The effect of 3,3-difluoroglutamate (F2Glu) on the reaction catalyzed by rat liver folypolyglutamate synthetase was investigated. F2Glu was a potent, concentration-dependent inhibitor of poly(gamma-glutamylation) using [3H]Glu and either methotrexate (4-NH2-10-CH3PteGlu) or tetrahydrofolate as substrates. It was determined that F2Glu acted as an alternate substrate, but in contrast to the previously characterized alternate substrate 4-fluoroglutamate (McGuire, J.J., and Coward, J.K. (1985) J. Biol. Chem. 260, 6747-6754), it did not terminate polyglutamate chain elongation. Instead, F2Glu promoted chain elongation. Thus, synthesis of products from [3H]methotrexate containing 1 and 2 additional amino acid residues occurred at a substantially higher rate in the presence of F2Glu when compared to identical reactions in the presence of Glu; this was more pronounced for the product containing 2 additional residues. Identities of the products were established by their respective chromatographic elution positions and by limit digestion with gamma-glutamyl hydrolases. Ligation of Glu to 4-NH2-10-CH3PteGlu-gamma-(3,3-difluoroglutamate) was also enhanced. These results are consistent with F2Glu enhancing the synthesis of poly(gamma-glutamate) metabolites at the level of either the incoming amino acid (glutamate analog) or the gamma-glutamyl acceptor species. F2Glu is thus the first glutamate analog which enhances chain elongation catalyzed by folypolyglutamate synthetase. 相似文献
The maternal health system in Ethiopia links health posts in rural communities (kebeles) with district (woreda) health centres, and health centres with primary hospitals. At each health post two Health Extension Workers (HEWs) assist women with birth preparedness, complication readiness, and mobilize communities to facilitate timely referral to mid-level service providers. This study explored HEWs’ and mother’s attitudes to maternal health services in Adwa Woreda, Tigray Region.
Methods
In this qualitative study, we trained 16 HEWs to interview 45 women to gain a better understanding of the social context of maternal health related behaviours. Themes included barriers to health services; women’s social status and mobility; and women’s perceptions of skilled birth attendant’s care. All data were analyzed thematically.
Findings
There have been substantial efforts to improve maternal health and reduce maternal mortality in Adwa Woreda. Women identified barriers to healthcare including distance and lack of transportation due to geographical factors; the absence of many husbands due to off-woreda farming; traditional factors such as zwar (some pregnant women are afraid of meeting other pregnant women), and discouragement from mothers and mothers-in-law who delivered their children at home. Some women experienced disrespectful care at the hospital. Facilitators to skilled birth attendance included: identification of pregnant women through Women’s Development Groups (WDGs), and referral by ambulance to health facilities either before a woman’s Expected Due Date (EDD) or if labour started at home.
Conclusion
With the support of WDGs, HEWs have increased the rate of skilled birth attendance by calling ambulances to transfer women to health centres either before their EDD or when labour starts at home. These findings add to the growing body of evidence that health workers at the community level can work with women’s groups to improve maternal health, thus reducing the need for emergency obstetric care in low-income countries. 相似文献
Maximizing the number of offspring born per female is a key functionality trait in commercial- and/or subsistence-oriented livestock enterprises. Although the number of offspring born is closely associated with female fertility and reproductive success, the genetic control of these traits remains poorly understood in sub-Saharan Africa livestock. Using selection signature analysis performed on Ovine HD BeadChip data from the prolific Bonga sheep in Ethiopia, 41 candidate regions under selection were identified. The analysis revealed one strong selection signature on a candidate region on chromosome X spanning BMP15, suggesting this to be the primary candidate prolificacy gene in the breed. The analysis also identified several candidate regions spanning genes not reported before in prolific sheep but underlying fertility and reproduction in other species. The genes associated with female reproduction traits included SPOCK1 (age at first oestrus), GPR173 (mediator of ovarian cyclicity), HB-EGF (signalling early pregnancy success) and SMARCAL1 and HMGN3a (regulate gene expression during embryogenesis). The genes involved in male reproduction were FOXJ1 (sperm function and successful fertilization) and NME5 (spermatogenesis). We also observed genes such as PKD2L2, MAGED1 and KDM3B, which have been associated with diverse fertility traits in both sexes of other species. The results confirm the complexity of the genetic mechanisms underlying reproduction while suggesting that prolificacy in the Bonga sheep, and possibly African indigenous sheep is partly under the control of BMP15 while other genes that enhance male and female fertility are essential for reproductive fitness.
To date, the field of ancient DNA has relied almost exclusively on mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences. However, a number of recent studies have reported the successful recovery of ancient nuclear DNA (nuDNA) sequences, thereby allowing the characterization of genetic loci directly involved in phenotypic traits of extinct taxa. It is well documented that postmortem damage in ancient mtDNA can lead to the generation of artifactual sequences. However, as yet no one has thoroughly investigated the damage spectrum in ancient nuDNA. By comparing clone sequences from 23 fossil specimens, recovered from environments ranging from permafrost to desert, we demonstrate the presence of miscoding lesion damage in both the mtDNA and nuDNA, resulting in insertion of erroneous bases during amplification. Interestingly, no significant differences in the frequency of miscoding lesion damage are recorded between mtDNA and nuDNA despite great differences in cellular copy numbers. For both mtDNA and nuDNA, we find significant positive correlations between total sequence heterogeneity and the rates of type 1 transitions (adenine --> guanine and thymine --> cytosine) and type 2 transitions (cytosine --> thymine and guanine --> adenine), respectively. Type 2 transitions are by far the most dominant and increase relative to those of type 1 with damage load. The results suggest that the deamination of cytosine (and 5-methyl cytosine) to uracil (and thymine) is the main cause of miscoding lesions in both ancient mtDNA and nuDNA sequences. We argue that the problems presented by postmortem damage, as well as problems with contamination from exogenous sources of conserved nuclear genes, allelic variation, and the reliance on single nucleotide polymorphisms, call for great caution in studies relying on ancient nuDNA sequences. 相似文献
Exposure to bleomycin can result in an inflammatory lung injury. The biological effect of this anti-neoplastic agent is dependent
on its coordination of iron with subsequent oxidant generation. In lung cells, divalent metal transporter 1 (DMT1) can participate
in metal transport resulting in control of an oxidative stress and tissue damage. We tested the postulate that metal import
by DMT1 would participate in preventing lung injury after exposure to bleomycin. Microcytic anemia (mk/mk) mice defective in DMT1 and wild-type mice were exposed to either bleomycin or saline via intratracheal instillation and
the resultant lung injury was compared. Twenty-four h after instillation, the number of neutrophils and protein concentrations
after bleomycin exposure were significantly elevated in the mk/mk mice relative to the wild-type mice. Similarly, levels of a pro-inflammatory mediator were significantly increased in the
mk/mk mice relative to wild-type mice following bleomycin instillation. Relative to wild-type mice, mk/mk mice demonstrated lower non-heme iron concentrations in the lung, liver, spleen, and splenic, peritoneal, and liver macrophages.
In contrast, levels of this metal were elevated in alveolar macrophages from mk/mk mice. We conclude that DMT1 participates in the inflammatory lung injury after bleomycin with mk/mk mice having increased inflammation and damage following exposure. This finding supports the hypothesis that DMT1 takes part
in iron detoxification and homeostasis in the lung. 相似文献
The egg jelly coats of sea urchins contain sulfated fucans which bind to a
sperm surface receptor glycoprotein to initiate the signal transduction
events resulting in the sperm acrosome reaction. The acrosome reaction is
an ion channel regulated exocytosis which is an obligatory event for sperm
binding to, and fusion with, the egg. Approximately 90% of individual
females of the sea urchin Strongylocentrotus purpuratus spawned eggs having
only one of two possible sulfated fucan electrophoretic isotypes, a slow
migrating (sulfated fucan I), or a fast migrating (sulfated fucan II)
isotype. The remaining 10% of females spawned eggs having both sulfated
fucan isotypes. The two sulfated fucan isotypes were purified from egg
jelly coats and their structures determined by NMR spectroscopy and
methylation analysis. Both sulfated fucans are linear polysaccharides
composed of 1-->3-linked alpha-L-fucopyranosyl units. Sulfated fucan I
is entirely sulfated at the O -2 position but with a heterogeneous
sulfation pattern at O -4 position. Sulfated fucan II is composed of a
regular repeating sequence of 3 residues, as follows: [3-alpha-L-Fuc p -
2,4(OSO3)-1-->3-alpha-L-Fuc p -4(OSO3)-1-->3-alpha-L-Fuc p -4(OSO3)-
1]n. Both purified sulfated fucans have approximately equal potency in
inducing the sperm acrosome reaction. The significance of two structurally
different sulfated fucans in the egg jelly coat of this species could
relate to the finding that the sperm receptor protein which binds sulfated
fucan contains two carbohydrate recognition modules of the C-type lectin
variety which differ by 50% in their primary structure.
相似文献
Evidence of associations between free-living amoebas and human disease has
been increasing in recent years. Knowledge about phylogenetic relationships
that may be important for the understanding of pathogenicity in the genera
involved is very limited at present. Consequently, we have begun to study
these relationships and report here on the phylogeny of Hartmannella
vermiformis, a free-living amoeba that can harbor the etiologic agent of
Legionnaires' disease. Our analysis is based on studies of small-subunit
ribosomal RNA genes (srDNA). Nucleotide sequences were determined for
nuclear srDNA from three strains of H. vermiformis isolated from the United
Kingdom, Germany, and the United States. These sequences then were compared
with a sequence previously obtained for a North American isolate by J. H.
Gunderson and M. L. Sogin. The four genes are 1,840 bp long, with an
average GC content of 49.6%. Sequence differences among the strains range
are 0.38%-0.76%. Variation occurs at 19 positions and includes 2
single-base indels plus 14 monotypic and 3 ditypic single-base
substitutions. Variation is limited to eight helix/loop structures
according to a current model for srRNA secondary structure. Parsimony,
distance, and bootstrap analyses used to examine phylogenetic relationships
between the srDNA sequences of H. vermiformis and other eukaryotes
indicated that Hartmannella sequences were most closely related to those of
Acanthamoeba and the alga Cryptomonas. All ditypic sites were consistent
with a separation between European and North American strains of
Hartmannella, but results of other tests of this relationship were
statistically inconclusive.
相似文献