Experimental Hendra virus infection of dogs: virus replication, shedding and potential for transmission.

OBJECTIVE: Characterisation of experimental Hendra virus (HeV) infection in dogs and assessment of associated transmission risk. METHODS: Beagle dogs were exposed oronasally to Hendra virus/Australia/Horse/2008/Redlands or to blood collected from HeV-infected ferrets. Ferrets were exposed to oral fluids collected from dogs after canine exposure to HeV. Observations made and samples tested post-exposure were used to assess the clinical course and replication sites of HeV in dogs, the infectivity for ferrets of canine oral fluids and features of HeV infection in dogs following contact with infective blood. RESULTS: Dogs were reliably infected with HeV and were generally asymptomatic. HeV was re-isolated from the oral cavity and virus clearance was associated with development of virus neutralising antibody. Major sites of HeV replication in dogs were the tonsils, lower respiratory tract and associated lymph nodes. Virus replication was documented in canine kidney and spleen, confirming a viraemic phase for canine HeV infection and suggesting that urine may be a source of infectious virus. Infection was transmitted to ferrets via canine oral secretions, with copy numbers for the HeV N gene in canine oral swabs comparable to those reported for nasal swabs of experimentally infected horses. CONCLUSION: HeV is not highly pathogenic for dogs, but their oral secretions pose a potential transmission risk to people. The time-window for transmission risk is circumscribed and corresponds to the period of acute infection before establishment of an adaptive immune response. The likelihood of central nervous system involvement in canine HeV infection is unclear, as is any long-term consequence.

Sulfur-centered radical formation from the antioxidant dihydrolipoic acid.

Lipoic acid and its reduced form, dihydrolipoic acid, are thought to be strong antioxidants. There are also reports of dihydrolipoic acid acting as a pro-oxidant under certain circumstances. This article reports the direct observation by ESR spectrometry of the disulfide radical anion and the spin trapping of the primary thiyl radical formed from the oxidation of dihydrolipoic acid through thiol pumping with phenol and horseradish peroxidase. The disulfide radical anion reacts rapidly with oxygen to form the reactive radical superoxide, which is also trapped. The radical species formed show a potential for pro-oxidant activity of this compound. Although antioxidants, in general, have been shown to have pro-oxidant potential, the pro-oxidant chemistry of dihydrolipoic acid has not been well characterized.

Free radical formation in the oxidation of malondialdehyde and acetylacetone by peroxidase enzymes.

Malondialdehyde, a product of lipid peroxidation, and acetylacetone undergo one-electron oxidation by peroxidase enzymes to form free radical metabolites, which were detected with ESR using the spin-trapping technique. The structures of the radical adducts were assigned using isotope substitution. With both malondialdehyde and acetylacetone and the enzymes myeloperoxidase and chloroperoxidase, carbon-centered radicals were detected. With horseradish peroxidase, a carbon-centered radical was initially trapped and then disappeared with the concomitant appearance of an iminoxyl radical.

Sulfate anion free radical formation by the peroxidation of (Bi)sulfite and its reaction with hydroxyl radical scavengers.

The one-electron oxidation of (bi)sulfite is catalyzed by peroxidases to yield the sulfur trioxide radical anion (SO3-), a predominantly sulfur-centered radical as shown by studies with 33S-labeled (bi)sulfite. This radical reacts with molecular oxygen to form a peroxyl radical. The subsequent reaction of this peroxyl radical with (bi)sulfite has been proposed to form the sulfate anion radical, which is nearly as strong an oxidant as the hydroxyl radical. We used the spin trapping electron spin resonance technique to provide for the first time direct evidence for sulfate anion radical formation during (bi)sulfite peroxidation. The sulfate anion radical is known to react with many compounds more commonly thought of as hydroxyl radical scavengers such as formate and ethanol. Free radicals derived from these scavengers are trapped in systems where (bi)sulfite peroxidation has been inhibited by these scavengers.

Oxidation of thiol drugs and biochemicals by the lactoperoxidase/hydrogen peroxide system.

The thiol moiety is prone to oxidative free radical formation, which may be important in mediating the toxicity of some thiol-containing compounds. The oxidation of the compounds cysteine, cysteamine, N-acetylcysteine, glutathione, penicillamine, and captopril were studied using ESR and oxygen uptake techniques. Lactoperoxidase, with hydrogen peroxide to provide oxidizing equivalents, was used to initiate the oxidation. The reaction appears to be strongly peroxide dependent, with either exogenous H2O2 or thiol-derived peroxide driving the reaction.

[17O]oxygen hyperfine structure for the hydroxyl and superoxide radical adducts of the spin traps DMPO, PBN and 4-POBN.

[17O]oxygen hyperfine coupling constants are reported for the superoxide and hydroxyl radical adducts with the spin traps 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline N-oxide, N-t-butyl-alpha-phenylnitrone and alpha-(4-pyridyl 1-oxide)-N-t-butylnitrone. These couplings provide spectroscopic evidence that the spin adducts have been correctly identified.

An electron spin resonance study of free radical intermediates in the oxidation of indole acetic acid by horseradish peroxidase.

The oxidation of indole-3-acetic acid by horseradish peroxidase was studied using the spin traps t-nitrosobutane and 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline N-oxide to trap free radical intermediates. The major free radical metabolite of indole acetic acid was unambiguously determined by the use of indole-3-[2,2-2H2]acetic acid to be the skatole carbon-centered free radical. In the presence of oxygen, superoxide was also trapped.

Epoxidation of (+/-)-7,8-dihydroxy-7,8-dihydrobenzo[a]pyrene during (bi)sulfite autoxidation: activation of a procarcinogen by a cocarcinogen.

The (bi)sulfite ion undergoes extensive autoxidation in neutral aqueous media with the formation of sulfur trioxide radical anion that is detected by ESR. The radical anion subsequently reacts with molecular oxygen to form a peroxyl radical. We find that when (+/-)-trans-7,8-dihydroxy-7,8-dihydrobenzo[a]pyrene (BP-7,8-diol) is included in this autoxidation system, BP-7,8-diol is converted to diolepoxides, ultimate carcinogenic derivatives of benzo[a]pyrene. This epoxidation occurs with a stereoselectivity consistent with either a peroxyl radical or a peracid as the epoxidizing agent. The epoxidation is dependent on the concentration of both (bi)sulfite and oxygen. In the presence of 10 microM butylated hydroxyanisole, which abolishes (bi)sulfite autoxidation, no (bi)sulfite-dependent epoxidation occurs. These results are discussed in regard to the mechanism of (bi)sulfite autoxidation, and in relationship to the cocarcinogenicity of sulfur dioxide [anhydrous (bi)sulfite] for benzo[a]pyrene-induced pulmonary neoplasia.

Free radical metabolites of L-cysteine oxidation.

The oxidation of L-cysteine by horseradish peroxidase in the presence of oxygen forms a thiyl free radical as demonstrated with the spin-trapping ESR technique. Reactions of this thiyl free radical result in oxygen consumption, which is inhibited by the spin trap 5,5'-dimethyl-1-pyrroline-N-oxide. Cysteine sulfinic acid, a cysteine metabolite, is a poorer substrate for horseradish peroxidase than cysteine and is oxidized to form both sulfur-centered and carbon-centered free radicals.

On the use of organic extraction in the spin-trapping technique as applied to biological systems.

A back-extraction methodology is presented which involves extraction of a spin adduct from an organic medium into an aqueous medium where its spectral parameters are well established. This technique should prove very useful in properly identifying spin adducts formed in organic media. Some of the hazards of extracting spin adducts into organic solvents for study are pointed out.

A direct electron spin resonance and spin-trapping investigation of peroxyl free radical formation by hematin/hydroperoxide systems.

Direct electron spin resonance was used to detect tert-alkylperoxyl radicals generated by hematin and the corresponding hydroperoxides at near-physiological pH values. The spin-trapping method was necessary to detect the less persistent primary ethylperoxyl radical. Under a nitrogen atmosphere, the electron spin resonance signal of the tert-alkylperoxyl radicals decreased, and the ethylperoxyl spin-adduct concentration did not change. Concomitant studies, using a Clark oxygen electrode, show that oxygen was consumed by the hematin-tert-alkyl hydroperoxide systems, but was released by the hematin-ethyl hydroperoxide reaction. Thus, molecular oxygen seems to play a subsidiary role in the hematin-catalyzed decomposition of hydroperoxides. Based on the electron spin resonance and oxygen electrode results, a mechanism for the continuous production of the peroxyl free radicals is proposed for hematin/hydroperoxide systems. The present spectroscopic methodology can be used to search for peroxyl free radical formation by hemoprotein/hydroperoxide systems.

Direct detection of the sulfur trioxide radical anion during the horseradish peroxidase-hydrogen peroxide oxidation of sulfite (aqueous sulfur dioxide).

The ESR spectrum of SO3- is observed directly during the oxidation of (bi)sulfite to sulfate by horseradish peroxidase. This radical exhibits a single line at g = 2.0031. The SO3-radical can be trapped with nitrosobenzene, yielding an ESR spectrum with coupling constants AN = 12.3 G,AHp = AHo = 2.4 G, and AHm = 0.9 G, and a g-value of 2.0053. SO3- is an intermediate in the two-step reduction of peroxidase Compound I by (bi)sulfite at physiological pH. At low pH, no SO3- is observed, which indicates a direct, one-step, two-electron reduction of Compound I. The pH at which the mechanism changes depends on the isoenzymes present. The radical reacts rapidly with oxygen as evidenced by the absence of an ESR spectrum when oxygen is present and by oxygen uptake measurements.

The formation of sulfur trioxide radical anion during the prostaglandin hydroperoxidase-catalyzed oxidation of bisulfite (hydrated sulfur dioxide).

The mechanism of prostaglandin synthase-dependent (bi)sulfite (hydrated sulfur dioxide) oxidation was investigated using an enzyme preparation derived from ram seminal vesicles. The horseradish peroxidase-catalyzed oxidation of (bi)sulfite was used as a model system. Incubation of (bi)sulfite with prostaglandin synthase and arachidonic acid, 15-hydroperoxyarachidonic acid, or H2O2 results in the formation of the reactive sulfur trioxide anion radical (SO3(-)). The horseradish peroxidase/H2O2 system also oxidizes (bi)sulfite to SO3(-). This free radical reacts with oxygen resulting in oxygen consumption by these incubations. The free radical was detected with the indirect electron spin resonance technique of spin trapping. The SO3(-) radical adduct formed by the reaction of SO3(-) with the spin trap, 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline-N-oxide, gives a nitroxide free radical with a nearly unique electron spin resonance spectrum (aH = 16.0 G and aN = 14.7 G). Using the spin-trapping technique, the SO3(-) could be detected even in incubations of guinea pig lung microsomes. When arachidonic acid-derived prostaglandin G2 was the source of hydroperoxide, formation of SO3(-) could be inhibited by indomethacin. When 15-hydroperoxyarachidonic acid or hydrogen peroxide was used to drive the enzymatic oxidation of (bi)sulfite, indomethacin had no effect. This hydroperoxidase activity was not nearly as heat-labile as the cyclo-oxygenase reaction which forms prostaglandin G2. Finally, the peroxidatic oxidation of (bi)sulfite may occur in vivo in competition with the mitochondrial sulfite oxidase, which oxidizes (bi)sulfite to sulfate without the formation of free radicals.

Generation of free radicals induced by nifurtimox in mammalian tissues.

Nifurtimox is reduced by rat liver microsomes to a nitro anion-free radical as indicated by ESR spectroscopy. This subcellular fraction gives a steady state radical concentration which is proportional to the square root of the protein concentration, suggesting that the nifurtimox anion radical is a necessary intermediate in the reduction and that the radical decays through a nonenzymatic second order process. The steady state concentration of the anion radical in the microsomal system is not decreased by superoxide dismutase or catalase, thus indicating that neither the superoxide anion nor hydrogen peroxide is an intermediary in the generation of the anion radical. The steady state concentration of the anion radical in the microsomal system is also not altered in the presence of metyrapone or CO and is decreased in the presence of NADP+ and p-chloromercuribenzoate. This observation suggests that the formation of nifurtimox anion radical is mediated through NADPH-cytochrome P-450 (c) reductase and not by the cytochrome P-450 system. In accordance with this interpretation, a model system consisting of NADPH and FMN-reduced nifurtimox to the nitro anion-free radical. Nifurtimox anion radical generation is significantly stimulated by rat brain and testes homogenates. The enhanced free radical formation may be the basic cause of nifurtimox toxicity in mammals.