SP-420

Safety and pharmacokinetics of the oral iron chelator SP-420 in β-thalassemia

Our phase I, open-label, multi-center, dose-escalation study evaluated the pharmacokinetics (PK) of SP-420, a tridentate oral iron chelating agent of the desferrithiocin class, in patients with transfusion dependent β-thalassemia. SP-420 was administered as a single dose of 1.5 (n = 3), 3 (n = 3), 6 (n = 3), 12 (n = 3), and 24 (n = 6) mg/kg or as a twice-daily dose of 9 mg/kg (n = 6) over 14-28 days. There was a near dose-linear increase in the mean plasma SP-420 concentrations and in the mean values for Cmax and AUC0-τ over the dose range evaluated. The median tmax ranged from 0.5 to 2.25 h and was not dose dependent. The study was prematurely terminated by the sponsor due to renal adverse events (AE) including proteinuria, increase in serum creatinine, and one case of Fanconi syndrome. Other adverse effects included hypersensitivity reactions and gastrointestinal disturbances. Based on current dose administration, the renal AE observed outweighed the possible benefits from chelation therapy. However, additional studies assessing efficacy and safety of lower doses or less frequent dosing of SP-420 over longer durations with close monitoring would be necessary to better explain the findings of our study and characterize the safety of the study drug.

Bifidobacterium Lactis sp. 420 up-regulates cyclooxygenase (Cox)-1 and down-regulates Cox-2 gene expression in a Caco-2 cell culture model

Cyclooxygenases (Cox) -1 and -2 play important roles in gastrointestinal health; chronic overexpression of Cox-2 is associated with inflammatory and cancerous disease, whereas Cox-1 is expressed constitutively. We studied the effects of two probiotic (Bifidobacterium lactis sp. 420 and Lactobacillus acidophilus) and two control microorganisms (Escherichia coli and Salmonella enteritidis) and four microbial metabolites (acetate, butyrate, lactate and propionate) on the expression levels of the Cox isoforms in the enterocyte-like cell line Caco-2. Butyrate, which is anticarcinogenic, resulted in an 85% down-regulation of Cox-2 and a 37-fold increase in Cox-1 transcription. Propionate gave similar results (72% reduction of Cox-2, 23-fold induction of Cox-1), but lactate and acetate had no effect on Cox expression profile. Bifidobacterium sp. 420, which produces acetate and lactate but no butyrate or propionate, shared the Cox-1-increasing and Cox-2-silencing properties of butyrate and propionate, whereas L. acidophilus was similar to E. coli and S. enteritidis in having no effect on the Cox-1/Cox-2 ratio. For the first time, we therefore demonstrate evidence for a direct relationship between a probiotic bacterial strain and host Cox expression profile, suggesting that modulation of Cox expression may be an important factor in the potential anti-inflammatory and anticarcinogenic properties of some probiotics.

Cloning of a laccase gene from a novel basidiomycete Trametes sp. 420 and its heterologous expression in Pichia pastoris

The laccase gene lacD, cloned from a novel laccase-producing basidiomycete Trametes sp. 420, contained 2,052 base pairs (bp) interrupted by 8 introns. lacD displayed a relatively high homology with laccase genes from other white rot fungi, whereas the homology between lacD and laccase genes from plants, insects, or bacteria was less than 25%. A 498-amino acid peptide encoded by the lacD cDNA was heterologously expressed in the Pichia pastoris strain GS115, resulting in the highest yield of laccase (8.3 x 10(4) U/l) as determined with ABTS (2,2'-azinobis [3-ethylbenzothia-zoline-6-sulfonic acid]) as the substrate. Additionally, the enzyme activity of recombinant laccase on decolorization of some industrial dyes was assessed.

High production of laccase by a new basidiomycete, Trametes sp

A new basidiomycete, Trametes sp. 420, produced laccase at 6,810 U l(-1) (268 mg, 25.4 U mg(-1) protein for guaiacol) in glucose medium and 7,870 U l(-1) (310 mg) in cellobiose medium with induction by 0.5 mM Cu(2+) and 6 mM o-toluidine. Laccase isozyme E (LacE) was the sole laccase in the fermentation products. It was stable at pH 5-9 and below 70 degrees C over 30 min. The K (m) values of LacE for four substrates (guaiacol ABTS, 2,6-dimethoxyphenol and syringaldazine) varied from 5 to 245 muM. The activity of LacE was strongly inhibited by NaN(3) but not by EDTA or dimethylsulfoxide. LacE at 0.5 U l(-1) could decolorize industrial dyes. The open reading frame of the lacE gene was 2,130 bp and was interrupted by 10 introns. It displayed a high homology to laccases from other fungi.

[Cloning and heterologous expression of the gene of laccase C from Trametes sp. 420 and potential of recombinant laccase in dye decolorization]

A new laccase gene (lacC) was cloned from the genomic DNA isolated from Trametes sp. 420, a new laccase-producing fungus, using the degenerate primers based on the conserved copper-binding regions in fungal laccases. Long distance-inverse PCR (LD-IPCR) was used to amplify the flanking sequences of the gene. The lacC DNA sequence obtained was 3640 base pairs (bp), including the entire open reading frame (2263bp) and the 5'-and 3'-noncoding regions. The lacC cDNA sequence is 1560bp, encoding a 519 amino acid protein. The deduced peptide sequence of LacC contains ten putative N-glycosylation sites and four conserved copper-binding regions. The lacC cDNA without its signal sequence was cloned into the expression vector pPIC9K through the pPIC9 plasmid and transformed into the Pichia pastoris strain GS115.The positive transformant was cultured at 20 degrees C in BMM medium containing 0.3mmol/L CuSO4 and 0.8% alanine, with the yield of the recombinant laccase rLacC being 1.62 x 10(4) U/L after a 9-day cell growth. Furthermore, the crude enzyme was used to decolorize several synthetic dyes at a final concentration of 50mg/L. The results showed that rLacC (6U/L) possessed the valuable ability to decolorize dyes of triarylmethane and azo types tested. The presence of low molecular weight redox mediators of ABTS and HBT increased the efficiency and velocity of dye decolorization significantly.