Ascaris suum, an intestinal parasite, produces morphine
| Autor: | Bruce J. Brownawell, Ingeborg Welters, Lee Ferguson, George B. Stefano, Federico Casares, Christos M. Rialas, Stephen C. Pryor, Dario Sonetti, Patrick Cadet, Yannick Goumon |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2000 |
| Předmět: |
medicine.drug_class
Swine Immunology Receptors Opioid mu Fluorescent Antibody Technique (+)-Naloxone Pharmacology Nitric Oxide Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry Monocytes Nitric oxide chemistry.chemical_compound Opioid receptor medicine Electrochemistry Immunology and Allergy Animals Humans Ascaris suum Chromatography High Pressure Liquid Opiate alkaloid biology Morphine Ascaris Naloxone Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction parasites endogenous morphine opiate receptor nitric oxide biology.organism_classification Bivalvia Intestines chemistry μ-opioid receptor medicine.drug |
| Zdroj: | Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950). 165(1) |
| ISSN: | 0022-1767 |
| Popis: | The parasitic worm Ascaris suum contains the opiate alkaloid morphine as determined by HPLC coupled to electrochemical detection and by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. The level of this material is 1168 ± 278 ng/g worm wet weight. Furthermore, Ascaris maintained for 5 days contained a significant amount of morphine, as did their medium, demonstrating their ability to synthesize the opiate alkaloid. To determine whether the morphine was active, we exposed human monocytes to the material, and they immediately released nitric oxide in a naloxone-reversible manner. The anatomic distribution of morphine immunoreactivity reveals that the material is in the subcuticle layers and in the animals’ nerve chords. Furthermore, as determined by RT-PCR, Ascaris does not express the transcript of the neuronal μ receptor. Failure to demonstrate the expression of this opioid receptor, as well as the morphine-like tissue localization in Ascaris, suggests that the endogenous morphine is intended for secretion into the microenvironment. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
| Externí odkaz: |
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