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Electrophysiological and biochemical responses of mouse vomeronasal receptor cells to urine-derived compounds: possible mechanism of action 总被引:1,自引:1,他引:0
Receptor cells of the vomeronasal organ (VNO) are thought to detect
pheromone-like molecules important for reproductive physiology. Several
compounds derived from male mouse urine have been demonstrated to affect
endocrine events in female mice. In the present study, the ability of these
compounds to affect VNO activity was tested. In dissociated VNO cells held
under voltage clamp conditions, application of dehydro-exo-brevicomin (DHB)
evoked an outward current at negative holding potentials and an inward
current at positive holding potentials. Under current clamp, DHB reduced
action potential firing. Since DHB application caused a decrease in
membrane conductance, this compound appeared to act by reducing inward
current through closing an ion channel. Biochemical experiments tested the
effects of DHB and 2- (sec-butyl)-4,5-dihydrothiazole (SBT) on cAMP levels
in the VNO. A mixture of DHB and SBT decreased cAMP levels in VNO sensory
tissue and had no effect on VNO non-sensory tissue. The results suggest
that pheromones have an inhibitory influence on action potential generation
and on cAMP levels in receptor cells of the VNO.
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33.
Carbamoylphosphate synthetase (CPS) catalyzes the first committed step in
pyrimidine biosynthesis, arginine biosynthesis, or the urea cycle.
Organisms may contain either one generalized or two specific CPS enzymes,
and these enzymes may be heterodimeric (encoded by linked or unlinked
genes), monomeric, or part of a multifunctional protein. In order to help
elucidate the evolution of CPS, we have performed a comprehensive
phylogenetic analysis using the 21 available complete CPS sequences,
including a sequence from Sulfolobus solfataricus P2 which we report in
this paper. This is the first report of a complete CPS gene sequence from
an archaeon, and sequence analysis suggests that it encodes an enzyme
similar to heterodimeric CPSII. We confirm that internal similarity within
the synthetase domain of CPS is the result of an ancient gene duplication
that preceded the divergence of the Bacteria, Archaea, and Eukarya, and use
this internal duplication in phylogenetic tree construction to root the
tree of life. Our analysis indicates with high confidence that this
archaeal sequence is more closely related to those of Eukarya than to those
of Bacteria. In addition to this ancient duplication which created the
synthetase domain, our phylogenetic analysis reveals a complex history of
further gene duplications, fusions, and other events which have played an
integral part in the evolution of CPS.
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34.
Seegmiller A; Williams KR; Hammersmith RL; Doak TG; Witherspoon D; Messick T; Storjohann LL; Herrick G 《Molecular biology and evolution》1996,13(10):1351-1362
Internal eliminated sequences (IESs) often interrupt ciliate genes in the
silent germline nucleus but are exactly excised and eliminated from the
developing somatic nucleus from which genes are then expressed. Some long
IESs are transposons, supporting the hypothesis that short IESs are ancient
transposon relics. In light of that hypothesis and to explore the
evolutionary history of a collection of IESs, we have compared various
alleles of a particular locus (the 81 locus) of the ciliated protozoa
Oxytricha trifallax and O. fallax. Three short IESs that interrupt two
genes of the locus are found in alleles from both species, and thus must be
relatively ancient, consistent with the hypothesis that short IESs are
transposon relics. In contrast, TBE1 transposon interruptions of the locus
are allele-specific and probably the results of recent transpositions.
These IESs (and the TBE1s) are precisely excised from the DNA of the
developing somatic macronucleus. Each IES interrupts a highly conserved
sequence. A few nucleotides at the ends of each IES are also conserved,
suggesting that they interact critically with IES excision machinery.
However, most IES nucleotide positions have evolved at high rates, showing
little or no selective constraint for function. Nonetheless, the length of
each IES has been maintained (+/- 3 bp). While one IES is approximately 33
bp long, three other IESs have very similar sizes, approximately 70 bp
long. Two IESs are surrounded by direct repeats of the sequence TTCTT. No
other sequence similarities were found between any of the four IESs.
However, the ends of one IES do match the inverted terminal repeat
consensus sequence of the "TA" IESs of Paramecium. Three O. trifallax
alleles appear to have been recipients in recent conversion events that
could have been provoked by double-strand breaks associated with IES ends
subsequent to IES transposition. Our findings support the hypothesis that
short IESs evolved from ancient transposons that have lost most of their
sequences, except those necessary for precise excision during macronuclear
development.
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Abstract The Open Bay Island skink (Oligosoma taumakae) is one of New Zealand's rarest lizard species. Until 2010, it was known only from two small islands in the Open Bay Island Group, a Māori-owned wildlife sanctuary in South Westland, New Zealand. Skinks on these islands are threatened by predation from weka (Gallirallus australis), a flightless native rail thought to have been introduced to the Open Bay Islands c. 100 years ago. Here, we describe the discovery of Open Bay Island skinks on two vegetated rock stacks located off the coast of Barn Bay, 52 km southwest of the Open Bay Islands. Although small (c. 0.10 and 0.36 ha), the Barn Islands appear to be predator-free, providing an important sanctuary for the skinks. We recommend: (1) a survey of mainland sites with suitable habitat; and (2) an evaluation of the need for island biosecurity measures for detecting and responding to incursions of small mammals. 相似文献
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Both the Entamoeba histolytica lectin, a virulence factor for the causative
agent of amebiasis, and the mammalian hepatic lectin bind to
N-acetylgalactosamine (GalNAc) and galactose (Gal) nonreducing termini on
oligosaccharides, with preference for GalNAc. Polyvalent GalNAc-
derivatized neoglycoproteins have >1000-fold enhanced binding affinity
for both lectins (Adler,P., Wood,S.J., Lee,Y.C., Lee,R.T., Petri,W.A.,Jr.
and Schnaar,R.L.,1995, J. Biol. Chem ., 270, 5164-5171). Substructural
specificity studies revealed that the 3-OH and 4-OH groups of GalNAc were
required for binding to both lectins, whereas only the E.histolytica lectin
required the 6-OH group. Whereas GalNAc binds with 4-fold lower affinity to
the E.histolytica lectin than to the mammalian hepatic lectin,
galactosamine and N-benzoyl galactosamine bind with higher affinity to the
E. histolytica lectin. Therefore, a synthetic scheme for converting
polyamine carriers to poly-N-acyl galactosamine derivatives (linked through
the galactosamine primary amino group) was developed to test whether such
ligands would bind the E.histolytica lectin with high specificity and high
affinity. Contrary to expectations, polyvalent derivatives including
GalN6lys5, GalN4desmosine, GalN4StarburstTMdendrimer, and
GalN8StarburstTMdendrimer demonstrated highly enhanced binding to the
mammalian hepatic lectin but little or no enhancement of binding to the
E.histolytica lectin. We propose that the mammalian hepatic lectin binds
with greatest affinity to GalNAc "miniclusters," which mimic branched
termini of N-linked oligosaccharides, whereas the E.histolytica lectin
binds most effectively to "maxiclusters," which may mimic more widely
spaced GalNAc residues on intestinal mucins.
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