Effect of plastoquinone derivative 10-(6'-plastoquinonyl)decyltriphenylphosphonium (SkQ1) on contents of steroid hormones and NO level in rats.

Introduction of the plastoquinone derivative 10-(6'-plastoquinonyl)decyltriphenylphosphonium (SkQ1) into male Wistar rats once a day for two weeks in doses of 25 and 250 nmol/kg led to elevation of 17ß-estradiol level in blood serum by 33 and 41%, respectively. At the same time, nitrate and nitrite contents in the rat blood serum increased by 49 and 34%, respectively. ESR spectroscopy with diethyldithiocarbamateiron complex as a spin trap showed more than twofold increase in NO production in lungs, but not in blood, liver, and intestines, following the SkQ1 daily introduction at a dose of 25 nmol/kg.

[Effect of dinitrosyl iron complexes with thiol-containing ligands on the penile cavernosum bodies in rats].

A beneficial effect of dinitrosyl iron complexes (DNIC) with thiol-containing ligands on penile cavernus tissue was shown in rats subjected to penile denervation. Histological and histochemical investigations demonstrated that intracavernous injections of dinitrosyl iron complexes (2 times per one week during 6 months) blocked the reinforcement of endothelial cell proliferation in the tissue characteristic of the cavernous tissue when the penile nerve was removed. On the other hand, treatment with dinitrosyl iron complexes led to the preservation of mitotic activity of smooth myocytes and protected against the appearance in these cells of collagenase, an indicator of muscle transformation into fibrous tissue. It was shown that the process of fibrous transformation of myocytes correlates with a decrease in the mitotic activity of fibroblasts in the adventive part of cavernosa. The mitotic activity increased in cavernous tissue in the absence of dinitrosyl iron complexes. The efficiency of long-term action of dinitrosyl iron complexes on the erection in both intact animals and animals subjected to neuroectomy of cavernous tissue nerve was shown. The injection of low-molecular dinitrosyl iron complexes to the cavernous tissue resulted in the formation of protein-bound dinitrosyl iron complexes in the tissue, which were detected by the EPR technique. It is assumed that these dinitrosyl iron complexes function as a depot of nitric oxide, providing long-lasting penis erection.

[Why does iron abrogate the cytotoxic effect of S-nitrosothiols on human and animal cultured cells?].

It was found that dinitrosyl iron complexes (DNIC) with thiol-containing ligands (cysteine or glutathione) of concentrations up to 1 mM produce no cytotoxic effect on cultured cells from human milk gland carcinoma (MCF-7). The cytotoxic action on MCF-7 cells was produced by S-nitrosocysteine: at a concentration of 1 mM, it induced the death of 50% cells. A more stable S-nitrosothiol, S-nitrosoglutathione, did not produce any cytotoxic effect at the same concentration. It is assumed that the negative action of nitrosocysteine is due to its rapid degradation, which results in the accumulation of large amounts of free NO molecules followed by their oxidation by superoxide ions to peroxynitrite, an efficient inhibitor of metabolic processes. These processes seem to be not characteristic of the more stable S-nitrosoglutathione. The cytotoxic effect of nitrosocysteine was completlly abrogated by the addition of 0.2 mM ferrous citrate complex to the medium. When S-nitrosoglutathione NO (0.5 mM) or S-nitrosoglutathione (0.5 mM) + Fe(2+)-citrate (0.2 mM) were added to the medium, protein-bound dinitrosyl iron complexes formed with the involvement of endogenous or exogenous iron were detected in cells. The amount of the complexes in the presence of exogenous iron increased four times, reaching the value of 1.6 nmole/5 x 10(6) cells. Therefore, it was proposed that the blockade of the cytotoxic action of S-nitrosoglutathione by iron complexes is due to Cys-NO transformation of S-nitrosocysteine into dinitrosyl iron complexes. The high stability of these complexes ensures only a gradual accumulation of nitric oxide in cells.

[Dinitrosyl-iron complexes with cysteine or glutathione accelerate skin wound healing in animals].

The beneficial effect of NO-donors, dinitrosyl-iron complexes with cysteine or glutathione on the healing of skin wound in rats was demonstrated by hystological and hystochemical methods: dinitrosyl-iron complexes accelerated efficiently repair processes in wound tissue after a twofold injection of an aqueous solution of a dinitrosyl-iron complex into wound tissue at a total dose of 5 mmol on days 1 and 2 after skin wounding, and the granulocyte volume increased 3-4 times on the fourth day after wounding compared with the control. Higher doses of dinitrosyl-iron complex provoked an inflammation process in the wound. Similar experiments with of another NO donor S-nitrosoglutathione affected adversely the wound. S-Nitrosoglutathione was added to the wound at a total dose of 10 mmol, which ensured the administration of NO to the wound tissue in the amount equal to that introduced upon the injection of dinitrosyl-iron complex. The addition of dinitrosyl-iron complex with glutathione at a dose of 2.5 mmol was accompanied by the formation of protein-bound dinitrosyl-iron complex in wound tissue. The formation of dinitrosyl-iron complex was also observed after the injection of S-nitrosoglutathione. However, the amount of complexes was more than 25 times less than that after the administration of dinitrosyl-iron complex. The beneficial effect of dinitrosyl-iron complex on the wound was suggested to be due to the formation of a self-regulated chemical system in wound tissue, which is characterized by the mutual transformation of low-molecular dinitrosyl-iron complex and S-nitrosoglutathione. This system ensures a regulated delivery of NO to its intracellular targets without the formation of high amounts of peroxynitrite which could adversely affect the intracellular processes. It was assumed that the self-regulated system of dinitrosyl-iron complex and S-nitrosoglutathione is not formed after the addition of S-nitrosoglutathione to the wound, probably due to a low amount of intracellular iron which could provide the formation of dinitrosyl-iron complex. The rapid decomposition of S-nitrosoglutathione results in the appearance of high amounts of NO and hence peroxynitrite, which adversely affects the wound.

[Changes in the free-radical state and level of free iron during the formation of drug resistance in tumor cells].

The development of resistance of K562 human erythroleukemia cells to doxorubicin, a widely used antitumor antibiotic with the prooxidant action, leads to changes in the free-radical state of cells. It has been found that the formation of superoxide anion in resistant cells decreases. The introduction of doxorubicin to the culture medium induced a considerably lesser increase in the formation of O2*- in resistant cells compared to sensitive cells. At the same time, a strong decrease in the ESR signal of semiquinone type with a g-factor of 2.006 was observed in a culture of resistant cells grown in the absence of doxorubicin as compared with sensitive cells grown under similar conditions. At the same time, a decrease in the level of paramagnetic nitrosyl complexes of nonheme iron in resistant cells was recorded, indicating a decrease in the content of free nonheme iron as a result of the formation of drug resistance. In addition, a decrease in the level of mRNA of the transferrin receptor in resistant cells was found by the RT-PCR. These data indicate the development of a coodinated redox-dependent adaptive response, which makes itself evident as a suppression of free radical processes during the formation of resistance of K562 cells to doxorubicin.

[Formation of paramagnetic nitrosyl complexes of non heme iron in animals with participation of nitric oxide from exogenous and endogenous sources]. / Obrazovanie paramagnitnykh nitrozil'nykh kompleksov negemovogo zheleza v organizme zhivotnykh pri uchastii oksida azota iz ékzogennykh i éndogennykh istochnikov.

It was found that thiosulfate has a stabilizing effect on exogenous and endogenous dinitrosyl-iron complexes in mice treated with bacterial lipopolysaccharide. It was assumed that thiosulfate protects dinitrosyl-iron complexes from the destructive influence of superoxide and peroxinitrite whose enhanced synthesis, together with the synthesis of nitric oxide, is initiated in mice by the lipopolysaccharide. For the first time, the formation of dinitrosyl-iron complexes was demonstrated, which occurs with the participation of nitric oxide generated enzymatically via the L-arginine-dependent pathway. The injection of exogenous dinitrosyl-iron complexes with thiosulfate, which, together with diethyldithiocarbamate, provide the formation of exogenous mononitrosyl iron-diethyldithiocarbamate complexes, made it possible to use the ABC method, which markedly enhances the efficiency of scavenging of endogenous nitric oxide in mice treated with lipopolysaccharides.

Derivatives of benzotetrazine-1,3-dioxide are new NO-donors, activators of soluble guanylate cyclase, and inhibitors of platelet aggregation.

The ability of 5-nitro-, 7-nitro-, and 5,7-dinitrobenzotetrazine-1,3-dioxides to generate nitric oxide (NO) and activate soluble guanylate cyclase was investigated. All of these compounds were found to be thiol-dependent NO-donors and guanylate cyclase activators. The maximal stimulatory effect of 5-nitro-, 7-nitro-, and 5,7-dinitrobenzotetrazine-1,3-dioxides was observed at 10 microM concentration and the activity increase was 4.5-, 15.0-, and 8.2-fold in the presence of 20 microM dithiothreitol and 11.3-, 31.6-, and 20.5-fold, respectively, in the presence of added glutathione (100 microM). The NO-dependent mechanism of benzotetrazine-1,3-dioxide nitroderivative-induced activation of soluble guanylate cyclase (in the presence of 100 microM glutathione) was confirmed by the inhibition (by 78%) of 7-nitrobenzotetrazine-1,3-dioxide (10 microM)-stimulated guanylate cyclase activity in the presence of the NO-scavenger 2-(4-carboxyphenyl)-4,4,5,5-tetramethylimidazoline-1-oxyl-3-oxide (Carboxy-PTIO, 50 microM) and by the inhibition with 1H-[1,2,4]oxadiazolo[4,3-a]quinoxalin-1-one (ODQ, 0.3 microM) of 5-nitro-, 7-nitro-, and 5,7-dinitrobenzotetrazine-1,3-dioxides (10 microM)-stimulated guanylate cyclase by 34, 69, and 39%, respectively. All compounds used inhibited ADP-induced aggregation of human platelets with IC50 of 10.0, 1.3, and 2.0 microM for 5-nitro-, 7-nitro-, and 5,7-dinitrobenzotetrazine-1,3-dioxides, respectively. A clearly defined correlation was established between the ability of the compounds to generate NO, activate soluble guanylate cyclase, and inhibit platelet aggregation.

Nitric oxide initiates iron binding to neocuproine.

It was demonstrated that two species of paramagnetic dinitrosyl iron complex (DNIC) with neocuproine form under the following conditions: in addition of neocuproine to a solution of DNIC with phosphate; in gaseous NO treatment of a mixture of Fe(2+) + neocuproine aqueous solutions at pH 6.5-8; and in addition of Fe(2+)--citrate complex + neocuproine to a S-nitrosocysteine (cys-NO) solution. The first form of DNIC with neocuproine is characterized by an EPR signal with g-factor values of 2.087, 2.055, and 2.025, when it is recorded at 77K. At room temperature, the complex displays a symmetric singlet at g = 2.05. The second form of DNIC with neocuproine gives an EPR signal with g-factor values of 2.042, 2.02, and 2.003, which can be recorded at a low temperature only.The revealed complexes are close to DNIC with cysteine in their stability. The ability of neocuproine to bind Fe(2+) in the presence of NO with formation of paramagnetic DNICs warrants critical reevaluation of the statement that neocuproine is only able to bind Cu(+) ions. It was suggested that the observed affinity of neocuproine to iron was due to transition of Fe(2+) in DNIC with neocuproine to Fe(+). In experiments on cys-NO, it was shown that the stabilizing effect of neocuproine on this compound could be due to neocuproine binding to the iron catalyzing decomposition of cys-NO.

Interaction of peroxynitrite and hydrogen peroxide with dinitrosyl iron complexes containing thiol ligands in vitro.

The interaction of peroxynitrite with thiolate dinitrosyl iron complexes (DNIC) has been examined and compared with the interaction with H2O2. Peroxynitrite oxidized DNIC containing various thiolate ligands--cysteine, glutathione, and bovine serum albumin. Analysis of the oxidation suggested a two-electron reaction and gave third-order rate constants of (9.3 +/- 0.5).109 M-2.sec-1 for DNIC with BSA, (4.0 +/- 0.3).108 M-2.sec-1 for DNIC with cysteine, and (1. 8 +/- 0.3).107 M-2.sec-1 for DNIC with glutathione at 20 degrees C and pH 7.6. Peroxynitrite was more reactive towards DNIC than towards sulfhydryls. Addition of sodium dithionite after the reaction led to significant restoration of the EPR signal of DNIC with cysteine. The reaction of glutathione DNIC with H2O2 was about 600 times slower than with ONOO- and not reversed by sodium dithionite. Thus peroxynitrite, in contrast to hydrogen peroxide, changes the pool of nitrosocompounds which can be responsible for interconversion, storage, and transportation of nitric oxide in vivo.

The 2.03 signal as an indicator of dinitrosyl-iron complexes with thiol-containing ligands.

The parameters of EPR signal from dinitrosyl-iron complexes (DNIC) with bovine serum albumin (BSA), horse hemoglobin (Hb), and apometallothionein (apo-Mt) of horse kidney incorporating one (BSA, Hb) or two thiol-containing ligands (apo-Mt) were compared. The EPR signal from DNIC-BSA was characterized by the rhombic symmetry of g tensor at room temperature of signal recording (ambient temperature) or at 77K in the solution frozen in the presence of glycerol. In freezing of the solution in the absence of glycerin, under the exposure of DNIC-BSA to negatively charged sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) ions, or in the incorporation of DNIC-BSA into the reversed micelles formed by negatively charged ions of surfactant aerosol OT, the symmetry of the g tensor of DNIC-BSA EPR signal increased to axial. A similarly high symmetry of g tensor was observed for the DNIC-Hb EPR signal in the absence of any influence on this protein complex. The shape of EPR signals from these preparations recorded at 77K was identical to that of EPR signal from DNIC with cysteine in frozen solution. In this connection it was concluded that the EPR signal from this low-molecular DNIC with the (RS-)2Fe+(NO+)2 structure cannot be considered as a peculiar "fingerprint" of DNIC with the same structure in biosystems. In such systems the same signal can originate from protein DNIC incorporating only one thiol-containing ligand along with a nonthiol ligand. The EPR signal displayed by DNIC with apo-Mt with a high content of cysteine residues at room temperature of registration was identical to the EPR signal from frozen solution of DNIC with cysteine. This protein DNIC is apparently characterized by the same structure as DNIC with cysteine.

Iron catalyzes both decomposition and synthesis of S-nitrosothiols: optical and electron paramagnetic resonance studies.

Formation of S-nitrosothiols was demonstrated in 1-50 mM aqueous solutions of cysteine or glutathione (cys-NO or GS-NO, respectively) upon contact of thiols with gaseous nitric oxide under a pressure of 50-600 mm Hg and anaerobic conditions. The yield of S-nitrosothiols was increased by mixing with NO plus air at a molar ratio [NO]/[O2 from air] of no less than 40. In this instance, the S-nitrosothiol formation was optimum at a NO pressure of 100-150 mm Hg. The addition of 0.25 mM o-phenanthroline, a selective Fe2+ chelator, to thiol solutions prior to the treatment with NO or NO + air completely blocked the formation of S-nitrosothiols. On the other hand, this process was potentiated by the addition of Fe2+ but not Cu2+ ions. These data indicated a crucial influence of Fe2+ on the process. The contact of o-phenanthroline with S-nitrosothiols synthesized by a routine method (treatment of thiol solutions with the NO + NO2 mixture at pH <1) did not induce their degradation at pH 3-10. Moreover, o-phenanthroline strikingly enhanced the cys-NO stability at neutral pH. Cysteine, glutathione, and desferal, a selective Fe3+ chelator, exerted a similar effect on cys-NO. The stabilizing effect of thiols on cys-NO was accompanied by the formation of dinitrosyl-iron complexes with thiol-containing ligands containing admixed (intrinsic) iron (1-2 microM). The addition of Fe2+ at a concentration higher than 10 microM abolished the stabilizing effect of thiols on cys-NO. Therefore iron can induce both degradation and synthesis of S-nitrosothiols. According to the proposed mechanisms such opposite effects of iron on S-nitrosothiols are determined by the ratio between S-nitrosothiols, thiols, iron, and NO in the reaction system.

[The dynamics of the radiation load on reindeer on Novaya Zemlya]. / Dinamika radiatsionnoi nagruzki na severnykh olenei Novoi Zemli.

The ESR analysis was carried out aiming at studying the activity of radionuclides in the dental enamel, dentin, and mandible bone tissues of reindeer of Novaya Zemlya. Doses of absorbed ionizing radiation were assessed. It was determined that the doses obtained by reindeer during underground nuclear tests were ten times higher and the activity of 90Sr was greater than those for reindeer living after the nuclear tests were suspended. Relatively high values of doses were observed for reindeer living before the nuclear weapons were invented. This fact is accounted for by an elevated level of natural radiation in the region.

Estimation of accumulated dose of radiation by the method of ESR-spectrometry of dental enamel of mammals.

ESR-spectrometry was used to investigate radiation-induced paramagnetic centers in enamel of mammals: carnivores (polar bear and fox), ungulates (reindeer, European bison, moose), and man. Values at half the microwave power saturation of the radiation signal, P1/2, evaluated at room temperature, was found to range from 16 to 26 mW for animals and man. A new approach to discrimination of the radiation induced signal from the total ESR spectrum of reindeer enamel is proposed. 'Dose-response' dependencies of enamel of different species mammals were measured within the dose range from 0.48 up to 10.08 Gy. Estimations of 'radiosensitivity' enamel of carnivores and ungulates showed good agreement with radiosensitivity enamel of man by ESR method.

Radiation dosage accumulated by reindeer from Novaya Zemlya.

ESR spectrometry of tooth enamel revealed a significant difference in accumulated radiation dose between reindeer which lived on Novaya Zemlya when underground nuclear tests were performed there and those which lived there after the tests were stopped.

[New prospects in assessing the absorbed radiation dose by electron paramagnetic resonance]. / Novye vozmozhnosti v otsenke pogloshcheniia radiatsionnoi dozy metodom élektronnogo paramagnitnogo rezonansa.

Spin-lattice relaxation rates of radiation induced and background centers in dental enamel have been investigated by electron spin resonance techniques. It has been found that these centers differ in the value of the saturation half-power and the saturation process. Based on these experimental results a new approach to discrimination of the radiation induced signal from the total ESR spectrum of dental enamel is proposed. Comparison of the current methods of radiation dose estimation by the ESR analysis has been performed using the new approach.

[Cumulative radiation dosage and epidemiological research in the Chernobyl region]. / Dozy radiatsionnykh nagruzok i épidemiologicheskie issledovaniia v Chernobyl'skom regione.

Individual biological dosimetry covering chromosomal analysis and electronic paramagnetic resonance spectrometry has been performed in 1300 subjects exposed to ionizing radiation after the Chernobyl accident. Cumulative radiation doses above 40 ImC were registered in 5%, about 100 ImC in 1% of the examinees. In 1% of cytogenetic investigations there appeared multiaberrant cells indicative of hot particle incorporation. Regional epidemiologists do not record changes in the incidence of hematological diseases. This may be explained by a small percent of the dose carriers, rare occurrence of hematological disorders and the time of radiation-induced oncogenic effects. The above representative group exposed to definite radiation doses may serve the subject of epidemiological surveys on the role of low-dose and low-rate radiation in pathogenesis of human diseases.

The source of non-heme iron that binds nitric oxide in cultivated macrophages.

In cultured macrophages (J 774 line) a decrease in iron-sulfur centers (ISC) was not observed after 5 min treatment with nitric oxide (NO) (10(-7) M NO/10(7) cells). The content of these centers was measured by electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopy at 16-60 K. However, the appearance of a characteristic ESR signal at g(av) = 2.03 indicated the formation of dinitrosyl iron complex (DNIC) in these cells. These findings suggest that loosely bound non-heme iron (free iron) but not iron from ISC is mainly involved in DNIC formation. ISC might release iron for DNIC formation after their destruction induced by the products of NO oxidation (NO2, N2O3, etc).

[The source of the iron binding with nitric oxide in activated macrophages]. / Ob istochnike zheleza, sviazyvaiushchegosia s oksidom azota v aktivirovannykh makrofagakh.

No decrease in iron-sulphur centers was found in cultured macrophage cells (J774) after the treatment with nitric oxide (10(-7) M NO/10(7) cells) during 5 min. The center content was controlled by the electron spin resonance (ESR) method. The macrophages pretreated with dithionite + methyl viologen showed the formation of dinitrosyl iron complexes (DNIC) with a characteristic ESR signal at g approximately 2.03. The data suggest that loosely bound nonheme iron (free iron) mostly contributes to the formation of these complexes. Iron from iron-containing proteins does not release from these centers under the direct action of nitric oxide. The iron-sulphur centers can be destroyed by the products of nitric oxide oxidation (NO2, N2O3, etc.) as oxidizing and acid agents.

[Determining the accumulated dose of gamma radiation in the tooth enamel]. / Opredelenie nakoplennoi dozy gamma-izlucheniia po émali zuba.

Following ideas of Japanese and Canadian scientists the authors tried to develop practical application of dental enamel for dosimetry of gamma-radiation accumulated by an individual. Human teeth were irradiated in vitro with gamma-rays of 60Co and with x-rays, and the amount of free radicals in ++non-caries enamel was measured on an ESR spectrometer. Linear regression ESR signals on dose of radiation within an interval of 0.1-20 Gy were plotted for gamma- and x-rays with regression coefficients 0.276 and 0.693, respectively. These regressions were used for estimation of accumulated doses of gamma-radiation in 85 residents of Byelorussia and 301 residents of the Tomsk region during investigation of teeth that were removed in normal dental practice.

[ATP synthesis in the membrane fragments of Staphylococcus aureus cells induced by a sudden increase in pH]. / Sintez ATF v membranno-stenochnykh fragmentakh kletok Staphylococcus aureus, indutsirovannyi skachkoobraznym povysheniem pH.

Membrane fragments of St. aureus are able to synthesize up to 7 nmol/mg protein of ATP after a jump-like increase of pH value. The presence of respiratory substrates is obligatory. The effect is realized only during the jump, if pH passes of 7.4 value. ADP phosphorylation induced by pH-jump is completely inhibited by DCCD.