High prevalence of Leptospira spp. in sewer rats (Rattus norvegicus)

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Krøjgaard, L H; Villumsen, S; Markussen, M D K

    2009-01-01

    Earlier studies on the ecology of leptospirosis in temperate regions focused mainly on free-ranging rats in rural areas. Here we report on the occurrence of Leptospira spp. in Rattus norvegicus living in sewers in a suburban area in Copenhagen, Denmark. In 2006-2007, about 30 rats were captured...... in sewers at each of six different locations. Rat kidneys were screened by PCR for pathogenic Leptospira spp. In one location no infected rats were found, whereas the prevalence in the remaining five locations ranged between 48% and 89%. Micro-agglutination tests showed that serogroup Pomona, Sejroe...

  2. Lipolysis stimulating peptides of potato protein hydrolysate effectively suppresses high-fat-diet-induced hepatocyte apoptosis and fibrosis in aging rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wen-Dee Chiang

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available Background: Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD is one of the most common outcomes of obesity and is characterized by the accumulation of triglycerides, increased tissue apoptosis, and fibrosis. NAFLD is more common among elderly than in younger age groups, and it causes serious hepatic complications. Objective: In this study, alcalase treatment derived potato protein hydrolysate (APPH with lipolysis-stimulating property has been evaluated for its efficiency to provide hepato-protection in a high-fat-diet (HFD-fed aging rats. Design: Twenty-four-month-old SD rats were randomly divided into six groups (n=8: aged rats fed with standard chow, HFD-induced aged obese rats, HFD with low-dose (15 mg/kg/day APPH treatment, HFD with moderate (45 mg/kg/day APPH treatment, HFD with high (75 mg/kg/day APPH treatment, and HFD with probucol. Results: APPH was found to reduce the NAFLD-related effects in rat livers induced by HFD and all of the HFD-fed rats exhibited heavier body weight than those with control chow diet. However, the HFD-induced hepatic fat accumulation was effectively attenuated in rats administered with low (15 mg/kg/day, moderate (45 mg/kg/day, and high (75 mg/kg/day doses of APPH. APPH oral administration also suppressed the hepatic apoptosis- and fibrosis-related proteins induced by HFD. Conclusions: Our results thus indicate that APPH potentially attenuates hepatic lipid accumulation and anti-apoptosis and fibrosis effects in HFD-induced rats. APPH may have therapeutic potential in the amelioration of NAFLD liver damage.

  3. High expression of liver histone deacetylase 3 contributes to high-fat-diet-induced metabolic syndrome by suppressing the PPAR-γ and LXR-α-pathways in E3 rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Dongmin; Wang, Xuan; Ren, Wuchao; Ren, Juan; Lan, Xi; Wang, Feimiao; Li, Hongmin; Zhang, Fujun; Han, Yan; Song, Tianbao; Holmdahl, Rikard; Lu, Shemin

    2011-09-15

    In the previous experiment, we found that there was a different response between E3 rats and DA.1U rats to high-fat-diet-induced metabolic syndrome (HFD-MetS). The aim of this study was to explore the cause and molecular mechanism of the genetic difference in susceptibility to metabolic syndrome in E3 rats as compared with DA.1U rats. Firstly, a 12-week HFD-MetS model in E3 and DA.1U rats was carried out and assessed. Then, the expression of key insulin signaling molecules, metabolic nuclear receptors, metabolic key enzymes and histone deacetylases (Hdacs) was determined by different methods. Finally, the effects of overexpression and disruption of Hdac3 on metabolic nuclear receptors were analyzed in CBRH-7919 cells and primarily-hepatic cells from DA.1U and E3 rats. We found that E3 rats were susceptible, while DA.1U rats were resisted to HFD-MetS. The expression of liver X receptor α,β (LXR-α,β), farnesoid X receptor (FXR), peroxisome proliferator activated receptor γ (PPAR-γ) and cholesterol 7α-hydroxylase (CYP7A1) increased markedly in DA.1U rat liver, whereas they decreased significantly in E3 rats. The expression of Hdac3 increased by HFD treatment in both E3 and DA.1U rat livers, but the constitutive Hdac3 expression was lower in DA.IU rat liver than in E3 rat liver. Importantly, overexpression of Hdac3 could downregulate the expression of LXR-α, PPAR-γ and CYP7A1 in both CBRH-7919 cells and primarily cultured hepatic cells from DA.IU rats. On the contrary, disruption of Hdac3 by shRNA upregulated the expression of LXR-α, PPAR-γ and CYP7A1 in both CBRH-7919 cells and primarily cultured hepatic cells from E3 rats. The results suggested that a high constitutive expression of Hdac3 inhibiting the expression of PPAR-γ, LXR-α and CYP7A1 in liver contributes to HFD-MetS in E3 rats. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Acute exposure to high-peak-power pulsed microwaves affecting the histamine H3 receptor expression in rat hippocampus

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yu Xiaodong; Li Bo; Li Dehua; He Qiyi; Yu Zhengping

    2006-01-01

    In the Morris Water test, high-peak-power pulsed microwave (MW)-exposed rats displayed some learning and memory behavior dysfunctions, and their escape time and swimming distance to the submerged platform were longer than those of the sham-exposed rats. to understand the molecular mechanism involved, the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reation (RT-PCR) and the Western-blotting technique were used for investigating the mRNA and protein expression patterns of the histamine H 3 receptor (H 3 R) in rat hippocampus. High-peak-power pulsed microwave-exposure did not remarkably lead to the change in expression of H 3 R mRNA in rat hippocampi; however, it promoted the up-regulatory expression of the H 3 R protein, which was possibly triggered through the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways. Therefore, further investigation of the molecular mechanism of the MW effects on the learning and memory behaviors is required. (authors)

  5. Acute exposure to high-peak-power pulsed microwaves affecting the histamine H3 receptor expression in rat hippocampus

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    2006-01-01

    In the Morris Water Maze test, high-peak-power pulsed microwave (MW)-exposed rats displayed some learning and memory behavior dysfunctions, and their escape time and swimming distance to the submerged platform were longer than those of the sham-exposed rats. To understand the molecular mechanism involved, the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and the Western-blotting technique were used for investigating the mRNA and protein expression patterns of the histamine H3 receptor (H3R) in rat hippocampus. High-peak-power pulsed microwave-exposure did not remarkably lead to the change in expression of H3R mRNA in rat hippocampi;however, it promoted the up-regulatory expression of the H3R protein, which was possibly triggered through the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways. Therefore, further investigation of the molecular mechanism of the MW effects on the learning and memory behaviors is required.

  6. Modified High-Sucrose Diet-Induced Abdominally Obese and Normal-Weight Rats Developed High Plasma Free Fatty Acid and Insulin Resistance

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Li Cao

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Introduction. Metabolically obese but normal-weight (MONW individuals have metabolic features of overt obesity, and abdominal adiposity is common in them. Animal models of MONW individuals are lacking. We aimed to develop an abdominally obese and normal-weight (AONW rat model. Methods and Results. Young male Sprague-Dawley rats were fed chow or a modified high-sucrose (HS diet for 20 weeks. The HS diet induced increased visceral adipose tissue without increased body weight, reduced glucose disposal rates, and increased hepatic glucose output during the hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp, increased plasma glucose during the intraperitoneal glucose tolerance test, and increased plasma free fatty acids. Hepatic lipidosis and hepatocyte mitochondria swelling were found in HS rats through light microscopy and transmission electron microscopy; similar impairments were not observed in muscle. RT-PCR showed that mRNA expression of uncoupling protein 3 and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma coactivator 1α increased in muscle of HS rats, while expression of mitochondrial transcription factor A, glucose transporter type 4, and insulin receptor substrate-1 did not change significantly. Conclusion. AONW rats developed metabolic disorders seen in MONW individuals. Steatosis, mitochondrial morphologic changes, and insulin resistance were more serious in liver than in muscle. Genes involved in fatty acid metabolism and mitochondrial function changed in less impaired muscle.

  7. Cocaine-induced locomotor activity in rats selectively bred for low and high voluntary running behavior.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brown, Jacob D; Green, Caroline L; Arthur, Ian M; Booth, Frank W; Miller, Dennis K

    2015-02-01

    The rewarding effects of physical activity and abused drugs are caused by stimulation of similar brain pathways. Low (LVR) and high (HVR) voluntary running lines were developed by selectively breeding Wistar rats on running distance performance on postnatal days 28-34. We hypothesized that LVR rats would be more sensitive to the locomotor-activating effects of cocaine than HVR rats due to their lower motivation for wheel running. We investigated how selection for LVR or HVR behavior affects inherited activity responses: (a) open field activity levels, (b) habituation to an open field environment, and (c) the locomotor response to cocaine. Open field activity was measured for 80 min on three successive days (days 1-3). Data from the first 20 min were analyzed to determine novelty-induced locomotor activity (day 1) and the habituation to the environment (days 1-3). On day 3, rats were acclimated to the chamber for 20 min and then received saline or cocaine (10, 20, or 30 mg/kg) injection. Dopamine transporter (DAT) protein in the nucleus accumbens was measured via Western blot. Selecting for low and high voluntary running behavior co-selects for differences in inherent (HVR > LVR) and cocaine-induced (LVR > HVR) locomotor activity levels. The differences in the selected behavioral measures do not appear to correlate with DAT protein levels. LVR and HVR rats are an intriguing physical activity model for studying the interactions between genes related to the motivation to run, to use drugs of abuse, and to exhibit locomotor activity.

  8. Air purification by cementitious materials: Evaluation of air purifying properties

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hüsken, G.; Brouwers, H.J.H.; Al-Mattarneh, H.; Mustapha, K.N.; Nuruddin, M.F.

    2008-01-01

    This paper addresses the evaluation of the photocatalytic properties of concrete containing titanium dioxide (TiO2). Here, the assessment of the air purifying abilities of the hardened concrete regarding the degradation of nitric oxide (NO) is of major interest. A setup for measuring the performance

  9. Air purification by cementitious materials : Evaluation of air purifying properties

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hüsken, G.; Brouwers, H.J.H.; Al-Mattarneh, H.; Mustapha, K.N.; Nuruddin, M.F.

    2008-01-01

    This paper addresses the evaluation of the photocatalytic properties of concrete containing titanium dioxide (TiO2). Here, the assessment of the air purifying abilities of the hardened concrete regarding the degradation of nitric oxide (NO) is of major interest. A setup for measuring the performance

  10. High-impact exercise in rats prior to and during suspension can prevent bone loss

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yanagihara, G.R.; Paiva, A.G.; Gasparini, G.A.; Macedo, A.P.; Frighetto, P.D.; Volpon, J.B.; Shimano, A.C.

    2016-01-01

    High-impact exercise has been considered an important method for treating bone loss in osteopenic experimental models. In this study, we investigated the effects of osteopenia caused by inactivity in femora and tibiae of rats subjected to jump training using the rat tail suspension model. Eight-week-old female Wistar rats were divided into five groups (n=10 each group): jump training for 2 weeks before suspension and training during 3 weeks of suspension; jump training for 2 weeks before suspension; jump training only during suspension; suspension without any training; and a control group. The exercise protocol consisted of 20 jumps/day, 5 days/week, with a jump height of 40 cm. The bone mineral density of the femora and tibiae was measured by double energy X-ray absorptiometry and the same bones were evaluated by mechanical tests. Bone microarchitecture was evaluated by scanning electron microscopy. One-way ANOVA was used to compare groups. Significance was determined as P<0.05. Regarding bone mineral density, mechanical properties and bone microarchitecture, the beneficial effects were greater in the bones of animals subjected to pre-suspension training and subsequently to training during suspension, compared with the bones of animals subjected to pre-suspension training or to training during suspension. Our results indicate that a period of high impact exercise prior to tail suspension in rats can prevent the installation of osteopenia if there is also training during the tail suspension

  11. High-impact exercise in rats prior to and during suspension can prevent bone loss

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yanagihara, G.R.; Paiva, A.G.; Gasparini, G.A.; Macedo, A.P. [Laboratório de Bioengenharia, Departamento de Biomecânica, Medicina e Reabilitação do Aparelho Locomotor, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP (Brazil); Frighetto, P.D. [Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP (Brazil); Volpon, J.B.; Shimano, A.C. [Laboratório de Bioengenharia, Departamento de Biomecânica, Medicina e Reabilitação do Aparelho Locomotor, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP (Brazil)

    2016-02-02

    High-impact exercise has been considered an important method for treating bone loss in osteopenic experimental models. In this study, we investigated the effects of osteopenia caused by inactivity in femora and tibiae of rats subjected to jump training using the rat tail suspension model. Eight-week-old female Wistar rats were divided into five groups (n=10 each group): jump training for 2 weeks before suspension and training during 3 weeks of suspension; jump training for 2 weeks before suspension; jump training only during suspension; suspension without any training; and a control group. The exercise protocol consisted of 20 jumps/day, 5 days/week, with a jump height of 40 cm. The bone mineral density of the femora and tibiae was measured by double energy X-ray absorptiometry and the same bones were evaluated by mechanical tests. Bone microarchitecture was evaluated by scanning electron microscopy. One-way ANOVA was used to compare groups. Significance was determined as P<0.05. Regarding bone mineral density, mechanical properties and bone microarchitecture, the beneficial effects were greater in the bones of animals subjected to pre-suspension training and subsequently to training during suspension, compared with the bones of animals subjected to pre-suspension training or to training during suspension. Our results indicate that a period of high impact exercise prior to tail suspension in rats can prevent the installation of osteopenia if there is also training during the tail suspension.

  12. Protective potentials of wild rice (Zizania latifolia (Griseb) Turcz) against obesity and lipotoxicity induced by a high-fat/cholesterol diet in rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Han, Shu-Fen; Zhang, Hong; Zhai, Cheng-Kai

    2012-07-01

    The study evaluates the protective potentials of wild rice against obesity and lipotoxicity induced by a high-fat/cholesterol diet in rats. In addition to the rats of low-fat diet group, others animals were exposed to a high-fat/cholesterol diet condition for 8 weeks. The city diet (CD) is based on the diet consumed by urban residents in modern China, which is rich in fat/cholesterol and high in carbohydrates from white rice and processed wheat starch. The chief source of dietary carbohydrates of wild rice diet (WRD) is from Chinese wild rice and other compositions are the same with CD. Rats fed CD showed elevated body and liver organ weights, lipid profiles, free fatty acids (FFA) and leptin comparable with rats fed high-fat/cholesterol diet (HFD) known to induce obesity and hyperlipidaemia in this species. However, rats consuming WRD suppressed the increase of lipid droplets accumulation, FFA, and leptin, and the decrease of lipoprotein lipase and adipose triglyceride lipase. Meanwhile, WRD prevented high-fat/cholesterol diet-induced elevation in protein expression of sterol-regulatory element binding protein-1c, and gene expression of fatty acid synthase and acetyl-CoA carboxylase. These findings indicate that wild rice as a natural food has the potentials of preventing obesity and liver lipotoxicity induced by a high-fat/cholesterol diet in rats. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. The organ specificity in pathological damage of chronic intermittent hypoxia: an experimental study on rat with high-fat diet.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Hui; Tian, Jian-li; Feng, Shu-zhi; Sun, Ning; Chen, Bao-yuan; Zhang, Yun

    2013-09-01

    It is known today that sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome and its characteristic chronic intermittent hypoxia can cause damages to multiple organs, including the cardiovascular system, urinary system, and liver. It is still unclear, however, whether the damage caused by sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome and the severity of the damage are organ-specific. This research observed the pathological effects of chronic intermittent hypoxia on rat's thoracic aorta, myocardium, liver, and kidney, under the condition of lipid metabolism disturbance, through establishing the rat model of chronic intermittent hypoxia with high-fat diet by imitating the features of human sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome. In this model, 24 male Wistar rats were randomly divided into three groups: a control group fed by regular diet, a high-fat group fed by high-fat diet, and a high-fat plus intermittent hypoxia group fed by high-fat diet and treated with intermittent hypoxia 7 h a day. At the end of the ninth week, the pathological changes of rat's organs, including the thoracic aorta, myocardium, liver, and kidney are observed (under both optical microscopy and transmission electron microscopy). As the result of the experiment shows, while there was no abnormal effect observed on any organs of the control group, slight pathological changes were found in the organs of the high-fat group. For the high-fat plus intermittent hypoxia group, however, remarkably severer damages were found on all the organs. It also showed that the severity of the damage varies by organ in the high-fat plus intermittent hypoxia group, with the thoracic aorta being the worst, followed by the liver and myocardium, and the kidney being the slightest. Chronic intermittent hypoxia can lead to multiple-organ damage to rat with high-fat diet. Different organs appear to have different sensitivity to chronic intermittent hypoxia.

  14. Reassessment of LRF radioimmunoassay in the plasma and hypothalamic extracts of rats and rams

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Caraty, A.; Reviers, M.-M. de; Pelletier, J.; Dubois, M.P.

    1980-01-01

    A highly sensitive and specific radioimmunoassay for LRF was applied to the measurement of endogenous LRF in various hypothalamic extracts. Specific antiserum was obtained by injecting LRF conjugated to human serum albumin with glutaraldehyde. Thyrotropin-releasing hormone, lysine vasopressin, oxytocin, noradrenaline, LH, FSH and cortical extracts did not appear to affect the assay, and the maximum cross-reaction observed with the LRF analogs tested was 8.5% with LRF 2-10. The best detection limit (0.4 pg/tube) was usually obtained when the labelled LRF had been purified by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Within and between-assay coefficients of variation were 8.0 and 12.6% respectively (from B/Bo=20 to 80%). Synthetic LRF administered to rams by intravenous injection was readily detectable in the peripheral plasma. However, the direct measurement of plasma endogenous LRF may give misleading results due to non-specific interference by plasma factors. No endogenous LRF could be detected in plasma methanol or acetone extracts obtained from rats and rams in various physiological conditions. The inhibition curves parallel to the synthetic LRF curve were obtained by diluting the crude hypothalamic extracts of rams and rats, and a good correlation (r=0,997) with the Ramirez-McCann bioassay resulted, indicating that using radioimmunoassay to determine hypothalamic LRF content may be fruitful in studying hypothalamo-pituitary gonad interactions. The LRF content of rat and ovine hypothalami ranged from 2-8 to 20-80 ng of LRF, respectively

  15. Differential Effects of High-Carbohydrate and High-Fat Diet Composition on Metabolic Control and Insulin Resistance in Normal Rats

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ble-Castillo, Jorge L.; Aparicio-Trapala, María A.; Juárez-Rojop, Isela E.; Torres-Lopez, Jorge E.; Mendez, Jose D.; Aguilar-Mariscal, Hidemi; Olvera-Hernández, Viridiana; Palma-Cordova, Leydi C.; Diaz-Zagoya, Juan C.

    2012-01-01

    The macronutrient component of diets is critical for metabolic control and insulin action. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of high fat diets (HFDs) vs. high carbohydrate diets (HCDs) on metabolic control and insulin resistance in Wistar rats. Thirty animals divided into five groups (n = 6) were fed: (1) Control diet (CD); (2) High-saturated fat diet (HSFD); (3) High-unsaturated fat diet (HUFD); (4) High-digestible starch diet, (HDSD); and (5) High-resistant starch diet (HRSD) during eight weeks. HFDs and HCDs reduced weight gain in comparison with CD, however no statistical significance was reached. Calorie intake was similar in both HFDs and CD, but rats receiving HCDs showed higher calorie consumption than other groups, (p < 0.01). HRSD showed the lowest levels of serum and hepatic lipids. The HUFD induced the lowest fasting glycemia levels and HOMA-IR values. The HDSD group exhibited the highest insulin resistance and hepatic cholesterol content. In conclusion, HUFD exhibited the most beneficial effects on glycemic control meanwhile HRSD induced the highest reduction on lipid content and did not modify insulin sensitivity. In both groups, HFDs and HCDs, the diet constituents were more important factors than caloric intake for metabolic disturbance and insulin resistance. PMID:22754464

  16. Effect of high carbohydrate or high protein diets on the uptake of [57Co] cyanocobalamin in the rat organs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Inamdar-Deshmukh, A.B.; Jathar, V.S.

    1978-01-01

    The mean total body radiocyanocobalamin uptake in rats fed high casein or high carbohydrate diet did not show any significant difference, though there was marked variation in their body-weights. It seems that the body possesses the mechanism to maintain its B 12 store constant though the protein status altered at an early stage of under or over protein nutrition. (author)

  17. Effects of α-lipoic acid on endothelial function in aged diabetic and high-fat fed rats

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sena, C M; Nunes, E; Louro, T; Proença, T; Fernandes, R; Boarder, M R; Seiça, R M

    2007-01-01

    Background and purpose: This study was conducted to investigate the effects of α-lipoic acid (α-LA) on endothelial function in diabetic and high-fat fed animal models and elucidate the potential mechanism underlying the benefits of α-LA. Experimental approach: Plasma metabolites reflecting glucose and lipid metabolism, endothelial function, urinary albumin excretion (UAE), plasma and aortic malondialdehyde (MDA) and urinary 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) were assessed in non-diabetic controls (Wistar rats), untreated Goto-Kakizaki (GK) diabetic and high-fat fed GK rats (fed with atherogenic diet only, treated with α-LA and treated with vehicle, for 3 months). Vascular eNOS, nitrotyrosine, carbonyl groups and superoxide anion were also assessed in the different groups. Key results: α-LA and soybean oil significantly reduced both total and non-HDL serum cholesterol and triglycerides induced by atherogenic diet. MDA, carbonyl groups, vascular superoxide and 8-OHdG levels were higher in GK and high-fat fed GK groups and fully reversed with α-LA treatment. High-fat fed GK diabetic rats showed significantly reduced endothelial function and increased UAE, effects ameliorated with α-LA. This endothelial dysfunction was associated with decreased NO production, decreased expression of eNOS and increased vascular superoxide production and nitrotyrosine expression. Conclusions and implications: α-LA restores endothelial function and significantly improves systemic and local oxidative stress in high-fat fed GK diabetic rats. Improved endothelial function due to α-LA was at least partially attributed to recoupling of eNOS and increased NO bioavailability and represents a pharmacological approach to prevent major complications associated with type 2 diabetes. PMID:17906683

  18. Antioxidant and anti hyperglycemic role of wine grape powder in rats fed with a high fructose diet

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Romina Hernández-Salinas

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Metabolic syndrome is a growing worldwide health problem. We evaluated the effects of wine grape powder (WGP, rich in antioxidants and fiber, in a rat model of metabolic syndrome induced by a high fructose diet. We tested whether WGP supplementation may prevent glucose intolerance and decrease oxidative stress in rats fed with a high fructose diet. METHODS: Male Sprague-Dawley rats weighing 180 g were divided into four groups according to their feeding protocols. Rats were fed with control diet (C, control plus 20 % WGP (C + WGP, 50 % high fructose (HF or 50 % fructose plus 20 % WGP (HF + WGP for 16 weeks. Blood glucose, insulin and triglycerides, weight, and arterial blood pressure were measured. Homeostasis model assessment (HOMA index was calculated using insulin and glucose values. A glucose tolerance test was performed 2 days before the end of the experiment. As an index of oxidative stress, thio-barbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS level was measured in plasma and kidney, and superoxide dismutase was measured in the kidney. RESULTS: Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances in plasma and renal tissue were significantly higher when compared to the control group. In addition, the area under the curve of the glucose tolerance test was higher in HF fed animals. Furthermore, fasting blood glucose, plasma insulin levels, and the HOMA index, were also increased. WGP supplementation prevented these alterations in rats fed with the HF diet. We did not find any significant difference in body weight or systolic blood pressure in any of the groups. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that WGP supplementation prevented hyperglycemia, insulin resistance and reduced oxidative stress in rats fed with HF diet. We propose that WGP may be used as a supplement in human food as well.

  19. Trace glucose and lipid metabolism in high androgen and high-fat diet induced polycystic ovary syndrome rats

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhai Hua-Ling

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background There is a high prevalence of diabetes mellitus (DM and dyslipidemia in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of different metabolic pathways in the development of diabetes mellitus in high-androgen female mice fed with a high-fat diet. Methods Female Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into 3 groups: the control group(C, n = 10; the andronate-treated group (Andronate, n = 10 (treated with andronate, 1 mg/100 g body weight/day for 8 weeks; and the andronate-treated and high-fat diet group (Andronate+HFD, n = 10. The rate of glucose appearance (Ra of glucose, gluconeogenesis (GNG, and the rate of glycerol appearance (Ra of glycerol were assessed with a stable isotope tracer. The serum sex hormone levels, insulin levels, glucose concentration, and the lipid profile were also measured. Results Compared with control group, both andronate-treated groups exhibited obesity with higher insulin concentrations (P P Conclusions Andronate with HFD rat model showed ovarian and metabolic features of PCOS, significant increase in glucose Ra, GNG, and lipid profiles, as well as normal blood glucose levels. Therefore, aberrant IR, increased glucose Ra, GNG, and lipid metabolism may represent the early-stage of glucose and lipid kinetics disorder, thereby might be used as potential early-stage treatment targets for PCOS.

  20. Diminished metabolic responses to centrally-administered apelin-13 in diet-induced obese rats fed a high-fat diet.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clarke, K J; Whitaker, K W; Reyes, T M

    2009-02-01

    The central administration of apelin, a recently identified adipokine, has been shown to affect food and water intake. The present study investigated whether body weight could affect an animal's response to apelin. The effects of centrally-administered apelin-13 on food and water intake, activity and metabolic rate were investigated in adult male diet-induced obese (DIO) rats fed either a high fat (32%) or control diet. Rats were administered i.c.v. apelin-13, 15-30 min prior to lights out, and food and water intake, activity and metabolic rate were assessed. Intracerebroventricular administration of apelin-13 decreased food and water intake and respiratory exchange ratio in DIO rats on the control diet, but had no effect in DIO rats on the high-fat diet. In an effort to identify potential central mechanisms explaining the observed physiological responses, the mRNA level of the apelin receptor, APJ, was examined in the hypothalamus. A high-fat diet induced an up-regulation of the expression of the receptor. Apelin induced a down-regulation of the receptor, but only in the DIO animals on the high-fat diet. In conclusion, we have demonstrated a diminished central nervous system response to apelin that is coincident with obesity.

  1. Inhibition of Epithelial TNF-α Receptors by Purified Fruit Bromelain Ameliorates Intestinal Inflammation and Barrier Dysfunction in Colitis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhou, Zijuan; Wang, Liang; Feng, Panpan; Yin, Lianhong; Wang, Chen; Zhi, Shengxu; Dong, Jianyi; Wang, Jingyu; Lin, Yuan; Chen, Dapeng; Xiong, Yongjian; Peng, Jinyong

    2017-01-01

    Activation of the TNF-α receptor (TNFR) leads to an inflammatory response, and anti-TNF therapy has been administered to reduce inflammation symptoms and heal mucosal ulcers in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Bromelain, a complex natural mixture of proteolytic enzymes, has been shown to exert anti-inflammatory effects. This study aimed to investigate the effect of purified fruit bromelain (PFB)-induced inhibition of epithelial TNFR in a rat colitis model. Colitis was established by intracolonic administration of 2, 4, 6-trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid. Expression of TNFR1 and TNFR2 was measured by quantitative RT-PCR and western blotting. The effect of PFB on colitis was evaluated by examining the inflammatory response and intestinal epithelial barrier function. Our results showed that both TNFR1 and TNFR2 expression were significantly increased in a colitis model, and the increase was significantly reversed by PFB. Colitis symptoms, including infiltration of inflammatory cells, cytokine profiles, epithelial cell apoptosis, and epithelial tight junction barrier dysfunction were significantly ameliorated by PFB. Compared with fruit bromelain and stem bromelain complex, the inhibition of TNFR2 induced by PFB was stronger than that exhibited on TNFR1. These results indicate that PFB showed a stronger selective inhibitory effect on TNFR2 than TNFR1. In other words, purification of fruit bromelain increases its selectivity on TNFR2 inhibition. High expression of epithelial TNFRs in colitis was significantly counteracted by PFB, and PFB-induced TNFR inhibition ameliorated colitis symptoms. These results supply novel insights into potential IBD treatment by PFB.

  2. Preparation and quantification of 3'-phosphoadenosine 5'-phospho[35S]sulfate with high specific activity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vargas, F.

    1988-01-01

    The synthesis and quantitation of the sulfate donor 3'-phosphoadenosine 5'-phospho[35S]sulfate (PAP35S), prepared from inorganic [35S]sulfate and ATP, were studied. An enzymatic transfer method based upon the quantitative transfer of [35S]sulfate from PAP35S to 2-naphthol and 4-methylumbelliferone by the action of phenolsulfotransferase activity from rat brain cytosol was also developed. The 2-naphthyl[35S]sulfate or 35S-methylumbelliferone sulfate formed was isolated by polystyrene bead chromatography. This method allows the detection of between 0.1 pmol and 1 nmol/ml of PAP35S. PAP35S of high specific activity (75 Ci/mmol) was prepared by incubating ATP and carrier-free Na2 35SO4 with a 100,000g supernatant fraction from rat spleen. The product was purified by ion-exchange chromatography. The specific activity and purity of PAP35S were estimated by examining the ratios of Km values for PAP35S of the tyrosyl protein sulfotransferase present in microsomes from rat cerebral cortex. The advantage and applications of these methods for the detection of femtomole amounts, and the synthesis of large scale quantities of PAP35S with high specific activity are discussed

  3. Prenatal exposure to lipopolysaccharide combined with pre- and postnatal high-fat diet result in lowered blood pressure and insulin resistance in offspring rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hao, Xue-Qin; Du, Jing-Xia; Li, Yan; Li, Meng; Zhang, Shou-Yan

    2014-01-01

    Adult metabolic syndrome may in part have origins in fetal or early life. This study was designed to explore the effect of prenatal exposure to lipopolysaccharide and high-fat diet on metabolic syndrome in offspring rats. 32 pregnant rats were randomly divided into four groups, including Control group; LPS group (pregnant rats were injected with LPS 0.4 mg/kg intraperitoneally on the 8(th), 10(th) and 12(th) day of pregnancy); High-fat group (maternal rats had high-fat diet during pregnancy and lactation period, and their pups also had high-fat diet up to the third month of life); LPS + High-fat group (rats were exposed to the identical experimental scheme with LPS group and High-fat group). Blood pressure elevated in LPS group and High-fat group, reduced in LPS+High-fat group, accompanied by the increase of serum leptin level in LPS and High-fat group and increase of serum IL-6, TNF-a in High-fat group; both serum insulin and cholesterol increased in High-fat and LPS+High-fat group, as well as insulin in LPS group. HOMA-IR value increased in LPS, High-fat and LPS+High-fat group, and QUICKI decreased in these groups; H-E staining showed morphologically pathological changes in thoracic aorta and liver tissue in the three groups. Increased serum alanine and aspartate aminotransferase suggest impaired liver function in LPS+High-fat group. Prenatal exposure to lipopolysaccharide combined with pre- and postnatal high-fat diet result in lowered blood pressure, insulin resistance and impaired liver function in three-month old offspring rats. The lowered blood pressure might benefit from the predictive adaptive response to prenatal inflammation.

  4. Low-carbohydrate, high-fat diets have sex-specific effects on bone health in rats

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zengin, Ayse; Kropp, Benedikt; Chevalier, Yan

    2016-01-01

    the effects in female rats remain unknown. Therefore, we investigated whether sex-specific effects of LC-HF diets on bone health exist. METHODS: Twelve-week-old male and female Wistar rats were isoenergetically pair-fed either a control diet (CD), "Atkins-style" protein-matched diet (LC-HF-1), or ketogenic......PURPOSE: Studies in humans suggest that consumption of low-carbohydrate, high-fat diets (LC-HF) could be detrimental for growth and bone health. In young male rats, LC-HF diets negatively affect bone health by impairing the growth hormone/insulin-like growth factor axis (GH/IGF axis), while...... low-protein diet (LC-HF-2) for 4 weeks. In females, microcomputed tomography and histomorphometry analyses were performed on the distal femur. Sex hormones were analysed with liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry, and endocrine parameters including GH and IGF-I were measured by immunoassay...

  5. Acute and Two-Week Inhalation Toxicity Studies in Rats for Polyalphaolefin (PAO) Fluid

    Science.gov (United States)

    2017-04-01

    Institute for Science and Education (ORISE)); Antonio Brown (ORISE); Joseph B. Brune (Level One Personnel); Kathy A. Frondorf, Nathan M. Gargas... Nutrition , International, LLC, Brentwood MO) and reverse osmosis purified municipal tap water, ad libitum. Rats were randomly assigned to exposure...0.00 Red blood cells (# x 106/µL) 9.08 0.69 8.82 0.83 8.86 0.52 9.01 0.44 Hemoglobin (g/dL) 15.08 1.29 14.70 1.65 14.87 1.16 15.06 0.78 Hematocrit

  6. Characterization of a protein kinase activity associated with purified capsids of the granulosis virus infecting Plodia interpunctella.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilson, M E; Consigli, R A

    1985-06-01

    A cyclic-nucleotide independent protein kinase activity has been demonstrated in highly purified preparations of the granulosis virus infecting the Indian meal moth, Plodia interpunctella. A divalent cation was required for activity. Manganese was the preferred cation and a pH of 8.0 resulted in optimal incorporation of 32P radiolabel into acid-precipitable protein. Although both ATP and GTP could serve as phosphate donors, ATP was utilized more efficiently by the enzyme. The kinase activity was localized to purified capsids; and the basic, internal core protein, VP12, was found to be the predominant viral acceptor. Histones and protamine sulfate could also serve as acceptors for the capsid-associated kinase activity. Using acid hydrolysis and phosphoamino acid analysis of phosphorylated nucleocapsid protein and nuclear magnetic resonance of phosphorylated VP12, it was determined that the enzyme catalyzes the transfer of phosphate to both serine and arginine residues of acceptor proteins. We believe this kinase activity may play a significant role in the viral replication cycle.

  7. Bioactive constituents from "triguero" asparagus improve the plasma lipid profile and liver antioxidant status in hypercholesterolemic rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vázquez-Castilla, Sara; De la Puerta, Rocío; Garcia Gimenez, María Dolores; Fernández-Arche, María Angeles; Guillén-Bejarano, Rafael

    2013-10-24

    We have previously shown that the Andalusian-cultivated Asparagus officinalis L. "triguero" variety produces hypocholesterolemic and hepatoprotective effects on rats. This asparagus is a rich source of phytochemicals although we hypothesized there would be some of them more involved in these functional properties. Thus, we aimed to study the effects of asparagus (500 mg/kg body weight (bw)/day) and their partially purified fractions in flavonoids (50 mg/kg bw/day), saponins (5 mg/kg bw/day) and dietary fiber (500 mg/kg bw/day) on oxidative status and on lipid profile in rats fed a cholesterol-rich diet. After 5 weeks treatment, plasma lipid values, hepatic enzyme activities and liver malondialdehyde (MDA) concentrations were measured. With the exception of the saponin fraction (SF), the administration of lyophilized asparagus (LA), fiber fraction (FF), and flavonoid fraction (FVF) to hypercholesterolemic rats produced a significant hypolipidemic effect compare to a high-cholesterol diet (HCD). In addition, the LA and FVF groups exhibited a significant increase in enzyme activity from multiple hepatic antioxidant systems including: superoxide dismutase, catalase, and gluthatione reductase/peroxidase as well as a decrease in MDA concentrations compared to HCD group. These results demonstrate that "triguero" asparagus possesses bioactive constituents, especially dietary fiber and flavonoids, that improve the plasma lipid profile and prevent hepatic oxidative damage under conditions of hypercholesterolemia.

  8. Highly selective water channel activity measured by voltage clamp: analysis of planar lipid bilayers reconstituted with purified AqpZ.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pohl, P; Saparov, S M; Borgnia, M J; Agre, P

    2001-08-14

    Aquaporins are membrane channels selectively permeated by water or water plus glycerol. Conflicting reports have described ion conductance associated with some water channels, raising the question of whether ion conductance is a general property of the aquaporin family. To clarify this question, a defined system was developed to simultaneously measure water permeability and ion conductance. The Escherichia coli water channel aquaporin-Z (AqpZ) was studied, because it is a highly stable tetramer. Planar lipid bilayers were formed from unilamellar vesicles containing purified AqpZ. The hydraulic conductivity of bilayers made from the total extract of E. coli lipids increased 3-fold if reconstituted with AqpZ, but electric conductance was unchanged. No channel activity was detected under voltage-clamp conditions, indicating that less than one in 10(9) transport events is electrogenic. Microelectrode measurements were simultaneously undertaken adjacent to the membrane. Changes in sodium concentration profiles accompanying transmembrane water flow permitted calculation of the activation energies: 14 kcal/mol for protein-free lipid bilayers and 4 kcal/mol for lipid bilayers containing AqpZ. Neither the water permeability nor the electric conductivity exhibited voltage dependence. This sensitive system demonstrated that AqpZ is permeated by water but not charged ions and should permit direct analyses of putative electrogenic properties of other aquaporins.

  9. Myocardial Infarction Area Quantification using High-Resolution SPECT Images in Rats

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Oliveira, Luciano Fonseca Lemos de [Divisão de Cardiologia, Departamento de Clínica Médica, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP (Brazil); Mejia, Jorge [Faculdade de Medicina de São José do Rio Preto, São José do Rio Preto, SP (Brazil); Carvalho, Eduardo Elias Vieira de; Lataro, Renata Maria; Frassetto, Sarita Nasbine [Divisão de Cardiologia, Departamento de Clínica Médica, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP (Brazil); Fazan, Rubens Jr.; Salgado, Hélio Cesar [Departamento de Fisiologia, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP (Brazil); Galvis-Alonso, Orfa Yineth [Faculdade de Medicina de São José do Rio Preto, São José do Rio Preto, SP (Brazil); Simões, Marcus Vinícius, E-mail: msimoes@fmrp.usp.br [Divisão de Cardiologia, Departamento de Clínica Médica, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP (Brazil)

    2013-07-15

    Imaging techniques enable in vivo sequential assessment of the morphology and function of animal organs in experimental models. We developed a device for high-resolution single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging based on an adapted pinhole collimator. To determine the accuracy of this system for quantification of myocardial infarct area in rats. Thirteen male Wistar rats (250 g) underwent experimental myocardial infarction by occlusion of the left coronary artery. After 4 weeks, SPECT images were acquired 1.5 hours after intravenous injection of 555 MBq of 99mTc-Sestamibi. The tomographic reconstruction was performed by using specially developed software based on the Maximum Likelihood algorithm. The analysis of the data included the correlation between the area of perfusion defects detected by scintigraphy and extent of myocardial fibrosis assessed by histology. The images showed a high target organ/background ratio with adequate visualization of the left ventricular walls and cavity. All animals presenting infarction areas were correctly identified by the perfusion images. There was no difference of the infarct area as measured by SPECT (21.1 ± 21.2%) and by histology (21.7 ± 22.0%; p=0.45). There was a strong correlation between individual values of the area of infarction measured by these two methods. The developed system presented adequate spatial resolution and high accuracy for the detection and quantification of myocardial infarction areas, consisting in a low cost and versatile option for high-resolution SPECT imaging of small rodents.

  10. Biological and Histological Studies of Purified Product from Streptomyces janthinus M7 Metabolites

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tawfik Zahira S.

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available Fifteen clinical samples were taken out from patients suffering cancer, these patients being under the treatment with radio- and/or chemotherapy. The samples were used for the isolation of bacterial cells surrounding tumor; the samples were collected from Center of Cancer Therapy, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt. The clinical bacterial isolates were purified and identified according to Bergey's manual of determinative bacteriology ninth edition (1994. The bacterial isolates were found to be Klebsiella oxytoca m1; Enterobacter cancerogenus m2; P. aeruginosa m3; Citrobacter diversus m4; Enterobacter agglomerans m5; Klebsiella oxytoca m6; Enterobacter dissolvens m7; Serratia fonticola m8; Escherichia coli m9; Citrobacter freundii m10; Staphylococcus aureus m11; Escherichia coli m12; P. aeruginosa m13; Staphylococcus aureus m14; and Bacillus cereus m15. In the present study both primary and secondary screening methods were used to screen the antibacterial activity of St. janthinus M7 against fifteen clinical bacterial isolates. The St. janthinus M7 showed an increase in antibacterial activity against all the tested human bacterial pathogens. In this study Gamma irradiation at dose levels (0.5 and 1.5 kGy was used for the enhancement of the antibacterial activity of Streptomyces strain against the clinical isolates. Several commercial antibiotic discs (Doxorubicin, Augmentin, Norfloxacin, Ofloxacin, Oxacillin, and Cefazolin were used for comparing their antimicrobial activity with purified product. The results declared a significant increase in the antibacterial activity in most cases. The physiochemical properties of the purified product were carried out for determination of Rf, empirical formula, M.W, and chemical structure of product and then analyzed by thin layer chromatography, elemental analysis, UV, Mass, and NMR. The result exhibited brown color, one spot, Rf (0.76, M.W (473, while it recorded 270 nm in UV region and the calculated

  11. Effects of low calcium plus high aluminum diet on magnesium and calcium contents in spinal cord and trabecular bone of rats

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yasui, Masayuki; Ota, Kiichiro [Wakayama Medical Coll. (Japan); Sasajima, Kazuhisa

    1998-01-01

    Current epidemiological surveys in the Western Pacific area and Kii Peninsula have suggested that low calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), and high aluminum (Al) and manganese (Mn) in river, soil and drinking water may be implicated in the pathogenetic process of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and parkinsonism-dementia (PD). The condition of unbalanced minerals was experimentally duplicated in this study using rats. Male Wistar rats, weighing 200 g, were maintained for 60 days on the following diets: (A) standard diet, (B) low Ca diet, (C) low Ca diet with high Al. Magnesium concentration was determined in spinal cord and trabecular bone using inductively coupled plasma emission spectrometry (ICP) and the calcium concentration was determined using neutron activation method. In the group maintained on low Ca high Al diet, magnesium content of the spinal cord was lower than the group fed standard diet. Also, magnesium content of lumbar bone showed lower values in the unbalanced diet group fed low Ca high Al diet than those in the standard diet and low Ca diet groups. Calcium content of spinal cord was highest in rats maintained on low Ca high Al diet. Calcium content in lumbar bone of rats significantly decreased in rats maintained on the low Ca diet (group B and C) compared to rats given a standard diet (group A). Our data indicate that low Ca and high Al dietary intake influence Mg concentration in bone and central nervous system (CNS) tissues and that low Ca and high Al diet diminish Mg in bone and CNS tissues, thereby inducing loss of calcification in bone and degeneration of CNS tissues due to disturbance of the normal biological effects of Mg. (author)

  12. [Protective effect of Liuweidihuang Pills against cellphone electromagnetic radiation-induced histomorphological abnormality, oxidative injury, and cell apoptosis in rat testes].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, Hui-rong; Cao, Xiao-hui; Ma, Xue-lian; Chen, Jin-jin; Chen, Jing-wei; Yang, Hui; Liu, Yun-xiao

    2015-08-01

    To observe the effect of Liuweidihuang Pills in relieving cellphone electromagnetic radiation-induced histomorphological abnormality, oxidative injury, and cell apoptosis in the rat testis. Thirty adult male SD rats were equally randomized into a normal, a radiated, and a Liuweidihuang group, the animals in the latter two groups exposed to electromagnetic radiation of 900 MHz cellphone frequency 4 hours a day for 18 days. Meanwhile, the rats in the Liuweidihuang group were treated with the suspension of Liuweidihuang Pills at 1 ml/100 g body weight and the other rats intragastrically with the equal volume of purified water. Then all the rats were killed for observation of testicular histomorphology by routine HE staining, measurement of testicular malondialdehyde (MDA) and glutathione (GSH) levels by colorimetry, and determination of the expressions of bax and bcl-2 proteins in the testis tissue by immunohistochemistry. Compared with the normal controls, the radiated rats showed obviously loose structure, reduced layers of spermatocytes, and cavitation in the seminiferous tubules. Significant increases were observed in the MDA level (P radiated rats. In comparison with the radiated rats, those of the Liuweidihuang group exhibited nearly normal testicular structure, significantly lower MDA level (P electromagnetic radiation-induced histomorphological abnormality of the testis tissue and reduce its oxidative damage and cell apoptosis.

  13. Effect of Partial Sleep Deprivation on Lipid Profile in High Fat Diet-Fed Rats in the Presence and Absence of Vitamin C

    OpenAIRE

    Hossein Najafzadeh; Mohammad-Kazem Gharibnaseri; Ali Shahriyari; Hamideh Akbari-Aliabad

    2013-01-01

    Background: The daily stress and shift working cause insomnia. In other hands, fatty food consumption increased this disorder. The aim of present study is evaluation additive effect of partial insomnia and high fatty diet with or without vitamin C on serum lipid profile in rats.Materials and Methods: Fifty six rats in 7 groups (8 rats each group) were conducted for study during 26 days as: 1: normal diet+normal sleep, 2: high fatty diet+normal sleep, 3: normal diet+insomnia, 4: high fatty die...

  14. Effect of low carbohydrate high protein (LCHP) diet on lipid metabolism, liver and kidney function in rats.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kostogrys, Renata B; Franczyk-Żarów, Magdalena; Maślak, Edyta; Topolska, Kinga

    2015-03-01

    The objective of this study was to compare effects of Western diet (WD) with low carbohydrate high protein (LCHP) diet on lipid metabolism, liver and kidney function in rats. Eighteen rats were randomly assigned to three experimental groups and fed for the next 2 months. The experimental diets were: Control (7% of soybean oil, 20% protein), WD (21% of butter, 20% protein), and LCHP (21% of butter and 52.4% protein) diet. The LCHP diet significantly decreased the body weight of the rats. Diet consumption was differentiated among groups, however significant changes were observed since third week of the experiment duration. Rats fed LCHP diet ate significantly less (25.2g/animal/day) than those from Control (30.2g/animal/day) and WD (27.8 g/animal/day) groups. Additionally, food efficiency ratio (FER) tended to decrease in LCHP fed rats. Serum homocysteine concentration significantly decreased in rats fed WD and LCHP diets. Liver weights were significantly higher in rats fed WD and LCHP diets. At the end of the experiment (2 months) the triacylglycerol (TAG) was significantly decreased in animals fed LCHP compared to WD. qRT-PCR showed that SCD-1 and FAS were decreased in LCHP fed rats, but WD diet increased expression of lipid metabolism genes. Rats receiving LCHP diet had two fold higher kidney weight and 54.5% higher creatinin level compared to Control and WD diets. In conclusion, LCHP diet decreased animal's body weight and decreased TAG in rat's serum. However, kidney damage in LCHP rats was observed. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  15. Purification and characterization of cGMP binding protein-phosphodiesterase from rat lung

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Francis, S.H.; Walseth, T.F.; Corbin, J.D.

    1986-01-01

    The cGMP binding protein-phosphodiesterase (cG-BPP) with a phosphodiesterase specific activity of 7 μM/min/mg has been purified from rat lung by sequential chromatography on DEAE-cellulose, Blue-Sepharose, zinc chelate affinity adsorbent and HPLC-DEAE. Migration of the major band on SDS-PAGE corresponds to a MW of ∼93,000. Both cGMP phosphodiesterase activity and cGMP binding from the HPLC-DEAE profile correlate with this band. Since the authors previous work has determined the native MW to be ∼177,000, this suggests a dimeric structure comprised of two 93,000 MW subunits for the rat lung cG-BPP. At low cGMP concentrations, cGMP binding is stimulated ∼20-fold by histone and ∼5-fold by 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine(IBMX). The purified protein has one component of cGMP dissociation with a rate constant of 0.045/min. Photolysis of the purified protein in the presence of 32 P-cGMP labels the 93,000 MW band and this labeling is increased by IBMX, indicating that the 93,000 MW band is a subunit of the cGMP-BPP. This implies that the enzyme preparation is nearly homogeneous, a conclusion also supported by a minimum [ 3 H]-cGMP binding stoichiometry of 0.5 mol per 93,000 subunit. An additional protein band with a MW of ∼90,000 also occurs in these preparations which exhibits behavior similar to the 93,000 MW protein. N 2 -Hexyl-cGMP inhibits phosphodiesterase activity by competing with cGMP for hydrolysis at the catalytic site but not at the binding site. N 2 -Hexyl cGMP actually increases cGMP binding. This provides the first evidence that cGMP binding is increased by compounds hydrolyzed at the catalytic site. This interaction between the binding and phosphodiesterase sites could be important in the regulation of the functions of these sites in vivo

  16. A low-carbohydrate/high-fat diet reduces blood pressure in spontaneously hypertensive rats without deleterious changes in insulin resistance

    OpenAIRE

    Bosse, John D.; Lin, Han Yi; Sloan, Crystal; Zhang, Quan-Jiang; Abel, E. Dale; Pereira, Troy J.; Dolinsky, Vernon W.; Symons, J. David; Jalili, Thunder

    2013-01-01

    Previous studies reported that diets high in simple carbohydrates could increase blood pressure in rodents. We hypothesized that the converse, a low-carbohydrate/high-fat diet, might reduce blood pressure. Six-week-old spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR; n = 54) and Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKY; n = 53, normotensive control) were fed either a control diet (C; 10% fat, 70% carbohydrate, 20% protein) or a low-carbohydrate/high-fat diet (HF; 20% carbohydrate, 60% fat, 20% protein). After 10 wk, SHR-...

  17. Oxidized fish oil in rat pregnancy causes high newborn mortality and increases maternal insulin resistance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Albert, Benjamin B; Vickers, Mark H; Gray, Clint; Reynolds, Clare M; Segovia, Stephanie A; Derraik, José G B; Lewandowski, Paul A; Garg, Manohar L; Cameron-Smith, David; Hofman, Paul L; Cutfield, Wayne S

    2016-09-01

    Fish oil is commonly taken by pregnant women, and supplements sold at retail are often oxidized. Using a rat model, we aimed to assess the effects of supplementation with oxidized fish oil during pregnancy in mothers and offspring, focusing on newborn viability and maternal insulin sensitivity. Female rats were allocated to a control or high-fat diet and then mated. These rats were subsequently randomized to receive a daily gavage treatment of 1 ml of unoxidized fish oil, a highly oxidized fish oil, or control (water) throughout pregnancy. At birth, the gavage treatment was stopped, but the same maternal diets were fed ad libitum throughout lactation. Supplementation with oxidized fish oil during pregnancy had a marked adverse effect on newborn survival at day 2, leading to much greater odds of mortality than in the control (odds ratio 8.26) and unoxidized fish oil (odds ratio 13.70) groups. In addition, maternal intake of oxidized fish oil during pregnancy led to increased insulin resistance at the time of weaning (3 wks after exposure) compared with control dams (HOMA-IR 2.64 vs. 1.42; P = 0.044). These data show that the consumption of oxidized fish oil is harmful in rat pregnancy, with deleterious effects in both mothers and offspring. Copyright © 2016 the American Physiological Society.

  18. The Efficiency of Irradiated Garlic Powder in Mitigation of Hypercholesterolemic Risk Factor in High cholesterol Fed Rats

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    El-Neily, H.F.G.; El-Shennawy, H.M.

    2011-01-01

    The present study was conducted to explore the efficiency of radiation processed dried garlic powder at 10, 15 and 20 kGy on the average daily body gain, internal organ weights, certain hematological and biochemical parameters; including total plasma protein, albumin, globulin, total cholesterol, low and high density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C and HDL-C), triglyceride levels, and aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) activities in rats fed with a high-cholesterol diet. Experimental rats were fed a high cholesterol diet (10 g kg -1 ) with and without raw or radiation processed dried garlic powder at the above-mentioned doses for 6 weeks. Control rats were fed a casein diet (C). 20 g kg -1 dietary raw or irradiated dried garlic powder was used to supplemented cholesterol diet (Ch). It was observed that cholesterol-fed (Ch) animals had a significant increase in relative liver weight, plasma total cholesterol, LDL-C, triglyceride levels, LDL/HDL ratio, AST and ALT activities and a significant decrease in HDL-C level compared to the control group of rats fed on a Casein diet (C). However, when the rats were fed with a high cholesterol diet mixed with 20 g kg -1 raw (ChRG) or irradiated dried garlic powder at 10 (ChG10), 15 (ChG15), and 20 kGy (ChG20), there was a significant reduction in their relative liver weight, hemoglobin, haematocrit, plasma total cholesterol, LDL-C, triglyceride levels, LDL/HDL ratio, and increased HDL level and amended AST and ALT activities levels as compared with the group which was on a diet containing high cholesterol without garlic powder (Ch). No significant changes were observed in relative spleen, kidney, lung, heart and testes weights, as well as, the total plasma protein, albumin, globulin concentrations in all of treated groups. These results show that the dietary 20 g kg -1 irradiated dried garlic powder at 10, 15 and 20 kGy are beneficial in reducing plasma cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL-C levels, El

  19. Workplace performance of a loose-fitting powered air purifying respirator during nanoparticle synthesis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Koivisto, Antti J.; Aromaa, Mikko; Koponen, Ismo K.; Fransman, Wouter; Jensen, Keld A.; Mäkelä, Jyrki M.; Hämeri, Kaarle J.

    2015-01-01

    Nanoparticle (particles with diameter ≤100 nm) exposure is recognized as a potentially harmful size fraction for pulmonary particle exposure. During nanoparticle synthesis, the number concentrations in the process room may exceed 10 × 10 6 cm −3 . During such conditions, it is essential that the occupants in the room wear highly reliable high-performance respirators to prevent inhalation exposure. Here we have studied the in-use program protection factor (PPF) of loose-fitting powered air purifying respirators, while workers were coating components with TiO 2 or Cu x O y nanoparticles under a hood using a liquid flame spray process. The PPF was measured using condensation particle counters, an electrical low pressure impactor, and diffusion chargers. The room particle concentrations varied from 4 × 10 6 to 40 × 10 6 cm −3 , and the count median aerodynamic diameter ranged from 32 to 180 nm. Concentrations inside the respirator varied from 0.7 to 7.2 cm −3 . However, on average, tidal breathing was assumed to increase the respirator concentration by 2.3 cm −3 . The derived PPF exceeded 1.1 × 10 6 , which is more than 40 × 10 3 times the respirator assigned protection factor. We were unable to measure clear differences in the PPF of respirators with old and new filters, among two male and one female user, or assess most penetrating particle size. This study shows that the loose-fitting powered air purifying respirator provides very efficient protection against nanoparticle inhalation exposure if used properly

  20. Specific, high affinity receptors for insulin-like growth factor II in the rat kidney glomerulus

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Haskell, J.F.; Pillion, D.J.; Meezan, E.

    1988-01-01

    Rat renal glomeruli were isolated by a technique involving kidney perfusion with a solution containing magnetic iron oxide particles, followed by homogenization, sieving, and concentration over a strong magnet. Isolated glomeruli were treated with 1% Triton X-100 to solubilize plasma membrane components, while insoluble basement membrane components were removed by centrifugation. [ 125 I]Insulin-like growth factor II (IGF-II) binding to this preparation was competitively inhibited by increasing amounts of unlabeled IGF-II, with 50% inhibition at an IGF-II concentration of 1 ng/ml. [ 125 I]IGF-II was covalently cross-linked with disuccinimidyl suberate to its receptor in rat renal glomeruli and a specific high mol wt (255,000) band could be identified on autoradiograms of dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gels. [ 125 I]IGF-II binding and cross-linking to this band was inhibited by a polyclonal antibody against the type II IGF receptor. These results demonstrate for the first time that the isolated rat renal glomerulus contains a high affinity receptor for IGF-II