Effective degradation of various bacterial toxins using ozone ultrafine bubble water.

Infectious and foodborne diseases pose significant global threats, with devastating consequences in low- and middle-income countries. Ozone, derived from atmospheric oxygen, exerts antimicrobial effects against various microorganisms, and degrades fungal toxins, which were initially recognized in the healthcare and food industries. However, highly concentrated ozone gas can be detrimental to human health.

Erythromycin Restores Osteoblast Differentiation and Osteogenesis Suppressed by Lipopolysaccharide.

The macrolide erythromycin (ERM) inhibits excessive neutrophil accumulation and bone resorption in inflammatory tissues. We previously reported that the expression of developmental endothelial locus-1 (DEL-1), an endogenous anti-inflammatory factor induced by ERM, is involved in ERM action. Furthermore, DEL-1 is involved in the induction of bone regeneration.

Macrolides Decrease the Proinflammatory Activity of Macrolide-Resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae.

Over the past 2 decades, the prevalence of macrolide-resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae (MRSP) has increased considerably, due to widespread macrolide use. Although macrolide usage has been proposed to be associated with treatment failure in patients with pneumococcal diseases, macrolides may be clinically effective for treating these diseases, regardless of the susceptibility of the causative pneumococci to macrolides. As we previously demonstrated that macrolides downregulate the transcription of various genes in MRSP, including the gene encoding the pore-forming toxin pneumolysin, we hypothesized that macrolides affect the proinflammatory activity of MRSP.

Pneumococcal proteins ClpC and UvrC as novel host plasminogen binding factors.

Two plasminogen binding proteins were identified from a mouse infected with Streptococcus pneumoniae. The pneumococcal proteins were annotated as ATP-dependent Clp protease ATP-binding subunit (ClpC) and excinuclease ABC subunit C (UvrC) using the isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification (iTRAQ) method. Recombinants of both proteins showed significant binding to plasminogen and were found to promote plasminogen activation by tissue-type plasminogen activator.

Neutrophil elastase aggravates periodontitis by disrupting gingival epithelial barrier via cleaving cell adhesion molecules.

Neutrophil elastase (NE) functions as a host defense factor; however, excessive NE activity can potentially destroy human tissues. Although NE activity is positively correlated to gingival crevicular fluid and clinical attachment loss in periodontitis, the underlying mechanisms by which NE aggravates periodontitis remain elusive. In this study, we investigated how NE induces periodontitis severity and whether NE inhibitors were efficacious in periodontitis treatment.

Triosephosphate isomerase of Streptococcus pneumoniae is released extracellularly by autolysis and binds to host plasminogen to promote its activation.

Recruitment of plasminogen is an important infection strategy of the human pathogen Streptococcus pneumoniae to invade host tissues. In Streptococcus aureus, triosephosphate isomerase (TPI) has been reported to bind plasminogen. In this study, the TPI of S.

Matcha Green Tea Exhibits Bactericidal Activity against and Inhibits Functional Pneumolysin.

is a causative pathogen of several human infectious diseases including community-acquired pneumonia. Pneumolysin (PLY), a pore-forming toxin, plays an important role in the pathogenesis of pneumococcal pneumonia. In recent years, the use of traditional natural substances for prevention has drawn attention because of the increasing antibacterial drug resistance of .

Clarithromycin Inhibits Pneumolysin Production via Downregulation of Gene Transcription despite Autolysis Activation.

Streptococcus pneumoniae, the most common cause of community-acquired pneumonia, causes severe invasive infections, including meningitis and bacteremia. The widespread use of macrolides has been reported to increase the prevalence of macrolide-resistant S. pneumoniae (MRSP), thereby leading to treatment failure in patients with pneumococcal pneumonia.

Effects of Erythromycin on Osteoclasts and Bone Resorption via DEL-1 Induction in Mice.

Macrolides are used to treat various infectious diseases, including periodontitis. Furthermore, macrolides are known to have immunomodulatory effects; however, the underlying mechanism of their action remains unclear. DEL-1 has emerged as an important factor in homeostatic immunity and osteoclastogenesis.

Sulfated vizantin causes detachment of biofilms composed mainly of the genus Streptococcus without affecting bacterial growth and viability.

Background: Sulfated vizantin, a recently developed immunostimulant, has also been found to exert antibiofilm properties. It acts not as a bactericide, but as a detachment-promoting agent by reducing the biofilm structural stability. This study aimed to investigate the mechanism underlying this activity and its species specificity using two distinct ex vivo oral biofilm models derived from human saliva.

Kisspeptin neurons mediate reflex ovulation in the musk shrew (Suncus murinus).

The present study investigated whether kisspeptin-G protein-coupled receptor 54 (GPR54) signaling plays a role in mediating mating-induced ovulation in the musk shrew (Suncus murinus), a reflex ovulator. For this purpose, we cloned suncus Kiss1 and Gpr54 cDNA from the hypothalamus and found that suncus kisspeptin (sKp) consists of 29 amino acid residues (sKp-29). Injection of exogenous sKp-29 mimicked the mating stimulus to induce follicular maturation and ovulation.