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Based on distributions of local Green's functions we present a stochastic approach to disordered systems. specifically we address Anderson localisation and cluster effects in binary alloys. Taking Anderson localisation of Holstein polarons as an example we discuss how this stochastic approach can be used for the investigation of interacting disordered systems.
Synthesis and evaluation of pseudosaccharin amine derivatives as potential elastase inhibitions
(2006)
Elastase is a serine protease which by definition is able to solubilize elastin by hydrolytic cleavage.Human Leukocyte Elastase, HLE (EC 3.4.21.37), is involved in deseases such as adult respiatory distress syndrome, pulmonary emphysema, smoking related chronic bronchitits, ischemic-reperfusion injury and rheumatoid arthritis. Hence, the elastase inhibitors have clinical utility in these diseases. Heterocyclic compounds are one of the most important classes of the elastase inhibitiors. In the present work different pseudosaccharin amine derivatives were synthesized and tested against the elastase. The synthesis of pseudosaccharin amine dervatives was carried out from the amines and(1,1-dioxobenzo[d]isothiazol-3-ylsulfanyl)acetonitrile in different solvents. Futhermore, the pseudosaccharin amines were obtained by refluxing the thiosaccarinates in absolute acetic acid. The reaction of 3-ethoxybenzo[d]isothiazole 1,1-dioxide with different amines in dioxane under reflux resulted into the desired pseudosaccharin amine derivatives in higher yields. Pseudosaccharin chloride was also used in the synthesis of these derivatives.A detail study of the synthesis of pseudosaccharin amine dervatives from the above differnt routes is described. Peptides were also synthesized by using the mixed anhydride method. The ester, acid, amide and peptide derivatives were tested against the Porcine Pancreatic Elastase (PPE) and Human Leukocyte Elastase (HLE). The esters were found to be the reversible inhibitors of HLE. The process of the PPE inhibion by cyanomethyl(2S)-2-(1,1-dioxobenzo[d]isothiazol-3-ylamino)-3-methylbutanoate was studied. Michaelis-Menten curve and Lineweaver-Burk double reciprocal plot were constructed in order to study the kinetic of this reaction. The compounds showing high inhibition of HLE were further stuied for determination of their inhibitory constant(Ki). The esters were found to be the higly active compounds against HLE. The cyanomethyl(2S)-2-(1,1-dioxobenzo[d]isothiazol-3-ylamino)-3-methylbutanoate and cyanomethyl(2S,3S)-2-(1,1-dioxobenzo[d]isothiazol-3-ylamino)-3-methylpentanoate showed the competitive reversible inhibition of HLE.The cyanomethyl(2S,3S)-2-(1,1-dioxobenzo[d]isothiazol-3-ylamino)-3-methylpentanoate is highly potent inhibitor of HLE. The possible mechanism of inhibition of elastase by these compounds is discussed. Molecular modelling of some of the ester derivatives is also discussed.
The interaction of partially ionized plasmas with an electromagnetic field is investigated using quantum statistical methods. A general statistical expression for the current density of a plasma in an electromagnetic field is presented and considered in the high field regime. Expressions for the collisional absorption are derived and discussed. Further, partially ionized plasmas are considered. Plasma Bloch equations for the description of bound-free transitions are given and the absorption coefficient as well as rate coefficients for multiphoton ionization are derived and numerical results are presented.
A fluorescent lamp driven with an 'instant start electronic control gear' starts in a glow mode. In the glow mode, which lasts typically for tens of milliseconds, the cathode fall exceeds hundreds of volts. This causes high energy ion bombardment of the electrode which heats the electrode, and induces a transition from glow to arc mode. In the arc mode the electrode emits thermionically and the cathode fall drops to the 12 – 15 V range. Unfortunately, the high energy ion bombardment during the glow mode leads also to intense sputtering of electrode material, including tungsten as well as emitter. Thus, instant started fluorescent lamps often suffer from early failures due to coil fracture. Therefore, the investigation of tungsten erosion during instant start is necessary and was the main goal of this work.
The density of neutral atomic tungsten is determined by laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) and optical emission spectroscopy measurements (OES). Investigations are performed on a low-pressure argon dc discharge and on commercial fluorescent lamps. To include the entire temperature profile along the electrode the diffuse and spot operation modes of the dc lamp are studied experimentally and theoretically. The measured dependencies of the cathode temperature along the coil on the discharge and heating parameters are compared with the calculated results. For the first time the tungsten erosion during instant start of commercial fluorescent lamps was experimentally investigated in this work. The erosion process could be related to sputtering. A reconstruction of the temporal evolution of the absolute tungsten population density of the ground state during the glow mode was presented. The sputtered tungsten density increases immediately with the ignition, reaches a maximum where the discharge contracts at the end of the glow mode, and decreases some milliseconds before the glow-to-arc transition takes place. The maximum tungsten density was observed within a region of a few hundred micrometers only located at the discharge attachment point. The main result achieved in this work is that during the whole glow mode tungsten is sputtered. Therefore, the lifetime of instant started fluorescent lamps can be enhanced by reducing the duration of the glow mode. Additionally, the need for the application of different types of diagnostics for the observation of lamp ignition was shown due to different results of LIF, AAS and OES: The observation of excited tungsten atoms by OES shows the maximum emission signal at the glow-to-arc transition whereas by LIF and AAS measurements of tungsten atoms in the ground state the maximum density is found during the whole glow mode. This can be explained by the fact that the intensity of the spontaneous emitted light is related not only to the density but also to the degree of excitation.
Although the benefit of expedient antibiotic therapy remains unquestioned, little is known about the effects that are unrelated to their antimicrobial property but which the antibiotics may exert upon the septic microcirculation. Impairment of intestinal microcirculation has been recognized as an important factor in the pathogenesis of the septic syndrome (intestine = ¡°motor¡± of multiple organ failure). To examine the effects of various antibiotics on microcirculation is justified by the fact that one of major features of sepsis is disturbance of microcirculation. However, monitoring of pharmacological effects on intestinal blood flow is nearly impossible during acute therapy in humans and requires sophisticated equipment when applied to experimental animals. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of common antibiotics on intestinal microcirculation using intravital microscopy (IVM) and on the release of the cytokines in septic and endotoxemic rats. In a first series of experiments we induced sepsis by using colon ascendens stent peritonitis (CASP) model in the rat (16 hours prior microscopy). We evaluated the effects of common antibiotics on intestinal microcirculation using intravital microscopy (functional capillary density (FCD) and leukocyte-endothelial interactions) and on the release of the cytokines TNF-¥á, IL-1©¬, IL-6 and IL-10. Metronidazole (MET) (10 mg/kg); imipenem (IMI) (20 mg/kg); tobramycin (TOB) (25 mg/kg); vancomycin (VAN) (70 mg/kg); and erythromycin (ERY) (5 mg/kg) were given intravenously 16 hours following sepsis induction. To differentiate antimicrobial from anti-inflammatory effects we performed a second series of experiments using endotoxin (LPS, i. v.) and intravital microscopic examination was performed 2 hours later. Cytokine release was estimated at the end of the experiments. In the CASP model, acute administration of metronidazole was associated with an improvement of markers of the intestinal microcirculation in septic rats (CASP). Our study showed that vancomycin stimulated leukocyte rolling, while erythromycin prevented the activation of leukocyte-endothelial interaction in postcapillary intestinal venules (V1) that occurred within 16 hours after CASP. TNF-¥á release in untreated CASP rats was twice as high in comparison to all antibiotic-treated CASP rats, except in CASP rats treated with tobramycin. Key findings of the present study are that MET and ERY were more potent than other antibiotics in improving the intestinal microcirculation in the CASP model. Protective effects of metronidazole, erythromycin and vancomycin upon the microcirculation were found in LPS model. The administration of MET or VAN or ERY led to significantly higher FCD values within the longitudinal muscular layers. Metronidazole and erythromycin significantly reduced the n umber of sticking leukocytes within the V1-venules of LPS-challenged animals. Leukocyte rolling flux was significant increased within the V1- and V3-venules of the endotoxemic rats treated with VAN. Some antibiotics showed immuno-modulatory effects: MET or IMI or VAN treated LPS rats showed increased IL-10 levels; while ERY treated LPS rats showed decreased IL-1©¬ and increased IL-6 concentrations. In conclusion, metronidazole and erythromycin exerted a positive influence upon the intestinal perfusion not only within septic microcirculation (anti-bacterial effect) but also in a pathogenically independent manner (anti-inflammatory effect); vancomycin had only anti-inflammatory actions in the endotoxin model without bacterial infection. Imipenem and tobramycin had no effect on intestinal microcirculation in septic and endotoxemic rats. The clinical usefulness of studies such as this is that they could provide important information about possible side effects or indicate some potential beneficial effects of the antibiotics. They can influence not only microcirculation but also inflammatory processes by some mechanisms that are probably unrelated to their antibiotic effect. However, these effects may be particularly relevant to the intestinal microcirculation which plays an essential role in the development of multi-organ failure in the instance of sepsis.
The non-natural substances in commonly used UV protection creams such as TiO2, are known to have a photocatalytic side effect, which is very harmful to human skin. This study presents some properties of clays and clays minerals concerning UV protection potential, which can be very helpful for the development of new UV protection cream generation. Clays and clay minerals are demonstrated that they have potential to absorb UV-radiation. The structures of clay particles in cream were shown to be dependent on the layer charge of clay minerals. The total amount of Fe2C>3 in chemical composition of clay plays a key role in determining the UV-absorption ability of the clay matter. Moreover, the UV-absorption ability also depends on the expandable or non- expandable property of the clay. The studies were also performed on the mixtures of wool-wax-alcohol cream and nanosuspension obtained by the extraction of fungi mass Ganoderma pfeifferi by using plantacare together with clay. The combination of clays and nanosuspension increased its UV-absorption ability. The skin model test was performed in vivo in mouse ears with skin flora Escherichia coli and infectious bacteria Staphylococcus aureus in order to determine the effects of cream samples on skin under UV irradiation and skin infection. From the results of characterization of clays and clay minerals properties in UV protection cream, this study also brings some ideas about products designing.
SUMMARY To date, Staphylococcus aureus is the most common cause of nosocomial infections and the species is becoming increasingly resistant to antibiotics. Beyond this, S. aureus colonises the nasal mucosa of circa 35% of the healthy population, so-called carriers. Importantly, S. aureus nasal carriage is a major risk factor for the development of S. aureus infections, which are commonly caused by the colonising strain. This underlines the importance of host factors for the outcome of S. aureus-host interactions. Despite the clinical importance of nasal carriage, little is known about humoral immune responses triggered by colonisation. Therefore, this thesis was focussed on the anti-staphylococcal antibody responses of S. aureus carriers and noncarriers. Staphylococcal superantigens (SAgs) served as indicator antigens for our studies. SAgs are virulence factors with extraordinary variability in the species S aureus and act as extremely potent T cell mitogens. To date, 19 different SAg gene loci are known in the species S. aureus, but molecular-epidemiological studies on the distribution of these genes are limited. Therefore, we established five multiplex PCRs for the detection of all known SAgs. With this robust and high-throughput technique we analysed the SAg gene patterns of more than 300 isolates, including 107 nasal isolates of S. aureus carriers and 88 blood culture isolates of hospital patients from Western Pomerania. The SAg gene patterns were highly heterogeneous, which can be explained by their localisation on mobile genetic elements (MGE), such as genomic islands, pathogenicity islands, phages and plasmids. Most isolates (~80%) harboured SAg genes, on average five to six, and SAgs of the enterotoxin gene cluster (egc) were by far the most prevalent. Additionally, we observed a strict correlation between the presence of SAg genes and the T cell mitogenic potency of clinical isolates. SAg-encoding MGEs can be distributed by two distinct mechanisms: horizontal transfer by bacteriophages and vertical transmission to daughter cells. To investigate the distribution of SAg genes within the S. aureus population, we determined the clonal relationship of our isolates by spa genotyping. Interestingly, SAg-gene encoding MGEs were not randomly distributed, but rather closely linked to clonal lineages. Each clonal lineage was characterised by defined combinations of SAg genes. These data suggest that the simultaneous assessment of virulence gene profiles and the genetic background strongly enhances the discriminatory power of genetic investigations into the mechanisms of S. aureus virulence. Indeed, the comparison of virulence genes within each clonal complex indicated a role in invasiveness for some MGEs, e.g. the exfoliative toxin D-encoding pathogenicity island, while rendering it unlikely for SAgs. It is known that neutralising serum antibodies against the SAgs SEA, SEB, SEC, SED and TSST-1 are frequently present in healthy individuals. However, the neutralising antibody profiles against more recently described SAgs or complex SAg cocktails as secreted by clinical isolates had not been determined so far. Therefore, we screened more than 100 sera for their SAg neutralising capacity with a neutralisation assay. We observed a marked heterogeneity and surprisingly large “gaps” in the neutralising capacity. Interestingly, the egc SAgs were inhibited only rarely (5-10%), whereas between 32 and 86% of the tested sera neutralised “classical” SAgs. This “egc gap” in the SAg-neutralising antibody profiles of healthy individuals was unexpected, since egc SAgs are by far the most prevalent SAgs. We could demonstrate that the “egc gap” is probably not due to different T cell activating properties of egc SAgs compared to classical SAgs, but rather to a differential regulation of SAg gene expression. S. aureus carriers have an increased risk of developing an S. aureus bacteraemia, which is in most cases caused by the colonising strain. Intriguingly, a large prospective clinical trial revealed a considerably higher mortality in noncarriers with invasive S. aureus strains compared to carriers with invasive disease. To explain these paradoxical findings, we hypothesised that in carriers partial immunity against the colonising strain may contribute to their improved outcome. We used SAgs as strain-specific indicator antigens. Importantly, sera from persistent carriers neutralised SAgs of their colonising strain with significantly higher efficiency than sera from noncarriers. This antibody response was strain-specific, since the antibody response of carriers against other SAgs did not differ from that of noncarriers. Thus, colonisation with S. aureus confers a strong and strain-specific antibody response against staphylococcal SAgs. We suggest that in carriers neutralising antibodies directed against SAgs and other staphylococcal virulence factors confer partial protection during systemic infections. This could explain the better prognosis of carriers with S. aureus bacteraemia compared to noncarriers. Moreover, our data imply that the key to understanding the pathogenesis of S. aureus disease may lie in the identification of host factors rather than bacterial factors. Such host factors could be the immune status and gene polymorphisms that contribute to colonisation, susceptibility to infection and outcome of infection. Finally, while the treatment of S. aureus bacteraemia with pooled immunoglobulins was performed in the past without significant success, our findings on strain-specific antibody profiles suggest that therapies with customised cocktails of monoclonal antibodies could have a higher efficacy.
The Gram-positive bacterium Bacillus licheniformis is an important industrial host for the production of enzymes. Genomic DNA arrays and proteomics are being used to investigate the physiology of this bacterium. A genome-wide transcriptional profiling analysis of the adaptation of B. licheniformis to phosphate starvation shows more than 100 induced genes. Most of strongly induced genes belong to the putative Pho regulon. The data of the transcriptome analysis have been verified by the analysis of the extracellular and cytoplasmic proteome. The main response of B. licheniformis to glucose starvation was a switch to the usage of alternative carbon sources. In addition, B. licheniformis seems to be using other organic substances like amino acids and lipids as carbon sources when subjected to glucose starvation. This was indicated by the induction of a high number of genes the proteins of which are involved in amino acid and lipid degradation. During nitrogen starvation genes necessary for the recruitment of nitrogen from alternative sources were induced, e.g. genes for nitrate and nitrite assimilation, several proteases and peptidases. Both starvation conditions led to a down-regulation of the transcription of most vegetative genes and subsequently to a reduced synthesis of the corresponding proteins. Only a few genes were induced by both starvation conditions like yvyD, citA and the methylcitrate shunt genes mmgD, mmgE and yqiQ. Data of this study use to better understand the physiology of this bacterium during fermentation processes and thus to identify and circumvent bottlenecks of B. licheniformis based bioprocesses. In addition, the phytase promoter was tested for the construction of an alternative phosphate regulated expression system for B. licheniformis.
Proteomic signatures select the physiology state of the cell. By using 2-D technique, proteome signature of Bacillus subtilis under different stresses and starvations are analyzed. Consequently, a proteomic map of Bacillus subtilis in non-growing phase was created. The ammonium and tryptophan as well as phenol and catechol stress are analyzed using both of proteomics and transcriptomics. And the proteomic map represents a good application in the prediction of the mode of action of phenol and catechol stress.
Expression of the T cell regulatory molecule ICOS (CD278) and LICOS (CD275) on human blood cells
(2006)
Expression of the T cell regulatory molecule ICOS (CD278) and LICOS (CD275) on human blood cells Summary General bacterial infections, which can lead to the clinical picture of sepsis, are a major concern in intensive care units (ICU) and mortality remains high. Recent data have shown that, besides an overreaction of the immune system, also immunosuppression also plays a role in the pathogenesis of sepsis. Immunosuppression has been documented in patients with polytrauma, stroke and burn wounds, which all confer a high risk of severe bacterial infection. Moreover, it has been shown that T cells have an important role in sepsis. A shift of a Th1 dominated T cell response towards a Th2 response has been described as a potential mechanism of immune suppression in patients with sepsis. One of the molecules on the surface of T cells that is involved in the Th2-mediated immune response is the Inducible Costimulator of T cells (ICOS). Its ligand, LICOS, is expressed on the surface of B cells and monocytes. ICOS ligation induces the production of anti-inflammatory cytokines, especially of IL-10. However, nothing is known about the expression of ICOS on T cells and that of LICOS on APCs in patients with severe trauma and stroke. Therefore, in the present study, in a first step, a recombinant human LICOS-Ig fusion protein was generated, which was then used as an antigen for the generation of anti-LICOS monoclonal antibodies. In three fusion experiments, 5,000 primay clones were screened and a single hybridoma was obtained, which produced monoclonal antibodies that specifically reacted with recombinant LICOS, both in form of the LICOS-Ig fusion protein and on the surface of a cell line transfected with a full-length LICOS transgene. Since, it turned out that the antibodies did not bind with high affinity to wild type LICOS, as it is expressed on primary human blood cells, phenotypic analyses were carried out with another anti-LICOS monoclonal antibody, which had become commercially available. Next, the expression of HLA-DR, CD86, LICOS, and ICOS, on the surface of monocytes (CD14+), B cells (CD19+) and T cells (CD3+, CD4+) in whole blood was measured by flow cytometry. Six patients with severe trauma and nine stroke patients were compared with 32 healthy donors. On CD14+ monocytes from healthy donors, the expression levels of HLA-DR and CD86 were over 90%, while the expression of LICOS was much lower (7,5%). In critically ill patients, HLA-DR, CD86 and LICOS expression were strongly reduced. CD86 and HLA-DR were co-regulated, while HLA-DR and LICOS were not. In healthy donors, virtually all B cells expressed HLA-DR and the majority of them co-expressed LICOS (72%), while only a small fraction were CD86+ (14%). After trauma and stroke, HLA-DR, as well as LICOS expression on these cells remained normal; CD86 had a tendency towards being downregulated in most of the trauma patients, while most of the stroke patients exhibited normal CD86+ levels. The levels of HLA-DR and LICOS on T cells in trauma and stroke patients were low and very similar to those of healthy donors. The fraction of CD3+ T lymphocytes or their CD4+ subpopulation, which expressed measurable levels of ICOS (64% and 48%, respectively), did not change after stoke or trauma. However, within the ICOS+ T cell population two subpopulations could be distinguished: ICOSbright and ICOSdim T cells. Interestingly, the ICOSbright subpopulation, but not the ICOSdim and ICOSnegative subpopulations, was markedly increased in all trauma patients and in most of the stroke patients. Given that CD86 was co-regulated with HLA-DR on monocytes it appears that, similar to HLA-DR, CD86 expression could discriminate between patients with a low and high risk of sepsis. In contrast, because of its low basal expression on monocytes and its low signal-noise ratio, LICOS expression levels are not informative. Since ICOS expression on T cells is tightly connected to IL-10 secretion, the high proportion of ICOS bright cells in critically ill patients might contribute to the high IL-10 serum concentrations, which have been reported to be linked to immunosuppression in these patients.