Steady-state lymph-to-plasma concentration ratios (L/Ps) of neutral dextrans, cationic DEAE dextrans, and endogenous proteins were determined under normal and increased permeability conditions in six unanesthetized yearling sheep prepared with chronic lung lymph fistulas. Fluorescent dextrans with radii ranging from 1 to 30 nm were intravenously infused, and after 24 h, perilla ketone (PK) was ...

The cell cytosol is crowded with macromolecules such as proteins, nucleic acids, and membranes. The consequences of such crowding remain unclear. How is the rate of a typical enzymatic reaction, involving a freely diffusing enzyme and substrate, affected by the presence of macromolecules of different sizes, shapes, and concentrations? Here, we mimic the cytosolic crowding in vitro, using dextra...

Over the past few years, interest in dextrans produced by lactic acid bacteria (LAB) has experienced a renaissance because of their prospective application as natural hydrocolloids in fermented products. Though the benefits of dextrans as hydrocolloids in sourdough bread have been the subject of several studies, only in a few of these studies have the structural features of the potential dextra...

The energy-salvaging capacity of the gut microbiota from dietary ingredients has been proposed as a contributing factor for the development of obesity. This knowledge generated interest in the use of non-digestible dietary ingredients such as prebiotics to manipulate host energy homeostasis. In the present study, the in vitro response of obese human faecal microbiota to novel oligosaccharides w...

Reducing values were determined for samples of clinical dextrans, gentiobiose, and isomaltose with several alkaline copper reagents. The results for t he dextrans were converted to number-average molecular weights on the assumption th a t eq uimolecular quantities of dextran , isomaltose, and gentiobiose have approximately the same reducing power . The molecular weights, t hus obtained , are in...

Xenon photocoagulation burns in the rabbit fundus were studied angiographically with fluorescein labelled dextrans of molecular weights in the range 3000 to 150 000. Recent photocoagulation burns showed dye leakage to all molecular weights used. Angiograms 2 days after burns had been produced showed leakage of dextrans of molecular weights up to and including 70 000 but no leakage of dextran of...

In sugar production, dextrans are undesirable compounds synthesized by contaminant microorganisms from sucrose, increasing the viscosity of the flow and reducing industrial recovery, bringing about significant losses. The use of the dextranase enzyme is the most efficient method for hydrolyzing the dextrans at sugar mills. Some bacterial strains, filamentous fungi and a small number of yeasts h...

Permeability of the anterior segment of adult Wistar-Furth rats to fluorescein-labeled dextrans (FITC-dextrans) was evaluated by fluorescein angiography following intravenous injection of 0.2 ml of a 33% FITC-dextran solution. Permeation of each fluorescent compound into the anterior chamber was evaluated by (1) initial appearance of fluorescence in iris vessels, (2) the appearance of fluoresce...

The xylem of alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) was found to be susceptible to vascular obstruction by picomole quantities of dextrans. Not all parts of the xylem were equally susceptible to this plugging. The quantity of dextran of 2 x 10(6) molecular weight required to stop vascular flow was 8 picomoles in petiole junctions and 0.4 picomole in leaflet veins. Vascular flow through stems was greatly ...

Dextrans are hydrophilic polysaccharides characterized by their moderate to high molecular weight, good water solubility and low toxicity. They are widely used as both anterograde and retrograde tracers in neurons 1,2 and for numerous other applications. Dextrans are biologically inert due to their uncommon poly-(α-D-1,6-glucose) linkages, which render them resistant to cleavage by most endogen...