Presentation of (glyco)peptides by the class II major histocompatibility complex molecule Aq to T cells plays a central role in collagen-induced arthritis, an animal model for the autoimmune disease rheumatoid arthritis. A peptide library was designed using statistical molecular design in amino acid space in which five positions in the minimal mouse collagen type II binding epitope CII260-267 were varied. A substantially reduced peptide library of 24 peptides with diverse and representative molecular characteristics was selected, synthesized, and evaluated for the binding strength to Aq. A multivariate QSAR model was established by correlating calculated descriptors, compressed to its principle properties, with the binding data using partial least-square regression. The model was successfully validated by an external test set. Interpretation of the model provided a molecular property binding motif for peptides interacting with Aq. The information may be useful in future research directed toward new treatments of rheumatoid arthritis.

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Immunonephelometry of apolipoprotein A-II (apo A-II) in serum requires that factors responsible for nonspecific increases of light scattering be eliminated. Complete delipidation is not necessary for immunonephelometry of apo A-II; in fact, light scattering of immunocomplexes from delipidated HDL is greater than from isolated apo A-II. Therefore, using the isolated peptide as a standard does not suffice for measurements in serum. The concentration of protein influences the development of light scattering and must be considered in standardizing this measurement.

In this study, we examined 31 samples of varying chemical composition, including samples of soils from gasworks, coke production sites, and sites where wood preservatives were heavily used; ash and soot from municipal solid waste incinerators; antiskid sand; and dust from areas with heavy road traffic. The samples were comprehensively chemically characterized, especially their polycyclic aromatic compound contents, using gas chromatography-time-of-flight mass spectrometry, whereas their biological effects were assessed using dehydrogenase activity, root growth (Hordeum vulgare), reproduction of springtails (Folsomia candida), algal growth (Desmodesmus subspicatus), germinability (Sinapis alba), Vibrio fischeri, DR-CALUX, and Ames Salmonella assays. The number of compounds detected in the samples ranged from 123 to 527. Using the multivariate regression technique of partial-least-squares projections to latent structures, it was possible to find individual compounds that exhibited strong correlations with the different biological responses. Some of the results, however, indicate that a broader chemical characterization may be needed to identify all the compounds that may cause the measured biological responses.