Universidad Nacional Autónoma De México

Innofinance Altalanos Innovacios Penzintezet

Rezsö Gáspár

Lourival Domingos Possani-Postay

Lourival Domingos Possani Postay

György Panyi

Tibor Takacs

Istvan Resli

Saida Patricia Salas-Castillo

Sandor Damjanovich

César Vicente Ferreira Batista

Lajos Tron

Janos Matko

Zoltán S Varga

Janos Szollosi

Georgina Gurrola-Briones

Cesar Vicente Ferreira Batista

Potassium channels Kv1.3 are known to be implicated in immunological diseases and graft rejections. Disclosed are peptides capable of blocking with high affinity and specificity potassium channels Kv1.3, their pharmaceutical compositions, and methods for their use to block Kv1.3 potassium channels, to treat various immunological conditions and to diagnostic applications. Methods for their chemical synthesis and correct folding are also disclosed. Exemplary peptides correspond to protein components (Vm23 and Vm24) isolated from the venom of the Mexican scorpion. Vm23 and Vm24 bind to hKv1.3 channels in an almost irreversible manner, showing a Kd value in the order of 3 picomolar range, when applied to human lymphocytes cultures in vitro. Vm24 was chemically synthesized and used in in vivo experiments to successfully treat sensitized rats (on the DTH-response). Neither Vm24 nor synthetic Vm24 is toxic to mice when injected at relatively high concentrations (assayed up to 10,000 micrograms per kilogram mouse body weight). These peptides (Vm24 and Vm23) and their functional equivalent analogs with at least 83% of sequence identity are lead compounds, candidates for the treatment of various immunological conditions and diagnostic applications.

Vm23 and Vm24, two scorpion peptides that block human T-lymphocyte potassium channels (sub-type Kv1.3) with high selectivity and decrease the in vivo DTH-responses in rats

The invention relates to a process and an equipment for the rapid determination of the spermium count of sperm samples and/or the ratio of the living spermia. The process comprises dissolving the fluorescent dyestuff propidium iodide in a buffer and measuring the intensity (F.sub.o), then adding the sperm sample and, after measurement of the intensity (F.sub.1) and addition of a cytoplasm membrane-permeabilizing agent, determining the intensity (F.sub.2), then adding a buffer and a permeabilizing agnet to the buffer and measuring the intensity (F.sub.3) and subsequently the intensity (F.sub.4) of the pure buffer and finally the intensity (F.sub.5) of the sperm mixture added to the buffer, and calculating the cell concentration by using the formula: ##EQU1## wherein .alpha. is the multiplication product from the slope of the calibration curve with the predilution ratio; and calculating the living cell ratio by using the formula: ##EQU2##

Process for the rapid determination of sperm cell count and/or living

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Debrecen, Hungary

Rezsö Gáspár