Proteins of ruminant colostrum

1. The proteins in the whey of ewe colostrum resemble those obtained from goat colostrum in containing two main electrophoretic components, with mobilities of −2×10⁻⁵ and −3·9×10⁻⁵ cm.²sec.⁻¹v⁻¹ in sodium veronal buffer, pH 8·6 and I 0·1, at 1°. 2. Of 32 samples of goat colostrum examined by paper electrophoresis 27 contained the immune lactoglobulin characteristic of colostrum; of 55 samples of cow colostrum all contained immune lactoglobulin.     

Inhibition of glucose phosphate isomerase by metabolic intermediates of fructose

1. Purified rabbit-muscle and -liver glucose phosphate isomerase, free of contaminating enzyme activities that could interfere with the assay procedures, were tested for inhibition by fructose, fructose 1-phosphate and fructose 1,6-diphosphate. 2. Fructose 1-phosphate and fructose 1,6-diphosphate are both competitive with fructose 6-phosphate in the enzymic reaction, the apparent K_i values being 1·37×10⁻³−1·67×10⁻³m for fructose 1-phosphate and 7·2×10⁻³−7·9×10⁻³m for fructose 1,6-diphosphate; fructose and inorganic phosphate were without effect. 3. The apparent K_m values for both liver and muscle enzymes at pH7·4 and 30° were 1·11×10⁻⁴−1·29×10⁻⁴m for fructose 6-phosphate, determined under the conditions in this paper. 4. In the reverse reaction, fructose, fructose 1-phosphate and fructose 1,6-diphosphate did not significantly inhibit the conversion of glucose 6-phosphate into fructose 6-phosphate. 5. The apparent K_m values for glucose 6-phosphate were in the range 5·6×10⁻⁴−8·5×10⁻⁴m. 6. The competitive inhibition of hepatic glucose phosphate isomerase by fructose 1-phosphate is discussed in relation to the mechanism of fructose-induced hypoglycaemia in hereditary fructose intolerance.     

Ice Nucleation Activity in Lichens

A newly discovered form of biological ice nucleus associated with lichens is described. Ice nucleation spectra of a variety of lichens from the southwestern United States were measured by the drop-freezing method. Several epilithic lichen samples of the genera Rhizoplaca, Xanthoparmelia, and Xanthoria had nuclei active at temperatures as warm as −2.3°C and had densities of 2.3 × 10⁶ to more than 1 × 10⁸ nuclei g⁻¹ at −5°C (2 to 4 orders of magnitude higher than any plants infected with ice nucleation-active bacteria). Most lichens tested had nucleation activity above −8°C. Lichen substrates (rocks, plants, and soil) showed negligible activity above −8°C. Ice nucleation-active bacteria were not isolated from the lichens, and activity was not destroyed by heat (70°C) or sonication, indicating that lichen-associated ice nuclei are nonbacterial in origin and differ chemically from previously described biological ice nuclei. An axenic culture of the lichen fungus Rhizoplaca chrysoleuca showed detectable ice nucleation activity at −1.9°C and an ice nucleation density of 4.5 × 10⁶ nuclei g⁻¹ at −5°C. It is hypothesized that these lichens, which are both frost tolerant and dependent on atmospheric moisture, derive benefit in the form of increased moisture deposition as a result of ice nucleation.     

Purification and Characterization of a Secreted Laccase of Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici

We purified a secreted fungal laccase from filtrates of Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici cultures induced with copper and xylidine. The active protein had an apparent molecular mass of 190 kDa and yielded subunits with molecular masses of 60 kDa when denatured and deglycosylated. This laccase had a pI of 5.6 and an optimal pH of 4.5 with 2,6-dimethoxyphenol as its substrate. Like other, previously purified laccases, this one contained several copper atoms in each subunit, as determined by inductively coupled plasma spectroscopy. The active enzyme catalyzed the oxidation of 2,6-dimethoxyphenol (K_m = 2.6 × 10⁻⁵ ± 7 × 10⁻⁶ M), catechol (K_m = 2.5 × 10⁻⁴ ± 1 × 10⁻⁵ M), pyrogallol (K_m = 3.1 × 10⁻⁴ ± 4 × 10⁻⁵ M), and guaiacol (K_m = 5.1 × 10⁻⁴ ± 2 × 10⁻⁵ M). In addition, the laccase catalyzed the polymerization of 1,8-dihydroxynaphthalene, a natural fungal melanin precursor, into a high-molecular-weight melanin and catalyzed the oxidation, or decolorization, of the dye poly B-411, a lignin-like polymer. These findings indicate that this laccase may be involved in melanin polymerization in this phytopathogen’s hyphae and/or in lignin depolymerization in its infected plant host.     

A Large-Scale Genetic Analysis Reveals a Strong Contribution of the HLA Class II Region to Giant Cell Arteritis Susceptibility

We conducted a large-scale genetic analysis on giant cell arteritis (GCA), a polygenic immune-mediated vasculitis. A case-control cohort, comprising 1,651 case subjects with GCA and 15,306 unrelated control subjects from six different countries of European ancestry, was genotyped by the Immunochip array. We also imputed HLA data with a previously validated imputation method to perform a more comprehensive analysis of this genomic region. The strongest association signals were observed in the HLA region, with rs477515 representing the highest peak (p = 4.05 × 10⁻⁴⁰, OR = 1.73). A multivariate model including class II amino acids of HLA-DRβ1 and HLA-DQα1 and one class I amino acid of HLA-B explained most of the HLA association with GCA, consistent with previously reported associations of classical HLA alleles like HLA-DRB1^∗04. An omnibus test on polymorphic amino acid positions highlighted DRβ1 13 (p = 4.08 × 10⁻⁴³) and HLA-DQα1 47 (p = 4.02 × 10⁻⁴⁶), 56, and 76 (both p = 1.84 × 10⁻⁴⁵) as relevant positions for disease susceptibility. Outside the HLA region, the most significant loci included PTPN22 (rs2476601, p = 1.73 × 10⁻⁶, OR = 1.38), LRRC32 (rs10160518, p = 4.39 × 10⁻⁶, OR = 1.20), and REL (rs115674477, p = 1.10 × 10⁻⁵, OR = 1.63). Our study provides evidence of a strong contribution of HLA class I and II molecules to susceptibility to GCA. In the non-HLA region, we confirmed a key role for the functional PTPN22 rs2476601 variant and proposed other putative risk loci for GCA involved in Th1, Th17, and Treg cell function.     

Genome-wide Association Study Identifies Five Susceptibility Loci for Follicular Lymphoma outside the HLA Region

Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) of follicular lymphoma (FL) have previously identified human leukocyte antigen (HLA) gene variants. To identify additional FL susceptibility loci, we conducted a large-scale two-stage GWAS in 4,523 case subjects and 13,344 control subjects of European ancestry. Five non-HLA loci were associated with FL risk: 11q23.3 (rs4938573, p = 5.79 × 10⁻²⁰) near CXCR5; 11q24.3 (rs4937362, p = 6.76 × 10⁻¹¹) near ETS1; 3q28 (rs6444305, p = 1.10 × 10⁻¹⁰) in LPP; 18q21.33 (rs17749561, p = 8.28 × 10⁻¹⁰) near BCL2; and 8q24.21 (rs13254990, p = 1.06 × 10⁻⁸) near PVT1. In an analysis of the HLA region, we identified four linked HLA-DRβ1 multiallelic amino acids at positions 11, 13, 28, and 30 that were associated with FL risk (p_omnibus = 4.20 × 10⁻⁶⁷ to 2.67 × 10⁻⁷⁰). Additional independent signals included rs17203612 in HLA class II (odds ratio [OR_per-allele] = 1.44; p = 4.59 × 10⁻¹⁶) and rs3130437 in HLA class I (OR_per-allele = 1.23; p = 8.23 × 10⁻⁹). Our findings further expand the number of loci associated with FL and provide evidence that multiple common variants outside the HLA region make a significant contribution to FL risk.     

Mitochondrial Networks in Cardiac Myocytes Reveal Dynamic Coupling Behavior

Oscillatory behavior of mitochondrial inner membrane potential (ΔΨ_m) is commonly observed in cells subjected to oxidative or metabolic stress. In cardiac myocytes, the activation of inner membrane pores by reactive oxygen species (ROS) is a major factor mediating intermitochondrial coupling, and ROS-induced ROS release has been shown to underlie propagated waves of ΔΨ_m depolarization as well as synchronized limit cycle oscillations of ΔΨ_m in the network. The functional impact of ΔΨ_m instability on cardiac electrophysiology, Ca²⁺ handling, and even cell survival, is strongly affected by the extent of such intermitochondrial coupling. Here, we employ a recently developed wavelet-based analytical approach to examine how different substrates affect mitochondrial coupling in cardiac cells, and we also determine the oscillatory coupling properties of mitochondria in ventricular cells in intact perfused hearts. The results show that the frequency of ΔΨ_m oscillations varies inversely with the size of the oscillating mitochondrial cluster, and depends on the strength of local intermitochondrial coupling. Time-varying coupling constants could be quantitatively determined by applying a stochastic phase model based on extension of the well-known Kuramoto model for networks of coupled oscillators. Cluster size-frequency relationships varied with different substrates, as did mitochondrial coupling constants, which were significantly larger for glucose (7.78 × 10⁻² ± 0.98 × 10⁻² s⁻¹) and pyruvate (7.49 × 10⁻² ± 1.65 × 10⁻² s⁻¹) than lactate (4.83 × 10⁻² ± 1.25 × 10⁻² s⁻¹) or β-hydroxybutyrate (4.11 × 10⁻² ± 0.62 × 10⁻² s⁻¹). The findings indicate that mitochondrial spatiotemporal coupling and oscillatory behavior is influenced by substrate selection, perhaps through differing effects on ROS/redox balance. In particular, glucose-perfusion generates strong intermitochondrial coupling and temporal oscillatory stability. Pathological changes in specific catabolic pathways, which are known to occur during the progression of cardiovascular disease, could therefore contribute to altered sensitivity of the mitochondrial network to oxidative stress and emergent ΔΨ_m instability, ultimately scaling to produce organ level dysfunction.     

Factors Influencing the Induction of Freezing Tolerance by Abscisic Acid in Cell Suspension Cultures of Bromus inermis Leyss and Medicago sativa L

A 2-gram fresh weight inoculum of bromegrass (Bromus inermis Leyss. culture BG970) cell suspension culture treated with 7.5 × 10⁻⁵ molar abscisic acid (ABA) for 7 days at 25°C survived slow cooling to −60°C. Over 80% of the cells in ABA treated cultures survived immersion in liquid N₂ after slow cooling to −40 or −60°C. In contrast, a 6-gram fresh weight inoculum only attained a hardiness level of −28°C after 5 days of ABA treatment. Ethanol (2 × 10⁻² molar) added to the culture medium at the time of ABA addition, inhibited the freezing tolerance of bromegrass cells by 25°C. A 6-gram inoculum of both control and ABA treated bromegrass cells altered the pH of the medium more than a 2-gram inoculum. ABA inhibited the increase in fresh weight of bromegrass by 20% after 4 days. Both control and ABA (10⁻⁴ molar) treated alfalfa cells (Medicago sativa L.) grown at 25°C hardened from an initial LT₅₀ of −5°C to an LT₅₀ of −23°C by the third to fifth day after subculture. Thereafter, the cells dehardened but the ABA treated cells did not deharden to the same level as the control cells. ABA inhibited the increase in fresh weight of alfalfa by 50% after 5 days.     

Ultrasound-mediated DNA transfer for bacteria

In environmental microbiology, the most commonly used methods of bacterial DNA transfer are conjugation and electroporation. However, conjugation requires physical contact and cell–pilus–cell interactions; electroporation requires low-ionic strength medium and high voltage. These limitations have hampered broad applications of bacterial DNA delivery. We have employed a standard low frequency 40 kHz ultrasound bath to successfully transfer plasmid pBBR1MCS2 into Pseudomonas putida UWC1, Escherichia coli DH5α and Pseudomonas fluorescens SBW25 with high efficiency. Under optimal conditions: ultrasound exposure time of 10 s, 50 mM CaCl₂, temperature of 22°C, plasmid concentration of 0.8 ng/µl, P. putida UWC1 cell concentration of 2.5 × 10⁹ CFU (colony forming unit)/ml and reaction volume of 500 µl, the efficiency of ultrasound DNA delivery (UDD) was 9.8 ± 2.3 × 10⁻⁶ transformants per cell, which was nine times more efficient than conjugation, and even four times greater than electroporation. We have also transferred pBBR1MCS2 into E. coli DH5α and P. fluorescens SBW25 with efficiencies of 1.16 ± 0.13 × 10⁻⁶ and 4.33 ± 0.78 × 10⁻⁶ transformants per cell, respectively. Low frequency UDD can be readily scaled up, allowing for the application of UDD not only in laboratory conditions but also on an industrial scale.     

Routine OGTT: A Robust Model Including Incretin Effect for Precise Identification of Insulin Sensitivity and Secretion in a Single Individual

In order to provide a method for precise identification of insulin sensitivity from clinical Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT) observations, a relatively simple mathematical model (Simple Interdependent glucose/insulin MOdel SIMO) for the OGTT, which coherently incorporates commonly accepted physiological assumptions (incretin effect and saturating glucose-driven insulin secretion) has been developed. OGTT data from 78 patients in five different glucose tolerance groups were analyzed: normal glucose tolerance (NGT), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), impaired fasting glucose (IFG), IFG+IGT, and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM). A comparison with the 2011 Salinari (COntinuos GI tract MOdel, COMO) and the 2002 Dalla Man (Dalla Man MOdel, DMMO) models was made with particular attention to insulin sensitivity indices IS_COMO, IS_DMMO and k_xgi (the insulin sensitivity index for SIMO). ANOVA on k_xgi values across groups resulted significant overall (P<0.001), and post-hoc comparisons highlighted the presence of three different groups: NGT (8.62×10⁻⁵±9.36×10⁻⁵ min⁻¹pM⁻¹), IFG (5.30×10⁻⁵±5.18×10⁻⁵) and combined IGT, IFG+IGT and T2DM (2.09×10⁻⁵±1.95×10⁻⁵, 2.38×10⁻⁵±2.28×10⁻⁵ and 2.38×10⁻⁵±2.09×10⁻⁵ respectively). No significance was obtained when comparing IS_COMO or IS_DMMO across groups. Moreover, k_xgi presented the lowest sample average coefficient of variation over the five groups (25.43%), with average CVs for IS_COMO and IS_DMMO of 70.32% and 57.75% respectively; k_xgi also presented the strongest correlations with all considered empirical measures of insulin sensitivity. While COMO and DMMO appear over-parameterized for fitting single-subject clinical OGTT data, SIMO provides a robust, precise, physiologically plausible estimate of insulin sensitivity, with which habitual empirical insulin sensitivity indices correlate well. The k_xgi index, reflecting insulin secretion dependency on glycemia, also significantly differentiates clinically diverse subject groups. The SIMO model may therefore be of value for the quantification of glucose homeostasis from clinical OGTT data.     

Accumulation of Pharmaceuticals,Enterococcus, and Resistance Genes in Soils Irrigated with Wastewater for Zero to 100 Years in Central Mexico

Irrigation with wastewater releases pharmaceuticals, pathogenic bacteria, and resistance genes, but little is known about the accumulation of these contaminants in the environment when wastewater is applied for decades. We sampled a chronosequence of soils that were variously irrigated with wastewater from zero up to 100 years in the Mezquital Valley, Mexico, and investigated the accumulation of ciprofloxacin, enrofloxacin, sulfamethoxazole, trimethoprim, clarithromycin, carbamazepine, bezafibrate, naproxen, diclofenac, as well as the occurrence of Enterococcus spp., and sul and qnr resistance genes. Total concentrations of ciprofloxacin, sulfamethoxazole, and carbamazepine increased with irrigation duration reaching 95% of their upper limit of 1.4 µg/kg (ciprofloxacin), 4.3 µg/kg (sulfamethoxazole), and 5.4 µg/kg (carbamazepine) in soils irrigated for 19–28 years. Accumulation was soil-type-specific, with largest accumulation rates in Leptosols and no time-trend in Vertisols. Acidic pharmaceuticals (diclofenac, naproxen, bezafibrate) were not retained and thus did not accumulate in soils. We did not detect qnrA genes, but qnrS and qnrB genes were found in two of the irrigated soils. Relative concentrations of sul1 genes in irrigated soils were two orders of magnitude larger (3.15×10⁻³±0.22×10⁻³ copies/16S rDNA) than in non-irrigated soils (4.35×10⁻⁵±1.00×10⁻⁵ copies/16S rDNA), while those of sul2 exceeded the ones in non-irrigated soils still by a factor of 22 (6.61×10^–4±0.59×10⁻⁴ versus 2.99×10⁻⁵±0.26×10⁻⁵ copies/16S rDNA). Absolute numbers of sul genes continued to increase with prolonging irrigation together with Enterococcus spp. 23S rDNA and total 16S rDNA contents. Increasing total concentrations of antibiotics in soil are not accompanied by increasing relative abundances of resistance genes. Nevertheless, wastewater irrigation enlarges the absolute concentration of resistance genes in soils due to a long-term increase in total microbial biomass.     

Enzymes in cancer: Asparaginase from chicken liver

1. A procedure for partial purification of asparaginase from chicken liver is presented. 2. The bulk of the enzyme is located in the soluble fraction of chicken liver. 3. Molecular weights of chicken-liver asparaginase and of the guinea-pig serum enzyme, estimated by gel filtration, were 306000 and 210000 respectively. The Michaelis constants (K_m) at 37° and pH8·5 were 6·0×10⁻⁵m and 7·2×10⁻⁵m respectively. 4. At 50° the chicken-liver enzyme was moderately stable, some activity being lost by aggregation; in dilute electrolyte solutions the activity rapidly diminished. 5. The anti-lymphoma effect of guinea-pig serum in mice carrying the 6C3HED tumour was confirmed. Chicken-liver asparaginase also showed an effect but in this case the enzyme preparation had to be administered repeatedly. 6. Guinea-pig serum asparaginase was stable for several days in mouse blood, after intraperitoneal injection, whereas chicken-liver asparaginase rapidly disappeared. 7. Aspartic acid β-hydrazide was shown to be a competitive inhibitor of chicken-liver asparaginase with K_i approx. 5·6×10⁻⁴m. In mice it produced an anti-lymphoma effect, as reported previously.     

Transporting Antitumor Drug Tamoxifen and Its Metabolites, 4-Hydroxytamoxifen and Endoxifen by Chitosan Nanoparticles

Synthetic and natural polymers are often used as drug delivery systems in vitro and in vivo. Biodegradable chitosan of different sizes were used to encapsulate antitumor drug tamoxifen (Tam) and its metabolites 4-hydroxytamoxifen (4-Hydroxytam) and endoxifen (Endox). The interactions of tamoxifen and its metabolites with chitosan 15, 100 and 200 KD were investigated in aqueous solution, using FTIR, fluorescence spectroscopic methods and molecular modeling. The structural analysis showed that tamoxifen and its metabolites bind chitosan via both hydrophilic and hydrophobic contacts with overall binding constants of K _tam-ch-15  = 8.7 (±0.5)×10³ M⁻¹, K _tam-ch-100  = 5.9 (±0.4)×10⁵ M⁻¹, K _tam-ch-200  = 2.4 (±0.4)×10⁵ M⁻¹ and K _{hydroxytam-ch-15}  = 2.6(±0.3)×10⁴ M⁻¹, K _{hydroxytam – ch-100}  = 5.2 (±0.7)×10⁶ M⁻¹ and K _{hydroxytam-ch-200}  = 5.1 (±0.5)×10⁵ M⁻¹, K _endox-ch-15  = 4.1 (±0.4)×10³ M⁻¹, K _endox-ch-100  = 1.2 (±0.3)×10⁶ M⁻¹ and K _endox-ch-200  = 4.7 (±0.5)×10⁵ M⁻¹ with the number of drug molecules bound per chitosan (n) 2.8 to 0.5. The order of binding is ch-100>200>15 KD with stronger complexes formed with 4-hydroxytamoxifen than tamoxifen and endoxifen. The molecular modeling showed the participation of polymer charged NH₂ residues with drug OH and NH₂ groups in the drug-polymer adducts. The free binding energies of −3.46 kcal/mol for tamoxifen, −3.54 kcal/mol for 4-hydroxytamoxifen and −3.47 kcal/mol for endoxifen were estimated for these drug-polymer complexes. The results show chitosan 100 KD is stronger carrier for drug delivery than chitosan-15 and chitosan-200 KD.     

Erythrocruorin of Marphysa sanguinea. Isolation of some physical, physicochemical and other properties

1. The polychaete worm Marphysa sanguinea has a circulating erythrocruorin of mol.wt. about 2·4×10⁶ (S⁰_20,w 58·2s, D_20,w 2·06×10⁻⁷ cm.²/sec). This is the predominant form existing at pH 6–8 and (non-protein) I 0·10–0·21, and also at approx. pH 6·7 and I 0·15–3·00. 2. The pigment contains 2·24% of protohaem. 3. The 58s protein has an electrophoretic mobility of 8·08×10⁻⁵ cm.²/v/sec. at pH 8·12, I 0·21 and 0°. The isoelectric point of suspended particles is 4·63 at I 0·16 and 21·5°. 4. At very low ionic strength and pH 6·7 (unbuffered) the 58s pigment associates reversibly to 97s and 150s forms, which are probably dimer and tetramer species. 5. At pH 10·0 and I 0·025, it dissociates irreversibly to give a small amount of 2–4s non-haem-containing protein and much 9s haem-enriched protein. These and the 58s pigment may correspond to structures found in Levin's (1963) electron-microscope studies of other erythrocruorins. 6. Absorption spectra of the 58s oxygenated erythrocruorin and the deoxygenated and carbon monoxide derivatives have been obtained.     

Steady-State Effects of 2,5,2′,5′-Tetrachlorobiphenyl on Growth, Photosynthesis, and P Uptake in Selenastrum capricornutum

The steady-state effect of 2,5,2′,5′-tetrachlorobiphenyl (TCBP) on the green alga Selenastrum capricornutum was investigated in a P-limited two-stage chemostat system. The partition coefficient of this polychlorinated biphenyl congener was 5.9 × 10⁴ in steady-state cultures. At a cellular TCBP concentration of 12.2 × 10⁻⁸ ng · cell⁻¹, growth rate was not affected. However, photosynthetic capacity (P_max) was significantly enhanced by TCBP (56 × 10⁻⁹ μmol of C · cell⁻¹ · h⁻¹ versus 34 × 10⁻⁹ μmol of C · cell⁻¹ · h⁻¹ in the control). Photosynthetic efficiency, or the slope of the photosynthesis-irradiance curve, was also significantly higher. There was little difference in the cell chlorophyll a content, and therefore the difference in these photosynthetic characteristics was the same even when they were expressed on a per-chlorophyll a basis. Cell C content was higher in TCBP-containing cells than in TCBP-free cells, but approximately 36% of the C fixed by cells with TCBP was not incorporated as cell C. The maximum P uptake rate was also enhanced by TCBP, but the half-saturation concentration appeared to be unaffected.     

Populations of Anaerobic Phototrophic Bacteria in a Spartina alterniflora Salt Marsh

Habitat-simulating media were used with the Hungate anaerobic roll tube technique to enumerate culturable anaerobic photosynthetic bacteria in sediment, tidal waters, and Spartina alterniflora plant samples collected from the salt marsh at Sapelo Island, Ga. No phototrophs were detected in samples of creekside (low marsh) sediment or in tidal waters in creekside regions. In the high marsh region, 90% of anaerobic phototrophic bacteria occurred in the top 5 mm of sediment and none were detected below 6 mm. There was a seasonal variation, with maximal populations occurring in summer and fall (mean, 4.4 × 10⁵ phototrophs g of dry sediment⁻¹) and minimal numbers occurring in winter (mean, 3.9 × 10³ phototrophs g of dry sediment⁻¹). During winter and late spring, phototrophs had a patchy distribution over the high marsh sediment surface. In contrast, during late summer they had a random uniform distribution. Tidal water collected over high marsh sediment contained an average of 8.7 × 10² phototrophs ml⁻¹, with no significant seasonal variation. Anaerobic phototrophic bacteria were also cultured from the lower stem tissue of S. alterniflora growing in both the high (4.3 × 10⁴ phototrophs g of dry tissue⁻¹) and creekside (4.9 × 10⁴ phototrophs g of dry tissue⁻¹) marsh regions. Chromatium buderi, Chromatium vinosum, Thiospirillum sanguineum, Rhodospirillum molischianum, and Chlorobium phaeobacteroides were the predominant anaerobic phototrophic species cultured from high marsh sediment. The two Chromatium species were dominant.     

A th-1 Mutant of Arabidopsis thaliana Is Defective for a Thiamin-Phosphate-Synthesizing Enzyme: Thiamin Phosphate Pyrophosphorylase

We have examined the activity of the thiamin phosphate pyrophosphorylase in Arabidopsis thaliana wild type and in a mutant (th-1) which requires exogenous thiamin for growth. Mutant and wild-type plants grown in 1 × 10⁻⁷ molar thiamin were used for the examination of the production of thiamin and thiamin monophosphate (TMP) using 4-methyl-5-hydroxyethylthiazole phosphate and 2-methyl-4-amino-5-hydroxymethylpyrimidine pyrophosphate as substrates. While the wild-type strain formed both thiamin and TMP, the th-1 mutant did not. When TMP was added to the extracts, the th-1 mutant, as well as wild type, produced thiamin. Accordingly, it was concluded that the th-1 mutant was defective in the activity of TMP pyrophosphorylase. Some of the characteristics of the enzyme from the wild-type plant were examined. The optimum temperature for the reaction is 45°C, and the K_m values for the substrates are 2.7 × 10⁻⁶ molar for 4-methyl-5-hydroxyethylthiazole phosphate and 1.8 × 10⁻⁶ molar for 2-methyl-4-amino-5-hydroxymethylpyrimidine pyrophosphate.     

Modeling Reduction of Uranium U(VI) under Variable Sulfate Concentrations by Sulfate-Reducing Bacteria

The kinetics for the reduction of sulfate alone and for concurrent uranium [U(VI)] and sulfate reduction, by mixed and pure cultures of sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) at 21 ± 3°C were studied. The mixed culture contained the SRB Desulfovibrio vulgaris along with a Clostridium sp. determined via 16S ribosomal DNA analysis. The pure culture was Desulfovibrio desulfuricans (ATCC 7757). A zero-order model best fit the data for the reduction of sulfate from 0.1 to 10 mM. A lag time occurred below cell concentrations of 0.1 mg (dry weight) of cells/ml. For the mixed culture, average values for the maximum specific reaction rate, V_max, ranged from 2.4 ± 0.2 μmol of sulfate/mg (dry weight) of SRB · h⁻¹) at 0.25 mM sulfate to 5.0 ± 1.1 μmol of sulfate/mg (dry weight) of SRB · h⁻¹ at 10 mM sulfate (average cell concentration, 0.52 mg [dry weight]/ml). For the pure culture, V_max was 1.6 ± 0.2 μmol of sulfate/mg (dry weight) of SRB · h⁻¹ at 1 mM sulfate (0.29 mg [dry weight] of cells/ml). When both electron acceptors were present, sulfate reduction remained zero order for both cultures, while uranium reduction was first order, with rate constants of 0.071 ± 0.003 mg (dry weight) of cells/ml · min⁻¹ for the mixed culture and 0.137 ± 0.016 mg (dry weight) of cells/ml · min⁻¹ (U₀ = 1 mM) for the D. desulfuricans culture. Both cultures exhibited a faster rate of uranium reduction in the presence of sulfate and no lag time until the onset of U reduction in contrast to U alone. This kinetics information can be used to design an SRB-dominated biotreatment scheme for the removal of U(VI) from an aqueous source.     

Enzymes and cancer: Preparation and some properties of guanase from rabbit liver

1. Guanase has been purified 200-fold in 20% yield from the supernatant fraction of rabbit-liver homogenates, by using ammonium sulphate fractionation, calcium phosphate-gel adsorption and chromatography on DEAE-cellulose and Sephadex G-200. 2. K_m with guanine as substrate at the optimum pH of 7·7 was found to be 1·05×10⁻⁵m. Q₁₀ was 1·4 between 23° and 48°. 3. Substrate activity and pH optima of compounds related to guanine have been studied. 8-Azaguanine, 1-methylguanine, thioguanine and 1-methylthioguanine are all substrates.     

Environmental Influences on Vibrio Populations in Northern Temperate and Boreal Coastal Waters (Baltic and Skagerrak Seas)

Even if many Vibrio spp. are endemic to coastal waters, their distribution in northern temperate and boreal waters is poorly studied. To identify environmental factors regulating Vibrio populations in a salinity gradient along the Swedish coastline, we combined Vibrio-specific quantitative competitive PCR with denaturant gradient gel electrophoresis-based genotyping. The total Vibrio abundance ranged from 4 × 10³ to 9.6 × 10⁴ cells liter⁻¹, with the highest abundances in the more saline waters of the Skagerrak Sea. Several Vibrio populations were present throughout the salinity gradient, with abundances of single populations ranging from 5 × 10² to 7 × 10⁴ cells liter⁻¹. Clear differences were observed along the salinity gradient, where three populations dominated the more saline waters of the Skagerrak Sea and two populations containing mainly representatives of V. anguillarum and V. aestuarianus genotypes were abundant in the brackish waters of the Baltic Sea. Our results suggest that this apparent niche separation within the genus Vibrio may also be influenced by alternate factors such as nutrient levels and high abundances of dinoflagellates. A V. cholerae/V. mimicus population was detected in more than 50% of the samples, with abundances exceeding 10³ cells liter⁻¹, even in the cold (annual average water temperature of around 5°C) and low-salinity (2 to 4‰) samples from the Bothnian Bay (latitude, 65°N). The unsuspected and widespread occurrence of this population in temperate and boreal coastal waters suggests that potential Vibrio pathogens may also be endemic to cold and brackish waters and hence may represent a previously overlooked health hazard.