Hemolytic activity of the isolated schizolysin (8 HU) was routinely assayed at 37 °C. To determine the effects of temperature and pH on hemolytic activity, a suspension of schizolysin (8 HU) was incubated for 30 min at different temperatures, or in 0.2 mL of phosphate-buffered saline (0.1 M) at different pH HSP assay values, and washed 2% rabbit erythrocytes (0.2 mL) were then added. After incubation in a water bath at 37 °C for 15 min, the OD540 nm of the supernatant was measured. For these experiments, 0.2 mL of a 2% rabbit erythrocyte suspension containing an osmotic protectant was mixed with 0.2 mL of schizolysin solution (8 HU). Polyethylene glycol (PEG) 1500

and PEG 4000 were used as osmotic protectants at a final concentration of 20 mM. PEG 6000, PEG 10000 and PEG 20000 were used at a final concentration of 10 mM. The mean hydrated diameters of PEG 1500, PEG 4000, PEG 6000, PEG 10000 and PEG 20000 were 1.39, 3.60, 5.66, 9.29 and 18.59 nm, respectively (Panchal et al., 2002). Protection from hemolysis was calculated as follows: %protection=(1−hemolysis rate in the presence of osmotic protectant/hemolytic Navitoclax cell line rate without osmotic protectant) × 100% (Berne et al., 2002). To determine whether schizolysin produces an adverse effect on cells other than erythrocytes, an assay of antifungal activity, a potentially exploitable effect, was carried

out as described by Lam & Ng (2001). The assay for antifungal activity toward Mycosphaerella arachidicola, Fusarium oxysporum and Physalospora piricola was executed using 100 × 15 mm petri plates containing 10 mL of potato dextrose agar. After the mycelial colony had formed, sterile blank paper disks (0.625 cm in diameter) were placed 0.5 cm away

from the periphery of the mycelial colony. An 15-μL aliquot of schizolysin was added to a disk. selleck inhibitor The plates were incubated at 23 °C for 72 h until mycelial growth had surrounded the disks containing the control and had formed crescents of inhibition around disks containing samples with antifungal activity. Antifungal protein from the mushroom Lyophyllum shimeiji was used as positive control (Lam & Ng, 2001). Sterile water instead of schizolysin was added and used as negative control. The assay for the inhibitory activity on HIV-1 RT was tested with the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit obtained from Boehringer Mannheim (Germany). The assay takes advantage of the ability of RT to synthesize DNA, starting from the template per primer hybrid poly(A) oligo(dT)15. The digoxigenin- and biotin-labeled nucleotides in an optimized ratio are incorporated into one of the same DNA molecules, which is freshly synthesized by the RT. The detection and quantification of synthesized DNA as a parameter for RT activity follows a sandwich ELISA protocol. Biotin-labeled DNA binds to the surface of microtiter plate modules that have been precoated with streptavidin.