Radiolaria: Sinking population,standing stock,and production rate

A method is presented for estimating sinking population, rate of production, and residence time in the living zone for Radiolaria. This method employs vertical flux measurements from PARFLUX sediment traps and laboratory sinking speed measurements of the radiolarian skeletons.The estimated population sinking through the oceanic water column is approximately equal to the standing stock at several hundred meters depth reported from direct measurements by other workers. The rate of production of total Radiolaria was estimated to be approximately 80 shells m^?3 day^?1 in the western equatorial Atlantic (E) and central Pacific (P₁) stations and 230 shells m^?3 day^?1 in the Panama Basin (PB). The production of Nassellaria is greater than that of the other suborders. The average residence time for Radiolaria in the living zone (0–200 m) was estimated to be between 16 and 42 days.     

A 460-kb DNA Sequence of the Escherichia coli K-12 Genome Corresponding to the 40.1-50.0 min Region on the Linkage Map

The 465,813 base pair sequence corresponding to the 40.1–50.0min region on the genetic map of Escherichia coli K-12 (W3110)was determined. Analysis of the sequence revealed that thisregion contained at least 466 potential open reading frames,of which 187 (40%) were previously reported, 105 (23%) werehomologous to other known genes, 103 (22%) were identical orsimilar to hypothetical genes registered in databases, and theremaining 71 (15%) did not show a significant similarity toany other gene. At the 45.2–46.0 min region, we founda very large cluster of about 30 genes, whose functions areinvolved in the biosynthesis of polysaccharides as the componentsof outer membranes. In addition, we identified anew asn-tRNAgene, designated asnW, between the asnT and asnU genes and anew lysogenic phage attachment site as the cis-element.     

Comparison of properties of leaf and root glutathione reductases from spinach

Glutathione reductase (GR; EC 1.6.4.2) was purified from spinach roots (rGR) to homogeneity in terms of SDS-PAGE, and its properties were compared with those of the enzyme from spinach leaves (IGR). The two enzymes had similar native molecular (118000) and subunit masses (58000) and immunochemical properties, but different pH optima (ca pH 7.8 for IGR, ca pH 7.2 for rGR) and amino acid compositions. Peptide maps of two GRs showed that they differed from each other. The N-terminal amino acid of the IGR was glycine and that of the rGR was blocked. The partial amino acid sequence of the N-terminal region of the IGR was determined to the 11 th residue and it was found that the sequence of 8 amino acids of the IGR had 100% homology with that of the putative chloroplast GR from Arabidopsis and pea.     

Particle selectivity of pelagic tintinnid agglutination

Scanning electron microscopic observation reveals that several agglutinated, pelagic tintinnid taxa apparently possess a capability of incorporating specific mineral grains, such as monospecific coccoliths, for their loricae. Since the ocean water generally contains other coccolith taxa, as well as diatoms and clays, it seems possible that the tintinnids can single out a particular coccolithophore species from the variety of suspended matter for their loricae-building.     

The prevention of an anomalous chromatographic behavior and the resulting successful removal of viruses from monoclonal antibody with an asymmetric charge distribution by using a membrane adsorber in highly efficient,anion-exchange chromatography in flow-through mode

Anion exchange (AEX) chromatography in the flow-through mode is a widely employed purification process for removal of process/product-related impurities and exogenous/endogenous viruses from monoclonal antibodies (mAbs). The pH of the mobile phase for AEX chromatography is typically set at half a unit below the isoelectric point (pI) of each mAb (i.e., pI − 0.5) or lower and, in combination with a low ionic strength, these conditions are usually satisfactory for both the recovery of the mAb and removal of impurities. However, we have recently encountered a tight binding of mAb1 to AEX resins under these standard chromatographic conditions. This anomalous adsorption behavior appears to be an effect of the asymmetric charge distribution on the surface of the mAb1. We found that mAb1 did not bind to the AEX resins if the mobile phase has a much lower pH and higher ionic strength, but those conditions would not allow adequate virus removal. We predicted that the use of membrane adsorbers might provide effective mAb1 purification, since the supporting matrix has a network structure that would be less susceptible to interactions with the asymmetric charge distribution on the protein surface. We tested the Natriflo HD-Q AEX membrane adsorber under standard chromatographic conditions and found that mAb1 flowed through the membrane adsorber, resulting in successful separation from murine leukemia virus. This AEX membrane adsorber is expected to be useful for process development because mAbs can be purified under similar standard chromatographic conditions regardless of their charge distributions.