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Biomedical subjects

Haruki Kitazawa

Publications and source records attributed to Haruki Kitazawa.

22 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Dextran from Leuconostoc mesenteroides augments immunostimulatory effects by the introduction of phosphate groups.

The immunological effects of phosphorylated dextran (in which phosphate groups were chemically introduced) on murine splenocytes were examined. When dextran produced by Leuconostoc mesenteroides was phosphorylated by a reaction with polyphosphoric acid in formamide solution for 48 h, the degree of phosphorylation of dextran was maximal. The highest phosphorus content (1.7%, wt/wt) was observed in 40 kDa of dextran. The mitogenic response of murine splenocytes was enhanced by the phosphorylated dextran, but its activity was not related to its molecular weight. A strong response was detected at a concentration of 10 to 500 microg/ml, and the highest activity was obtained 48 h after stimulation. Phosphorylated dextran was characterized as a B-cell-specific mitogen. The expressions of CD86 on CD8alpha- CD11c- and CD8alpha- CD11c+ cells were augmented by phosphorylated dextran. The levels of mRNA expression of gamma interferon and interleukin-10 on murine splenocytes were also increased by the stimulation. These results demonstrate that dextran exerts immunostimulation by the introduction of phosphate groups.

Animals↗

Immunostimulatory oligonucleotide, CpG-like motif exists in Lactobacillus delbrueckii ssp. bulgaricus NIAI B6.

The present study was conducted to find an immunostimulatory oligonucleotide derived from yogurt starter cultures. The chromosomal DNA was purified from nine strains of Lactobacillus delbrueckii ssp. bulgaricus and six strains of Streptococcus thermophilus. An immunostimulatory ability of the DNA was examined in a proliferation of peyer's patch and splenic B cells. Only the DNA from L. bulgaricus NIAI B6 induced a significant proliferation of both cells. When the DNA was cloned and amplified using PCR, the mitogenic activities to B cells were significantly increased by 13 of 135 DNA clones. Ten homologous nucleotide sequences were found as possible oligonucleotide sequences of mitogens, and were then chemically synthesized (sOL-LB1 to sOL-LB10). One CpG-like motif (sOL-LB7; 5'-CGGCACGCTCACGATTCTTG-3') was identified as an immunostimulatory oligonucleotide, but it did not contain palindromic CpG structure known as a B cell-specific mitogen. The sOL-LB7 substantially bound to B cells and increased the CD69 positive cells in peyer's patch cells. This study demonstrated that L. bulgaricus NIAI B6 was a good candidate of a starter culture for the production of new functional foods, "Bio-Defense Foods".

Animals↗

Swine Toll-like receptor 9(1) recognizes CpG motifs of human cell stimulant.

Complementary DNA (cDNA) encoding swine Toll-like receptor 9 (sTLR9) was isolated from Peyer's patches (Pps) of gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT). The complete open reading frame (ORF) of sTLR9 contains 3093 bp coding deduced 1030 amino acid residues. The amino acid sequence of sTLR9 was characterized by a signal peptide followed by multiple leucine-rich repeats, a transmembrane sequence and a cytoplasmic domain homologous to that of the human interleukin-1 receptor (TIR). The sTLR9 showed a higher amino acid identity with humans (81.8%) and felis catus (86.7%) than mice (74.9%). The HEK293T cells transfected with pCXN2.1-FLAG DNA containing the sTLR9 cDNA were expressed sTLR9 as a membrane-bound molecules, which were reactive with anti-sTLR9 rabbit polyclonal antibody. Moreover, the transfectant was responsible for the CpG oligo DNA. sTLR9 was preferentially expressed in Pps and mesenteric lymph nodes (MLNs), and its degree was approximately three times higher than a spleen but weak in the other tissues by the real-time quantitative PCR analyses. The strong expression of sTLR9 in Pps and MLNs and its recognizing CpG DNA for human cell stimulant are shown first in this study, which may help in understanding the intestinal immune system mediated by a bacterial DNA through TLR9.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

A novel immunostimulating aspect of Lactobacillus gasseri: induction of "Gasserokine" as chemoattractants for macrophages.

The chemotactic activity of the culture supernatants from 14 strains of Lactobacillus acidophilus and L. gasseri was examined for murine macrophages. Significant macrophage chemotactic activity was observed in three strains of L. acidophilus and all strains of L. gasseri. The highest activity was observed in the supernatant (1131-sup) from 24-h cultures of L. gasseri JCM1131T. The chemotactic factor from 1131-sup, designated as "Gasserokine", was purified by the C18 reverse phase and ion-exchange chromatography. The purity of Gasserokine was checked by HPLC with the reverse-phase mode. The chemotactic activity of Gasserokine was also observed for human monocytes. The macrophage chemotaxis induced by L. gasseri JCM1131T culture supernatants was discovered to be a new biological function exerted by probiotic lactic acid bacteria. Therefore, the activity is expected to be used for one of the functional parameters in the immunomodulating properties of probiotic lactic acid bacteria.

Animals↗