Protein folding conditions were established for human immunodeficiency virus integrase (IN) obtained from purified bacterial inclusion bodies. IN was denatured by 6 M guanidine.HCl-5 mM dithiothreitol, purified by gel filtration, and precipitated by ammonium sulfate. The reversible solvation of precipitated IN by 6 M guanidine.HCl allowed for wide variation of protein concentration in the folding reaction. A 6-fold dilution of denatured IN by 1 M NaCl buffer followed by dialysis produced enzymatically active IN capable of 3' OH end processing, strand transfer, and disintegration using various human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1) long terminal repeat DNA substrates. The specific activities of folded IN preparations for these enzymatic reactions were comparable to those of soluble IN purified directly from bacteria. The subunit composition and enzymatic activities of IN were affected by the folding conditions. Standard folding conditions were defined in which monomers and protein aggregates sedimenting as dimers and tetramers wree produced. These protein aggregates were enzymatically active, whereas monomers had reduced strand transfer activity. Temperature modifications of the folding conditions permitted formation of mainly monomers. Upon assaying, these monomers were efficient for strand transfer and disintegration, but the oligomeric state of IN under the conditions of the assay is determinate. Our results suggest that monomers of the multidomain HIV-1 IN are folded correctly for various catalytic activities, but the conditions for specific oligomerization in the absence of catalytic activity are undefined. 相似文献
The region of the clock gene period (per) that encodes a repetitive tract
of threonine-glycine (Thr-Gly) pairs has been compared between Dipteran
species both within and outside the Drosophilidae. All the non-
Drosophilidae sequences in this region are short and present a remarkably
stable picture compared to the Drosophilidae, in which the region is much
larger and extremely variable, both in size and composition. The
accelerated evolution in the repetitive region of the Drosophilidae appears
to be mainly due to an expansion of two ancestral repeats, one encoding a
Thr-Gly dipeptide and the other a pentapeptide rich in serine, glycine, and
asparagine or threonine. In some drosophilids the expansion involves a
duplication of the pentapeptide sequence, but in Drosophila pseudoobscura
both the dipeptide and the pentapeptide repeats are present in larger
numbers. In the nondrosophilids, however, the pentapeptide sequence is
represented by one copy and the dipeptide by two copies. These observations
fulfill some of the predictions of recent theoretical models that have
simulated the evolution of repetitive sequences.
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We have analyzed the conserved regions of the gene coding for the
circumsporozoite protein (CSP) in 12 species of Plasmodium, the malaria
parasite. The closest evolutionary relative of P. falciparum, the agent of
malignant human malaria, is P. reichenowi, a chimpanzee parasite. This is
consistent with the hypothesis that P. falciparum is an ancient human
parasite, associated with humans since the divergence of the hominids from
their closest hominoid relatives. Three other human Plasmodium species are
each genetically indistinguishable from species parasitic to nonhuman
primates; that is, for the DNA sequences included in our analysis, the
differences between species are not greater than the differences between
strains of the human species. The human P. malariae is indistinguishable
from P. brasilianum, and P. vivax is indistinguishable from P. simium; P.
brasilianum and P. simium are parasitic to New World monkeys. The human P.
vivax-like is indistinguishable from P. simiovale, a parasite of Old World
macaques. We conjecture that P. malariae, P. vivax, and P. vivax-like are
evolutionarily recent human parasites, the first two at least acquired only
within the last several thousand years, and perhaps within the last few
hundred years, after the expansion of human populations in South America
following the European colonizations. We estimate the rate of evolution of
the conserved regions of the CSP gene as 2.46 x 10(-9) per site per year.
The divergence between the P. falciparum and P. reichenowi lineages is
accordingly dated 8.9 Myr ago. The divergence between the three lineages
leading to the human parasites is very ancient, about 100 Myr old between
P. malariae and P. vivax (and P. vivax-like) and about 165 Myr old between
P. falciparum and the other two.
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Photosynthetic enhancement studies performed at 619 nm (excitation of Systems I and II) and at 446 nm (mainly excitation of System I) revealed an 18% photosynthetic enhancement simultaneously with a 31% reduction in glycolate excretion. This observation supports the hypothesis that some glycolate may be consumed in an oxidation process associated with System I when System II is poorly excited and the supply of electrons from the water splitting process of photosynthesis is low. 相似文献
The worldwide prevalence of obesity mandates a widely accessible tool to categorize adiposity that can best predict associated health risks. The body adiposity index (BAI) was designed as a single equation to predict body adiposity in pooled analysis of both genders. We compared body adiposity index (BAI), body mass index (BMI), and other anthropometric measures, including percent body fat (PBF), in their correlations with cardiometabolic risk factors. We also compared BAI with BMI to determine which index is a better predictor of PBF.
Methods
The cohort consisted of 698 Mexican Americans. We calculated correlations of BAI, BMI, and other anthropometric measurements (PBF measured by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry, waist and hip circumference, height, weight) with glucose homeostasis indices (including insulin sensitivity and insulin clearance from euglycemic clamp), lipid parameters, cardiovascular traits (including carotid intima-media thickness), and biomarkers (C-reactive protein, plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 and adiponectin). Correlations between each anthropometric measure and cardiometabolic trait were compared in both sex-pooled and sex-stratified groups.
Results
BMI was associated with all but two measured traits (carotid intima-media thickness and fasting glucose in men), while BAI lacked association with several variables. BAI did not outperform BMI in its associations with any cardiometabolic trait. BAI was correlated more strongly than BMI with PBF in sex-pooled analyses (r = 0.78 versus r = 0.51), but not in sex-stratified analyses (men, r = 0.63 versus r = 0.79; women, r = 0.69 versus r = 0.77). Additionally, PBF showed fewer correlations with cardiometabolic risk factors than BMI. Weight was more strongly correlated than hip with many of the cardiometabolic risk factors examined.
Conclusions
BAI is inferior to the widely used BMI as a correlate of the cardiometabolic risk factors studied. Additionally, BMI’s relationship with total adiposity may not be the sole determinate of its association with cardiometabolic risk. 相似文献
Glioblastoma multiform (GBM) is known as an aggressive glial neoplasm. Recently incorporation of mesenchymal stem cells with anti-tumor drugs have been used due to lack of immunological responses and their easy accessibility. In this study, we have investigated the anti-proliferative and apoptotic activity of atorvastatin (Ator) in combination of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) on GBM cells in vitro and in vivo. The MSCs isolated from rats and characterized for their multi-potency features. The anti-proliferative and migration inhibition of Ator and MSCs were evaluated by MTT and scratch migration assays. The annexin/PI percentage and cell cycle arrest of treated C6 cells were evaluated until 72 h incubation. The animal model was established via injection of C6 cells in the brain of rats and subsequent injection of Ator each 3 days and single injection of MSCs until 12 days. The growth rate, migrational phenotype and cell cycle progression of C6 cells decreased and inhibited by the interplay of different factors in the presence of Ator and MSCs. The effect of Ator and MSCs on animal models displayed a significant reduction in tumor size and weight. Furthermore, histopathology evaluation proved low hypercellularity and mitosis index as well as mild invasive tumor cells for perivascular cuffing without pseudopalisading necrosis and small delicate vessels in Ator?+?MSCs condition. In summary, Ator and MSCs delivery to GBM model provides an effective strategy for targeted therapy of brain tumor.
One can determine the best dilution of a primary antibody for immunohistochemistry that uses horseradish peroxidase conjugated to a secondary antibody by testing increasing concentrations sequentially on the same tissue section. When the same tissue section is incubated repeatedly with increasing concentrations of primary antibodies to epithelial membrane antigen, smooth muscle α-actin, or vimentin using alkaline phosphatase conjugated to a secondary antibody as the reporter, the best staining was obtained with a less concentrated primary antibody than was optimal for a single staining test. The best concentration of primary antibody for single run staining using an alkaline phosphatase reporting system is usually four times the best concentration for staining with multiple runs. The optimal concentration can be determined by denaturing the residual alkaline phosphatase and extracting residual stain by incubating the section in 4:1 diglyme:phosphate buffered saline for 20 min at 80o C between tests of primary antibody concentrations. I tested the method for four chromogens from one supplier and one chromogen from a different supplier. 相似文献
Methicillin-ResistantStaphylococcus aureus (MSRA) has become a frequent cause of serious infections. Extended hospitalization and antibiotic therapy have been identified as additional risk factors for MRSA carrier and infection. The aim of this study was to determine the incidence of MRSA infections in the hospitals affiliated to Hamedan University of Medical Sciences. SeventyS. aureus clinical strains were isolated from patients from June 2005 to June 2006 and examined by PCR and conventional microbiological tests. Then, the antibiotic susceptibility to methicillin/oxacillin and other antibiotics were performed by Disc Diffusion Agar (DDA). The results of this study showed that methicillin resistance gene was detected in 35 (50%) and 22 (31.4%) cases by PCR and DDA, respectively. The results of antibiotic susceptibility assays also showed there were high resistance MRSA strains to penicilin (100%), cloxacillin (91.4%), tetracycline (74.2%), cotrimoxazole (68.5%), erythromycin (68.5%) and less resistance to rifampin (11.4). Two MRSA also had decreased susceptibility to vancomycin. But the strains of Methicillin-SensitiveS. aureus (MSSA) showed high sensitivity to all antibiotics profiles except to penicillin (complete resistance). As a conclusion, the resistance to methicillin/oxacillin ofS. aureus in Hamedan hospitals has reached to 50% and they show multidrug resistance. 相似文献