The book reviewed here is dedicated to Dr. Bang and contains the proceedings of an "International conference on endotoxin standards and LAL use with parenteral drugs" that was held at Woods Hole in September 1981. Following the first two chapters, which include the keynote address by Dr. Bang and an excellent overview of the value and applications of the LAL test, most chapters are concerned wi...

Based on the biological activity of endotoxin, we propose a possible new method for detecting endotoxin using a pH-indication system of macrophage culture media. After RAW 264.7 macrophage cells were treated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS), the addition of fluorescein to the LPS-treated media reproductively reduced its absorption and emission spectra (it was a dose-dependent reduction). The advan...

A chromogenic Limulus amoebocyte lysate (LAL) endpoint assay was found to be an accurate and rapid means of gauging levels of beef carcass microbial contamination within 10 min. The assay demonstrated a high correlation with the total mesophilic bacterial and coliform surface populations from inoculated beef carcass surface tissues. This assay was tested on a set of actual beef carcass surface ...

Wild house mice genetically selected for low (LAL) and high (SAL) aggression show divergent behavioural coping responses in the forced swim test (FST, i.e., immobility by LAL mice versus swimming/climbing by SAL mice). The two mouse lines also differ in structural and functional properties of postsynaptic serotonergic-1A (5-HT1A) receptors. In the present study, it was first investigated whethe...

Incorporation of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) into liposomes dramatically reduces its ability to coagulate Limulus amebocyte lysate (LAL). The coagulation of LAL is commonly used to signal the presence of endotoxin in vitro. This study demonstrates a simple method to release masked endotoxin from liposomal dispersions using moderate amounts of detergent to form mixed micelles containing lipid, dete...

Lysosomal acid lipase (LAL) is essential for the hydrolysis of the triglycerides and cholesteryl esters in lysosomes. Its deficiency produces two phenotypes, a severe infantile-onset variant, Wolman disease (WD), and a later onset variant, cholesteryl ester storage disease (CESD). A mouse model with a LAL null mutation was produced by targeting disruption of the mouse gene. Homozygote knockout ...

The plethora of new publications on non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in both pediatric and adult populations worldwide is testimony to the scale of this problem (Abd El-Kader and El-Den Ashmawy, 2015; Sanyal et al., 2015). Projections on the numbers of cases as well as related liver transplantations in the coming decades underscore the urgent need for expanded research into the mechani...

Patients with lysosomal acid lipase (LAL) deficiency and glycogen storage disease (GSD) demonstrated hepatomegaly and dyslipidemia. In our case, a 6-year-old boy presented with hepatosplenomegaly. At 3 years of age, GSD had been diagnosed by liver biopsy at another hospital. He showed elevated serum liver enzymes and dyslipidemia. Liver biopsy revealed diffuse microvesicular fatty changes in he...

To determine laboratory-to-laboratory variability of the limulus amoebocyte lysate (LAL) test for evaluating endotoxin content in influenza virus vaccine, a collaborative study was designed. Participants were six influenza virus vaccine manufacturers and the Bureau of Biologics (BoB). Lysate lot 116, Reference Influenza Virus Vaccine for Endotoxin Assay E-1, and four test vaccines having differ...

The classic (gel-clot procedure) Limulus test (CLT) and the quantitative kinetic chromogenic LAL method (KQCL) used for the evaluation of bacterial endotoxin concentration in the indoor air of dwellings were compared. The scientific procedure included analyses of 40 air samples supplemented by the analysis of 20 sample duplicates (selected at random) which were taken during the fall season from...