Effects of several preoperative medications on fat cell lipolysis, and activity of adipose tissue cyclic AMP phosphodiesterase.

Effects were examined of atropine, diazepam, pethidene, promethazine, scopolamine, omnopon and papaverine on basal and noradrenaline-stimulated lipolysis in rat isolated fat cells and on rat adipose tissue cyclic AMP phosphodiesterase activity. Papaverine at high concentration (1 mM) inhibited both basal and hormone-stimulated lipolysis, whereas diazepam enhanced basal lipolysis. At a 'clinical dose', omnopon increased both basal and noradrenaline-stimulated lipolysis. Adipose tissue cAMP phosphodiesterase activity was strongly inhibited by 1 mM diazepam, papaverine, promethazine and omnopon (280 microgram ml-1). Lack of enhancement of lipolysis by the established cAMP phosphodiesterase antagonist papaverine, is compatible with simultaneous inhibition also of adipose adenyl cyclase. Diazepam-stimulated lipolysis is compatible with its phosphodiesterase inhibitory activity. It is proposed that papaverine-containing omnopon may offer some survival advantages during surgical stress by facilitating a caloric supply.     

Comparative study of the effect of thymosin and supernatant from epithelial thymic cells on antibody production (author's transl)]

A thymic extract (TE) was prepared from supernatant of mice thymic epithelial cultures according to the purification of thymosin. TE and thymosin stimulated, in vitro, the immune response of mouse against deep red blood cells.     

Affinity chromatography of human serum proteins using matrix bound lectin fromViscum album L.

Summary The D-galactose specific lectin fromViscum album L. reacts with serum proteins that contain the corresponding D-galactopyranosyl residues. By affinity chromatography of human serum on lectin-sepharose IgM, ₂-macroglobulin, haptoglobin and -lipoprotein were quantitatively retained. Only parts of IgA, IgG and transferrin were retarded. The other serum proteins are unbounded as albumin, ₁A– and ₁C.     

Fragments of linear unintegrated Rous sarcoma virus DNA, resulting from digestion with SmaI restriction endonuclease]

Linear unintegrated DNA of Schmidt-Ruppin Rous sarcoma virus, subgroup D (SR-RSV-D), was digested with SmaI restriction endonuclease, analyzed by agarose gel electrophoresis, "blotted" by Southern's method and hybridized with a viral 32P cDNA. SmaI cleaves this DNA at five sites, two of which are localized at the ends of the provirus. Src and env genes seem not to be restrictied by SmaI cleavage.     

The structure of amoorastatone and the cytotoxic limonoid 12-hydroxyamoorastatin

Summary 2 new limonoid-type terpenes have been isolated from an aqueous extract of seeds produced by the Eastern Himalayan (India) plantAphanamixis grandifolia Bl. By interpreting principally mass spectral and nuclear magnetic resonance data, the structures of 12-hydroxyamoorastatin (2b) and amoorastatone (3) were elucidated. Unequivocal evidence for the 12-hydroxyamoorastatin structural assignment was obtained by chemical conversion to sendanin (4). Amoorastatin derivative2b was found to significantly inhibit growth of the murine P388 lymphocytic leukemia cell lines but amoorastatone in the same system was inactive. In a comparative biological study, sendanin (4) and anthothecol (7) were also found significantly to inhibit growth of the P388 cell line, while rohitukin (8) and limonin (9) were found to be inactive.Part 63 of the series Antineoplastic Agents. For the previous contribution refer to G.R. Pettit, T.S. Krupa and R.M. Reynolds, Int. J. Peptide Protein Res., in preparation. The present investigation was supported in part by Public Health Research Grant No. CA-16049-05 from the National Cancer Institute, the Fannie E. Rippel Foundation, Mrs Mary Dell Pritzlaff, the Spencer T. and Ann W. Olin Foundation, Mr John F. Schmidt, and the Phoenix Coca-Cola Bottling Company.     

In vitro inactivation of corpora allata of the bugOncopeltus fasciatus by precocene II

Summary Corpora allata fromOncopeltus fasciatus incubated in vitro in medium containing 10^–5.35 M (1 g/ml) of precocene II lose their ability to secrete juvenile hormone when reimplanted into last instar larvae.Acknowledgments. We thank Mr K. Dorn, Mrs L. Dolezal, Mrs V. Nötzli-Graf, Mr K.H. Trautmann and Mr A. Schuler for technical help, Dr W. Vogel and Dr A. Dübendorfer for valuable discussions.     

Density gradient centrifugation of cells separated from multicellular tumor spheroids

Summary Cells from a murine fibrosarcoma (FSa) have been grown in vitro as multicell tumor spheroids (MTS). The growth rate of these MTS was determined. Follwing selected periods of growth, MTS were made into a single cell suspension and separated on linear density gradients of Renografin. While only 1 population of cells was separated from small spheroids (400 m diameter), at least 3 subpopulations of tumor cells were separated and isolated from large spheroids (800 m in diameter).This investigation was supported in part by grants numbered CA-18628 and CA-06294, awarded by the National Cancer Institute, DHEW.