Influence of ultrasonic stimulation on the growth and proliferation of Oryza sativa Nipponbare callus cells

Ultrasound acts as an alternative stress on cells or tissues. In this study it is aimed to investigate the effect of ultrasonic stimulation on the growth and proliferation of Oryza sativa Nipponbare cells (rice callus) in suspension culture. After the samples were stimulated by ultrasound at 28 kHz, we measured their growth and proliferation by using a colorimetric MTT ((3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide) assay as well as fresh weights of the cells. Growth curves were obtained by fresh weights in the suspension culture after ultrasonic agitation for different time from 2 to 120 s. In MTT method, the optical density was determined at 570 nm in the cell suspension on 10 days after the ultrasonic agitation. Up to 5 s agitation OD₅₇₀ increased; it decreased for more prolonged stimulation. We found that ultrasonic stimulation could promote the growth and proliferation of O. sativa Nipponbare cells in suspension culture with the optimal stimulation of 5 s, while with longer agitation, its growth and proliferation was inhibited. The mechanism may be that the ultrasound activated or destroyed the cellular structure, such as cell membrane, cytoskeleton and mitochondria in which many enzymes and ion channels are affected. In addition, the enhancement of cell wall and cell membrane fluidity might be one of the factors to promote the cell growth in 5-s ultrasonic stimulation.     

Pyrimidine biosynthesis in normal and transformed cells

We have developed procedures for sensitive measurement of specific radioactivities of pyrimidine nucleosides excreted from cells in culture. The changes in the observed values reflect dilution of the added isotope through de novo biosynthesis of nonradioactive pyrimidine nucleosides or by shifting and equilibration of other nucleotide pools into the free uridine pool. It is thus possible to monitor uridine biosynthesis occurring in intact cells without destroying or disrupting the cell population. On comparing a series of normal and and transformed lines, we have observed several growth-dependent patterns of change in specific activity and levels of uridine excretion and the temporal appearance of these changes. Hamster embryo fibroblasts slows pyrimidine biosynthesis at mid-growth while the hamster cell line V79 continues to dilute the pyrimidine pool at about 7% of the rate observed during exponential growth at confluence. Both cells exhibit Urd excretion beginning at one-half maximal growth. Passageable normal rat liver cells (IARC-20) also show a cessation of pyrimidine biosynthesis with a prior increase in uridine excretion. Two chemically transformed lines IARC-28 and IARC-19 derived from IARC-20 show different patterns. IARC-19 begins uridine excretion in early log growth and the specific activity continues to decrease at about 2% of the rate observed during exponential growth at confluence. The IARC-28 cells also begin excretion in early log growth but pyrimidine biosynthesis stops at about midlog. This method may prove to be an additional aid in recognizing and differentiating transformed cells in culture that do not exhibit the transformed phenotype.     

Protein structure prediction by tempering spatial constraints

Summary The probability to predict correctly a protein structure can be enhanced through introduction of spatial constraints – either from NMR experiments or from homologous structures. However, the additional constraints lead often to new local energy minima and worse sampling efficiency in simulations. In this work, we present a new parallel tempering variant that alleviates the energy barriers resulting from spatial constraints and therefore yields to an enhanced sampling in structure prediction simulations.     

对数期金黄色葡萄球菌的离子交换色谱行为及其表征

建立了高效离子交换色谱和激光光散射仪联用的分离-检测系统研究对数期金黄色葡萄球菌 (Staphylococcus aureus)的方法。实验采用TSKgel SuperQ-TOYOPEARL 650C色谱柱,以20 mmol/L的哌嗪-盐酸缓冲液(pH 6.0)为流动相,倍增系数为21的光散射系统检测,发现对数期的S.aureus表现出两个有规律变化的色谱峰。透射电镜观察显示前峰的S.aureus为圆形,后峰为椭圆形且有一条明显的横隔壁。采用3-（4,5）-双甲基-2-噻唑-（2,5）-苯基溴化四氮唑盐     

PHOTOPROTECTION OF E. COLI B/r: RESPIRATION,GROWTH, MACROMOLECULAR SYNTHESIS AND REPAIR OF DNA*

Abstract— Photoprotecting effects of near UV radiations (300–400 nm, maximum at 360 nm) against far UV radiations (primarily 254 nm) have been studied in Escherichia coli B/r cells in minimal medium with glycerol as a carbon source. Near UV light (10⁵ Jm^-2) has a negligible effect on survival, but causes transitory inhibition of respiration, growth, DNA, RNA, and protein syntheses and cell division. Far UV (52 J m^-2) reduces survival to about 0.5 per cent; respiration, growth and RNA and protein syntheses proceed for about 60 min, after which they nearly cease for several hours. Near UV given before this fluence of far UV increases survival 10-fold and the above processes resume at times and with kinetics characteristic of those produced by lower fluences of far UV. Single-strand breaks appear in the DNA of both unprotected and photoprotected cells; repair of the breaks is essentially complete in protected but not unprotected cells. The viability kinetics for far-UV-irradiated cells with and without photoprotecting treatment are identical except that the curve for the latter is displaced upward about 1 log; exponential increases (cell division) begin at 120 min in each case. The data suggest that, in B/r cells grown under our particular conditions, namely in minimal medium with glycerol, photoprotection is not the result of growth or division delays, but reflects an increased repair capability due to continued respiration.     

Effects of Arsenic Compounds on Proliferation and Nitric Oxide Synthesis in C3H 10T 1/2 Murine Fibroblasts

Exposure to arsenic, either through chronic consumption of contaminated water or inhalation, is associated with increased risk of cancer, yet the mechanism by which arsenicals promote neoplastic change remains undefined. The carcinogenic process involves the formation of heritable genetic changes in the DNA of normal cells and this process may be enhanced by environmental agents that increase cellular proliferation, increase DNA damage and decrease the ability to repair damage or cause immunosuppression. We describe the inhibition of cellular proliferation of C3H 10T1/2 murine fibroblasts in the presence of 1.0 μM arsenate or arsenite; yet cacodylic acid had no significant effect on cell growth in culture at this concentration. Both arsenate and cacodylate, at micromolar concentrations, slightly stimulated cell growth and cell density when cells were treated with interferon-γ/lipopolysaccharide (IFN-γ/LPS). At 1 μM , arsenate and cacodylate also slightly increased IFN-γ/LPS-induced nitric oxide (NO) synthesis in this cell line, consistent with the increase in cell number observed, whereas 1 μM arsenite significantly increased NO production on a per-cell basis. In contrast, arsenite significantly inhibited NO synthesis at concentrations above 10 μM arsenite as, to a lesser extent, did arsenate and cacodylate. These results suggest that ingestion of arsenicals could alter cellular generation of NO and interfere with its associated physiological functions. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

IR spectroscopy reveals effect of non-cytotoxic doses of anti-tumour drug on cancer cells

Identifying early cellular events in response to a chemotherapy drug treatment, in particular at low doses that will destroy the highest possible number of cancer cells, is an important issue in patient management. In this study, we employed Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy as a potential tool to access such information. We used as model the non-small cell lung cancer cell line, Calu-1. They were exposed to cytostatic doses (0.1 to 100 nM for 24, 48 and 72 h) of gemcitabine, an anti-tumour drug, currently used in treatment of lung cancer patients. In these conditions, inhibition of cell proliferation ranges from weak (≤5%), to moderate (∼23%), to high (82–95%) without affecting cell viability. Following drug treatment as a function of doses and incubation times, the spectra of cell populations and of individual cells were acquired using a bench-top IR source and a synchrotron infrared microscope. It is demonstrated that spectral cell response to gemcitabine is detectable at sublethal doses and that effects observed on cell populations are similar to those from single cells. Using cluster analysis, spectra could be classified in two main groups: a first group that contains spectra of cells exhibiting a weak or moderate proliferation rate and a second group with spectra from cells presenting a high growth inhibition. These results are promising since they show that effects of subtoxic doses can also be monitored at the single-cell level with the clinical implications that this may have in terms of patient benefit and response to chemotherapy.     

Cell surface changes accompanying myoblast differentiation

Myoblasts are mononucleated cells and associated with differentiation undergo cell fusion and become multinucleated. The current studies have examined cell surface dynamic changes of Concanavalin A lectin receptor mobility and the role of hormones in modulating myoblast differentiation. A uniform distribution of Con-A receptors is observed in undifferentiated cells when reacted with Con-A at 37 degrees C. Cells from differentiating cultures or fully differentiated myotubes reacted similarly at 37 degrees C show a significant redistribution of Con-A into patches, "caps," and endocytic vesicles containing Con-A. If undifferentiated and differentiated cells are first prefixed with glutaraldehyde then reacted with Con-A continuous distribution of Con-A is seen across the cell surface. This suggests redistribution of Con-A and its receptors occurs in differentiated cells reacted with lectin at 37 degrees C. It is further shown that insulin (10 microgram/ml) significantly enhances myoblast differentiation but that this occurs after an apparent stimulation of proliferation. In contrast to insulin, dexamethasone (10 micron and 100 micron) profoundly inhibits myoblast differentiation while having different effects on proliferation; 10 micron dex stimulates cell growth while 100 micron dex suppresses cell proliferation. Lastly, an extracellular filamentous matrix which binds Con-A is observed at the ultrastructural level in high density cultures. No significant redistribution of Con-A is observed on this matrix in distinction to the redistribution observed on the cell membrane in differentiated cells.     

Chronic mild stress decreases survival, but not proliferation, of new-born cells in adult rat hippocampus

New-born cells continue to proliferate and survive to become mature granule cells in adult rat hippocampus. Although this process, known as neurogenesis, is inhibited by acute stress, it is not clear whether chronic stress affects neurogenesis. To determine whether chronic mild stress (CMS) influences neurogenesis in the adult rat hippocampus, male Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to CMS and administered bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) before or after CMS to observe the survival/differentiation or proliferation of new-born cells, respectively. In addition, we measured brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) mRNA in the granule cell layer (GCL) of the hippocampus, because BDNF is known to play an important role in the survival of new-born cells. CMS significantly decreased the survival of new-born cells in the GCL, but did not influence the proliferation or differentiation of new-born cells. CMS did not affect the proliferation and survival of new-born cells in the hilus. In addition, CMS did not change BDNF mRNA levels in the GCL. These results demonstrate that CMS reduces the survival of new-born cells but not of their proliferation, suggesting that repeated mild stress could influence a part of neurogenesis, but not the whole part of neurogenesis. These results raise the possibility that the survival of new-born cells may be suppressed in the presence of normal BDNF mRNA levels in GCL.     

Logarithmic relaxation in a kinetically constrained model

We present Monte Carlo simulations on a coarse-grained model for relaxation in binary mixtures. The liquid structure is substituted by a three-dimensional array of cells. A spin variable is assigned to each cell, with values 0 or 1 denoting, respectively, unexcited and excited local states in a mobility field. Change in local mobility (spin flip) is permitted according to kinetic constraints determined by the mobilities of neighboring cells. We introduce two types of cells ("fast" and "slow") with very different rates for spin flip. Fast cells display anomalous relaxation, characterized by a concave-to-convex crossover in dynamic correlators by changing temperature or composition. At intermediate state points logarithmic relaxation is observed over three time decades. These results display striking analogies with dynamic correlators reported in recent simulations on polymer blends.     

Contribution to interpretation of metal uptake dependence upon the growth phase of microorganisms. The case of uranium (VI) uptake by common yeasts,cultivated at different temperatures,with or without aeration

The dependence of U(VI) uptake on the temperature of cell culture, the air flow during the cultivation process and the age of cells were studied. Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Kluyveromyces marxianus and Debaromyces hansenii were chosen as typical yeasts, which are widely used, in food industries. Our results revealed that the highest metal uptake was obtained from exponential phase cells, which had been cultivated at the optimum temperature of growth, while the air flow during the cultivation process, exhibited no significant effect on the metal uptake. A qualitative interpretation of bibliographic data, concerning the metal uptake on the age of cells is proposed, assuming that qualitative changes in the cell wall structure take place, as the cells pass from exponential to stationary phase, in addition to quantitative modifications, which have been reported in the literature. According to our interpretation, the relative abundances among quantitative and qualitative alterations of cell wall, determine which cells (exponential or stationary) exhibit the higher metal capacity. One type of the suggested qualitative modifications of surface constituent of cell wall, may have been caused by a shortening of a carboxylic acid carbon chain. This type of modification implies, as prerequisite, the decrease of pK _a values of cell wall carboxyl groups, with the age of cells. An evidence, supporting our approach, may be the fact that the decrease of pK _a values mentioned above, has been observed by other authors.     

BINDING OF HEMATOPORPHYRIN DERIVATIVE TO BRAIN TUMOR CELLS—A FLUORESCENCE SPECTROSCOPIC STUDY

The binding of hematoporphyrin derivative (HpD) to brain tumor cells and their photosensitivity was studied as a function of HpD concentration, time of incubation and growth phase of cells. Upon binding to cells, HpD showed three fluorescence bands at 616, 636 and 678 nm. In plateau phase cells a fluorescence band at 636 nm was predominant, which was further enhanced by increasing HpD concentration and/or increasing incubation time. In exponential phase cells the maximum fluorescence was exhibited at 616 nm. After 1 h incubation of exponential phase cells with increasing HpD concentration an overall intensity enhancement occurred with no change in the distribution of bands, whereas longer incubation time caused an increase in relative intensity of the 636 nm band similar to that observed in plateau phase cells. After 1 h incubation with HpD plateau phase cells were more photosensitive than exponential phase cells, although cell bound HpD was much less in the former case. Incubation of cells for 24 h drastically enhanced the photosensitivity irrespective of the growth phase. Our results suggest a relationship between the fluorescence emission band of HpD at 636 nm and photosensitivity of cells.     

Gardenia fruit extract does not stimulate the proliferation of cultured vascular smooth muscle cells, A10

We investigated the effect of a hot water extract from Gardenia fruit (Gardenia jasminoides Ellis) (GFE), which has a stimulatory effect on endothelial cell proliferation, on the proliferation of A10 cells, an established cell line of vascular smooth muscle cell from murine aorta in a culture system. GFE did not change the number of A10 cells after a 48 h culture. GFE significantly increased the incorporation of [3H]thymidine and [14C]leucine into the acid-soluble fraction of bovine aortic endothelial cell layers, but significantly decreased that of A10 cells. These results suggested that GFE stimulates the proliferation of endothelial cells but not of A10 cells. In the endothelial cell culture, GFE significantly increased the accumulation of basic fibroblast growth factor, which is an autocrine for endothelial cell proliferation in medium and low-affinity (glycosaminoglycans-binding) fractions, while A10 cells did not produce a significant amount of the factor. Since it is postulated that a selective stimulation of endothelial cell proliferation by increasing the production of basic fibroblast growth factor is appropriate for prevention of arteriosclerosis and thrombosis, GFE may contain a beneficial component as a useful drug.     

新抗癌基因p16的分析检测研究进展

p16基因又称多肿瘤抑癌基因,其直接参与细胞周期调控,并负向调节细胞的增殖及分裂。研究显示,50%的人类肿瘤细胞株中存在纯合子缺失和突变,认为p16是比p53更为重要的一种新型抗癌基因。p16作为细胞周期中的"刹车装置",一旦失灵会导致细胞的恶性增殖,从而引起恶性肿瘤的发生。本文主要对近年来p16基因相关分析检测技术的原理、方法及进展作一简要综述。     

细胞在单壁碳纳米管无纺膜支架上的生长行为

以具有纳米拓扑结构特征的单壁碳纳米管无纺膜材料为支架, 选择在促进组织修复和再生中起重要作用的成纤维细胞株作为实验细胞, 研究了该材料对细胞生长行为的影响. 通过X射线光电子能谱分析, 表征其在细胞培养液中浸泡后的表面化学组成; 通过细胞粘附、增殖实验以及细胞骨架发育观察, 探讨了材料的微观纳米拓扑结构对细胞的作用, 以及与碳纤维、聚氨酯浇铸膜和空白培养板材料对细胞作用的差异和可能的机理; 并采用双层细胞培养装置, 研究了该材料通过细胞通讯途径对在其它材料上生长的细胞增殖的影响. 实验结果表明, 单壁碳纳米管无纺膜材料为细胞提供了十分接近天然细胞外基质的人造微环境, 具有显著促进细胞粘附和长时间增殖的功能, 而且生长在该支架上的细胞可能通过旁分泌方式将某些化学介质分泌到细胞外液中, 经局部扩散作用于在其它材料上生长的细胞, 促进它们的增殖.     

Monitoring of Cell Viability and Proliferation in Hydrogel-Encapsulated System by Resazurin Assay

Cell microencapsulation is a promising approach for cell implantation, cell-based gene therapy and large-scale cell culture. For better quality control, it is important to accurately measure the microencapsulated cell viability and proliferation in the culture. A number of assays have been used for this purpose, but limitations arise. In this study, we investigated the feasibility and reliability of resazurin as a cell growth indicator in microencapsulated culture system. According to the experiment data, there was a reversible, time- and dose-dependent growth inhibition as observed for resazurin application in encapsulated cells. A positive relationship was observed between reduction of resazurin and CHO cell number in microcapsule. Moreover, the resazurin assay provided an equivalent result to the commonly used MTT method in determining CHO cell proliferation in APA microcapsule with no notable influence on cell distribution and organization pattern. In conclusion, resazurin assay is offered as a simple, rapid and non-invasive method for in vitro microencapsulated cell viability and proliferation measurement.     

Two novel myogenic factors identified and isolated by sequential isoelectric focusing and sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis

A number of environmental factors were used experimentally to enhance myogenesis during muscle regeneration; however, many hormones and growth factors have been shown to have the ability to increase the rate of satellite cell division, but they only work on satellite cells that are already active in many animal experiments. Recently, the crushed muscle extract (CME) of rats was found to be able to trigger dormant adult rat satellite cells to re-enter the cell mytogenic cycle; however, the identity of the active factors present in rat CME remains unknown. In the present study, the CME was fractionated by the strategy of sequential isoelectric focusing and sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) coupled with functional analysis by myoblast culture. Two satellite cell-specific myogenic factors were identified and purified from CME by this strategy. One of the factors has a molecular mass of around 7 kDa and another about 39 kDa. The factor of 39 kDa could be retained in heparin-Sepharose column and eluted with phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) containing 1 M NaCl, but the 7 kDa factor did not bind to the heparin column. These two purified myogenic factors could synergistically trigger the proliferation and differentiation of dormant satellite cells, whose progenies subsequently fuse in vitro, or fuse to pre-existing partially damaged muscle fibers to form full repair of the damaged muscle fibers or to form new myotubes to replace the completely damaged muscle fibers during the cascade of muscle healing and regeneration in vivo. The identities of these two myogenic factors are under study.     

Stress effects on hormonal growth factors in tobacco tissues indicated by special changes in the isoelectric peroxidase patterns.

The isoelectric peroxidase patterns of tobacco tissue cultures allow us to draw inferences to cell elongation and cell division because certain zones in acid pH ranges respond to the influence of auxines and gibberellins (promoting cell elongation) and others respond to the influence of cytokinins (promoting cell division). Stress, due to the absence of phosphate and presence of lead in the medium, causes characteristic changes in the intensity of these sensitive zones in peroxidase patterns. It may be deduced that the increase and decrease of these zones correspond to stimulation and inhibition of cell elongation and cell division, respectively. Cell elongation remains almost unaltered by lack of phosphate but is markedly inhibited by lead, while cell division is enhanced. However, stress brings about a reduction of dry weight. Reactions to stress can be observed earlier in patterns of peroxidase than in growth.     

Possible mechanism of the stimulatory effect of Artemisia leaf extract on the proliferation of cultured endothelial cells: involvement of basic fibroblast growth factor

To investigate the possible mechanism of the stimulatory effect of a hot water extract from Artemisia leaf (Artemisia princeps PANPANINI) (AFE) on the proliferation of endothelial cells, cells from bovine aorta were cultured for 72 h in RPMI1640 medium supplemented with 10% fetal calf serum in the presence of 5 micrograms/ml AFE. The AFE treatment significantly increased the cell number after culture, while in the presence of 10 micrograms/ml unfractionated heparin, AFE conversely decreased it. This implied that AFE enhanced the cell growth promotion by basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF). The accumulation of bFGF was significantly increased in the culture medium, in the low-affinity (glycosaminoglycans-binding) fraction, and in the cell extract fraction, but was unchanged in the high-affinity (receptor-binding) fraction. The contents of [35S]sulfate-labeled glycosaminoglycans in both cell layer and the medium were not increased by AFE treatment. The proliferation of A10 cells, an established cell line of smooth muscle cells from murine aorta, was not stimulated by AFE. A10 cells did not produce a significant amount of bFGF in the presence or absence of AFE. Thus, the production of bFGF was considered to be involved in AFE stimulation of cell proliferation. In conclusion, it was suggested that AFE stimulated endothelial cell proliferation by increasing the production of bFGF rather than by an increase in the number of bFGF receptors and the content of glycosaminoglycans in the cell layer. The enhanced reserve of bFGF in the low-affinity fraction of cell layer and in the medium would cause the AFE-stimulated proliferation of endothelial cells.     

Effect of short-term ethanol on the proliferative response of Swiss 3T3 cells to mitogenic growth factors

Both adaptive and deleterious responses of cells to ethanol are likely triggered by short-term interactions of the cells with ethanol. Many studies have demonstrated the direct effect of ethanol on growth factor-stimulated cell proliferation. Using Swiss 3T3 cells whose growth was inhibited by ethanol in a concentration-dependent manner, we further investigated the molecular mechanisms of acute ethanol treatment by examining its effect on EGF- and PDGF-mediated cellular signaling systems for the mitogenic function. Tyrosine autophosphorylation of the growth factor receptors was partially prevented by ethanol in intact cells. When ethanol was included before or after EGF stimulation, no effect on the receptor signaling was observed. Here we also report that ethanol inhibits activation of ERK induced by both EGF and PDGF. EGF-induced JNK activation was reduced but PDGF-induced rapid JNK activation was delayed by the addition of ethanol. The balance between its inhibitory and stimulatory effect on the signaling molecules might determine the rate of cell growth.