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P Maes

Publications and source records attributed to P Maes.

47 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1990

Human kidney amiloride-binding protein: cDNA structure and functional expression.

Phenamil, an analog of amiloride, is a potent blocker of the epithelial Na+ channel. It has been used to purify the porcine kidney amiloride-binding protein. Synthetic oligonucleotides derived from partial sequences have been used to screen a human kidney cDNA library and to isolate the cDNA encoding the human amiloride-binding protein. The primary structure was deduced from the DNA sequence analysis. The protein is 713 residues long, with a 19-amino acid signal peptide. The mRNA was expressed in 293-S and NIH 3T3 cells, yielding a glycoprotein (i) that binds amiloride and amiloride analogs with affinities similar to the amiloride receptor associated with the apical Na+ channel in pig kidney membranes and (ii) that is immunoprecipitated with monoclonal antibodies raised against pig kidney amiloride-binding protein.

Amiloride↗
PubMed1989

Charybdotoxin is a new member of the K+ channel toxin family that includes dendrotoxin I and mast cell degranulating peptide.

A polypeptide was identified in the venom of the scorpion Leiurus quinquestriatus hebraeus by its potency to inhibit the high-affinity binding of the radiolabeled snake venom toxin dendrotoxin I (125I-DTX1) to its receptor site. It has been purified, and its properties investigated by different techniques were found to be similar to those of MCD and DTXI, two polypeptide toxins active on a voltage-dependent K+ channel. However, its amino acid sequence was determined, and it was shown that this toxin is in fact charybdotoxin (ChTX), a toxin classically used as a specific tool to block one class of Ca2+-activated K+ channels. ChTX, DTXI, and MCD are potent convulsants and are highly toxic when injected intracerebroventricularly in mice. Their toxicities correlate well with their affinities for their receptors in rat brain. These three structurally different toxins release [3H]GABA from preloaded synaptosomes, the efficiency order being DTXI greater than ChTX greater than MCD. Both binding and cross-linking experiments of ChTX to rat brain membranes and to the purified MCD/DTXI binding protein have shown that the alpha-subunit (Mr = 76K-78K) of the MCD/DTXI-sensitive K+ channel protein also contains the ChTX binding sites. Binding sites for DTXI, MCD, and ChTX are in negative allosteric interaction. Our results show that charybdotoxin belongs to the family of toxins which already includes the dendrotoxins and MCD, which are blockers of voltage-sensitive K+ channels. ChTX is clearly not selective for Ca2+-activated K+ channel.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1989

Charybdotoxin blocks dendrotoxin-sensitive voltage-activated K+ channels.

Charybdotoxin, a short scorpion venom neurotoxin, which was thought to be specific for the blockade of Ca2+-activated K+ channels also blocks a class of voltage-sensitive K+ channels that are known to be the target of other peptide neurotoxins from snake and bee venoms such as dendrotoxin and MCD peptide. Charybdotoxin also inhibits 125I-dendrotoxin and 125I-MCD peptide binding to their receptors. All these effects are observed with an IC50 of about 30 nM.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Purification and partial characterization of a hepatocyte antiproliferative glycopeptide.

A low molecular weight compound, which inhibits the G1-S transition in rat hepatocytes, was obtained by tryptic hydrolysis of human alpha 2-macroglobulin followed by ultrafiltration at pH 10. It was purified by high-performance liquid chromatography on mu Bondapak C18 and mu Bondapak NH2 with a practically quantitative yield; from 5.1 g of alpha 2-macroglobulin, 2.8 micrograms of purified compound were recovered. Inactivation by specific enzymes and chemical analyses showed that the inhibitor is a sialylated glycopeptide whose peptide moiety contains a pyroglutamyl residue. Its molecular mass, estimated by gel permeation chromatography, would be in the interval 3,500-4,600. However, amino acid analyses indicated that it is not yet pure. All these data suggest that alpha 2-macroglobulin could be the carrier of the precursor form of the glycopeptide.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1988

The complete amino acid sequence of bovine milk angiogenin.

The amino acid sequence of angiogenin isolated from bovine milk was deduced by gas-phase sequencing of the protein and its fragments. The protein contains 125 residues and has a calculated molecular mass of 14,577 Da. The sequence is highly homologous (65% identity) to the sequence of human angiogenin, most of the differences being the result of conservative replacements. Like human angiogenin, the bovine protein is also homologous to bovine pancreatic RNase A (34% identity) and the three major active site residues known to be involved in the catalytic process, His-14, Lys-41 and His-115, are conserved. When tested against conventional substrates for RNase A activity, bovine angiogenin displays the same selective ribonucleolytic activity as human angiogenin. The sequence of bovine angiogenin contains the cell recognition tripeptide Arg-Gly-Asp which is not present in the human protein.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1988

Photosubstitution of cymantrenylalanine as a tool in peptide chemistry. Synthesis and biological activity of new GnRH analogs.

Beyond its aromatic character and important hydrophobicity, cymantrenylalanine, a metallocenic amino-acid, can be easily photosubstituted with phosphine and phosphite ligands to readily yield new analogs with different hydrophobicity and steric hindrance. The incorporation of phosphine and phosphite ligands is described. As an illustration of the offered possibilities, the synthesis and the biological activity of two new GnRH analogs modified in position 6 are reported.

Alanine↗
PubMed1986

Ofloxacin in lower respiratory tract infections--a comparison with amoxicillin.

This study aimed at determining the clinical efficacy and clinical and biological safety of ofloxacin compared to amoxicillin. 44 patients were included, and 41 were evaluable. 33 patients were treated according to the randomization list, whereas 11 patients were treated in an open study. All patients were suffering from acute, recurrent or chronic, lower respiratory tract infections. 29 patients started ofloxacin treatment with a dosage of 200 mg or 300 mg b.i.d., and 15 other patients received 1 g amoxicillin b.i.d. or t.i.d. Three patients of this last group were treated with ofloxacin after amoxicillin treatment failure. Bacteriological eradication was achieved in 95% of ofloxacin-treated and in 78% of amoxicillin-treated patients. Clinical cure occurred in 86% of ofloxacin- and in 55% of amoxicillin-treated patients. Successful treatment (bacteriologic eradication associated with clinical cure) was observed in 75% of patients from the ofloxacin-group and in 36% of the amoxicillin-group. No clinical adverse reactions were seen in amoxicillin-treated patients, whereas one patient in the ofloxacin-group was complaining of mild, definitely drug-related, hypochondrial pain. No major drug-related disturbances of biological parameters were observed neither in the ofloxacin- nor in the amoxicillin-group.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

Evaluation of the resistance mechanisms of gentamicin-resistant Gram-negative bacilli and their susceptibility to tobramycin, netilmicin and amikacin.

Two hundred and fifty-three gentamicin-resistant Gram-negative bacilli, isolated from clinical material, were tested for sensitivity to tobramycin, netilmicin and amikacin. Amikacin was effective at 16 mg/l in 90% of cases, whereas there was no difference between netilmicin and tobramycin activity; 13.3% of strains were susceptible to 8 mg/l netilmicin, and 14.8% of strains to 4 mg/l tobramycin. The lack of difference in results between tobramycin and netilmicin is explained by local enzyme patterns. In our population, the AAC(3)II is predominant, and inactivates gentamicin, tobramycin and netilmicin, in contrast to the U.S.A. where ANT (2") seems to be the most common enzyme.

Amikacin↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Effect of the mucoactive drug nacystelyn on the respiratory burst of human blood polymorphonuclear neutrophils.

In lung diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or cystic fibrosis, the activation of phagocytic cells produces high amounts of cytotoxic reactive oxygen species (ROS) that are partly implicated in the pathogenic process. In this study, the ex vivo antioxidant activity of nacystelyn (NAL), a recently developed mucoactive thiol-containing agent, was investigated using the respiratory burst of human blood polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMNs). The ROS generation was induced by serum-opsonized zymosan and assessed with luminol- and lucigenin-enhanced chemiluminescence (ECL). The activity of NAL was compared with N-acetylcysteine (ACC) and captopril, other thiol-containing pharmacological agents having documented antioxidant properties. The three drugs significantly inhibited the ECL response of activated PMNs in the presence of luminol, a luminogenic agent which mostly reflects the production of hydroxyl and hypohalite radicals. NAL was more efficient than the other two drugs: the concentrations producing a 50% inhibition (IC50) of total luminol-ECL were 290 microM, 1580 microM and 760 microM for NAL, ACC and captopril, respectively. The inhibition of the lucigenin-ECL response of activated PMNs was less marked for all compounds suggesting a poorer reactivity with superoxide radicals. These findings demonstrate that NAL, at concentrations obtainable in vivo by inhalation, impairs the PMNs chemiluminescence response related to hydroxyl and hypohalite radicals production. As those radicals are highly cytotoxic, NAL appears as a promising agent in the prevention of oxidative lung damage caused by an active inflammatory response.

Acetylcysteine↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Determination of verapamil and norverapamil in human plasma by liquid chromatography: comparison between a liquid-liquid extraction procedure and an automated liquid-solid extraction method for sample preparation.

A conventional liquid-liquid extraction (LLE) procedure with high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) has been developed for the determination of verapamil and its main metabolite, norverapamil, in plasma. After addition of the internal standard, plasma samples were basified with phosphate buffer (pH 9.0) and extracted with a mixture of cyclohexane-dichloromethane. After centrifugation, the organic layer was separated and the analytes were extracted back into a 0.1 N sulphuric acid solution containing 2-aminoheptane. An aliquot of this aqueous phase was then injected directly onto the HPLC column. This LLE procedure has been compared with an automated liquid-solid extraction (LSE) method that has been developed in parallel. Good linearity was obtained using both extraction methods. The absolute recoveries for the two analytes were ca 95% with the automated LSE procedure and slightly lower (ca 84%) for the LLE method. The automated method gives better results with respect to detectability and precision, but the LLE procedure is simpler to develop, requires much less expensive equipment, and remains a useful alternative when the number of samples to be analysed is limited.

Buffers↗