Eco-Floristic studies of native plants of the Beer Hills along the Indus River in the districts Haripur and Abbottabad,Pakistan

The present study was conducted to elaborate vegetation composition structure to analyze role of edaphic and topographic factors on plant species distribution and community formation during 2013–14. A mixture of quadrat and transect methods were used. The size of quadrat for trees shrubs and herbs were 10 × 5, 5 × 2, 1 × 1 meter square respectively. Different phytosociological attribute were measured at each station. Primary results reported 123 plant species belong to 46 families. Asteraceae and Lamiaceae were dominant families with 8 species each. PCORD version 5 were used for Cluster and Two Way Cluster Analyses that initiated 4 plant communities within elevation range of 529–700 m from sea level. Indicator species analyses (ISA) were used to identify indicator species of each community. CANOCO Software (version 4.5) was used to measure the influence of edaphic and topographic variables on species composition, diversity and community formation. Whereas Canonical Correspondence Analysis (CCA) was used to measure the effect of environmental variables which showed elevation and aspect were the stronger environmental variable among topographic and CaCO₃ contents, electric conductivity, soil pH were the stronger edaphic factors in determination of vegetation and communities of the Bheer Hills. Grazing pressure was one of the main anthropogenic factors in this regard.     

Proteins of the thermophilic fungus Humicola lanuginosa. II. Some physicochemical properties of a cytochrome c

A cytochrome c from Humicola lanuginosa is unique among eukaryotic cytochromes c in having phenylalanine as Residue 74. This protein has certain properties which differ from those of other cytochromes c to which it is generally similar. The Humicola cytochrome c is as stable as horse heart cytochrome c in urea, but more stable than both horse heart and yeast cytochromes c in acidic and alkaline conditions. Spectrophotometric titration of the four tyrosyl residues of the Humicola protein was nonsigmoidal with a pK_app of 11.4. Solvent perturbation difference spectra indicate that 50% of the tyrosyl residues are exposed to solvent in the native protein, and that the single tryptophanyl and all four tyrosyl residues become exposed in 8 m urea. Certain unusual features in both the optical rotatory dispersion and circular dichroism spectra in the 290-250-nm region are tentatively attributed to the substitution of phenylalanine for tyrosine at position 74.     

Activation of macrophages by a laccase-polymerized polyphenol is dependent on phosphorylation of Rac1

Various physiologically active effects of polymerized polyphenols have been reported. In this study, we synthesized a polymerized polyphenol (mL2a-pCA) by polymerizing caffeic acid using mutant Agaricus brasiliensis laccase and analyzed its physiological activity and mechanism of action. We found that mL2a-pCA induced morphological changes and the production of cytokines and chemokines in C3H/HeN mouse-derived resident peritoneal macrophages in vitro. The mechanisms of action of polymerized polyphenols on in vitro mouse resident peritoneal cells have not been characterized in detail previously. Herein, we report that the mL2a-pCA-induced production of interleukin-6 (IL-6) and monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1) in C3H/HeN mouse-derived resident peritoneal cells was inhibited by treatment with the Rac1 inhibitor NSC23766 trihydrochloride. In addition, we found that mL2a-pCA activated the phosphorylation Rac1. Taken together, the results show that mL2a-pCA induced macrophage activation via Rac1 phosphorylation-dependent pathways.     

Synthetic DNA system for structure-function studies of the high affinity CO2 uptake NDH-13 protein complex in cyanobacteria

The CO₂-concentrating mechanism (CCM) in cyanobacteria supports high rates of photosynthesis by greatly increasing the concentration of CO₂ around the major carbon fixing enzyme, Rubisco. However, the CCM remains poorly understood, especially in regards to the enigmatic CO₂-hydration enzymes which couple photosynthetically generated redox energy to the hydration of CO₂ to bicarbonate. This CO₂-hydration reaction is catalysed by specialized forms of NDH-1 thylakoid membrane complexes that contain phylogenetically unique extrinsic proteins that appear to couple CO₂ hydration to NDH-1 proton pumping. The development of the first molecular genetic system to probe structure-function relationships of this important enzyme system is described. A CO₂-hydration deficient strain was constructed as a recipient for DNA constructs containing different forms of the CO₂-hydration system. This was tested by introducing a construct to an ectopic location that gives constitutive expression, rather than native inducible expression, of the ndhF3-ndhD3-cupA-cupS, (cupA operon) encoding high affinity CO₂-hydration complex, NDH-1₃. Uptake assays show the restoration of high affinity for CO₂ uptake, but demonstrate that the CupA complex can drive only modest uptake fluxes, underlining the importance of its tandem operation with the CupB-containing complex NDH-1₄, the complementary high flux, low affinity CO₂ hydration system. Experiments with the carbonic anhydrase inhibitor, ethoxyzolamide, indicate that the NDH-1₃ complex is strongly inhibited, yet the remaining NDH-1₄ activity in the wild-type is less so, suggesting structural differences between the low affinity and high affinity CO₂–hydration systems. This new construct will be an important tool to study and better understand cyanobacterial CO₂ uptake systems.     

Why we need mechanics to understand animal regeneration

Mechanical forces are an important contributor to cell fate specification and cell migration during embryonic development in animals. Similarities between embryogenesis and regeneration, particularly with regards to pattern formation and large-scale tissue movements, suggest similarly important roles for physical forces during regeneration. While the influence of the mechanical environment on stem cell differentiation in vitro is being actively exploited in the fields of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, comparatively little is known about the role of stresses and strains acting during animal regeneration. In this review, we summarize published work on the role of physical principles and mechanical forces in animal regeneration. Novel experimental techniques aimed at addressing the role of mechanics in embryogenesis have greatly enhanced our understanding at scales from the subcellular to the macroscopic – we believe the time is ripe for the field of regeneration to similarly leverage the tools of the mechanobiological research community.     

HIV-1 Protease Uses Bi-Specific S2/S2′ Subsites to Optimize Cleavage of Two Classes of Target Sites

Retroviral proteases (PRs) have a unique specificity that allows cleavage of sites with or without a P1′ proline. A P1′ proline is required at the MA/CA cleavage site due to its role in a post-cleavage conformational change in the capsid protein. However, the HIV-1 PR prefers to have large hydrophobic amino acids flanking the scissile bond, suggesting that PR recognizes two different classes of substrate sequences. We analyzed the cleavage rate of over 150 combinations of six different HIV-1 cleavage sites to explore rate determinants of cleavage. We found that cleavage rates are strongly influenced by the two amino acids flanking the amino acids at the scissile bond (P2–P1/P1′–P2′), with two complementary sets of rules. When P1′ is proline, the P2 side chain interacts with a polar region in the S2 subsite of the PR, while the P2′ amino acid interacts with a hydrophobic region of the S2′ subsite. When P1′ is not proline, the orientations of the P2 and P2′ side chains with respect to the scissile bond are reversed; P2 residues interact with a hydrophobic face of the S2 subsite, while the P2′ amino acid usually engages hydrophilic amino acids in the S2′ subsite. These results reveal that the HIV-1 PR has evolved bi-functional S2 and S2′ subsites to accommodate the steric effects imposed by a P1′ proline on the orientation of P2 and P2′ substrate side chains. These results also suggest a new strategy for inhibitor design to engage the multiple specificities in these subsites.     

持续高频刺激改变短刺激产生的神经网络效应

不同时长的电脉冲高频刺激(high frequency stimulation,HFS)对于脑神经系统具有不同的作用.其中,数秒时长的短促HFS可通过"点燃"效应制作动物癫痫模型,也可以产生长时间保持的突触可塑性变化,而数分钟以上的长时HFS却可以安全地用于临床的深部脑刺激,治疗多种脑疾病.因此推测,持续的HFS可以改变短促刺激产生的效应.为了验证此推测,在大鼠海马CA1区的输入轴突纤维Schaffer侧支上,分别施加5 s和2 min两种时长的100 Hz HFS,并监测刺激结束后下游神经元群体对于单脉冲测试的响应电位,即群峰电位(population spike,PS).结果显示,5 s短HFS结束时会紧跟后放电痫样活动,并且,从测试脉冲诱发的PS幅值和潜伏期可见,短HFS诱导的兴奋性增强可以维持数十分钟.反之,2 min的长HFS结束时紧随之后的是数十秒无发放活动的静息期,而且,PS在数分钟内即恢复到HFS前的基线水平.这些结果表明,长时HFS的后期刺激可以改变前期短促刺激对于下游神经网络的作用,即消除短刺激可能产生的长时程兴奋效应.此发现对于深入了解高频刺激的作用机制、促进深部脑刺激的临床应用具有重要意义.     

血清VEGF，IGF-1和CA125水平与子宫动脉栓塞术(UAE)治疗子宫腺肌症的相关性

目的:探讨血清血管内皮生长因子(VEGF)、胰岛素样生长因子-1(IGF-1)和CA125水平和子宫动脉栓塞术(UAE)治疗子宫腺肌症的之间的相关性。方法:选择接受子宫动脉栓塞术治疗的39例子宫腺肌症患者作为患者组,取同时期参加健康体检的30名健康者作为健康对照组。用ELISA法检测子宫腺肌症患者子宫动脉栓塞术前和术后不同时点血清VEGF、IGF-1、CA125的水平,评估子宫动脉栓塞术后的患者的疗效。结果:34例痛经患者术后1个月开始改善,最终29例完全缓解,有效率85.2%。患者组治疗前血清VEGF、IGF-1、CA125水平均显著高于健康对照组(P0.05)。子宫动脉栓塞术治疗后,患者组血清IGF-1、VEGF和CA125的水平与治疗前相比均显著降低,术后6月,恢复正常水平。结论:血清IGF-1、VEGF、CA125的变化可能在子宫动脉栓塞术治疗子宫腺肌症中作为疗效和预后评估指标。     

Medial and Lateral Entorhinal Cortex Differentially Excite Deep versus Superficial CA1 Pyramidal Neurons

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