Nutrition knowledge among adolescent high school female athletes.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of an original sports nutrition education program in changing the nutrition behavior of the female high school varsity football teams of the Baseline League of Southern California. A total of 72 subjects from eight teams were randomly divided into two groups, control and experimental. Only the experimental group received nutrition education.

Phototoxicity ofCitrus jambhiri to fungi under enhanced UV-B radiation: Role of furanocoumarins.

Extracts ofCitrus jambhiri foliage exposed to and shielded from UV-B radiation were assayed for phytochemical changes and phototoxicity against four fungal pathogens, two of which (Fusarium solani andF. oxysporum) are causative agents of root rots and two of which (Penicillium italicum andP. digitatum) are associated with fruit rots.

DNA cleavage, antiviral and cytotoxic reactions photosensitized by simple enediyne compounds.

Very potent antibiotic antitumor natural products contain a enediyne moiety which, upon thermal activation, is capable of abstracting hydrogens from DNA. 1,6-Diphenyl-3-hexene-1,5-diyne was selected as a candidate for inducing DNA strand breaks photochemically. Easily interconverted with light, both geometric isomers 1 and 2 were expected to be phototoxic.

Cu(II) sensitizes pBR322 plasmid DNA to inactivation by UV-B (280-315 nm).

Copper(II), in the presence of UV-B radiation (280-315 nm), can generate single-strand breaks in the sugar-phosphate backbone of pBR322 plasmid DNA. A low level of single-strand backbone breaks occurs in the presence of Cu(II) alone, but UV-B irradiation increases the rate by the more than 100-fold. Concomitant with the damage to the DNA backbone is a loss of transforming activity.

The phototoxicity of 8-methoxythionepsoralen and 6-methylthionecoumarin.

The phototoxicity of 8-methoxythionepsoralen (8-MOTP) and 6-methylthione coumarin (6-MTC) when activated by UV-A has been investigated using a variety of Escherichia coli strains, Haemophilus influenzae transforming DNA and Escherichia coli pBR322 plasmid DNA. The results demonstrate that 8-MOTP is a strictly oxygen independent photosensitizer that is about 500-fold less efficient in forming lesions leading to equivalent lethality than is the parent compound from which it is derived (8-MOP). As is true for 8-MOP, 8-MOTP is capable of inducing histidine independent mutations in E.

Mechanisms of citral phototoxicity.

Citral, a monoterpene aldehyde synthesized by several plant genera, has been reported to exhibit antimicrobial activity. For the first time, we report that critral exhibits UV-A (315-400 nm) light enhanced oxygen-dependent toxicity against a series of Escherichia coli strains differing in DNA repair and catalase proficiency. Those E.

Ferric-ion-photosensitized damage to DNA by hydroxyl and non-hydroxyl radical mechanisms.

Iron(III) and UVA (320-400 nm) light strongly diminished the transforming activity of Haemophilus influenzae DNA in the presence of oxygen. Iron(III) alone in the absence of light had no measurable effect on the transforming activity. The chelating agent ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) conferred virtually complete protection, but hydroxyl radical scavengers (mannitol, methanol, ethanol, isopropanol and dimethyl sulfoxide) inhibited only a small fraction of the inactivation.

Furanocoumarin content and phototoxicity of rough lemon (Citrus jambhiri) foliage exposed to enhanced ultraviolet-B (UVB) irradiation.

Rooted cuttings ofC. jambhiri were grown under enhanced levels of UVB radiation for 95 days. Bacterial phototoxicity and furanocoumarin content were determined in extracts made from various tissues from the aboveground biomass.

Photosensitization by 2-chloro-3,11-tridecadiene-5,7,9-triyn-1-ol: damage to erythrocyte membranes, Escherichia coli, and DNA.

The natural product 2-chloro-3,11-tridecadiene-5,7,9-triyn-1-ol (1) photosensitized the inactivation of Escherichia coli in the presence of near-ultraviolet light (320-400 nm; NUV) under both aerobic and anaerobic conditions. A series of E. coli strains differing in DNA repair capabilities and catalase proficiency exhibited indistinguishable inactivation kinetics following treatment with the chemical plus NUV.

alpha-Terthienyl photosensitizes damage to pBR322 DNA.

alpha-Terthienyl photosensitizes single strand breaks in pBR322 DNA. Almost identical results were observed under oxygen and under argon. In the presence of oxygen, this DNA nicking was enhanced by histidine and was not affected by superoxide dismutase, catalase, or the antioxidant BHT.

Color preference and food choice among children.

The effects of color on children's food choices were investigated. Subjects were 120 children who were equally distributed among each of the combinations of age (5 vs. 9 years old), sex (male vs.

Light-dependent cytotoxic reactions of anthracene.

Anthracene is a photodynamic compound in vitro. In the presence of oxygen, it is known to generate singlet oxygen and participate in Type II reactions. In aqueous solution, it also participates in Type I reactions, such as in the photoreduction of cytochrome c, which can be suppressed by superoxide dismutase.

Growing Escherichia coli mutants deficient in riboflavin biosynthesis with non-limiting riboflavin results in sensitization to inactivation by broad-spectrum near-ultraviolet light (320-400 nm).

Two mutants of Escherichia coli unable to synthesize riboflavin were grown with limiting (2 micrograms ml-1) and non-limiting (10 micrograms ml-1) concentrations of riboflavin. These riboflavin auxotrophs when grown to exponential phase with non-limiting riboflavin are more sensitive to broad spectrum near-ultraviolet light (NUV, 320-400 nm) inactivation than when they are grown with limiting riboflavin. Exponential phase cells of the riboflavin auxotrophs grown with limiting riboflavin are sensitized when irradiated in saline supplemented with riboflavin.

Identification of carotenoids in Erwinia herbicola and in a transformed Escherichia coli strain.

The yellow pigments of Erwinia herbicola Eho 10 and of a transformed Escherichia coli LE392 pPL376 have been identified as carotenoids. HPLC separation, spectra and in some cases mass spectroscopy demonstrated the presence of phytoene (15-cis isomer), beta-carotene (all-trans, 9-cis and 15-cis), beta-cryptoxanthin ( = 3-hydroxy beta-carotene), zeaxanthin (3,3'-dihydroxy beta-carotene) and corresponding carotene glycosides. In addition, lycopene and gamma-carotene accumulated in the presence of the inhibitor 2-(4-chlorophenylthio)-triethylamine.

Sanguinarine, a phototoxic H2O2-producing alkaloid.

Sanguinarine chloride, a quaternary salt of a benzophenanthrene alkaloid, was phototoxic to catalase-deficient strains of Escherichia coli but not to Trichoplusia ni (cabbage looper moth larvae), an insect with high levels of catalase activity. Chemical analyses confirm that sanguinarine is an efficient producer of H2O2. This differential toxicity suggests that the mode of phototoxic action involves production of H2O2 which could be detoxified in many organisms by catalase.

The light-dependent cytotoxicity of benzo[a]pyrene: effect on human erythrocytes, Escherichia coli cells, and Haemophilus influenzae transforming DNA.

In vitro, the photodynamic compound benzo[a]pyrene (BAP) generates singlet oxygen efficiently when irradiated in organic solvents. It also photogenerates superoxide anion radical in water and can act as a photoreducing agent in the absence of oxygen. In vivo, the hemolysis of human erythrocytes, the inactivation of Escherichia coli cells representing a series of strains differing in excision repair and catalase proficiency, and the inactivation of Haemophilus influenzae transforming DNA activity were used to characterize the phototoxicity of BAP in the presence of near-UV light (290-400 nm).

Role of cloned carotenoid genes expressed in Escherichia coli in protecting against inactivation by near-UV light and specific phototoxic molecules.

Genes controlling carotenoid synthesis were cloned from Erwinia herbicola and expressed in an Escherichia coli strain. Carotenoids protect against high fluences of near-UV (NUV; 320 to 400 nm) but not against far-UV (200-300 nm). Protection of E.

Escherichia coli strains carrying the cloned cytochrome d terminal oxidase complex are sensitive to near-UV inactivation.

To determine if membrane-bound cytochromes function as endogenous near-UV photosensitizers, strains containing the cloned cydA and cydB genes were tested for near-UV sensitivity. A strain containing both cloned genes overproduced cytochromes b558, b595, and d. Another strain containing only cloned cydB overproduced cytochrome b558.

Phototoxic effects of fluoranthene, a polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon, on bacterial species.

Fluoranthene, a non-carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon, inactivates Escherichia coli cells in the presence of near-ultraviolet light (NUV; 300-400 nm). E coli cells carrying defects in the uvrA6 or katF genes are sensitized to inactivation by the simultaneous treatment with fluoranthene and NUV, suggesting that DNA is a target and that hydrogen peroxide is generated. Haemophilus influenzae transforming DNA can be inactivated by the simultaneous treatment with fluoranthene and NUV confirming DNA as a target.

Control of sensitivity to inactivation by H2O2 and broad-spectrum near-UV radiation by the Escherichia coli katF locus.

Mutations in the Escherichia coli katF gene (hydroperoxidase II) result in sensitivity to inactivation by H2O2 and broad-spectrum near-UV (NUV; 300 to 400 nm) radiation. Another mutation, nur, originally described as conferring sensitivity to inactivation by broad-spectrum and monochromatic NUV, also confers sensitivity to inactivation by H2O2. Genetic analysis via transduction suggests that the nur mutation allele of the katF locus.