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Biomedical subjects

A R Bhatti

Publications and source records attributed to A R Bhatti.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1989

Snake venom components and their cross-reactivity: a review.

Snake venoms are complex mixtures of organic and inorganic compounds, many of which display biological activity. It has been demonstrated that antisera raised against whole venom or a single purified venom protein from one species of snake will react with proteins in the venom of other species. This cross-reactivity between species may have applications in determining snake phylogeny, but recent studies on the variation of venom components within a species make these evolutionary conclusions questionable.

Amino Acid Oxidoreductases↗
PubMed1989

Neisseria meningitidis: heterogenicity in the outer membrane proteins released into the growth medium.

Eight strains of Neisseria meningitidis belonging to different serogroups were analysed for their virulence in mice and their release of outer membrane proteins into the medium during growth. All strains released proteins. No detectable lipopolysaccharide was observed. However, SDS-PAGE showed a heterogenicity in the protein number and profile among the different strains of N. meningitidis tested.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Synthesis and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopic, mass spectroscopic, and plasma amine oxidase inhibitory properties of analogues of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine.

Seventeen analogues of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine were synthesized using three reaction pathways: condensation of phenols with 1-methyl-4-piperidone, reaction of Grignard reagents with 1-methyl-4-piperidone followed by dehydration of the product, and aminomethylation of olefins. The identity of the products of synthesis was established by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, mass spectroscopy, and elemental analysis. Thirteen analogues were shown to inhibit the oxidation of benzylamine by bovine plasma amine oxidase. Increasing the length of the aliphatic chain of N-substituted analogues resulted in increased inhibition. In 4-phenyl-substituted analogues, both the position and electronic character of the substituent group affected the degree of inhibition.

1-Methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine↗
PubMed1987

Cardiovascular effects of mycotoxin T-2 after topical application in rats.

Evidence has been mounting that trichothecenes cause cardiac lesions and cardiovascular effects in general. T-2 toxin, dissolved in dimethyl sulfoxide, was applied in doses of 0, 1.0, 2.0 mg/kg to the skin of Sprague-Dawley rats. Twenty-four hours later, the cardiac function of the animals was assessed, followed by killing and histological examination. It was found that the arterial blood pressure values were lower in the 2.0 mg/kg group, the peak intraventricular pressure was lower in both the 1.0 and 2.0 mg/kg groups, and the resting systolic and diastolic blood pressure values of the 2.0 mg/kg group were lower than the 0 and 1.0 mg/kg groups. The 1.0 and 2.0 mg/kg groups had significantly lower epinephrine-stimulated intraventricular pressure values, indicating reduced contractility. Extended Q-T intervals in electrocardiograms of the 1.0 and 2.0 mg/kg groups suggested also impaired contractility. The histological examination gave equivocal results. It is concluded that topical applications of small doses of T-2 toxin have a noticeable negative effect on cardiovascular function.

Administration, Cutaneous↗
PubMed1986

Fatty acid distribution in the phospholipids of Francisella tularensis.

Francisella tularensis, LVS (live vaccine strain) grown in a chemically defined medium was found to have a lipid content of 21% by dry weight. The two major phospholipids were identified as phosphatidylethanolamine (PE; 76%) and phosphatidylglycerol (PG; 24%) by thin layer chromatographic analysis, staining characteristics and quantitative chemical analyses of fatty acid, phosphate and glycerol constituents. PE contained a high proportion of 24:0 fatty acid, with lesser amounts of 24:1, 22:0 and 10:0. The major fatty acids of PG were 18:1 and 22:0. Hydroxy fatty acids, which are prominent components of F. tularensis, were conspicuously lacking in these phospholipids; it is therefore concluded that hydroxy fatty acids are constituents of other structures of the organism.

Bacterial Vaccines↗
PubMed1986

Soft-laser scanning densitometry performed on a 35-mm slide illustrating SDS-PAGE separation of adenovirion polypeptides.

Virion polypeptides (35 S), methionine-labeled and purified by CsCl gradient centrifugation, were separated by SDS-gel electrophoresis. Analysis of their band pattern was performed by scanning the images of the SDS-gels shown on a 35-mm slide. The densitometric tracings revealed the presence of 17 protein bands, although only 15 of them were visible to the naked eye. The high sensitivity and resolving capacities of the soft-laser scanning densitometer enabled us to detect trace amounts of protein bands separated in SDS-gels and to obtain a resolution compatible to that of electrophoresis. Fourfold electronic amplification of the densitometric tracings, produced by a computer, generated new information regarding the pattern of the electrophoregram. The facility to amplify peaks of importance is particularly advantageous when faint or overlapping protein bands revealed on a gel are assessed.

Adenoviridae↗
PubMed1986

Proteases of the pathogenic neisseriae: possible role in infection.

Proteolytic enzymes are produced by animal as well as human pathogens. Several micro-organisms including Neisseriae produce IgA1 specific proteases. This protease specifically hydrolyses IgA1 protein. IgA1-specific protease(s) synthesized by Neisseria species are briefly reviewed with particular reference to their role in infection.

Aminopeptidases↗
PubMed1986

Production of human and murine interleukin-2 by toxic shock syndrome toxin-1.

Toxic shock syndrome toxin-1 (TSST-1), isolated from Staphylococcus aureus strains associated with toxic shock syndrome (TSS), is known as a potent mitogen and interleukin-1 inducer. The potential of TSST-1 as an interleukin-2 (IL-2) inducer was tested on human peripheral blood lymphocytes (HPBL) and murine spleen lymphocytes (MSL). These cells were incubated with TSST-1 and the supernatants analysed for IL-2 production. Preincubation of IL-2-dependent indicator cells (IC) with a monoclonal antibody specific for murine IL-2 receptors inhibited their proliferation by supernatants of TSST-1-treated MSL, thus strongly suggesting that they contain IL-2. The concentrations of TSST-1 required for HPBL or MSL to produce IL-2 ranged between 10(-1) and 10(-4) micrograms/ml. The amount of IL-2 units/ml varied little from one experiment to another. In contrast, IL-2 production by PHA-stimulated HPBL or Con A-stimulated MSL showed great variability and dependence on mitogen concentration. T-cell depleted MSL exposed to TSST-1 produced less IL-2. Experiments with germ-free mice and TSST-1-primed mice demonstrated that IL-2 production is not related to TSST-1 antigenicity.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

In vitro toxicity of T-2 mycotoxin in mouse lymphoid cells.

The in vitro toxicity of T-2 toxin towards mouse lymphoid cells prepared from spleen, thymus, peritoneal lavage and bone marrow cells was studied. Bone marrow cells were more resistant to damage by T-2 toxin than thymus, spleen and peritoneal cell preparations.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Structural and antigenic analysis of meningococcal piliation.

Pilin with an Mr of 16,500 was purified to homogeneity from Neisseria meningitidis SP3428. Procedures which provided useful separation during purification included high-pressure liquid chromatography with a TSK size exclusion column, Sephacryl S-200 column chromatography, ion-exchange chromatography with SP-Sephadex, and preparative sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The amino acid composition of this pilin was similar to that previously reported for this species. The sequence of N-terminal 51 amino acids was also determined. The protein lacked a modified phenylalanine at the amino terminus and displayed six residues which were different from Neisseria gonorrhoeae in that region of the molecule determined to be the lectin-binding domain. Monoclonal antibody raised to this pilin was employed, along with a monoclonal antibody to an epitope common to all gonococcal pilins, to analyze the intra- and interstrain heterogeneity of meningococcal piliation. The results indicate that N. meningitidis displays considerable intra- and interstrain heterogeneity with respect to both pilus subunit size and antigenicity. The Mr of subunits ranged from 13,000 to 20,000.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1984

Nmel, a restriction endonuclease from Neisseria meningitidis.

A restriction endonuclease, Nmel, present in Neisseria meningitidis was partially purified by passing through a blue 2-cross linked agarose column; no contaminating nucleases remained detectable. This enzyme cleaved phage lambda, adenovirus type 2 and phi x 174 DNA but did not cleave SV40 DNA. It had an absolute requirement for Mg2+ for its activity and was inhibited by high concentrations of NaCl or MgCl2. Nmel activity was completely abolished after 1 h of incubation at 65 degrees C. S-adenosyl-L-methionine and ATP had no effect on its activity suggesting that Nmel is a type II restriction endonuclease enzyme. It is the first report of a restriction enzyme present in N. meningitidis.

DNA Restriction Enzymes↗
PubMed1983

Differences in the adhesive properties of Neisseria meningitidis for human buccal epithelial cells and erythrocytes.

The ability of clinical and carrier isolates of Neisseria meningitidis to adhere to human buccal epithelial cells and erythrocytes was investigated. Four of the 10 fimbriated strains were able to hemagglutinate. Serial subculture of three of these strains resulted in a loss of ability to hemagglutinate and was coincident with a loss of fimbriation. Other fimbriated strains were unable to hemagglutinate but did adhere to buccal epithelial cells. Subculture of one of these strains for as many as 42 passages did not result in loss of fimbriation or ability to adhere to buccal epithelial cells. The attachment of this strain to buccal epithelial cells was inhibited by glycoconjugates. Further, pH exerted different influences on the attachment of hemagglutinating and non-hemagglutinating fimbriated strains to buccal epithelial cells and erythrocytes. The results suggest that different fimbrial mechanisms are involved in the attachment of N. meningitidis to different cell types and that hemagglutination is not an absolute test for fimbriae.

Adhesiveness↗