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. 1978 Nov 1;148(5):1228–1240. doi: 10.1084/jem.148.5.1228

Nonspecific resistance to bacterial infections. Enhancement by ubiquinone-8

PMCID: PMC2185055  PMID: 363971

Abstract

A lipid fraction from Escherichia coli was extracted with apolar solvents and was found to protect mice from a number of experimental bacterial infections. The benzoquinone, ubiquinone-8, was isolated from this extract by high pressure liquid chromatography and identified as such by nuclear magnetic resonance and mass spectrometry. At a dose of 25 mg/kg this substance was found to provide complete protection against otherwise lethal infections with gram-negative and gram- positive bacteria in mice. Treatment was most effective when given intravenously 24 h before infection. In comparative studies, ubiquinone- 8 had a clearly higher activity than ubiquinones-4, Q6, and Q10. A highly significant increase in the clearance rate of bacteria from the blood by the spleen and the liver of treated animals, correlated well with the protective effect of ubiquinone-8. The compound stimulated the ability of mouse macrophages to incorporate sheep erythrocytes and significantly increased the number of antibody-producing cells in spleens of mice.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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