Phage X: a plasmid-dependent, broad host range, filamentous bacterial virus

Phage X was isolated from sewage as plating on Escherichia coli or Salmonella typhimurium strains harbouring the incompatibility group X plasmid R6K. It also plated on a strain of Serratia marcescens carrying this plasmid. It failed to form plaques on Proteus mirabilis, P. morganii or Providencia alcalifaciens harbouring R6K, but did multiply on them. No phage increase occurred with homologous R- strains. Phage X also plated or registered an increase in titre on E. coli or S. typhimurium strains carrying various plasmids of incompatibility groups M, N, P-1, U or W as well as the unassigned plasmid R775. It adsorbed to pili determined by a group P-10 plasmid in a Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain but did not multiply on this organism. The phage was filamentous and curly, resistant to ribonuclease and diethyl ether and sensitive to chloroform. It adsorbed to the tips of pili.     

The effects of methanol on the glutamate dehydrogenase reaction at 0 degrees C.

The effects of 0-30% methanol (vol/vol) on the Km an Vm values for both the forward and reverse directions of the L-glutamate dehydrogenase reaction were determined at 0 degrees C. The decrease in temperature alone had very little effect on these parameters. However, in the forward reaction, 30% methanol resulted in a 14-fold decrease in the Km value for glutamate, a slight decrease in the Km value for NADP, and a thirty-fold decrease in Vm. Substrate inhibition by glutamate was observed at concentrations greater than 4 mM. In the reverse reaction, 30% methanol caused a decrease in the Km values for alpha-ketoglutarate and ammonia and a 10-fold decrease in Vm. Substrate inhibition by both alpha-ketoglutarate and NADPH was observed at concentrations of either substrate above 0.03 mM. The dependence of Km for glutamate and Vm values for the forward reaction on methanol concentration suggests that they are similarly affected by methanol, in direct contrast to results obtained for NADP. Methanol appeared to cause a general tightening of complexes, which may arise from an effect on the "activities" of species in solution. The use of methanol not only allows for the study of reaction intermediates by slowing the reaction with the cryogenic method, but may also serve as a mechanistic probe by affecting several polarity as well as Km, Vm, and K1 values.     

Response to Selection for Mating Speed and Changes in Gene Arrangement Frequencies in Descendants from a Single Population of DROSOPHILA PSEUDOOBSCURA

Heritability estimates, based on 19 generations of selection for fast and slow mating speed, were not significantly different from zero at the 0.05 level in any replicate of selected lines in a population of flies descended from the Mather population in California. Only the combined heritability estimate of approximately 2% was significant. This indicated that very little additive genetic variance was present in the base population and that strong directional selection for rapid mating may have occurred in the previous history of the local population at Mather and/or during its many generations of laboratory propagation. Frequencies of third chromosome gene arrangements were monitored during the course of selection. Balancing selection, unrelated to that imposed for mating speed, and genetic drift appeared to be the major factors causing changes in chromosome frequencies. Present differences in adaptive value of third chromosome variants in nature may be associated with nonadditive effects on mating speed, as well as effects on other components of fitness.     

On the molecular mechanism of interaction between the neurophysins and oxytocin and vasopressin

Detailed mechanisms are presented at the molecular level for the binding of oxytocin and of vasopressin to their carrier proteins neurophysin (NP) I and neurophysin II. The amino acid sequence of both these is known together with the pattern of disulphide bound formation for the latter. It is suggested that the peptide hormone fits snugly into a deep cavity in the protein carrier, so that the complex forms a globular, water-extruding mass. Features of the mode of interaction determined by experiment [such as the binding of the terminal amino group of the hormone to a carboxyl group of NP, the close binding of tyr and phe of the hormone to a lipophilic region of NP and the close relation of tyr (2) of the hormone with tyr (49) of NP]are built into the model. The differences between NPI and NPII are related to differences between oxytocin (ile at 3) and vasopressin (phe at 3). Finally a number of specific predictions are made that are testable by experiment concerning the X-ray structure of the NP-hormone complexes and the ease and result of chemical modification of specific residues.     

Differentiation of normal human mammary epithelial cells in culture: an ultrastructural study.

An ultrastructural and cytochemical study of normal human mammary epithelial cells cultured from post-weaning breast fluids is described. Cells were examined at the time of plating and at intervals up to 28 days in culture. Three different stages in the morphological differentiation of these cells in vitro were observed: (1) the first stage was the formation of a monolayer of single cells, which occurred between days 1 and 10 in culture. The cells in this stage were not interconnected by junctional complexes and lacked Mg++- dependent ATPase activity in the plasma membranes, but did contain a large quantity of lipid and exhibited some secretory characteristics. (2) The second stage, occurring at 10 to 16 days in culture, was characterized by the formation of junctional complexes, the appearance of Mg++-dependent ATPase in the plasma membrane and a decrease in the number of dense bodies with peroxidase activity. (3) The third stage, occurring at 16 to 28 days in culture, was characterized by the formation of stratified layers of epithelial cells, which were interconnected by a larger number of desmosomes with numerous pleomorphic microfilaments. The Mg++-dependent ATPase activity in the plasma membrane was retained and the dense bodies with peroxidase activity were rarely observed at this stage. During the last seven days were prominent in the cells of the stratified layer. After 28 days in the culture, the cells began to round up and slough off the culture plate.     

Biology of the Galapagos shark,Carcharhinus galapagensis, in Hawai'i

Synopsis Catch records from the Hawai'i Cooperative Shark Research and Control Program, which operated in Hawai'i from 1967–1969, were examined and data on the Galapagos shark,Carcharhinus galapagensis were analyzed. A total of 304 Galapagos sharks was caught, predominantly with longlines. More female sharks were caught than males, and the catch was skewed geographically. On the island of O'ahu the highest catch rates occurred along the north and south coasts. High catch rates also occurred near points of land, where longshore currents converge. Average depth of capture was greater for juveniles (45.1 m) and mature males (60.2 m), than for subadults (38.8 m) and mature female sharks (34.2 m). Males appear to reach maturity between 205 and 239 cm total length, and females between 215 and 245 cm. Litter size ranged from 4 to 16 pups, with an average of 8.7. In Hawaiian waters Galapagos sharks are born at just over 80 cm total length. Mating and parturition apparently occur early in the year, and gestation is estimated to be about 12 months. Stomach contents consisted mainly of teleosts and benthic prey, and ontogenetic changes in diet occurred as sharks increased in size. Sharks consumed a smaller proportion of teleosts and more elasmobranchs with increasing size. Dietary diversity also increased with increasing size of shark.     

Accumulation of N-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids by Cultured Human Y79 Retinoblastoma Cells

Abstract: The metabolism of the n-3 class of polyunsaturated fatty acids, which occur in relatively high quantities in neural tissues, was studied in human Y79 retinoblastoma cells. These cells contained low levels of n-3 polyunsaturates when grown in culture media supplemented with fetal bovine serum. The cells readily incorporated preformed docosahexaenoic acid (22:6 n-3) into phospholipids, but human skin fibroblasts did this to a similar extent. When 10 to 30 μmol/ml linolenic acid (18:3 n-3) was added, the cells also accumulated 22:6 in phospholipids. The capacity to convert appreciable amounts of 18:3 to 22:6 appears to be a unique property of the retinoblastoma cells as compared with other continuously cultured cell lines. More 18:3 than linoleic acid (18:2 n-6) was incorporated into phospholipids by the retinoblastoma cultures, and 18:3 was channeled to a larger extent into the ethanolamine glycerophospholipid fraction. These findings indicate that retinoblastoma cells handle n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in a manner very similar to neural tissue in vivo . Based on the results obtained with this model system, it appears that three processes may contribute to the accumulation of 22:6 in retina and neural tissue: increased ability to incorporate 18:3, the capacity to convert 18:3 to 22:6, and channeling of 18:3 and its metabolites into ethanolamine glycerophospholipids.     

Differential effect of three-repeat and four-repeat tau on mitochondrial axonal transport

Tau protein is present in six different splice forms in the human brain and interacts with microtubules via either 3 or 4 microtubule binding repeats. An increased ratio of 3 repeat to 4 repeat isoforms is associated with neurodegeneration in inherited forms of frontotemporal dementia. Tau over-expression diminishes axonal transport in several systems, but differential effects of 3 repeat and 4 repeat isoforms have not been studied. We examined the effects of tau on mitochondrial transport and found that both 3 repeat and 4 repeat tau change normal mitochondrial distribution within the cell body and reduce mitochondrial localization to axons; 4 repeat tau has a greater effect than 3 repeat tau. Further, we observed that the 3 repeat and 4 repeat tau cause different alterations in retrograde and anterograde transport dynamics with 3 repeat tau having a slightly stronger effect on axon transport dynamics. Our results indicate that tau-induced changes in axonal transport may be an underlying theme in neurodegenerative diseases associated with isoform specific changes in tau's interaction with microtubules.     

Characteristics and function of thick and thin conjugative pili determined by transfer-derepressed plasmids of incompatibility groups I1, I2, I5, B, K and Z

Eleven transfer-derepressed plasmids from incompatibility groups I1, I5, B, K and Z were constructed using the dnaG3 mutant Escherichia coli strain BW86. All were found to determine thin flexible and thick rigid pili constitutively. Immune electron microscopy was used to relate thick and thin pilus serotypes with incompatibility grouping. Mutant plasmids that determined only thick pili constitutively transferred efficiently on an agar surface but not in a liquid, whereas plasmids with both kinds of pili transferred equally well in both environments. A mutant of the IncI2 plasmid R721 determined thin pili constitutively, and thick pili at a repressed level, as indicated by electron microscopy. Experiments with this indicated that thin pili were apparently not involved directly in conjugation but were only used to stabilize mating aggregates.