Farnesol metabolism in Drosophila melanogaster: ontogeny and tissue distribution of octanol dehydrogenase and aldehyde oxidase

The specific activity of octanol dehydrogenase, an enzyme catalyzing the oxidation of primary alcohols, was found to oscillate in phase with ecdyses in Drosophila. The enzyme occurs in many larval tissues including the corpus allatum portion of the Ring gland. It uses farnesol as a substrate. Also present in the corpus allatum is aldehyde oxidase, which readily oxidizes farnesal and other aldehydes. The hypothesis is presented that the titer of juvenile hormone is regulated enzymatically.     

Beobachtungen an Pollenschlauchkulturen von der Hydrophyllacee Nemophila insignis

Zusammenfassung Es wurden Pollenschläuche vonNemophila insignis untersucht, die auf 15% igem Zuckeragar gewachsen waren.Der vegetative Kern war bei geeigneter Färbung stets sichtbar, und zwar meistens als ein sehr lang ausgezogener, fadenförmiger Körper. Auch nach 72stündiger Kulturdauer waren Degenerationserscheinungen an ihm nicht zu bemerken.Der generative Kern liegt in einer spindelförmigen oder ellipsoidischen Zelle, deren Plasma mit Hämatoxylin nicht gefärbt wird.Die Teilung des generativen Kernes verläuft unregelmäßig: Es tritt wohl eine Teilung der Chromosomen ein, aber die Tochterchromosomen verteilen sich nicht auf zwei Pole, so daß es zur Bildung eines Restitutionskernes kommt.Es wird die Annahme gemacht, daß diese Restitutionskernbildung eine Folge ungünstiger Kulturerscheinungen ist.Mit 5 Textabbildungen.Der letztgenannte Verfasser, der im Sommer 1937 für einige Zeit im Botanischen Institut in Kiel freundliche Aufnahme fand, möchte die Gelegenheit benutzen, um Herrn ProfessorTischler für seine liebenswürdige Gastfreundschaft und die Überlassung eines Arbeitsplatzes auch an dieser Stelle zu danken.     

Identification and thermodynamic characterization of molten globule states of periplasmic binding proteins

Molten globule-like intermediates have been shown to occur during protein folding and are thought to be involved in protein translocation and membrane insertion. However, the determinants of molten globule stability and the extent of specific packing in molten globules is currently unclear. Using far- and near-UV CD and intrinsic and ANS fluorescence, we show that four periplasmic binding proteins (LBP, LIVBP, MBP, and RBP) form molten globules at acidic pH values ranging from 3.0 to 3.4. Only two of these (LBP and LIVBP) have similar sequences, but all four proteins adopt similar three-dimensional structures. We found that each of the four molten globules binds to its corresponding ligand without conversion to the native state. Ligand binding affinity measured by isothermal titration calorimetry for the molten globule state of LIVBP was found to be comparable to that of the corresponding native state, whereas for LBP, MBP, and RBP, the molten globules bound ligand with approximately 5-30-fold lower affinity than the corresponding native states. All four molten globule states exhibited cooperative thermal unfolding assayed by DSC. Estimated values of DeltaCp of unfolding show that these molten globule states contain 28-67% of buried surface area relative to the native states. The data suggest that molten globules of these periplasmic binding proteins retain a considerable degree of long range order. The ability of these sequentially unrelated proteins to form highly ordered molten globules may be related to their large size as well as an intrinsic property of periplasmic binding protein folds.     

Regional heparinization via simultaneous separation and reaction in a novel Taylor-Couette flow device.

The development of a safe and efficient bioreactor design has remained a challenge for the clinical application of immobilized enzymes. Specifically, the use of immobilized heparinase I has been the target of many studies to make heparin anticoagulation therapy safer for the critically ill patient with kidney failure or heart disease. We have investigated the use of Taylor-Couette flow for a novel type of bioreactor. In a previous study, we showed that the fluidization of agarose immobilized heparinase within Taylor vortices in whole blood can lead to extensive blood damage in the form of cell depletion and hemolysis. Based on these findings, we designed and developed a reactor, referred to as vortex-flow plasmapheretic reactor (VFPR), that incorporated plasmapheresis and fluidization of the agarose in the reactive compartment, separate from the whole-blood path. In the present study, immobilized heparinase I was tested as a means of achieving regional heparinization of a closed circuit. This is a method in which heparin is infused into the extracorporeal circuit predialyzer and neutralized postdialyzer. Saline studies were performed with an immobilized heparinase I-packed bed and with the VFPR. An in vitro feasibility study was performed with the VFPR using human blood. The VFPR achieved heparin conversions of 44 +/- 0.5% and 34 +/- 2% in saline and blood, respectively. In addition, the VFPR caused no blood damage. We report a novel method to achieve fluidization which depended on secondary, circumferencial flow, and was independent of the primary flow through the device.     

Novel coding regions in four complete archaeal genomes.

In the process of analysing the four available complete archaeal genomes, we have noted that certain regions characterised as 'non-coding' exhibit significant sequence similarity to other protein sequences from Archaea and other species. Using established technology, we have identified a number of potential protein coding regions in these putative 'non-coding' regions. We have detected 524 such cases, of which 113 regions appear to code for proteins present in archaeal or other species, while the remaining 411 regions are mostly start/stop definition conflicts. Of the 113 protein coding regions, only 21 code for proteins with homologues of known function. The number of novel coding sequences identified herein amounts to 1. 5% of the total genome entries, while the conflicting cases represent an additional 5%. The observed differences between the four complete archaeal genomes seem to reflect disparate approaches to genome annotation. Genome sequence collections should be regularly checked to improve gene prediction by sequence similarity and greater effort is required to make gene definitions consistent across related species.     

Molecular mechanism of Endosulfan action in mammals

Endosulfan is a broad-spectrum organochlorine pesticide, speculated to be detrimental to human health in areas of active exposure. However, the molecular insights to its mechanism of action remain poorly understood. In two recent studies, our group investigated the physiological and molecular aspects of endosulfan action using in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo analyses. The results showed that apart from reducing fertility levels in male animals, Endosulfan induced DNA damage that triggers compromised DNA damage response leading to undesirable processing of broken DNA ends. In this review, pesticide use especially of Endosulfan in the Indian scenario is summarized and the importance of our findings, especially the rationalized use of pesticides in the future, is emphasized.     

Genome‐wide association mapping for phenotypic plasticity in rice

Phenotypic plasticity of plants in response to environmental changes is important for adapting to changing climate. Less attention has been paid to exploring the advantages of phenotypic plasticity in resource‐rich environments to enhance the productivity of agricultural crops. Here, we examined genetic variation for phenotypic plasticity in indica rice (Oryza sativa L.) across two diverse panels: (1) a Phenomics of Rice Adaptation and Yield (PRAY) population comprising 301 accessions; and (2) a Multi‐parent Advanced Generation Inter‐Cross (MAGIC) indica population comprising 151 accessions. Altered planting density was used as a proxy for elevated atmospheric CO₂ response. Low planting density significantly increased panicle weight per plant compared with normal density, and the magnitude of the increase ranged from 1.10 to 2.78 times among accessions for the PRAY population and from 1.05 to 2.45 times for the MAGIC population. Genome‐wide‐association studies validate three E nvironmental R esponsiveness (ER) candidate alleles (qER1–3) that were associated with relative response of panicle weight to low density. Two of these alleles were tested in 13 genotypes to clarify their biomass responses during vegetative growth under elevated CO₂ in Japan. Our study provides evidence for polymorphisms that control rice phenotypic plasticity in environments that are rich in resources such as light and CO₂.     

Exotic fish species in a global biodiversity hotspot: observations from River Chalakudy,part of Western Ghats,Kerala, India

We record here the occurrence of five exotic fish species viz Oreochromis mossambicus, Gambusia affinis, Osphronemus goramy, Xiphophorus maculatus and Poecilia reticulata in the Chalakudy River, part of the Western Ghats, a global biodiversity hotspot in Kerala, India. O. mossambicus was ubiquitous in occurrence with large shoals being encountered at all sampling sites spread along the downstream-upstream gradient of the river, including at an altitude of 1050 m ASL. Osphronemus goramy was recorded from the downstream region of the river while Gambusia affinis was recorded from three sampling sites located downstream as well as midstream. Xiphophorus maculatus was collected from a second order stream flowing through a tea plantation at an altitude of 1050 m ASL. Samples of brooders and early fry of Poecilia reticulata indicate that the fish has already established a breeding population in the river. Possible threats to the indigenous fish fauna of the Chalakudy River as a result of the invasion and proliferation of these exotics is discussed.