[EPR study of iron status in human body during intensive physical activity].

The iron metabolism was studied in serum blood samples collected from 26 professional sportsmen undergoing intensive physical exercises using EPR combined with haematological and biochemical laboratory tests. Only 23% of EPR spectra (n = 6) were practically normal while in the rest spectra additional abnormal absorption lines were detected. Presumably, the significant portion of new signals may be caused by different cytochromes. Moreover, the anisotropic signals with g1 approximately equal to 2.02; g2 approximately equal to 1.94 and g3 approximately equal to 1.86 registered in some spectra pointed to the sulfur-iron centers. There was nearly linear correlation between the concentration of Fe3+ in transfferin (Fe(3+)-Tf) obtained from the EPR spectra and the serum iron concentration measured by absorption photometry both for sportsmen and controls (healthy individuals and patients with different diseases). At equal serum iron concentrations the Fe(3+)-Tf level was higher in sportsmen than that in controls. The Pearson correlation coefficient (r) for Fe(3+)-Tf and serum iron values was equal to 0.89 in sportsmen versus r = 0.97 in controls. Additional new lines in serum EPR spectra of professional sportsmen prove the suitability of EPR assay for scheduled medical exams since routinebiochemical and haematological tests are insufficient to discover all abnormalities in iron metabolism under intensive physical exercises.

Effects of Panax notoginseng saponins on the activities of CYP1A2, CYP2C9, CYP2D6 and CYP3A4 in rats in vivo.

The aim of this study was to assess the influence of the Panax notoginseng saponins (PNS) on the activities of the drug-metabolizing enzymes cytochrome P450 (CYP450) 1A2, 2 C9, 2D6 and 3A4 in rats. The activities of CYP1A2, 2 C9, 2D6 and 3A4 were measured using specific probe drugs. After pretreatment for 1 week with PNS or physiological saline (control group), probe drugs caffeine (10 mg/kg; CYP1A2 activity), tolbutamide (15 mg/kg; CYP2C9 activity), metoprolol (20 mg/kg; CYP2D6 activity) and dapsone (10 mg/kg; CYP3A4 activity) were administered to rats by intraperitoneal injection. The blood was then collected at different times for ultra performance liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) analysis. The data showed that PNS exhibited an induction effect on CYP1A2 by decreasing caffeine C(max) (36.3%, p < 0.01) and AUC(0-∞) (22.77%, p < 0.05) and increasing CL/F (27.03%, p < 0.05) compared with those of the control group. Western blot analysis was used to detect the effect of PNS on the protein level of CYP1A2, and the results showed that PNS could upregulate the protein expression of CYP1A2. However, no significant changes in CYP2C9, 2D6 or 3A4 activities were observed. In conclusion, the results indicate that PNS could induce CYP1A2, which may affect the disposition of medicines primarily dependent on the CYP1A2 pathway. Our work may be the basis of related herb-drug interactions in the clinic.

Evidence for a blood-thymus barrier using electron-opaque tracers.

In order to verify the existence of a blood-thymus barrier to circulating macromolecules, the permeability of the vessels of the thymus was analyzed in young adult mice using electron opaque tracers of different molecular dimensions (horseradish peroxidase, cytochrome c, catalase, ferritin, colloidal lanthanum). Results show that although blood-borne macromolecules do penetrate the thymus, their parenchyma] distribution is limited to the medulla of the lobe by several factors: (a) the differential permeability of the various segments of the vascular tree; (b) the spatial segregation of these segments within the lobe; (c) the strategic location of parenchymal macrophages along the vessels. The cortex is exclusively supplied by capillaries, which have impermeable endothelial junctions. Although a small amount of tracer is transported by plasmalemmal vesicles through the capillary endothelium, this tracer is promptly sequestrated by macrophages stretched out in a continuous row along the cortical capillaries and it does not reach the intercellular clefts between cortical lymphocytes and reticular cells. The medulla contains all the leaky vessels, namely postcapillary venules and arterioles. Across the walls of the venules, large quantities of all injected tracers escape through the clefts between migrating lymphocytes and endothelial cells; also the arterioles have a small number of endothelial junctions which are permeable to peroxidase, but do not allow passage of tracers of higher molecular weight. The tracers released by the leaky vessels penetrate the intercellular clefts of the medulla, but they never reach the cortical parenchyma, even at long time intervals after the injection. Therefore, a blood-thymus barrier to circulating macromolecules does exist, but is limited to the cortex. Medullary lymphocytes are freely exposed to blood-borne substances.

Effects of hemolysate concentration, ionic strength and cytochrome b5 concentration on the rate of methemoglobin reduction in hemolysates of human erythrocytes.

An assay for determining the rate of methemoglobin reduction in hemolysates of human erythrocytes has been developed. The rates obtained by this assay, when corrected for dilution, are comparable to those obtained with intact cells. Increased ionic strength inhibits the reaction, whereas EDTA increases the rate of reduction. The rate with NADPH as electron donor is 65-70% of the rate with NADH. Added cytochrome b5 stimulates the reaction. The assay has been used to examine erythrocytes from two methemoglobinemic sisters and their asymptomatic mother. Hemolysates of the two patients have both decreased dichlorophenolindophenol reductase activity and decreased ability to reduce methemoglobin. Hemolysates from the heterozygous mother have intermediate dichlorophenolindophenol reductase activity and intermediate methemoglobin reduction ability. The data presented in this paper indicate that the concentrations of cytochrome b5 and cytochrome b5 reductase determine the rate of methemoglobin reduction in hemolysates.

Asymmetric binding of cytochrome b5 to the membrane of human erythrocyte ghosts.

The intact, amphipatic form of cytochrome b5 could bind to unsealed ghosts, but not to resealed ghosts, suggesting that the cytochrome could bind only to the inner (cytoplasmic) surface of the ghost membrane. This was further confirmed by the finding that the cytochrome could bind to closed, inside-out vesicles prepared from the ghosts. This asymmetric binding was not due to the exclusive localization of sialic acid and sugar chains on the outer surface of the ghosts membrane, because the cytochrome could not bind to ghosts even after enzymatic removal of these components. Although liposomes consisting of phosphatidylcholine or both phosphatidylcholine and sphingomyelin could effectively bind the cytochrome, this binding capacity was progressively decreased as increasing amount of cholesterol was included in the composition of phosphatidylcholine liposomes. Removal of cholesterol from resealed ghosts by incubation with egg phosphatidylcholine liposomes resulted in the binding of cytochrome b5 to the outer surface of the treated ghosts. The possibility is discussed that the asymmetric binding is due to preferential localization of cholesterol in the outer leaflet of the lipid bilayer that constitutes the ghost membrane.

An observational study of near-infrared spectroscopy during carotid endarterectomy.

Near-infrared spectroscopy was used to monitor changes in the cerebral oxygenation state in 13 patients during carotid endarterectomy. Variations in the levels of the chromophores (oxygenated hemoglobin (HbO2), deoxygenated hemoglobin (Hb), and oxidized cytochrome (CytO2)), and the total hemoglobin content (tHb) were compared with changes in middle cerebral artery flow velocity measured using transcranial Doppler ultrasonography. Of eight patients who showed a fall in flow velocity on application of the internal carotid artery cross-clamp, seven demonstrated a rapid and closely correlated fall in HbO2 signal, and an increase in Hb. Levels of CytO2 and tHb remained unchanged. During endarterectomy, recovery of the HbO2 and Hb levels toward preclamp baseline values occurred in three of these patients. Intraoperative shunts accelerated recovery of HbO2 and Hb signals in two of three individuals. Release of the internal carotid cross-clamp resulted in a rapid increase in HbO2 and decrease in Hb signal in those patients in whom spontaneous recovery had not occurred; in five instances, a hyperemia evolved with raised flow velocity and HbO2 to above baseline values. Cross-clamping and subsequent reperfusion of the external carotid artery had no effect on any parameter measured. The authors conclude that near-infrared spectroscopy can register changes in cerebral oxygenation during carotid endarterectomy without significant contamination from extracranial tissues.

The subcellular distribution and some properties of the cytochrome b component of the microbicidal oxidase system of human neutrophils.

A novel cytochrome b has recently been described in human neutrophils. The subcellular distribution of this cytochrome was investigated by analytical fractionation on continuous sucrose gradients and it was found to have a dual localization, the major component having a similar distribution to the plasma-membrane marker [3H]concanavalin A, and a denser peak located with the specific granules. The two components were separated on discontinuous gradients and studied independently.

Age-dependent decay of cytochrome b5 and cytochrome b5 reductase in human erythrocytes.

Age-dependent decrease in cytochrome b5 was observed in erythrocytes from both a normal person and a patient with hereditary methaemoglobinaemia without neurological symptoms. With aging, concentrations of cytochrome b5 in erythrocytes from the patient were almost the same as those in the control. Age-dependent decrease in cytochrome b5 reductase activity in the control erythrocytes was also shown; however, the reductase activity was very low in erythrocytes from the patient over the whole age range. Our studies show that methaemoglobin content of erythrocytes seems to be dependent on the content of cytochrome b5 in the cells, both in the control subject and in the patient.

The erythrocyte cytochrome b5.

Cytochrome b5 was isolated from large volumes of human and pork erythrocytes. The present study shows that the absorbance spectra of the oxidized and reduced forms of the erythrocyte cytochrome b5, of the solubilized one and of that of microsomes are similar.

Properties of methemoglobin reductase and kinetic study of methemoglobin reduction.

A soluble erythrocyte cytochrome b5 was purified as the substrate of methemoglobin reductase and an electron carrier to methemoglobin. The isoelectric point of this protein was at pH 4.3, and E0' was -0.010 at pH 7.0.. The Km value of the enzyme for this protein was 1 x 10(-4) M, and the turnover number (k5) was 3.4 x 10(4) min-1, with NADH as an electron donor at pH 7.0. The optimum pH of the enzyme was pH 4.6 for ferricyanide and pH 5.5 for cytochrome b5, with a shoulder of activity at pH 7 to 9 for both substrates. The rate equation which represents the reduction of either methemoglobin or cytochrome c was obtained as a function of methemoglobin or cytochrome c, methemoglobin reductase, and cytochrome b5 by considering the E . S complex for both reductase and cytochrome b5, and the rate constants involved were determined. The rate constants between methemoglobin and reduced cytochrome b5 (k1, M-1 min-1) were 1.6 x 10(4), 3.1 x 10(6), and 4.1 x 10(6) at pH 7.0, pH 5.2, and pH 5.0, respectively. The rate constants between the reduced enzyme and oxidized cytochrome b5 (k'3, M-1 min-1) were 4.3 x 10(8), 12 x 10(8), and 9.3 x 10(8) at pH 7.0, pH 5.2, and pH 5.0, respectively. The rate constant between reduced hemoglobin and oxidized cytochrome b5 (k2) was 35 M-1 min-1 at pH 7.0. The theoretical Km for methemoglobin was 2.1 M at an infinite enzyme concentration at pH 7.0

Functional relationship of the cytochrome b to the superoxide-generating oxidase of human neutrophils.

A subcellular particulate fraction containing the NADPH-dependent O2.--generating oxidase from stimulated human neutrophils was prepared. This fraction was depleted of certain enzyme markers of primary and secondary granules and was devoid of measurable myeloperoxidase, both enzymatically and spectrally. When prepared from neutrophils which had been previously stimulated with phorbal myristate acetate, this fraction contained cyanide-insensitive, pyridine nucleotide-dependent O2.--generating activity with a specific activity of 260 nmol min-1 mg-1. O2.--generating activity is completely ablated by p-chloromercuribenzoate exposure. Preparations from normal unstimulated neutrophils or stimulated neutrophils from a male patient with chronic granulomatous disease had negligible amounts of this O2.--generating enzymatic activity. The dominant chromophore in this preparation was a b-type cytochrome, the spectral and functional characteristics of which are further described herein. Pyridine nucleotide-dependent reduction of the intrinsic cytochrome b closely parallels O2.- generation in this preparation. Specifically, reduction occurs in preparations from phorbal myristate acetate-stimulated neutrophils and is absent in unstimulated or stimulated p-chloromercuribenzoate-inactivated preparations.

Cytochrome b-245 of neutrophils is also present in human monocytes, macrophages and eosinophils.

A cytochrome b with a midpoint oxidation-reduction potential of -245mV (cytochrome b-245) that is a major component of the microbicidal oxidase system of human neutrophil leucocytes has been identified in human eosinophils, monocytes and macrophages at concentrations similar to that found in human neutrophils. It was absent from a variety of other cells. This cytochrome is present in phagocytic leucocytes and probably plays an important part in the specialized activities of these cells.

The electron transport chain of serotonin-dense granules of platelets.

An electron transport chain has been found and partially characterized in highly purified membranes of serotonin granules isolated from porcine platelets. In these membranes NADH, but not NADPH, is oxidized when ferricyanide or catalytic amounts of cytochrome c were present. The reduced minus oxidized spectrum of these serotonin granule membranes shows a characteristic cytochrome b spectrum with absorbance maxima at 428, 530, and 561 nm. Ascorbate and, at slower rates, NADH are electron donors to cytochrome b561. It is concluded that the electron transport chain present within the membranes of serotonin granules is virtually identical with that of chromaffin granules, and a common physiological role is suggested.

Absence of cytochrome b-245 in chronic granulomatous disease. A multicenter European evaluation of its incidence and relevance.

The heme-containing protein cytochrome b-245 has been proposed as a primary component of the microbicidal oxidase system of phagocytes that normally generates superoxide-free radicals but when defective is associated with chronic granulomatous disease. We measured this cytochrome in granulocytes from 27 patients with chronic granulomatous disease and from 64 members of their families. It was undetectable in all 19 of the men in whom the defect appeared to be located on the X chromosome. Female relatives who were heterozygous carriers had reduced concentrations of the cytochrome and variable proportions of cells that were unable to generate superoxide; these two characteristics were closely related (r = 0.93 in the 16 mothers and 0.85 in all 24 carriers, P less than 0.001). In contrast, in all eight patients (seven women) with a probable autosomal recessive inheritance the cytochrome was present but nonfunctional. The properties tested, including midpoint potential, carbon monoxide binding, and organelle distribution, were normal, but the cytochrome did not undergo reduction on cellular stimulation. Thus, absence or malfunction of the cytochrome b-245 may be the causal molecular defect in chronic granulomatous disease, implicating it in the microbicidal oxidase system.