Heterostyly in species ofNarcissus (Amaryllidaceae) andHugonia (Linaceae) and other disputed cases

The hypothesis ofHenriques andFernandes that several Iberian species ofNarcissus (Amaryllidaceae) are tristylous is reconsidered. Contrary to the opinion ofBateman and most subsequent authors, we believe that the available evidence indicates that some populations ofN. triandrus andN. fernandesii, at least, are tristylous; other populations ofN. triandrus are distylous.Hugonia cf.penicillanthemum (Linaceae) from new Caledonia is distylous, but it remains possible that other species ofHugonia are tristylous. The disputed occurrence of heterostyly in S. African species ofBauhinia (Leguminosae),Cleome (Capparaceae) andAneilema (Commelinaceae), and inAgelaea (Connaraceae) is discussed.     

Flavonoid aglycones from the leaf surfaces of someLabiatae species

The distribution of excreted flavonoid aglycones within the familyLabiatae was studied and differences were found, especially in the A-ring substitution patterns. Thus, 5,7-dihydroxy-6-methoxyflavones with substituted B-rings are characteristic of species ofSalvia (sect.Salvia),Rosmarinus andOcimum; 5,7-dihydroxy-6,8-dimethoxyflavones occur only inOcimum and 5,6-dihydroxy-7,8-dimethoxyflavones inThymus and related species. Members of the two subfamiliesLamioideae andNepetoideae produce exudate flavonoids, but some genera are devoid of these compounds. There is a correlation between the habitat where the plant grows and production of these compounds, the species from (semi-)arid habitats being those which generally accumulate external flavonoids.     

Interactions between the methanogen Methanosarcina barkeri and rumen holotrich ciliate protozoa

Interspecies hydrogen transfer between rumen holotrich ciliate protoza and methanogenic bacteria has been demonstrated. As a result of the metabolic interaction with Methanosarcina barkeri , the metabolite profile of Isotricha spp. was altered and the production of butyrate and lactate was suppressed in the presence of the methanogen.
Use of membrane-inlet mass spectrometry confirmed that the presence of rumen holotrich ciliates reduced the apparent sensitivity of methanogenesis to the inhibitory effects of oxygen; a gas phase concentration of 7·4 kPa oxygen was required to inhibit methanogenesis in the presence of protozoa, while in pure cultures of M. barkeri , methanogenesis was inhibited by a gas phase oxygen concentration of 1·0 kPa.     

A general principle for the allocation of limited resources

Summary A marginal fitness theorem is derived for the allocation of a limited resource among alternative activities that have effects on the fitness of an individual. The marginal advantage theorem states that at the evolutionarily stable strategy (ESS), the marginal gains from increasing each of the allocations (expressed as partial derivatives of the fitness advantage of a rare mutant) are equal. The theorem is true for all proportional allocations (a + b + c + ...=j), regardless of the number of allocations, the nature of the response curves describing the direct effects of the allocations [f(a), etc.], or the way the effects of different allocations combine into fitness. The theorem is extended to size-number compromises and packaging strategies. The marginal advantage theorem is used to derive general theorems about the marginal effects of allocations [f (a), etc.] at the ESS and matching rules concerned with the total fitness to cost ratios of allocations at the ESS. The marginal advantage theorem is applicable to diverse allocation strategies, and provides a method for obtaining ESS allocations for any number of allocations and their components.     

Regulation fo protein kinase C activity by various lipids

Protein kinase C has recently attracted considerable attention because of its importance in the control of cell division, cell differentiation, and signal transduction across the cell membrane. The activity of this enzyme is altered by several lipids such as diacylglycerol, free fatty acids, lipoxins, gangliosides, and sulfatides. These lipids may interact with protein kinase C either directly or through calcium ions and produce their regulatory effect (activation or inhibition) on the activities of the enzymes phosphorylated by this kinase. These processes widen our perspective of the regulation of intercellular and intracelluular communication.Abbreviations used (PK-C) Protein kinase C - (cAMP-PK) cAMP dependent protein kinase - (DAG) diacylglycerol - (PtdSer) phosphatidylserine - (InsP ₃) inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate - (PtdIns 4,5-P₂) inositol 4,5 bisphosphate - (FFA) free fatty acid - (MBP) myelin basic protein - (ATP) adenosine triphosphate - (GTP) guanine triphosphate - (TPA) 12-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate - (EGF) epidermal growth factor - (PDGF) platelet derived growth factor - (NeuNAc) and N-acetylneuraminic acid     

Leader protein of foot-and-mouth disease virus is required for cleavage of the p220 component of the cap-binding protein complex.

Suppression of host protein synthesis in cells infected by poliovirus and certain other picornaviruses involves inactivation of the cap-binding protein complex. Inactivation of this complex has been correlated with the proteolytic cleavage of p220, a component of the cap-binding protein complex. Since picornaviral RNA is not capped, it continues to be translated as the cap-binding protein complex is inactivated. The cleavage of p220 can be induced to occur in vitro, catalyzed by extracts from infected cells or by reticulocyte lysates translating viral RNA. Expression of polioviral protease 2A is sufficient to induce p220 cleavage, and the presence in 2A of an 18-amino-acid sequence representing a putative cysteine protease active site correlates with the ability of different picornaviruses to induce p220 cleavage. Foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) infection induces complete cleavage of p220, yet the FMDV genome codes for a 2A protein of only 16 amino acids, which does not include the putative cysteine protease active site. Using cDNA plasmids encoding various regions of the FMDV genome, we have determined that the leader protein is required to initiate p220 cleavage. This is the first report of a function for the leader protein, other than that of autocatalytic cleavage from the FMDV polyprotein.     

Molecular analysis of plasmid DNA repair within ultraviolet-irradiated Escherichia coli. I. T4 endonuclease V-initiated excision repair

The process by which DNA-interactive proteins locate specific sequences or target sites on cellular DNA within Escherichia coli is a poorly understood phenomenon. In this study, we present the first direct in vivo analysis of the interaction of a DNA repair enzyme, T4 endonuclease V, and its substrate, pyrimidine dimer-containing plasmid DNA, within UV-irradiated E. coli. A pyrimidine dimer represents a small target site within large domains of DNA. There are two possible paradigms by which endonuclease V could locate these small target sites: a processive mechanism in which the enzyme "scans" DNA for dimer sites or a distributive process in which dimers are located by random three-dimensional diffusion. In order to discriminate between these two possibilities in E. coli, an in vivo DNA repair assay was developed to study the kinetics of plasmid DNA repair and the dimer frequency (i.e. the number of dimer sites on a given plasmid molecule) in plasmid DNA as a function of time during repair. Our results demonstrate that the overall process of plasmid DNA repair initiated by T4 endonuclease V (expressed from a recombinant plasmid within repair-deficient E. coli) occurs by a processive mechanism. Furthermore, by reducing the temperature of the repair incubation, the endonuclease V-catalyzed incision step has been effectively decoupled from the subsequent steps including repair patch synthesis, ligation, and supercoiling. By this manipulation, it was determined that the overall processive mechanism is composed of two phases: a rapid processive endonuclease V-catalyzed incision reaction, followed by a slower processive mechanism, the ultimate product of which is the dimer-free supercoiled plasmid molecule.     

Identification of N-glycolylneuraminic acid-containing gangliosides of cat and sheep erythrocytes. 252Cf fission fragment ionization mass spectrometry in the analysis of glycosphingolipids

A number of gangliosides were isolated from cat and sheep erythrocytes for use in analyzing the specificity of a panel of human anti-heterophile monoclonal antibodies. The structures of these compounds were determined by a combination of different procedures, including sugar analysis, glycosidase treatment, periodate oxidation, TLC immunostaining, methylation analysis, and mass spectrometry. These methods identified the cat erythrocytes gangliosides (C1 and C2) as N-glycolylneuraminic acid (NeuGc)-containing hematosides; C1 was shown to be NeuGc alpha 2----8NeuGc alpha 2----3Gal beta I----4Glc-Cer [NeuGc)2GD3) and C2 to be NeuAc alpha 2----8NeuGc alpha 2----3Gal beta 1----4Glc-Cer [NeuAc-NeuGc-)GD3). The two sheep gangliosides (S1 and S2) were found to be novel glycolipids based on the paragloboside sequence; S1 was identified as NeuGc alpha 2----8NeuGc alpha 2----3Gal beta 1----4GlcNAc beta 1----3Gal beta 1----4Glc-Cer [NeuGc)2-disialylparagloboside) and S2 as NeuAc alpha 2----8NeuGc alpha 2----3Gal beta 1----4GlcNAc beta 1----3Gal beta 1----4Glc-Cer [NeuAc-NeuGc-)-disialylparagloboside). Structural analysis of these compounds was aided by the use of 252Cf fission fragment ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry. This method provided easily interpretable spectra on methylated derivatives which were particularly useful in determining the sialic acid composition of the gangliosides and the sequence of their disialosyl side chains.     

Isolation and mapping of polymorphic cosmid clones used for sublocalization of the multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN1) locus

Summary Multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN1) is characterized by neoplasia of the parathyroids, the pancreas, and the pituitary. Tumorigenesis involves unmasking of a recessive mutation at the MEN1 locus, which has been mapped to the centromeric part of chromosomal region 11q. In order to localize the MEN1 gene further and to make its isolation possible, a number of new markers were isolated. Two radiation-reduced somatic cell hybrids were identified that only contained markers close to and flanking the MEN1 region. DNA from these hybrids was used for the construction of a cosmid library, and clones containing human inserts were isolated. In addition, cosmid clones were isolated for locus expansion of 7 other markers that were mapped to the 11q12–13.2 region. The 33 newly isolated clones together with 25 previously published markers from this region were analyzed in a panel of radiation-reduced somatic cell hybrids. From the hybridization pattern, the region was divided into 11 parts. New restriction fragment length polymorphisms were identified in 7 of the newly isolated cosmid clones and in one plasmid. These were then used to sublocalize meiotic cross-overs more precisely in two MEN1 families, thus refining the mapping of the disease gene.