Estudo do efeito dos metabólitos do benzeno e tolueno sobre as mitocôndris cerebrais e hepáticas de ratos

Aim: The aim of this work was to investigate the hypothesis that catechol and 3MC inhibit FADH2-linked basal respiration in mitochondria isolated from rat liver and brain homogenates. Moreover, catechol ability to induce DNA damage in rat brain cells through the comet assay (alkaline single-cell gel electrophoresis assay) was also observed. Methods: Two different catechols were evaluated: pirocatechol (derived from benzene) and 3-methylcatechol (derived from toluene); rat liver and brain homogenates were incubated with 1mM catechol at pH 7.4 for up to 30 minutes. After that, mitochondrial fractions were isolated by differential centrifugation. Basal oxygen uptake was measured using a Clark-type electrode after the addition of 10 mM sodium succinate for a period of 12 minutes. In additional experiments, rat brain cells were treated with 1, 5 and 10mM pirocatechol for up to 20 minutes at 37º C, and submitted to electrophoresis. Results: Catechols (pirocatechol and 3methylcatechol) induced a time-dependent partial inhibition of FADH2-linked basal mitochondrial respiration. Indeed, pirocatechol was able to produce a dosedependent DNA oxidative damage in rat brain cells by 2 and 4 injury levels. These results suggest that reactive oxygen species generated by the oxidation of catechols, induced an impairment on mitochondrial respiration and a DNA damage, which might be related to their citotoxicity. Conclusion: Catechols produced an inhibition of basal respiration associated to FADH2 in isolated liver and brain mitochondria; 3-methylcatechol, at the same concentration, produced similar toxicity in the mitochondrial model. Indeed, pirocatechol induced a DNA damage in rat brain cells, mainly observed in comets formation and consequent DNA degradation

Mobilização de reservas e partição de metabólitos durante a germinação da semente e o estabelecimento da plântula em moringa

Seed germination and seedling establishment are critical processes for commercial plantation and depend directly on reserve mobilization as a source of cellular fuels and biosynthetic precursors. In this way, we investigated the coordination among reserve mobilization, metabolite partitioning, and mobilizing enzyme activities in Moringa oleifera Lam (moringa) an oil-seeded species employed in biofuel production. Seeds were germinated under controlled conditions and seedlings were grown hydroponically at a greenhouse. Samples were harvested at 0, 4, 8, 10, 12, 16, and 20 days after imbibition (DAI). The contents of dry mass (DM), neutral lipids (NL), soluble proteins (SP), starch, total soluble sugars (TSS), non-reducing sugars (NRS), and total free amino acids (TFAA) as the activity of isocitrate lyase (ICL), acid proteases, and amylases were determined. The mobilization of storage proteins was initiated during seed germination whereas the mobilization of storage lipids and starch was triggered throughout seedling establishment although all reserves have been depleted until 20 DAI. The partitioning of DM and metabolites to the roots and the shoots was uneven during seedling establishment. Low shoot/root ratio on the basis of DM could be related to the natural occurrence of moringa in drought climates. In the roots, TSS, NRS, and TFAA were accumulated from 12 to 16 DAI and then were consumed until the end of the experiment. In the shoots, TSS and TFAA were consumed in parallel with NRS accumulation from 12 to 20 DAI. The activity of ICL, acid proteases, and amylases was coordinated with the mobilization of lipids, proteins and starch respectively. Thus, we propose that the patterns of reserve mobilization and metabolite partitioning verified in moringa seem distinct from those found to other tree species and may be involved in metabolic strategies to enable environment colonization

Hidrocarbonetos policíclicos aromáticos no meio ambiente: diferenciação de fontes em sedimentos e metabólitos em bile de peixes

Many studies on environmental ecosystems quality related to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) have been carried out routinely due to their ubiquotus presence worldwide and to their potential toxicity after its biotransformation. PAH may be introduced into the environmet by natural and anthropogenic processes from direct runoff and discharges and indirect atmospheric deposition. Sources of naturally occurring PAHs include natural fires, natural oil seepage and recent biological or diagenetic processes. Anthropogenic sources of PAHs, acute or chronic, are combustion of organic matter (petroleum, coal, wood), waste and releases/spills of petroleum and derivatives (river runoff, sewage outfalls, maritime transport, pipelines). Besides the co-existence of multiples sources of PAH in the environmental samples, these compounds are subject to many processes that lead to geochemical fates (physical-chemical transformation, biodegradation and photo-oxidation), which leads to an alteration of their composition. All these facts make the identification of the hydrocarbons sources, if petrogenic, pyrolytic or natural, a challenge. One of the objectives of this study is to establish tools to identify the origin of hydrocarbons in environmental samples. PAH diagnostic ratios and PAH principal component analysis were tested on a critical area: Guanabara Bay sediments. Guanabara Bay is located in a complex urban area of Rio de Janeiro with a high anthropogenic influence, being an endpoint of chronic pollution from the Greater Rio and it was the scenario of an acute event of oil release in January 2000. It were quantified 38 compounds, parental and alkylated PAH, in 21 sediment samples collected in two surveys: 2000 and 2003. The PAH levels varied from 400 to 58439 ng g-1. Both tested techniques for origin identification of hydrocarbons have shown their applicability, being able to discriminate the PAH sources for the majority of the samples analysed. The bay sediments were separated into two big clusters: sediments with a clear pattern of petrogenic introduction of hydrocarbons (from intertidal area) and sediments with combustion characteristics (from subtidal region). Only a minority of the samples could not display a clear contribution of petrogenic or pyrolytic input. The diagnostic ratios that have exhibited high ability to distinguish combustion- and petroleum-derived PAH inputs for Guanabara Bay sediments were Phenanthrene+Anthracene/(Phenanthrene+Anthracene+C1Phenanthrene); Fluorantene/(Fluorantene+Pyrene); Σ (other 3-6 ring PAHs)/ Σ (5 alkylated PAH series). The PCA results prooved to be a useful tool for PAH source identification in the environment, corroborating the diagnostic indexes. In relation to the temporal evaluation carried out in this study, it was not verified significant changes on the class of predominant source of the samples. This result indicates that the hydrocarbons present in the Guanabara Bay sediments are mainly related to the long-term anthropogenic input and not directly related to acute events such as the oil spill of January 2000. This findings were similar to various international estuarine sites. Finally, this work had a complementary objective of evaluating the level of hydrocarbons exposure of the aquatic organisms of Guanabara Bay. It was a preliminary study in which a quantification of 12 individual biliar metabolites of PAH was performed in four demersal fish representing three different families. The analysed metabolites were 1-hydroxynaphtalene, 2-hidroxinaphtalene, 1hydroxyphenanthrene, 9-hydroxyphenanthrene, 2-hydroxyphenanthrene, 1hydroxypyrene, 3-hidroxibiphenil, 3- hydroxyphenanthrene, 1-hydroxychrysene, 9hydroxyfluorene, 4-hydroxyphenanthrene, 3-hydroxybenz(a)pyrene. The metabolites concentrations were found to be high, ranging from 13 to 177 µg g-1, however they were similar to worldwide regions under high anthropogenic input. Besides the metabolites established by the used protocol, it was possible to verified high concentrations of three other compounds not yet reported in the literature. They were related to pyrolytic PAH contribution to Guanabara Bay aquatic biota: 1-hydroxypyrine and 3-hydroxybenz(a)pyrine isomers

Indução de Metabólitos Bioativos em Culturas de Células de Maytenus Ilicifolia

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

TRATAMENTO DE SEMENTES DE ARROZ, TRIGO, FEIJÃO E SOJA COM UM PRODUTO FORMULADO À BASE DE CÉLULAS E DE METABÓLITOS DE Bacillus subtilis

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Concentrações plasmáticas de cortisol, hormônios tiroídeanos, metabólitos lipídicos e temperatura corporal de cabras alpinas submetidas ao estresse térmico

The objective of this work was to determine the plasma concentrations of cortisol, thyroid hormone, lipids metabolites and corporal temperature or lactating Alpine goats submitted to heat stress. Six lactating Alpine goats were allotted randomly in a crossover experimental design for two groups: thermoneutral conditions or thermal stress. An adaptation period of 28 days was followed by Four-periods of 14 days each, when the animals submitted to thermal stress were exposed to the average temperature of 33.84 degrees C; THI of 86.20; BGT of 36.18 and BT of 32.11 degrees C from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, including simulated solar radiation from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm. There were no differences between the groups in the plasma concentrations of cortisol, thyroid hormones (T-3-triiodothyronine and T-(4) tiroxine), and lipid metabolites (cholesterol and HDL). Rectal temperature was higher during thermal stress when compared to the group of animals in thermoneutral conditions. The goats maintained the thyroid plasma hormone concentrations, when exposed to repealed and intermittent stress, in spite of the occurrence of hypertermia during heat stress.

Concentrações séricas de progesterona e metabólitos lipídicos em cabras mestiças alimentadas com dietas hiperlipídicas durante o ciclo estral

The serum concentration of progesterone and lipidics metabolites were studied using tallow as lipidic suplementation during the estrous cycle of 32 crossbred goats, with average age and weight of five months and 25 kg. The goats were randomlly allocated in four treatments as described: treatment 1, restricted intake; treatment 2, full feed; treatments 3 and 4, hiperlipidics diets with 2.5% and 5.0% of tallow, respectively. The female goats under restricted intake, showed the small serum progesterone level (P<0.05) at 0, 3, 6, 9 and 12 days of the estrous cycle, while the ones under hiperlipidics diets, treatments 3 and 4, showed greater levels. The same results were found for serum levels of cholesterol and HDL in the estrous cycle days 6, 9 and 21, and 12, 15 and 21, respectively, that is, the females under restricted diet showed the small level and the ones treated with hiperlipidics diets, the highest. The hiperlipidics diets were important factor in altering the serum cholesterol and HDL levels, showing that the lipidic metabolism may be effective in cyclic luteal progesterone production in the puberal female goats.

Concentrações séricas de progesterona e metabólitos lipídicos em cabras mestiças alimentadas com dietas hiperlipídicas durante o ciclo estral

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Influência das condições de cultivo e métodos de extração na produção de metabólitos antioxidantes por fungos isolados do litoral paulista

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Reação de genótipos de tangerinas a Alternaria alternata e Elsinoe fawcettii: resistência, suscetibilidade e acúmulo de metabólitos

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Efeito alelopático de extrato de leonurus sibiricus l. em mentha piperita l.. desenvolvimento, trocas gasosas e metabólitos do óleo essencial

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Determinação da atividade anti Mycobacterium tuberculosis de metabólitos bioativos de fungos endofíticos empregando a técnica do MABA

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Ativação e diferenciação de monócitos humanos com GM-CSF in vitro para aquisição de atividade fungicida contra o Paracoccidioides brasiliensis: papel dos metabólitos do oxigênio e nitrogênio

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Caracterização fisiológica e produção de metabólitos secundários em Achillea millefolium L. após aplicação de quitosana

Elicitation with chitosan is a tool used to improve the responses of plant defense by inducing secondary metabolism routs. In addition, the adequate application of this elicitor on medicinal plants can promote the increase of major components in the composition of the oil. However, we lack information concerning which are the main physiological processes responsible for the changes in the composition of the oil. Thus, we aimed at evaluating the action of chitosan and determine an ideal concentration for optimizing the production of essential oil in Achillea millefolium L. and the changes in the physiological processes responsible for this increase. The research was conducted in greenhouse of the Plant Physiology sector of the Universidade Federal de Lavras (UFLA) with A. millefolium plants. The treatments consisted of control (water); acetic acid solvent (with no elicitor); and chitosan in the concentrations of 2, 4 and 6 g L -1 . The measurements of growth, gas exchange, enzyme activity of the antioxidant system and phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL), in addition to the production and composition of the essential oil. We verified that the application of chitosan promoted decrease in plant growth. However, the concentration of 4 g L -1 of chitosan induced an increase in the content and yield of the essential oil. In the oil, there was predominance of sesquiterpenic compounds, including the major compounds borneol, β-caryophyllene, β-cubebene, α-farnesene and chamazulene. The elicitation with chitosan at 4 g L -1 promoted an increase of the photosynthetic rate, activity of the antioxidant system and of PAL, however, this increase occurred in short-term, only in the first days after elicitation.

Otimização, validação e aplicação de método para análise de diuron e seus metabólitos em urina de ratos utilizando SPE e HPLC-DAD

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)