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This study was conducted to study absorption of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate and to measure any changes in blood concentration of these compounds following feeding them to horses in different amounts. Six mature mares were used in a replicated 3x3 Latin square designed experiment. The experiment consisted of three 15-day periods, which included 10 days of diet adaptation followed by a 5-day sampling period. Blood was drawn on one day during each sampling period. Horses were fed a control diet (40% hay, 60% concentrate) balanced to meet NRC (1989) requirements for maintenance of mature horses. In one experimental diet, 2.0 g chondroitin sulfate and 5.5 g glucosamine were added to the basal ration at each feeding. In the other experimental diet, 3.5 g chondroitin sulfate and 8.5 g glucosamine were added to the basal ration at each feeding. Following total collections, blood was centrifuged and plasma was harvested and data analyzed for the presence of each compound. Analyses for plasma glucosamine were performed in the Protein and Chemistry Lab at Texas A&M University using HPLC. Chondroitin sulfate in the plasma was analyzed using a color reagent, dimethylmethylene blue, followed by UV spectrophotometry. There were no significant differences (P<0.05) in the concentration of chondroitin sulfate or glucosamine concentrations in plasma when comparing the three different diets. This leads to a conclusion that these compounds were not absorbed through the intestinal wall into the bloodstream in the same form as they were fed. This poses a question as to whether or not oral forms of these compounds are absorbed and are able to migrate to joints through the blood to improve joint function. With the significant economic impact that products containing chondroitin sulfate and glucosamine are making in the animal nutrition industry, more research is needed to further elucidate actual efficacy of these compounds in diet supplements for horses.

Syndecan-1 is a cell surface proteoglycan which participates in cell adhesion, differentiation, motility, morphogenesis and intracellular signaling. The two glycosaminoglycans heparan sulfate and chondroitin sulfate are covalently attached to the ectodomain of syndecan-1 via a tetra saccharide linkage sequence. However, the ectodomain can be modified having only one or neither of the glycosaminglycans attached. The glycosaminoglycans are capable of binding ligands such as fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) and support activation of receptors. The ectodomain is proteolytically cleaved from the cell surface by metalloproteinases in a process known as shedding. Shedding turns the ectodomain into a soluble effector which can stimulate other cells in the surroundings by delivering growth factors and also translocate into cells through endocytosis. In this study the aim was to find out if a modified ectodomain, which only contains chondroitin sulfate, could support intracellular signaling in the absence of heparan sulfate. The aim was also to find out whether a modified ectodomain could translocate into the cell. The methods used were cell culturing, isolation and purification of syndecan-1 ectodomain, cell signaling and immunohistochemistry. It was found that modified shed syndecan-1 ectodomain was able to support intracellular signaling almost to the same degree as wild type syndecan-1 ectodomain. This may suggest that heparan sulfate does not have to be present on the ectodomain to support intracellular signaling, although the signal is slightly higher when present. When trying to detect translocation of the ectodomain the results were too uncertain and further research is required.

Regeneration is, in simple terms, ‘to re-grow’ damaged or lost parts of the body (e.g. cells, tissues and organs) and is a natural phenomenon occurring throughout the life of an organism. The regenerative capacity varies in the animal kingdom. Invertebrates have high regenerative capacity in contrast to higher vertebrates. This raises several fundamental questions related to the regeneration potential, evolutionary selection and its cellular and molecular mechanisms. An in-depth knowledge in regeneration is warranted to answer the fundamental questions that are still a challenge in regenerative medicine.  Glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) are known to be involved in various physiological processes. Of several GAG types galactosaminoglycans are the focus of this thesis. Galactosaminoglycans such as chondroitin sulfate/dermatan sulfate (CS/DS) are anionic linear polysaccharides covalently linked to core proteins so called proteoglycans (PGs), and form an integral part of both cell surface and extracellular matrix components. Although CS/DS have been associated with different cellular processes from development to homeostasis, not many studies have been carried out to understand their role in regeneration. In this thesis, we aim to study galactosaminoglycans, their structure, and interaction with growth factors of biological importance in the process of regeneration using simple invertebrate model organisms - brittlestars. We have identified CS/DS as the major GAG present in brittlestars. Molecular characterization of these chains indicated a much higher level of sulfation in Amphiura filiformis than so far found in GAGs from invertebrates or vertebrates. This brittlestar CS/DS promotes FGF2 mediated cell signaling similar to heparin. Further, we studied the functional role of these CS/DS chains and their biosynthetic machinery during arm regeneration in A. filiformis. Regeneration is followed by an increase in GAG sulfation from blastema stage to the fully functional arm. Suppressing sulfation on the other hand by sodium chlorate treatment drastically affected the proliferation process and thereby regeneration. Thus our findings suggest a potential biological role of CS/DS in brittlestar limb regeneration that may have relevance to regenerative medicine in future.

O uso da nisina como conservante natural tem aumentado cada vez mais, assim como os estudos para aprimorar o uso desta. Este trabalho visa o aumento da eficiência da nisina na inibição de microorganismos, como a Listeria, através da encapsulação da mesma na forma de nanolipossomas com incorporação de polissacarídeos. Foram testados nanolipossomas de nisina e nanolipossomas de nisina com incorporação de quitosana e incorporação de sulfato de condroitina. As análises mostraram que estes lipossomas tiveram a mesma eficiência que a nisina livre na inibição da L. monocytogenes 4b* e da Listeria sp.* e uma maior eficiência na inibição da L. monocytogenes 4b ATCC 6477. As análises de potencial zeta indicaram que os lipossomas de nisina com e sem incorporação de polissacarídeos possuem carga em torno de -20mV e estes apresentaram estruturas esféricas e não esféricas quando observados através de TEM. Apesar dos nanolipossomas de nisina com incorporação de quitosana apresentarem uma eficiência de encapsulaçãos mais baixa, em torno de 10%, estes tiveram maior estabilidade e também maior eficiência na inibição da Listeria monocytogenes ATCC 7644, quando comparados aos nanolipossomas de nisina com e sem incorporação de sulfato de condroitina, no tempo final de 24h a redução obtida foi de 2 log comparando-se com os demais tratamentos e de 7 log comparando-se aos controles. / The use of nisin, as a natural preservative, has increased, as well as studies to enhance the use of that. The aim of this study is to increase the efficiency of nisin in inhibition of microorganisms such as Listeria, by encapsulating as nanolipossomes incorporated with polysaccharides. Nisin nanoliposomes and nisin nanoliposomes with incorporation of chitosan and chondroitin sulfate were analysed. The analyzes showed that these liposomes had the same efficiency as free nisin in inhibiting L. monocytogenes 4b and Listeria sp., both isolated from bovine carcass, and greater efficiency in inhibiting L. monocytogenes 4b ATCC 6477. The zeta potential analyzes indicated that nisin liposomes with and without incorporation of polysaccharides have a load around -20mV and these showed spherical and nonspherical structures when observed through TEM. Despite of the efficience of nisin nanoliposomes incorporating chitosan present lower values of encapsulation efficiency, around 10%, they were more stable and also more efficient in inhibiting Listeria monocytogenes ATCC 7644 compared to nisin nanoliposomes with and without incorporation of chondroitin sulfate. In the final time of 24 hours the reduction obtained was 2 log compared with the other treatments and 7 log comparing to the controls.

O uso da nisina como conservante natural tem aumentado cada vez mais, assim como os estudos para aprimorar o uso desta. Este trabalho visa o aumento da eficiência da nisina na inibição de microorganismos, como a Listeria, através da encapsulação da mesma na forma de nanolipossomas com incorporação de polissacarídeos. Foram testados nanolipossomas de nisina e nanolipossomas de nisina com incorporação de quitosana e incorporação de sulfato de condroitina. As análises mostraram que estes lipossomas tiveram a mesma eficiência que a nisina livre na inibição da L. monocytogenes 4b* e da Listeria sp.* e uma maior eficiência na inibição da L. monocytogenes 4b ATCC 6477. As análises de potencial zeta indicaram que os lipossomas de nisina com e sem incorporação de polissacarídeos possuem carga em torno de -20mV e estes apresentaram estruturas esféricas e não esféricas quando observados através de TEM. Apesar dos nanolipossomas de nisina com incorporação de quitosana apresentarem uma eficiência de encapsulaçãos mais baixa, em torno de 10%, estes tiveram maior estabilidade e também maior eficiência na inibição da Listeria monocytogenes ATCC 7644, quando comparados aos nanolipossomas de nisina com e sem incorporação de sulfato de condroitina, no tempo final de 24h a redução obtida foi de 2 log comparando-se com os demais tratamentos e de 7 log comparando-se aos controles. / The use of nisin, as a natural preservative, has increased, as well as studies to enhance the use of that. The aim of this study is to increase the efficiency of nisin in inhibition of microorganisms such as Listeria, by encapsulating as nanolipossomes incorporated with polysaccharides. Nisin nanoliposomes and nisin nanoliposomes with incorporation of chitosan and chondroitin sulfate were analysed. The analyzes showed that these liposomes had the same efficiency as free nisin in inhibiting L. monocytogenes 4b and Listeria sp., both isolated from bovine carcass, and greater efficiency in inhibiting L. monocytogenes 4b ATCC 6477. The zeta potential analyzes indicated that nisin liposomes with and without incorporation of polysaccharides have a load around -20mV and these showed spherical and nonspherical structures when observed through TEM. Despite of the efficience of nisin nanoliposomes incorporating chitosan present lower values of encapsulation efficiency, around 10%, they were more stable and also more efficient in inhibiting Listeria monocytogenes ATCC 7644 compared to nisin nanoliposomes with and without incorporation of chondroitin sulfate. In the final time of 24 hours the reduction obtained was 2 log compared with the other treatments and 7 log comparing to the controls.

O uso da nisina como conservante natural tem aumentado cada vez mais, assim como os estudos para aprimorar o uso desta. Este trabalho visa o aumento da eficiência da nisina na inibição de microorganismos, como a Listeria, através da encapsulação da mesma na forma de nanolipossomas com incorporação de polissacarídeos. Foram testados nanolipossomas de nisina e nanolipossomas de nisina com incorporação de quitosana e incorporação de sulfato de condroitina. As análises mostraram que estes lipossomas tiveram a mesma eficiência que a nisina livre na inibição da L. monocytogenes 4b* e da Listeria sp.* e uma maior eficiência na inibição da L. monocytogenes 4b ATCC 6477. As análises de potencial zeta indicaram que os lipossomas de nisina com e sem incorporação de polissacarídeos possuem carga em torno de -20mV e estes apresentaram estruturas esféricas e não esféricas quando observados através de TEM. Apesar dos nanolipossomas de nisina com incorporação de quitosana apresentarem uma eficiência de encapsulaçãos mais baixa, em torno de 10%, estes tiveram maior estabilidade e também maior eficiência na inibição da Listeria monocytogenes ATCC 7644, quando comparados aos nanolipossomas de nisina com e sem incorporação de sulfato de condroitina, no tempo final de 24h a redução obtida foi de 2 log comparando-se com os demais tratamentos e de 7 log comparando-se aos controles. / The use of nisin, as a natural preservative, has increased, as well as studies to enhance the use of that. The aim of this study is to increase the efficiency of nisin in inhibition of microorganisms such as Listeria, by encapsulating as nanolipossomes incorporated with polysaccharides. Nisin nanoliposomes and nisin nanoliposomes with incorporation of chitosan and chondroitin sulfate were analysed. The analyzes showed that these liposomes had the same efficiency as free nisin in inhibiting L. monocytogenes 4b and Listeria sp., both isolated from bovine carcass, and greater efficiency in inhibiting L. monocytogenes 4b ATCC 6477. The zeta potential analyzes indicated that nisin liposomes with and without incorporation of polysaccharides have a load around -20mV and these showed spherical and nonspherical structures when observed through TEM. Despite of the efficience of nisin nanoliposomes incorporating chitosan present lower values of encapsulation efficiency, around 10%, they were more stable and also more efficient in inhibiting Listeria monocytogenes ATCC 7644 compared to nisin nanoliposomes with and without incorporation of chondroitin sulfate. In the final time of 24 hours the reduction obtained was 2 log compared with the other treatments and 7 log comparing to the controls.

In all living organisms, biological activities such as proper functioning and co-ordination of different organs will depend on different cells and molecular interactions. In some organisms the loss of functional organs or damage of organs can be lethal, whereas in others a special process called regeneration can retrieve lost organs. The molecular details of regeneration are still not completely understood in many organisms. Echinoderms are close to vertebrates in the evolutionary tree and are well known for their amazing regeneration capacity. So we chose to investigate the molecular processes of regeneration mechanism with an interest towards our favorite groups of molecules, glycosaminoglycans (GAGs). GAGs are linear polysaccharides, expressed on all cell surfaces and extracellular space and are also known to be involved in many cellular activities. We aimed to characterize the GAGs present in Echinodermata species Amphiura filiformis and investigated their role during arm regeneration. In Paper I we characterized the structure and function of GAGs from A. filiformis and identified that A. filiformis contains CS/DS type of GAGs, but no HS. The sulfation degree of these CS/DS is close to the one of heparin, i.e. they are highly sulfated. These chains are able to bind FGF-2 growth factor and induce FGF-2 mediated cell signaling. In Paper II we further characterized these GAGs for their localization and for their role in arm regeneration in A. filiformis. Immuno- and histochemical stainings on arm sections revealed that CS/DS GAGs are localized around the podia, surrounding the water vascular system, and around the muscle tissues. Inhibition of sulfated GAG biosynthesis by chlorate treatment affected the regeneration efficiency of the arms, which may be an indication of the importance of CS/DS structures in A. filiformis arm regeneration. We also characterized some bacterial sulfatases in Paper III and a lyase in Paper IV from human and canine gut symbiotic bacteria. Here we sought to find the substrate specificity and optimal conditions for these enzymes’ activities. Our findings suggest that these polysaccharide lyase and sulfatases can be used as potential tools to characterize different GAG structures and their application could further add knowledge on diseases mechanisms related to host pathogen interactions.

Chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans (CSPGs) are found in specialized brain extracellular matrix structures termed perineuronal nets (PNNs). The chondroitin sulfate chains of these CSPGs are thought to have a strong effect on neuroplasticity, along with development, injury, and diseased states of the brain. Wisteria floribunda agglutinin (WFA) is a plant lectin used to identify PNN via staining; the pattern of this staining is changed upon schizophrenia. As such, one powerful method of probing the identity of the CS chains of PNNs and addressing what changes in CS identity occur during schizophrenia is to characterize the features of the CS which bind to the lectin. Methods for characterization of WFA-CS binding and their biological relevance were developed and evaluated. Commercially available CS was used to probe the binding affinity of the agglutinin to various regions of CS via hemagglutination inhibition assays and affinity gradient elution of CS bound to WFA. The size, sulfation extent, and fragment location in the CS chain from these eluates were determined using HILIC-LC-MS. As commercial sources can be used to elucidate the binding specificity of WFA, but not the actual relevant binding partner of WFA within the brain, PNN CS extractions were performed with a modified method aimed at reducing the timescale at which PNN CS can be obtained so as to allow similar experimentation on CS directly from PNN. The results pave the way for further determination of WFA-CS binding.

名古屋大学博士学位論文 学位の種類 : 博士(医学)(課程) 学位授与年月日:平成6年4月5日 西田佳弘氏の博士論文として提出された