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The concentrations of 11 phenols and 5 furans were measured in 12 categories of distilled spirits by HPLC methodology, together with the total antioxidant status (TAS) of the same beverages. Ellagic acid was the phenol present in highest concentration in all beverages. Moderate amounts of syringaldehyde, syringic acid, and gallic acid, as well as lesser amounts of vanillin and vanillic acid, were measurable in most samples of whiskey, brandy, and rum but were largely undetectable in gin, vodka, liqueurs, and miscellaneous spirits. 5-(Hydroxymethyl)furfural was the predominant furan in the former three beverages, notably cognac, with 2-furaldehyde the next highest, but these were undetectable in most of the latter beverages. Highest TAS values were given by armagnac, cognac, and bourbon whiskey, all three of which tended toward the highest concentrations of phenols. Negative TAS values were exhibited by rum, vodka, gin, and miscellaneous spirits in line with the low or undetectable phenol concentrations in these beverages. Wood aging is the most likely source of phenols and furans in distilled spirits. Those beverages exposed to this treatment contain significant antioxidant activity, which is between the ranges for white and red wines, with the potential to augment the antiatherosclerotic functions attributable to the ethanol that they contain.

Background: Allergen exposure chambers (AECs) are clinical facilities allowing for controlled exposure of subjects to allergens in an enclosed environment. AECs have contributed towards characterizing the pathophysiology of respiratory allergic diseases and the pharmacological properties of new therapies. In addition, they are complementary to and offer some advantages over traditional multicentre field trials for evaluation of novel therapeutics. To date, AEC studies conducted have been monocentric and have followed protocols unique to each centre. Because there are technical differences among AECs, it may be necessary to define parameters to standardize the AECs so that studies may be extrapolated for driving basic immunological research and for marketing authorization purposes by regulatory authorities. Methods: For this task force initiative of the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI), experts from academia and regulatory agencies

A human colonic adenoma cell line PCIAA derived from a familial polyposis coli patient was passaged in culture to form an intermediate premalignant clonogenic variant AA/Cl and, upon treatment with differentiating and carcinogenic agents, a cell line AA/Cl/SB10 which is tumourigenic in nude mice. These three mucin-secreting cell lines have been used as a model to study the changes in 0-glycan biosynthesis during the progression to cancer. Several glycosyltransferases involved in the synthesis, elongation and termination of the common 0-glycan core structures were found to decrease in the progression sequence towards adenocarcinoma. Higher activity of a number of enzymes was seen in the intermediate cell line. 0-glycan biosynthesis in the original PCIAA cell line was closest to the normal human colonic phenotype, since all four common mucin 0-glycan cores and their extended structures could be synthesized; core 3 fl-GlcNAc-transferase and a6-sialyltransferase acting on GalNAc-mucin were still detectable and core 2 P6-GlcNAc-transferase activity was accompanied by core 4 and I P6-GlcNAc-transferase activities. During progression towards adenocarcinoma, the expression of a6-sialyltransferase, core 3 fl-GlcNAc-transferase, core 4 and I P6-GlcNAc-transferases were turned off. Using monoclonal antibodies, Tn antigen, sialylTn antigen, 0-acetyl-sialomucin and sialyl-Lea determinants were not detected in secreted or cellular mucin isolated from any of the cell lines. The exposure of MUCl epitopes was seen in the malignant line, whereas sialyl-Le" determinants were found only in the premalignant PC/AA line. Sulfotransferase activities using core 1 substrate, GalPl-3GalNAca-benzy1, were high in PCIAA cells and progressively decreased upon development to adenocarcinoma, and this decrease correlated with mucin sulfation. In summary, the synthesis of less abundant, sialylated, fucosylated and extended, unbranched core 1 structures should be facilitated in the malignant cells. This is the first report of glycosyltransferase changes in human premalignant cells developing to tumourigenic cells. The data demonstrate that these cell lines are an excellent model to study the changes and regulation of mucin oligosaccharide biosynthesis during progression to cancer.The glycosylation of secreted and membrane-bound mucins is sensitive to cellular differentiation and transformation. It has previously been shown that glycosyltransferases assembling the 0-glycan chains of mucins are significantly changed in human colon cancer tissue compared to normal tissue [l]. Since there is great variability between individuals, and tissue represents a mixture of different cell types, we have now chosen cultured cell lines to study the assembly of mucin carbohydrate chains during tumour progression.Familial polyposis coli is an inherited disease in which individuals will develop colon carcinoma at a much earlier age than expected normally. Generally, most colonic carci- Np, p-nitrophenyl. noma are thought to originate from polyps and human coloni...