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Biomedical subjects

R Chalifour

Publications and source records attributed to R Chalifour.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

Glycosaminoglycan mimetics: a therapeutic approach to cerebral amyloid angiopathy.

Amyloid deposits characteristic of cerebral amyloid angiopathy lead to vessel rupture and intracerebral hemorrhage. Proteoglycans associate with the amyloid fibril deposits and are thought to play a role in the polymerization of amyloid proteins and the propagation of the deposition process. A series of low molecular weight anionic compounds was developed to mimic the glycosaminoglycan moieties of these proteoglycans. These compounds were tested in different in vitro systems to determine their anti-Abeta amyloid activity. Specific compounds were identified as being anti-fibrillogenic and protective against Abeta-induced cvtotoxicity. Such compounds also did not show intrinsic cellular toxicity could cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB) in vivo, and showed a good safety profile following chronic' exposure. Molecules showing an anti-amyloid profile combined with the ability to cross the BBB represent promising therapeutics for CAA.

Amyloid beta-Peptides↗

The alpha-L-(1----2)-trirhamnopyranoside epitope on the group-specific polysaccharide of group B streptococci.

A number of epitope specificities associated with the group antigen (group B polysaccharide) of group B streptococci have been identified in a polyclonal antiserum induced in rabbits by a nonencapsulated variant strain of group B streptococci. This was achieved by using a series of oligosaccharide inhibitors, obtained by both synthetic and degradative procedures, to inhibit the binding of the group B polysaccharide to the polyclonal antiserum. While the dominant epitope expressed in the antiserum was alpha-L-Rhap(1----2)alpha-L-Rhap(1----2)alpha-L-Rhap, specificities associated with alpha-L-Rhap and alpha-L-Rhap(1----3)alpha-D-Galp(1----3)beta-D-Glcp-NAc(1----4)alp ha-L-Rhap were also identified. The dominant expression of the former epitope is consistent with its terminal location on the group antigen and also with highly branched multiantennary structure of this antigen. Antibodies specific for the alpha-L-trirhamnopyranoside epitope were purified by affinity chromatography, using the synthetic trisaccharide glucitol as the hapten. Oligosaccharide inhibition studies indicate that the specificity of these antibodies is identical to that of a murine monoclonal antibody induced by the same nonencapsulated strain of group B streptococci.

Animals↗

Fatty acid activation and temperature perturbation of rat brain microsomal phospholipase D.

The hydrolytic and transphosphatidylation activities of rat brain microsomal phospholipase D were highly latent in the absence of an appropriate activator. The most suitable surfactants for this activation were oleate and palmitoleate. Besides the bile acids and unsaturated fatty acids, other naturally occurring surfactants, such as lysophospholipids, acidic phospholipids, acyl-CoA's, and gangliosides, were inactive. Taurodeoxycholate, at optimal concentration, produced a profound inhibition of oleate activation. Phospholipase D activity was detectable in all rat tissues investigated. The optimal incubation temperature for phospholipase D was 30 degrees C, with a break point at 16.1 degrees C in an Arrhenius plot.

Animals↗