The Relationship between Dipeptidase Activity Variation and Larval Viability in Drosophila melanogaster

The enzyme dipeptidase-A (DIP-A) in Drosophila melanogaster is coded by a second chromosome locus that is polymorphic for three allozymes in natural populations. DIP-A appears to be the only enzyme in D. melanogaster capable of hydrolyzing the dipeptide glycyl-L-isoleucine, since flies homozygous for null alleles at this locus have no detectable glycyl-L-isoleucine-ase activity. DIP-A activity occurs in many tissues and throughout development, but is particularly high in the larval midgut, suggesting an important role in protein digestion. These observations suggested an experimental design for investigating the adaptive significance of genetic variation in DIP-A activity. Fitness components of DIP-A variants could be estimated and compared under two environmental conditions (defined diets under axenic conditions). In the restrictive environment, the essential amino acid L-isoleucine is provided only in the form of glycyl-L-isoleucine, whereas in the permissive environment, L-isoleucine is provided in free form. We predicted that DIP-A activity would be essential in the restrictive, but not in the permissive environment. The results reported here clearly contradict this prediction. Two stocks homozygous for DIP-A null alleles from different geographic locations are each viable on the restrictive diet. Furthermore, relative viability experiments in which null allele larvae compete with larvae having DIP-A activity provide no evidence for even a partial reduction in egg to adult survival on the restrictive diet. Apparently, the null allele larvae have some alternative mechanism for obtaining L-isoleucine from the dipeptide, even though no glycyl-L-isoleucine-ase activity can be detected in vitro. These results, along with the viability of null alleles for many other enzymes, support the idea that eukaryotes have an intricate network of alternative biochemical pathways through which the same necessary function may be achieved. Such "buffering capacity" makes it very difficult to analyze the effects of enzyme variants on fitness components.     

Protein kinase C-mediated negative-feedback inhibition of unstimulated and bombesin-stimulated polyphosphoinositide hydrolysis in Swiss-mouse 3T3 cells.

Bombesin-related peptides stimulate a rapid increase in polyphosphoinositide hydrolysis in Swiss-mouse 3T3 cells. These peptides generate an increase in the efflux of 45Ca2+ from pre-labelled cells, a response consistent with an inositol trisphosphate-mediated mobilization of intracellular Ca2+. The bombesin-stimulated release of cellular 45Ca2+ is inhibited by tumour-promoting phorbol esters (e.g. 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate, TPA). Although there are several possible sites of action at which this effect might occur, our results indicate that TPA induces an uncoupling of bombesin-stimulated hydrolysis of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PIP2) without decreasing cellular binding of bombesin. In cultured cells, protein kinase C can be down-modulated by a prolonged incubation of the cells with phorbol esters. Such pretreatment greatly decreased the inhibitory effect of TPA on bombesin-stimulated PIP2 hydrolysis, suggesting that this action of the phorbol ester is mediated via protein kinase C. Since diacylglycerol is an endogenous activator of protein kinase C and a direct product of PIP2 hydrolysis, these results suggest that protein kinase C inhibition of polyphosphoinositide hydrolysis may function as a negative-feedback pathway. Cells in which protein kinase C has been down-modulated show elevated basal and bombesin-stimulated production of inositol phosphates, providing evidence that such a feedback loop limits polyphosphoinositide turnover in both unstimulated and mitogen-stimulated cells.     

Effect of biological toxins on gap-junctionai intercellular communication in Chinese hamster V79 cells

Since chemical modulation of gap junctional intercellular communication has been implicated in several toxicological endpoints, a study to examine the ability of several biological toxins to inhibit this process was undertaken. Eight biological toxins were tested for their ability to inhibit metabolic cooperation, a measure of gap-junctional intercellular communication, in the Chinese V79 cell system. Aplysiatoxin, anhydrodebromoaplysiatoxin and debromoaplysiatoxin showed the strongest ability to inhibit metabolic cooperation while T2-toxin and vomitoxin inhibited metabolic cooperation to a lesser degree. Afatoxin B₁, afatoxin B₂ and palytoxin were inactive in the Chinese V79 system. Palytoxin, which was extremely cytotoxic, might act as a tumor promoter if it induces compensatory hyperplasia in vivo.Abbreviations 6-TG 6-thioguanine - TPA 12-0-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate     

Expression of a Clostridium thermocellum endoglucanase gene in Lactobacillus plantarum

Recombinant plasmid pM25 containing the celE gene of Clostridium thermocellum, which codes for an enzymatically active endoglucanase, was transformed into Lactobacillus plantarum by electroporation. Strains harboring pM25 expressed thermostable endoglucanase, which was found predominantly in the culture medium. Two other plasmids, pGK12 and pSA3, were transformed into L. plantarum, and the stability of each plasmid was evaluated.     

Chemokinetic Motility Responses of the Cyanobacterium Oscillatoria terebriformis

Oscillatoria terebriformis, a gliding, filamentous, thermophilic cyanobacterium, exhibited an inhibition of gliding motility upon exposure to fructose. The observed response was transient, and the duration of nonmotility was directly proportional to the concentration of fructose. Upon resumption of motility, the rate of motility was also inversely proportional to the concentration of fructose. Sulfide caused a similar response. The effect of sulfide was specific and not due to either anoxia or negative redox potential. Exposure to glucose, acetate, lactate, or mat interstitial water did not elicit any motility response.     

TGF-Beta inhibits the in vitro induction of lymphokine-activated killing activity

Summary Employing serum-free media, human peripheral blood mononuclear cells, and purified recombinant interleukin-2 (IL-2), conditions were observed in which the development of IL-2-driven cytotoxic activity was suppressed. The cytotoxic activity of such IL-2-generated lymphokine activated killing (LAK) was tested against natural killer-resistant cultured tumor cells (Daudi, Raji, and a glioma). LAK generation was inhibited by addition of some normal sera, normal platelets, or some tumor cells. Because recent reports have indicated that transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta)-like factors are often secreted by tumors and the acidic alpha granules of platelets and can be present in sera, we tested the effect of purified human TGF-beta on the activation of LAK. Our results indicated that TGF-beta is very suppressive for LAK induction, and can completely prevent both the IL-2-driven proliferation and cytotoxicity at concentrations as low as 5 ng/ml. Titrations of IL-2 and of TGF-beta indicated that the suppression is dose-dependent and can be avoided by employing higher levels of IL-2. It was also found that the suppressive effect of TGF-beta can be overcome by washing suppressed cell populations and further culture in low levels of IL-2. Collectively, these data indicate that TGF-beta can be a potent inhibitor of LAK generation under standard activation conditions, but that this effect is regulated by the relative level of IL-2 and may be overcome and/or reversed in vitro.     

The production of haploid wheat plants from wheat x maize crosses

Summary Hybrid embryos from hexaploid wheat x maize crosses rapidly lose the maize chromosomes to produce haploid wheat embryos. Such embryos almost always aborted when left to develop on the plant, and only 1 was recovered from 2440 florets (0.17% of the expected number). Embryos had greater viability in spikelet culture, 47 (26.5% of the expected number) being recovered from 706 ovaries. Thirty-two of these embryos germinated to give green plants, 31 of which were haploid (21 wheat chromosomes) and 1 of which was euploid (42 wheat chromosomes). Spikelet culture enabled 17.1% of the expected number of embryos to be recovered as haploid plants, a 100-fold improvement on allowing embryos to develop in vivo. Ten haploid plants of Chinese Spring (kr1, kr2), 13 plants of Chinese Spring (Hope 5A) (kr1, Kr2), and 8 of Hope (Kr1, Kr2) were recovered. The potential of wheat x maize crosses for wheat haploid production and for gene transfer from maize to wheat is discussed.