Structural modification of Escherichia coli lipid A by myristoyltransferase gene from Klebsiella pneumoniae.

Lipid A in lipopolysaccharide (LPS) of Escherichia coli mutant strains was modified by the introduction of myristoyltransferase gene cloned from Klebsiella pneumoniae. When the gene was introduced into the mutant having lipid A containing only 3-hydroxymyristic acids, it produced lipid A with two additional myristic acids (C ). When the same gene was introduced into the mutant with pentaacylated lipid A containing one lauric acid (C ), C was replaced by C .

[Current state of smoking and alcohol drinking among pregnant women in Kyoto City].

Purpose: The objective of this study was to describe the current state of smoking and alcohol drinking among pregnant women, and assess the factors related to smoking behavior during pregnancy.

Methods: Subjects were mothers whose children had undergone 4-month checkups publicly provided by Kyoto City in February 2007. An anonymous self-administered questionnaire survey about their smoking and alcohol drinking behavior was conducted.

Elastin peptide receptor-directed monocyte chemotactic polysaccharides derived from seaweed sporophyll and from infectious fungus.

We discovered that a seaweed sporophyll-derived polysaccharide of brown alga, Wakame (Undaria pinnatifida) bound to monocytes and attracted them in vitro and in vivo. Physicochemical properties, affinity to a lectin-bead column and sugar composition of the chemotactic polysaccharide indicated this molecule to be a highly sulfated fucogalactan. We then identified the monocyte receptor of the sulfated fucogalactan as the elastin peptide receptor by prophylactic inhibition of the binding and the chemoattraction with lactose and the synthetic elastin peptide, Val-Gly-Val-Ala-Pro-Gly.

Inhibitory effects of extracts from peels of Citrus natsudaidai encapsulated in hybrid liposomes on the growth of tumor cells in vitro.

Inhibitory effects of extracts from peels of Citrus natsudaidai (natsumikan) encapsulated in hybrid liposomes (HL) composed of L-alpha-dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine and polyoxyethylene (20) sorbitan monolaurate on the growth of tumor cells were examined. The extracts with lower polar solvents inhibited the growth of B-16 mouse melanoma and human lung carcinoma cells, although the extracts with higher polar solvents showed no antitumor activity. In particular, the inhibitory effects of extracts with lower polar solvents encapsulated in HL were enhanced as compared with those of free extracts.