Anti-TF monoclonal antibody, clone HTF-14

Amoebiasis is a parasitic infection of the human large intestine caused by Entamoeba histolytica; this disease mainly affects people from developing countries. To survive, this primitive protozoan has a high demand for iron, and it uses host iron proteins upon invasion. Transferrin (Tf) is a plasma iron-binding protein that transports and delivers iron to all cells. Iron-loaded Tf (holoTf) in humans can support the proliferation of amoebae in vitro by binding to an amoebic TfR (EhTfR), and amoebae endocytose it inside clathrin-coated vesicles. In this study, it was found that EhTfR phosphorylation is required for human holoTf endocytosis by E. histolytica. Once this complex is endocytosed, human holoTf could be degraded with a nutritional purpose by cysteine proteases. HoloTf endocytosis initiates the activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) and focal adhesion kinase (FAK) pathways, which induce cell proliferation with phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI-3 K) and Ca2+ involvement. In the first minutes after holoTf is endocytosed, several proteins are phosphorylated including transketolase, enolase, L-myoinositol-1-phosphate synthase and phosphoglucomutase, which control carbohydrate metabolism, and heat shock protein-70. The study of these proteins and their signal transduction pathways could be useful for developing future therapies. (C) 2020 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of Australian Society for Parasitology.

Ten medicinal plants used as ingredients of folklore and Ayurvedic medicine belonging to the Malnad Kerala region of South India, were analysed for concentrations of trace elements Fe, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, and Pb using the Energy Dispersive X-ray Fluorescence (EDXRF) technique. The soil from the root area of these medicinal plants was also analysed, and the soil to plant transfer factor (TF) of the elements was estimated. Iron (Fe) recorded higher concentration than the other trace elements estimated in the medicinal plants, followed by manganese (Mn) and zinc (Zn). The mean TF was found to be highest for Zn.Plectranthus amboinicus(Lour.) Spreng recorded the maximum value of TF for Zn. Most of the essential elements were found to be present inCentella asiatica(L.) Urban and indicated its medicinal importance. The data obtained in the present investigation may add up to the trace elemental database of medicinal plants in the world.