Avaliaçäo in vitro da fagocitose de Candida Albicans, sorotipos A e B, por macrófagos peritoneais ativados de camundongos isogênicos / An in vitro evaluation of Candida Albicans (serotypes A and B) phagocytosis, by activated peritoneal macrophages of isogenic mice

Tendo em vista a indefinida literatura em relaçäo aos macrófagos e à fagocitose de fungos e os resultados conflitantes frente a diversas metodologias empregadas, propusemo-nos, após o estabelecimento de um modelo experimental, estudar a fagocitose "in vitro" de Candida Albicans. Utilizamos para este estudo macrófagos peritoneais ativados, obtidos de camundongos isogênicos da linhagem A/Sn e duas cepas de Candida Albicans de diferentes procedências e sorotipos: ICB-12 sorotipo A e ICB-156 sorotipo B. Avaliamos a fagocitose pela contagem de macrófagos contendo em seu interior células vivas e/ou mortas, determinando-se o índice de fagocitose pela multiplicaçäo da porcentagem de macrófagos que fagocitaram e do número médio de leveduras por macrófagos. Valemo-nos de corantes vitais como vermelho neutro e fluorescentes (diacetato de fluoresceína e brometo de etídio), examinando o material à luz da microscopia de fase e fluorescência. Pudemos observar comportamento diferente dos macrófagos em relaçäo às duas cepas de C. Albicans estudadas, demonstrando porcentagem e índice maior de fagocitose dos macrófagos frente à cepa de C. Albicans ICB-12 sorotipo A quando comparada à cepa de C. Albicans sorotipo B, embora o número médio de leveduras por macrófagos fosse semelhante para ambas as cepas. Procurou-se, assim, proporcionar uma visäo sobre o destino de C. Albicans frente ao macrófago, devido aos vários aspectos ainda hoje näo totalmente definidos

Polysaccharides in fungi. XXVI. Two branched (1----3)-beta-D-glucans from hot water extract of Yu er.

Two water-insoluble glucans, U-3-N ([alpha]D +1.0 degree, 0.5 M sodium hydroxide) and U-3-AP1 ([alpha]D +2.5 degrees, 1 M sodium hydroxide) were isolated from hot-water extract of the fruiting bodies of Yu er (Chinese name) (Auricularia sp.). U-3-N and U-3-AP1 were investigated by a combination of chemical and spectroscopic methods. The results indicated that U-3-N (molecular weight, 6.1 x 10(5)) was similar to beta-(1----6)-branched (1----3)-beta-D-glucan (N-5P: molecular weight, 5.6 x 10(5)) isolated from the alkaline extract of the fruiting bodies, and U-3-AP1 (molecular weight, 6.3 x 10(4)) was beta-(1----6)-branched (1----3)-beta-D-glucan containing beta-(1----6)-linked D-glucopyranosyl residues. U-3-N showed potent anti-tumor activity against the solid form of sarcoma 180, although U-3-AP1 had little effect on the tumor.

Use of zoospore concentrations and life cycle parameters in determining the population of anaerobic fungi in the rumen ecosystem.

An indirect approach to quantification of the fibrolytic anaerobic fungi in the rumen is described. A mathematical model of the life cycle of anaerobic fungi, based upon observations of the life histories and growth kinetics of these organisms in vitro and in vivo, is constructed and solved in the steady-state to determine the population of particle-attached (substrate-associated) fungal thalli from the concentration of free-swimming zoospores in rumen liquid. The values obtained are broadly consistent with ruminal observations and with observations on faecal populations, which assume that a significant proportion of fungi leaving the rumen (as cysts or spores) can ultimately be accounted for in the faeces.

Potent and specific inhibitors of protein kinase C of microbial origin.

Potent and specific inhibitors of protein kinase C have been found in streptomyces and fungi: Staurosporine, an alkaloid from Streptomyces sp., is the most potent inhibitor of protein kinases with an IC50 in the nanomolar range. UCN-01 (7-hydroxy staurosporine), isolated from Streptomyces sp., is a selective inhibitor of protein kinase C with antitumor activity. Calphostin, isolated from the fungus Cladosporium cladosporioides, specifically inhibits protein kinase C (IC50 = 0.05 microM) without inhibiting other protein kinases. Microbial metabolites appear to be a promising source of inhibitors that target signal transduction pathways of eukaryotes.

Investigations on carotenoids in embryophyta X-the presence of carotenoids in some moss species from Brazil

Por meio das cromatografias de camada delgada e de coluna, a presença de carotenóides em sete espécies de musgos do Brasil foi estudada. As investigaçöes revelaram a presença dos seguintes carotenóides: lycoxanthin, ß-cryptoxanthin, lutein, zeaxanthin, hydroxyechinenone, canthaxanthin, astaxanthin, adonixanthin, lutein epoxide, antheraxanthin, mutatoxanthin, violaxanthin, luteoxanthin, neoaxanthin, ß-apo-2'-carotenal, B-apo-8'-carotenal e ß-apo-10'-carotenal. O conteúdo total de carotenóides variou de 3,35 em Sphagnum sp., a 9,80 mg/g de peso seco em Calymperis richardii

Inhibitory effects of mold oil including gamma-linolenate on platelet thrombus formation in mesenteric microvessels of the rat.

Diet including mold oil from a lipid accumulative fungus, containing gamma-linolenic acid, showed an inhibitory effect on thrombus formation in the microvessels of rats by the light/dye method of the authors. Male Wistar rats were fed for 3 to 4 weeks with two series of experimental diets and were examined for thrombus formation. The thrombus formation times to totally occlude, ts, were 347 sec for (mold + soybean)-oil and 236 sec for (palm + soybean)-oil in the first series of diets and 1288 sec for mold oil, 538 sec for olive oil and 575 sec for safflower oil in the second series of diets. Fatty acid composition of plasma, erythrocyte and liver lipids showed an increase in arachidonate content with the diet including the mold oil. Higher arachidonate content seem favorable in inhibiting thrombus formation with increasing PGI2 formation. In terms of the level of lipid hydroperoxides, indicated as a desaturation index of constituent fatty acids, the higher desaturation index with safflower oil gave shorter ts, which suggested some oxygen derived free radicals from polyunsaturated fatty acids were involved in the mechanism of thrombogenesis study by this method.

Aplicaçäo do método fluorescente (soluçäo de diacetato de fluoresceína e brometo de etídio) no estudo da viabilidade de Metarhizium anisopliae / Fluorescent method (fluorescein diacetate and ethidium bromide) for the viability study of Metarhizium anisopliae

Padronizou-se o método de fluorescência (soluçäo de diacetato de fluoresceína e brometo de etídio), para análise de viabilidade de Metarhizium anisopliae var. anisopliae (Metech.) Sorokin, cultivado em ágar Sabouraud-dextrosea 25-C. Após estudar diferentes períodos de contato entre as células e as soluçöes de corantes, verificou-se que uma perfeita diferenciaçäo entre células viáveis (fluorescência verde) e näo viáveis (fluorescência vermelha) foi obtida após 30 minutos, na concentraçäo final de 2 microng/ml para o diacetato de fluoresceína e 50 microng/ml para o brometo de etídio

Myrocin C, a new diterpene antitumor antibiotic from Myrothecium verrucaria. I. Taxonomy of the producing strain, fermentation, isolation and biological properties.

A new diterpene antitumor antibiotic, myrocin C, has been isolated from the culture filtrate of a soil fungus, Myrothecium verrucaria strain No. 55. The antibiotic was effective against Gram-positive bacteria, fungi and yeasts, and prolonged the life span of mice bearing Ehrlich ascites carcinoma.

Myrocin C, a new diterpene antitumor antibiotic from Myrothecium verrucaria. II. Physico-chemical properties and structure determination.

The structure of a new antitumor antibiotic, myrocin C, from a strain of Myrothecium verrucaria was characterized as a pentacyclic pimarane diterpene composed of a gamma-lactol group and a unique cyclopropane ring on the basis of its physico-chemical properties and spectroscopic data as well as a single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis of its monoacetyl derivative.

Lead and cadmium in fruiting bodies of macrofungi in the vicinity of a lead smelter.

The concentrations of lead and cadmium in the fruiting bodies of mycorrhizal and edible macrofungi (Basidiomycetes, Agaricales) were measured in the vicinity of a lead smelter. Very high concentrations of both metals were found 1 km from the stack, and elevated concentrations were observed up to a distance of 4.5 km. The dependence of the concentrations on the distance from the stack were approximated by an exponential function, the extrapolation of which showed that only at a distance of 6 km did the concentrations approach those reported from an area in the Krusné Hory Mountains with a medium level of air pollution. The concentrations of lead were slightly higher in the caps than in the stems of the fungal fruiting bodies from the sites close to the smelters; at a distance of 1.7 km they were the same, and at greater distances the lead concentrations in the caps were slightly lower than those in the stems. The cap/stem concentration ratio for cadmium does not exhibit any change with distance. The different behaviour of the two metals can be explained in terms of the lower mobility of Pb2+ ions. Because of their lead and cadmium contents, edible mycorrhizal fungi picked within a distance of 0.6 km of the stack can be toxic to man if eaten often in quantities that are usual in Czechoslovakia.

Inhibitory effects of fungi on aggregation of rabbit platelets and rat polymorphonuclear leucocytes in vitro.

Fungi of six families, encompassing 28 species, have been screened for their inhibitory effects on adenosine-5'-diphosphate (ADP), acetyl-glyceryl-phosphorylcholine (PAF) or collagen-induced rabbit platelet aggregation. Some fungi have also been studied for their ability to inhibit neutrophil aggregation induced by calcium ionophore A 23187. The results suggest that fungi may be a potential source of inhibitors of platelet and neutrophil aggregation.

New antitumor antibiotic, LL-D05139 beta. Fermentation, isolation, structure determination and biological activities.

The LL-D05139 complex, containing LL-D05139 beta and azaserine, was recovered from the fermentation filtrate of Glycomyces harbinensis (NRRL 15337). A chemically defined medium was developed which favored the production of LL-D05139 beta. Antibiotic LL-D05139 beta was isolated from the fermentation filtrate by adsorption on granular carbon and further purified by chromatography on microcrystalline cellulose. Acid hydrolysis of LL-D05139 beta gave one molar equivalent each of alanine and serine. Both amino acids were found to have the L-configuration by GC analysis on a chiral column and alanine was assigned to be the N-terminal amino acid by Edman degradation. This information coupled with IR, UV, 1H NMR, 13C NMR and MS spectral data allowed us to assign the structure of LL-D05139 beta as alanylazaserine. LL-D05139 beta demonstrated greater antibacterial and biochemical induction assay activities than azaserine. The two drugs showed similar antitumor activities.

The simultaneous determination of diacetoxyscirpenol and T-2 toxin in fungal cultures and grain samples by capillary gas chromatography.

A method for the quantitative determination of the toxic fungal products diacetoxyscirpenol and T-2 toxin is described. Initially intended for the screening of fungal cultures grown on maize, it has subsequently been used successfully for the analysis of maize and oat grain samples. The method involves extraction with aqueous methanol followed by a two-stage clean-up procedure utilizing a commercial kieselguhr column and a silica gel cartridge. The heptafluorobutyryl derivatives of the trichothecenes, including neosolaniol monoacetate used as an internal standard, are separated on a 25 m X 0.32 mm SE-30 fused silica capillary column and measured with a 63Ni electron capture detector. The quantitative detection limit was found to be of the order of 200 ng/g (ppb) with an average recovery from maize of 88% for both toxins. The method was found to be rapid and practical with the advantage that the kieselguhr packing material could be easily regenerated and re-used. The method was compared with those reported in the literature which are currently in use.

Resultados citológicos en pacientes con extendidos inflamatorio / Cytological results in patients with inflammatory smears

Se analiza el material de 300 pacientes que concurrieron al Dpto. de Ginecología y Citopatología de LALCEC, en los meses de marzo a mayo de 1986, se detectan 110 resultados colpocitológicos inflamatorios (36,6%), sus edades oscilan entre los 15 y 54 años con un promedio de 32. Se da la frecuencia de la flora de los extendidos cérvico-vaginales: Cocos (23,6%), Gardnerella (13,6%), Hongos (4,6%), Trichomonas (3,6%) y Flora Mixta (2,6%). Se analiza la flora de los extendidos cérvico-vaginales en relación a los antecedentes obstétricos: Parto, Aborto más Parto, Cesárea, Nuligestas, etc. Se realiza una comparación con los resultados de otros autores obtenidos de la bibliografía

Colonización y sucesión microbiana durante la descomposición de gramíneas tropicales / Microbial colonization and succession during the descomposition of tropical grasses

Los cambios observados en la comunidad microbiana (hongos, bacterias y actinomicetos) durante la descomposición de P. laxum, L. hexandra e H. amplexicaulis, fueron estudiados en condiciones de laboratorio, con el objeto de conocer como colonizan y se suceden en el tiempo las diferentes poblaciones involucradas en el proceso de degradación de materia orgánica de origen vegetal. Los resultados obtenidos señalan que existe un crecimiento microbiano al comienzo de los experimentos, el cual beneficia a las bacterias, seguidas por los hongos y por último un menor incremento de los actinomicetos. Esto se debe a que cuando los organismos descomponedores comienzan a atacar las diferentes formas de materia orgánica presente como detritus, utilizan primeramente aquellos compuestos aptos como recursos energéticos así como nutrientes esenciales para el crecimiento. Las bacterias inician el ataque al sustrato aumentando notablemente en número, lo que a su vez refleja una mayor expresión de su capacidad para utilizar los diferentes sustratos que componen el esqueleto vegetal. Luego de esta etapa, las bacterias disminuyen en número producto de la competencia por el sustrato por parte de los hongos, quienes van a ser dominantes, seguidos por los actinomicetos. Todos estos cambios que ocurren, así como la forma en que el sustrato es utilizado, sugieren que durante el proceso de descomposición están ocurriendo de forma simultánea una serie de interacciones y procesos donde el equilibrio inmovilización-descomposición y oxidación-reducción están actuando en forma sucesiva y sostenida