(−)-Maalian-5-ol,a new enantiomeric sesquiterpenoid from the liverwortPlagiochila ovalifolia

Summary A new enantiomeric sesquiterpene alcohol named (–)-maalian-5-ol was isolated from the liverwort, and the structure and absolute configuration was determined to be the stereostructureI by chemical and spectral evidence.The authors express their gratitude to Dr H. Inoue, National Science Museum, for identification of the liverwort, and Prof. T. Tokoroyama, Osaka City University, for sending of the data of (–)--maaliene and (+)-selina-5,11-diene. Thanks are also due to the Ministry of Education for financial support of this work.     

The effect of acidic polysaccharides and prostaglandin-like substances isolated from Propionibacterium acnes on granulocyte chemotaxis.

Three acidic polysaccharide (AP) fractions and the prostaglandin-like substances (PLS) isolated from P. acnes were investigated regarding their chemotactic activities on polymorphonuclear leukocytes. Both AP's and PLS induced a significant chemotatic response, which suggests their involvement in inflammatory acne vulgaris.     

Effect of insulin on immunological phagocytosis by macrophages.

It was shown that, in physiological concentrations, insulin enhances, in vitro, the immunological phagocytosis of sensitized sheep erythrocytes by cultured mouse peritoneal macrophages. Insulin seems to stimulate macrophage phagocytosis as a cholinomimetic agonist by increasing the intracellular levels of cyclic GMP.     

Increase in Na+, K+ -ATPase enzyme units in liver and kidneys from essential fatty acid deficient rats.

(3H)-Ouabain binding to liver and kidney preparations was utilized to estimate the number of Na+, K+-ATPase enzyme units in livers and kidneys from rats fed 2% corn oil supplemented or fat-free diets. The specific (3H)-ouabain binding in liver and kidney preparations from fatty acid deficient rats was increased approximately 40%, but the affinity of the binding sites for ouabain (Kd-value) remained unchanged. The increased concentration of Na+, K+-ATPase enzyme units observed in the essential fatty acid deficient rats may contribute to the reduced body fat accumulation and elevated heat production observed in these animals.     

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.     

Trans-4-hydroxy-3-methoxycinnamic acid (ferulic acid) inhibits the effect of androgens on the rat prostate

Summary Trans-4-hydroxy-3-methoxycinnamic acid (ferulic acid, FA) antagonized the effect of exogenous androgens on the ventral prostate (VP) in castrated rats as well as the effect of endogenous androgens in intact rats. FA, however, had no effect on the seminal vesicles (SV) and levator ani muscle (LAM), nor oestrogenic effect in female rats and mice. FA did not antagonize the receptor binding of testosterone nor inhibit the conversion of testosterone into 5-dihydrotestosterone (DHT).Supported in part by the project fund (grant 53-403) of Kawasaki Medical School.The authors would like to thank the Central Laboratory, Sankyo Pharmaceutical Co., Tokyo, for supplying 19-nortestosterone-17-ferulate.     

Chemotaxis is not a special case of haptotaxis

Summary Serum peptides containing classical anaphylatoxin (CAT) produce marked chemotactic orientation of human neutrophil granulocytes without modifying cell attachment to the substratum. Furthermore gradients of adhesion produced with gammaglobulins fail to induce morphological orientation of neutrophils. The results suggest that chemotaxis is not a special case of haptotaxis.The excellent technical assistance of Miss M. Schuster, Mrs A. Damschen and Mr M. Arnold is gratefully acknowledged. This work was supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation and the Sandoz-Stiftung zur Förderung der Medizinisch-Biologischen Forschung.     

Neurotransmitter synthesis inLimulus ventral nerve photoreceptors

Summary Radiochemical precursor compounds for neurotransmitters were incubated withLimulus ventral nerve photoreceptor preparations. Octopamine was preferentially synthesized by a photoreceptor rich fraction of the nerve, acetylcholine was made by a photoreceptor poor fraction, and -aminobutyric acid was made about equally well in both fractions. The possibility that the ventral nerve photoreceptor cells serve a neurosecretory function in the adultLimulus is discussed.From the Neurobiology Course, Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, Mass. The Neurobiology Course is supported by grants from the Grass, Sloan and Sandoz Foundation and from Merck, Sharp and Dohme Research Institute.     

Lysergic acid diethylamide affects blood flow to specific areas of the conscious rat brain

Zusammenfassung Die i.v. Verabreichung von LSD an Ratten steigert den Blutkreislauf im Hirnstamm sowie im frontalen und parietalen Cortex selektiv. Es wurden durch 6-Nor-LSD, 2-Methyl-LSD und ^{8, 9}-LSD weder wahrnehmbare Verhaltensänderungen noch Änderungen des regionalen Blutkreislaufs verursacht.     

Standardization of "exchange" techniques to measure estradiol receptors in extracts exposed to biospecific adsorbants]

The measurement of the binding of steroid hormone receptors to biospecific adsorbants requires the development of "exchange" techniques. Two types of techniques based on the principle of differential dissociation were standardized: solid phase exchange with hydroxylapatite and liquid phase exchange with adsorption of the ligand to charcoal dextran. In both cases, binding of oestradiol to its receptor was measured in calf uterine cytosol extracts. Results obtained by both techniques were comparable. The half-times of the oestradiol-receptor complex dissociation determined from exchange kinetics are on the same order as those obtained by direct methods used in previous studies.