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J S Beckman

Publications and source records attributed to J S Beckman.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

Mechanisms of peroxynitrite-induced injury to pulmonary surfactants.

Activated alveolar macrophages secrete both nitric oxide and superoxide in the alveolar lining fluid which combine rapidly to form peroxynitrite, a potent oxidizing agent capable of damaging lipids and proteins in biological membranes. Peroxynitrite (1 mM) plus 100 microM Fe3+EDTA inhibited calf lung surfactant extract (CLSE) from reaching a minimum surface tension below 10 mN/m on dynamic compression. Peroxynitrite and its by-products reacted with the unsaturated lipid components of CLSE, as evidenced by the appearance of conjugated dienes and thiobarbituric acid products, and damaged all surfactant proteins. A mixture of the hydrophobic proteins [surfactant protein B (SP-B) and surfactant protein C (SP-C)] exposed to peroxynitrite became incapable of lowering phospholipid minimum surface tension on dynamic compression. Exposure of SP-A to peroxynitrite decreased its ability to cause lipid aggregation and to act synergistically with SP-B and SP-C in lowering surface tension of surfactant lipids. Western blot analysis of SP-A exposed to peroxynitrite was consistent with fragmentation and polymerization of the 28- to 36-kDa triplet band, and amino acid analysis revealed the presence of significant levels of 3-nitro-L-tyrosine. We conclude that peroxynitrite and its reactive intermediates inhibit pulmonary surfactant function by lipid peroxidation and damaging surfactant proteins.

Animals↗

Peroxynitrite-mediated tyrosine nitration catalyzed by superoxide dismutase.

Peroxynitrite (ONOO-), the reaction product of superoxide (O2-) and nitric oxide (NO), may be a major cytotoxic agent produced during inflammation, sepsis, and ischemia/reperfusion. Bovine Cu,Zn superoxide dismutase reacted with peroxynitrite to form a stable yellow protein-bound adduct identified as nitrotyrosine. The uv-visible spectrum of the peroxynitrite-modified superoxide dismutase was highly pH dependent, exhibiting a peak at 438 nm at alkaline pH that shifts to 356 nm at acidic pH. An equivalent uv-visible spectrum was obtained by Cu,Zn superoxide dismutase treated with tetranitromethane. The Raman spectrum of authentic nitrotyrosine was contained in the spectrum of peroxynitrite-modified Cu,Zn superoxide dismutase. The reaction was specific for peroxynitrite because no significant amounts of nitrotyrosine were formed with nitric oxide (NO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), nitrite (NO2-), or nitrate (NO3-). Removal of the copper from the Cu,Zn superoxide dismutase prevented formation of nitrotyrosine by peroxynitrite. The mechanism appears to involve peroxynitrite initially reacting with the active site copper to form an intermediate with the reactivity of nitronium ion (NO2+), which then nitrates tyrosine on a second molecule of superoxide dismutase. In the absence of exogenous phenolics, the rate of nitration of tyrosine followed second-order kinetics with respect to Cu,Zn superoxide dismutase concentration, proceeding at a rate of 1.0 +/- 0.1 M-1.s-1. Peroxynitrite-mediated nitration of tyrosine was also observed with the Mn and Fe superoxide dismutases as well as other copper-containing proteins.

Animals↗

Kinetics of superoxide dismutase- and iron-catalyzed nitration of phenolics by peroxynitrite.

Superoxide dismutase and Fe3+EDTA catalyzed the nitration by peroxynitrite (ONOO-) of a wide range of phenolics including tyrosine in proteins. Nitration was not mediated by a free radical mechanism because hydroxyl radical scavengers did not reduce either superoxide dismutase or Fe3+EDTA-catalyzed nitration and nitrogen dioxide was not a significant product from either catalyst. Rather, metal ions appear to catalyze the heterolytic cleavage of peroxynitrite to form a nitronium-like species (NO2+). The calculated energy for separating peroxynitrous acid into hydroxide ion and nitronium ion is 13 kcal.mol-1 at pH 7.0. Fe3+EDTA catalyzed nitration with an activation energy of 12 kcal.mol-1 at a rate of 5700 M-1.s-1 at 37 degrees C and pH 7.5. The reaction rate of peroxynitrite with bovine Cu,Zn superoxide dismutase was 10(5) M-1.s-1 at low superoxide dismutase concentrations, but the rate of nitration became independent of superoxide dismutase concentration above 10 microM with only 9% of added peroxynitrite yielding nitrophenol. We propose that peroxynitrite anion is more stable in the cis conformation, whereas only a higher energy species in the trans conformation can fit in the active site of Cu,Zn superoxide dismutase. At high superoxide dismutase concentrations, phenolic nitration may be limited by the rate of isomerization from the cis to trans conformations of peroxynitrite as well as by competing pathways for peroxynitrite decomposition. In contrast, Fe3+EDTA appears to react directly with the cis anion, resulting in greater nitration yields.

Animals↗

Peroxynitrite formation from macrophage-derived nitric oxide.

Peroxynitrite formation by rat alveolar macrophages activated with phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate was assayed by the Cu,Zn superoxide dismutase-catalyzed nitration of 4-hydroxyphenylacetate. The inhibitor of nitric oxide synthesis N-methyl-L-arginine prevented the Cu,Zn superoxide dismutase-catalyzed nitration of 4-hydroxyphenylacetate by stimulated macrophages, while Cu-depleted Zn superoxide dismutase did not catalyze the formation of 3-nitro-4-hydroxyphenylacetate either in vitro or in the presence of activated macrophages. The rate of phenolic nitration by activated macrophages was 9 +/- 2 pmol x 10(6) cells-1 x min-1 (mean +/- STD). Only 8% of synthetic peroxynitrite was trapped by superoxide dismutase, which suggested that the rate of peroxynitrite formation may have been as high as 0.11 nmol x 10(6) cells-1 x min-1. This upper estimate was consistent with N-methyl-L-arginine increasing the amount of superoxide detected with cytochrome c by 0.12 nmol x 10(6) cells-1 x min-1. The rate of nitrite and nitrate accumulation was 0.10 +/- 0.001 nmol x 10(6) cells-1 x min-1, suggesting that the majority of nitric oxide produced by activated macrophages may have been converted to peroxynitrite. The formation of a relatively long lived, strong oxidant from the reaction of nitric oxide and superoxide in activated macrophages may contribute to inflammatory cell-mediated tissue injury.

Animals↗

Bactericidal activity of peroxynitrite.

Peroxynitrite is a strong oxidant formed by macrophages and potentially by other cells that produce nitric oxide and superoxide. Peroxynitrite was highly bactericidal, killing Escherichia coli in direct proportion to its concentration with an LD50 of 250 microM at 37 degrees C in potassium phosphate, pH 7.4. The apparent bactericidal activity of a given concentration peroxynitrite at acidic pH was less than that at neutral and alkaline pH. However, after taking the rapid pH-dependent decomposition of peroxynitrite into account, the rate of the killing was not significantly different at pH 5 compared to pH 7.4. Metal chelators did not decrease peroxynitrite-mediated killing, indicating that exogenous transition metals were not required for toxicity. The hydroxyl radical scavengers mannitol, ethanol, and benzoate did not significantly affect toxicity while dimethyl sulfoxide enhanced peroxynitrite-mediated killing. Dimethyl sulfoxide is a more efficient hydroxyl radical scavenger than the other three scavengers and increased the formation of nitrogen dioxide from peroxynitrite. In the presence of 100 mM dimethyl sulfoxide, 60.0 +/- 0.3 microM nitrogen dioxide was formed from 250 microM peroxynitrite as compared to 2.0 +/- 0.1 microM in buffer alone. Thus, formation of nitrogen dioxide may have enhanced the toxicity of peroxynitrite decomposing in the presence of dimethyl sulfoxide.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗

Peroxynitrite inhibits sodium uptake in rat colonic membrane vesicles.

Peroxynitrite (ONOO-) is a potent oxidizing agent that initiates lipid peroxidation and sulfhydryl oxidation and may be responsible for a portion of the cytotoxicity attributed to superoxide anion (.O2-). We quantified the extent to which ONOO-, xanthine plus xanthine oxidase (XO) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), decreased sodium (Na+) uptake into membrane vesicles derived from colonic cells of dexamethasone-treated rats. Carrier-free 22Na+ uptake into vesicles was measured in the presence of an inside-negative membrane potential, produced by the addition of the potassium ionophore valinomycin (10 microM) after removal of all external potassium by cation exchange chromatography. Preincubation of vesicles with either 100 microM or 1 mM ONOO- for 30 s decreased the amiloride-blockable fraction of Na+ uptake by 27 +/- 7% and 65 +/- 2%, respectively (means +/- S.E.; n greater than or equal to 5; P less than 0.05 from control). However, the amiloride-insensitive part of Na+ uptake was not affected, indicating that there was no overt destruction of these vesicles by these ONOO- concentrations. Decomposed ONOO-, hydrogen peroxide (1 microM-10 mM), or xanthine (500 microM) plus XO (10-30 mU/ml), either in the absence or in the presence of 100 microM FeEDTA, did not decrease Na+ uptake. These data suggest that ONOO- is a potent injurious agent that can compromise Na+ uptake across epithelial cells, possibly by damaging Na+ channels.

Amiloride↗

Crystal structure of peroxynitrite-modified bovine Cu,Zn superoxide dismutase.

The crystal structure of bovine Cu,Zn superoxide dismutase modified with peroxynitrite (ONOO-) was determined by X-ray diffraction, utilizing the existing three-dimensional model of the native structure deposited in the Brookhaven Protein Data Bank (J. A. Tainer et al., J. Mol. Biol. 160, 181-217, 1982). The native structure and the modified derivative were refined to R factors of 19.0 and 18.7% respectively using diffraction data from 6.0 to 2.5 A. The major result after reaction with peroxynitrite was the appearance of electron density 1.45 A from a single epsilon carbon of Tyr-108, the only tyrosine residue in the sequence. Tyr-108 is a solvent-exposed residue 18 A from the copper atom in the active site. The electron density was consistent with nitration of Tyr-108 at one of the epsilon carbons to form 3-nitrotyrosine. We propose that the nitration occurs in solution by transfer of a nitronium-like species from the active site on one superoxide dismutase dimer to the Tyr-108 of a second dimer.

Animals↗

Survey of human and rat microsatellites.

Length variations in simple sequence tandem repeats (microsatellite DNA polymorphisms) are finding increasing usage in mammalian genetics. Although every variety of short tandem repeat that has been tested has been shown to exhibit length polymorphisms, little information on the relative abundance of the different repeat motifs has been collected. In this report, summaries of GenBank searches for all possible human and rat microsatellites ranging from mononucleotide to tetranucleotide repeats are presented. In humans, the five most abundant microsatellites with total lengths for the runs of repeats of greater than or equal to 20 nucleotides contained repeat sequences of A, AC, AAAN, AAN, and AG, in order of decreasing abundance, where N is C, G, or T. These five groups comprised about 76% of all microsatellites. Many other human simple sequence repeats were found at low frequency. In the 745 kb of human genomic DNA surveyed, one microsatellite of greater than or equal to 20 nucleotides in length was found, on average, every 6 kb. Only 12% of the human microsatellites had total lengths greater than or equal to 40 nucleotides. Roughly 80% of the A, AAN, and AAAN microsatellites and 50% of the AT microsatellites, but few of the other human microsatellites, were found to be associated with interspersed, repetitive Alu elements. In rats, the five most abundant microsatellites contained AC, AG, A, AAAN, and AAGG sequences, respectively. Rat microsatellites were generally longer than human microsatellites, with 43% of the rat sequences greater than or equal to 40 nucleotides.

Animals↗

Peroxynitrite-induced membrane lipid peroxidation: the cytotoxic potential of superoxide and nitric oxide.

Endothelial cells, macrophages, neutrophils, and neuronal cells generate superoxide (O2-) and nitric oxide (.NO) which can combine to form peroxynitrite anion (ONOO-). Peroxynitrite, known to oxidize sulfhydryls and to yield products indicative of hydroxyl radical (.OH) reaction with deoxyribose and dimethyl sulfoxide, is shown herein to induce membrane lipid peroxidation. Peroxynitrite addition to soybean phosphatidylcholine liposomes resulted in malondialdehyde and conjugated diene formation, as well as oxygen consumption. Lipid peroxidation was greater at acidic and neutral pH, with no significant lipid peroxidation occurring above pH 9.5. Addition of ferrous (Fe+2) or ferric (Fe+3) iron did not enhance lipid peroxide formation over that attributable to peroxynitrite alone. Diethylenetetraminepentacetic acid (DTPA) or iron removal from solutions by ion-exchange chromatography decreased conjugated diene formation by 25-50%. Iron did not play an essential role in initiating lipid peroxidation, since DTPA and iron depletion of reaction systems were only partially inhibitory. In contrast, desferrioxamine had an even greater concentration-dependent inhibitory effect, completely abolishing lipid peroxidation at 200 microM. The strong inhibitory effect of desferrioxamine on lipid peroxidation was due to direct reaction with peroxynitrous acid in addition to iron chelation. We conclude that the conjugate acid of peroxynitrite, peroxynitrous acid (ONOOH), and/or its decomposition products, i.e., .OH and nitrogen dioxide (.NO2), initiate lipid peroxidation without the requirement of iron. These observations demonstrate a potential mechanism contributing to O2-(-)and .NO-mediated cytotoxicity.

Free Radicals↗

Peroxynitrite oxidation of sulfhydryls. The cytotoxic potential of superoxide and nitric oxide.

Peroxynitrite anion (ONOO-) is a potent oxidant that mediates oxidation of both nonprotein and protein sulfhydryls. Endothelial cells, macrophages, and neutrophils can generate superoxide as well as nitric oxide, leading to the production of peroxynitrite anion in vivo. Apparent second order rate constants were 5,900 M-1.s-1 and 2,600-2,800 M-1.s-1 for the reaction of peroxynitrite anion with free cysteine and the single thiol of albumin, respectively, at pH 7.4 and 37 degrees C. These rate constants are 3 orders of magnitude greater than the corresponding rate constants for the reaction of hydrogen peroxide with sulfhydryls at pH 7.4. Unlike hydrogen peroxide, which oxidizes thiolate anion, peroxynitrite anion reacts preferentially with the undissociated form of the thiol group. Peroxynitrite oxidizes cysteine to cystine and the bovine serum albumin thiol group to an arsenite nonreducible product, suggesting oxidation beyond sulfenic acid. Peroxynitrous acid was a less effective thiol-oxidizing agent than its anion, with oxidation presumably mediated by the decomposition products, hydroxyl radical and nitrogen dioxide. The reactive peroxynitrite anion may exert cytotoxic effects in part by oxidizing tissue sulfhydryls.

Animals↗

Xanthine oxidase in experimental spinal cord injury.

The excessive generation of free radicals is thought to be one of the major mechanisms leading to tissue injury in various pathological conditions, including ischemia, inflammation, and trauma. Conversion of xanthine dehydrogenase (XDH) to xanthine oxidase (XO) contributes to the formation of superoxide, an oxygen radical. We measured XDH and XO activity using a newly developed fluorometric assay in an experimental spinal cord injury model in rats. XO activity increased by more than 100% 4 h after spinal cord trauma. Total (XDH + XO) activity also increased by 96% during the same period. Allopurinol, an inhibitor of XO (100 mg/kg/day x 2 days, i.p.), completely inhibited plasma and spinal cord XO activity but did not affect posttraumatic edema determined by water content or polymorphonuclear (PMN) cell infiltration reflected by myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity in traumatized spinal cord. These results indicate that XDH conversion to XO may not be the major mechanism of oxygen radical formation in the pathogenesis of vasogenic edema or inflammatory response in this experimental spinal cord injury model in rats.

Allopurinol↗

Role of xanthine dehydrogenase and oxidase in focal cerebral ischemic injury to rat.

The role of xanthine dehydrogenase and oxidase as a source of free radicals contributing to focal cerebral ischemic injury was evaluated in Long-Evans rats after the middle cerebral artery was permanently occluded and both carotid arteries were clamped for 90 min. The fraction of xanthine dehydrogenase present as the free radical producing oxidase increased slightly from 22% in control cortex to 30% in the ischemic right cortex during the first 3 h of reperfusion and then remained relatively unchanged over the next 24 h. This increase may in part be due to entrapped plasma, which contained 4.5 +/- 0.8 nmol.min-1.ml-1 xanthine oxidase entirely in the free radical-producing form. Infarct volume was unaffected by pretreatment with 50 mg allopurinol/kg per day over 3 days before surgery but was decreased by 8% with 100 mg/kg and 24% with 150 mg/kg of allopurinol (P less than 0.05). However, inhibition of xanthine oxidase by dietary depletion of the essential molybdenum cofactor increased infarct volume by 19%, suggesting that protection by allopurinol at higher dosages was independent of xanthine oxidase inhibition. Neither xanthine oxidase present in rat brain nor circulating in plasma appears to be the primary source of oxygen radicals that contributes to infarction in focal cerebral ischemia.

Allopurinol↗

The double-edged role of nitric oxide in brain function and superoxide-mediated injury.

Fetal ischemia or hypoxia can lead to cerebral palsy, mental retardation and epilepsy. We propose that the production of nitric oxide and oxygen radicals by neurons when ischemic or hypoxic brain is reperfused may contribute to cerebral injury. Ischemia will depolarize neuronal membranes causing the synaptic discharge of the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate, which in turn opens the voltage-dependent, N-methyl-D-aspartic acid-specific glutamate receptor/ionophore, allowing calcium to accumulate in the neuron. Calcium in turn activates an oxygen-dependent neuronal nitric oxide synthetase, which oxidizes arginine to produce nitric oxide (.NO) when oxygen is readmitted to brain by reperfusion. Nitric oxide reacts with the oxygen radical superoxide (O2-), also produced by reperfusion, to form peroxynitrite (ONOO-). Peroxynitrite can diffuse for several micrometers before decomposing to form the powerful and cytotoxic oxidants hydroxyl radical and nitrogen dioxide. The hypothesis is consistent with available evidence on the protective action of glutamate antagonists and of oxygen radical scavengers for limiting cerebral infarction following focal ischemia.

Amino Acids↗

Apparent hydroxyl radical production by peroxynitrite: implications for endothelial injury from nitric oxide and superoxide.

Superoxide dismutase reduces injury in many disease processes, implicating superoxide anion radical (O2-.) as a toxic species in vivo. A critical target of superoxide may be nitric oxide (NO.) produced by endothelium, macrophages, neutrophils, and brain synaptosomes. Superoxide and NO. are known to rapidly react to form the stable peroxynitrite anion (ONOO-). We have shown that peroxynitrite has a pKa of 7.49 +/- 0.06 at 37 degrees C and rapidly decomposes once protonated with a half-life of 1.9 sec at pH 7.4. Peroxynitrite decomposition generates a strong oxidant with reactivity similar to hydroxyl radical, as assessed by the oxidation of deoxyribose or dimethyl sulfoxide. Product yields indicative of hydroxyl radical were 5.1 +/- 0.1% and 24.3 +/- 1.0%, respectively, of added peroxynitrite. Product formation was not affected by the metal chelator diethyltriaminepentaacetic acid, suggesting that iron was not required to catalyze oxidation. In contrast, desferrioxamine was a potent, competitive inhibitor of peroxynitrite-initiated oxidation because of a direct reaction between desferrioxamine and peroxynitrite rather than by iron chelation. We propose that superoxide dismutase may protect vascular tissue stimulated to produce superoxide and NO. under pathological conditions by preventing the formation of peroxynitrite.

Animals↗

Polyethylene glycol-conjugated superoxide dismutase in unilateral lung injury due to re-expansion (re-oxygenation).

This study evaluated the effects of polyethylene glycol-conjugated superoxide dismutase (PEG-SOD) in re-expansion pulmonary edema, a unilateral lung injury due in part to re-oxygenation of hypoxic, collapsed lung tissue. The hypothesis underlying this investigation was that extracellular superoxide contributed to the lung inflammation in this model, and that PEG-SOD could be used to test for extra-cellular superoxide involvement. The right lungs of 2-3 kg rabbits were collapsed for seven days by intrapleural air injections. Immediately prior to lung re-expansion, rabbits received intravenously 10,000 units/kg PEG-SOD (n = 6) or an equal volume of H2O2-inactivated PEG-SOD (n = 6). Inactive PEG-SOD pretreated rabbits had a marked increase in re-expanded lungs' lavage albumin concentration (right 1653 +/- 230 micrograms/ml, left 404 +/- 160 micrograms/ml; p less than .01). Active PEG-SOD did not inhibit this permeability increase (right 1744 +/- 242 micrograms/ml, left 180 +/- 53 micrograms/ml; p less than .01). However, active PEG-SOD significantly decreased both total number and percent neutrophils in alveolar lavage (right 24.8 +/- 9.4%, left 4.2 +/- 0.8%; p less than .05) compared to inactive PEG-SOD pretreated rabbits (right 52.8 +/- 5.8%, left 8.7 +/- 2.4%; p less than .01). Pretreatment with active PEG-SOD significantly increased lung tissue (20.4 +/- 1.5 units/mg DNA), blood (400 +/- 8 units/ml) and right lung lavage (30.0 +/- 3.1 units/ml) SOD activities compared to those from inactive PEG-SOD pretreated rabbits (respectively: 16.0 +/- 1.0 units/mg DNA, 335 +/- 14 units/ml and 10.8 +/- 1.3 units/ml; p less than .05 for each comparison).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗

Circulating xanthine oxidase: potential mediator of ischemic injury.

Reactive oxygen metabolites generated from the enzyme xanthine oxidase (XO) play an important role in the pathogenesis of ischemia-induced tissue injury. The observation that intracellular proteins such as aspartate transaminase (AST) and alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) are released from the ischemic liver during reperfusion led us to postulate that XO could be released into the systemic circulation. Livers from fasted rats were extirpated, perfused with oxygenated Krebs-Henseleit buffer, and subjected to 2 h ischemia followed by 2 h reperfusion. Reperfusion increased AST in the perfusate from 1 +/- 1 to 830 +/- 280 U/l, whereas ADH increased from 0.3 +/- 0.1 to 95 +/- 26 U/l. Concomitantly, xanthine dehydrogenase (XDH) + XO activity in the perfusate increased from 0 to 4.1 +/- 1.0 mU/ml. A 64% decrease in endogenous tissue XDH + XO activity paralleled release of XDH + XO. The XDH + XO activity predicted to appear in the circulation after hepatic ischemia was sufficient, when supplied with substrate, to produce severe vascular endothelial injury in vitro, even in the presence of serum or whole blood. These results suggest that massive quantities of XDH and XO are released into the circulation after hepatic ischemia and that the resulting reactive oxygen metabolites could produce widespread tissue injury.

Alcohol Dehydrogenase↗