Synthesis and activity of the salicylic acid ester of bakuchiol in psoriasis-surrogate keratinocytes and skin substitutes.

BACKGROUND: Topical retinoids are effective in retarding skin ageing and restoring homeostasis in skin conditions such as psoriasis. However their adverse effects (AEs), which include irritation (retinoid dermatitis), photosensitivity and teratogenicity, limit their use and patient compliance. Development of retinoid analogues with minimal AEs would allow a broader and more compliant use. AIM: To synthesise a novel molecule, bakuchiol salicylate (bakusylan), with a modulatory gene expression profile similar to retinoids, using as reference three prescription retinoids: tretinoin, tazarotene and adapalene. METHODS: We hypothesized that because bakuchiol salicylate has a structure entirely different from existing retinoids, there would be at least a partial uncoupling of AEs from the skin-normalizing activity of this retinoid. This hypothesis was tested at the transcriptional level in psoriatic cytokine-treated cultures of keratinocytes and organotypic skin substitutes, using DNA microarrays and custom PCR arrays. RESULTS: Evaluation of the gene expression profile of bakuchiol salicylate revealed elimination of several components of the retinoid-like proinflammatory response and teratogenic signature, without a substantial loss of normalizing potential. A possible mechanism of action, consisting of keratinocyte desensitization to psoriatic cytokine signalling through inhibition of the signal transducer and regulator of transcription (STAT)1/3/interferon inflammatory signal transduction axis was also identified. CONCLUSION: Bipartite materials obtained by merging two skin-active entities with specific, complementary bioactivities, such as bakuchiol and salicylic acid, may yield a new class of functional retinoids.

Certified reference material for radionuclides in fish flesh sample IAEA-414 (mixed fish from the Irish Sea and North Sea).

A certified reference material (CRM) for radionuclides in fish sample IAEA-414 (mixed fish from the Irish Sea and North Seas) is described and the results of the certification process are presented. Nine radionuclides (40K, 137Cs, 232Th, 234U, 235U, 238U, 238Pu, 239+240Pu and 241Am) were certified for this material. Information on massic activities with 95% confidence intervals is given for six other radionuclides (90Sr, 210Pb(210Po), 226Ra, 239Pu, 240Pu 241Pu). Less frequently reported radionuclides (99Tc, 129I, 228Th, 230Th and 237Np) and information on some activity and mass ratios are also included. The CRM can be used for quality assurance/quality control of the analysis of radionuclides in fish sample, for the development and validation of analytical methods and for training purposes. The material is available from IAEA, Vienna, in 100 g units.

Activity concentration of caesium-137 in seawater and plankton of the Pomeranian Bay (the Southern Baltic Sea) before and after flood in 1997.

Activity coefficients of 137Cs determined during culminating flood waters in August 1997 in the estuary of the Oder River, discharging to the Pomeranian Bay as well as in the coastal and open-seawaters of the Bay, did not show enhanced levels of the nuclide as compared to those measured before the flood. It is thus concluded that the flood did not contribute to releasing the nuclide from eroded soil particles. The bioconcentration factors of 137Cs in the riverine plankton has been found to be one to two orders of magnitude higher than those determined in the Pomeranian Bay plankton.

Rapid determination of 226Ra and uranium isotopes in solid samples by fusion with lithium metaborate and alpha spectrometry.

A simple and rapid method has been developed to determine 226Ra in rocks, soils, and sediments. Samples are decomposed by fusion with lithium metaborate and the melt is dissolved in a solution containing sulfates and citric acid. During the dissolution, a fine suspension of mixed barium and radium sulfates is formed. The microcrystals are collected on a membrane filter (pore size 0.1 microm) and analysed in an alpha spectrometer. Application of a 133Ba tracer enables us to assess the loss of the analyte, which only rarely exceeds 10%. All analytical operations, beginning from sample decomposition to source preparation for alpha spectrometry, can be accomplished within 1 or 2 h. With uranium determination, the filtrate is spiked with a 232U tracer and passed through a column loaded with a Dowex AG (1 x 4) anion-exchange resin in the sulfate form. Interfering elements are eluted with dilute sulfuric acid followed by concentrated hydrochloric acid. Uranium is eluted with water, electrodeposited on silver discs, and analysed in the alpha spectrometer. The method was tested on reference soil and sediment materials and was found to be accurate within the estimated uncertainties.

Distribution and coassociations of selected metals in seals of the Antarctic.

Zinc, Cu, Cd, Pb, Ag, Ni, Co, Cr, Fe and Mn concentrations in some tissues of crabeater seal (Lobodon carcinophagus), leopard seal (Hydrurga leptonyx) and Weddell seal (Leptonychotes weddelli) from the Antarctic were determined. Distinct inter-tissue differences in metal concentrations in seals were observed; liver contained maximum levels of Zn, Cu, Ag and Mn, whilst kidney showed the highest levels of Cd, Ni and Co. Muscle was characterized by low concentrations of all the elements analyzed. The metal concentrations in the vertebrates analyzed were compared with those for organisms originating from various aquatic areas. Significant correlations were found between the levels of several of the metals analyzed, e.g. between renal and hepatic concentrations of Zn and Cd. Strong relationships between the hepatic concentrations of some metals were found, e.g. Cd-Zn. These two metals also showed a significant coassociation in their renal concentrations. The slope of the regression line for renal Cd/Zn was about three times higher than the hepatic one and this may reflect a relatively high Cd exposure, probably from specific food (squid and krill) provenance, of the seals analyzed.

Concentration of selected metals in penguins and other representative fauna of the Antarctica.

Concentration of Zn, Cu, Cd, Pb, Ag, Co, Ni, Cr, Mn and Fe were determined in muscle and liver of three species of penguins and other animals of the antarctic region. Liver was characterized by maximum concentrations of all the metals analyzed. The element levels in the samples assayed are in keeping with those reported previously by other authors. It is assumed that specific food habits of penguins are mainly responsible for elevated Cd levels in livers of these birds.

cDNA clones for liver cytochrome P-450s from individual aroclor-treated rats: constitutive expression of a new P-450 gene related to phenobarbital-inducible forms.

Differential hybridization and screening with cloned inserts was used to identify two families of cytochrome P-450 cDNA clones in libraries prepared from total liver poly(A)+RNA of individual Aroclor-treated rats. One family has cDNA inserts for the major phenobarbital-inducible P-450s, P-450b and P-450e. Two types of P-450e inserts were identified. In addition, irregular inserts were characterized from two clones (PB23 and PB24) of this group. The other family has cDNA inserts for the major 3-methylcholanthrene-inducible species, P-450c and P-450d. No coding sequence restriction site variants were detected among 26 P-450d and P-450c inserts analyzed. The restriction map of the irregular 2.2-kb PB23 insert has a P-450b-like portion, followed by a 3' extension that hybridizes to RNAs of 2.7 and 4.8 kb, which are also detectable with a classical P-450b probe. The PB23 insert and the 2.7- and 4.8-kb RNAs presumably represent 3' extensions of P-450b/P-450e mRNAs, polyadenylated at downstream sites. The 858-bp sequence of the PB24 insert encodes the carboxy-terminal portion of a P-450b/P-450e-like protein. There is approximately 20% divergence at the polypeptide level between the PB24 and P-450b/P-450e sequences; nevertheless, they share many essential features. A PB24-specific probe hybridizes to a 1.9-kb RNA species which is present in the liver of untreated rats and which is not appreciably induced by phenobarbital or Aroclor. The PB24 cDNA most likely represents a constitutive cytochrome P-450, related to phenobarbital-inducible forms.

Location and analysis of nucleotide sequences at one end of a putative lac transposon in the Escherichia coli chromosome.

A segment of Escherichia coli DNA that contained a discontinuity of homology with Salmonella typhimurium DNA was isolated. The segment, 1,430 base pairs long, was derived from one end of the lac "loop," a region of about 12 kilobase pairs of E. coli DNA, including the lac operon which has no detectable homology with S. typhimurium DNA (K. Lampel and M. Riley, Mol. Gen. Genet. 186:82-86, 1982). The nucleotide sequence of the 1,430-base-pair segment of DNA was determined. The location of the junction of discontinuity of homology within the segment was established by hybridization experiments. Nucleotide sequences at or near the junction were determined to be similar to sequences that are involved in site-specific inversion in S. typhimurium, E. coli, phage P1, and phage Mu. Similar sequences are also present within the terminal inverted repeat sequences of transposon Tn5 and at the V-D-J joining sequences of eucaryotic immunoglobulin genes. Therefore, the lac operon, together with flanking DNA, may have been inserted into the E. coli chromosome at one time via a site-specific recombination event. Rearrangement events of this kind undoubtedly have played a significant role in the evolutionary divergence of chromosomal DNAs.

Tryptophanase from Sphaerophorus funduliformis. Purification, molecular weight and subunit properties.

A crystalline tryptophanase can be obtained from extracts of Spaerophorus funduliformis using a heat treatment, hydroxyapatite chromatography and solubility in solutions of (NH4)2SO4 as a function of pH and temperature. The purified enzyme is homogeneous by several criteria. S. funduliformis tryptophanase has a specific activity of 11.5-13.5 and requires pyridoxal 5'-phosphate for enzymatic activity. Like other tryptophanases that have been studied, the S. funduliformis enzyme is a tetramer protein consisting of four apparently identical subunits. The native enzyme has a sedimentation coefficient of 11.2 S and a molecular weight of 244 000. In solutions of 5 M guanidine - HCl, 8 M urea, and sodium dodecylsulfate, at high pH or in the presence of thiols, the enzyme dissociates to 59 000 molecular weight species which are homogeneous by the criterion of weight. Peptide maps of the reduced holo-tryptophanase show one pyridoxal-containing peptide and, lacking agreement with the determined amino acid composition, suggest that the subunits of the enzyme contain a high degree of internal sequence homology.