Excessive weight gain in women with a normal pre-pregnancy BMI is associated with increased neonatal adiposity.

BACKGROUND: More than 40% of women with a normal pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) exceed the 2009 Institute of Medicine (IOM) guidelines' recommended weight gain of 25-35 lb. Excessive gestational weight gain is one modifiable factor that may be contributing to childhood overweight and obesity. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to evaluate differences in adiposity from neonates born to mothers with a normal pre-pregnancy BMI who either gained within or above IOM guidelines. METHODS: Neonatal adiposity was measured within 72 h of birth by the method of air displacement plethysmography. RESULTS: Compared with mothers who gained within IOM guidelines (N = 27), mothers with excessive gestational weight gain (N = 11) (mean 29.0 vs. 45.2 lb) had neonates with 50% more fat mass (348 vs. 525 g) and 3% greater body fat (10.7 vs. 13.9%). CONCLUSIONS: Increased adiposity at birth may predispose these children to increased risk of obesity and highlight the importance that women avoid gaining excessive weight in pregnancy.

Effects of rasagiline, its metabolite aminoindan and selegiline on glutamate receptor mediated signalling in the rat hippocampus slice in vitro.

BACKGROUND: Rasagiline, a new drug developed to treat Parkinson's disease, is known to inhibit monoamine oxidase B. However, its metabolite R-(-)-aminoindan does not show this kind of activity. The present series of in vitro experiments using the rat hippocampal slice preparation deals with effects of both compounds on the pyramidal cell response after electric stimulation of the Schaffer Collaterals in comparison to selegiline, another MAO B inhibitor. METHOD: Stimulation of the Schaffer Collaterals by single stimuli (SS) or theta burst stimulation (TBS) resulted in stable responses of pyramidal cells measured as population spike amplitude (about 1 mV under control SS conditions or about 2 mV after TBS). RESULTS: During the first series, this response was attenuated in the presence of rasagiline and aminoindan-to a lesser degree of selegiline-in a concentration dependent manner (5-50 µM) after single stimuli as well as under TBS. During oxygen/glucose deprivation for 10 min the amplitude of the population spike breaks down by 75%. The presence of rasagiline and aminoindan, but rarely the presence of selegiline, prevented this break down. Following glutamate receptor mediated enhancements of neuronal transmission in a second series of experiments very clear differences could be observed in comparison to the action of selegiline: NMDA receptor, AMPA receptor as well as metabotropic glutamate receptor mediated increases of transmission were concentration dependently (0,3 - 2 µM) antagonized by rasagiline and aminoindan, but not by selegiline. On the opposite, only selegiline attenuated kainate receptor mediated increases of excitability. Thus, both monoamino oxidase (MAO) B inhibitors show attenuation of glutamatergic transmission in the hippocampus but interfere with different receptor mediated excitatory modulations at low concentrations. CONCLUSIONS: Since aminoindan does not induce MAO B inhibition, these effects must be regarded as being independent from MAO B inhibition. The results provide strong evidence for a neuroprotective activity of rasagiline and aminoindan in concert with an extended clinical indication into the direction of other diseases like Alzheimer's disease or stroke.

Vestibular perception in patients with acquired ophthalmoplegia.

Using a perceptual technique it is shown that patients with chronic external ophthalmoplegia have shortened vestibular responses. It is postulated that this is secondary to the retinal image slip experienced by these patients during head movements and a useful compensatory mechanism to suppress motion-induced sickness and spatial disorientation.

Toll receptors in Drosophila: a family of molecules regulating development and immunity.

In recent years, Toll-like receptors (TLRs) have emerged as key receptors which detect microbes and initiate an inflammatory response. The Toll receptor was originally identified and characterized 14 years ago for its role in the embryonic development of the fruit-fly Drosophila melanogaster. Subsequently, it was also shown to be an essential component of the signaling pathway mediating the anti-fungal host defense in this model organism. New factors involved in the activation of the Toll receptor or in intracytoplasmic signaling during the immune response in Drosophila have recently been identified. The existence of significant functional differences between mammalian TLRs and Drosophila Toll receptors is also becoming apparent.

A genome-wide analysis of immune responses in Drosophila.

Oligonucleotide DNA microarrays were used for a genome-wide analysis of immune-challenged Drosophila infected with Gram-positive or Gram-negative bacteria, or with fungi. Aside from the expression of an established set of immune defense genes, a significant number of previously unseen immune-induced genes were found. Genes of particular interest include corin- and Stubble-like genes, both of which have a type II transmembrane domain; easter- and snake-like genes, which may fulfil the roles of easter and snake in the Toll pathway; and a masquerade-like gene, potentially involved in enzyme regulation. The microarray data has also helped to greatly reduce the number of target genes in large gene groups, such as the proteases, helping to direct the choices for future mutant studies. Many of the up-regulated genes fit into the current conceptual framework of host defense, whereas others, including the substantial number of genes with unknown functions, offer new avenues for research.

Drosophila Toll is activated by Gram-positive bacteria through a circulating peptidoglycan recognition protein.

Microbial infection activates two distinct intracellular signalling cascades in the immune-responsive fat body of Drosophila. Gram-positive bacteria and fungi predominantly induce the Toll signalling pathway, whereas Gram-negative bacteria activate the Imd pathway. Loss-of-function mutants in either pathway reduce the resistance to corresponding infections. Genetic screens have identified a range of genes involved in these intracellular signalling cascades, but how they are activated by microbial infection is largely unknown. Activation of the transmembrane receptor Toll requires a proteolytically cleaved form of an extracellular cytokine-like polypeptide, Spätzle, suggesting that Toll does not itself function as a bona fide recognition receptor of microbial patterns. This is in apparent contrast with the mammalian Toll-like receptors and raises the question of which host molecules actually recognize microbial patterns to activate Toll through Spätzle. Here we present a mutation that blocks Toll activation by Gram-positive bacteria and significantly decreases resistance to this type of infection. The mutation semmelweis (seml) inactivates the gene encoding a peptidoglycan recognition protein (PGRP-SA). Interestingly, seml does not affect Toll activation by fungal infection, indicating the existence of a distinct recognition system for fungi to activate the Toll pathway.

Drosophila immune deficiency (IMD) is a death domain protein that activates antibacterial defense and can promote apoptosis.

We report the molecular characterization of the immune deficiency (imd) gene, which controls antibacterial defense in Drosophila. imd encodes a protein with a death domain similar to that of mammalian RIP (receptor interacting protein), a protein that plays a role in both NF-kappaB activation and apoptosis. We show that imd functions upstream of the DmIKK signalosome and the caspase DREDD in the control of antibacterial peptide genes. Strikingly, overexpression of imd leads to constitutive transcription of these genes and to apoptosis, and both effects are blocked by coexpression of the caspase inhibitor P35. We also show that imd is involved in the apoptotic response to UV irradiation. These data raise the possibility that antibacterial response and apoptosis share common control elements in Drosophila.

Gambicin: a novel immune responsive antimicrobial peptide from the malaria vector Anopheles gambiae.

A novel mosquito antimicrobial peptide, gambicin, and the corresponding gene were isolated in parallel through differential display-PCR, an expressed sequence tag (EST) project, and characterization of an antimicrobial activity in a mosquito cell line by reverse-phase chromatography. The 616-bp gambicin ORF encodes an 81-residue protein that is processed and secreted as a 61-aa mature peptide containing eight cysteines engaged in four disulfide bridges. Gambicin lacks sequence homology with other known proteins. Like other Anopheles gambiae antimicrobial peptide genes, gambicin is induced by natural or experimental infection in the midgut, fatbody, and hemocyte-like cell lines. Within the midgut, gambicin is predominantly expressed in the anterior part. Both local and systemic gambicin expression is induced during early and late stages of natural malaria infection. In vitro experiments showed that the 6.8-kDa mature peptide can kill both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, has a morphogenic effect on a filamentous fungus, and is marginally lethal to Plasmodium berghei ookinetes. An oxidized form of gambicin isolated from the cell line medium was more active against bacteria than the nonoxidized form from the same medium.

Toll receptors in innate immunity.

Innate immunity is the first-line host defense of multicellular organisms that rapidly operates to limit infection upon exposure to infectious agents. In addition, the cells and molecules operating during this early stage of the immune response in vertebrates have a decisive impact on the shaping of the subsequent adaptive response. Genetic studies initially performed in the fruitfly Drosophila and later in mice have revealed the importance of proteins of the Toll family in the innate immune response. We present here our current understanding of the role of this evolutionary ancient family of proteins that are thought to function as cytokine receptors (Toll in Drosophila) or pattern-recognition receptors (TLRs in mammals) and activate similar, albeit non-identical, signal-transduction pathways in flies and mammals.

Microfluorometer assay to measure the expression of beta-galactosidase and green fluorescent protein reporter genes in single Drosophila flies.

beta-galactosidase and green fluorescent protein (GFP) are among the most commonly used reporter genes to monitor gene expression in various organisms including Drosophila melanogaster. Their expression is usually detected in a qualitative way by direct microscopic observations of cells, tissues, or whole animals. To measure in vivo the inducibility of two antimicrobial peptide genes expressed during the Drosophila innate immune response, we have adapted two reporter gene systems based on the beta-galactosidase enzymatic activity and GFP. We have designed a 96-well microplate fluorometric assay sensitive enough to quantify the expression of both reporter genes in single flies. The assay has enabled us to process efficiently and rapidly a large number of individual mutant flies generated during an ethylmethane sulfonate saturation mutagenesis of the Drosophila genome. This method may be used in any screen that requires the quantification of reporter gene activity in individual insects.

Insect immunity. Constitutive expression of a cysteine-rich antifungal and a linear antibacterial peptide in a termite insect.

Two novel antimicrobial peptides, which we propose to name termicin and spinigerin, have been isolated from the fungus-growing termite Pseudacanthotermes spiniger (heterometabole insect, Isoptera). Termicin is a 36-amino acid residue antifungal peptide, with six cysteines arranged in a disulfide array similar to that of insect defensins. In contrast to most insect defensins, termicin is C-terminally amidated. Spinigerin consists of 25 amino acids and is devoid of cysteines. It is active against bacteria and fungi. Termicin and spinigerin show no obvious sequence similarities with other peptides. Termicin is constitutively present in hemocyte granules and in salivary glands. The presence of termicin and spinigerin in unchallenged termites contrasts with observations in evolutionary recent insects or insects undergoing complete metamorphosis, in which antimicrobial peptides are induced in the fat body and released into the hemolymph after septic injury.

Tissue-specific inducible expression of antimicrobial peptide genes in Drosophila surface epithelia.

The production of antimicrobial peptides is an important aspect of host defense in multicellular organisms. In Drosophila, seven antimicrobial peptides with different spectra of activities are synthesized by the fat body during the immune response and secreted into the hemolymph. Using GFP reporter transgenes, we show here that all seven Drosophila antimicrobial peptides can be induced in surface epithelia in a tissue-specific manner. The imd gene plays a critical role in the activation of this local response to infection. In particular, drosomycin expression, which is regulated by the Toll pathway during the systemic response, is regulated by imd in the respiratory tract, thus demonstrating the existence of distinct regulatory mechanisms for local and systemic induction of antimicrobial peptide genes in Drosophila.

Constitutive expression of a complement-like protein in toll and JAK gain-of-function mutants of Drosophila.

We show that Drosophila expresses four genes encoding proteins with significant similarities with the thiolester-containing proteins of the complement C3/alpha(2)-macroglobulin superfamily. The genes are transcribed at a low level during all stages of development, and their expression is markedly up-regulated after an immune challenge. For one of these genes, which is predominantly expressed in the larval fat body, we observe a constitutive expression in gain-of-function mutants of the Janus kinase (JAK) hop and a reduced inducibility in loss-of-function hop mutants. We also observe a constitutive expression in gain-of-function Toll mutants. We discuss the possible roles of these novel complement-like proteins in the Drosophila host defense.

Toll-related receptors and the control of antimicrobial peptide expression in Drosophila.

Insects defend themselves against infectious microorganisms by synthesizing potent antimicrobial peptides. Drosophila has appeared in recent years as a favorable model to study this innate host defense. A genetic analysis of the regulation of the antifungal peptide drosomycin has demonstrated a key role for the transmembrane receptor Toll, which prompted the search for mammalian homologs. Two of these, Toll-like receptor (TLR)2 and TLR4, recently were shown to play a critical role in innate immunity against bacteria. Here we describe six additional Toll-related genes (Toll-3 to Toll-8) in Drosophila in addition to 18-wheeler. Two of these genes, Toll-3 and Toll-4, are expressed at a low level. Toll-6, -7, and -8, on the other hand, are expressed at high levels during embryogenesis and molting, suggesting that, like Toll and 18w, they perform developmental functions. Finally, Toll-5 is expressed only in larvae and adults. By using chimeric constructs, we have tested the capacity of the signaling Toll/IL-1R homology domains of these receptors to activate antimicrobial peptide promoters and found that only Toll and Toll-5 can activate the drosomycin promoter in transfected cells, thus demonstrating specificity at the level of the Toll/IL-1R homology domain. In contrast, none of these constructs activated antibacterial peptide promoters, suggesting that Toll-related receptors are not involved in the regulation of antibacterial peptide expression. This result was independently confirmed by the demonstration that a dominant-negative version of the kinase Pelle can block induction of drosomycin by the cytokine Spaetzle, but does not affect induction of the antibacterial peptide attacin by lipopolysaccharide.

Effect of atenolol and celiprolol on acetylcholine-induced coronary vasomotion in coronary artery disease.

Earlier studies have reported on the potentiated muscarinic vasoconstriction of intracoronary acetylcholine after metoprolol application in patients with coronary artery disease. The present study investigated the effect of celiprolol, atenolol, and placebo on acetylcholine-induced vasomotion in patients with coronary artery disease. Furthermore, direct effects on coronary vasomotion and on hemodynamics were evaluated. Acetylcholine (intracoronary concentrations of 6.3x10(-7), 2.0x10(-6), and 6.3x10(-6) M) was given before and after double-blind celiprolol (0.30 mg/kg IV), atenolol (0.15 mg/kg IV), or placebo in 3x12 patients. Vasomotion was investigated by quantitative coronary angiography in proximal and distal segments of epicardial coronary arteries, and by the determination of the coronary resistance index based on Doppler-flow measurements. The investigated drugs had no direct affect on the diameter of the epicardial coronary arteries. However, celiprolol, in contrast to atenolol, significantly reduced systemic vascular resistance (change after atenolol: from 1,855+/-308 to 2,161+/-550 dyne s cm(-5); celiprolol: 1,691+/-435 to 1,411+/-343 dyne s cm(-5); and placebo: 1,722+/-215 to 1,710+/-213 dyne s cm(-5), p<0.001) and the coronary resistance index (change after atenolol: 2.52+/-3.58 to 2.86+/-4.24; celiprolol: 2.70+/-1.55 to 2.49+/-2.26; and placebo: 1.97+/-1.35 to 1.92+/-1.25, p<0.01). Celiprolol, atenolol, and placebo did not have different effects on acetylcholine-induced coronary vasomotion of epicardial conductance vessels (diminution of proximal lumen diameter before/after atenolol: 0.42+/-0.39/0.44+/-0.39 mm; celiprolol: 0.32+/-0.26/0.30+/-0.24 mm; and placebo: 0.36+/-0.29/0.43+/-0.40 mm) and of coronary resistance vessels (reduction of coronary resistance index before/after atenolol: 1.95 +/-4.74/ 1.92+/-3.74; celiprolol: 0.98+/-0.73/1.41+/-1.50; and placebo: 1.16+/-1.29/1.16+/-1.04). In contrast to atenolol, celiprolol possesses vasodilative properties in systemic and coronary resistance vessels. There was no direct effect on the diameter of conductance vessels. Acetylcholine-induced coronary vasomotion both in conductance and resistance vessels was not influenced by the beta blockers that were studied. This suggests that atenolol and celiprolol do not influence endothelium-dependent, nitric oxide related vasomotion.

The Rel protein DIF mediates the antifungal but not the antibacterial host defense in Drosophila.

We have isolated two Drosophila lines that carry point mutations in the gene coding for the NF-KB-like factor DIF. Like mutants of the Toll pathway, Dif mutant flies are susceptible to fungal but not to bacterial infections. Genetic epistasis experiments demonstrate that Dif mediates the Toll-dependent control of the inducibility of the antifungal peptide gene Drosomycin. Strikingly, DIF alone is required for the antifungal response in adults, but is redundant in larvae with Dorsal, another Rel family member. In Drosophila, Dif appears to be dedicated to the antifungal defense elicited by fungi and gram-positive bacteria. We discuss in this light the possibility that NF-KB1/p50 might be required more specifically in the innate immune response against gram-positive bacteria in mammals.

The phytopathogenic bacteria Erwinia carotovora infects Drosophila and activates an immune response.

Although Drosophila possesses potent immune responses, little is known about the microbial pathogens that infect Drosophila. We have identified members of the bacterial genus Erwinia that induce the systemic expression of genes encoding antimicrobial peptides in Drosophila larvae after ingestion. These Erwinia strains are phytopathogens and use flies as vectors; our data suggest that these strains have also evolved mechanisms for exploiting their insect vectors as hosts. Erwinia infections induce an antimicrobial response in Drosophila larvae with a preferential expression of antibacterial versus antifungal peptide-encoding genes. Antibacterial peptide gene expression after Erwinia infection is reduced in two Drosophila mutants that have reduced numbers of hemocytes, suggesting that blood cells play a role in regulating Drosophila antimicrobial responses and also illustrating that this Drosophila-Erwinia interaction provides a powerful model for dissecting host-pathogen relationships.

Signaling mechanisms in the antimicrobial host defense of Drosophila.

Drosophila has appeared in recent years as a powerful model to study innate immunity. Several papers published in the past year shed light on the role of the three Rel proteins Dorsal, Dif and Relish in the regulation of antimicrobial peptide expression. In addition, the discovery that a blood serine protease inhibitor is involved in the control of the antifungal response indicates that Toll is activated upon triggering of a proteolytic cascade and does not function as a Drosophila pattern recognition receptor.

Androctonin, a hydrophilic disulphide-bridged non-haemolytic anti-microbial peptide: a plausible mode of action.

Androctonin is a 25-residue non-haemolytic anti-microbial peptide isolated from the scorpion Androctonus australis and contains two disulphide bridges. Androctonin is different from known native anti-microbial peptides, being a relatively hydrophilic and non-amphipathic molecule. This raises the possibility that the target of androctonin might not be the bacterial membrane, shown to be a target for most amphipathic lytic peptides. To shed light on its mode of action on bacteria and its non-haemolytic activity, we synthesized androctonin, its fluorescent derivatives and its all-D-amino acid enantiomer. The enantiomer preserved high activity, suggesting a lipid-peptide interaction between androctonin and bacterial membranes. In Gram-positive and (at higher concentrations) Gram-negative bacteria, androctonin induced an immediate perturbation of the permeability properties of the cytoplasmic membrane of the bacterial energetic state, concomitant with perturbation of the morphology of the cell envelope as revealed by electron microscopy. Androctonin binds only to negatively charged lipid vesicles and induces the leakage of markers at high concentrations and with a slow kinetics, in contrast with amphipathic alpha-helical anti-microbial peptides that bind and permeate negatively charged vesicles, and to a smaller extent also zwitterionic ones. This might explain the selective lytic activity of androctonin towards bacteria but not red blood cells. Polarized attenuated total reflection-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy revealed that androctonin adopts a beta-sheet structure in membranes and did not affect the lipid acyl chain order, which supports a detergent-like effect. The small size of androctonin, its hydrophilic character and its physicochemical properties are favourable features for its potential application as a replacement for commercially available antibiotics to which bacteria have developed resistance.