VDAC (voltage-dependent anion channel) is the pore-forming protein located in the outer mitochondrial membrane. In higher eukaryotes, three genes encode VDAC. Nevertheless, the knowledge of VDAC isoforms is mainly restricted to VDAC1, the only isoform that has been characterized from living tissues to date. We have highly enriched the isoform VDAC2 using as starting material bovine spermatozoa....

Physiological doses of radioactive vitamin D3 are administered to vitamin D-deficient chicks 16 hours prior to the preparation of lipid extracts of small intestine, plasma, kidney, and bone. Analysis of the vitamin D metabolite pattern is carried out via column chromatography on silicic acid, Sephadex LH-20, and Celite (liquid-liquid partition), countercurrent distribution and treatment with pe...

Plasma thromboplastin antecedent (PTA, factor XI) is an important intermediate in the intrinsic coagulation system, and plasma kallikrein has been implicated as a mediator of the inflammatory process. Whereas their biologic activities are functionally distinct, their identity as separate entities in plasma has not been fully established, and the nature of their plasma inhibitors has not been co...

hexane was shaken with 2 ml. of boron trifluoride etherate, BF3 + (C2H6)20 (b.-p. 124-126°), at room temperature. The dark blue complex was decomposed by the addition of 100-200 ml. of 95% methanol, then transferred with water into hexane. The hypophase was discarded and the epiphase washed, dried, adsorbed on a suitable lime-celite column (2:1) and developed with hexane. The respective zones w...

The aim of the present investigation is to verify whether treatment with Finasteride or Flutamide influences the regional distribution of testosterone (T), dihydrotestosterone (DHT), and epidermal growth factor (EGF) in benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) tissue. Thirty seven BPH patients were studied: 15 untreated, 9 treated with Flutamide (750 mg/day for 2 months), and 13 treated with Finaster...

Dioxins and related compounds (furans) are persistent environmental contaminants that cause adverse biological effects. Their influence on humans is still unclear, except for accidental high-dose exposure. However, chronic exposure to these compounds seems to be involved in cancer, endocrine disruption, and neurobehavioral effects. For several years, a large concern about the potential health r...

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is an androgen-dependent disease; it originates exclusively in the inner prostate, which includes tissue surrounding the urethra. Stromal-epithelial interaction has a pivotal role in the regulation of the development and growth of the prostate, and locally produced peptide growth factors are considered important mediators of this interaction. Insulin-like grow...

Anticoagulation for the open heart surgery patient undergoing cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) is achieved with the use of heparin. The industry standard of activated clotting time (ACT) was used to measure the effect of heparin. The commonly acceptable target time of anticoagulation adequacy is 480 seconds or greater. Some patients, however, exhibit resistance to standard dosing of heparin and do ...

We have isolated an unusual heme peptide containing 27 amino acid residues and two heme groups from the variant heme protein, RHP, of the obligate photoanaerobe, Chromatium, strain D. This protein has been obtained in pure form and characterized previously (1) as a compound with molecular weight of 36,000 containing two functional heme groups. The heme peptide mixture, obtained by the peptic di...

In previous papers, we reported the isolation and characterization of arabinose mycolate from firmly bound lipids (7; Azuma and Yamamura, in preparation) and wax D (3) fractions of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and other mycobacterial strains. The chemical structure of arabinose mycolate has also been established as D-arabinose5-mycolate (7). The serologically active polysaccharide, arabinogalacta...