Ground-state wave function of antiferromagnetic S=1/2 Heisenberg chains.
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Z Yu.
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The irreversible inhibition of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) and type 2 (HIV-2) proteases by 1,2-epoxy-3-(p-nitrophenoxy)propane (EPNP) and eight haloperidol derivatives has been studied. EPNP specifically inhibits HIV-1 and HIV-2 proteases with a stoichiometry of one EPNP molecule/dimeric enzyme. The site of modification of HIV-2 protease by EPNP has been unambiguously identified as Asp-25 using high performance tandem mass spectrometry. The haloperidol derivatives assayed consist of epoxides, ynones, and alpha,beta-unsaturated ketones. The Kinact values for these haloperidol derivatives range from 10.7 to 521 microM for HIV-1 protease and from 8.6 to 283 microM for the HIV-2 enzyme, being in some cases approximately 1000-fold more potent irreverisble inhibitors of HIV proteases than EPNP. This potency results from the haloperidol character of the compounds and the chemical reactivity of the groups capable of forming a covalent bond with the enzyme. Covalent modification of HIV-2 protease by a radiolabeled epoxide derivative of haloperidol, UCSF 84, is prevented by EPNP and the peptidomimetic transition state analog U-85548. In similar experiments, incorporation of UCSF 84 into HIV-1 protease is partially prevented by these active-site inhibitors. In contrast, a mutant HIV-1 protease, HIV-1 PR C95M, in which Cys-95 has been replaced by Met, is labeled 50% less than HIV-1 protease and is fully protected by EPNP and U-85548. These results indicate the presence of 2 reactive residues in HIV-1 protease: Cys-95 and another located in the active site of the enzyme. The alpha,beta-unsaturated ketone derivative of haloperidol, UCSF 191, which is stable over a broad pH range, was used to study the pH profile of inactivation of HIV-1 and HIV-2 proteases. Comparison of the profiles of inactivation of wild-type HIV-1 protease, HIV-1 PR C95M, and HIV-1 PR C67L as well as HIV-2 protease (which has no cysteine residues) reveals the contribution of Cys-95 to the reactivity of these irreversible inhibitors. The inhibitors UCSF 70, UCSF 84, UCSF 115, UCSF 142, and UCSF 191 reduce p55gag polyprotein processing when assayed in a mammalian cell line that produces HIV-1 viral particles lacking the envelope.
A high-performance liquid chromatographic method using column switching was applied to the direct determination of two local anaesthetics, ropivacaine and bupivacaine, in human plasma. The method is intended to be used in a combined LC-GC system; here only the LC-part is described. After addition of internal standard, the samples were filtered and directly injected into a semipermeable surface (SPS) pre-column where the analytes were strongly retained and separated from many endogenous compounds by a short washing step. The retained analytes were transferred by a buffered methanol phase from the pre-column into a carbonaceous HPLC column and they were detected by UV detection at 254 nm. The SPS pre-column could withstand numerous (> 200) direct injections of plasma samples (10 microliters). The method has a detection limit of 8.2 ng and requires a total assay time of 15 min per plasma sample. Quantitative recoveries were obtained over the range 3.3-114 micrograms/ml with inter-day precisions of 1.6-5.2% (C.V.).
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Anti-idiotype antibody therapy of B-cell lymphomas, despite numerous promising experimental and clinical studies, has so far met with limited success. Tailor-made monoclonal anti-idiotype antibodies have been injected into a large series of lymphoma patients, with a few impressive complete tumour remissions but a large majority of negative responses. The results presented here suggest that, by coupling to antilymphoma idiotype antibodies a few molecules of the tetanus toxin universal epitope peptide P2 (830-843), one could markedly increase the efficiency of this therapy. We show that after 2-hr incubation with conjugates consisting of the tetanus toxin peptide P2 coupled by an S-S bridge to monoclonal antibodies directed to the lambda light chain of human immunoglobulin, human B-lymphoma cells can be specifically lysed by a CD4 T-lymphocyte clone specific for the P2 peptide. Antibody without peptide did not induce B-cell killing by the CD4 T-lymphocyte clone. The free cysteine-peptide was also able to induce lysis of the B-lymphoma target by the T-lymphocyte clone, but at a molar concentration 500 to 1000 times higher than that of the coupled peptide. Proliferation assays confirmed that the antibody-peptide conjugate was antigenically active at a much lower concentration than the free peptide. They also showed that antibody-peptide conjugates required an intact processing function of the B cell for peptide presentation, which could be selectively inhibited by leupeptin and chloroquine.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
The pharmacokinetics of SDZ 64-412, an antiasthmatic agent, were investigated following intravenous, oral, and inhalation dosing in rats. 14C-SDZ 64-412 was administered intravenously (2.75 mg kg-1) and orally (5.5 mg kg-1, 110 mg kg-1), whereas non-radiolabeled drug (5.04 mg kg-1) was administered using nose-only inhalation chambers. Radioactivity and parent drug concentrations in blood, lung, and excreta were determined at designated times post-dose. SDZ 64-412 was rapidly and extensively (approximately 80%) absorbed following both oral doses, although absorption appeared to be prolonged with increasing dose. The absorbed drug was shown to undergo extensive and saturable first-pass metabolism. The bioavailability of the parent drug, calculated by dose-normalized AUC and deconvolution methods, was only 10-15% from the low dose, but increased to approximately 40% following the high dose. Following inhalation dosing, SDZ 64-412 concentrations in blood and lungs increased rapidly, and did not decline immediately after termination of dosing. The inhalation dose yielded a bioavailability of approximately 40%, and AUC of the drug in lungs was approximately 25 times greater than in blood. In general, SDZ 64-412 was extensively distributed and rapidly eliminated from the systemic circulation. Biliary excretion was the predominant route of radioactivity excretion. The present findings suggest that inhalation administration provides a viable means of delivery of SDZ 64-412.
Low film thickness is critical to the clinical success of cemented castings. This study investigated the effect of luting agent-metal physico-chemical surface interactions on film thicknesses of representative luting agents. Control group luting agents were placed between two glass plates, as described by American Dental Association specifications 8, 61, and 66, and test group luting agents were positioned between glass and metal plates. The materials selected were zinc phosphate cement, polycarboxylate cement, glass ionomer cement, glass ionomer-composite resin hybrid cement and a resinous cement, with a type III gold alloy, a noble metal ceramic alloy, and a base metal ceramic alloy. A two-way analysis of variance and follow-up tests were done. The effects of the type of metal surface, type of cement, and their statistical interaction significantly affected film thickness (p < 0.0001). The type of cement had a greater affect on film thickness than the type of metal. A glass ionomer cement produced lower overall film thicknesses than other cement types, and a noble metal ceramic alloy created lower overall film thicknesses than other types of metal. American Dental Association specifications for cement film thickness did not accurately reflect normal cement use.
Standardized tooth preparations were completed on previously intact human molars in vivo, and castings were made with a precious metal ceramic alloy by conventional techniques. The castings were randomly assigned to the following luting agents: zinc phosphate, composite resin-glass ionomer hybrid, and a composite resin-glass ionomer hybrid with a dentinal bonding agent and were cemented in a standardized manner to periodontally compromised molars. After 6 months the teeth were carefully extracted, stained, embedded, and sectioned, and the in vivo microleakage was measured. ANOVA disclosed significant differences between groups, and a multiple comparisons test revealed that the zinc phosphate group leaked significantly more than other cement groups.
A sensitive heterogeneous electrochemical enzyme immunoassay has been developed for thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) by modifying a commercially available two-site immunoenzymometric assay. p-Aminophenyl phosphate (PAPP) was used as the substrate of alkaline phosphatase, and hydrolysed to p-aminophenol (PAP). The amount of PAP produced from the assay was proportional to the amount of TSH in the sample. Detection of PAP was done by oxidative amperometry in a flow injection system. The working electrode was a glassy carbon electrode whose potential was held at +325 mV (vs Ag/AgCl). The amperometric detection of PAP required only 1 microliter of sample (the range of linearity: 50.0 fmol-100 pmol PAP, the limit of detection: 10.9 fmol PAP). Intra-assay precision over the assay range of linearity (0.02-60 mIU l-1 or 0.02-60 pIU TSH) showed a maximum RSD of 8.0%, and a low detection limit of 0.01 mIU l-1 or 0.01 pIU TSH. The study also indicates that this two-site electrochemical enzyme immunoassay correlates well with the Bio-Rad's immunoradiometric assay currently used in our medical center (r = 0.992, slope = 1.53, n = 43) and a highly sensitive immunochemiluminometric assay in the Nichols Institute (r = 0.986, slope = 0.499, n = 23).
Intranasal dosing of dihydroergotamine (DHE) allows convenient self-administration and provides an alternate route of administration for the treatment of migraine in addition to the existing parenteral dosage forms. In this study, the pharmacokinetics of 3H-DHE were investigated following intravenous and intranasal dosing (0.343 mg DHE/animal) in the rat. Intranasal administration of DHE resulted in rapid absorption. The extent of absorption of the radiolabeled dose was approximately 45%-60%. Absolute bioavailability of the parent drug was 35%-40%, as determined by deconvolution and by the ratios of AUC0-infinity following intranasal and intravenous dosing. Due to the limited capacity of the nostrils, approximately half of the intranasal dose was swallowed into the gastrointestinal tract. Biliary excretion was found to be the predominant pathway of radioactivity excretion following both routes of administration. The results from this study suggest that intranasal administration provides a viable means of delivering DHE into the systemic circulation.
The effect of current magnitude and drug concentration on transdermal iontophoretic delivery of octreotide acetate (Sandostatin) was examined in the rabbit. Plasma samples were collected over 24 hours and octreotide concentrations were determined by a radioimmunoassay. Without an electrical current, negligible plasma concentrations of octreotide were obtained. Following initiation of iontophoresis, plasma concentrations of octreotide increased rapidly, although did not sustain at a plateau level during the dosing period. Octreotide concentrations declined rapidly after removal of the device. Increasing the electrical current from 50 microA/cm2 to 150 microA/cm2 yielded a proportional increase in the delivery. Increasing the drug concentration in the device from 2.5 mg/mL to 5 mg/mL resulted in approximately proportional increase in plasma octreotide concentrations; however, further increase in plasma concentrations was not observed for drug concentrations beyond 5 mg/mL. Iontophoretic delivery at the conditions which yielded the highest octreotide concentrations in this study (5 mg/mL solution at 150 microA/cm2 for 8 hours) yielded an apparent bioavailability (which represents an underestimate of the absolute bioavailability determined when the patches are run to exhaustion) of approximately 8%.
A molecular map has been constructed for the rice genome comprised of 726 markers (mainly restriction fragment length polymorphisms; RFLPs). The mapping population was derived from a backcross between cultivated rice, Oryza sativa, and its wild African relative, Oryza longistaminata. The very high level of polymorphism between these species, combined with the use of polymerase chain reaction-amplified cDNA libraries, contributed to mapping efficiency. A subset of the probes used in this study was previously used to construct an RFLP map derived from an inter subspecific cross, providing a basis for comparison of the two maps and of the relative mapping efficiencies in the two crosses. In addition to the previously described PstI genomic rice library, three cDNA libraries from rice (Oryza), oat (Avena) and barley (Hordeum) were used in this mapping project. Levels of polymorphism detected by each and the frequency of identifying heterologous sequences for use in rice mapping are discussed. Though strong reproductive barriers isolate O. sativa from O. longistaminata, the percentage of markers showing distorted segregation in this backcross population was not significantly different than that observed in an intraspecific F2 population previously used for mapping. The map contains 1491 cM with an average interval size of 4.0 cM on the framework map, and 2.0 cM overall. A total of 238 markers from the previously described PstI genomic rice library, 250 markers from a cDNA library of rice (Oryza), 112 cDNA markers from oat (Avena), and 20 cDNA markers from a barley (Hordeum) library, two genomic clones from maize (Zea), 11 microsatellite markers, three telomere markers, eleven isozymes, 26 cloned genes, six RAPD, and 47 mutant phenotypes were used in this mapping project. Applications of a molecular map for plant improvement are discussed.
Cells with cytotoxic activity against the cell line K562 and expressing perforin have been demonstrated in endometrial cells isolated from pigs early in pregnancy. This study was designed to determine whether porcine trophoblast cells were susceptible to these endometrial effector cells in vitro. Pregnant gilts (n = 8) were slaughtered between Days 17 and 20 of gestation. Immediately after slaughter, both the endometrial effector cells and trophoblast cells were isolated enzymatically from each animal. Enzymatically dispersed endometrial cells were further fractionated by size at unit gravity, whereas trophoblast cells were enriched by discontinuous density centrifugation on Percoll. Cytolytic activity was evaluated against Na2 51CrO4-labeled trophoblast and K562 cells. Comparison was made between freshly prepared and interleukin-2 (IL-2)-stimulated effector cells. The effect of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) was tested by including it directly in the 51Cr-release assay. The results indicated that porcine trophoblast cells, like K562 cells, could be recognized and directly lysed by endometrial effector cells. Preculture of effector cells with IL-2 was not required for target lysis but enhanced their cytolytic activity against both trophoblast and K562 targets. In contrast, PGE2 exhibited highly suppressive effects on the cytotoxic activity of both freshly isolated and IL-2-stimulated endometrial effector cells. Conjugate assays demonstrated the binding of trophoblast and K562 targets by effector cells of similar morphology. Cold-target inhibition assays suggested that the effectors in porcine endometrial cell preparations that killed trophoblast and K562 cells were the same NK cell-like population.
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