Hypoglycemic action of the rhizomes of Polygonatum officinale in normal and diabetic mice.

The hypoglycemic effect of the rhizomes of Polygonatum officinale (Liliaceae) was investigated in both normal and streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice. The methanol extract of rhizomes of Polygonatum officinale (PO) (800 mg/kg) reduced the blood glucose of normal mice from 170 +/- 3 to 136 +/- 5 mg/100 ml 4 hours after intraperitoneal administration (P < 0.001), and also significantly lowered the blood glucose of streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice from 696 +/- 60 to 407 +/- 35 mg/100 ml under similar conditions (P < 0.

Suppressive effects of polygonati rhizoma on hepatic glucose output, GLUT2 mRNA expression and its protein content in rat liver.

The intraperitoneal administration of the methanol extract of Polygonati Rhizoma (OM) into normal rats caused a significant decrease in the blood glucose level at 4 h after its administration of 800 mg/kg (P < 0.01), but not the serum insulin level. Using the perfused rat liver in vitro, a significant decrease of the hepatic glucose output was observed by the infusion of OM (P < 0.

Chondroitinase ABC-resistant sulfated trisaccharides isolated from digests of chondroitin/dermatan sulfate chains.

Four kinds of sulfated trisaccharides resistant to chondroitinase ABC were isolated after chondroitinase B or ABC treatment of dermatan sulfate or various chondroitin sulfate isomers, respectively. Their composition was determined by chemical analysis and fast atom bombardment-mass spectrometry. Their structures were characterized by chondroitinase ACII digestion in conjunction with HPLC, and 500-MHz one- and two-dimensional 1H NMR spectroscopy.

Structural studies on the chondroitinase ABC-resistant sulfated tetrasaccharides isolated from various chondroitin sulfate isomers.

Various commercially available chondroitin sulfates, including an A isomer from whale cartilage, C and D isomers from shark cartilage, and an E isomer from squid cartilage, were exhaustively digested with a commercial highly purified Proteus vulgaris chondroitinase ABC. Gel chromatography of all digests yielded a disaccharide and an oligosaccharide fraction which was resistant to the enzyme digestion and which accounts for 20-31 mol% of the produced total oligosaccharides. Variably sulfated tetrasaccharides were isolated from the oligosaccharide fraction of each chondroitin sulfate isomer by HPLC, then characterized chemically and enzymatically.

Relationship between occurrence of tremor/convulsion and level of beta-carbolines in the brain after administration of beta-carbolines into mice.

Fifteen beta-carboline derivatives, including those found in the South American hallucinogenic plant Banisteriopsis caapi, were injected IP and IVC into mice. Subsequent behavioral changes were observed and the levels of the compounds in brain tissue were determined. It was found that following IP administration, tremors and/or convulsions were induced by beta-carbolines having aliphatic alkyl groups, but not by those with carbonyl and oxo groups substituted at carbon-1 of the C ring.

[Immunoassay of synthetic corticosteroids].

Synthetic corticosteroids, such as betamethasone and dexamethasone, have been widely used for diagnosis and therapy of various diseases in the area of clinical medicine. When synthetic corticosteroids are to be administered over long periods, the dose must be the smallest one that will achieve the desired effect. This dose must be determined by blood levels of these steroids.

The binding properties, with blood proteins, and tissue distribution of 22-oxa-1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3, a noncalcemic analogue of 1 alpha, 25-dihydroxyvitamin D3, in rats.

The binding properties, with blood proteins, and tissue distribution of 22-oxa-1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin (22-oxacalcitriol; OCT), a noncalcemic analogue of 1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25(OH)2D3], in rats were investigated. The binding affinity of OCT to plasma vitamin D binding protein (DBP) is extremely low and OCT mainly circulates in the blood as an intact form nonspecifically bound to lipoproteins especially to chylomicrons and low density lipoprotein (LDL). OCT intravenously injected into normal rats rats rapidly disappeared from the blood, and rapidly appeared in the bile as glucuronides of intact OCT and 1 alpha, 3 beta,20(S)-trihydroxy-9,10-secopregna-5,7,10(19)-triene (23,24,25,26, 27-pentanorOCT; pentanorOCT) as an OCT metabolite.

Structural studies on the tri- and tetrasaccharides isolated from porcine intestinal heparin and characterization of heparinase/heparitinases using them as substrates.

We prepared a series of oligosaccharides from porcine intestinal heparin after extensive digestion with a mixture of Flavobacterium heparinase as well as heparitinases I and II. Previously, we reported the structures of the two glycoserines derived from the carbohydrate-protein linkage region [Sugahara et al., J.

Inhibitory effects of tryptamine on tolbutamide-induced hypoglycemia in mice: mediation by 5-HT receptors.

Effects of tryptamine on tolbutamide-induced hypoglycemia were investigated in mice. Tryptamine significantly inhibited hypoglycemia elicited by tolbutamide. The inhibitory effects of tryptamine were strongly blocked by the 5-HT1 and 5-HT2 receptor antagonist methysergide and the 5-HT2 receptor antagonist ketanserin, while the 5-HT3 receptor antagonist ICS 205-930 was without effect.

Effects of tryptamine on plasma glucagon levels in mice.

Our previous study indicated that tryptamine induces a dose-related increase in plasma glucagon levels of mice and that this effect is mediated by the peripheral serotonin2 (5-HT2) receptor. The present paper further investigated the involvement of serotonergic and catecholaminergic systems in hyperglucagonemia elicited by tryptamine. An inhibitor of 5-HT synthesis, p-chlorophenylalanine, did not affect tryptamine-induced increases in plasma glucagon levels.

High-resolution separation of DNA restriction fragments by capillary electrophoresis in cellulose derivative solutions.

The performance and the efficiency of several cellulose derivatives as a molecular sieving agent for the capillary electrophoretic separation of DNA restriction fragments were investigated. All fragments up to 12,000 base pairs (bp) in the 1-kbp DNA ladder were resolved using linear polyacrylamide-coated capillaries filled with a buffer solution containing 0.5% cellulose derivative and the separation was completed within 17 min.

Characteristics of mass fragmentation of steroids by atmospheric pressure chemical ionization-mass spectrometry.

The characteristics of the mass spectra of sixty steroids were investigated using atmospheric pressure chemical ionization-mass spectrometry (APCI-MS). In APCI-MS, the drift voltage and nebulizer temperature affected the appearance of molecular ions. Solvent adducted ions [M+H+CH3CN]+ and [M+H+H2O]+ were decreased with an increase in drift voltage.

Hypoglycemic activity of polygonati rhizoma in normal and diabetic mice.

The hypoglycemic effect of different dose of Polygonati Rhizoma, i.e., "Ousei", was investigated in both normal and streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice.

Particle size effect of metastable calcium phosphates on crushing strength of self-setting bioactive calcium phosphate cement.

The resistance to crushing after a self-setting bioactive calcium phosphate cement, consisting of various particle sizes of tetracalcium phosphate (TECP), dicalcium phosphate dihydrate (DCPD) and hydroxyapatite (HAP), had hardened was tested after setting at 37 degrees C, 100% RH. X-ray diffraction suggested that the cement containing fine particles of DCPD and TECP was completely transformed to HAP, but that containing larger particles was not. Since particle size of both DCPD and TECP affected the dissolution rate, the crystal growth of HAP during cement formation depended on the specific surface area (Sw) of the raw materials.

Effect of urea concentration on the base-specific separation of oligodeoxynucleotides in capillary affinity gel electrophoresis.

Base-specific separations of oligodeoxynucleotides were achieved with high resolution by electrophoresis, using a urea-gel capillary, in which poly(9-vinyladenine) (PVAd) was utilized as an affinity ligand. The migration behaviour and the plate number of oligodeoxynucleotides were investigated as a function of urea concentration between 2 and 10 M in capillary gel electrophoresis (CGE) as well as capillary affinity gel electrophoresis (CAGE). The migration time in CGE separation increases as urea concentration increases.

Prediction of the behaviour of oligonucleotides in high-performance liquid chromatography and capillary electrophoresis.

The present state of studies on prediction of the chromatographic and electrophoretic behaviour of oligonucleotides is reviewed; particular emphasis is given to high-performance liquid chromatographic and capillary electrophoretic separations. Attention is paid to fundamental theory for the prediction of retention and migration times, and bandwidths. The article also deals with the applicability of the theory to the computer-assisted prediction and the computer simulation for these two types of separation of oligonucleotides.

Mitogenic activities in African traditional herbal medicines.

Mitogenic activities in African traditional herbal medicines were examined using protein fractions obtained from their extracts by precipitation with ammonium sulfate. Potent mitogenic activities for human and mouse lymphocytes were found in the three plants: Croton macrostachyus, Croton megalocarpus (Euphorbiaceae), and Phytolacca dodecandra (Phytolaccaceae). All the gel chromatographic patterns of these protein fractions progressed toward the smaller molecule site with pronase treatment, while their mitogenic activities decreased significantly.

Effects of temperature and relative humidity on the solid-state chemical stability of ranitidine hydrochloride.

The chemical stability of ranitidine HCl in solution and in the solid state at various temperatures was investigated by high-performance liquid chromatography. Ranitidine HCl was unstable in lower pH buffer solutions, and the percent degradation after 72 h increased as the pH of the buffer solution was reduced. The percent degradation in the unbuffered solution increased dose dependently.

Effect of environmental humidity on the transformation pathway of nitrofurantoin modifications during grinding and the physicochemical properties of ground products.

The effect of humidity on the physicochemical properties of nitrofurantoin anhydrate and monohydrate during grinding in a humidity-controlled system was investigated using X-ray diffraction analysis, IR spectroscopy, thermal analysis and scanning electron microscopy. Anhydrate and monohydrate were transformed into a noncrystalline solid and a stable monohydrate, respectively, during grinding in a closed system. During grinding in an open system, in which the humidity level of the air was controlled (5, 50 and 75% r.

Physicochemical stability of phenobarbital polymorphs at various levels of humidity and temperature.

The physicochemical stability of six phenobarbital modifications [forms A, B, C (monohydrate), D (dioxane solvate), E (hemihydrate), and F] at various levels of humidity and temperature were measured using X-ray diffractometry and differential scanning calorimetry. Form D was identified as a new crystalline form (dioxane solvate). Polymorphic transformations of the modifications were investigated by the Kissinger method under nonisothermal conditions.

[Assay of fat-soluble vitamins--vitamin D].

Methods for determination of vitamin D, 25-OH-D, 24,25(OH)2D and 1,25(OH)2D in plasma are reviewed. A method for simultaneous determination of the D2 and D3 compounds of vitamin D and the metabolites in plasma is established. The method includes extraction of lipid, followed by three steps of HPLC for clean-up and separation.

[Retinoids].

Retinoid includes vitamins A and synthetic relatives except provitamins A such as carotenes. In this review, recent developments on the chemistry and physiological functions of retinoid (retinol, retinal and retinoic acid etc.) were surveyed, special emphasis being laid on the following subjects: (1) vision (retinal and photo-sensitivities; molecular mechanism of scotopic and photopic vision).

Gross and separative determination of 1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D2 and D3 in plasma using calf thymus receptor.

Determination of 1 alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D [1,25(OH)2D, gross amounts of 1,25(OH)2D2 and 1,25(OH)2D3] and separative determination of 1,25(OH)2D2 and 1,25(OH)2D3 in plasma using calf thymus receptor have been investigated. A lipid extract from 1 ml of plasma is applied to a Bond Elut C18OH column and an eluate corresponding to 1,25-(OH)2D including both 1,25(OH)2D2 and 1,25(OH)2D3 is applied to calf thymus receptor to assay a gross amount of the two compounds. On the other hand, when separative assay of the two compounds is performed, the 1,25(OH)2D eluate obtained from the Bond Elut C18OH column is further applied to HPLC using a Zorbax SIL column with 5% isopropanol in methylene chloride as a developing solvent to separate the two compounds from one another.