title: Diethyl phthalate, a chemotactic factor secreted by Helicobacter pylori.
abstract: The structure of a small-molecule, non-peptide chemotactic factor has been determined from activity purified to apparent homogeneity from Helicobacter pylori supernatants. H. pylori was grown in brucella broth media until one liter of solution had 0.9 absorbance units. The culture was centrifuged, and the bacteria re-suspended in physiological saline and incubated at 37 degrees C for 4 h. A monocyte migration bioassay revealed the presence of a single active chemotactic factor in the supernatant from this incubation. The chemotactic factor was concentrated by solid phase chromatography and purified by reverse phase high pressure liquid chromatography. The factor was shown to be indistinguishable from diethyl phthalate (DEP) on the basis of multiple criteria including nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, electron impact mass spectroscopy, UV visible absorption spectrometry, GC and high pressure liquid chromatography retention times, and chemotactic activity toward monocytes. Control experiments with incubated culture media without detectable bacteria did not yield detectable DEP, suggesting it is bacterially derived. It is not known if the bacteria produce diethyl phthalate de novo or if it is a metabolic product of a precursor molecule present in culture media. DEP produced by H. pylori in addition to DEP present in man-made products may contribute to the high levels of DEP metabolites observed in human urine. DEP represents a new class of chemotactic factor.
authors.affiliation: CURE: Digestive Diseases Research Center, Veterans Affairs Greater Los Angeles Health Care System, Los Angeles, California 90073, USA.
authors.forename: D A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Keire
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Anton
authors.forename: K F
authors.initials: KF
authors.lastname: Faull
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ruth
authors.forename: J H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Walsh
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Chew
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Quisimoro
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Territo
authors.forename: J R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Reeve
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002458:Cell Fractionation; D002630:Chemotactic Factors / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000494:pharmacology; D002634:Chemotaxis, Leukocyte; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D016480:Helicobacter pylori / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; D013058:Mass Spectrometry; D015394:Molecular Structure; D009000:Monocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D010795:Phthalic Acids / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D002630:Chemotactic Factors; D010795:Phthalic Acids; C007379:diethyl phthalate