Endotoxin in Health and Disease

Helmut Brade

Endotoxin - historical perspectives; lipopolysaccharide and the permeability of the bacterial outer membrane; lypopolysacharide phase variation in haemophilus and neisseria; antigenic mimicry in neisseris spp; antibiotic-induced endotoxin release - important parameters dictating responses; complement-mediated lipopolysaccharide release; chemical structure of lipid A - recent advances in structural analysis of biologically active molecules; chemical structure of the core region of lipopolysaccharides; the chemistry of O-polysacharide chains in bacterial lipopolysaccharides; the chemistry and biology of lipooligosacharides - the endotoxins of bacteria of the respiratory and genital mucosae; a biophysical view on the function and activity of endotoxins; lipopolysaccharide preparations in aqueous media -implications for solution versus suspension; chlamydia lipopolysaccharides; chemical synthesis of lipid A; chemical synthesis of core structures; microbial pathways of lipid A biosynthesis; biosynthesis and genetics of lipopolysaccharides core; genetics and biosynthesis of lipopolysacchrides O-antigens; lipopolysaccharide-binding protein; bactericidal/permeability-increasing protein, P15s and phospholipases A2, endogenous antibiotics in host defense against bacterial infection; interactions of lipopolysacharides and lipoproteins; effects of human haemoglobin on bacterial endotoxin in vitro and in vivo; LPS/lipid A binding synthetic peptides; interaction of lipid A and lipopolysaccharide with human serum albumin; endothelial cell activation by lipopolysaccharide - role of soluble CD14; scavenger receptor and lipopolysaccharide - the role of platelet-activating factor; CD14, an innate immune receptor for various bacterial cell wall components; the role of MAP kinases, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase and ceramide in LPS-induced signalling in macrophages; endotoxin effects on synthesis of phosphatidic acid and phosphatidic acid-derived diacylglyceride species. (Part contents).