Initial activation of cyclin-B1-cdc2 kinase requires phosphorylation of cyclin B1

At the G₂/M transition of the cell cycle, the cdc25c phosphatase dephosphorylates inhibitory residues of cdc2, and cyclin-B–cdc2 kinase (MPF) is activated. Phosphorylation of cyclin B1 induces its nuclear accumulation, and, since cdc25c is also believed to accumulate and activate shortly before G₂/M in the nucleus, it has been proposed that this induces cyclin-B1–cdc2 kinase activation. We demonstrate that cyclin B1 phosphorylation has another essential function in vivo: it is required for cdc25c and MPF activation, which does not require nuclear accumulation of cyclin B1, and occurs in the cytoplasm.     

Expression of Multiple Sexual Signals by Fathers and Sons in the East-Mediterranean Barn Swallow: Are Advertising Strategies Heritable?

The level of expression of sexually selected traits is generally determined by genes, environment and their interaction. In species that use multiple sexual signals which may be costly to produce, investing in the expression of one sexual signal may limit the expression of the other, favoring the evolution of a strategy for resource allocation among signals. As a result, even when the expression of sexual signals is condition dependent, the relative level of expression of each signal may be heritable. We tested this hypothesis in the East-Mediterranean barn swallow (Hirundo rustica transitiva), in which males have been shown to express two uncorrelated sexual signals: red-brown ventral coloration, and long tail streamers. We show that variation in both signals may partially be explained by age, as well as by paternal origin (genetic father-son regressions), but that the strongest similarity between fathers and sons is the relative allocation towards one trait or the other (relative expression index), rather than the expression of the traits themselves. These results suggest that the expression of one signal is not independent of the other, and that genetic strategies for resource allocation among sexual signals may be selected for during the evolution of multiple sexual signals.     

Results of satellite tagging of Atlantic bluefin tuna, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Thunnus thynnus</Emphasis>, off the coast of Ireland

Pop-up satellite archival tags were attached to six Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) off the west coast of Ireland in autumn 2003 and 2004. The satellite tags measured pressure, ambient temperature and light for the term of deployment. Radio pop-up satellite endpoint positions, light and sea surface temperature estimations of geolocation indicate that two fish tagged minutes apart off the coast of County Donegal, migrated to the eastern and western Atlantic Ocean over the following 8 months. The two fish were 5218 km apart at the termination of the experiment. After tagging in September and popping up the following March and April, one fish had traveled to the western Atlantic while the other was located in the waters off the southwest coast of Portugal. A third fish tagged off the coast of County Donegal in October 2004 moved into the Mediterranean Sea and was caught by a fishing vessel southeast of Malta on 11 June 2005. The results link bluefin tuna feeding on European foraging grounds with known eastern breeding regions and western Atlantic waters.     

Parasitism <Emphasis Type="Italic">versus</Emphasis> mutualism in the ant-garden parabiosis between <Emphasis Type="Italic">Camponotus femoratus</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Crematogaster levior</Emphasis>

Ant-gardens represent a special type of association between ants and epiphytes. Frequently, two ant species can share the same nest in a phenomenon known as ‘parabiosis’, but the exact nature (i.e., mutualistic or parasitic) of this interaction is the subject of debate. We thus attempted to clarify the mutual costs and benefits for each partner (ants and plants) in the Crematogaster levior/Camponotus femoratus ant-garden parabiosis. The ants’ response to experimental foliar damage to the epiphytes and to the host tree as well as their behavior and interactions during prey capture were investigated to see if the purported parasitic status of Cr. levior could be demonstrated in either the ant-ant or in the ant-plant interactions. The results show that both species take part in protecting the epiphytes, refuting the role of Cr. levior as a parasite of the ant-garden mutualism. During capture of large prey Ca. femoratus took advantage from the ability of Cr. levior to discover prey; by following Cr. levior trails Ca. femoratus workers discover the prey in turn and usurp them during agonistic interactions. Nevertheless, the trade-off between the costs and benefits of this association seems then to be favorable to both species because it is known that Cr. levior benefits from Ca. femoratus building the common carton nests and furnishing protection from vertebrates. Consequently, parabiosis can then be defined as the only mutualistic association existing between ant species, at least in ant-gardens. Received 31 August 2006 ; revised 8 December 2006 ; accepted 12 December 2006     

Role of protein synthesis and proteases in production and inactivation of maturation-promoting activity during meiotic maturation of starfish oocytes

In starfish oocytes, activity of the maturation-promoting factor (MPF) and that of a major cAMP-independent protein kinase dropped at the time of meiotic cleavage, and rose again after the first but not the second meiotic cleavage. Protein synthesis was required before the first meiotic cleavage for both MPF and protein kinase activity to rise again after the first meiotic cleavage. Microinjection of either leupeptin or soybean trypsin inhibitor early enough prior to first polar body emission suppressed both the meiotic cleavage and the associated drop of MPF activity. Microinjection of leupeptin or soybean trypsin inhibitor during the 10-min period before the first meiotic cleavage also suppressed cytokinesis but did not prevent a decrease in MPF activity at the normal time of cytokinesis. The lysosomotropic inhibitor ammonia neither suppressed cytokinesis nor the drop of MPF activity at the time of first meiotic cleavage. Activity of neutral proteases sensitive to leupeptin and soybean trypsin inhibitor was demonstrated in oocyte homogenates prepared at the time of first meiotic cleavage. It is proposed that such proteases might be involved in degradation of protein kinase(s) and in the drop of MPF activity at the time of first meiotic cleavage.     

Parthenogenetic activation decreases the polyphosphoinositide content of frog eggs

Polyphosphoinositides were quantified in metaphase II-arrested eggs of the amphibian Xenopus laevis and 8-10 min later in eggs activated by pricking. The content of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-biphosphate (PIP2) was remarkably high in metaphase II-arrested eggs with respect to that of phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate (PIP). It was found to drop dramatically at activation. In contrast PIP content did not change significantly.     

Quantification of isotope encoded proteins in 2-D gels using surface enhanced resonance Raman

A strategy for quantification of multiple protein isoforms from a complex sample background is demonstrated, combining isotopomeric rhodamine 6G (R6G) labels and surface-enhanced Raman in polyacrylamide matrix. The procedure involves isotope-encoding by lysine-labeling with (R6G) active ester reagents, isoform separation by 2-DGE, fluorescence quantification using internal standardization to water, and silver nanoparticle deposition followed by surface-enhanced Raman detection. R6G sample encoding and standardization enabled the determination of total protein concentration and the distribution of specific isoforms using the combined detection approach of water-referenced fluorescence spectral imaging and ratiometric quantification. A detection limit of approximately 13.5 picomolar R6G-labeled protein was determined for the surface-enhanced Raman in a gel matrix (15-fold lower than fluorescence). High quantification accuracies for small differences in protein populations at low nanogram abundance were demonstrated for human GMP synthetase (hGMPS) either as purified protein samples in a single-point determination mode (3% relative standard deviation, RSD%) or as HCT116 human cancer cellular lysate in an imaging application (with 16% RSD%). These results represent a prototype for future applications of isotopic surface-enhanced resonance Raman scatter to quantification of protein distributions.     

Distinct protective mechanisms of HO-1 and HO-2 against hydroperoxide-induced cytotoxicity

Heme oxygenases (HO-1 and HO-2) catalyze the NADPH-cytochrome P(450) reductase (CPR)-dependent degradation of heme into iron, carbon monoxide, and biliverdin, which is reduced into bilirubin. Under basal conditions, HO-1 is often undetected and can be induced by numerous stress conditions. Although HO-2 is constitutively expressed, its activity appears to be regulated by post-translational modifications. HO activity has been associated with cellular protection, by which it degrades heme, a prooxidant, into bioactive metabolites. Under given circumstances, overexpression of HO-1 can render cells more sensitive to free radicals. Here, we investigated the properties of human HO isoforms that protect against oxidative stress. Considering that CPR can be a limiting factor for optimal HO activity, we tested stable HO-1 and HO-2 cell lines that derived from the CPR cells. Results indicate that the HO-1 and HO-2 cells are more resistant than controls to hemin and to the organic tert-butyl hydroperoxide, t-BuOOH. However, HO-1 cells are less resistant than HO-2 cells to hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)). The levels of oxidatively modified proteins of HO-1 and HO-2 cells in response to t-BuOOH toxicity are identical, but the level of oxidatively modified proteins of HO-2 cells is less than that of HO-1 cells in response to H(2)O(2) toxicity. Performing subcellular fractionations revealed that HO-2 and CPR are found together in the microsomal fractions, whereas HO-1 is partially present in the microsome and also found in other fractions, such as the cytosol. These same findings were observed in non-transfected primary neurons where HO-1 proteins were chemically induced with 15-deoxy-Delta(12,14)-prostaglandin J(2) (15dPGJ(2)). The differences in subcellular localization of HO-1 and HO-2 could explain some of the discrepancies in their cellular activity and enzymatic protective mechanisms.     

Oligosaccharide identification and mixture quantification using Raman spectroscopy and chemometric analysis

This work demonstrates the feasibility of using Raman spectroscopy for the analysis of small quantities of chemically similar oligosaccharides and their mixtures. Raman spectra were obtained from 10-microL aliquots of 1 mM solutions of maltotetraose and/or stachyose after deposition onto an electrochemically roughened silver substrate (and the resulting spectral features are attributed to a combination of normal and surface-enhanced Raman scattering). These compounds were selected because they are representative of glycans derived from post-translationally modified proteins which, like these compounds, often consist of isomers of equal mass and similar shape. Replicate spectral measurements were recorded and processed using a partial-least-squares (PLS) classification and quantification algorithms with a leave-one-batch-out (LOBO) training and testing procedure. Spectra derived from solutions of individual sugars were identified with 100% accuracy, and mixtures of the two sugars were quantified with an average error of 2.7% in the relative maltotetraose/stachyose composition for mixtures with a total oligosaccharide concentration of 1 mM.