A correlation between BCL-2 modifying factor,p53 and livin gene expressions in cancer colon patients

Accumulating evidence has revealed that livin gene and BCL-2 modifying factor (BMF) gene are closely associated with the initiation and progression of colon carcinoma by activating or suppressing multiple malignant processes. Those genes that can detect colon - cancer are a promising approach for cancer screening and diagnosis. This study aimed to evaluate correlation between livin, BMF and p53 genes expression in colon cancer tissues of patients included in the study, and their relationship with clinicopathological features and survival outcome in those patients. In this study, 50 pathologically diagnosed early cancer colon patients included and their tissue biopsy with 50 matched adjacent normal tissue, and 50 adenoma tissue specimens were analyzed for livin gene and BMF gene expressions using real time PCR. The relationship of those genes expressions with clinicopathological features, tumor markers, Time to Progression and overall survival for those patients were correlated in cancer colon group. In this study, there was a significant a reciprocal relationship between over expression of livin gene and down regulation of BMF and p53 genes in colon cancer cells. Livin mRNA was significantly higher, while BMF and p53 mRNA were significantly lower in colorectal cancer tissue compared to benign and normal colon tissue specimens (P < 0.001), however, this finding was absent between colon adenomas and normal mucosa. There was a significant association between up regulation of livin and down regulation of BMF and p53 expressions with more aggressive tumor (advanced TNM stage), rapid progression with metastasis and decreased overall survival in cancer colon patients, hence these genes can serve as significant prognostic markers of poor outcome in colon cancer patients. This work highlights the role of livin, BMF and p53 genes in colorectal tumorigenesis and the applicability of using those genes as a diagnostic and prognostic markers in patients with colon carcinoma and as a good target for cancer colon treatment in the future.     

Biocides formulation of essential oils having antimicrobial activity

Essential oils of fennel, peppermint, caraway, eucalyptus, geranium and lemon were tested for their antimicrobial activities against some plant pathogenic micro-organisms (Fusarium oxysporum, Alternaria alternate, Penicilium italicum Penicilium digitatum and Botyritus cinerea). Essential oils of fennel, peppermint, caraway were selected as an active ingredient for the formulation of biocides due to their efficiency in controlling the tested micro-organisms. Successful emulsifiable concentrates (biocides) were prepared from these oils using different emulsifiers (Emulgator B.L.M. Tween20 and Tween80) and different fixed oils (sesame, olive, cotton and soybean oils). Physico-chemical properties of the formulated biocide (spontaneous emulsification, emulsion stability test, cold stability and heat stability tests as well as viscosity, surface tension and pH) were measured. The prepared biocides were ready to be tested for application in a future work as a safe pesticide against different pathogens.     

Metagenomic insights into strategies of carbon conservation and unusual sulfur biogeochemistry in a hypersaline Antarctic lake

Organic Lake is a shallow, marine-derived hypersaline lake in the Vestfold Hills, Antarctica that has the highest reported concentration of dimethylsulfide (DMS) in a natural body of water. To determine the composition and functional potential of the microbial community and learn about the unusual sulfur chemistry in Organic Lake, shotgun metagenomics was performed on size-fractionated samples collected along a depth profile. Eucaryal phytoflagellates were the main photosynthetic organisms. Bacteria were dominated by the globally distributed heterotrophic taxa Marinobacter, Roseovarius and Psychroflexus. The dominance of heterotrophic degradation, coupled with low fixation potential, indicates possible net carbon loss. However, abundant marker genes for aerobic anoxygenic phototrophy, sulfur oxidation, rhodopsins and CO oxidation were also linked to the dominant heterotrophic bacteria, and indicate the use of photo- and lithoheterotrophy as mechanisms for conserving organic carbon. Similarly, a high genetic potential for the recycling of nitrogen compounds likely functions to retain fixed nitrogen in the lake. Dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP) lyase genes were abundant, indicating that DMSP is a significant carbon and energy source. Unlike marine environments, DMSP demethylases were less abundant, indicating that DMSP cleavage is the likely source of high DMS concentration. DMSP cleavage, carbon mixotrophy (photoheterotrophy and lithoheterotrophy) and nitrogen remineralization by dominant Organic Lake bacteria are potentially important adaptations to nutrient constraints. In particular, carbon mixotrophy relieves the extent of carbon oxidation for energy production, allowing more carbon to be used for biosynthetic processes. The study sheds light on how the microbial community has adapted to this unique Antarctic lake environment.     

Prefractionation by digitonin extraction increases representation of the cytosolic and intracellular proteome of Leishmania infantum

Proteome coverage is limited by the dynamic range of proteins present in a sample and often is confined to the analysis of abundant proteins. We have developed a protein prefractionation protocol, based on the differential solubilization of membranes using digitonin, that has allowed an increase in the resolution and depth of comparative proteomic studies. This prefractionation protocol can also be used to infer the subcellular localization of hypothetical proteins as tested experimentally using green fluorescent fusion proteins. The abundant tubulins and associated proteins of the cytoskeleton were removed from the sample using digitonin extraction, hence facilitating the visualization of lower abundance proteins. The digitonin prefractionation protocol was applied for a comparative proteomic analysis of the promastigote and amastigote life cycle stages of Leishmania infantum and has allowed the identification of novel proteins expressed in a stage-specific manner.     

Multiple GTPases participate in the assembly of the large ribosomal subunit in Bacillus subtilis

GTPases have been demonstrated to be necessary for the proper assembly of the ribosome in bacteria and eukaryotes. Here, we show that the essential GTPases YphC and YsxC are required for large ribosomal subunit biogenesis in Bacillus subtilis. Sucrose density gradient centrifugation of large ribosomal subunits isolated from YphC-depleted cells and YsxC-depleted cells indicates that they are similar to the 45S intermediate previously identified in RbgA-depleted cells. The sedimentation of the large-subunit intermediate isolated from YphC-depleted cells was identical to the intermediate found in RbgA-depleted cells, while the intermediate isolated from YsxC-depleted cells sedimented slightly slower than 45S, suggesting that it is a novel intermediate. Analysis of the protein composition of the large-subunit intermediates isolated from either YphC-depleted cells or YsxC-depleted cells indicated that L16 and L36 are missing. Purified YphC and YsxC are able to interact with the ribosome in vitro, supporting a direct role for these two proteins in the assembly of the 50S subunit. Our results indicate that, as has been demonstrated for Saccharomyces cerevisiae ribosome biogenesis, bacterial 50S ribosome assembly requires the function of multiple essential GTPases.     

The flowering locus Hr colocalizes with a major QTL affecting winter frost tolerance in Pisum sativum L.

An understanding of the genetic determinism of frost tolerance is a prerequisite for the development of frost tolerant cultivars for cold northern areas. In legumes, it is not known to which extent vernalization requirement or photoperiod responsiveness are necessary for the development of frost tolerance. In pea (Pisum sativum L.) however, the flowering locus Hr is suspected to influence winter frost tolerance by delaying floral initiation until after the main winter freezing periods have passed. The objective of this study was to dissect the genetic determinism of frost tolerance in pea by QTL analysis and to assess the genetic linkage between winter frost tolerance and the Hr locus. A population of 164 recombinant inbred lines (RILs), derived from the cross Champagne x Terese was evaluated both in the greenhouse and in field conditions to characterize the photoperiod response from which the allele at the Hr locus was inferred. In addition, the population was also assessed for winter frost tolerance in 11 field conditions. Six QTL were detected, among which three were consistent among the different experimental conditions, confirming an oligogenic determinism of frost tolerance in pea. The Hr locus was found to be the peak marker for the highest explanatory QTL of this study. This result supports the hypothesis of the prominent part played by the photoperiod responsiveness in the determinism of frost tolerance for this species. The consistency of three QTL makes these positions interesting targets for marker-assisted selection. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Efficient parallel synthesis of macrocyclic peptidomimetics

A new method for solid phase parallel synthesis of chemically and conformationally diverse macrocyclic peptidomimetics is reported. A key feature of the method is access to broad chemical and conformational diversity. Synthesis and mechanistic studies on the macrocyclization step are reported.