Quelling the red menace: haem capture by bacteria

Haem is an important bacterial nutrient. As a prosthetic group of several proteins, haem functions as a cofactor mediating oxygen transport, energy generation, and mixed-function oxidation. In addition, the iron chelated in the porphyrin ring may serve as an iron substrate for growth. However, because of its propensity for oxidizing cellular constituents, haem is always associated with proteins. Therefore, the uptake and transit of haem across bacterial membranes requires the participation of protein escorts. Bacteria have evolved a diverse array of surface-exposed receptors dedicated to binding haem and haem-proteins. Following this selective recognition at the bacterial cell surface, haem is transported across the outer membrane via a TonB-dependent process. The control of receptor expression appears to be multifactorial, probably involving a number of global regulators. A model integrating this information is presented.     

A link between transport and plasma membrane redox system(s) in carrot cells

Carrot (Daucus carota L.) cells grown in suspension culture oxidized exogeneous NADH. The NADH oxidation was able to stimulate K⁺ (⁸⁶Rb⁺) transport into cells, but it did not affect sucrose transport.N,N'-Dicyclohexyl-carbodiimide, diethylstilbestrol, and oligomycin, which only partially inhibited NADH oxidation, almost completely collapsed the K⁺ (⁸⁶Rb⁺) transport. Vanadate, which is less effective as an ion transport inhibitor, was less effective in inhibiting the NADH-driven transport of K⁺ (⁸⁶Rb⁺).p-Fluormethoxycarbonylcyanide phenylhydrazone inhibits the K⁺ transport over 90% including that induced by NADH. The results are interpreted as evidence that a plasma membrane redox system in root cells is closely associated with the ATPase which can drive K⁺ transport. Because of the inhibitor effects, it appears that membrane components common to the redox system and ATPase function in the transport of K⁺.     

A site-specific mutation within the active site of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase of Rhodospirillum rubrum

In vitro mutagenic techniques have generated an asp→glu substitution at residue 198 adjacent to the carbamate-divalent metal ion binding site of Rhodospirillum rubrum ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase. A single C→A nucleotide change in the coding strand created the mutant and introduced a new EcoRI restriction site on the expression plasmid pRR2119. Although the carboxylase:oxygenase ratio remained the same, the mutant enzyme had slightly altered kinetic properties. The e.p.r. spectra of the quaternary complexes enzyme.activator carbamate.Mn²⁺.2-carboxyarabinitol 1,5-bisphosphate and enzyme.activator carbamate.Mn²⁺.4-carboxyarabinitol 1,5-bisphosphate for mutant and wild-type enzymes were different, indicating that the metal ion was in a slightly altered environment. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that, besides the carbamate at lys 201, the carboxyl group of asp 198 contributes to the formation of the divalent metal ion binding site.     

A role for ornithine in the regulation of putrescine accumulation and ornithine decarboxylase activity in Reuber H35 hepatoma cells

We investigated the ability of intracellular ornithine to alter both the biosynthesis of putrescine and the activity of ornithine decarboxylase in Reuber H35 hepatoma cells in culture incubated with 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate (TPA). In confluent cultures of H35 cells, the addition of TPA (1.6 μM) caused the activity of ornithine decarboxylase to increase by more than 100-fold within 4 h. When exogenous ornithine (0.1–1.0 mM) was added to the culture medium with TPA, a marked dose-dependent increase in the production of putrescine was observed. The activity of ornithine decarboxylase in the same cultures incubated with ornithine decreased in a similar dose-dependent manner. The addition of arginine (0.1–1.0 mM) (but not lysine or histidine) to the H35 cells in culture concomitant with TPA also led to a relative increase in putrescine biosynthesis and a decrease in ornithine decarboxylase activity compared to cultures not receiving the amino acids. A similar response to exogenous ornithine and TPA was observed in a series of less confluent rapidly growing cultures which were in culture for a shorter period of time. The confluent cultures possessed a basal level of arginase (55 units/mg protein) which increased approx. 2-fold upon treatment with TPA. The intracellular concentration of ornithine in the unstimulated cells was in the order of 0.02–0.03 mM. Upon incubation of the cells with exogenous ornithine or arginine, the intracellular pools of these amino acids increased 4- to 8-fold.     

Nucleotide sequence determination of guinea-pig casein B mRNA reveals homology with bovine and rat alpha s1 caseins and conservation of the non-coding regions of the mRNA.

Nucleotide sequence analysis of cloned guinea-pig casein B cDNA sequences has identified two casein B variants related to the bovine and rat alpha s1 caseins. Amino acid homology was largely confined to the known bovine or predicted rat phosphorylation sites and within the 'signal' precursor sequence. Comparison of the deduced nucleotide sequence of the guinea-pig and rat alpha s1 casein mRNA species showed greater sequence conservation in the non-coding than in the coding regions, suggesting a functional and possibly regulatory role for the non-coding regions of casein mRNA. The results provide insight into the evolution of the casein genes, and raise questions as to the role of conserved nucleotide sequences within the non-coding regions of mRNA species.     

Orbital abscess following blepharoplasty

Orbital abscess following blepharoplasty is surprisingly rare. The diagnosis may not be obvious from the physical signs alone. Ultrasonography is a helpful diagnostic tool in such problems. The abscess cavity can be visualized. A case of orbital abscess is presented.     

Golgi-mediated vicilin accumulation in pea cotyledon cells is re-directed by monensin and nigericin

Summary A range of drugs was applied to developing pea seed cotyledons in an attempt to perturb the intracellular transport of newly synthesized vicilin through the endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi vesicles to its site of storage, the vacuole. The most pronounced effects, produced by the ionophores monensin and nigericin, were on Golgi-mediated transport. Unlike the situation in most other tissues that have been studied the number of Golgi vesicles did not increase, suggesting that their movement is not slowed or stopped. However, the Golgi-mediated transport of vicilin was redirected from the vacuole tonoplast to the plasmalemma and the newly synthesized vicilin was released from the cotyledon cells to accumulate between the plasmalemma and the cell wall.     

Separation and partial characterization of guinea-pig caseins.

1. Guinea-pig caseins A, B and C were purified free of each other by a combination of ion-exchange chromatography and gel filtration. 2. Determination of the amino acid composition showed all three caseins to contain a high proportion of proline and glutamic acid, but no cysteine. This apart, the amino acid composition of the three caseins was markedly different, though calculated divergence values suggest that some homology may exist between caseins A and B. Molecular-weight estimates based on amino acid composition were in good agreement with those based on sodium dodecyl sulphate/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis. 3. N-Terminal analysis showed lysine, methionine and lysine to be the N-terminal residues of caseins A, B and C respectively. 4. Two-dimensional separation of tryptic digests revealed a distinctive pattern for each casein. 5. All caseins were shown to be phosphoproteins. The casein C preparation also contained significant amounts of sialic acid, neutral and amino sugars. 6. The results suggest that each casein represents a separate gene product, and that the low-molecular-weight proteins are not the result of a post-translational cleavage of the largest. All were distinctly different from the whey protein alpha-lactalbumin.