Biochemical characterization of Epstein-Barr virus nuclear antigen 2A and an associated ATPase activity.

A partial purification of the Epstein-Barr-virus nuclear antigen 2A (EBNA 2A) protein from the Epstein-Barr-virus-infected lymphoblastoid cell line, Cherry, has been designed. The main purification step was immunoaffinity chromatography, based on the mAb, 115E, directed towards the carboxy terminus of EBNA 2A. This was followed by chromatography over a Blue Sepharose column. According to silver-stained SDS/PAGE, EBNA 2A was estimated to be 20% pure. The purified fractions contained an ATPase activity that was inhibited by the mAb 115E. Immunopurification of six EBNA-2A-positive cell lines and their negative counterpart showed that only fractions from EBNA-2A-positive lines contained ATPase activity. In gel-filtration experiments EBNA 2A eluted as a 75-kDa protein in conjunction with an ATPase activity. The EBNA 2A protein was covalently labeled by the ATP analog [14C]5'-[p-(fluorosulfonyl)benzoyl]adenosine. The ATPase activity was found to be optimal in the presence of 0.25 mM MgCl2 or CaCl2, whereas, in the presence of MnCl2 and ZnCl2, the activity was only about 50% of the control. High concentrations of Na2VO3 and heparin do not interfere with the activity, while 2.5 mM NaF or 0.5 M NaCl give a 50% reduction of the activity. The Km for ATP and for GTP was 13 microM and 11 microM, respectively, and the Vmax for ATP was about six-times higher than with GTP as substrate. Other low-molecular-mass non-protein phosphate esters, such as phosphoserine or phosphothreonine inhibited the ATPase activity with a Ki of 18 and 32 microM, respectively. Phosphotyrosine had a Ki of 480 microM. Serine, threonine and tyrosine had no inhibitory effect on the ATPase activity.     

Accumulation of cocaine in maternal and fetal hair; the dose response curve.

Cocaine and its major metabolites are incorporated into hair during the growth of the shaft and stay there for the whole life of the hair. Cocaine crosses the placenta and its metabolites for example Benzoylecgonine (BZ), have been found in neonatal urine, meconium and hair. In order to utilize hair measurements of cocaine as a biological marker of systemic exposure, we conducted both animal and human investigations on the dose response characteristics of this phenomenon. Our data suggest that both maternal and fetal accumulation of cocaine and its metabolite follow a linear pattern within the clinically used doses. Similarly, a good correlation was observed in animals between maternal dose and fetal hair accumulation.     

Construction of Bordetella pertussis strains that overproduce genetically inactivated pertussis toxin.

Nontoxic analogs of pertussis toxin (PT), produced by in vitro mutagenesis of the tox operon, are immunogenic and protective against infection by Bordetella pertussis. The moderate levels of PT production by B. pertussis, however, make it the limiting antigen in the formulation of multicomponent, acellular, recombinant whooping cough vaccines. To increase production of the highly detoxified Lys9Gly129 PT analog by B. pertussis, additional copies of the mutated tox operon were integrated into the bacterial chromosome at the tox or fha locus by unmarked allelic exchange. Recombinant strains produced in this way secreted elevated levels of the PT analog proportional to gene dosage. The strains were stable during 10-liter fermentations, and yields of up to 80 mg of PT analog per liter were obtained under production-scale conditions. The nontoxic analog was purified and shown to be indistinguishable from material obtained from a B. pertussis strain that contained only a single copy of the toxLys9Gly129 operon. Such strains are therefore suitable for large-scale, industrial production of an acellular whooping cough vaccine containing a genetically detoxified PT analog.     

The viking biology experiments: Epilogue and prologue

In looking ahead to possibe new attempts to search for extant life on Mars, the history of the Viking biological investigations is reviewed here. Scientific considerations that led to the selection of specific experimental approaches for life detection are discussed, as well as the overall results obtained from that mission. Despite extensive preflight testing of the concepts that were to be used, unanticipated artefacts arose in the actual mission. These almost certainly reflect the fact that, at that time, there were many gaps in our understanding of the physical and chemical characteristics of the Martian environment. After Viking, many of these issues still remain unresolved, and future attempts to search for extant biology should be restrained until adequate new information about potential habitable microenvironments is obtained.Presented at the International Symposium on the Biological Exploration of Mars, October 26–27, 1990, Tallahasee, Fla., U.S.A.     

Effect of the natural ATPase inhibitor on the binding of adenine nucleotides and inorganic phosphate to mitochondrial F1-ATPase

(1) Incubation of the beef heart mitochondrial ATPase, F₁ with Mg-ATP was required for the binding of the natural inhibitor, IF₁, to F₁ to form the inactive F₁-IF₁ complex. When F₁ was incubated in the presence of [¹⁴C]ATP and MgCl₂, about 2 mol ¹⁴C-labeled adenine nucleotides were found to bind per mol of F₁; the bound ¹⁴C-labeled nucleotides consisted of [¹⁴C]ADP arising from [¹⁴C]ATP hydrolysis and [¹⁴C]ATP. The ¹⁴C-labeled nucleotide binding was not prevented by IF₁. These data are in agreement with the idea that the formation of the F₁-IF₁ complex requires an appropriate conformation of F₁. (2) The ¹⁴C-labeled adenine nucleotides bound to F₁ following preincubation of F₁ with Mg-[¹⁴C]ATP could be exchanged with added [³H]ADP or [³H]ATP. No exchange occurred between added [³H]ADP or [³H]ATP and the ¹⁴C-labeled adenine nucleotides bound to the F₁-IF₁ complex. These data suggest that the conformation of F₁ in the isolated F₁-IF₁ complex is further modified in such a way that the bound ¹⁴C-labeled nucleotides are no longer available for exchange. (3) ³²P_i was able to bind to isolated F₁ with a stoichiometry of about 1 mol of P_i per mol of F₁ (Penefsky, H.S. (1977) J. Biol. Chem. 252, 2891–2899). There was no binding of ³²P_i to the F₁-IF₁ complex. Thus, not only the nucleotides sites, but also the P_i site, are masked from interaction with external ligands in the isolated F₁-IF₁ complex.     

Can tumorigenesis result from in vivo “transfection” of a normal cell with DNA escaped from disintegrating nontransformed cells?

In this paper I present a hypothetical step on the route to turmorigenesis which may be common to many of the tumorogenic events taking place in vivo. According to this hypothesis portions of DNA from normal nontransformed dying cells may escape degradation, “transfect” other cells and under appropriate conditions also induce transformation. When various high risk factors for carcinogenesis are examined this hypothesis may easily fit into each of them. In addition, recent reports of experimental “transfection” indirectly support this hypothesis. It could now be argued that aging, ionizing radiation, immunosuppressive drugs, genetic errors, defects in DNA repair, immunodeficiency states, chronic infections and chronic inflammatory diseases may all increase the availability of free DNA or the readiness of cells to accommodate “transfection” DNA, or both. Thus the risk of cancer associated with these situations may be explained by increased chance for “transfection” with DNA.It is suggested that the minimal requirements for cell transformation consist of a certain sequence of DNA which does not have to be integrated into the nucleus at once, it may instead accumulate piece by piece so that the first “transfection” of a cell may occur long before transformation takes place. If the “transfecting” DNA sequence does not fulfil the minimal requirements for maintaining a state of repetitive uncontrolled mitosis, then this cell may wait silently or remain a benign tumor until “boosted” with an ultimate complementary DNA sequence to develop into a fully fledged cancer.     

Antibiotic-resistantArthrobacter sp. andPseudomonas sp. responses in the rhizosphere of blue grama after herbage removal

Summary Streptomycin-resistant Pseudomonas and Arthrobacter were isolated from semi-arid grassland soil and their relative responses in the rhizosphere of blue grama (Bouteloua gracilis) subjected to herbage removal were evaluated. Using plants grown in normal soil, the two bacteria showed differential responses to herbage removal, which were most marked in the rhizoplane, where the Pseudomonas showed a two-log unit increase over a 60 hour period, while Arthrobacter, in contrast, exhibited a one-log unit decrease in viable counts for at least 48 hours after defoliation, responses which are similar to those observed in root exudate medium experiments by earlier workers. These results suggest that the rhizoplane may be a critical environment for interaction of these two types of microorganisms, and that sequential responses of the root-associated soil microorganisms may occur after herbage removal from this important rangeland plant. These responses are most likely associated with increased exudate release following herbage removal, which has been best documented using blue grama grown under sterile conditions.