Elevated atherogenic index following oral administration of quaternized polyamine nanogels.

Quaternized polyamine nanogels possessing poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-tethered chains as the surface layer were prepared by redox-initiated emulsion polymerization of 2-(N,N-diethylamino)ethyl methacrylate (EAMA) in the presence of vinylbenzyl-ended poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG-CH2PhCHCH2), followed by quaternization with methyl iodide (QNG-I). QNG-I absorbed taurocholic acid regardless of environmental pH, because of the fixed positive charge of QNG-I. Oral administration of polyamine nanogels into mice tended to cause intestinal retention, with accumulation of up to 70% of the initial dose.

A highly sensitive chemiluminescence assay for superoxide detection and chronic granulomatous disease diagnosis.

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced by neutrophils are crucial for defense against infectious diseases, and the adequate measurement of ROS levels is an important way to evaluate the possibility of infections. The fluorescent probe dihydrorhodamine 123 has been applied exclusively to the measurement of ROS thus far. We developed a novel method for detecting ROS, which utilizes the chemiluminescent probes Luminol and Diogenes.

Influence of advanced age on Mycobacterium bovis BCG vaccination in guinea pigs aerogenically infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Mycobacterium bovis bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) is the only tuberculosis (TB) vaccine currently available, but its efficacy against adult pulmonary TB remains controversial. BCG induces specific immune responses to mycobacterial antigens and may elicit protective immunity against TB. TB remains a major public health problem, especially among the elderly, yet the efficacy of BCG in the elderly is unknown.

Cell adhesion markedly increases lucigenin-enhanced chemiluminescence of the phagocyte NADPH oxidase.

Lucigenin-enhanced chemiluminescence (LECL) is widely used for the detection of reactive oxygen species released from various cells and mitochondria. However, the LECL response varies depending on cell species and assay conditions at least in part by unknown factors. Here we report that cell adhesion is an important factor for increasing LECL of tetradecanoylphorbol acetate (TPA)-stimulated human neutrophils.

Novel two-parameter flow cytometry (MIL4/SSC followed by MIL4/CT7) allows for identification of five fractions of guinea pig leukocytes in peripheral blood and lymphoid organs.

Though the guinea pig has been an extremely useful animal model for a variety of diseases, the tools necessary to undertake a full-scale immunological analysis of the guinea pig have been lacking. For instance, traditional two-parameter forward/side scatter (FSC/SSC) flow cytometry, though effective in human and other animal models, is unable to adequately identify the distinct fractions of guinea pig peripheral blood leukocytes (PBL). We introduce here a new flow cytometric technique (MIL4/SSC followed by MIL4/CT7) which redresses this lack by identifying and characterizing five distinct fractions of PBL: neutrophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, eosinophils plus basophils, and the novel MIL4(-)SSC(large)CT7(high) population.

A rabbit ear flap perfusion experiment to evaluate the percutaneous absorption of drugs.

A rabbit ear flap single-pass perfusion system was examined as an experimental method for studying the relationship between the physiological conditions of tissues and drug disposition after topical applications. Tyrode solutions containing bovine serum albumin (BSA) and sucrose or flurbiprofen (FP), used as a model drug, were perfused through the vessel in the ear flap to evaluate the physiological conditions prior to the application of FP to the skin surface. The extracellular volume and distribution properties of FP in the perfused ear were similar to those in an in vivo experimental system.