Search results for "ionic"
showing 10 items of 2016 documents
Sheets of alternating chirality in the structure of a novel iron(III) complex with a cyclic oxamide ligand
1998
An organic–metalloorganic analogue of the inorganic clay minerals has been obtained from the cyclization of N,N′-bis(ethoxalyl)phenylenediamine in basic medium in the presence of iron(III) ions leading to formation of a cyclic oxamide ligand (L). The combination of intramolecular (covalent) interactions between metal and ligand and intermolecular (noncovalent) ionic interactions creates a novel layered compound with an intriguing crystal structure (shown on the right).
In vitro induction of cecropin genes — an immune response in a Drosophila blood cell line
1992
The Drosophila melanogaster cell line mbn-2 was explored as a model system to study insect immune responses in vitro. This cell line is of blood cell origin, derived from larval hemocytes of the mutant lethal (2) malignant blood neoplasm (1(2)mbn). The mbn-2 cells respond to microbial substances by the activation of cecropin genes, coding for bactericidal peptides. The response is stronger than that previously described for SL2 cells, and four other tested Drosophila cell lines were totally unresponsive. Bacterial lipopolysaccharide, algal laminarin (a beta-1,3-glucan), and bacterial flagellin were strong inducers, bacterial peptidoglycan fragments gave a weaker response, whereas a formyl-m…
Vibrio vulnificus biotype 2 serovar E gne but not galE is essential for lipopolysaccharide biosynthesis and virulence
2008
ABSTRACT This work aimed to establish the role of gne (encoding UDP-GalNAc 4-epimerase activity) and galE (encoding UDP-Gal-4-epimerase activity) in the biosynthesis of surface polysaccharides, as well as in the virulence for eels and humans of the zoonotic serovar of Vibrio vulnificus biotype 2, serovar E. DNA sequence data revealed that gne and galE are quite homologous within this species (≥90% homology). Mutation in gne of strain CECT4999 increased the surface hydrophobicity, produced deep alterations in the outer membrane architecture, and resulted in noticeable increases in the sensitivity to microcidal peptides (MP), to eel and human sera, and to phagocytosis/opsonophagocytosis. Furt…
Cationic Proteins Inhibit l-Arginine Uptake in Rat Alveolar Macrophages and Tracheal Epithelial Cells
1999
Eosinophil-derived cationic proteins play an essential role in the pathogenesis of bronchial asthma. We tested whether cationic proteins interfere with the cationic amino-acid transport in alveolar macrophages (AMPhi) and tracheal epithelial cells, and whether L-arginine-dependent pathways were affected. The effect of cationic polypeptides on cellular uptake of [(3)H]-L-arginine, nitrite accumulation, and the turnover of [(3)H]-L-arginine by nitric oxide (NO) synthase and arginase (formation of [(3)H]-L-citrulline and [(3)H]-L-ornithine, respectively) were studied. Poly-L-arginine reduced [(3)H]-L-arginine uptake in rat AMPhi and tracheal epithelial cells in a concentration-dependent manner…
Interaction of Quinine with Model Lipid Membranes of Different Compositions
2002
The binding of a drug such as Quinine with neutral and negatively charged small unilamellar lipid vesicles at pH 7 and 37 degrees C was investigated. Changes in the fluorescence properties of the drug after association with the liposomes were used to obtain binding isotherms over a range of phospholipid compositions at different ionic strengths. Under such conditions, the association was strongly enhanced by the negative net charge of the bilayer but diminished by the increasing presence of electrolytes in the aqueous media. Binding data were analyzed in terms of a surface partition equilibrium without and after correcting for electrostatic effects by means of the Gouy-Chapman theory. The i…
Macromolecules in ordered media VIII. High-performance size-exclusion chromatography as a technique for characterizing the interaction between polyan…
1997
Abstract The association of polyanions with liposomes based on dimyristoyl phosphatidyl choline and stearylamine at a ratio of 50:50 was investigated in terms of the binding model and, to a lesser extent, of the partition model. Aqueous size-exclusion chromatography has been proposed as a major technique for monitoring the interactions between liposomes and polyelectrolytes and the results were compared with those obtained by fluorescence spectroscopy. Quantitatively, the extent of the association follows the order: Sodium poly(styrene sulfonate) ( K A = 10 000 M −1 ), poly (acrylic acid) ( K A = 2000 M −1 ) and poly ( l -glutamic acid) ( K A = 700 M −1 ). Also, the effect of the ionic stre…
Macromolecules in ordered media: 7. Influence of ionic strength and bilayer composition on the association of polyelectrolytes to mixed liposomes
1997
The effect of both the phospholipid composition of the bilayer and the ionic strength of the medium on the association between poly(2-vinyl pyridine) and mixed liposomes based on dimyristoyl phosphatidic acid and dimyristoyl phosphatidil choline was investigated using fluorescence spectroscopy. Intensity changes upon addition of vesicles have allowed us to estimate the extent of the association and data have been processed as association isotherms. We found that the association is enhanced by increasing both the ionic strength and the anionic phospholipid fraction. However, whereas the negative net charge of the bilayer strongly enhances the interaction, the presence of more and more electr…
Heparin modulates the cellular uptake of nanomedicines
2021
Liposomal formulations are used to improve the safety and cellular absorption of conventional drugs by limiting their interaction with phagocytes. The uptake behaviour of these nanocarriers is affected by the blood composition, and accordingly the presence of an anticoagulant in the blood could have a critical impact on the efficiency of nanomedicines. For the negatively charged liposomes, such as AmBisome®, no significant change in the uptake could be observed when co-incubated with heparin and primary phagocytes. Yet, we observed that a peak of the uptake extent of cationic liposomes was reached at a clinically relevant concentration of heparin for phagocytes and cancer cells. Hence, we r…