Contrasting levels of DNA polymorphism at the autosomal and X-linked visual color pigment loci in humans and squirrel monkeys

The X-linked color pigment (opsin) locus is known to be highly polymorphic in the squirrel monkey and other New World monkeys. To see whether this is also the case for the autosomal (blue) opsin locus, we obtained 32 squirrel monkey and 30 human blue opsin gene sequences. No amino acid polymorphism was found in either the squirrel monkey sample or the human sample, contrary to the situation at the X-linked opsin locus. This sharp contrast in the level of polymorphism might be due to differences in gene expression between the autosomal and the X-linked loci. At the X-linked locus, heterozygote advantage can occur because, owing to X-inactivation, the two alleles in a heterozygote are expressed in different cone cells, producing two types of cone cell, whereas at the autosomal locus, heterozygote advantage cannot occur because the two alleles in a heterozygote are expressed in the same cone cells, producing only one type of cone cell (i.e., phenotypically a homozygote). From the sequence data, the levels of nucleotide diversity (pi, i.e., the number of nucleotide differences per site) are estimated: for the human sample, pi = 0.00% per nondegenerate site, 0.00% per twofold degenerate site, and 0.04% per fourfold degenerate site in the coding regions and 0.01% per site in intron 4; for the squirrel monkey sample, pi = 0.00% per nondegenerate site, 0.00% per twofold degenerate site, and 0.15% per fourfold degenerate site in the coding regions and 0.17% per site in intron 4. The blue opsin genes from the common and pygmy chimpanzees, the gorilla, the capuchin, and the howler monkey were also sequenced. Features critical to the function of the opsin are well conserved in all known mammalian sequences. However, the interhelical loops are, on average, actually more conservative than the transmembrane helical regions. In addition, these sequence data and those from some other genes indicate that the common and pygmy chimpanzees are not closely related, their divergence data being from one third to one half the date of the human-chimpanzee divergence.      

The M.ADP.P(i) state is required for helical order in the thick filaments of skeletal muscle

The thick filaments of mammalian and avian skeletal muscle fibers are disordered at low temperature, but become increasingly ordered into an helical structure as the temperature is raised. Wray and colleagues (Schlichting, I., and J. Wray. 1986. J. Muscle Res. Cell Motil. 7:79; Wray, J., R. S. Goody, and K. Holmes. 1986. Adv. Exp. Med. Biol. 226:49-59) interpreted the transition as reflecting a coupling between nucleotide state and global conformation with M.ATP (disordered) being favored at 0 degrees C and M.ADP.P(i) (ordered) at 20 degrees C. However, hitherto this has been limited to a qualitative correlation and the biochemical state of the myosin heads required to obtain the helical array has not been unequivocally identified. In the present study we have critically tested whether the helical arrangement of the myosin heads requires the M.ADP.P(i) state. X-ray diffraction patterns were recorded from skinned rabbit psoas muscle fiber bundles stretched to non-overlap to avoid complications due to interaction with actin. The effect of temperature on the intensities of the myosin-based layer lines and on the phosphate burst of myosin hydrolyzing ATP in solution were examined under closely matched conditions. The results showed that the fraction of myosin mass in the helix closely followed that of the fraction of myosin in the M.ADP.P(i) state. Similar results were found by using a series of nucleoside triphosphates, including CTP and GTP. In addition, fibers treated by N-phenylmaleimide (Barnett, V. A., A. Ehrlich, and M. Schoenberg. 1992. Biophys. J. 61:358-367) so that the myosin was exclusively in the M.ATP state revealed no helical order. Diffraction patterns from muscle fibers in nucleotide-free and in ADP-containing solutions did not show helical structure. All these confirmed that in the presence of nucleotides, the M.NDP.P(i) state is required for helical order. We also found that the spacing of the third meridional reflection of the thick filament is linked to the helical order. The spacing in the ordered M.NDP.P(i) state is 143.4 A, but in the disordered state, it is 144. 2 A. This may be explained by the different interference functions for the myosin heads and the thick filament backbone.     

Towards a reporter system to identify regulators of cross-talk between salicylate and jasmonate signaling pathways in Arabidopsis

The plant signaling hormones salicylic acid (SA) and jasmonic acid (JA) are regulators of inducible defenses that are activated upon pathogen or insect attack. Cross-talk between SA- and JA-dependent signaling pathways allows a plant to finely tune its response to the attacker encountered. In Arabidopsis, pharmacological experiments revealed that SA exerts a strong antagonistic effect on JA-responsive genes, such as PDF1.2, indicating that the SA pathway can be prioritized over the JA pathway. SA-mediated suppression of the JA-responsive PDF1.2 promoter was exploited for setting up a genetic screen aiming at the isolation of signal transduction mutants that are impaired in this cross-talk mechanism. The PDF1.2 promoter was fused to the herbicide resistance gene BAR to allow for life/death screening of a population of mutagenized transgenic plants. Non-mutant plants should survive herbicide treatment when methyl jasmonate (MeJA) is applied, but suppression of the JA response by SA should be lethal in combination with the herbicide. Conversely, crucial SA/JA cross-talk mutants should survive the combination treatment. SA effectively suppressed the expression of the PDF1.2::BAR transgene. However, suppression of the BAR gene did not result in suppression of herbicide resistance. Hence, a screening method based on quantitative differences in the expression of a reporter gene may be better suited to identify SA/JA cross-talk mutants. Here, we demonstrate that the PDF1.2::GUS reporter will be excellently suited in this respect.Key words: plant defense, salicylic acid, jasmonic acid, cross-talk, mutant screen, Arabidopsis     

Functional characterization and evolution of PTH/PTHrP receptors: insights from the chicken

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: The parathyroid hormone (PTH)-family consists of a group of structurally related factors that regulate calcium and bone homeostasis and are also involved in development of organs such as the heart, mammary gland and immune system. They interact with specific members of family 2 B1 G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs), which have been characterised in teleosts and mammals. Two PTH/PTHrP receptors, PTH1R and PTH2R exist in mammals and in teleost fish a further receptor PTH3R has also been identified. Recently in chicken, PTHfamily members involved in calcium transport were characterized and specific PTHRs are suggested to exist although they have not yet been isolated or functionally characterized. The aim of this study is to further explore the evolution and function of the vertebrate PTH/PTHrP system through the isolation, phylogenetic analysis and functional characterization of the chicken receptors. RESULTS: Two PTHRs were isolated in chicken and sequence comparison and phylogenetic analysis indicate that the chicken receptors correspond to PTH1R and PTH3R, which emerged prior to the teleost/tetrapod divergence since they are present in cartilaginous fish. The vertebrate PTH2R receptor and its ligand TIP39 have been lost from bird genomes. Chicken PTH1R and PTH3R have a divergent and widespread tissue expression and are also evident in very early embryonic stages of development. Receptor stimulation studies using HEK293 cells stably expressing the chicken PTH1R and PTH3R and monitoring cAMP production revealed they are activated by chicken 1-34 N-terminal PTH-family peptides in a dose dependent manner. PTH-L and PTHrP were the most effective peptides in activating PTH1R (EC50 = 7.7 nM and EC50 = 22.7 nM, respectively). In contrast, PTH-L (100 nM) produced a small cAMP accumulation on activation of PTH3R but PTHrP and PTH (EC50 = 2.5 nM and EC50 = 22.1 nM, respectively) readily activated the receptor. PTHrP also stimulated intracellular Ca2+ accumulation on activation of PTH1R but not PTH3R. CONCLUSION: Two PTHR homologues of the vertebrate PTH1R and PTH3R were isolated and functionally characterized in chicken. Their distinct pattern of expression during embryo development and in adult tissues, together with their ligand preference, suggests that they have acquired specific functions, which have contributed to their maintenance in the genome. PTH2R and its activating ligand, TIP39, are absent from bird genomes. Nonetheless identification of putative PTH2R and TIP39 in the genome of an ancient agnathan, lamprey, suggests the PTH/PTHrP ligand and receptor family was already present in an early basal paraphyletic group of vertebrates and during the vertebrate radiation diverged via gene/genome duplication and deletion events. Knowledge of the role PTH/PTHrP system in early vertebrates will help to establish evolution of function.     

Differential activities of peroxisomes along the mouse intestinal epithelium

The presence of peroxisomes in mammalian intestine has been revealed formerly by catalase staining combined with electron microscopy. Despite the central role of intestine in lipid uptake and the established importance of peroxisomes in different lipid‐related pathways, few data are available on the physiological role of peroxisomes in intestinal metabolism, more specifically, α‐, β‐oxidation, and etherlipid synthesis. Hence, the peroxisomal compartment was analyzed in more detail in mouse intestine. On the basis of immunohistochemistry, the organelles are mainly confined to the epithelial cells. The expression of the classical peroxisome marker catalase was highest in the proximal part of jejunum and decreased along the tract. PEX14 showed a similar profile, but was still substantial expressed in large intestinal epithelium. Immunoblotting of epithelial cells, isolated from the different segments, showed also such gradient for some enzymes, ie, catalase, ACOX1, and D‐specific multifunctional protein 2, and for the ABCD1 transporter, being high in small and low or absent in large intestine. Other peroxisomal enzymes (PHYH, HACL1, and ACAA1), the ABCD2 and ABCD3 transporters, and peroxins PEX13 and PEX14, however, did not follow this pattern, displaying rather constant signals throughout the intestinal epithelium. The small intestine displayed the highest peroxisomal β‐oxidation activity and is particularly active on dicarboxylic acids. Etherlipid synthesis was high in the large intestine, and colonic cells had the highest content of plasmalogens. Overall, these data suggest that peroxisomes exert different functions according to the intestinal segment.