Purification and characterization of an aldehyde oxidase from Pseudomonas sp. KY 4690

An aldehyde oxidase, which oxidizes various aliphatic and aromatic aldehydes using O(2) as an electron acceptor, was purified from the cell-free extracts of Pseudomonas sp. KY 4690, a soil isolate, to an electrophoretically homogeneous state. The purified enzyme had a molecular mass of 132 kDa and consisted of three non-identical subunits with molecular masses of 88, 39, and 18 kDa. The absorption spectrum of the purified enzyme showed characteristics of an enzyme belonging to the xanthine oxidase family. The enzyme contained 0.89 mol of flavin adenine dinucleotide, 1.0 mol of molybdenum, 3.6 mol of acid-labile sulfur, and 0.90 mol of 5'-CMP per mol of enzyme protein, on the basis of its molecular mass of 145 kDa. Molecular oxygen served as the sole electron acceptor. These results suggest that aldehyde oxidase from Pseudomonas sp. KY 4690 is a new member of the xanthine oxidase family and might contain 1 mol of molybdenum-molybdpterin-cytosine dinucleotide, 1 mol of flavin adenine dinucleotide, and 2 mol of [2Fe-2S] clusters per mol of enzyme protein. The enzyme showed high reaction rates toward various aliphatic and aromatic aldehydes and high thermostability.     

Adhesiveness and surface patterns of eggs in neotropical freshwater teleosts

Eggs of 23 Characiformes and eight Siluriformes, belonging to nine families with diverse reproductive behaviour, were ultrastructurally analysed. The migratory species exhibited non-adhesive eggs, whereas, most of the sedentary species presented some degree of egg adhesiveness. Among the Characiformes, non-adhesive eggs showed zona radiata with pore-canals or a fibrillar net at the surface; weakly adhesive eggs presented only zona radiata with pore-canals while adhesive eggs exhibited zona radiata with apparatus like globules, filaments, villi or honeycomb-like pores depending on the systematic group. The 'jelly' coat is strongly related to the Siluriformes eggs apparently without relationship with adhesiveness. A micropylar disc was present in adhesive eggs of a few species of both Characiformes and Siluriformes. Some patterns were characteristic of the animal pole, others of the vegetal pole, and others were common to both poles. The radial ridges converging to the micropyle in Astyanax bimaculatus lacustris appear to be related to fertilization. In general, egg surface structures in the Characiformes varied according to the genus, whereas all Siluriformes showed a similar egg surface pattern, regardless of the group analysed. Multivariate analysis allowed the identification of eight clusters among the Characiformes and three among the Siluriformes showing relationships between reproductive style and egg characteristics. It is suggested that egg surface and adhesiveness may be related to reproductive patterns and to phylogenesis.     

中国沙拐枣属植物的数值分类研究

选择了中国19种沙拐枣属（CalligonumL.)植物,共测定及引用了35个形态分类指标,应用单因素方差分析（MANOVA）和主成分分析（PCA）,分别对形态因子进行了单元和多元分析。结果表明,所有的种间形态指标均差异显著,冠幅（BC）,木质枝枝节长度（LKWB）,果实直径（DF）,雄蕊长度（SL）,同化枝枝节长度（LKAS）和同化枝化枝角度（ARAS）指标在沙拐枣属植物的数值分类上,具有很强的差异性分析意义。依据平方欧氏距离,应用类平均法（UPGMA）将19种沙拐枣植物聚为5类,系统聚类结论与主成分分析的三维排序结果基本一致,与传统的形态分类结果有一定的差异。     

Model Compounds of the Mn Cluster in Oxygen-evolving Complex of PS￠ò

Six model compounds have been synthesized and used for probing the structural features of the Mn cluster in oxygen-evolving complex (OEC) of photosystem Ⅱ (PSⅡ). The model compounds contain Mn2(μ-O) 2 and μ-O-μ-carboxylato di-manganese structural units, which offer Mn—Mn, Mn……Mn, and Mn—O(N) structural parameters consistent with the corresponding data of the OEC in PSⅡ, implying that the Mn cluster in OEC may possess similar structural features. Two model compounds containing halide anion have been used for discussing the binding of Cl- to Mn in PSⅡ. It is suggested that in the five S states, ligand exchange would lead to the ligation of chloride to Mn in the S states with Mn of higher valence.     

Interactions between HMG proteins and the core sequence of DNaseI hypersensitive site 2 in the locus control region (LCR) of the human β-like globin gene cluster

HMG proteins are abundant chromosomal non-histone proteins. It has been suggested that the HMG proteins may play an important role in the structure and function of chromatin. In the present study, the binding of HMG proteins (HMG1/2 and HMG14/17) to the core DNA sequence of DNaseI hypersensitive site 2 (HS2core DNA sequence, -10681-10970 bp) in the locus control region (LCR) of the human β-like globin gene cluster has been examined by using both thein vitro nucleosome reconstitution and the gel mobility shift assays. Here we show that HMG1/2 can bind to the naked HS2core DNA sequence, however, HMG14/17 cannot. Using thein vitro nucleosome reconstitution we demonstrate that HMG14/17 can bind to the HS2core DNA sequence which is assembled into nucleosomes with the core histone octamer transferred from chicken erythrocytes. In contrast, HMG1/2 cannot bind to the nucleosomes reconstitutedin vitro with the HS2core DNA sequence. These results indicate that the binding patterns between HMG proteins and the HS2core DNA sequence which exists in different states (the naked DNA or thein vitro reconstituted nucleosomal DNA) are quite different. We speculate that HMG proteins might play a critical role in the regulation of the human β-like globin gene’s expression.     

Spray system for re-attachment of Gelidium sesquipedale (Clem.) Born. et Thur. (Gelidiales: Rhodophyta)

A system is described for rapid re-attachment of the rhodophycean alga Gelidium sesquipedale (Clem.) Born. et Thur. on artificial or natural substrata. This method is applicable to industrial cultivation of this species. The function of rhizoidal clusters and the origin of germlings from the apical portion of the thalli are analyzed in relation to the re-attachment process. The role that re-attachment might play in the maintenance and spreading of natural populations and in the observed anomalies of the life-history of this species is discussed.     

Description of the digestive tract and feeding habits of the king angelfish and the Cortes angelfish

Morphologically, the digestive tracts of the king angelfish Holacunthus passer and the Cortes angelfish Pomacanthus zonipectus are similar, yet the king angelfish intestine is almost 30% longer than that of the Cortes angelfish. Both pomacanthids have a small mouth with villiform teeth, a short oesophagus, a well-defined stomach, and a terminal sac at the end of the digestive tract. The terminal sac, the acid pH in the stomach, and the long intestine may facilitate efficient use of seaweed nutrients. Stomach contents were analysed to determine diets and interspecific overlap. Seventy-one species were found in the stomachs of the king angelfish and 53 in the stomachs of the Cortes angelfish. Because of the wide range of species in their diets, both angelfish must be regarded as omnivorous. The most frequent foods were seaweed and sponges, but for the king angelfish, crustaceans were also important. A cluster analysis was done to determine whether the diets of these fish were similar by sex, size, or season. No similarities were found. Dietary overlap is high in relation to other pomacanthids.     

Acceptor and donor-side interactions of phenolic inhibitors in Photosystem II

Certain phenolic compounds represent a distinct class of Photosystem (PS) II Q_B site inhibitors. In this paper, we report a detailed study of the effects of 2,4,6-trinitrophenol (TNP) and other phenolic inhibitors, bromoxynil and dinoseb, on PS II energetics. In intact PS II, phenolic inhibitors bound to only 90-95% of Q_B sites even at saturating concentrations. The remaining PS II reaction centers (5-10%) showed modified Q_A to Q_B electron transfer but were sensitive to urea/triazine inhibitors. The binding of phenolic inhibitors was 30- to 300-fold slower than the urea/triazine class of Q_B site inhibitors, DCMU and atrazine. In the sensitive centers, the S₂Q_A⁻ state was 10-fold less stable in the presence of phenolic inhibitors than the urea/triazine herbicides. In addition, the binding affinity of phenolic herbicides was decreased 10-fold in the S₂Q_A⁻ state than the S₁Q_A state. However, removal of the oxygen-evolving complex (OEC) and associated extrinsic polypeptides by hydroxylamine (HA) washing abolished the slow binding kinetics as well as the destabilizing effects on the charge-separated state. The S₂-multiline electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) signal and the ‘split’ EPR signal, originating from the S₂Y_Z state showed no significant changes upon binding of phenolic inhibitors at the Q_B site. We thus propose a working model where Q_A redox potential is lowered by short-range conformational changes induced by phenolic inhibitor binding at the Q_B niche. Long-range effects of HA-washing eliminate this interaction, possibly by allowing more flexibility in the Q_B site.     

Electro-Enhancement of the Formation of Cell Clusters from Protoplasts of Tritium aestivum

Under the treatment of 0.5—2.0 μA direct electric currents, the number of cell clusters derived from wheat (Triticum aestivum L. ) protoplasts was dramatically increased. The effect was related to the time-length of the treatments, and appeared only when the timelength was more than the threshold. The threshold time decreased with increase of electric current intensity. The effect was not related to the starting time of the treatments in culture of the protoplasts.