Chloride concentration ([Cl-]) was measured in defined organellar compartments using fluorescently labeled transferrin, alpha2-macroglobulin, and cholera toxin B-subunit conjugated with Cl--sensitive and -insensitive dyes. In pulse-chase experiments, [Cl-] in Tf-labeled early/recycling endosomes in J774 cells was 20 mM just after internalization, increasing to 41 mM over approximately 10 min in...

The vacuolating toxin VacA, a major determinant of Helicobacter pylori-associated gastric diseases, forms anion-selective channels in artificial planar lipid bilayers. Here we show that VacA increases the anion permeability of the HeLa cell plasma membrane and determines membrane depolarization. Electrophysiological and pharmacological approaches indicated that this effect is due to the formati...

Chlorotoxin, one of the key toxins in scorpion Leiurus quinquestriatus venom, has been shown to bind specifically to glioma cell surface as a specific chloride channel blocker. In this study, a purified, recombinant chlorotoxin-like peptide from the scorpion Buthus martensii Karsch (named rBmK CTa) was characterized by in vivo and in vitro studies. The results from cell proliferation assay with...

Toxins have evolved to target regions of membrane ion channels that underlie ligand binding, gating, or ion permeation, and have thus served as invaluable tools for probing channel structure and function. Here, we describe a peptide toxin from the Earth Tiger tarantula that selectively and irreversibly activates the capsaicin- and heat-sensitive channel, TRPV1. This high-avidity interaction der...

The combined effect of water activity (aw) and pH on growth and toxin production by Clostridium botulinum type G strain 89 was investigated. The minimum aw at which growth and toxin formation occurred was 0.965, for media in which the pH was adjusted with either sodium chloride or sucrose. The minimum pH (at the optimum aw) for growth and toxin production of C. botulinum type G was found to be ...

Channel-mediated trans-membrane chloride movement is a key process in the active cell volume regulation under osmotic stress in most cells. However, thymocytes were hypothesized to regulate their volume by activating a coupled K-Cl cotransport mechanism. Under the patch-clamp, we found that osmotic swelling activates two types of macroscopic anion conductance with different voltage-dependence a...

Fiock, Mary A. (Fort Detrick, Frederick, Md.), Allen Yarinsky, and James T. Duff. Studies on immunity to toxins of Clostridium botulinum. VII. Purification and detoxification of trypsin-activated type E toxin. J. Bacteriol. 82:66-71. 1961.-A procedure was described for production, purification, and conversion to toxoid of the Clostridium botulinum type E trypsin-treated toxin. A medium containi...