Activation of a new proline transport system in Salmonella typhimurium.

Proline uptake can be mediated by three different transport systems in wild-type Salmonella typhimurium: a high-affinity proline transport system encoded by the putP gene and two glycine-betaine transport systems with a low affinity for proline encoded by the proP and proU genes. However, only the PutP permease transports proline well enough t allow growth on proline as a sole carbon or nitrogen source. By selecting for mutations that allow a putP mutant to grow on proline as a sole nitrogen source, we isolated mutants (designated proZ) that appeared to activate a cryptic proline transport system. These mutants enhanced the transport of proline and proline analogs but did not require the function of any of the known proline transport genes. The mutations mapped between 75 and 77.5 min on the S. typhimurium linkage map. Proline transport by the proZ mutants was competitively inhibited by isoleucine and leucine, which suggests that the ProZ phenotype may be due to unusual mutations that alter the substrate specificity of the branched-chain amino acid transport system encoded by the liv genes.     

Prostatic ductal system in rats: regional variation in morphological and functional activities

The rat prostate is a complex ductal system with branches and subbranches extending from one end to another. Owing to the relative distance of various regions of the duct from the urethra, the entire length of the ductal system can be arbitrarily divided into three segments, i.e., the proximal, intermediate, and distal segments. The present study was carried out to assess the regional variation in cellular activities in this ductal system. Ventral prostates from adult Sprague-Dawley rats were dissected so that an individual ductal system was mechanically isolated and longitudinally sectioned to reveal various segments. Epithelial cells lining distal segments were tall-columnar type and were actively engaging in mitotic activity. Cells in intermediate segments were also tall-columnar type. However, they were mitotically quiescent, but able to produce secretory proteins. Evidence of programmed cell death was not observed in either of these two segments. Cells in proximal segments, on the other hand, were low-columnar or cuboidal in shape and were stained heavily for cathepsin D, a marker associated with late manifestation of cell death. Following castration in adult rats, there was a reversal in the site of programmed death in cells lining the ductal system. By Day 4 post-castration, distal segments contained many epithelial cells with intense cytoplasmic staining for cathepsin D while proximal segments showed a reduction in number of positively stained cells. By Day 7 post-castration, cells in proximal segments, though atrophied, were devoid of staining for cathepsin D.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Statistical modelling of the AIDS epidemic for forecasting health care needs

The objective of this paper is to develop statistical methods for estimating current and future numbers of individuals in different stages of the natural history of the human immunodeficiency (AIDS) virus infection and to evaluate the impact of therapeutic advances on these numbers. The approach is to extend the method of back-calculation to allow for a multistage model of natural history and to permit the hazard functions of progression from one stage to the next to depend on calendar time. Quasi-likelihood estimates of key quantities for evaluating health care needs can be obtained through iteratively reweighted least squares under weakly parametric models for the infection rate. An approach is proposed for incorporating into the analysis independent estimates of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevalence obtained from epidemiologic surveys. The methods are applied to the AIDS epidemic in the United States. Short-term projections are given of both AIDS incidence and the numbers of HIV-infected AIDS-free individuals with CD4 cell depletion. The impact of therapeutic advances on these numbers is evaluated using a change-point hazard model. A number of important sources of uncertainty must be considered when interpreting the results, including uncertainties in the specified hazard functions of disease progression, in the parametric model for the infection rate, in the AIDS incidence data, in the efficacy of treatment, and in the proportions of HIV-infected individuals receiving treatment.     

Improved stability of methanolic Wright's stain solution with dual additives

Degradation of methanolic Wright's stain solutions was greatly diminished with the addition of diethylamine hydrochloride and dimethylamine hydrochloride as costabilizers. Precipitation problems were eliminated by the dual additives. The stabilized stain solutions demonstrated good staining performance on blood smears. Methods for predicting the shelf life using calculated analytical parameters are described. Using these methods, the shelf life of a control stain solution was predicted to be 0.7 years; predicted shelf life was more than tripled with the addition of diethylamine hydrochloride and was increased approximately 27 times with the addition of both diethylamine hydrochloride and dimethylamine hydrochloride.     

玉米联合固氮菌Kosakonia radicincitans GXGL-4A的分离鉴定与固氮特性研究

【目的】固氮微生物是生物固氮的主体,其菌种的选育更是生物固氮研究的基础。本实验室分离鉴定出一株新的固氮菌,并对其固氮相关活性进行初步研究。【方法】固氮菌采用Ashby无氮培养基进行分离纯化。通过形态特征分析、生理生化特征分析、16S r RNA基因序列分析和基因组扫描对固氮菌进行鉴定。利用靛酚蓝-分光光度法检测固氮菌的泌铵能力。固氮酶活性的测定使用乙炔还原法。【结果】从玉米根部分离到一株固氮菌株GXGL-4A,菌体短杆状,大小约为1.5μm×0.5μm,单个或常见2个菌体细胞串联在一起,革兰氏染色结果为阴性。16S r RNA基因序列分析结果表明该菌株与Kosakonia oryzae Fo8A1d 16S r RNA基因序列有95%的相似性,结合形态特征、生理生化特征和基因组扫描,将其命名为K.radicincitans GXGL-4A。对其进行固氮基因nif H的检测,经PCR扩增得到预期的296 bp条带;采用靛酚蓝-分光光度法,测得发酵液中铵态氮含量为2.5 mg/L,表明该菌株具有较好的泌铵能力。乙炔还原法测其固氮酶活性,以乙烯生产量表示,结果显示GXGL-4A菌株在无氮培养基上能够有效地还原乙炔,达到232.94 nmol C2H4/(m L·h)。【结论】菌株GXGL-4A是一株可较好地分泌铵的新的固氮菌,具有很好的研究价值。