Selection of Powdery Mildew and Yellow Mosaic-Resistant Greengram Plants Regenerated Through Organogenesis

Several regenerants through organogenesis were obtained in greengram ( Vigna radiata L. wilczek). Cytokinins appear to be important in inducing organogenesis and IAA induces root induction. Heritable variations could be seen among organogenesis regenerants. Some of the regenerants showed resistance to powdery mildew while some others showed resistance to yellow mosaic virus disease. The disease resistant characters were stable also in R 3 and R 4 generations.     

Orthostatic hypotension,catecholamines, and alpha-adrenergic receptors in mitral valve prolapse.

The reported association of mitral valve prolapse with autonomic dysfunction and neuroendocrine abnormalities is derived from studies of patients selected because of symptoms or specifically referred for investigation. To determine whether such associations occur in nonreferred and unselected women with mitral valve prolapse, we measured blood pressure, heart rate, and norepinephrine response to standing in 13 volunteers with mitral valve prolapse and in 11 control subjects. Platelet alpha-adrenergic receptor quantity and affinity on standing also were determined in all persons. No significant differences were found between the groups in any of these measurements. Although small subsets of women with mitral valve prolapse may indeed have associated neuroendocrine epiphenomena and autonomic dysfunction, it is probably incorrect to generalize these findings to the vast spectrum of those with mitral valve prolapse.     

A method for preserving saliva samples at ambient temperatures

To facilitate biochemical and biopharmaceutical studies when cold storage is unavailable, we assessed the stability of saliva samples containing preservatives stored at room temperature over a 1-year period. Two preservative mixtures were evaluated: sodium benzoate and citric acid (P1), and ethyl and propyl paraben (P2). Saliva samples were spiked with acetaminophen (APAP) or antipyrine (AP) and stored in preservative-coated vials and examined for concentrations of APAP, AP, melatonin, and cortisol at regular intervals as a function of preservative type and storage duration. Samples were stored at room temperature or at -20 degrees C (positive control) and analyzed periodically for APAP and AP by high-performance liquid chromatography and for melatonin and cortisol by radioimmunoassay. The effectiveness of the preservatives was determined by calculating the value of samples stored at room temperature in terms of percent of control (-20 degrees C) values. P1 effectively maintained the stability of APAP (100%) and AP (100%) for 360 days at room temperature; concentrations in samples at room temperature on day 360 were comparable to those on day 01. P1 also effectively maintained melatonin (100%) and cortisol (95%) concentrations for 180 days at room temperature. P2 preserved AP and cortisol in saliva for 60 days, but APAP for only 14 days.     

Variability in cell yield for heterogeneous microbial populations of sewage origin grown on glucose

Values of cell yield collected over a period of eight years for heterogeneous populations of sewage origin acclimated to glucose in both batch and continuous culture were subjected to statistical analysis. The cell yield for this sole source of carbon (glucose) ranged from 36 to 88 per cent in batch culture, and 32 to 69 per cent in continuous culture. Because experimental conditions were known and well defined, the variability in cell yield is attributable to the ecological variation inherent in a heterogeneous population. The data presented demonstrate the futility of attempts to define Y for such populations as a precise theoretical constant dependent upon thermodynamic properties of the substrate.     

Nutrient uptake by paddy during the main three stages of growth

Summary Uptake of mineral nutrients and production of carbohydrates by paddy during the vegetative, the reproductive, and the ripening stage of growth were determined in a pot experiment.From 59 to 84 per cent of the nutrients present in the ripe plants were absorbed between tillering and flowering. More than 90 per cent of the N and K, 80 per cent of the P and Ca, and 65 per cent of the Mg were absorbed prior to flowering, and the remainder after heading.More than 60 per cent of the carbohydrates present in the ripe stage was produced after flowering.     

CUSP: an algorithm to distinguish structurally conserved and unconserved regions in protein domain alignments and its application in the study of large length variations

Background  

Distantly related proteins adopt and retain similar structural scaffolds despite length variations that could be as much as two-fold in some protein superfamilies. In this paper, we describe an analysis of indel regions that accommodate length variations amongst related proteins. We have developed an algorithm CUSP, to examine multi-membered PASS2 superfamily alignments to identify indel regions in an automated manner. Further, we have used the method to characterize the length, structural type and biochemical features of indels in related protein domains.     

SCCRO (DCUN1D1) promotes nuclear translocation and assembly of the neddylation E3 complex

SCCRO/DCUN1D1/DCN1 (squamous cell carcinoma-related oncogene/defective in cullin neddylation 1 domain containing 1/defective in cullin neddylation) serves as an accessory E3 in neddylation by binding to cullin and Ubc12 to allow efficient transfer of Nedd8. In this work we show that SCCRO has broader, pleiotropic effects that are essential for cullin neddylation in vivo. Reduced primary nuclear localization of Cul1 accompanying decreased neddylation and proliferation in SCCRO(-/-) mouse embryonic fibroblasts led us to investigate whether compartmentalization plays a regulatory role. Decreased nuclear localization, neddylation, and defective proliferation in SCCRO(-/-) mouse embryonic fibroblasts were rescued by transgenic expression of SCCRO. Expression of reciprocal SCCRO and Cul1-binding mutants confirmed the requirement for SCCRO in nuclear translocation and neddylation of cullins in vivo. Nuclear translocation of Cul1 by tagging with a nuclear localization sequence allowed neddylation independent of SCCRO, but at a lower level. We found that in the nucleus, SCCRO enhances recruitment of Ubc12 to Cul1 to promote neddylation. These findings suggest that SCCRO has an essential role in neddylation in vivo involving nuclear localization of neddylation components and recruitment and proper positioning of Ubc12.     

HIV-mediated phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/serine-threonine kinase activation in APCs leads to programmed death-1 ligand upregulation and suppression of HIV-specific CD8 T cells

Recent evidence demonstrates that HIV-1 infection leads to the attenuation of cellular immune responses, which has been correlated with the increased expression of programmed death (PD)-1 on virus-specific CD8(+) T cells. PD-1 is induced upon T cell activation, and its prolonged expression facilitates CD8(+) T cell inhibitory signals when bound to its B7 family ligands, PD-ligand (L)1/2, which are expressed on APCs. Importantly, early reports demonstrated that blockade of the PD-1/PD-L interaction by Abs may help to counter the development of immune exhaustion driven by HIV viral persistence. To better understand the regulation of the PD-1 pathway during HIV infection, we examined the ability of the virus to induce PD-L expression on macrophages and dendritic cells. We found a direct relationship between the infection of APCs and the expression of PD-L1 in which virus-mediated upregulation induced a state of nonresponsiveness in uninfected HIV-specific T cells. Furthermore, this exhaustion phenotype was revitalized by the blockade of PD-L1, after which T cells regained their capacity for proliferation and the secretion of proinflammatory cytokines IFN-γ, IL-2, and IL-12 upon restimulation. In addition, we identify a critical role for the PI3K/serine-threonine kinase signaling pathway in PD-L1 upregulation of APCs by HIV, because inhibition of these intracellular signal transducer enzymes significantly reduced PD-L1 induction by infection. These data identify a novel mechanism by which HIV exploits the immunosuppressive PD-1 pathway and suggest a new role for virus-infected cells in the local corruption of immune responses required for viral suppression.