Recent advances in the investigation of Antarctic macroalgae

 The paper summarizes our present knowledge of Antarctic macroalgae with regard to the following topics: explorative history of Antarctic macroalgae, the environment of macroalgae in the Antarctic, life histories and physiological anatomy, seasonal development, light demands and depth zonation, temperature demands and geographical distribution and the effect of desiccation, salinity and temperature on supra- and eulittoral algae. A baseline is visible, but much more work is necessary, especially to assess the susceptibility of macroalgae and coastal ecosystems in Antarctica to global climatic changes. Received: 29 June 1995/Accepted: 3 October 1995     

叶绿体遗传转化的研究进展

核转化技术是基因工程的主要方法,但其多方面的不安全性使人们把焦点转向了植物基因工程另一目标：叶绿体遗传转化。本文介绍了叶绿体基因及基因组;叶绿体遗传转化的原理和方法：叶绿体转化的优点。重点介绍了关于叶绿体遗传转化国内外研究新进展。     

Recent advances in the genetic transformation of trees

As the commercial production of transgenic annual crops becomes a reality in many parts of the world, many people wonder if the genetic engineering of perennial trees will allow their eventual commercialization. Not long ago, trees were considered to be recalcitrant material for most molecular biology techniques, including genetic transformation. However, transgenes for shortening the juvenile phase or for phytoremediation purposes have now been incorporated, and the alteration of lignin biosynthesis and increased cellulose accumulation in forest trees have also been accomplished. For long-lived tree species, new questions arise regarding the stability of integration and expression of foreign genes. Biosafety considerations, including transgene dispersion through the pollen and advances in strategies to avoid this, are also important.     

Recent advances in genetic research on schizophrenia

Evidence for genetic factors in schizophrenia is reviewed with regard to family, twin and adoption studies, and recent advances in molecular genetic technology are applied to explore possible gene loci susceptible to schizophrenia. Application of neuropsychological and neuroimaging methodologies are also reviewed with an aim to develop criteria for defining phenotypes for genetic studies.Plenary Session, Twelfth Joint Annual Conference of Biomedical Sciences, April 20, 1997, Taipei, Taiwan.     

Recent advances in genetic modification systems for Actinobacteria

Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology - Actinobacteria are extremely important to human health, agriculture, and forests. Because of the vast differences of the characteristics of Actinobacteria,...     

Recent advances in genetic code engineering in Escherichia coli

The expansion of the genetic code is gradually becoming a core discipline in Synthetic Biology. It offers the best possible platform for the transfer of numerous chemical reactions and processes from the chemical synthetic laboratory into the biochemistry of living cells. The incorporation of biologically occurring or chemically synthesized non-canonical amino acids into recombinant proteins and even proteomes via reprogrammed protein translation is in the heart of these efforts. Orthogonal pairs consisting of aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase and its cognate tRNA proved to be a general tool for the assignment of certain codons of the genetic code with a maximum degree of chemical liberty. Here, we highlight recent developments that should provide a solid basis for the development of generalist tools enabling a controlled variation of chemical composition in proteins and even proteomes. This will take place in the frame of a greatly expanded genetic code with emancipated codons liberated from the current function or with totally new coding units.     

Recent advances in genetic transformation of forage and turf grasses

Summary Forage and turf grasses are critical to sustainable agriculture and contribute extensively to the world economy. Tremendous progress has been made in genetic transformation of forage and turf grasses in the past decade. The rapid advancement of cellular and molecular biology and transgenic technology provides novel methods to accelerate and complement conventional breeding efforts. This review summarizes the latest developments in genetic transformation methods and the applications of molecular techniques for the improvement of forage and turf grasses.     

Recent advances in genetic analyses of hyperthermophilic Archaea and Bacteria

Hyperthermophilic Archaea and Bacteria are an extraordinarily important class of organisms for which genetic tools remain to be developed. Unique technological obstacles to this goal are posed by the thermophilic and, in some cases, strictly anaerobic nature of these organisms. However, recent advances in the cultivation of hyperthermophiles, in the discovery of genetic elements for vector development, and in the construction of genetic markers point toward the achievement of this goal in the near future. Transformation protocols have already been reported for Sulfolobus and Pyrococcus, and plasmid-mediated conjugation was recently found in Sulfolobus. Plasmids are available for Sulfolobus, Pyrococcus, and the bacterial hyperthermophile Thermotoga, and these provide the bases for vector construction in these hosts. A Desulfurococcus mobile intron may provide a novel means to introduce genes into a variety of archaeal hosts. With full genome sequences of several hyperthermophiles available soon, genetic tools will allow full exploitation of this information to study these organisms in depth and to utilize their unique properties in biotechnological applications. Received: 27 January 1997 / Accepted: 24 April 1997     

Recent advances in plant biotechnology and genetic engineering for production of secondary metabolites

For a long time people are using plants not only as crop cultures but also for obtaining of various chemicals. Currently plants remain one of the most important and essential sources of biologically active compounds in spite of progress in chemical or microbial synthesis. In our review we compare potentials and perspectives of modern genetic engineering approaches for pharmaceutical biotechnology and give examples of actual biotechnological systems used for production of several promising natural compounds: artemisinin, paclitaxel and scopolamine.     

Recent advances in the pharmacogenetics of clopidogrel

Clopidogrel has been used to prevent recurrent ischemic events after acute coronary syndrome and/or coronary stent implantation. An impaired platelet response to this drug (residual high platelet reactivity) has been identified as a risk factor for recurrent ischemic events. The platelet response to clopidogrel is highly heritable (73%) suggesting a substantial genetic component. Two sequential cytochrome P450-dependent oxidative steps are required to convert clopidogrel to its active metabolite. The first step leads to the formation of 2-oxo-clopidogrel, which is then metabolized to the active metabolite. Cytochrome P450s are large highly polymorphic family of mono-oxygenases. Many alleles have been reported, and some of these are able to modify the activity of proteins, reducing or increasing the concentration of active metabolites and the drug effect. Loss-of-function variants in the hepatic cytochrome 2C19 (mainly *2 allele) system have been found to be the predominant genetic mediators of clopidogrel response. Variant carriers have higher treatment platelet reactivity and higher risk of adverse cardiac events including stent thrombosis, myocardial infarction, and death. Although value of CYP2C19 genotyping has been demonstrated in ACS population treated with PCI, there is still a wide interindividual variability within each genotype to systematically advocate this genetic testing in clinical practice. The CYP2C19*2 variant only explained 12% of the platelet response to clopidogrel. In the near future, it is highly probable that additional gene variants or epigenetic phenomenon will emerge as significant contributors to clopidogrel response that will allow recommending genetic testing for routine use. The purpose of this review is to discuss the contribution of individual genetic differences responsible for variations of action and clopidogrel efficacy.