Mitogenic effect of alpha 1-microglobulin on mouse lymphocytes. Evidence of T- and B-cell cooperation, B-cell proliferation, and a low-affinity receptor on mononuclear cells

Human alpha 1-m microglobulin (alpha 1-m), a low molecular weight plasma protein, was found to exert mitogenic effects on mouse lymphocytes from lymph nodes and spleen. The stimulatory effects appeared to be strain-restricted: alpha 1-m induced a varying degree of proliferation of lymphocytes from three strains, whereas one strain responded poorly. Experiments with lymphocyte subpopulations showed only weak stimulatory effects of alpha 1-m on purified T and B lymphocytes cultivated alone. The addition of mitomycin-treated cells of the other subpopulation could not restore the proliferative responses in either T or B lymphocytes. Strong stimulations were recorded only when both T and B lymphocytes were present, indicating that the T and B lymphocytes cooperate to achieve the proliferation. However, FACS studies on cultured splenocytes indicated that the proliferating cells are predominantly B lymphocytes. These data extend our earlier findings of a mitogenic effect of alpha 1-m on guinea pig lymphocytes. Furthermore, results were obtained indicating the presence of a receptor on mononuclear cells. Iodine-labelled alpha 1-m was bound to mononuclear cells prepared from spleens, and the binding could be blocked by an excess of non-labelled alpha 1-m. Scatchard plotting of the data gave an equilibrium constant of 0.7 x 10(5)/M for the binding between alpha 1-m and the receptor. Together with the documented inhibitory activity of alpha 1-m on antigen-driven proliferation of lymphocytes, these results suggest an immunoregulatory role for alpha 1-m

Structural relationship between α1-microglobulin from man, guinea-pig, rat and rabbit

Rabbit α1-microglobulin was purified from the urine of sodium-chromate-treated animals by the use of gel chromatography on Sephadex G-100 affinity chromatography on concanavalin-A - Sepharose and ion-exchange chromatography on DEAE-Sephadex. Rabbit α1-microglobulin had a molecular mass of 25.6 kDa on SDS/polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. α1-microglobulin has previously been purified from the urine of humans, guinea-pigs and rats by similar methods, and the molecular masses of the four homologues were compared by SDS/polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and gel chromatography in a denaturing medium. By these two methods the human homologue was 6 kDa and 3 kDa larger, respectively, than the other three proteins. Endoglycosidase F digestion of α1-microglobulin, followed by SDS/polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, revealed three protein bands in the human α1-microglobulin sample, and only two bands in guinea-pig, rat and rabbit α1-microglobulin, with a gap between each band of 2.6-2.9 kDa. The amino-terminal amino acid sequences of the four homologues were determined and between 72% and 81% homology was seen. The five amino-terminal amino acids present in the other species were missing in guinea-pig α1-microglobulin. Our results indicate that human α1-microglobulin is substituted with two N-linked oligosaccharides, while only one is attached to each of the other α1-microglobulins, and that the extra glycosylamine-linked oligosaccharide in the human protein is attached to asparagine in position 17. Finally it is shown that all four homologues inhibit antigen stimulation of human lymphocytes, a finding which is consistent with our previous suggestion that the N-linked oligosaccharides carry the immunosuppressive activity of α1-microglobulin

The effect of synthesis gas composition on the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis over Co/gamma-Al(2)O(3) and Co-Re/gamma-Al(2)O(3) catalysts

The Fischer-Tropsch synthesis over Co/gamma-Al(2)O(3) and Co-Re/gamma-Al(2)O(3) was investigated in a fixed-bed reactor at 20 bar and 483K using feed gases with molar H(2)/CO ratios of 2.1, 1.5 and 1.0 simulating synthesis gas derived from biomass. With lower H(2)/CO ratios in the feed, the CO conversion and the CH(4) selectivity decreased, while the C(5+) selectivity and olefin/paraffin ratio for C(2)-C(4) increased slightly. The water-gas shift activity was low for both catalysts, resulting in high molar usage ratios of H(2)/CO (close to 2.0), even at the lower inlet ratios (i.e. 1.5 and 1.0). For both catalysts, the drop in the production rate of hydrocarbons when shifting from an inlet ratio of 2.1 to 1.5 was significant mainly because the H(2)/CO usage ratio did not follow the change in the inlet ratio. The hydrocarbon selectivities were rather similar for inlet H(2)/CO ratios of 2.1 and 1.5, while significantly deviating from those for an inlet ratio of 1.0. With the studied catalysts, it is possible to utilize the advantages of an inlet ratio of 1.0 (higher selectivity to C(5+), lower selectivity to CH(4), no water-gas shifting of the bio-syngas needed prior to the FT reactor) if a low syngas conversion is accepted