Draft Genome Sequence of Lactobacillus delbrueckii Strain #22 Isolated from a Patient with Short Bowel Syndrome and Previous d-Lactic Acidosis and Encephalopathy.

d-Lactic acidosis with associated encephalopathy caused by overgrowth of intestinal lactic acid bacteria is a rarely diagnosed neurological complication of patients with short bowel syndrome. Here, we report the draft genome sequence of Lactobacillus delbrueckii strain #22 isolated from a patient with short bowel syndrome and previous d-lactic acidosis/encephalopathy.

Regulation of heme oxygenase-1 gene expression by anoxia and reoxygenation in primary rat hepatocyte cultures.

Heme oxygenase (HO) catalyzes the rate-limiting enzymatic step of heme degradation and regulates the cellular heme content. Gene expression of the inducible isoform of HO, HO-1, is upregulated in response to various oxidative stress stimuli. To investigate the regulatory role of anoxia and reoxygenation (A/R) on hepatic HO-1 gene expression, primary cultures of rat hepatocytes were exposed after an anoxia of 4 hr to normal oxygen tension for various lengths of time. For comparison, gene expression of the noninducible HO isoform, HO-2, and that of the heat-shock protein 70 (HSP70) were determined. During reoxygenation, a marked increase of HO-1 and HSP70 steady-state mRNA levels was observed, whereas no alteration of HO-2 mRNA levels occurred. Corresponding to HO-1 mRNA, an increase of HO-1 protein expression was determined by Western blot analysis. The anoxia-dependent induction of HO-1 was prevented by pretreatment with the transcription inhibitor, actinomycin D, but not by the protein synthesis inhibitor, cycloheximide, suggesting a transcriptional regulatory mechanism. After exposure of hepatocytes to anoxia, the relative levels of oxidized glutathione increased within the first 40 min of reoxygenation. Pretreament of cell cultures with the antioxidant agents, beta-carotene and allopurinol, before exposure to A/R led to a marked decrease of HO-1 and HSP70 mRNA expression during reoxygenation. An even more pronounced reduction of mRNA expression was observed after exposure to desferrioxamine. Taken together, the data demonstrate that HO-1 gene expression in rat hepatocyte cultures after A/R is upregulated by a transcriptional mechanism that may be, in part, mediated via the generation of ROS and the glutathione system.

Atrial natriuretic peptide serum concentration decreases in donors undergoing discontinuous plasmapheresis involving a large extracorporeal blood volume.

BACKGROUND: In donor plasmapheresis, circulatory reactions occur at a similar frequency as in whole-blood donation although the large extracorporeal blood volume (ECV) occurring during discontinuous plasmapheresis might predispose donors to hypovolemic reactions. The regulatory mechanisms compensating for this intradonation blood volume (BV) deficit are not well understood. It was the aim of this study to delineate whether atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) is involved in the BV regulation of plasmapheresis donors. Because ANP regulates volume overload, it might decrease during BV decrease in plasmapheresis. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: ANP serum concentrations were determined in 60 donors undergoing discontinuous plasmapheresis. Samples were taken before the start of the procedure and when maximum ECV (ECV(max)) was reached at the end of the last withdrawal. Donors were randomly selected after stratification for sex and BV. In a control investigation, the same donors were kept in a reclined position for the duration of a plasmapheresis session without plasma withdrawal. ANP plasma concentration changes were correlated with changes of hemodynamic variables, which were recorded noninvasively with bioelectrical impedance cardiography. RESULTS: Median ANP concentration decreased from 13.0 to 8.4 pg per mL during donation and from 11.6 to 10.5 pg per mL during the control session. The mean control-adjusted ANP change due to plasma withdrawal was -2.62 pg per mL (p = 0.006). This decrease was not attributable to a dilution effect. ANP change did not correlate with changes of recorded hemodynamic variables. CONCLUSION: The decrease of the ANP serum concentration during plasmapheresis demonstrates that the ECV(max) constitutes a hypovolemic challenge of the donors, which elicits a neurohormonal regulatory mechanism aimed at maintaining cardiovascular homeostasis.