Production of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines by monocytes from patients with paracoccidioidomycosis

Monocytes and macrophages can produce a large repertoire of cytokines and participate in the pathogenesis of granulomatous diseases. We investigated the production of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines by monocytes from patients with active paracoccidioidomycosis. Peripheral blood monocytes from 37 patients and 29 healthy controls were cultivated with or without 10 mug/ml of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) for 18 h at 37 degreesC, and the cytokine levels were determined in the culture supernatants by enzyme immunoassay. The results showed that the endogenous levels of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1beta), IL-6, IL-8, IL-10 and transforming growth factor beta detected in the supernatant of patient monocytes cultivated without stimulus were significantly higher than those produced by healthy controls. These data demonstrated that monocytes from patients with active paracoccidioidomycosis produce high levels of cytokines with both inflammatory and anti-inflammatory activities. However, patient monocytes produced significantly lower TNF-alpha and IL-6 levels in response to LPS when compared to normal subjects, suggesting an impairment in their capacity to produce these cytokines after LPS stimulation. Concentrations of IL-1beta, IL-8 and IL-10 in cultures stimulated with LPS were higher in patients than in controls. These results suggest that an imbalance in the production of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines might be associated with the pathogenesis of paracoccidioidomycosis. (C) 2003 Editions scientifiques et medicales Elsevier SAS. All rights reserved.

Decreased production of TNF-alpha by lymph node cells indicates experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis remission in Lewis rats

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Production of reactive oxygen (H2O2) and nitrogen (NO) intermediates and TNF-α in mice genetically selected for high (H) and low (L) antibody response and experimentally infected with Leptospira serovar pomona

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Production of leukotriene B4 by Paracoccidioides brasiliensis

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

Amblyomma cajennense (Acari : Ixodidae): Salivary gland cells of partially engorged females ticks and the production of lipid by their mitochondria

Morphologically,. The salivary glands of ticks are paired structures consisting of a secretory and an excretory portion, lacking a reservoir for the storage of the secretion. The secretory portion is composed in females by cells that form acini classified into the types I, II, and III. The excretory possess a major duct, from which arise several intermediate ducts that then subdivide to form the canaliculi or acinal tubules, which end at the acini from where they collect the secretion. The present Study describes the ultrastructural changes that occur in the mitochondria of cells of the acini I, II, and III in the salivary glands of partially engorged females of the Cayenne tick Amblyomma cajennense. The results show that this organelle exhibits completely disarrayed crests due to the presence of lipidic material inside the matrix and between the crests, thus demonstrating their participation in the production of the lipids that would be used structurally by the cells. These organelles with ultrastructural changes were denominated derived mitochondria. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of solid and submerged fermentations for the production of cyclodextrin glycosyltransferase by Paenibacillus campinasensis H69-3 and characterization of crude enzyme

Cyclodextrin glycosyltransferase (CGTase) is an enzyme that produces cyclodextrins from starch by an intramolecular transglycosylation reaction. Cyclodextrins have been shown to have a number of applications in the food, cosmetic, pharmaceutical, and chemical industries. In the current study, the production of CGTase by Paenibacillus campinasensis strain H69-3 was examined in submerged and solid-state fermentations. P. campinasensis strain H69-3 was isolated from the soil, which grows at 45 C, and is a Gram-variable bacterium. Different substrate sources such as wheat bran, soybean bran, soybean extract, cassava solid residue, cassava starch, corn starch, and other combinations were used in the enzyme production. CGTase activity was highest in submerged fermentations with the greatest production observed at 48-72 h. The physical and chemical properties of CGTase were determined from the crude enzyme produced from submerged fermentations. The optimum temperature was found to be 70-75 degrees C, and the activity was stable at 55 degrees C for 1 h. The enzyme displayed two optimum pH values, 5.5 and 9.0 and was found to be stable between a pH of 4.5 and 11.0.

Production of extracellular acid proteases by Aspergillus clavatus

The production of extracellular acid proteases from Aspergillus clavatus was evaluated in a culture filtrate medium, with different carbon and nitrogen sources. The fungus was cultivated at three different temperatures during 10 days. The proteolytic activity was determined on haemoglobin pH 5.0 at 37 degreesC. The highest acid proteolytic activity (80 U/ml) was observed in culture medium containing glucose and gelatin at 1% (w/v) at 30 degreesC at the third day of incubation. Cultures developed in Vogel medium with glucose at 2% (w/v) showed at about 45% of proteolytic activity when compared to the cultures with 1% of the same sugar. The optimum pH of enzymatic activity was 2.0 and the enzyme was stable at pH values ranging from 2.0 to 4.0. The optimum temperature was 40 degreesC and the half-lives at 40, 45 and 50 degreesC were 30, 10 and 5 min, respectively.

Evaluating methods for the isolation of marine-derived fungal strains and production of bioactive secondary metabolites

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

Effects of culture conditions on the production of inulinase by Kluyveromyces marxianus

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Effect of C/N Ratio and Physicochemical Conditions on the production of Rhamnolipids by Pseudomonas Aeruginosa LBI

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Production of xylanolytic enzymes by Penicillium janczewskii

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Cassava wastewater as a substrate for the simultaneous production of rhamnolipids and polyhydroxyalkanoates by Pseudomonas aeruginosa

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

Effect of Conditioning on the Production of Inulinase by Kluyveromyces marxianus var. bulgaricus through Fed-Batch Fermentation

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)