Mutation in the glycosylated gag protein of murine leukemia virus results in reduced in vivo infectivity and a novel defect in viral budding or release

All gammaretroviruses, including murine leukemia viruses (MuLVs), feline leukemia viruses, and gibbon-ape leukemia virus, encode an alternate, glycosylated form of Gag polyprotein (glyco-Gag or gPr80gag) in addition to the polyprotein precursor of the viral capsid proteins (Pr65gag). gPr80gag is translated from an upstream in-frame CUG initiation codon, in contrast to the AUG codon used for Pr65gag. The role of glyco-Gag in MuLV replication has been unclear, since gPr80gag-negative Moloney MuLV (M-MuLV) mutants are replication competent in vitro and pathogenic in vivo. However, reversion to the wild type is frequently observed in vivo. In these experiments, in vivo inoculation of a gPr80gag mutant, Ab-X-M-MuLV, showed substantially lower (2 log) initial infectivity in newborn NIH Swiss mice than that of wild-type virus, and revertants to the wild type could be detected by PCR cloning and DNA sequencing as early as 15 days postinfection. Atomic force microscopy of Ab-X-M-MuLV-infected producer cells or of the PA317 amphotropic MuLV-based vector packaging line (also gPr80gag negative) revealed the presence of tube-like viral structures on the cell surface. In contrast, wild-type virus-infected cells showed the typical spherical, 145-nm particles observed previously. Expression of gPr80gag in PA317 cells converted the tube-like structures to typical spherical particles. PA317 cells expressing gPr80gag produced 5- to 10-fold more infectious vector or viral particles as well. Metabolic labeling studies indicated that this reflected enhanced virus particle release rather than increased viral protein synthesis. These results indicate that gPr80gag is important for M-MuLV replication in vivo and in vitro and that the protein may be involved in a late step in viral budding or release.     

AFM fishing nanotechnology is the way to reverse the Avogadro number in proteomics

Future development of proteomics may be hindered by limitations in the concentration sensitivity of widespread technological approaches. The concentration sensitivity limit (CSL) of currently used approaches, like 2-DE/LC separation coupled with MS detection, etc., varies from 10(-9) to 10(-12) M. Therefore, proteomic technologies enable detection of up to 20% of the protein species present in the plasma. New technologies, like atomic force microscopy (AFM molecular detector), enable the counting of single molecules, whereas biospecific fishing can be used to capture these molecules from the biomaterial. At the same time, fishing also has thermodynamic limitations due to the reversibility of the binding. In cases where the fishing becomes irreversible, its combination with an AFM detector enables the registration of single protein molecules, and that opens up a way to lower the CSL down to the reverse Avogadro number.     

Acholeplasma laidlawii PG8 ultramicroforms amplificate selectivelyrrnB nucleotide sequences

Mycoplasmas are frequent contaminants ofin vitro animal cell cultures. Despite a broad spectrum of modern methods, detection of mycoplasmas remains a serious problem. The situation is complicated by the fact that mycoplasmas may be presented in cell cultures or biological samples by viable but unculturable forms (ultramicroforms). We found that the DNA ofAcholeplasma laidlawii PG8 ultramicroforms showed selective amplification of therrnB nucleotide sequences while vegetative cells of the mycoplasma showed amplification both forrrnA andrrnB sequences. The role of enzyme deproteinization in PCR results was also shown. The results presented in this report indicate that the optimisation of primer sequences as well as PCR regime may be crucial steps in detection and differentiation of vegetative forms and ultramicroforms ofA. laidlawii.     

Genomewide rapid association using mixed model and regression: a fast and simple method for genomewide pedigree-based quantitative trait loci association analysis

For pedigree-based quantitative trait loci (QTL) association analysis, a range of methods utilizing within-family variation such as transmission-disequilibrium test (TDT)-based methods have been developed. In scenarios where stratification is not a concern, methods exploiting between-family variation in addition to within-family variation, such as the measured genotype (MG) approach, have greater power. Application of MG methods can be computationally demanding (especially for large pedigrees), making genomewide scans practically infeasible. Here we suggest a novel approach for genomewide pedigree-based quantitative trait loci (QTL) association analysis: genomewide rapid association using mixed model and regression (GRAMMAR). The method first obtains residuals adjusted for family effects and subsequently analyzes the association between these residuals and genetic polymorphisms using rapid least-squares methods. At the final step, the selected polymorphisms may be followed up with the full measured genotype (MG) analysis. In a simulation study, we compared type 1 error, power, and operational characteristics of the proposed method with those of MG and TDT-based approaches. For moderately heritable (30%) traits in human pedigrees the power of the GRAMMAR and the MG approaches is similar and is much higher than that of TDT-based approaches. When using tabulated thresholds, the proposed method is less powerful than MG for very high heritabilities and pedigrees including large sibships like those observed in livestock pedigrees. However, there is little or no difference in empirical power of MG and the proposed method. In any scenario, GRAMMAR is much faster than MG and enables rapid analysis of hundreds of thousands of markers.     

New 2‐Oxoimidazolidine Derivatives: Design,Synthesis and Evaluation of Anti‐BK Virus Activities in Vitro

A series of novel 2‐oxoimidazolidine derivatives were synthesized and their antiviral activities against BK human polyomavirus type 1 (BKPyV) were evaluated in vitro. Bioassays showed that the synthesized compounds 1‐{[(4E)‐5‐(dichloromethylidene)‐2‐oxoimidazolidin‐4‐ylidene]sulfamoyl}piperidine‐4‐carboxylic acid ( 5 ) and N‐Cyclobutyl‐N′‐[(4E)‐5‐(dichloromethylidene)‐2‐oxoimidazolidin‐4‐ylidene]sulfuric diamide ( 4 ) exhibited moderate activities against BKPyV (EC₅₀=5.4 and 5.5 μm , respectively) that are comparable to the standard drug Cidofovir. Compound 5 exhibited the same cytotoxicity in HFF cells and selectivity index (SI₅₀) as Cidofovir. The selectivity index of compound 4 is three times less than that of Cidofovir due to the higher toxicity of this compound. Hence, these compounds may be taken as lead compound for further development of novel ant‐BKPyV agents.     

Caldesmon inhibits both force development and transition of actin monomers from "OFF" to "ON" conformational state by changing its position in thin filaments

We have investigated the effect of caldesmon on the actin conformational state and its position at force generation in glycerinated fibers upon transformation from relaxation to rigor. F-actin and caldesmon were labeled with TRITC-phalloidin or acrylodan, respectively, and the orientation and mobility of the probes were calculated. Transition from relaxation to rigor was accompanied by force development and by the changes in orientation and mobility of TRITC-phalloidin that were typical for actin monomer transformation from the "OFF" to the "ON" conformational state. In the presence of caldesmon, both the force developed by the fibers and the changes in the orientation and mobility of TRITC-phalloidin were markedly decreased. In contrast, the orientation and mobility of acrylodan change essentially showed the displacement of the caldesmon molecules and the changes in its mobility. The results are evidence that structure and/or mode of the attachment of caldesmon to actin modulates both the force production and transition of actin monomers from "OFF" to "ON" conformations in the ATPase cycle.     

GenABEL: an R library for genome-wide association analysis

Here we describe an R library for genome-wide association (GWA) analysis. It implements effective storage and handling of GWA data, fast procedures for genetic data quality control, testing of association of single nucleotide polymorphisms with binary or quantitative traits, visualization of results and also provides easy interfaces to standard statistical and graphical procedures implemented in base R and special R libraries for genetic analysis. We evaluated GenABEL using one simulated and two real data sets. We conclude that GenABEL enables the analysis of GWA data on desktop computers. Availability: http://cran.r-project.org.     

ParallABEL: an R library for generalized parallelization of genome-wide association studies

Background  

Genome-Wide Association (GWA) analysis is a powerful method for identifying loci associated with complex traits and drug response. Parts of GWA analyses, especially those involving thousands of individuals and consuming hours to months, will benefit from parallel computation. It is arduous acquiring the necessary programming skills to correctly partition and distribute data, control and monitor tasks on clustered computers, and merge output files.     

The introduction of a transpositionally active copy of retrotransposon GYPSY into the Stable Strain of Drosophila melanogaster causes genetic instability

A previously described genetic system comprising a Mutator Strain (MS) and the Stable Strain (SS) from which it originated is characterized by genetic instability caused by transpositions of the retrotransposon gypsy. A series of genetic crosses was used to obtain three MS derivatives, each containing one MS chromosome (X, 2 or 3) in the environment of SS chromosomes. All derivatives are characterized by elevated frequencies of spontaneous mutations in both sexes. Mutations appear at the premeiotic stage and are unstable. Transformed derivatives of SS and another stable strain 208 were obtained by microinjection of plasmid DNA containing transpositionally active gypsy inserted into the Casper vector. In situ hybridization experiments revealed amplification and active transposition of gypsy in SS derivatives, while the integration of a single copy of gypsy into the genome of 208 does not change the genetic properties of this strain. We propose that genetic instability in the MS system is caused by the combination of two factors: mutation(s) in gene(s) regulating gypsy transposition in SS and its MS derivatives, and the presence of transpositionally active gypsy copies in MS but not SS.     

The TY3 Gag3 spacer controls intracellular condensation and uncoating

Cells expressing the yeast retrotransposon Ty3 form concentrated foci of Ty3 proteins and RNA within which virus-like particle (VLP) assembly occurs. Gag3, the major structural protein of the Ty3 retrotransposon, is composed of capsid (CA), spacer (SP), and nucleocapsid (NC) domains analogous to retroviral domains. Unlike the known SP domains of retroviruses, Ty3 SP is highly acidic. The current studies investigated the role of this domain. Although deletion of Ty3 SP dramatically reduced retrotransposition, significant Gag3 processing and cDNA synthesis occurred. Mutations that interfered with cleavage at the SP-NC junction disrupted CA-SP processing, cDNA synthesis, and electron-dense core formation. Mutations that interfered with cleavage of CA-SP allowed cleavage of the SP-NC junction, production of electron-dense cores, and cDNA synthesis but blocked retrotransposition. A mutant in which acidic residues of SP were replaced with alanine failed to form both Gag3 foci and VLPs. We propose a speculative "spring" model for Gag3 during assembly. In the first phase during concentration of Gag3 into foci, intramolecular interactions between negatively charged SP and positively charged NC domains of Gag3 limit multimerization. In the second phase, the NC domain binds RNA, and the bound form is stabilized by intermolecular interactions with the SP domain. These interactions promote CA domain multimerization. In the third phase, a negatively charged SP domain destabilizes the remaining CA-SP shell for cDNA release.