Crystallographic conformers of actin in a biologically active bundle of filaments

Actin carries out many of its cellular functions through its filamentous form; thus, understanding the detailed structure of actin filaments is an essential step in achieving a mechanistic understanding of actin function. The acrosomal bundle in the Limulus sperm has been shown to be a quasi-crystalline array with an asymmetric unit composed of a filament with 14 actin-scruin pairs. The bundle in its true discharge state penetrates the jelly coat of the egg. Our previous electron crystallographic reconstruction demonstrated that the actin filament cross-linked by scruin in this acrosomal bundle state deviates significantly from a perfect F-actin helix. In that study, the tertiary structure of each of the 14 actin protomers in the asymmetric unit of the bundle filament was assumed to be constant. In the current study, an actin filament atomic model in the acrosomal bundle has been refined by combining rigid-body docking with multiple actin crystal structures from the Protein Data Bank and constrained energy minimization. Our observation demonstrates that actin protomers adopt different tertiary conformations when they form an actin filament in the bundle. The scruin and bundle packing forces appear to influence the tertiary and quaternary conformations of actin in the filament of this biologically active bundle.     

Biofilm production by clinical strains of Acinetobacter baumannii isolated from patients hospitalized in two tertiary care hospitals

Microbial biofilms are considered as virulence factors. During the present study, 34 clinical strains of Acinetobacter baumannii, isolated from patients hospitalized in two tertiary care hospitals, were examined for biofilm formation. These strains showed high variability in biofilm formation. Furthermore, no relation could be found between the ability of biofilm production and molecular type, carbapenem resistance, site of isolation of the clinical strains of A. baumannii and disease severity. Interestingly, in two cases an increase in biofilm formation could be detected in A. baumannii isolates cultured from the same patient upon prolonged hospitalization.     

植物炭疽病真菌金属硫蛋白的三级结构预测

根据实验测定的Ⅰ类金属硫蛋白(metallothionein, MT)三级结构的实验数据,给出该类蛋白质的两种特征结构(CXC、CXXC一级结构,半胱氨酸-金属络合簇三级结构)的原子间距离约束条件,然后运用距离几何算法计算出一系列可能的构象.从这些构象中经统计分析筛选出目标函数值显著较小的结构作为所预测蛋白质的三级结构模型.用已知结构的蓝蟹MT对方法进行检验证实其可行性后,对植物炭疽病真菌金属硫蛋白CAP3进行了三级结构预测.     

Formation of Polar Bundles of Pili and the Behavior of Azospirillum brasilenseCells in a Semiliquid Agar

This paper describes the formation of single polar bundles of pili on Azospirillum brasilensecells, the twitching motility of cell aggregates, and a new type of social behavior—the dispersal of bacterial cells in semiliquid agar associated with the formation of granular inclusions (the so-called Gri⁺phenotype)—which is an alternative to swarming (the Swa phenotype). The wild-type A. brasilensecells occurring in a semiliquid agar may show either the Swa⁺Gri^–, or Swa^–Gri^–, or Swa^–Gri⁺phenotype. The formation of single polar flagella (Fla) or polar bundles of pili may reflect two alternative states of A. brasilensecells. The components of the Fla system may be involved in the regulation of the phenotypic variation of azospirilla.     

Life history variation between species of the relictual genus Borderea (Dioscoreaceae): phylogeography, genetic diversity, and population genetic structure assessed by RAPD markers

The genus Borderea consists of two species, B. pyrenaica and B. chouardii, taxa which have been previously considered as conspecific due to their overall close morphology. These two sole species of the rare genus of Dioscoreaceae are endemic to the Pyrenees (Spain, France). This mountain range likely operated as a refugium for these plants during the last glaciations. B. chouardii is only known from a single population in the Spanish Prepyrenees and has been classified as at risk of extinction in the Red List of Endangered Species (IUCN); B. pyrenaica shows a narrow distribution range in the central Pyrenees and Prepyrenees. We analysed genetic variation, population structure and differentiation in these two taxa using RAPD markers. Our study was conducted on the same seven populations for which very low levels of genetic differentiation were detected previously through allozyme analysis. By contrast, high levels of genetic variability were detected through the RAPD hypervariable markers. Twelve RAPD primers produced 112 distinct bands in the 397 surveyed individuals, totalling 395 different RAPD phenotypes. Only four bands were monomorphic across all samples of Borderea, whereas 21 of the polymorphic bands were species‐specific (20 for B. chouardii, and one for B. pyrenaica). The largest genetic distances were those between the B. chouardii and the B. pyrenaica phenotypes. An analysis of molecular variance showed greater variance between groups (B. chouardii vs. B. pyrenaica, 76.08%) than within groups (3.60%). RAPD band specificity, phenotypic distances, and the partitioning of variance all support the taxonomic separation of the two species. Statistical evaluation of within‐ and among‐population RAPD genetic variability in B. pyrenaica showed that genetic variability was higher within populations (>80%) than among them. No clear pattern of RAPD differentiation could be observed among the six studied populations of this taxon though slight differences in genetic diversity could be observed in the more isolated Prepyrenean populations compared with the more widespread Pyrenean ones. These results suggest a recent postglacial origin of the present B. pyrenaica populations. © 2003 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2003, 80 , 483–498.     

水稻穗颈维管束及穗部性状的QTL分析

以籼稻 (OryzasativaL .ssp .indicaZYQ8)和粳稻 (O .sativassp .japonicaJX17)的杂交F1代花培加倍的DH群体为材料考察了该群体的穗颈节大小维管束数、一次枝梗数、每穗颖花数、穗颈节顶部直径和穗长 ,并用该群体构建的分子图谱进行数量性状座位 (QTL)分析。检测到控制大维管束的 3个QTL (qLVB_1、qLVB_6和qLVB_7)分别位于第 1、第 6和第 7染色体 ;控制小维管束的 2个QTL (qSVB_4和qSVB_6 )分别位于第 4和第 6染色体 ;控制一次枝梗的 4个QTL (qPRB_4a、qPRB_4b、qPRB_6和qPRB_7)分别位于第 4(2个 )、第 6和第 7染色体 ;每穗颖花数的 3个QTL (qSPN_4a、qSPN_4b和qSPN_6 )分别位于第 4(2个 )和第 6染色体上 ;穗颈节顶部直径的 5个QTL (qPTD_2、qPTD_5、qPTD_6、qPTD_8和qPTD_12 )分别位于第 2、第 5、第 6、第 8和第 12染色体 ;穗长的 3个QTL (qPL_4、qPL_6和qPL_8)分别位于第 4、第 6、第 8染色体上。其中qLVB_6、qSVB_6、qSPN_6、qPTD_6和qPL_6均位于第 6染色体的G12 2_G1314b之间 ;qPL_8和qPTD_8位于第 8染色体的GA40 8_BP12 7a之间 ;qPRB_4a和qSPN_4a位于第 4染色体的G177_CT2 0 6之间 ;qPL_4和qSPN_4b位于第 4染色体CT40 4_CT5 0 0之间 ;qSVB_4所在的区间与qPL_4、qSPN_4b和qPRB_4b所在的区间相邻。     

Conformation and ion channel properties of a five-helix Bundle protein.

The primary amphipathic peptide Ac-Met-Gly-Leu-Gly-Leu-Trp-Leu-Leu-Val-Leu10-Ala-Ala-Ala-Leu-Gln-Gly-Ala-Lys-Lys-Lys20-Arg-Lys-Val-NH-CH2-CH2-SH called SPM was able to induce formation of ion channels into planar lipid bilayers with main conductance values of 75 and 950 pS in 1 M KCl. The 75 pS value can be attributed to an aggregate composed of five monomers since the corresponding five-unit bundle (5-SPM) also presented a 70 pS channels under the same conditions. The upper 950 pS level would be generated by a hexameric aggregate. Ion channels induced by both SPM and its pentameric bundle are slightly cation selective but not voltage-dependent. The structural studies showed that the SPM and 5-SPM possess mainly an alpha-helical structure (approximately 40%) and are strongly embedded in the bilayer. This behaviour and the strong hydrophobic interactions occurring between helices in the bundle induce a strong stabilization of 5-SPM in the bilayer and would be responsible for the stepwise current fluctuations observed during the incorporation of 5-SPM into the membrane.     

Functional,Morphological, and Evolutionary Characterization of Hearing in Subterranean,Eusocial African Mole-Rats

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