Efficacy of Oral Administration of Sodium Iodide to Prevent Bovine Respiratory Disease Complex.

BACKGROUND: The prevention of bovine respiratory disease complex (BRD) in beef cattle is important to maintaining health and productivity of calves in feeding operations. OBJECTIVE: Determine whether BRD bacterial and viral pathogens are susceptible to the lactoperoxidase/hydrogen peroxide/iodide (LPO/H2 O2 /I- ) system in vitro and to determine whether the oral administration of sodium iodide (NaI) could achieve sufficient concentrations of iodine (I) in the respiratory secretions of weaned beef calves to inactivate these pathogens in vivo. ANIMALS: Sixteen weaned, apparently healthy, commercial beef calves from the University of Missouri, College of Veterinary Medicine teaching herd. METHODS: In vitro viral and bacterial assays were performed to determine susceptibility to the LPO/H2 O2 /I- system at varying concentrations of NaI. Sixteen randomly selected, healthy crossbred beef weanlings were administered 70 mg/kg NaI, or water, orally in a blinded, placebo-controlled trial. Blood and nasal secretions were collected for 72 hours and analyzed for I- concentration. RESULTS: Bovine herpesvirus-1, parainfluenza-3, Mannheimia haemolytica and Bibersteinia trehalosi were all inactivated or inhibited in vitro by the LPO/H2 O2 /I- reaction. Oral administration of NaI caused a marked increase in nasal fluid I concentration with a Cmax  = 181 (1,420 µM I), T12 , a sufficient concentration to inactivate these pathogens in vitro. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: In vitro, the LPO/H2 O2 /I- system inactivates and inhibits common pathogens associated with BRD. The administration of oral NaI significantly increases the I concentration of nasal fluid indicating that this system might be useful in preventing bovine respiratory infections.

Neonatal aerosol exposure to Bermuda grass allergen prevents subsequent induction of experimental allergic feline asthma: evidence for establishing early immunologic tolerance.

Allergic asthma is increasing in industrialized countries, especially in children. Rodent and human studies suggest an opportunity to "prevent" asthma in the perinatal period. The aims of this study were to create a more "natural" model of feline asthma by exposing offspring of asthmatic queens to Bermuda grass allergen (BGA) by inhalation only, and to investigate maternal-fetal-infant interactions in the development of asthma. Kittens from asthmatic queens were divided into four groups: maternal exposure to aerosolized BGA during the third trimester, neonatal exposure to aerosolized BGA in the first three months of life, both maternal and neonatal exposure, or saline control. Kittens failing to achieve an asthmatic phenotype based on bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) analysis by 6 months underwent traditional sensitization: adjuvanted allergen injection, intranasal allergen, and aerosol challenges. BALF was collected at 3, 4 and 6 months, and after sensitization at 8 months, and analyzed for eosinophil counts and BGA-specific IgG and IgA. Intradermal testing (IDT) was performed at 6 and 7 months. At six months none of the kittens had airway eosinophilia, BGA-specific IgG or IgA, and were non-responsive to IDT. After sensitization, kittens receiving neonatal aerosolization failed to develop airway eosinophilia as seen in the controls. Kittens exposed to BGA aerosols, either in-utero or neonatally, continued to lack IDT response. Chronic exposure to BGA aerosols failed to induce asthma in kittens, and instead tolerized the kittens to BGA. This is the first evidence that neonatal intervention could potentially "prevent" allergic asthma in cats.

Characterization of Brucella abortus infection of bovine monocyte-derived dendritic cells.

Brucella abortus is a Gram negative facultative intracellular pathogen of cattle, and an important zoonosis in humans worldwide. Previous studies have shown that dendritic cells (DC) from humans and mice are highly permissive for Brucella survival and proliferation. Impairment of DC activation and maturation by Brucella infection has also been reported in these two species. The aim of this study was to characterize infection of bovine DC with B. abortus. Monocyte-derived DC (mdDC) were cultured from bovine peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) using the recombinant bovine cytokines IL-4 and GM-CSF. The resulting mdDC were DEC205(+), MHC class II(hi). Approximately 70% of the cultured cells were DEC205(+), MHC II(+). MdDC were infected with B. abortus strain 2308 at an MOI of 1 and 100. Parallel infection experiments were performed in monocyte derived macrophages (mdM) isolated from the same subjects. Bacteria were successfully killed by mdDC by 24 hours post infection (PI) with high and low dose of B. abortus, bacteria persisted in mdM infected with a high dose. Expression of IL-1b, IL-6, IL-10, IL-12p40, IFNγ, iNOS and TNFα in B. abortus infected and LPS stimulated mdDC at 6 and 24 hours PI were evaluated using RT-qPCR. At 6 hours PI all transcripts were increased over control cells and significantly less IL-10, IL-12p40, and IFNγ were expressed in mdDC infected with B. abortus compared to LPS stimulation. Evaluation of mdDC cultures by flow cytometry was performed. Flow cytometric analysis of infected and LPS stimulated mdDC 24 hours PI showed expression of CD80 and CD86 was impaired in two of the three animals analyzed. MHC class II expression was equivocal between the groups. From these results we conclude that cultured bovine mdDC are not permissive for intracellular proliferation of B. abortus, and infected mdDC exhibit some signs of maturational and activational impairment.

A potential role for indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) in Rhodococcus equi infection.

Rhodococcus equi is a facultative intracellular bacterial pathogen of foals and immunocompromised humans that infects and proliferates within host macrophages and dendritic cells (DC). Indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO), the initial enzyme in the tryptophan catabolism pathway, is upregulated in R. equi infected equine monocyte-derived DC and alveolar macrophages. Tryptophan requirement of R. equi for extracellular and intracellular growth was assessed. Growth of R. equi in minimal media did not require tryptophan and pharmacologic inhibition of IDO had no effect on intracellular proliferation of R. equi in equine alveolar macrophages. To investigate an immune-regulatory role for INDO in R. equi infection, IDO(-/-) (B6.129-(Indotm1Alm)/J) (n=22) and strain matched control (C57BL/6J) (n=20) mice were infected with R. equi by intraperitoneal injection, for 3 and 6 days. There was no difference in bacterial counts in liver or spleen between the two groups. Histological sections of liver and spleen were assigned inflammation scores and RT-PCR for interferon-gamma (IFNγ), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα), IL-4, IL-6, IL-10, IL-12, IL-23, forkhead box P3 (FoxP3), and transforming growth factor-beta (TGFß) was performed on liver and spleen. Liver tissue of IDO(-/-) had higher inflammation scores at 6 days post-infection (PI) (P=0.05) and had decreased expression of TGFß at 3 days PI (P=0.01), and FOXP3 at 3 days (P=0.02) and 6 days (P=0.03) compared to control mice. Immunostaining for FOXP3 showed lower numbers of FOXP3+ regulatory T cells in liver of IDO(-/-) mice 6 days PI. Prolonged inflammation in the liver tissue of IDO(-/-) mice corresponded with lower expression of FOXP3 and TGFß in that tissue, and also with lower numbers of FOXP3+ regulatory T cells. We conclude that IDO expression by activated macrophages and DC plays a role in dampening the inflammatory response to R. equi infection in mice.

Identification of immunologically relevant genes in mare and foal dendritic cells responding to infection by Rhodococcus equi.

Rhodococcus equi is a facultative intracellular bacterial pathogen of horses; infected foals develop pyogranulomatous pneumonia, however adult horses are largely unaffected. R. equi infects and proliferates within host macrophages and dendritic cells (DCs). DCs initiate the appropriate adaptive immune response, thereby playing a critical role in determining the outcome of infection. Our aim was to identify genes that are differentially expressed in R. equi infected monocyte-derived DCs (mdDCs). Peripheral blood monocytes from mares and foals were used to derive mdDCs by culturing with recombinant equine IL-4 and recombinant human GM-CSF. RNA harvested 24h after infection with R. equi (ATCC 33701+) was used to perform suppression subtractive hybridization (SSH) experiments. Approximately 38 unique sequences were obtained from these experiments. Differential expression of 19 immunologically relevant genes was validated by PCR. These genes are characterized by the following functions: cell adhesion, chemotaxis/migration, immune/inflammatory response, ion transport, signal transduction, T-cell regulation, and vesicular transport. In summary, we identified several novel genes that are differentially expressed in foal and adult mdDCs in response to R. equi infection. These genes provide promising targets for further research into the host response to R. equi, and the susceptibility of foals to this disease.

Protein formulation and lyophilization cycle design: prevention of damage due to freeze-concentration induced phase separation.

Hemoglobin has been previously shown to unfold during freeze drying when lyophilized from formulations that undergo freeze-concentration induced phase separation (Heller et al. 1997. Biotechnol Prog 13:590-596). In this report, we show that such damage may be avoided using kinetic strategies to arrest the phase separation. By rapidly cooling samples during liquid nitrogen spray-freeze drying, the time that the formulation spends in temperature regimes (ca. -3 to -23 degrees C) in which phase separation is both thermodynamically favorable and kinetically realizable is minimized. Increased protein damage with decreasing cooling rates and/or longer annealing periods at -7 degrees C is observed by FTIR spectroscopy. Phase separation and concomitant protein damage may also be avoided by addition of mannitol at concentrations sufficient to cause crystallization. Mannitol crystals segregate the freeze concentrated solution into microscopic domains that block propagation and nucleation of phase separating events. Addition of noncrystallizing sugars, such as sucrose and trehalose, or nonionic surfactants, such as Tween 80 and Triton X-100, has little protective effect against phase separation induced damage during freezing drying.

Application of a thermodynamic model to the prediction of phase separations in freeze-concentrated formulations for protein lyophilization.

Many of the compounds considered for use in pharmaceutical formulations demonstrate incompatibilities with other components at high enough concentrations, including pairs of polymers, polymers and salts, or even proteins in combination with polymers, salts, or other proteins. Freeze concentration can force solutions into a region where incompatibilities between solutes will manifest as the formation of multiple phases. Such phase separation complicates questions of the stability of the formulation as well as labile components, such as proteins. Yet, phase separation events are difficult to identify by common formulation screening methods. In this report, we use the osmotic virial expansion model of Edmond and Ogston (1) to describe phase-separating behavior of ternary aqueous polymer solutions. Second osmotic virial coefficients of polyethylene glycol 3350 (PEG) and dextran T500 were measured by light scattering. Assuming an equilibrium between ice and water in the freeze-concentrated solution, a degree of freeze concentration can be estimated, which, when combined with the phase separation spinodal, describes a "phase separation envelope" in which phase separation tendencies can be expected in the frozen solution. The phase separation envelope is bounded at low temperatures by the glass transition temperature of the freeze-concentrated solution. Scanning electron microscopic images and infrared spectroscopy of protein structure are provided as experimental evidence of the phase separation envelope in a freeze-dried system of PEG, dextran, and hemoglobin.

Conformational stability of lyophilized PEGylated proteins in a phase-separating system.

PEGylation of proteins is of great interest to the pharmaceutical industry as covalent attachment of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) molecules can increase protein sera half-lives and reduce antigenicity. Not surprisingly, PEGylation significantly alters the surface characteristics of a protein, and consequently, its conformational stability during freezing and drying. Freeze concentration-induced phase separation between excipients has been previously shown to cause degradation of the secondary structure in lyophilized hemoglobin. In this report we show how PEGylation of two proteins, hemoglobin- and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), influences partitioning and protein secondary structure as determined by FTIR spectroscopy in a system prone to freezing-induced phase separation. PEGylation of hemoglobin reduces the loss of structure induced by lyophilization in a PEG/dextran system that phase separates during freezing, perhaps due to altered partitioning. The partition coefficient for native hemoglobin favors the dextran-rich phase (PEG/dextran partition coefficient = 0.3), while PEGylated hemoglobin favors the PEG phase (partition coefficient = 3.1). In addition, we demonstrate that PEGylation alters hemoglobin's stability during lyophilization in the absence of other excipients. In contrast, because native BDNF already partitions into the PEG-rich phase, PEGylation of BDNF has a less dramatic effect on both partition coefficients and conformational stability during lyophilization. This is the first report on the effects of PEGylation on protein structural stability during lyophilization and points out the need to consider modification of formulations in response to changing protein surface characteristics.

Effects of Tween 80 and sucrose on acute short-term stability and long-term storage at -20 degrees C of a recombinant hemoglobin.

The addition of low levels of surfactant polyoxyethylene 20 sorbitan monooleate, Tween 80, to recombinant hemoglobin in phosphate-buffered saline minimized the level of protein aggregation during acute freeze-thaw studies. Addition of sucrose alone to the phosphate-buffered saline formulation, up to 0.5 M, provided minimal protection against freeze-thaw induced aggregation. In contrast to the acute stability studies, long-term storage at -20 degrees C induced aggregation and methemoglobin formation in those formulations containing only Tween 80 in phosphate-buffered saline. Addition of sucrose between 0.1 and 0.5 M to the formulation prevented formation of aggregates and severely arrested methemoglobin formation during the long-term -20 degrees C storage. Specific binding of Tween 80 to the hemoglobin was not observed using 16-doxyl stearic acid partitioning techniques with electron paramagnetic resonance. Minor structural changes to the protein secondary structure during freezing in the absence and presence of Tween 80 were observed with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The alterations were partially prevented by addition of the sucrose. It is likely that the Tween 80 severely reduced protein aggregation during the acute stability studies by preventing the hemoglobin from reaching the air-liquid interface or the liquid-surface interfaces. The reduction in methemoglobin formation and aggregation observed during long-term storage can be accounted for on the premise that the sucrose reduced localized unfolding of the protein in a manner similar to the preferential exclusion theory (Arakawa, T.; and Timasheff, S. N. 1982, Biochemistry 1982, 21, 6536-6544). These studies demonstrate that acute formulation screening studies, albeit useful, may not necessarily predict protein stability during long-term storage.

Manipulation of lyophilization-induced phase separation: implications for pharmaceutical proteins.

Lyophilization, or freeze-drying, of pharmaceutical proteins is often the only processing method that provides requisite long-term product stability. Freezing and drying, however, can cause acute damage to proteins. To alleviate damage, formulations frequently include protein stabilizers (often polymers and/or sugars), as well as buffering salts and "inert" bulking agents. While great efforts are placed on developing a formulation and suitable lyophilization cycle, incompatibilities among components through freezing and drying have been almost completely ignored. We demonstrate that solutions of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) and dextran, initially below critical concentrations for phase separation, do indeed experience a liquid-liquid phase separation induced by freeze concentration during the lyophilization cycle. The separation is shown to evolve with annealing at -7 degrees C and can be effectively inhibited simply by replacing NaCl with KCl in the formulation buffer. In addition, we show that phase separation causes unfolding of a model protein, recombinant hemoglobin, when freeze-dried in the PEG/dextran system. When the phase separation is averted by switching to KCl, the protein structural damage is also avoided. Measurements of pH in the frozen solutions show that the structural damage is not a result of pH changes. We suggest that KCl forms a glass with rapid cooling which kinetically prevents the phase separation and thus the protein structural damage.

Appropriate thermal manipulations eliminate tremors in rats recovering from halothane anesthesia.

Tremors are common in mammals emerging from anesthesia. To determine whether appropriate thermal manipulations immediately before emergence from anesthesia are sufficient to eliminate these tremors, electroencephalographic (EEG) and electromyographic (EMG) activities, hypothalamic temperature (Thy), and O2 consumption were monitored in 12 rats recovering from halothane anesthesia under three thermal regimes. EEG and EMG activities were recorded throughout anesthesia and served as feedback signals for controlling anesthetic depth. During anesthesia, Thy was either 1) allowed to fall to 32-34 degrees C, 2) maintained at 37-39 degrees C, or 3) allowed to fall to 32-34 degrees C and then raised to 37-39 degrees C. When hypothermic on emergence from anesthesia, all of the animals exhibited postanesthetic tremors that persisted until Thy values returned to normothermia. None of the animals expressed postanesthetic tremors when normothermic on emergence from anesthesia. In addition, the time between emergence from anesthesia (as determined by EEG/EMG parameters) and the initiation of coordinated motor activities was significantly decreased in the normothermic animals.

Effects of phase separating systems on lyophilized hemoglobin.

Polymer liquid-liquid two-phase systems offer a unique opportunity to study the mechanisms of protein stabilization during freezing and freeze-drying. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy was used to monitor the structural integrity of recombinant hemoglobin frozen and lyophilized in the separated phases of a polyethylene glycol (PEG)-dextran system. Protein in each phase of an equilibrated biphasic PEG-dextran system experiences similar levels of structural protection against freezing stresses despite large differences in polymer concentration. This result further demonstrates previous suggestions that proteins are protected during freezing by the preferential exclusion mechanism. There are, however, distinct differences in the level of structural protection that polymers in equilibrium phases provide to proteins during lyophilization, emphasizing that the mechanisms of protein protection during freezing and drying are fundamentally different. In addition, we provide evidence that phase separation per se occurring during the course of the lyophilization cycle can be detrimental to the structural stability of a protein.

A functional analysis of verbal interactions of drug-exposed children and their mothers: the utility of sequential analysis.

Sequential analysis was used to conduct a functional analysis of positive and negative behaviors of five prenatally drug-exposed preschoolers while interacting with their mothers and with an unrelated adult on separate occasions. Videotaped interactions were coded for positive and negative verbal and nonverbal behaviors. Functional relations between child's target behaviors and adults' antecedent and consequent behaviors were identified and resulted in positive-compliant and negative-coercive classes of behavior. All dyads demonstrated positive-compliant patterns. Two mother-child dyads engaged in extended sequences of negative-coercive interactions whereas the unrelated adult terminated negative exchanges quickly. These sequential data suggest the need for developing specific behavioral training programs for mothers of drug-exposed children and other significant adults.

Perceived self-efficacy as a predictor of aftercare treatment entry by the detoxification patient.

63 urban, male, polysubstance abusers enrolled in an inpatient, hospital detoxification program with plans for aftercare were administered a set of 27 items describing behaviors that staff members nominated as necessary to make a transition from detoxification to aftercare. Patients were asked to rate each item twice, estimating (1) the importance of the described behavior to the achievement of aftercare and (2) their perceived ability to execute it. These ratings produced two highly saturated univariate tests, the Importance to Aftercare Scale (alpha = .89) of 17 items that did not predict aftercare entry and the Perceived Efficacy to Aftercare Entry Scale (alpha = .90) of 20 items which did correlate (.28) with entering aftercare.