Impact of the composition of combustion generated fine particles on epithelial cell toxicity: influences of metals on metabolism

Inhaled airborne particulate matter (PM) represents a potentially significant health hazard to humans. Exposure to PM strongly correlates with pulmonary inflammation and incidences of severe respiratory distress, including increased hospital admissions for breathing disorders, asthma, emphysema, and chronic bronchitis. PM generated from the combustion of fuel oils and coals contain a number of water-soluble transition metals including Fe, V, and Zn.

We have evaluated the impact of PM types with varying composition collected from the combustion of oils and coals on the health and metabolism of lung cell cultures. Three colorimetric assays (sulforhodamine B (SRB), Janus green, and MTT) have been adapted to quantify the impact of PM on rat lung alveolar type II epithelial cells (RLE-6TN cells). The PM toxicity metrics evaluated were inhibition of cell proliferation (SRB and Janus green) and inhibition of cellular metabolism (MTT). Cell proliferation is inhibited in a consistent dose-dependent manner by PM concentrations from 25 to 250 μg/ml. At a level of 100 μg/ml, oil-derived PM diminishes cell metabolism by as much as 40% relative to controls; the degree of inhibition is strongly dependent on PM particle size and metal content. Conversely, coal-derived PM at the same dosage diminishes cell metabolism by no more than 20% relative to controls. All three assays provide highly repeatable results and consistent toxicity rankings of the PMs evaluated. Overall, metabolic inhibition as measured by the MTT assay was deemed the most appropriate metric for PM toxicity, primarily due to its applicability with in vivo-like confluent cell monolayers.     

焦化废水中难降解有机物的共代谢降解特性

针对焦化废水中的几种主要难降解有机物吡啶、萘、氯苯、苯、二苯酚等 ,利用瓦氏呼吸仪测定微生物耗氧量的方法 ,对它们在单基质和共基质条件下的可生化性进行了实验研究 ,初步了解了共代谢降解焦化废水中难降解有机污染物的生理生化特性 ,为焦化废水深度处理作了有益的探索     

Molecular prenatal diagnosis of 3-hydroxy−3-methylglutaryl coa lyase deficiency

We report the first molecular prenatal diagnosis of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl CoA lyase (HL) deficiency. The proband had a classic but severe presentation with hypoketotic hypoglycaemia and acidosis, secondary mental retardation, and epilepsy, and HL deficiency was documented in cultured fibroblasts. We found him to be homozygous for the frameshift mutation N46fs (+1), which yields a distinct pattern on single-strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) analysis. In two subsequent pregnancies, molecular prenatal diagnosis was performed using SSCP. In the first, chorionic villus biopsy was normal. In the second pregnancy, amniocentesis revealed an affected fetus. In both pregnancies, the diagnosis was confirmed enzymatically. HL activity was less than 7 per cent of control values in amniocytes and fetal liver of the affected pregnancy. In the second pregnancy, amniotic fluid metabolite measurements by stable isotope dilution-selected ion monitoring mass spectrometry showed greater than 100-fold increases of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaric acid and of 3-methylglutaconic acid levels compared with controls.     

Metabolism of benzo[a]pyrene in peroxynitrite/Fe（Ⅲ） porphyrin system

The peroxynitrite/porphyrin biomimetic system was established to investigate the effects of peroxynitrite on benzo[a]pyrene （B[a]P） metabolism. Three model systems consisting of different iron porphyrins were compared, and the results showed that the peroxynitdte/T（p-Cl）PPFeCl system was the highest catalytic efficiency in the metabolism of B [a]P. We analyzed the B [a]P metabolites produced from this system by RP-HPLC method and firstly identified the formation of nitrobenzo[a]pyrenes which are the special metabolites of B [a]P induced by peroxynitrite.     

经济-环境系统的物质流分析方法比较研究

对基于物质流的工业代谢分析方法物质（材料）流分析法（Material Flow Accounting and Analysis,MFA）和实物投入产出法（Physical Input-Output Tables，PIOT）的特点进行了阐述。比较分析了2种方法的研究对象、范围、内容、应用等，给出了具体的分析表。     

土壤微生物对灭幼脲3号杀虫剂代谢作用的研究

从施药后的土壤中分离出的青霉菌、芽枝霉菌、木霉菌、曲霉菌均能降解灭幼脲3号.其中青霉菌可以裂解灭幼脲C—N键,产生新的代谢产物.经鉴定,其代谢产物为:对氯苯基脲、对氯苯胺,邻氯苯酰胺.探讨了青霉菌对灭幼脲3号的代谢途径和机理.试验说明青霉菌对氯苯基脲,对氯苯胺仍有降解代谢能力.     

Alkaloid tolerance in Manduca sexta and phylogenetically related sphingids (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae)

Summary. Nicotine tolerance is well known for Manduca sexta. It also occurs in several other sphingids of the subfamilies Macroglossinae and Sphinginae. Only members of the subfamily Smerinthinae appear to be more susceptible to nicotine intoxication. Phylogenetic trees have been reconstructed from mitochondrial 16S rDNA and nuclear DNA to map nicotine tolerance.?The nicotine binding site of both α-subunits of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR) have been amplified and sequenced. No apparent amino acid substitution can be seen in the putative nicotine binding site of the α-subunits of nAChR from nicotine tolerant and nicotine sensitive sphingids. Thus, a simple target-site modification can be ruled out as a cause for nicotine tolerance. This finding agrees with feeding experiments: larvae of M. sexta and other sphingids of the Macroglossinae and Sphinginae not only tolerated nicotine, but also many other alkaloids that affect neuroreceptors other than acetylcholine receptors (nAChR, mAChR).?Only 10 to 20% of nicotine injected into larvae of nicotine-tolerant taxa could be recovered later as free nicotine, nicotine N-oxide or cotinine, i.e., 80 to 90% must have been converted to polar conjugates or degradation products which are not detectable with the methods applied. Usually more than 98% of the recoverable alkaloids were found in the faeces. Excretion reached a maximum 6 h after injection in tolerant taxa. Larvae of Manduca sexta, which were reared on a nicotine-rich diet, showed higher nicotine degradation and faster nicotine elimination than na?ve larvae. Application of the cytochrome P450 inhibitor SKF 525A (proadifen) reduced the formation of nicotine N-oxide and the rate of alkaloid degradation. Thus, an inducible detoxification mechanism, coupled with a rapid and inducible excretion, appear to be a strategy in Sphingidae that helps them to live on host plants rich in otherwise toxic secondary metabolites. Received 23 March 2001; accepted 4 August 2001.     

Effects of hydrolysable tannins on a herbivorous insect: fate of individual tannins in insect digestive tract

Summary. We investigated the effects of four chemically characterised galloylglucoses (GGs, a subgroup of hydrolysable tannins) and their hydrolysis product, gallic acid (GA), on consumption and performance of larvae of the autumnal moth Epirrita autumnata. Larvae were fed with birch (Betula pubescens) leaves that had been painted individually with each of the compounds at two levels, 5 and 20 mg/g. In addition, we investigated the fates of the leaf-painted GGs and GA in the E. autumnata digestive tract by comparing phenolics in leaves consumed and in faeces. In general, GGs reduced leaf consumption by E. autumnata during the second and fourth instars, although there was high compound- and instar-specific variation. However, GGs did not affect the leaf consumption rates by the most voracious fifth instar larvae. This resulted in approximately the same loss of total biomass by the experimental tree, regardless of the nature and level of GGs enriched to its foliage. The characteristic fate of hydrolysable tannins, i.e. hydrolysis, was evidenced in the larval digestive tract for three of the four leaf-painted GGs. In addition to hydrolysis, the almost total absence of GGs in larval faeces was presumably related to the oxidation of GGs. The dose-dependent excretion percentage of ingested GA showed that it's faecal content should not be used, although it commonly is, to calculate the level of GG hydrolysis. Moreover, by comparing the non-uniform appearance of faecal tetragalloylglucoses, whether ingested as such or hydrolysed from pentagalloylglucose, we concluded that a major part of oxidation of GGs occurs before their hydrolysis in the digestive tract of E. autumnata. Criticism against the common use of tannic acid, a heterogeneous mixture of GA and GGs, in ecological studies is presented. Received 15 May 2002; accepted 16 July 2002     

N-acetyl-S-(pentachlorophenyl)cysteine,a new urinary metabolite of hexachlorobenzene

The present paper describes the isolation and identification of a new metabolite of hexachlorobenzene (HCB), which is N-acetyl-S-(pentachlorophenyl)cysteine (PCC), frequently named pentachlorophenylmercapturic acid or 2-acetamido-3-(pentachlorophenylmercapto)propionic acid. PCC has been detected in and identified from rat urine. The syntheses of PCC and the isomeric tetrachlorophenylmercapturic acids (TCC) are described in the following paper.     

几株光合细菌的气体代谢及对产甲烷细菌甲烷生成的影响

三株分别属于光合细菌三个主要类群（紫无硫细菌、紫硫细菌和绿硫细菌）的菌种和两种产甲烷细菌进行了混合培养试验，结果表明，自养生长的光合细菌减少了产甲烷菌有ＣＨ４生成，而异养生长时紫无硫细菌Ｒｈｏｄｏｐｓｅｕｌｏｍｏｕｓ ｐａｌｕｓｔｒｉｓ能利用乙酸放出ＣＯ２供产甲烷菌利用。在光照厌氧条件下，三株光合细菌的生长培养物和静止细胞都能利用有机酸产氢，有时还伴随着ＣＯ２产出。同时试验了不同ｐＨ值、温度和光照