[Changes in the symptoms of bronchial asthma and associated allergic disorders from childhood to adult age]. / Az asthma bronchiale és a társuló allergiás tünetek alakulása gyermekkortól felnóttkorig.

The aim of the study was to determine the prognosis of bronchial asthma. 145 adults (96 men, 49 women) with bronchial asthma during childhood were examined above age of 28 years (mean age was 37.6, SD: 5.9 years). The patients filled out questionnaires about the asthmatic and accompanying allergic symptoms in their childhood, age at 18 years and at present. They all were physically examined and prick tested with 12 inhalant allergens. 43% of the patients became symptom-free but 57% still had intermittent or persisting asthmatic symptoms while growing up. More patients had intermittent asthmatic day (59%) and night (67%) symptoms than persisting ones (41 and 33%). The accompanying allergic diseases in childhood did not definitely affect the prognosis of bronchial asthma. These are more frequent in the females, regarding before all the atopic skin disorders. At the age of 18, the occurrence of allergic rhinitis was more frequent than in childhood. The frequency of other allergic disorders did not change significantly. Among patients with asthmatic symptoms, moulds and cat hair allergies were more frequent than in the symptom-free group. The long-term prognosis of childhood bronchial asthma is relatively good, however only less than 50% of the patients has become symptom-free. In most of the adult patients the complaints are relatively mild. The indoor allergens may contribute to the occurrence of asthmatic symptoms.

Biotransformation and partial mineralization of the explosive 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) by rhizobia.

Three strains, T10, B5, and M8, each belonging to a different species of the family Rhizobiaceae and isolated from atrazine-contaminated soils, were tested for their ability to transform 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) (50 microg x mL(-1)) in liquid cultures using glucose as the C-source. All three strains were able to transform TNT to hydroxylaminodinitrotoluenes (2-HADNT, 4-HADNT), aminodinitrotoluenes (2-ADNT, 4-ADNT), and diaminonitrotoluene (2,4-DANT). The transformation was significantly faster in the presence of glutamate. Furthermore, the major metabolites that accumulated in cultures were 2-ADNT with glucose, and 4-ADNT with glutamate plus glucose. Rhizobium trifolii T10 was also tested for its ability to transform high levels of TNT (approximately 350 microg x mL(-1)) in a soil slurry. Almost 60% of the TNT was transformed within 2 days in bioaugmented soil slurries, and up to 90% when cultures were supplemented with glucose and glutamate. However, mineralization was minimal in all cases, less than 2% in 78 days. This is the first report on the degradation of TNT by rhizobial strains, and our findings suggest that rhizobia have the potential to play an important role in the safe decontamination of soils and sites contaminated with TNT if bioaugmentation with rhizobia is shown to have no ecotoxicological consequence.

Characterization of metabolites in the biotransformation of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene with anaerobic sludge: role of triaminotoluene.

The present study describes the biotransformation of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) (220 microM) by using anaerobic sludge (10%, vol/vol) supplemented with molasses (3.3 g/liter). Despite the disappearance of TNT in less than 15 h, roughly 0.1% of TNT was attributed to mineralization (14CO2). A combination of solid-phase microextraction-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry identified two distinctive cycles in the degradation of TNT. One cycle was responsible for the stepwise reduction of TNT to eventually produce triaminotoluene (TAT) in relatively high yield (160 microM). The other cycle involved TAT and was responsible for the production of azo derivatives, e.g., 2,2',4,4'-tetraamino-6,6'-azotoluene (2,2',4, 4'-TA-6,6'-azoT) and 2,2',6,6'-tetraamino-4,4'-azotoluene (2,2',6, 6'-TA-4,4'-azoT) at pH 7.2. These azo compounds were also detected when TAT was treated with the anaerobic sludge but not with an autoclaved sludge, suggesting the biotic nature of their formation. When the anaerobic conditions in the TAT-containing culture medium were removed by aeration and/or acidification (pH 3), the corresponding phenolic compounds, e.g., hydroxy-diaminotoluenes and dihydroxy-aminotoluenes, were observed at room temperature. Trihydroxytoluene was detected only after heating TAT in water at 100 degrees C. When 13CH3-labeled TNT was used as the N source in the above microcosms, we were unable to detect 13C-labeled p-cresol or [13CH3]toluene, indicating the absence of denitration or deamination in the biodegradation process. The formation and disappearance of TAT were not accompanied by mineralization, suggesting that TAT acted as a dead-end metabolite.

The significance of the arginine and arginase of tears in experimentally-induced herpes simplex corneae.

Experimental corneal herpes is always accompanied by the accumulation of arginine, the substrate of arginase, in tears, ensuring the multiplication of the herpes hominis virus. The main source of the large amount of arginine is the desquamating corneal epithelium, since after the epithelium of the cornea is abraded the arginine content of the tears again equals that of healthy tears. The low arginase content of rabbit tears can be supplemented by arginase applied as eyedrops, and this results in the cure of the herpetic process.