Olive (Olea europaea L.) is recognized as a folk medicine for diabetes in Europe. The inhibitory action of an ethanol extract of olive leaves (OEE) on the activities of human amylases was examined in vitro. OEE inhibited the activities of ␣-amylases from human saliva and pancreas with IC 50 values of 4.0 and 0.02 mg/ml, respectively. Two anti-␣-amylase components were purified from a 50% ethanol soluble fraction of OEE using Sephadex LH-20 column chromatography. One was identified as luteolin-7-O-␤ glucoside and the other as luteolin-4¢ ¢ ¢ ¢-O-␤ glucoside. The 50% ethanol insoluble fraction of OEE was dissolved in 98% ethanol and fractionated using Cosmosil C18-OPN column chromatography. The anti-␣-amylase component purified by this chromatography was identified as oleanolic acid. Both luteolin and oleanolic acid have an inhibitory effect on postprandial blood glucose increase in diabetic rats. Olive leaves suppressed the elevation of blood glucose after oral administration of starch in borderline volunteers (fasting blood glucose: 110-140 mg/dl), and thus they may be a useful food supplement for the prevention of diabetes.

Rotavirus is the most common cause of severe gastroenteritis in infants and children worldwide. The cell attachment of most animal rotaviruses, which belong to the neuraminidase-sensitive strains, requires sialic acid residues on the host cell membranes. On the other hand, most human rotaviruses are classified as neuraminidase-insensitive strains. The involvement of gangliosides on the host cell surface in human rotavirus infection was investigated by immunostaining analysis of target cells, and by assaying the neutralization of infection by rotavirus and the blocking of target cellular receptors. In host cells (MA104 cells) pretreated with Arthrobacter ureafaciens neuraminidase, which were still infected by human rotaviruses (KUN and MO strains), GM(3) was hydrolyzed markedly by the neuraminidase, while GM(1a) was not hydrolyzed at all. Infection by the rotaviruses was strongly inhibited by exogenous ganglioside GM(1a), but not GA(1). Infection was also inhibited by pretreatment of the MA104 cells with cholera toxin B-subunit, which specifically blocked ganglioside GM(1a) on the plasma membrane. The treatment of MA104 cells with the endoglycoceramidase attenuated human rotavirus infection. From these findings, we concluded that GM(1a) on the plasma membrane of the host cells was involved in the infection by human rotavirus KUN and MO strains.

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Chem. 265, 6556 -6561) (identity: 99.6% in nucleotide sequence, 99.0% in amino acid sequence). That GlcNAc 2-epimerase is a RnBP was confirmed by its ability to bind porcine kidney renin and mask its protease activity. These findings provide unequivocal evidence that the enzyme GlcNAc 2-epimerase is a RnBP.