Lipoic Acid Does Not Affect The Growth of Mycoplasma hominis Cells In Vitro

Mycoplasma hominis is associated with various infections, for which the treatment can be complex. Lipoic acid (LA) plays a role as a cofactor in eukaryotes, most Bacteria, and some Archea. Research of recent years has increasingly pointed to the therapeutic properties of exogenously supplemented LA. The present study was conducted on 40 strains of M. hominis cultured with the following LA concentrations: 1,200 μg/ml, 120 μg/ml, and 12 μg/ml. The bacterial colonies of each strain were counted and expressed as the number of colony-forming units/ml (CFU). The number of CFU in M. hominis strains obtained in the presence of LA was compared with the number of CFU in the strains grown in the media without LA. The obtained results indicated that the presence of LA in the medium did not affect the growth of M. hominis. The investigation of the influence of LA on the growth and survival of microbial cells not only allows for obtaining an answer to the question of whether LA has antimicrobial activity and, therefore, can be used as a drug supporting the treatment of patients infected with a given pathogenic microorganism. Such studies are also crucial for a better understanding of LA metabolism in the microbial cells, which is also important for the search for new antimicrobial drugs. This research is, therefore, an introduction to such further studies.     

Ancient DNA reveals traces of Iberian Neolithic and Bronze Age lineages in modern Iberian horses

Multiple geographical regions have been proposed for the domestication of Equus caballus . It has been suggested, based on zooarchaeological and genetic analyses that wild horses from the Iberian Peninsula were involved in the process, and the overrepresentation of mitochondrial D1 cluster in modern Iberian horses supports this suggestion. To test this hypothesis, we analysed mitochondrial DNA from 22 ancient Iberian horse remains belonging to the Neolithic, the Bronze Age and the Middle Ages, against previously published sequences. Only the medieval Iberian sequence appeared in the D1 group. Neolithic and Bronze Age sequences grouped in other clusters, one of which (Lusitano group C) is exclusively represented by modern horses of Iberian origin. Moreover, Bronze Age Iberian sequences displayed the lowest nucleotide diversity values when compared with modern horses, ancient wild horses and other ancient domesticates using nonparametric bootstrapping analyses. We conclude that the excessive clustering of Bronze Age horses in the Lusitano group C, the observed nucleotide diversity and the local continuity from wild Neolithic Iberian to modern Iberian horses, could be explained by the use of local wild mares during an early Iberian domestication or restocking event, whereas the D1 group probably was introduced into Iberia in later historical times.     

Piecing together an integrative taxonomic puzzle: microsatellite,wing shape and aedeagus length analyses of Bactrocera dorsalis s.l. (Diptera: Tephritidae) find no evidence of multiple lineages in a proposed contact zone along the Thai/Malay Peninsula

Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel) and B. papayae Drew & Hancock represent a closely related sibling species pair for which the biological species limits are unclear; i.e. it is uncertain if they are truely two biological species, or one biological species which has been incorrectly split taxonomically. The geographical ranges of the two taxa are thought to abut or overlap on or around the Isthmus of Kra, a recognised biogeographic barrier located on the narrowest portion of the Thai Peninsula. We collected fresh material of B. dorsalis s.l. (i.e. B. dorsalis s.s.+ B. papayae) in a north–south transect down the Thai Peninsula, from areas regarded as being exclusively B. dorsalis s.s., across the Kra Isthmus, and into regions regarded as exclusively B. papayae. We carried out microsatellite analyses and took measurements of male genitalia and wing shape, both used previously to separate the taxa. No significant population structuring was found in the microsatellite analysis, consistent with one, predominantly panmictic population. Both morphological datasets showed consistent, clinal variation along the transect, without disjunction. No evidence supported historical vicariance driven by the Isthmus of Kra, and no dataset supported the current taxonomy of two species. Rather, within and across the area of range overlap or abutment between the two species, only continuous morphological and genetic variation was recorded. Recognition that morphological traits previously used to separate these taxa are continuous, and that there is no genetic evidence for population segregation in the region of suspected species overlap, is consistent with a growing body of literature that reports no evidence of biological differentiation between these taxa.     

Chromosome studies on some Asteraceae from South America

Mitotic or meiotic chromosome numbers for 42 accessions belonging to 39 species of different genera of Asteraceae were determined. First chromosome counts are reported for one genus ( Gymnocoronis ), 14 species, and one variety. These are as follows: Solidago chilensis var. megapotamica (2 n  = 2 x  = 18), Chromolaena barbacensis (2 n  = 3 x  = 30), Chromolaena christieana (2 n  = 3 x  = 30), Chromolaena hirsuta (2 n  = 4 x  = 40), Chromolaena verbenacea ( n  = 20 II, 2 n  = 4 x  = 40), Disynaphia multicrenulata (2 n  = 2 x  = 20), Gymnocoronis spilanthoides var. subcordata (2 n  = 2 x  = 20), Mikania thapsoides (2 n  = 4 x  = 68), Stevia commixta (2 n  = 2 x  = 22), Porophyllum brevifolium (2 n  = 4 x  = 44), Viguiera rojasii (2 n  = 2 x  = 34), Pterocaulon angustifolium (2 n  = 2 x  = 20), Gochnatia haumaniana (2 n  = 4 x  = 44), Senecio ostenii (2 n  = 4 x  = 40), Senecio pinnatus (2 n  = 8 x  = 80), and Lepidaploa amambaia (2 n  = 2 x  = 28). Chromosome numbers differing from those reported previously in the literature were found in Campuloclinium macrocephalum (2 n  = 2 x  = 20), Melanthera latifolia (2 n  = 4 x  = 60), Chrysolaena flexuosa (2 n  = 2 x  = 20), and Cyrtocymura cincta (2 n  = 4 x  = 40). The relevance of the results is discussed in relation to the available data for each of the analysed taxa. © 2007 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 2007, 153 , 221–230.     

Evidence of Actin in the Cytoskeleton of Microsporidia

Using transmission electron microscopy, immuno-electron microscopy, and biochemical techniques such as 2-D electrophoresis and immunoblotting, actin was found in all biological stages of the microsporidia Encephalitozoon hellem and Encephalitozoon cuniculi.     

Will climate change be beneficial or detrimental to the invasive swede midge in North America? Contrasting predictions using climate projections from different general circulation models

Climate change may dramatically affect the distribution and abundance of organisms. With the world's population size expected to increase significantly during the next 100 years, we need to know how climate change might impact our food production systems. In particular, we need estimates of how future climate might alter the distribution of agricultural pests. We used the climate projections from two general circulation models (GCMs) of global climate, the Canadian Centre for Climate Modelling and Analysis GCM (CGCM2) and the Hadley Centre model (HadCM3), for the A2 and B2 scenarios from the Special Report on Emissions Scenarios in conjunction with a previously published bioclimatic envelope model (BEM) to predict the potential changes in distribution and abundance of the swede midge, Contarinia nasturtii, in North America. The BEM in conjunction with either GCM predicted that C. nasturtii would spread from its current initial invasion in southern Ontario and northwestern New York State into the Canadian prairies, northern Canada, and midwestern United States, but the magnitude of risk depended strongly on the GCM and the scenario used. When the CGCM2 projections were used, the BEM predicted an extensive shift in the location of the midges' climatic envelope through most of Ontario, Quebec, and the maritime and prairie provinces by the 2080s. In the United States, C. nasturtii was predicted to spread to all the Great Lake states, into midwestern states as far south as Colorado, and west into Washington State. When the HadCM3 was applied, southern Ontario, Saskatchewan, and Washington State were not as favourable for C. nasturtii by the 2080s. Indeed, when used with the HadCM3 climate projections, the BEM predicted the virtual disappearance of ‘very favourable’ regions for C. nasturtii. The CGCM2 projections generally caused the BEM to predict a small increase in the mean number of midge generations throughout the course of the century, whereas, the HadCM3 projections resulted in roughly the same mean number of generations but decreased variance. Predictions of the likely potential of C. nasturtii spatial spread are thus strongly dependent on the source of climate projections. This study illustrates the importance of using multiple GCMs in combination with multiple scenarios when studying the potential for spatial spread of an organism in response to climate change.     

A new Silurian graptolite,Reticuloplectograptus, and its bearing on retiolitid evolution

Abstract: The retiolitid graptolite Reticuloplectograptus serpaglii gen. et sp. nov. from the Gorstian, lower Ludlow, has been found in two localities: the Bartoszyce borehole of Poland (Baltica), and the Bykoš section, Barrandian, Czech Republic (PeriGondwanan Europe). The Polish material is isolated and was studied under the SEM. The main characters of Reticuloplectograptus are similar to those of Plectograptus: an asymmetrical ancora, simple ancora umbrella with an incompletely developed rim and parallel ventral walls with mid‐ventral lists. The paired genicular processes of the new species are similar to but much wider than those of Plectograptus trijunctus and Plectograptus robustus. The main differences between the new genus and Plectograptus are the dense ancora sleeve wall and small proximal lateral orifices of the former. These primitive characters suggest that Reticuloplectograptus might be ancestral to genera with strong reduction in the proximal end, such as Plectograptus, Valentinagraptus and Kirkigraptus. However, Reticuloplectograptus appeared stratigraphically later than Plectograptus, indicating that this aspect of retiolitid evolution is more complicated, needing further study.     

Mandipropamid targets the cellulose synthase-like PiCesA3 to inhibit cell wall biosynthesis in the oomycete plant pathogen, Phytophthora infestans

Oomycete plant pathogens cause a wide variety of economically and environmentally important plant diseases. Mandipropamid (MPD) is a carboxylic acid amide (CAA) effective against downy mildews, such as Plasmopara viticola on grapes and potato late blight caused by Phytophthora infestans . Historically, the identification of the mode of action of oomycete-specific control agents has been problematic. Here, we describe how a combination of biochemical and genetic techniques has been utilized to identify the molecular target of MPD in P. infestans . Phytophthora infestans germinating cysts treated with MPD produced swelling symptoms typical of cell wall synthesis inhibitors, and these effects were reversible after washing with H₂O. Uptake studies with ¹⁴C-labelled MPD showed that this oomycete control agent acts on the cell wall and does not enter the cell. Furthermore, ¹⁴C glucose incorporation into cellulose was perturbed in the presence of MPD which, taken together, suggests that the inhibition of cellulose synthesis is the primary effect of MPD. Laboratory mutants, insensitive to MPD, were raised by ethyl methane sulphonate (EMS) mutagenesis, and gene sequence analysis of cellulose synthase genes in these mutants revealed two point mutations in the PiCesA3 gene, known to be involved in cellulose synthesis. Both mutations in the PiCesA3 gene result in a change to the same amino acid (glycine-1105) in the protein. The transformation and expression of a mutated PiCesA3 allele was carried out in a sensitive wild-type isolate to demonstrate that the mutations in PiCesA3 were responsible for the MPD insensitivity phenotype.     

Separation and partial characterization of chloroplast and cytoplasmic ribosomes from Euglena gracilis

Chloroplast and cytoplasmic ribosomes from Euglena graciliswere separated by centrifugation in zonal rotors. The particleswere characterized by their sedimentation rates as well as bytheir RNA components. Total extracts from green cells contained30S, 55S and 89S particles or their aggregates, depending uponthe Mg⁺⁺ concentration. Extracts from fractions enriched forchloroplasts contained essentially 30S and 55S particles, whilethe supernatant (obtained after sedimentation of the chloroplasts)contained predominantly 89S particles or aggregates of cytoplasmicribosomes. The 30S and 55S ribosomes contained RNA componentswhich were unique and distinct from those of the cytoplasmicribosomes. We were unable to detect 70S particles from the chloroplastpreparations. Under our conditions, chloroplast extracts yielded30S and 55S subunits or a series of rapidly sedimenting particles,possibly polysomes. Despite a variety of extraction techniques,we were unable to detect 70S particles from the chloroplasts. ¹This study was supported in part by grant No. HD 01787 fromthe U. S. Public Health Service. Journal paper of the New JerseyAgricultural Experiment Station (Received December 3, 1969; )