Stretch activated ion channels in ventricular myocytes

Patch-clamp recordings from ventricular myocytes of neonatal rats identified ionic channels that open in response to membrane stretch caused by negative pressures (1 to 6 cm Hg) in the electrode. The stretch response, consisting of markedly increased channel opening frequency, was maintained, with some variability, during long (>40 seconds) stretch applications. The channels have a conductance averaging 120 pS in isotonic KCl, have a mean reversal potential 31 mV depolarized from resting membrane potential, and do not require external Ca⁺⁺ for activation. The channels appear to be relatively non-selective for cations. Since they are gated by physiological levels of tension, stretch-activated channels may represent, a cellular control system wherein beat-to-beat tension and/or osmotic balance modulate a portion of membrane conductance.Abbreviations SACs stretch-activated channels - HEPES 4-(2-hydroxyethyl)-1-piperazine-ethanesulfonic acid     

The Anti-Inflammatory Activity of Curcumin Protects the Genital Mucosal Epithelial Barrier from Disruption and Blocks Replication of HIV-1 and HSV-2

Inflammation is a known mechanism that facilitates HIV acquisition and the spread of infection. In this study, we evaluated whether curcumin, a potent and safe anti-inflammatory compound, could be used to abrogate inflammatory processes that facilitate HIV-1 acquisition in the female genital tract (FGT) and contribute to HIV amplification. Primary, human genital epithelial cells (GECs) were pretreated with curcumin and exposed to HIV-1 or HIV glycoprotein 120 (gp120), both of which have been shown to disrupt epithelial tight junction proteins, including ZO-1 and occludin. Pre-treatment with curcumin prevented disruption of the mucosal barrier by maintaining ZO-1 and occludin expression and maintained trans-epithelial electric resistance across the genital epithelium. Curcumin pre-treatment also abrogated the gp120-mediated upregulation of the proinflammatory cytokines tumor necrosis factor-α and interleukin (IL)-6, which mediate barrier disruption, as well as the chemokines IL-8, RANTES and interferon gamma-induced protein-10 (IP-10), which are capable of recruiting HIV target cells to the FGT. GECs treated with curcumin and exposed to the sexually transmitted co-infecting microbes HSV-1, HSV-2 and Neisseria gonorrhoeae were unable to elicit innate inflammatory responses that indirectly induced activation of the HIV promoter and curcumin blocked Toll-like receptor (TLR)-mediated induction of HIV replication in chronically infected T-cells. Finally, curcumin treatment resulted in significantly decreased HIV-1 and HSV-2 replication in chronically infected T-cells and primary GECs, respectively. All together, our results suggest that the use of anti-inflammatory compounds such as curcumin may offer a viable alternative for the prevention and/or control of HIV replication in the FGT.     

Enzymatic synthesis of biodiesel from palm oil assisted by microwave irradiation

Optimal conditions for enzymatic synthesis of biodiesel from palm oil and ethanol were determined with lipase from Pseudomonas fluorescens immobilized on epoxy polysiloxane–polyvinyl alcohol hybrid composite under a microwave heating system. The main goal was to reduce the reaction time preliminarily established by a process of conventional heating. A full factorial design assessed the influence of ethanol-to-palm oil (8:1–16:1) molar ratio and temperature (43–57 °C) on the transesterification yield. Microwave irradiations varying from 8 to 15 W were set up according to reaction temperature. Under optimal conditions (8:1 ethanol-to-oil molar ratio at 43 °C), 97.56 % of the fatty acids present in the palm oil were converted into ethyl esters in a 12-h reaction, corresponding to a productivity of 64.2 mg ethyl esters g^?1 h^?1. This represents a sixfold increase from the process carried out under conventional heating, thus proving to be a potential tool for enhancing biochemical modification of oils and fats. In general, advantages of the new process include: (1) microwaves speed up the enzyme-catalyzed reactions; (2) there are no destructive effects on the enzyme properties, such as stability and substrate specificity, and (3) the microwave assistance allows the entire reaction volume to be heated uniformly. These bring benefits of a low energy demand and a faster conversion of palm oil into biodiesel.     

Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticle-Mediated Intracellular Cre Protein Delivery for Maize Genome Editing via loxP Site Excision,

The delivery of proteins instead of DNA into plant cells allows for a transient presence of the protein or enzyme that can be useful for biochemical analysis or genome modifications. This may be of particular interest for genome editing, because it can avoid DNA (transgene) integration into the genome and generate precisely modified “nontransgenic” plants. In this work, we explore direct protein delivery to plant cells using mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) as carriers to deliver Cre recombinase protein into maize (Zea mays) cells. Cre protein was loaded inside the pores of gold-plated MSNs, and these particles were delivered by the biolistic method to plant cells harboring loxP sites flanking a selection gene and a reporter gene. Cre protein was released inside the cell, leading to recombination of the loxP sites and elimination of both genes. Visual selection was used to select recombination events from which fertile plants were regenerated. Up to 20% of bombarded embryos produced calli with the recombined loxP sites under our experimental conditions. This direct and reproducible technology offers an alternative for DNA-free genome-editing technologies in which MSNs can be tailored to accommodate the desired enzyme and to reach the desired tissue through the biolistic method.Introducing DNA-modifying enzymes rather than DNA-based expression cassettes is an attractive alternative for genetic engineering and genome-editing applications such as gene targeting or site-specific recombination. It offers a transient presence of the enzymes, and the process can be coordinated with high levels of enzymatic activity at the time and sites of the desired DNA recombination events. Many DNA-metabolizing enzymes (endonucleases, transposases, and topoisomerases), when delivered in an unrestrained manner, show adverse effects on cell viability. Delivery in the form of protein or RNA may help to mitigate these effects (Cui et al., 2011; Sander et al., 2011; Watanabe et al., 2012). In addition, by introducing proteins, one can avoid the need to remove the protein-encoding DNA fragments from the engineered plant genome. This may help shorten the time from laboratory to field for future improved germplasms.Site-specific recombinases such as Cre or FLP have been widely used in genetic engineering applications (Sorrell and Kolb, 2005). The 38-kD Cre enzyme specifically binds to and recombines the 34-bp loxP sequences, allowing the removal, integration, or inversion of the DNA fragment flanked by these sequences (for review, see Wang et al., 2011). There are a number of established methodologies designed to provide the Cre recombinase activity for site-specific recombination in eukaryotic cells that do not involve the delivery of DNA. These methods include lipofection (Baubonis and Sauer, 1993), microinjection of protein or mRNA (de Wit et al., 1998; Luckow et al., 2009), electroporation of protein or mRNA (Kolb and Siddell, 1996; Ponsaerts et al., 2004), or using modified microorganisms for Cre delivery to their host cells (Vergunst et al., 2000; Koshy et al., 2010). Another strategy that has been used is the incubation or injection of tissues/cell cultures with cell-permeant Cre, a modified Cre protein fused to protein transduction domains or cell-penetrating peptides (Jo et al., 2001; Will et al., 2002; Lin et al., 2004; Nolden et al., 2006).For biotechnological applications in plant sciences, protein delivery systems have been developed, including microinjection (Wymer et al., 2001), protein immobilization to gold particles (Wu et al., 2011), and protein transduction through cell-penetrating peptides (for review, see Chugh et al., 2010). The cell-penetrating peptides were shown to enable intracellular delivery of the Cre recombinase protein to rice (Oryza sativa) callus tissues (Cao et al., 2006). Nanobiotechnology is offering an attractive alternative, since nanoparticles can be precisely tailored to deliver a particular biomolecule to the cell, tissue, or organism of interest when needed (for review, see Du et al., 2012). Mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) are particularly suited for this purpose. These porous nanoparticles are formed by a matrix of well-ordered pores that confers high loading capacity of molecules like proteins (for review, see Popat et al., 2011). Additionally, surfaces of MSNs can be readily modified, permitting the customization of nanoparticles to particular experimental needs (for review, see Trewyn et al., 2007). In our previous studies, it was shown that MSNs can be used for the codelivery of DNA and chemicals (Torney et al., 2007) as well as DNA and proteins (Martin-Ortigosa et al., 2012a) to plant cells via biolistics. To improve MSN performance as a projectile, gold plating of MSN surfaces was performed, increasing nanoparticle density and, subsequently, the ability to pass through the plant cell wall upon bombardment (Martin-Ortigosa et al., 2012b).In this work, the Cre recombinase enzyme was loaded into the pores of gold-plated MSNs and delivered through the biolistic method to maize (Zea mays) cells containing loxP sites integrated into chromosomal DNA (Lox-corn; Fig. 1A). Lox-corn expressed the glyphosate acetyltransferase gene (gat) and the Anemonia majano cyan fluorescent protein gene (AmCyan1) flanked by loxP sites. The MSN-released Cre enzyme recombined the loxP sites, thus removing the DNA fragment flanked by these sequences. Such excisions led to the expression of a variant of Discosoma sp. red fluorescent protein gene (DsRed2) and the loss of the selectable marker gene (Fig. 1A). Visual selection was used to recover the recombination events. Subsequently, fertile maize plants were regenerated from the recombined events and DNA analyses confirmed the recombination events. To our knowledge, this is the first time that MSNs have been used for the delivery of a functional recombinase into plant tissues, leading to successful genome editing.Open in a separate windowFigure 1.A, Schematic representation of the MSN-based bombardment technology. Cre protein is loaded into the pores of gold-plated MSN (Cre-6x-MSN) and subsequently bombarded onto immature embryos of a transgenic maize line carrying a loxP construct (Lox-corn). The parental transgenic Lox-corn tissues are blue fluorescence and herbicide resistant because they harbor a cassette with the glyphosate acetyltransferase (gat) selection gene and the AmCyan1 (cyan) marker gene flanked by the loxP sites. The DsRed2 (dsred) gene for the expression of a red fluorescent protein is placed downstream of the cassette. Once Cre recombinase is released inside the cell, it performs the recombination, excising gat-AmCyan1 genes and leading to the expression of the DsRed2 gene, switching the cell fluorescence pattern from blue to red. P, Promoter; T, terminator. UBINTRF, CYANF, and DSRED2R are primers for DNA analysis. B, Transmission electron microscope image showing the typical hexagonal shape and the well-ordered pore structure of a 6x-MSN. C, Scanning electron microscope image showing gold nanoparticle deposition (white dots) in all surfaces of 6x-MSN. D, Western blot showing Cre protein loading and release dynamics from 6x-MSN. The protein loading is almost immediate, even though some protein can be detected in the buffer even after 1 h of loading. For the release, some Cre protein can be observed after 24 h of incubation. Most of the protein remains in the 6x-MSN pellet. C+, 400 ng of Cre protein; Empty, a lane with no protein loading. The bands observed in the Empty lane were the spillover from the neighboring Pellet lane, which represents Cre-loaded 6x-MSN after the release experiment resuspended in Laemmli loading buffer (see “Materials and Methods”).     

Genome sequence of the acid-tolerant Burkholderia sp. strain WSM2230 from Karijini National Park,Australia

Burkholderia sp. strain WSM2230 is an aerobic, motile, Gram-negative, non-spore-forming acid-tolerant rod isolated from acidic soil collected in 2001 from Karijini National Park, Western Australia, using Kennedia coccinea (Coral Vine) as a host. WSM2230 was initially effective in nitrogen-fixation with K. coccinea, but subsequently lost symbiotic competence. Here we describe the features of Burkholderia sp. strain WSM2230, together with genome sequence information and its annotation. The 6,309,801 bp high-quality-draft genome is arranged into 33 scaffolds of 33 contigs containing 5,590 protein-coding genes and 63 RNA-only encoding genes. The genome sequence of WSM2230 failed to identify nodulation genes and provides an explanation for the observed failure of the laboratory grown strain to nodulate. The genome of this strain is one of 100 sequenced as part of the DOE Joint Genome Institute 2010 Genomic Encyclopedia for Bacteria and Archaea-Root Nodule Bacteria (GEBA-RNB) project.     

Numerical simulations of the pulsating flow of cerebrospinal fluid flow in the cervical spinal canal of a Chiari patient

The flow of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in a patient-specific model of the subarachnoid space in a Chiari I patient was investigated using numerical simulations. The pulsating CSF flow was modeled using a time-varying velocity pulse based on peak velocity measurements (diastole and systole) derived from a selection of patients with Chiari I malformation. The present study introduces the general definition of the Reynolds number to provide a measure of CSF flow instability to give an estimate of the possibility of turbulence occurring in CSF flow. This was motivated by the fact that the combination of pulsating flow and the geometric complexity of the spinal canal may result in local Reynolds numbers that are significantly higher than the commonly used global measure such that flow instabilities may develop into turbulent flow in these regions. The local Reynolds number was used in combination with derived statistics to characterize the flow. The results revealed the existence of both local unstable regions and local regions with velocity fluctuations similar in magnitude to what is observed in fully turbulent flows. The results also indicated that the fluctuations were not self-sustained turbulence, but rather flow instabilities that may develop into turbulence. The case considered was therefore believed to represent a CSF flow close to transition.     

Helicobacter pylori CagA-dependent macrophage migration inhibitory factor produced by gastric epithelial cells binds to CD74 and stimulates procarcinogenic events

Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) is a proinflammatory cytokine that has recently been implicated in carcinogenesis. Helicobacter pylori, which is closely linked to gastric cancer, induces the gastric epithelium to produce proinflammatory cytokines, including MIF. MIF can bind to CD74, which we have previously shown to be highly expressed on the surface of gastric epithelial cells (GEC) during H. pylori infection. In this study, we sought to investigate the role of the H. pylori-induced MIF on epithelial proliferation and procarcinogenic events. Upon establishing a role for the H. pylori CagA virulence factor in MIF production, MIF binding to CD74 on GEC was confirmed. rMIF and H. pylori were shown to increase GEC proliferation, which was decreased when cagA- strains were used and when CD74 was blocked by mAbs. Apoptosis was also decreased by MIF, but increased by cagA- strains that induced much lower amounts of MIF than the wild-type bacteria. Furthermore, MIF binding to CD74 was also shown to decrease p53 phosphorylation and up-regulate Bcl-2 expression. This data describes a novel system in which an H. pylori virulence factor contributes to the production of a host factor that in turn up-regulates procarcinogenic events by the gastric epithelium.     

Sustaining Plants and People: Traditional Q’eqchi’ Maya Botanical Knowledge and Interactive Spatial Modeling in Prioritizing Conservation of Medicinal Plants for Culturally Relative Holistic Health Promotion

Ethnobotanical surveys were conducted to locate culturally important, regionally scarce, and disappearing medicinal plants via a novel participatory methodology which involves healer-expert knowledge in interactive spatial modeling to prioritize conservation efforts and thus facilitate health promotion via medicinal plant resource sustained availability. These surveys, conducted in the Maya Mountains, Belize, generate ethnobotanical, ecological, and geospatial data on species which are used by Q’eqchi’ Maya healers in practice. Several of these mountainous species are regionally scarce and the healers are expressing difficulties in finding them for use in promotion of community health and wellness. Based on healers’ input, zones of highest probability for locating regionally scarce, disappearing, and culturally important plants in their ecosystem niches can be facilitated by interactive modeling. In the present study, this is begun by choosing three representative species to train an interactive predictive model. Model accuracy was then assessed statistically by testing for independence between predicted occurrence and actual occurrence of medicinal plants. A high level of accuracy was achieved using a small set of exemplar data. This work demonstrates the potential of combining ethnobotany and botanical spatial information with indigenous ecosystems concepts and Q’eqchi’ Maya healing knowledge via predictive modeling. Through this approach, we may identify regions where species are located and accordingly promote for prioritization and application of in situ and ex situ conservation strategies to protect them. This represents a significant step toward facilitating sustained culturally relative health promotion as well as overall enhanced ecological integrity to the region and the earth.