Microbial communities related to volatile organic compound emission in automobile air conditioning units

During operation of mobile air conditioning (MAC) systems in automobiles, malodours can occur. We studied the microbial communities found on contaminated heat exchanger fins of 45 evaporators from car MAC systems which were operated in seven different regions of the world and identified corresponding volatile organic compounds. Collected biofilms were examined by scanning electron microscopy and fluorescent in situ hybridization. The detected bacteria were loosely attached to the metal surface. Further analyses of the bacteria using PCR-based single-strand conformation polymorphism and sequencing of isolated 16S rRNA gene fragments identified highly divergent microbial communities with multiple members of the Alphaproteobacteriales, Methylobacteria were the prevalent bacteria. In addition, Sphingomonadales, Burkholderiales, Bacillales, Alcanivorax spp. and Stenotrophomonas spp. were found among many others depending on the location the evaporators were operated. Interestingly, typical pathogenic bacteria related to air conditioning systems including Legionella spp. were not found. In order to determine the nature of the chemical compounds produced by the bacteria, the volatile organic compounds were examined by closed loop stripping analysis and identified by combined gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Sulphur compounds, i.e. di-, tri- and multiple sulphides, acetylthiazole, aromatic compounds and diverse substituted pyrazines were detected. Mathematical clustering of the determined microbial community structures against their origin identified a European/American/Arabic cluster versus two mainly tropical Asian clusters. Interestingly, clustering of the determined volatiles against the origin of the corresponding MAC revealed a highly similar pattern. A close relationship of microbial community structure and resulting malodours to the climate and air quality at the location of MAC operation was concluded.     

EXTINCTION SPACE—A METHOD FOR THE QUANTIFICATION AND CLASSIFICATION OF CHANGES IN MORPHOSPACE ACROSS EXTINCTION BOUNDARIES

Three main modes of extinction are responsible for reductions in morphological disparity: (1) random (caused by a nonselective extinction event); (2) marginal (a symmetric, selective extinction event trimming the margin of morphospace); and (3) lateral (an asymmetric, selective extinction event eliminating one side of the morphospace). These three types of extinction event can be distinguished from one another by comparing changes in three measures of morphospace occupation: (1) the sum of range along the main axes; (2) the sum of variance; and (3) the position of the centroid. Computer simulations of various extinction events demonstrate that the pre‐extinction distribution of taxa (random or normal) in the morphospace has little influence on the quantification of disparity changes, whereas the modes of the extinction events play the major role. Together, the three disparity metrics define an “extinction‐space” in which different extinction events can be directly compared with one another. Application of this method to selected extinction events (Frasnian‐Famennian, Devonian‐Carboniferous, and Permian‐Triassic) of the Ammonoidea demonstrate the similarity of the Devonian events (selective extinctions) but the striking difference from the end‐Permian event (nonselective extinction). These events differ in their mode of extinction despite decreases in taxonomic diversity of similar magnitude.     

Structural Transitions and Energy Landscape for Cowpea Chlorotic Mottle Virus Capsid Mechanics from Nanomanipulation in?Vitro and in Silico

Physical properties of capsids of plant and animal viruses are important factors in capsid self-assembly, survival of viruses in the extracellular environment, and their cell infectivity. Combined AFM experiments and computational modeling on subsecond timescales of the indentation nanomechanics of Cowpea Chlorotic Mottle Virus capsid show that the capsid’s physical properties are dynamic and local characteristics of the structure, which change with the depth of indentation and depend on the magnitude and geometry of mechanical input. Under large deformations, the Cowpea Chlorotic Mottle Virus capsid transitions to the collapsed state without substantial local structural alterations. The enthalpy change in this deformation state ΔH_ind = 11.5–12.8 MJ/mol is mostly due to large-amplitude out-of-plane excitations, which contribute to the capsid bending; the entropy change TΔS_ind = 5.1–5.8 MJ/mol is due to coherent in-plane rearrangements of protein chains, which mediate the capsid stiffening. Direct coupling of these modes defines the extent of (ir)reversibility of capsid indentation dynamics correlated with its (in)elastic mechanical response to the compressive force. This emerging picture illuminates how unique physico-chemical properties of protein nanoshells help define their structure and morphology, and determine their viruses’ biological function.     

Structural Transitions and Energy Landscape for Cowpea Chlorotic Mottle Virus Capsid Mechanics from Nanomanipulation in Vitro and in Silico

Physical properties of capsids of plant and animal viruses are important factors in capsid self-assembly, survival of viruses in the extracellular environment, and their cell infectivity. Combined AFM experiments and computational modeling on subsecond timescales of the indentation nanomechanics of Cowpea Chlorotic Mottle Virus capsid show that the capsid’s physical properties are dynamic and local characteristics of the structure, which change with the depth of indentation and depend on the magnitude and geometry of mechanical input. Under large deformations, the Cowpea Chlorotic Mottle Virus capsid transitions to the collapsed state without substantial local structural alterations. The enthalpy change in this deformation state ΔH_ind = 11.5–12.8 MJ/mol is mostly due to large-amplitude out-of-plane excitations, which contribute to the capsid bending; the entropy change TΔS_ind = 5.1–5.8 MJ/mol is due to coherent in-plane rearrangements of protein chains, which mediate the capsid stiffening. Direct coupling of these modes defines the extent of (ir)reversibility of capsid indentation dynamics correlated with its (in)elastic mechanical response to the compressive force. This emerging picture illuminates how unique physico-chemical properties of protein nanoshells help define their structure and morphology, and determine their viruses’ biological function.     

Synthetic Lethal Targeting of Superoxide Dismutase 1 Selectively Kills RAD54B-Deficient Colorectal Cancer Cells

Synthetic lethality is a rational approach to identify candidate drug targets for selective killing of cancer cells harboring somatic mutations that cause chromosome instability (CIN). To identify a set of the most highly connected synthetic lethal partner genes in yeast for subsequent testing in mammalian cells, we used the entire set of 692 yeast CIN genes to query the genome-wide synthetic lethal datasets. Hierarchical clustering revealed a highly connected set of synthetic lethal partners of yeast genes whose human orthologs are somatically mutated in colorectal cancer. Testing of a small matrix of synthetic lethal gene pairs in mammalian cells suggested that members of a pathway that remove reactive oxygen species that cause DNA damage would be excellent candidates for further testing. We show that the synthetic lethal interaction between budding yeast rad54 and sod1 is conserved within a human colorectal cancer context. Specifically, we demonstrate RAD54B-deficient cells are selectively killed relative to controls via siRNA-based silencing and chemical inhibition and further demonstrate that this interaction is conserved in an unrelated cell type. We further show that the DNA double strand breaks, resulting from increased reactive oxygen species following SOD1 inhibition, persist within the RAD54B-deficient cells and result in apoptosis. Collectively, these data identify SOD1 as a novel candidate cancer drug target and suggest that SOD1 inhibition may have broad-spectrum applicability in a variety of tumor types exhibiting RAD54B deficiencies.     

Dimeric argininamide-type neuropeptide Y receptor antagonists: Chiral discrimination between Y1 and Y4 receptors

The structurally related peptides neuropeptide Y (NPY), peptide YY (PYY) and pancreatic polypeptide (PP) are endogenous agonists of the NPY receptor (YR) family, which in humans comprises four functionally expressed subtypes, designated Y₁R, Y₂R, Y₄R and Y₅R. Nonpeptide antagonists with high affinity and selectivity have been described for the Y₁R, Y₂R and Y₅R, but such compounds are still lacking for the Y₄R. In this work, the structures of the high affinity selective (R)-argininamide-type Y₁R antagonists BIBP3226 and BIBO3304 were linked via the guanidine or urea moieties to give homo-dimeric argininamides with linker lengths ranging from 31 to 41 atoms. Interestingly, the twin compounds proved to be by far less selective for the Y₁R than the R-configured monovalent parent compounds. The decrease in selectivity ratio was most pronounced for Y₁R versus Y₄R subtype, resulting in comparable affinities of bivalent ligands for Y₁R and Y₄R (e.g. UR-MK177 ((R,R)-49): K_i = 230 nM (Y₁R) and 290 nM (Y₄R)). With a K_i value of 130 nM and a K_b value of 20 nM, UR-MK188 ((R,R)-51) was superior to all Y₄R antagonists known to date. The S,S-configured optical antipodes of UR-MK177 and UR-MK188 (UR-MEK381 ((S,S)-49) and UR-MEK388 ((S,S)-51)) were synthesized to investigate the stereochemical discrimination by the different receptor subtypes. Whereas preference for R,R-configured argininamides was characteristic of the Y₁R, stereochemical discrimination by the Y₄R was not observed. This may pave the way to selective Y₄R antagonists.     

Context‐specific effects of the identity of detrital mixtures on invertebrate communities

Many aquatic ecosystems are sustained by detrital subsidies of leaf litter derived from exogenous sources. Although numerous studies have examined the effects of litter species richness and identity on decomposition processes, it remains unclear how these effects extend to associated invertebrate communities or how these effects vary spatially according to local environmental context. Using field enrichment experiments, we assessed how the species richness, assemblage composition, and supply of detrital litter resources interact to affect benthic communities of three temperate Australian estuarine mudflats. Our experiments utilized eight litter sources that are presently experiencing human‐mediated changes in their supply to estuarine mudflats. Contrary to predictions, we did not detect effects of the species richness of detrital mixtures on benthic communities. Macroinvertebrate community structure and, in particular, abundance were, instead, influenced by the assemblage composition of detrital mixtures. At two of the three sites, plots receiving the most labile detrital mix, containing the ephemeral algae Chaetomorpha and Ulva, supported the fewest macroinvertebrates of all the experimental enrichments. The large effect of detrital mix identity on macroinvertebrate communities is of concern given present trends of proliferation of macroalgae at the expense of more refractory seagrasses and marsh grasses. As such environmental degradation continues, it will be important to more fully understand under what environmental contexts such compositional changes in detrital resources will have the most detrimental effects on important prey resources for commercially important fish and wading shorebirds.     

Nucleotide diversity of vernalization and flowering‐time‐related genes in a germplasm collection of meadow fescue (Festuca pratensis Huds. syn. Lolium pratense (Huds.) Darbysh.)

In plant species, control of flowering time is an important factor for adaptation to local natural environments. The Vrn1, CO, FT1 and CK2α genes are key components in the flowering‐specific signaling pathway of grass species. Meadow fescue is an agronomically important forage grass species, which is naturally distributed across Europe and Western Asia. In this study, meadow fescue flowering‐time‐related genes were resequenced to assess nucleotide diversity in European and Western Asian subpopulations. Identified sequence polymorphisms were then converted into PCR‐based molecular genetic markers, and a meadow fescue germplasm collection was genotyped to investigate global allelic variation. Lower nucleotide diversities were observed for the Vrn1 and CO orthologs, while relatively higher values were observed for the FT1 and casein kinase II α‐subunit (CK2α) orthologs. The nucleotide diversity for FT1 orthologs in the Western Asian subpopulation was significantly higher than those of the European subpopulation. Similarly, significant differences in nucleotide diversity for the remaining genes were observed between several combinations of subpopulation. The global allele distribution pattern was consistent with observed level of nucleotide diversity. These results suggested that the degree of purifying selection acting on the genes differs according to geographical location. As previously shown for model plant species, functional specificities of flowering‐time‐related genes may also vary according to environmental conditions.