Metabolism of volatile chlorinated aliphatic hydrocarbons by Pseudomonas fluorescens.

A Pseudomonas fluorescens strain designated PFL12 was isolated from soil and water that were contaminated with various chloroaliphatic hydrocarbons. The isolate was able to metabolize 1,2-dichloroethane, 1,1,2-trichloroethane, 1,2-dichloropropane, 2,2-dichloropropane, and trichloroethylene.     

Evidence for Plasmid Linkage of Raffinose Utilization and Associated alpha-Galactosidase and Sucrose Hydrolase Activity in Pediococcus pentosaceus

The ability to ferment the trisaccharide raffinose was linked with the presence of plasmid DNA in three strains of Pediococcus pentosaceus. Parental strains showed associated inducible alpha-galactosidase and sucrose hydrolase activities when grown in alpha-galactosides and sucrose, respectively. Derivative strains of PPE1.0, PPE2.0, and PPE5.0, which had lost 30-, 28-, and 23-megadalton plasmids, respectively, had no alpha-galactosidase or sucrose hydrolase activity.     

Pulmonary inflammation and edema induced by phospholipase A2: global gene analysis and effects on aquaporins and Na+/K+-ATPase

Victims of snakebite quickly succumb to severe respiratory failure, which can be fatal if left untreated. One of the most toxic components of snake venom is phospholipase A2 (PLA2; EC 3.1.1.4). PLA2 isolated from the elapid, Naja sputatrix, induced pulmonary inflammation and edema when administered intravenously and intratracheally to rats. Analysis of pulmonary gene expression profiles using oligonucleotide microarrays revealed 60 genes whose expression was altered by at least 3-fold in response to intratracheal instillation of PLA2 for 3 h as compared with controls. In addition to genes encoding cytokines and chemokines responsible for inflammatory processes, the Na+/K+-ATPase gene has been found to be involved in edema formation. Real-time PCR, Western blot, and immunohistochemical analyses confirmed that the expression of AQP1 and AQP5 mRNAs and proteins was decreased. Besides providing an experimental model for studies on the pathophysiology of the lung, this investigation yields a clue to the mechanisms by which endogenous PLA2s could mediate inflammation in conditions such as allergy and rheumatoid arthritis.     

Whole-Genome Sequences of Two Clinical Isolates of Mycobacterium tuberculosis from Kerala, South India

We report the annotated genome sequence of two clinical isolates of Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolated from Kerala, India.     

Construction and Screening of Chickpea cDNA Library with Heterologous Legumin cDNA Probe

A cDNA library was constructed from developing chickpea cotyledons in the expression vector λ gt 11. The library when plated on X-gal and IPTG showed about 35% recombinants. These recombinants were screened using pea legumin cDNA probe. Of a total of 4 × 10⁴ cDNA clones screened, 20 clones showed homology to legumin probe. The presence of cDNA insert in these clones was further confirmed by Southern blot hybridization.     

Reactive cysteine residues in the oxidative dimerization and Cu2+ induced aggregation of human γD-crystallin: Implications for age-related cataract

Cysteine (Cys) residues are major causes of crystallin disulfide formation and aggregation in aging and cataractous human lenses. We recently found that disulfide linkages are highly and partly conserved in β- and γ-crystallins, respectively, in human age-related nuclear cataract and glutathione depleted LEGSKO mouse lenses, and could be mimicked by in vitro oxidation. Here we determined which Cys residues are involved in disulfide-mediated crosslinking of recombinant human γD-crystallin (hγD). In vitro diamide oxidation revealed dimer formation by SDS-PAGE and LC-MS analysis with Cys 111-111 and C111-C19 as intermolecular disulfides and Cys 111-109 as intramolecular sites. Mutation of Cys111 to alanine completely abolished dimerization. Addition of αB-crystallin was unable to protect Cys 111 from dimerization. However, Cu²⁺-induced hγD-crystallin aggregation was suppressed up to 50% and 80% by mutants C109A and C111A, respectively, as well as by total glutathionylation. In contrast to our recently published results using ICAT-labeling method, manual mining of the same database confirmed the specific involvement of Cys111 in disulfides with no free Cys111 detectable in γD-crystallin from old and cataractous human lenses. Surface accessibility studies show that Cys111 in hγD is the most exposed Cys residue (29%), explaining thereby its high propensity toward oxidation and polymerization in the aging lens.     

Iron-Chelating Compounds Produced by Soil Pseudomonads: Correlation with Fungal Growth Inhibition

Strains of Pseudomonas putida, Pseudomonas sp., and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were examined for their ability to grow in the presence of the iron chelator, ethylenediamine-di-(o-hydroxyphenylacetic acid). In vitro fungal inhibition assays showed that the isolates varied in their ability to inhibit the growth of representative fungal plant pathogens. Fungal inhibition in vitro was superior to that of previously reported Pseudomonas sp. Studies with Fusarium oxysporum forma sp. lycopersici and a susceptible tomato cultivar demonstrated that Pseudomonas putida PPU3.1 was able to significantly reduce wilt disease.     

A methodology for separating uncertainty and variability in the life cycle greenhouse gas emissions of coal-fueled power generation in the USA

Purpose

Results of life cycle assessments (LCAs) of power generation technologies are increasingly reported in terms of typical values and possible ranges. Extents of these ranges result from both variability and uncertainty. Uncertainty may be reduced via additional research. However, variability is a characteristic of supply chains as they exist; as such, it cannot be reduced without modifying existing systems. The goal of this study is to separately quantify uncertainty and variability in LCA.

Methods

In this paper, we present a novel method for differentiating uncertainty from variability in life cycle assessments of coal-fueled power generation, with a specific focus on greenhouse gas emissions. Individual coal supply chains were analyzed for 364 US coal power plants. Uncertainty in CO₂ and CH₄ emissions throughout these supply chains was quantified via Monte Carlo simulation. The method may be used to identify key factors that drive the range of life cycle emissions as well as the limits of precision of an LCA.

Results and discussion

Using this method, we statistically characterized the carbon footprint of coal power in the USA in 2009. Our method reveals that the average carbon footprint of coal power (100 year time horizon) ranges from 0.97 to 1.69 kg CO₂eq/kWh of generated electricity (95 % confidence interval), primarily due to variability in plant efficiency. Uncertainty in the carbon footprints of individual plants spans a factor of 1.04 for the least uncertain plant footprint to a factor of 1.2 for the most uncertain plant footprint (95 % uncertainty intervals). The uncertainty in the total carbon footprint of all US coal power plants spans a factor of 1.05.

Conclusions

We have developed and successfully implemented a framework for separating uncertainty and variability in the carbon footprint of coal-fired power plants. Reduction of uncertainty will not substantially reduce the range of predicted emissions. The range can only be reduced via substantial changes to the US coal power infrastructure. The finding that variability is larger than uncertainty can obviously not be generalized to other product systems and impact categories. Our framework can, however, be used to assess the relative influence of uncertainty and variability for a whole range of product systems and environmental impacts.     

Tolerance of Bt corn (MON 810) to maize stem borer, Chilo partellus (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)

Transgenic corn (MON 810), expressing the Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) protein, Cry1Ab, was evaluated under greenhouse conditions for its tolerance to the maize stem borer, Chilo partellus. Bt corn (MON 810) provided effective protection against the stem borer even under a high level of larval infestation in the greenhouse. The observed tolerance is examined and discussed in the light of the susceptibility of C. partellus to the Cry1Ab protein in laboratory bioassays. The implications of the tissue concentrations of Cry1Ab in MON 810, and baseline susceptibility recorded in the current study, for insect-resistance management are discussed.