Sugar utilization in the hyperthermophilic, sulfate-reducing archaeon Archaeoglobus fulgidus strain 7324: starch degradation to acetate and CO2 via a modified Embden-Meyerhof pathway and acetyl-CoA synthetase (ADP-forming).

The hyperthermophilic, sulfate-reducing archaeon Archaeoglobus fulgidus strain 7324, rather than the type strain VC16, was found to grow on starch and sulfate as energy and carbon source. Fermentation products and enzyme activities were determined in starch-grown cells and compared to those of cells grown on lactate and sulfate. During exponential growth on starch, 1 mol of glucose-equivalent was incompletely oxidized with sulfate to approximately 2 mol acetate, 2 mol CO2 and 1 mol H2S. Starch-grown cells did not contain measurable amounts of the deazaflavin factor F420 (<0.03 nmol/mg protein) and thus did not show the F420-specific green-blue fluorescence. In contrast, lactate (1 mol) was completely oxidized with sulfate to 3 mol CO2 by strain 7324, and lactate-grown cells contained high amounts of F420 (0.6 nmol/mg protein). In extracts of starch-grown cells, the following enzymes of a modified Embden-Meyerhof pathway were detected: ADP-dependent hexokinase (ADP-HK), phosphoglucose isomerase, ADP-dependent 6-phosphofructokinase (ADP-PFK), fructose-1,6-phosphate aldolase, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate:ferredoxin oxidoreductase (GAP:FdOR), phosphoglycerate mutase, enolase, and pyruvate kinase (PK). Specific activities of ADP-HK, ADP-PFK, GAP:FdOR, and PK were significantly higher in starch-grown cells than in lactate-grown cells, indicating induction of these enzymes during starch catabolism. Pyruvate conversion to acetate involved pyruvate:ferredoxin oxidoreductase and ADP-forming acetyl-CoA synthetase. The findings indicate that the archaeal sulfate reducer A. fulgidus strain 7324 converts starch to acetate via a modified Embden-Meyerhof pathway and acetyl-CoA synthetase (ADP-forming). This is the first report of growth of a sulfate reducer on starch, i.e. on a polymeric sugar.

Specific removal of paraquat by hemoperfusion through antiparaquat conjugated agarose-polyacrolein microsphere beads.

A novel specific adsorbent for removal of paraquat from blood has been developed. Immobilized antiparaquat antibodies provide the specificity and high affinity of the adsorbent. The antibodies were raised in rabbits and goats immunized with an analogue of paraquat, conjugated to bovine serum albumin (BSA). Specific antiparaquat antibodies were isolated from the animals' sera by affinity chromatography. The antibodies were polyvalently bound to crosslinked agarose-polyacrolein microsphere beads (APAMB). Antiparaquat conjugated beads (APB) were used as packing material in a hemoperfusion column for detoxification of paraquat and were compared to activated charcoal. In vitro and in vivo experiments showed specific and enhanced rate of removal of paraquat from plasma and blood by using APB. Minimal alteration of the formed elements and plasma constituents of the blood was observed.

[Mesenteric fibromatosis in infants. A case]. / Fibromatose mésentérique du nourrisson. Une observation.

The authors report on a case of mesenteric fibromatosis in a 5 month-old infant. Surgical excision was available and the clinical course was good, without recurrence after 30 months. Clinical and histological features of mesenteric desmoïd tumor in children are discussed and diagnostic difficulties are examined in depth.

[Complex bone abnormalities with fatal outcome: a new familial syndrome]. / Malformations osseuses complexes d'évolution létale. Un nouveau syndrome a caractère familial.

A new lethal disorder affecting two brothers is described. The features were curvature of the long bones, multiple fractures, dysmorphic facies, syndactyly and absence of ossification in the cranial vault. The condition could be inherited as an autosomal recessive or sex linked condition.