Search results for "Hemolysis"
showing 10 items of 89 documents
Presence of a capsule in Vibrio vulnificus biotype 2 and its relationship to virulence for eels
1993
Strains of Vibrio vulnificus biotype 2, isolated from internal organs of diseased European eels as pure cultures of opaque cells, together with some reference strains from Japanese eels, were used in this study. Spontaneous translucent-phase variants were obtained from the corresponding parent strains and compared for a variety of phenotypic traits related to virulence for eels. The rate of colony dissociation from opaque to translucent cells was higher (around 10(-2)) than that observed for translucent to opaque cells (10(-3) to 10(-4)). Electron microscopy with ruthenium red revealed the presence of a capsule of variable thickness on opaque cells, whereas translucent-type colonies had no …
An inherited deficiency of the third component of complement, C3, in guinea pigs
1986
Hereditary deficiency of the third component of complement, C3, is found very seldom in the human. C3 deficiency is associated with severe bacterial infections revealing the central role of C3 in complement activation via the classical or alternative pathway. We describe a new hereditary C3 deficiency in strain 2 guinea pigs. Serum from these animals had a markedly reduced lytic activity in a standard assay for complement-dependent, antibody-mediated cytotoxicity. In functional assays of individual components, the hemolytic activity of the components C4, C2, C5 and of factors B, D and H was in the normal range. The functional C3 titer, and similarly C3 antigenic activity in the serum of the…
A biostable, anti-fouling zwitterionic polyurethane-urea based on PDMS for use in blood-contacting medical devices.
2020
Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) is commonly used in medical devices because it is non-toxic and stable against oxidative stress. Relatively high blood platelet adhesion and the need for chemical crosslinking through curing, however, limit its utility. In this research, a biostable PDMS-based polyurethane-urea bearing zwitterion sulfobetaine (PDMS-SB-UU) was synthesized for potential use in the fabrication or coating of blood-contacting devices, such as a conduits, artificial lungs, and microfluidic devices. The chemical structure and physical properties of synthesized PDMS-SB-UU were confirmed by (1)H-nuclear magnetic resonance ((1)H-NMR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and uniaxial stress-strain cur…
Characterization of the Purified Fourth Component of Guinea Pig Complement* *Supported by Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (grant Kl 124/9).
1970
Publisher Summary A strain of rabbits deficient in complement was discovered in Freiburg, Germany in 1961. A second, clearly unrelated, strain was reported in Mexico. Both these strains are deficient in C6. A further complement-deficient rabbit was found by chance in Cambridge. This paper presents some data on the colony bred from this animal. C6 was partially purified from rabbit serum by chromatography on DEAE Cellulose and hydroxyapatite. Antibody to rabbit C6 in deficient rabbits was raised by four weekly injections of alum precipitated C6 with Bordetella pertussis as adjuvant into the knee joints, followed by three intravenous injections of the alum precipitated material without B. per…
Gender differences in the immune system activities of sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus
2013
In the immune system of vertebrates, gender-specific differences in individual immune competence are well known. In general, females possess more powerful immune response than males. In invertebrates, the situation is much less clear. For this purpose we have chosen to study the immune response of the two sexes of the echinoderm Paracentrotus lividus in pre- and post-spawning phases. The coelomic fluid from the echinoderms contains several coelomocyte types and molecules involved in innate immune defenses. In this article we report that the degree of immune responses in the P. lividus differs according to sex in both pre- and post-spawning phases. We found in all tests that females were mor…
Sphingomyelin inhibition of Ciona intestinalis (Tunicata) cytotoxic hemocytes assayed against sheep erythrocytes
1995
Hemocytes from the ascidian, Ciona intestinalis, are capable of lysing erythrocytes in vitro following cell membrane contact. With the aim of examining the mechanism of cytotoxicity, we performed inhibition experiments with lipid components of erythrocyte membranes. Cholesterol is not an inhibitor, whereas, among the phospholipids tested, (sphingomyelin, phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylserine, phosphatidylethanolamine) sphingomyelin inhibits the hemolytic activity of hemocytes. However, thin layer chromatography showed that sphingomyelinase activity was not contained in the chloroform-methanol extracts from hemocyte debris. The inhibition capacity of the components ceramide and phosphorylc…
Purification and characterization of a pore-forming protein from the marine sponge Tethya lyncurium
1992
A pore-forming protein was detected and purified for the first time from a marine sponge (Tethya lyncurium). The purified protein has a polypeptide molecular mass of 21 kDa and a pI of 6.4. Tethya pore-forming protein (also called Tethya hemolysin) rapidly lysed erythrocytes from a variety of organisms. After binding to target membranes, the hemolysin resisted elution with EDTA, salt or solutions of low ionic strength and hence resembled an integral membrane protein. Erythrocytes could be protected from hemolysis induced by Tethya hemolysin by addition of 30 mM dextran 4 (4-6 kDa; equivalent hydrodynamic diffusion radius, 1.75-2.3 nm) to the extracellular medium, but not by addition of unch…
Hypersusceptibility of neutrophil granulocytes towards lethal action of free fatty acids contained in enzyme-modified atherogenic low density lipopro…
2008
Abstract Objective The bulk of LDL entrapped in the arterial intima is modified by hydrolytic enzymes, leading to extensive cleavage of cholesterylesters and liberation of fatty acids. The latter induce apoptosis in endothelial cells but are far less cytotoxic towards macrophages. We have compared the cytotoxic effects of enzymatically modified LDL (E-LDL) on macrophages and polymorphonuclear granulocytes (PMN). Methods and results E-LDL displayed toxicity towards PMN at far lower concentrations than towards monocyte-derived macrophages. Native or oxidized LDL had no effect. Free fatty acids contained in E-LDL were the cause of the observed toxicity, which could be mimicked by linoleic acid…
Effect of EDTA and citrate on the functional activity of the first component of complement, C1, and the C1q subcomponent.
1985
The first component of complement, C1, is a calcium-dependent complex of the three distinct subcomponents, C1q, C1r, and C1s. Earlier observations revealed that treatment of C1 with EDTA led to a loss of hemolytic C1 activity even after recalcification. Therefore, it was of interest to study whether EDTA has an additional effect on C1 and its subcomponents, beside its chelating capacity. The chelating effect of EDTA was compared to that of citrate. It was found that treatment of C1 or C1 with EDTA followed by addition of Ca++ led to a loss of hemolytic activity up to 90%, depending on EDTA concentration. Even pretreatment of EDTA with varying amounts of Ca++ did not prevent the inactivation…
Structural characterisation of the natural membrane-bound state of melittin: a fluorescence study of a dansylated analogue
1997
Abstract The binding of a dansylated analogue of melittin (DNC–melittin) to natural membranes is described. The cytolytic peptide from honey bee venom melittin was enzymatically labelled in its glutamine-25 with the fluorescent probe monodansylcadaverine using guinea pig liver transglutaminase. The labelled peptide was characterised functionally in cytolytic assays, and spectroscopically by circular dichroism and fluorescence. The behaviour of DNC–melittin was, in all respects, indistinguishable from that of the naturally occurring peptide. We used resonance energy transfer to measure the state of aggregation of melittin on the membrane plane in synthetic and natural lipid bilayers. When bo…