Proceedings of the 6th Symposium on Molecular Biology of Microorganisms and its application to pharmaceutical sciences, Sapporo.
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This book gives comprehensive review of the role of gravity in fundamental biological processes. The book surveys the results of experiments on precellular and unicellular organisms, plant and animal cultured cells and tissues, fungi and actinomycetes, higher plants, and insects. The book discusses essentially every experiment performed in real flights, including those in which the combined effect of microgravity and ionizing radiation was investigated, as well as many clinostat and centrifuge studies. In orbital flights unicellular organisms exhibited no gravity-dependent processes. The maximum size and basic morphology of unicellular organisms developed obeying the second law of thermodynamics do not therefore depend on space or time. Fungi retained all their properties except for gravitational ordering. Higher plants developed normally through seed-to-seed cycles: from the stage of seed germination to that of maturation of next generation seeds. Plants changed all their gravity-dependent movements. Since plant movements are irreversible, this affected their final shape, although the basic structure and size remained unaltered. The frequency of spontaneous and radiation--induced mutations changed insignificantly. The rotation of generations of plants and animals taken under study developed in a normal way. The morphological, physiological and genetic status of present-day organisms has developed under the effect of the gravity force that plays three different parts: as the creator and transformer of the abiotic environment, as the factor of natural selection, and as the factor of environmental physiology eliciting stable mechanical stresses. The effects of these gravity roles are implemented by different mechanisms and actualized in different time scales. The uneventful development of the basic biological processes in microgravity is an important factor that makes possible long-term space missions. From this point of view, the road to outer space is open to man in terms of his biology.
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With few exceptions, the shells (capsids) of sphere-like viruses have the symmetry of an icosahedron and are composed of coat proteins (subunits) assembled in special motifs, the T-number structures. Although the synthesis of artificial protein cages is a rapidly developing area of materials science, the design criteria for self-assembled shells that can reproduce the remarkable properties of viral capsids are only beginning to be understood. We present here a minimal model for equilibrium capsid structure, introducing an explicit interaction between protein multimers (capsomers). Using Monte Carlo simulation we show that the model reproduces the main structures of viruses in vivo (T-number icosahedra) and important nonicosahedral structures (with octahedral and cubic symmetry) observed in vitro. Our model can also predict capsid strength and shed light on genome release mechanisms.
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The studies summarized here indicate that viruses can serve as a trigger factor of autoimmune reactivity in various ways. The low frequency of autoimmune diseases in the population, the familial nature and the HLA associations of these diseases suggest that a multifactorial control is conditional to the virus infections. It is also evident that the presence of high levels of autoantibodies in itself is insufficient to induce significant "self"-reactivity. Autoimmunity associated with clinical manifestations will occur only if the autoantibody or autoreactive cells will be directed against a component that participates in the disease production. In spite of the large body of evidence that has been accumulated in the past decade, the relationship between autoimmunity and specific virus infection is still obscure. Hopefully, the next decade will provide new insight into the relevance of viruses in the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases.
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A new oxygen carrier for use as a blood substitute was prepared and characterized in vitro. Pyridoxylated hemoglobin, which was obtained by the reaction of human hemoglobin with pyridoxal-5-phosphate, was modified by alpha-carboxymethyl, omega-carboxymethoxyl polyoxyethylene (POE) of the molecular weight 3600 daltons. In order to eliminate viruses and nucleic acids possibly contaminated, the hemoglobin solution was purified by ultrafiltration with a membrane of the nominal molecular weight limit 300 Kdaltons. Furthermore POE conjugated pyridoxylated hemoglobin was treated with 20% ethanol to inactivate viruses. A concentration of hemoglobin, which is incorporated in the conjugate, of the final product was fixed at 6% to make normovolemic exchange transfusion possible. In consideration of the stability during transporting and storage, lyophilized product was selected as a final form ("Stabilized Hemoglobin"). "Stabilized hemoglobin" could be stored in a refrigerator over one year within the acceptable methemoglobin increase. (15%) Viscosity of Stabilized Hemoglobin solution was determined at 2.4 centipoise and is almost half of whole blood and therefore this will be useful not only in resuscitation but also in improvement of microcirculation.
Progress in protein separation technology has led to the development of a new generation of plasma derivatives, generally prepared by procedures involving one or several chromatographic steps. In addition to providing two to three log purification factors of several therapeutic products, with regard to some protein contaminants, chromatography has been shown to improve the potential safety of new plasma derivatives by contributing to the removal of plasma-borne viruses. Indeed, validation studies have demonstrated that each immuno-affinity, ion-exchange, and heparin affinity chromatography step can eliminate 1 to 5 log of HIV-1, or of several model viruses, enveloped or non-enveloped, such as sindbis virus, pseudorabies virus, vesicular stomatitis virus, reovirus 3, or simian virus 40. Several parameters can be considered as influencing the chromatographic behaviour of viruses, including the size, shape, symmetry, and membrane structure. In addition, buffer conditions that may induce aggregation and change their apparent size and surface properties, as well as chromatography flow-rate and packing material characteristics, are, among others, important parameters potentially influencing the binding of viruses on chromatographic resins. Due to the complexity of the phenomena potentially influencing the chromatographic behaviour of viruses, and because these are not well understood, it is important to design chromatographic production processes of plasma derivatives and to perform their validation studies following a rigorous scientific approach.
Evolution comprises cycles of amplification, mutagenesis and selection. To study evolutionary phenomena, isothermal strand displacement amplification (SDA) of double-stranded DNA as an in vitro model for rolling-circle replication of viruses has been coupled to a positive selection procedure. First, two subsequent amplification reactions utilizing exo- Klenow polymerase were performed under direct observation using the fluorescent dye thiazole orange. Under the chosen conditions, the mutation rate was 1.5 x 10(-3) and 0.4 x 10(-3) for base substitutions and deletions, respectively. Then, a 16mer oligodeoxynucleotide with an acridine moiety coupled to its 5' end was used to select for double strands that retained their ability to form a triple-helix with the oligodeoxynucleotide. Conditions for triple-helix formation were chosen such that only 10 to 40% of the SDA products were allowed to bind the third strand. Non-denaturing polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis was used to separate triple-helices from unmodified double strands, and only triplex strands were used to initiate a new round of error-prone amplification and selection. Nine such rounds with about 270 molecular generations were performed. The final mutant spectrum was characterized and compared with those of amplification reactions without additional selection pressure. While without selection pressure base substitutions and deletions throughout the initial wild-type rapidly produce a diverse mutant distribution, the consensus after nine selection rounds clearly shows two mutational hotspot positions. Using gel shift assays and a newly developed non-radioactive DNase I footprinting technique, it could be shown that both the initial wild-type and the final consensus do not differ significantly in their triplex formation ability. As opposed to this, they do show different amplification efficiencies. The final consensus sequence is amplified with the highest rate in the exponential reaction phase, while the most abundant clone, which is characterized by two additional point deletions, is the sequence with the highest amplification rate in the linear growth phase.
New viruses and virus strains appear at irregular but frequent intervals in the human population. Those that represent a widespread serious threat to human populations have evolved mechanisms for either short-term or longer-term evasion of immunologic recognition and neutralization. These mechanisms include (1) antigenic shift, (2) intracellular transport, (3) intracellular latency, (4) direct infection and destruction of cells of the immune system, (5) infection in utero or early infancy so the developing immune system regards it as part of the host repertoire of antigens, and probably (6) nonantigenicity. In this article, I discuss these mechanisms and their relationship to the threat constituted by emerging viral agents.
It is likely that several of the biological effects of selenium are due to its effects on selenoprotein activity. While the effects of the anti-oxidant selenoprotein glutathione peroxidase (GPx) on inhibiting HIV activation have been well documented, it is clear that increased expression of this enzyme can stimulate the replication and subsequent appearance of cytopathic effects associated with an acutely spreading HIV infection. The effects of GPx on both phases of the viral life cycle are likely mediated via its influence on signaling molecules that use reactive oxygen species, and similar influences on signaling pathways may account for some of the anti-cancer effects of selenium. Similarly, selenium can alter mutagenesis rates in both viral genomes and the DNA of mammalian cells exposed to carcinogens. Comparisons between the effects of selenium and selenoproteins on viral infections and carcinogenesis may yield new insights into the mechanisms of action of this element.
Fat-storing cells were isolated from 15-day-old mouse sinusoidal cell cultures (Kupffer or endothelial cells), where they had multiplied abundantly; they were then purified by a negative selection method based on the fact that they do not possess Fc receptors, as do both other types of cells. The fat-storing cells, which could be subcultured for at least 10 passages, have the main morphological characteristics already described in vivo, in particular, the rough endoplasmic reticulum and the lipid droplets, which become less and less apparent as the number of passages increases. Subcultured fat-storing cells, almost devoid of lipid droplets and vitamin A, were able to take up retinol, as the appearance of a typical autofluorescence indicated; the number of lipid droplets increased concomitantly. Furthermore, the cultured fat-storing cells were able to internalize one-micron-sized latex beads by phagocytosis. Infection of fat-storing cells with mouse hepatitis virus 3, ectromelia or Sindbis virus led to multiplication of the virus particles. There was a direct relation between the multiplication of mouse hepatitis virus 3 in cultured fat-storing cells and the susceptibility of the animals to the virus. In the case of Sindbis virus, interferon is produced, its production being independent of the presence of vitamin A.
The effect of several naturally occurring dietary flavonoids including quercetin, naringin, hesperetin, and catechin on the infectivity and replication of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1), polio-virus type 1, parainfluenza virus type 3 (Pf-3), and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) was studied in vitro in cell culture monolayers employing the technique of viral plaque reduction. Quercetin caused a concentration-dependent reduction in the infectivity of each virus. In addition, it reduced intracellular replication of each virus when monolayers were infected and subsequently cultured in medium containing quercetin. Preincubation of tissue culture cell monolayers with quercetin did not affect the ability of the viruses to infect or replicate in the tissue culture monolayers. Hesperetin had no effect on infectivity but it reduced intracellular replication of each of the viruses. Catechin inhibited the infectivity but not the replication of RSV and HSV-1 and had negligible effects on the other viruses. Naringin had no effect on either the infectivity or the replication of any of the viruses studied. Thus, naturally occurring flavonoids possess a variable spectrum of antiviral activity against certain RNA (RSV, Pf-3, polio) and DNA (HSV-1) viruses acting to inhibit infectivity and/or replication.
Storage of stool specimens at -70 degrees C has been reported to destroy the characteristic morphology of calicivirus. To determine if other stool-shed viruses are similarly affected, stool specimens previously examined by electron microscopy and observed to contain virus particles were reexamined after 6-10 years of storage at -70 degrees C to -85 degrees C. The stools contained virus particles of different morphological types, including astrovirus, small round structured virus, adenovirus, and rotavirus as well as calicivirus. Also reexamined were stools containing coronavirus-like particles and T = 19 virus-like particles. Characteristic virus particles, including calicivirus particles, were recognized in all the stools reexamined. The results indicate that long-term storage of stools at ultralow temperatures does not present a significant problem for the morphological identification of stool-shed viruses.
Sf9, the insect cell line commonly used for gene expression by recombinant baculovirus (BV), can be infected by St. Louis encephalitis (SLE) virus, a flavivirus, resulting in a persistent, productive, and cytopathic infection, while retaining the ability to be infected with a recombinant baculovirus (rBV). We now demonstrate using double immunofluorescence that single cells are dually infected with SLE virus and rBV. Fourteen additional viruses including additional flaviviruses, other arbovirus classes, vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV), and herpes simplex virus, type 1 (HSV-1) failed to produce a cytopathic effect (CPE) in Sf9 cells. Plaque assays indicated infectious virus was present for several weeks post-inoculation for Yellow fever (YF), Dengue types 1 and 2 (DEN-1 and DEN-2), Gumbo limbo (GL), Eastern equine encephalomyelitis virus (EEE), Western equine encephalomyelitis virus (WEE), HSV-1, and VSV viruses. For HSV-1, GL, EEE, WEE and VSV, but not for YF, DEN-1 or DEN-2 viruses, this could be attributed solely to survival in the Sf9 cell culture media. Of the 14 viruses tested, only HSV-1 could be detected after 2 weeks in serum-free media. The data indicate that several viruses which are pathogenic for humans are stable for long periods of time at 27 degrees C in the serum-containing media used for cultivation of Sf9 cells. YF, DEN-1 and DEN-2 viruses may replicate in Sf9 cells at extremely low levels. This suggests that adventitious agents which do not produce obvious CPE or interfere with rBV infection or recombinant protein expression could contaminate Sf9 cell cultures or media.