A Unified Rapid PCR Method for Detection of Normal and Expanded Trinucleotide Alleles of CAG Repeats in Huntington Chorea and CGG Repeats in Fragile X Syndrome

We report on a unified rapid betaine-based-PCR protocol for amplification of the (CAG)n region in Huntington disease (HD) and the (CGG)n region in Fragile X syndrome (FXS), followed by an electrophoretic separation on automated sequencer for precise determination of the triplet numbers. The high betaine concentration (2.5 M betaine) permits precise amplification of the CAG and CGG repeats. Ten HD affected patients and 10 healthy individuals from HD families were re-evaluated. For FXS the CGG region in normal individuals and premutations of about 100 repeats were precisely amplified by this protocol. Ten unrelated FXS premutation carriers and 24 mentally retarded non-FXS affected boys were re-examined by this method. The results totally coincided with the previous ones. This protocol is a good choice as a fast screening test. Within 24 h we can have preliminary information on the patient’s genetic status. Normal individuals, CGG premutation carriers up to 100 repeats, as well as HD patients carrying an expansion up to 50 CAG repeats can be easily clarified. This accounts for a relatively large proportion (about 90%) of the suspected HD and FXS patients, referred to our laboratory for genetic analysis. The calculation of the repeat’s number is more accurate for the correct interpretation of the results, screening tests and genetic counselling.     

Contrasting patterns of density‐dependent selection at different life stages can create more than one fast–slow axis of life‐history variation

There has been much recent research interest in the existence of a major axis of life‐history variation along a fast–slow continuum within almost all major taxonomic groups. Eco‐evolutionary models of density‐dependent selection provide a general explanation for such observations of interspecific variation in the "pace of life." One issue, however, is that some large‐bodied long‐lived “slow” species (e.g., trees and large fish) often show an explosive “fast” type of reproduction with many small offspring, and species with “fast” adult life stages can have comparatively “slow” offspring life stages (e.g., mayflies). We attempt to explain such life‐history evolution using the same eco‐evolutionary modeling approach but with two life stages, separating adult reproductive strategies from offspring survival strategies. When the population dynamics in the two life stages are closely linked and affect each other, density‐dependent selection occurs in parallel on both reproduction and survival, producing the usual one‐dimensional fast–slow continuum (e.g., houseflies to blue whales). However, strong density dependence at either the adult reproduction or offspring survival life stage creates quasi‐independent population dynamics, allowing fast‐type reproduction alongside slow‐type survival (e.g., trees and large fish), or the perhaps rarer slow‐type reproduction alongside fast‐type survival (e.g., mayflies—short‐lived adults producing few long‐lived offspring). Therefore, most types of species life histories in nature can potentially be explained via the eco‐evolutionary consequences of density‐dependent selection given the possible separation of demographic effects at different life stages.     

Views,landmarks, and routes: how do desert ants negotiate an obstacle course?

The Australian desert ant Melophorus bagoti often follows stereotypical routes through a cluttered landscape containing both distant panoramic views and obstacles (plants) to navigate around. We created an artificial obstacle course for the ants between a feeder and their nest. Landmarks comprised natural objects in the landscape such as logs, branches, and tussocks. Many ants travelled stereotypical routes home through the obstacle course in training, threading repeatedly the same gaps in the landmarks. Manipulations altering the relations between the landmarks and the surrounding panorama, however, affected the routes in two major ways. Both interchanging the positions of landmarks (transpositions) and displacing the entire landmark set along with the starting position of the ants (translations) (1) reduced the stereotypicality of the route, and (2) increased turns and meanders during travel. The ants might have used the entire panorama in view-based travel, or the distal panorama might prime the identification and use of landmarks en route. Despite the large data set, both options (not mutually exclusive) remain viable.     

S100A2 in cancerogenesis: a friend or a foe?

Owing to the exceptional intracellular distribution and the heterogeneous expression pattern during transformation and metastasis in various tumors, the EF-hand calcium-binding protein S100A2 attracts increasing attention. Unlike the majority of S100 proteins, S100A2 expression is downregulated in many cancers and the loss in nuclear expression has been associated with poor prognosis. On the other hand, S100A2 is upregulated in some cancers. This mini review highlights the general characteristics of S100A2 and discusses recent findings on its putative functional implication as a suppressor or promoter in cancerogenesis.     

Development of a real-time TaqMan assay to detect <Emphasis Type="Italic">mendocina</Emphasis> sublineage <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pseudomonas</Emphasis> species in contaminated metalworking fluids

A TaqMan quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) assay was developed for the detection and enumeration of three Pseudomonas species belonging to the mendocina sublineage (P. oleovorans, P. pseudoalcaligenes, and P. oleovorans subsp. lubricantis) found in contaminated metalworking fluids (MWFs). These microbes are the primary colonizers and serve as indicator organisms of biodegradation of used MWFs. Molecular techniques such as qPCR are preferred for the detection of these microbes since they grow poorly on typical growth media such as R2A agar and Pseudomonas isolation agar (PIA). Traditional culturing techniques not only underestimate the actual distribution of these bacteria but are also time-consuming. The primer–probe pair developed from gyrase B (gyrB) sequences of the targeted bacteria was highly sensitive and specific for the three species. qPCR was performed with both whole cell and genomic DNA to confirm the specificity and sensitivity of the assay. The sensitivity of the assay was 10¹ colony forming units (CFU)/ml for whole cell and 13.7 fg with genomic DNA. The primer–probe pair was successful in determining concentrations from used MWF samples, indicating levels between 2.9 × 10³ and 3.9 × 10⁶ CFU/ml. In contrast, the total count of Pseudomonas sp. recovered on PIA was in the range of <1.0 × 10¹ to 1.4 × 10⁵ CFU/ml for the same samples. Based on these results from the qPCR assay, the designed TaqMan primer–probe pair can be efficiently used for rapid (within 2 h) determination of the distribution of these species of Pseudomonas in contaminated MWFs.