Bacterial inhibition of Orobanche aegyptiaca and Orobanche cernua radical elongation

The ability of different bacteria to inhibit Orobanche radical elongation was examined. Seeds of Orobanche aegyptiaca Pers. and O. cernua Loefl. were induced to germinate with the Growth Regulator GR24 in the presence or absence of test bacterium. Radical lengths were estimated microscopically on a scale relative to seed length (0–5 seed lengths) after 5 days of incubation at 25°C. The results indicated that Pseudomonas aeruginosa QUBC1, P. fluorescens QUBC3, Bacillus atrophaeus QUBC16, and B. subtilis QUBC18 significantly inhibited radical elongation (P≤0.01) of both O. aegyptiaca and O. cernua relative to control radicals, whereas Microbacterium hydrocarbonoxydans QUBC11 and Ochrobactrum anthropi QUBC13 showed less inhibitory effects. Other bacterial isolates had no inhibitory effects. Bacterial isolates were identified using the universal method in addition to morphological and biochemical features. The establishment of the inhibitory effect of the most promising isolates, B. atrophaeus QUBC16 and P. aeruginosa QUBC1 on radical elongation of both Orobanche spp. is a step towards utilizing such bacteria as biocontrol agents against O. aegyptiaca, O. cernua, and potentially other Orobanche species.     

A possible role of cyclic 3′,5′-adenosine monophosphate in the germination of Cicer arietinum seeds

Changes in the activities of adenyl cyclase, cyclic AMP phosphodiesterase, protein phosphokinase, RNase, protease, DNA, RNA and protein synthesis during the initial imbibition phase of the germination cycle of Cicer arietinum (chick pea, Bengal gram) are reported. Activation of adenyl cyclase and phosphorylation of cellular proteins appears to precede RNA and protein synthesis in the imbibed seeds.     

Association between the lipoprotein lipase rs1534649 gene polymorphism in intron one with Body Mass Index and High Density Lipoprotein-Cholesterol

Lipoprotein lipase (LPL) is an enzyme involved in lipid metabolism and distribution of fatty acids hence its role in the initiation and development of dyslipidemia and adiposity. Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) across the LPL gene have been associated with dyslipidemia, however, the association with obesity has been limited towards specific populations. This study examined the association between LPL gene polymorphisms with plasma lipid levels and body mass index (BMI) in the Kuwaiti population. We examined a total of 486 adults (303 and 183 females and males respectively) with plasma lipid levels and BMI. DNA samples were genotyped for two LPL gene polymorphisms (rs1534649 and rs28645722) using TaqMan allelic discrimination. The relationship between the genotypes with both plasma lipid levels and BMI were assessed using linear regression using “SNPassoc” package from R statistical software. Using an additive genetic model, linear regression analysis showed the T-allele of rs1534649 to be associated with increased BMI in a dose-dependent trend β = 2.13 (95% CI 1.33–2.94); p = 1.7 × 10^?7. In addition, a borderline significance was observed between the T-allele and low levels of high density lipoprotein-cholesterol β = ?0.04 (95% CI ?0.08, ?0.006); p = 0.02. There were no associations between rs28645722 and plasma lipid levels (p > 0.05). However, a trend was observed between the A-allele and increased BMI β = 1.75 (95% CI 0.14–3.35); p = 0.03. Our study shows intron one polymorphism rs1534649 to increase the risk of obesity and dyslipidemia. Our findings warrant further investigation of the mechanism of LPL on the development of obesity along with the role of intron one and its impact on LPL gene activity.     

An Immuno-informatics driven Epitope study from the molecular interaction of JEV non-structural (NS) proteins with Ribophorin (RPN)

Japanese encephalitis (JE) is an acute viral infection of the central nervous system where the JE virus infects the lumen of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and rapidly accumulates substantial amount of seven different nonstructural proteins (NS). These NS proteins tend to bind on a glycoprotein receptor, ribophorin (RPN) resulting in the malfunctioning of ER in host cells, subsequently triggering an unfolded protein response. Therefore, it is of interest to predict the best possible antigenic determinants in the NS protein capable of eliciting immune response as a strategy to combat JE. Hence, it is our interest to explore the most potent NS protein among all showing the best possible molecular interaction with the RPN receptor present on ER. However, the structures of these NS protein and RPN are currently unknown. Thus, we modeled their structures using the established homology modeling techniques in the MODELLER 9v10 software. The molecular docking of NS proteins with RPN was subsequently completed using the Discovery Studio 2.5 software suite. The docked conformations of RPN with NS were further analyzed and its graphical interpretations were presented for identifying the most potential NS protein for efficient epitope activity. Further, the B cell epitopes were mapped using BCPred and the predicted epitope regions are documented. The data presented in this report provides useful insights towards the design and development of potential epitopes to generate a vaccine candidate against JEV.     

Systematics of Alloteuthis (Cephalopoda:Loliginidae) based on molecular and morphometric data

Alloteuthis is a group of small, slender loliginid squids of minor fisheries importance. There are three nominal Alloteuthis species—A. media (Linnaeus), A. subulata (Lamarck) and A. africana Adam. Two of these species (A. media and A. subulata) have largely overlapping ranges in the Mediterranean and northeastern Atlantic, while A. africana is found along the west coast of Africa. Despite the low level of species diversity, Alloteuthis taxonomy and systematics are confused, and assignment of specimens to species can be difficult. To clarify Alloteuthis systematics, we gathered morphometric data and DNA sequence data from two mitochondrial loci and a nuclear locus from Alloteuthis specimens collected from several localities. Analyses of the morphometric data suggest that head width is the main variable allowing separation of A. africana from the other two species, and central club sucker size separates A. media from A. subulata. One easily diagnosable character often used to distinguish Alloteuthis species—relative fin length—appears to be of little taxonomic value. Only three specimens assignable to A. subulata both morphologically and genetically were found, all from the Adriatic; possible reasons for this apparent rarity are discussed. Gene tree parsimony and coalescent-based methods were used to estimate species relationships from the molecular data, and both supported a sister-species relationship between A. media and A. subulata. Analyses of molecular variation (AMOVA's) revealed significant genetic differentiation between Atlantic and Mediterranean A. media. This study highlights the importance of 1) sampling multiple individuals, locations and loci for species-level phylogenetic studies, 2) using morphometric analyses to reveal taxonomically meaningful morphological characters and 3) accounting for the stochastic nature of the coalescent process when estimating species phylogenies for closely related taxa.     

Shear Pulses Nucleate Fibril Aggregation

We have studied the effect of shear flow on the formation of amyloid fibrils of the whey protein β-lactoglobulin. β-Lactoglobulin aggregates into long, thin, and semiflexible fibrils upon heating at low pH and low ionic strength. Solutions with a protein concentration of 0.5% (w/w) were used, and the formation of fibrils was quantified with flow-induced birefringence, a proportional measure of the length concentration of the fibrils. From the decay of the birefringence after cessation of the flow, a length distribution could be fitted. Pulsed and continuous shear treatment of the samples resulted in a comparable enhancement of the fibrillar growth as compared to the fibrillar growth under quiescent conditions. This indicates that the onset of shear flow is the key parameter for the enhancement of fibrillar growth and not the continuous shear flow itself. This behavior is comparable to a nucleation-like process, during which preaggregates of the fibrils are induced during the onset of the flow and orthokinetic coagulation is absent. However, a difference was present in the length distribution between the pulsed and continuously sheared samples, which can be explained by the homogenizing effect of shear flow.     

Fusion of mycoplasmas: the formation of cell hybrids

Borrelia burgdorferi grew more slowly in iron-depleted than in iron-sufficient media. The addition of increasing concentrations of iron stimulated borrelial growth and resulted in the intracellular accumulation of this element. Compared with iron-starved borrelia, iron-enriched organisms showed enhanced sensitivity to hydrogen peroxide. Intracellular iron-content did not, however, influence susceptibility to killing by human polymorphonuclear leucocytes [corrected].