How aphids lose their marbles

Insects provide examples of many cunning stratagems to cope with the challenges of living in a world dominated by surface forces. Despite being the current masters of the land environment, they are at constant risk of being entrapped in liquids, which they prevent by having waxy and hairy surfaces. The problem is particularly acute in an enclosed space, such as a plant gall. Using secreted wax to efficiently parcel and transport their own excrement, aphids were able to solve this problem 200 Myr ago. Here, we report on the physical and physiological significance of this ingenious solution. The secreted powdery wax has three distinct roles: (i) it is hydrophobic, (ii) it creates a microscopically rough inner gall surface made of weakly compacted wax needles making the gall ultra-hydrophobic, and (iii) it coats the honeydew droplets converting them into liquid marbles, that can be rapidly and efficiently moved.     

The dark reactions of rye phytochrome in vivo and in vitro

The dark reactions of Secale cereale L. cv. Balbo phytochrome have been investigated in coleoptile tips and in extensively purified extracts of large molecular weight phytochrome. Destruction, but not reversion, was detected in vivo. The effects of various inhibitors of an in vitro phytochrome-degrading protease did not support a view of proteolytic attack as the basis of in vivo destruction. In vitro, rye phytochrome (about 240,000 molecular weight) reverted extremely rapidly, even at 5 C. The reversion curves were resolved into two first order components. The previously studied 60,000 molecular weight species, obtained by controlled proteolysis of large rye phytochrome, showed a similar two-component pattern, but a much slower over-all reversion rate. This reduction in rate was caused mainly by the reversion of a greater percentage of the small phytochrome as the slow component. Sodium dithionite markedly accelerated the reversion rate of both large and small forms, but oxidants, at concentrations low enough to avoid chromophore destruction, had no effect. Both large and small crude Avena sativa L. phytochrome showed two-component reversion kinetics.     

The membrane-proximal intracellular domain of the epidermal growth factor receptor underlies negative cooperativity in ligand binding

The binding of EGF induces dimerization of its receptor, leading to the stimulation of its intracellular tyrosine kinase activity. Kinase activation occurs within the context of an asymmetric dimer in which one kinase domain serves as the activator for the other kinase domain but is not itself activated. How ligand binding is related to the formation and dynamics of this asymmetric dimer is not known. The binding of EGF to its receptor is negatively cooperative--that is, EGF binds with lower affinity to the second site on the dimer than to the first site on the dimer. In this study, we analyzed the binding of (125)I-EGF to a series of EGF receptor mutants in the intracellular juxtamembrane domain and demonstrate that the most membrane-proximal portion of this region plays a significant role in the genesis of negative cooperativity in the EGF receptor. The data are consistent with a model in which the binding of EGF to the first site on the dimer induces the formation of one asymmetric kinase dimer. The binding of EGF to the second site is required to disrupt the initial asymmetric dimer and allow the formation of the reciprocal asymmetric dimer. Thus, some of the energy of binding to the second site is used to reorient the first asymmetric dimer, leading to a lower binding affinity and the observed negative cooperativity.     

An extensive review on antifungal approaches in the treatment of mucormycosis

During the period of COVID-19, the occurrences of mucormycosis in immunocompromised patients have increased significantly. Mucormycosis (black fungus) is a rare and rapidly progressing fungal infection associated with high mortality and morbidity in India as well as globally. The causative agents for this infection are collectively called mucoromycetes which are the members of the order Mucorales. The diagnosis of the infection needs to be performed as soon as the occurrence of clinical symptoms which differs with types of Mucorales infection. Imaging techniques magnetic resonance imaging or computed tomography scan, culture testing, and microscopy are the approaches for the diagnosis. After the diagnosis of the infection is confirmed, rapid action is needed for the treatment in the form of antifungal therapy or surgery depending upon the severity of the infection. Delaying in treatment declines the chances of survival. In antifungal therapy, there are two approaches first-line therapy (monotherapy) and combination therapy. Amphotericin B ( 1 ) and isavuconazole ( 2 ) are the drugs of choice for first-line therapy in the treatment of mucormycosis. Salvage therapy with posaconazole ( 3 ) and deferasirox ( 4 ) is another approach for patients who are not responsible for any other therapy. Adjunctive therapy is also used in the treatment of mucormycosis along with first-line therapy, which involves hyperbaric oxygen and cytokine therapy. There are some drugs like VT-1161 ( 5 ) and APX001A ( 6 ), Colistin, SCH 42427, and PC1244 that are under clinical trials. Despite all these approaches, none can be 100% successful in giving results. Therefore, new medications with favorable or little side effects are required for the treatment of mucormycosis.     

The 'human revolution' in lowland tropical Southeast Asia: the antiquity and behavior of anatomically modern humans at Niah Cave (Sarawak, Borneo)

Recent research in Europe, Africa, and Southeast Asia suggests that we can no longer assume a direct and exclusive link between anatomically modern humans and behavioral modernity (the 'human revolution'), and assume that the presence of either one implies the presence of the other: discussions of the emergence of cultural complexity have to proceed with greater scrutiny of the evidence on a site-by-site basis to establish secure associations between the archaeology present there and the hominins who created it. This paper presents one such case study: Niah Cave in Sarawak on the island of Borneo, famous for the discovery in 1958 in the West Mouth of the Great Cave of a modern human skull, the 'Deep Skull,' controversially associated with radiocarbon dates of ca. 40,000 years before the present. A new chronostratigraphy has been developed through a re-investigation of the lithostratigraphy left by the earlier excavations, AMS-dating using three different comparative pre-treatments including ABOX of charcoal, and U-series using the Diffusion-Absorption model applied to fragments of bones from the Deep Skull itself. Stratigraphic reasons for earlier uncertainties about the antiquity of the skull are examined, and it is shown not to be an 'intrusive' artifact. It was probably excavated from fluvial-pond-desiccation deposits that accumulated episodically in a shallow basin immediately behind the cave entrance lip, in a climate that ranged from times of comparative aridity with complete desiccation, to episodes of greater surface wetness, changes attributed to regional climatic fluctuations. Vegetation outside the cave varied significantly over time, including wet lowland forest, montane forest, savannah, and grassland. The new dates and the lithostratigraphy relate the Deep Skull to evidence of episodes of human activity that range in date from ca. 46,000 to ca. 34,000 years ago. Initial investigations of sediment scorching, pollen, palynomorphs, phytoliths, plant macrofossils, and starch grains recovered from existing exposures, and of vertebrates from the current and the earlier excavations, suggest that human foraging during these times was marked by habitat-tailored hunting technologies, the collection and processing of toxic plants for consumption, and, perhaps, the use of fire at some forest-edges. The Niah evidence demonstrates the sophisticated nature of the subsistence behavior developed by modern humans to exploit the tropical environments that they encountered in Southeast Asia, including rainforest.     

Genomic mapping of chromosomal region 2p15-p21 (D2S378-D2S391): integration of Genemap'98 within a framework of yeast and bacterial artificial chromosomes

The region of chromosome 2 encompassed by the polymorphic markers D2S378 (centromeric) and D2S391 (telomeric) spans an approximately 10-cM distance in cytogenetic bands 2p15-p21. This area is frequently involved in cytogenetic alterations in human cancers. It also harbors the genes for several genetic disorders, including Type I hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC), familial male precocious puberty (FMPP), Carney complex (CNC), Doyne's honeycomb retinal dystrophy (DHRD), and one form of familial dyslexia (DYX-3). Only a handful of known genes have been mapped to 2p16. These include MSH2, which is responsible for HNPCC, FSHR, the gene responsible for FMPP, EFEMP-1, the gene mutated in DHRD, GTBP, a DNA repair gene, and SPTBN1, nonerythryocytic beta-spectrin. The genes for CNC and DYX-3 remain unknown, due to lack of a contig of this region and its underrepresentation in the existing maps. This report presents a yeast- and bacterial-artificial chromosome (YAC and BAC, respectively) resource for the construction of a sequence-ready map of 2p15-p21 between the markers D2S378 and D2S391 at the centromeric and telomeric ends, respectively. The recently published Genemap'98 lists 146 expressed sequence tags (ESTs) in this region; we have used our YAC-BAC map to place each of these ESTs within a framework of 40 known and 3 newly cloned polymorphic markers and 37 new sequence-tagged sites. This map provides an integration of genetic, radiation hybrid, and physical mapping information for the region corresponding to cytogenetic bands 2p15-p21 and is expected to facilitate the identification of disease genes from the area.     

Catalytic components of proteasomes and the regulation of proteinase activity

The proteasome (multicatalytic proteinase complex) is a large multimeric complex which is found in the nucleus and cytoplasm of eukaryotic cells. It plays a major role in both ubiquitin-dependent and ubiquitin-independent nonlysosomal pathways of protein degradation. Proteasome subunits are encoded by members of the same gene family and can be divided into two groups based on their similarity to the and subunits of the simpler proteasome isolated fromThermoplasma acidophilum. Proteasomes have a cylindrical structure composed of four rings of seven subunits. The 26S form of the proteasome, which is responsible for ubiquitin-dependent proteolysis, contains additional regulatory complexes. Eukaryotic proteasomes have multiple catalytic activities which are catalysed at distinct sites. Since proteasomes are unrelated to other known proteases, there are no clues as to which are the catalytic components from sequence alignments. It has been assumed from studies with yeast mutants that -type subunits play a catalytic role. Using a radiolabelled peptidyl chloromethane inhibitor of rat liver proteasomes we have directly identified RC7 as a catalytic component. Interestingly, mutants in Prel, the yeast homologue of RC7, have already been reported to have defective chymotrypsin-like activity. These results taken together confirm a direct catalytic role for these -type subunits. Proteasome activities are sensitive to conformational changes and there are several ways in which proteasome function may be modulatedin vivo. Our recent studies have shown that in animal cells at least two proteasome subunits can undergo phosphorylation, the level of which is likely to be important for determining proteasome localization, activity or ability to form larger complexes. In addition, we have isolated two isoforms of the 26S proteinase.     

Understanding women’s burdens: preliminary findings on psychosocial health among datoga and iraqw women of northern tanzania

This preliminary, community-based study examines major stressors identified by Iraqw and Datoga women of Mbulu District, Tanzania, and describes steps in creating a culturally specific questionnaire to assess mental health burdens. This area of Tanzania is remote, with limited access to goods and services, and is undergoing dramatic social and economic changes. Iraqw and Datoga reside in close proximity and often intermarry but have different cultural and subsistence responses to this rapid social change. Data were collected from May to October 2002, with 49 Datoga women and 64 Iraqw women interviewed. In-home interviews were conducted to have women (1) free-list their primary concerns and (2) answer questions from a translated (in Datoga and Iraqw) and modified standardized mental health questionnaire. Both groups of women identified hunger, the lack of animals, particularly cattle, and health/illnesses as the most common major stressors. Other frequently cited stressors included crop failure, general fears of violence, paying taxes, and no money for basic needs. Additional refinements are required for the mental health questionnaire, with strengths and limitations discussed. Such data, while preliminary, augment efforts to analyze the emotional burdens associated with dramatic social change.     

Immunochemical detection of unique proteolytic fragments of the chick 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 receptor. Distinct 20-kDa DNA-binding and 45-kDa hormone-binding species

We have characterized proteolytic fragments of the chick intestinal 1,25-dihyroxyvitamin D3 (1,25-(OH)2D3) receptor, produced through either exogenous or endogenous protease action, utilizing a variety of physical and functional assays coupled to immunoblot detection methodology. Treatment of intestinal cytosol with increasing concentrations of trypsin resulted in a progressive diminishment of the 60-kDa receptor concomitant with the appearance of a 20-kDa fragment reactive by Western blot analysis to an anti-1,25-(OH)2D3 receptor monoclonal antibody. Cleveland analysis supported the receptor-origin of this 20-kDa fragment: a common immunoreactive species of 12 kDa could be generated by Staphylococcus aureus V8 protease treatment of the intact 60-kDa receptor as well as the 20-kDa proteolytic product. The 20-kDa fragment did not bind hormone but was capable of interacting with DNA-cellulose in a fashion identical to that of the 60-kDa receptor and, therefore, may contain the functional DNA-binding domain of the chick 1,25-(OH)2D3 receptor. Thus, this fragment likely represents the complement of a larger hormone-bound fragment that we have previously described (Allegretto, E. A., and Pike, J.W. (1985) J. Biol. Chem. 260, 10139-10145). In contrast to the exogenous effect of trypsin, incubation of cytosol resulted in the time-dependent formation of an endogenous protease-derived fragment of 45 kDa. Cleveland analysis was consistent with the 60-kDa receptor derivation of the 45-kDa fragment. This species retained the hormone-binding site and the antibody determinant but was devoid of DNA-binding activity. Moreover, it generated neither the trypsin-dependent 20-kDa fragment nor the V8 protease-dependent 12-kDa species and, therefore, was derived from the opposite end of the receptor molecule. These data have facilitated the construction of a schematic model of the chick receptor in which the immunoreactive epitope is located between the functional domains for hormone binding and DNA binding.