The aim of this study was to investigate the activity of N-phthaloyl-glycine-hydroxamic acid (Phth-Gly-HA) as a new iron chelator in vivo to be used in iron overload diseases. After intraperitoneal application of Phth-Gly-HA to male rats (1 mg kg(-1) body mass) once a day for seven days, iron serum level decreased by 21%, whereas the iron value dropped by 32% in female rats (1.5 mg kg(-1) body ...

To further enhance the efficiency and potential of plants for phytoremediation of mercury pollution, a genetically engineered tobacco to simultaneously express mercury transporter, mercury transporter (MerT) and mercury chelator, polyphosphate (polyP) was constructed by integrating bacterial merT gene in polyphosphate kinase gene (ppk)-transgenic tobacco, and its ability to phytoremediate mercu...

We recently showed that bitter melon-derived triterpenoids (BMTs) activate AMPK and increase GLUT4 translocation to the plasma membrane in vitro, and improve glucose disposal in insulin resistant models in vivo. Here we interrogated the mechanism by which these novel compounds activate AMPK, a leading anti-diabetic drug target. BMTs did not activate AMPK directly in an allosteric manner as AMP ...

Vancomycin is a front-line antibiotic used for the treatment of nosocomial infections, particularly those caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Despite its clinical importance the global effects of vancomycin exposure on bacterial physiology are poorly understood. In a previous transcriptomic analysis we identified a number of Zur regulon genes which were highly but transiently...

Although the antimalarial agent artemisinin itself is not active against tuberculosis, conjugation to a mycobacterial-specific siderophore (microbial iron chelator) analogue induces significant and selective antituberculosis activity, including activity against multi- and extensively drug-resistant strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The conjugate also retains potent antimalarial activity. P...

Decreased biological nitrogen fixation in glyphosate-resistant (GR) soybeans has been attributed directly to toxicity of glyphosate or its metabolites, to N2-fixing microorganisms. As a strong metal chelator, glyphosate could influence symbiotic N2 fixation by lowering the concentration of nickel (Ni) that is essential for the symbiotic microorganisms. Evaluation of different cultivars grown on...

A nontoxic cellulose solvent and process for forming and utilizing the same. The solvent includes a metal chelating agent, a metal compound, an oxygen scaveng ing stabilizing agent and a caustic swelling agent with the disclosed solvent being prepared in either aqueous or solid form. The solvent is caused to contact cellulosic materials in order to dissolve cellulose therefrom. The dissolved ce...

The effects of prolonged treatment with iron chelator (desferrioxamine) on the development of infection in mice inoculated with Y Trypanosoma cruzi were determined. Infected/treated mice presented lower levels of parasitemia and reduced mortality rate compared with infected/non-treated animals. The five out of twenty infected/treated mice that survived the acute phase of infection showed negati...