Immunogenicity of Japanese encephalitis virus envelope protein by Hyphantria cunea nuclear polyhedrosis virus vector in guinea pig.

Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) is an important pathogen causing febrile syndrome, encephalitis, and death. Envelop (E) glycoprotein is the major target of inducing neutralizing antibodies and protective immunity in host. In this study, E glycoprotein of JEV was expressed in Spodoptera frugiperd 9 cells as a fusion protein containing a gX signal sequence of pseudorabies virus. This purified HcE recombinant protein was evaluated for their immunogenicity and protective efficacy in guinea pig. The survival rates of guinea pig immunized with HcE protein was significantly increased over that of JE vaccine. This result indicates helpful information for developing a subunit vaccine against JEV.

A novel synthetic compound PHID (8-Phenyl-6a, 7, 8, 9, 9a, 10-hexahydro-6H-isoindolo [5, 6-g] quinoxaline-7, 9-dione) protects SH-SY5Y cells against MPP(+)-induced cytotoxicity through inhibition of reactive oxygen species generation and JNK signaling.

1-Methyl-4-phenylpyridinium ion (MPP(+)), a neurotoxin selective to dopaminergic neurons and an inhibitor of mitochondrial complex I, has been widely used as an etiologic model of Parkinson's disease. In this study, we investigated the protective effects of a novel synthetic compound, 8-Phenyl-6a,7,8,9,9a,10-hexahydro-6H-isoindolo[5,6-g]quinoxaline-7,9-dione (PHID), on MPP(+)-induced cytotoxicity in SH-SY5Y cells. MPP(+) induced apoptosis characterized by generation of reactive oxygen species, caspase-3 activation, poly ADP ribose polymerase proteolysis and increase in Bax/Bcl-2 ratio were blocked by PHID in a dose-dependent fashion. Furthermore, MPP(+)-mediated activation of stress-activated protein kinase/c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) was also inhibited by PHID in a dose-dependent manner. The results indicate that PHID protects against MPP(+)-induced apoptosis by blocking reactive oxygen species stimulation and JNK signaling pathways in SH-SY5Y cells, implicating the novel compound in the prevention of progressive neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease.

De novo generation of short antimicrobial peptides with simple amino acid composition.

As potential therapeutic agents, antimicrobial peptides with shorter length and simpler amino acid composition can be better candidates for clinical and commercial development. Here, we attempted de novo design of short (5- to 11-residue) antimicrobial peptides with three kinds of amino acids. Amphipathic helical properties were conferred by using leucines and lysines and two tryptophan residues were positioned at the critical amphipathic interface between the hydrophilic ending side and the hydrophobic starting side. According to this specified rule, 12 model peptides were generated and their helical propensity was confirmed by circular dichroism spectroscopy. Antimicrobial and hemolytic activities were compared with those of the known 12-residue peptide agent, omiganan, which is currently under therapeutic and commercial development. Antimicrobial activities against Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria, including a multi-drug resistant strain, were observed for certain 7- to 11-residue models. Among them, the most potent activity was found for a 9-residue peptide (L5K2W2), although it also had severe hemolytic activity. Alternatively, an 11-residue peptide (L4K5W2) with little hemolytic activity was potentially the most useful agent, as it showed higher antibacterial activity than omiganan. These results not only suggest useful candidates for novel antibiotic development, but also provide an efficient strategy to design such peptides.

Gold nanoparticles attenuate LPS-induced NO production through the inhibition of NF-kappaB and IFN-beta/STAT1 pathways in RAW264.7 cells.

Macrophage-derived nitric oxide (NO) plays an important role in protection against microbial infection in immune responses. Overproduction of NO by inducible nitric synthase (iNOS) is known to be closely correlated with the pathology of a variety of diseases and inflammations. In this study, we investigated the inhibitory effect of polyethylene glycol coated gold nanoparticles (GNP) on NO production and its molecular mechanism in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW264.7 cells. It was found that GNP inhibited LPS-induced NO production and iNOS expression in RAW264.7 cells. Furthermore, GNP suppressed LPS-induced activation of NF-kappaB through the inhibition of Akt activity. GNP also inhibited LPS-induced phosphorylation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT1) via down-regulation of interferon-beta (IFN-beta) expression. Our results suggest that GNP inhibits NO production and iNOS expression through blocking the activation of NF-kappaB and STAT1 in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 cells.

AP180 binds to the C-terminal SH2 domain of phospholipase C-gamma1 and inhibits its enzymatic activity.

The role of phospholipase Cgamma1 (PLCgamma1) in signal transduction was investigated by characterizing its SH domain-binding proteins that may represent components of a novel signaling pathway. A 180-kDa protein that binds to the SH2 domain of PLCgamma1 was purified from rat brain. The amino acid sequence of peptide derived from the purified protein is now identified as AP180, a clathrin assembly protein that has been implicated in clathrin-mediated synaptic vesicle recycling in synapses. In this report, we demonstrate the stable association of PLCgamma1 with AP180 in a clathrin-coated vesicle complex, which not only binds to the carboxyl-terminal SH2 domain of PLCgamma1, but also inhibits its enzymatic activity in a dose-dependent manner.