Search

Chlamydia trachomatis causes genital tract infections that affect men, women, and children on a global scale. This review focuses on innate and adaptive immune responses in the female reproductive tract (FRT) to genital tract infections with C. trachomatis. It covers C. trachomatis infections and highlights our current knowledge of genital tract infections, serovar distribution, infectious load, and clinical manifestations of these infections in women. The unique features of the immune system of the FRT will be discussed and will include a review of our current knowledge of innate and adaptive immunity to chlamydial infections at this mucosal site. The use of animal models to study the pathogenesis of, and immunity to, Chlamydia infection of the female genital tract will also be discussed and a review of recent immunization and challenge experiments in the murine model of chlamydial FRT infection will be presented.Mucosal Immunology (2008) 1, 116–130; doi:10.1038/mi.2007.19; published online 9 January 2008

Chlamydia trachomatiscauses genital tract infections that affect men, women, and children on a global scale. This review focuses on innate and adaptive immune responses in the female reproductive tract (FRT) to genital tract infections with C. trachomatis.It covers C. trachomatisinfections and highlights our current knowledge of genital tract infections, serovar distribution, infectious load, and clinical manifestations of these infections in women. The unique features of the immune system of the FRT will be discussed and will include a review of our current knowledge of innate and adaptive immunity to chlamydial infections at this mucosal site. The use of animal models to study the pathogenesis of, and immunity to, Chlamydiainfection of the female genital tract will also be discussed and a review of recent immunization and challenge experiments in the murine model of chlamydial FRT infection will be presented.

Nitrogen mustards (NMs) are useful chemotherapeutic agents in the treatment of lymphoma, leukemia, multiple myeloma, and ovarian carcinoma. The antitumor activity of NMs has been attributed to their ability to cross-link the twin strands of DNA. The resulting bifunctional lesions, if not repaired, can inhibit DNA replication and transcription, eventually leading to cell cycle arrest, apoptosis, and the inhibition of tumor growth. The predominant bifunctional DNA lesions of NM have been reported to involve the distal guanine bases in the opposite strands of 5‘-GNC sequences. In the present work, the formation of guanine−adenine and adenine−adenine adducts of N,N-bis(2-chloroethyl)methylamine (mechlorethamine) in double-stranded DNA is demonstrated. Guanine−adenine cross-links of mechlorethamine were identified as N-(2-[N3-adenyl]ethyl)-N-(2-[N7-guanyl]ethyl)methylamine (N3A-N7G-EMA), N-(2-[N1-adenyl]ethyl)-N-(2-[N7-guanyl]ethyl)methylamine, and N-(2-[N⁶-adenyl]ethyl)-N-(2-[N7-guanyl]ethyl)methylamine. All three adducts were produced interstrand, while N3A-N7G-EMA was the dominant intrastrand G−A cross-link. The prevalent adenine−adenine mechlorethamine lesions have the structure of N,N-bis(2-[N3-adenyl]ethyl)methylamine (bis-N3A-EMA). DNA-derived lesions have the same HPLC retention times, UV spectra, and MS/MS fragmentation patterns as the authentic standards prepared independently. bis-N3A-EMA lesions were produced in a concentration-dependent manner in calf thymus DNA treated with increasing amounts of mechlorethamine. Furthermore, HPLC-ESI-MS/MS analysis was used to demonstrate the formation of analogous N3−N3 adenine lesions in DNA treated with aromatic nitrogen mustards, N,N-bis(2-chloroethyl)-p-aminophenylbutyric acid and l-phenylalanine mustard. The presence of cross-linked adenine−adenine lesions may explain the enhanced cytotoxicity and mutagenicity of NMs in cells deficient in N3-alkyladenine glycosylase.

The vaginae of four guinea pigs were swabbed and samples cultured aerobically on horse blood agar, in 5 per cent carbon dioxide on MRS agar or anaerobically on anaerobic horse blood agar. Vaginal microbiota consisted almost exclusively of gram-positive bacteria including Corynebacterium, Streptococcus, Enterococcus, Staphylococcus and Lactobacillus species.

Abstract: An expression system based on the Staphylococcus aureus protein A gene (spa) was developed to allow the production and export of proteins in Lactobacillus. Plasmid shuttle vectors were constructed that carried the eZZ gene, a synthetic gene based on the Protein A gene (spa) but lacking the carboxy-terminal membrane-anchoring region. A gene fusion was created between the eZZ gene and the VD4 region of a chlamydial major outer-membrane protein gene. Expression studies demonstrated the recognition of the spa regulatory signals by several Lactobacillus, with the recombinant protein being expressed (from 0.1 μg of EZZVD4 fusion protein per ml in L. plantarum up to 10 μg of EZZ protein per ml in L. fermentum) and exported (levels up to 20% in L. fermentum) in several Lactobacillus strains.

Reine Lösungen von La-Pr-Ammonnitrat wurden fraktioniert kristallisiert und der Trennfaktor bestimmt. Von den vier untersuchten Kristallisierverfahren gab die isotherme verdunstung der ruhenden Lösung die weitaus beste Trennwirkung (ß?6). Bei den anderen Verfahren wurden folgende Trennfaktoren gefunden: (ß ? 6)