Previously, a number of workers have described preparations of thyroid tissue which catalyze the iodination of free or proteinbound tyrosine (l-7). It was demonstrated that the enzymatic activity was mitochondrial in location, and depending upon the method of preparation or assay, various metals and cofactors were implicated in the reaction. Serif and Kirkwood (1, 2) found that addition of cert...

Studies were undertaken using human duodenal mucosa to determine whether it contained a counterpart to a newly identified iron-binding protein recently isolated from rat duodenum and named mobilferrin. Water-soluble homogenates were prepared from duodena of patients undergoing surgery for pancreatic carcinoma. An iron-binding protein with an approximate molecular mass of 56 Kd was purified to h...

In this study a device for automatic electrochemical analysis was designed. A three electrodes detection system was attached to a positioning device, which enabled us to move the electrode system from one well to another of a microtitre plate. Disposable carbon tip electrodes were used for Cd(II), Cu(II) and Pb(II) ion quantification, while Zn(II) did not give signal in this electrode configura...

This is part of a larger study designed to investigate the action of particulate metals of orthopaedic interest on tissues. Damaging effects were determined by cytological examination and the assay of two enzymes. Lactic dehydrogenase (LDH) if released into the supernatant indicates a damaged cell membrane; decreased intracellular levels of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) indicates a l...

Previously we reported that the possibility of sensing of chemical substances using gene expression patterns analyzed by DNA microarray using Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) as a sensor (Matsuno et al., 2002, 2006). In this study, we evaluated sensitivity and selectivity of above system using a customized DNA microarray for heavy metal responded genes. The results showed that this system sh...

Previously, a number of workers have described preparations of thyroid tissue which catalyze the iodination of free or proteinbound tyrosine (l-7). It was demonstrated that the enzymatic activity was mitochondrial in location, and depending upon the method of preparation or assay, various metals and cofactors were implicated in the reaction. Serif and Kirkwood (1, 2) found that addition of cert...

Amphibians are increasingly being used as bio-indicator of contamination in ecosystems due to their sensitivity to xenobiotics in the environment. Cadmium and lead compounds, ubiquitous mutagens and carcinogens, are capable of eliciting genome instability in adult toads which may enhance amphibian decline. Micronucleus cytome (MN-cyt) assay, a comprehensive cytogenetic test for the assessment o...

BACKGROUND Increasing evidence exists that heavy metals modulate T helper cell (Th) responses and thereby elicit various pathological manifestation. Interleukin (IL)-12, a crucial innate cytokine, was found to be regulated by such xenobiotic agents. This study aimed at testing whether IL-12 profiles may be indicative of heavy metals-induced immunomodulation. METHODS Human immunocompetent cell...