Latent human leukocyte collagenase can be activated by gold thioglucose and gold sodium thiomalate,but not by auranofin

Gold thioglucose and gold sodium thiomalate were shown to be potent activators of latent human leukocyte collagenase. No activation by auranofin was noted. The activation may proceed through the action of gold on the essential sulfhydrylgroups of latent enzyme and, thereby, mimick the action of the known organomercurial activators.     

Spike protein-nucleocapsid interactions drive the budding of alphaviruses.

Semliki Forest virus (SFV) particles are released from infected cells by budding of nucleocapsids through plasma membrane regions that are modified by virus spike proteins. The budding process was studied with recombinant SFV genomes which lacked the nucleocapsid protein gene or, alternatively, the spike genes. No subviral particles were released from cells which expressed only the nucleocapsid protein or the spike proteins. Virus release was found to be strictly dependent on the coexpression of the nucleocapsid and the spike proteins. These results provide direct proof for the hypothesis that the alphavirus budding is driven by nucleocapsid-spike interactions. The importance of the viral 42S RNA for virus assembly and budding was investigated by using the heterologous vaccinia virus-T7 expression system for the synthesis of the SFV structural proteins. The results demonstrate that the viral genome is not absolutely required for formation of budding competent nucleocapsids, since small amounts of viruslike particles were assembled in the absence of 42S RNA.     

Reduction of linoleic acid inhibition in production of conjugated linoleic acid by Propionibacterium freudenreichii ssp. shermanii

A method for the production of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) from linoleic acid (LA) using growing cultures of Propionibacterium freudenreichii ssp. shermanii JS was developed. The growth inhibitory effect of LA was eliminated by dispersing it in a sufficient concentration of polyoxyethylene sorbitan monooleate detergent. For the whey permeate medium used, the optimum LA:detergent ratio was 1:15 (w/w). As a result, the cultures tolerated at least 1000 microg x mL(-1) LA, which was converted to CLA with 57%-87% efficiency. The cis-9, trans-11 and trans-9, cis-11 isomers constituted 85%-90% of the CLA produced. The feasibility of the method was demonstrated also in de Man Rogosa-Sharpe (MRS) broth.     

The role of the nuclear pore complex in adenovirus DNA entry.

Adenovirus targets its genome to the cell nucleus by a multistep process involving endocytosis, membrane penetration and cytoplasmic transport, and finally imports its DNA into the nucleus. Using an immunochemical and biochemical approach combined with inhibitors of nuclear import, we demonstrate that incoming viral DNA and DNA-associated protein VII enter the nucleus via nuclear pore complexes (NPCs). Depletion of calcium from nuclear envelope and endoplasmic reticulum cisternae by ionophores or thapsigargin blocked DNA and protein VII import into the nucleus, but had no effect on virus targeting to NPCs. Calcium-depleted cells were capable of disassembling incoming virus. In contrast, inhibitors of cytosolic O-linked glycoproteins of the NPC blocked virus attachment to the nuclear envelope, capsid disassembly and also nuclear import of protein VII. The data indicate that NPCs have multiple roles in adenovirus entry into cells: they contain a virus-binding and/or dissociation activity and provide a gateway for the incoming DNA genome into the nucleus.     

The lipolytic activities of the isolated cell envelope fractions of baker''s yeast

1. The existence of phospholipase and lipase activities in the isolated cell envelopes of baker's yeast was demonstrated. 2. The content of phospholipase was found to be markedly higher than that of lipase. 3. After partial enzymic digestion of the isolated cell envelopes, the bulk of the lipolytic activities was recovered in the sedimentable preparations, which consisted of the fragments of the plasma membrane. 4. During repeated washings, the lipase was completely released from the cell envelopes, as were also the bulk of the lipid components and most of the Mg(2+)-dependent adenosine triphosphatase, an enzyme connected with the plasma membrane. The phospholipase was more firmly bound to the preparation but not so firmly as the external saccharase. 5. These results indicate that the lipolytic enzymes found in the cell envelopes are mostly located in the plasma membrane.     

Interactions among bacterial strains and fluke genotypes shape virulence of co-infection

Most studies of virulence of infection focus on pairwise host–parasite interactions. However, hosts are almost universally co-infected by several parasite strains and/or genotypes of the same or different species. While theory predicts that co-infection favours more virulent parasite genotypes through intensified competition for host resources, knowledge of the effects of genotype by genotype (G × G) interactions between unrelated parasite species on virulence of co-infection is limited. Here, we tested such a relationship by challenging rainbow trout with replicated bacterial strains and fluke genotypes both singly and in all possible pairwise combinations. We found that virulence (host mortality) was higher in co-infections compared with single infections. Importantly, we also found that the overall virulence was dependent on the genetic identity of the co-infecting partners so that the outcome of co-infection could not be predicted from the respective virulence of single infections. Our results imply that G × G interactions among co-infecting parasites may significantly affect host health, add to variance in parasite fitness and thus influence evolutionary dynamics and ecology of disease in unexpected ways.     

Assignment of gene(s) coding for antigen defined by monoclonal antibody 2B2

A mouse monoclonal antibody (2B2) recognizes an antigen which is present on most human peripheral blood leukocytes but is absent from most proliferating cells. The antibody precipitated two surface-labeled membrane glycopolypeptides with molecular weights of 86,000 and 145,000, and it was strongly mitogenic to normal human lymphocytes. Somatic cell hybrids have been used for assigning the genes coding for these membrane glycoproteins to human chromosome 21. The assignment was based on correlation of antigen expression on mouse-human T-lymphocyte hybrids with the presence of human chromosomes in the same hybrid clones.     

Intensive aquaculture selects for increased virulence and interference competition in bacteria

Although increased disease severity driven by intensive farming practices is problematic in food production, the role of evolutionary change in disease is not well understood in these environments. Experiments on parasite evolution are traditionally conducted using laboratory models, often unrelated to economically important systems. We compared how the virulence, growth and competitive ability of a globally important fish pathogen, Flavobacterium columnare, change under intensive aquaculture. We characterized bacterial isolates from disease outbreaks at fish farms during 2003–2010, and compared F. columnare populations in inlet water and outlet water of a fish farm during the 2010 outbreak. Our data suggest that the farming environment may select for bacterial strains that have high virulence at both long and short time scales, and it seems that these strains have also evolved increased ability for interference competition. Our results are consistent with the suggestion that selection pressures at fish farms can cause rapid changes in pathogen populations, which are likely to have long-lasting evolutionary effects on pathogen virulence. A better understanding of these evolutionary effects will be vital in prevention and control of disease outbreaks to secure food production.     

Phage-Driven Loss of Virulence in a Fish Pathogenic Bacterium

Parasites provide a selective pressure during the evolution of their hosts, and mediate a range of effects on ecological communities. Due to their short generation time, host-parasite interactions may also drive the virulence of opportunistic bacteria. This is especially relevant in systems where high densities of hosts and parasites on different trophic levels (e.g. vertebrate hosts, their bacterial pathogens, and virus parasitizing bacteria) co-exist. In farmed salmonid fingerlings, Flavobacterium columnare is an emerging pathogen, and phage that infect F. columnare have been isolated. However, the impact of these phage on their host bacterium is not well understood. To study this, four strains of F. columnare were exposed to three isolates of lytic phage and the development of phage resistance and changes in colony morphology were monitored. Using zebrafish (Danio rerio) as a model system, the ancestral rhizoid morphotypes were associated with a 25–100% mortality rate, whereas phage-resistant rough morphotypes that lost their virulence and gliding motility (which are key characteristics of the ancestral types), did not affect zebrafish survival. Both morphotypes maintained their colony morphologies over ten serial passages in liquid culture, except for the low-virulence strain, Os06, which changed morphology with each passage. To our knowledge, this is the first report of the effects of phage-host interactions in a commercially important fish pathogen where phage resistance directly correlates with a decline in bacterial virulence. These results suggest that phage can cause phenotypic changes in F. columnare outside the fish host, and antagonistic interactions between bacterial pathogens and their parasitic phage can favor low bacterial virulence under natural conditions. Furthermore, these results suggest that phage-based therapies can provide a disease management strategy for columnaris disease in aquaculture.