Effect of changes in pH of the medium on electrical activity of the Ranvier node

The effect of changes in pH of the medium from 4 to 10 on the action potential and its first derivative was studied at the original resting potential and during hyperpolarization of the membrane in experiments on single nodes of Ranvier. Raising the pH of the medium from 7 to 9 led to a decrease in amplitude of the action potential and of its derivative (V_max). During hyperpolarization of the membrane these parameters were fully restored. Lowering the pH of the solution led to an increase in the action potential and a decrease in V_max. During hyperpolarization of the membrane the action potential and its derivative were not completely restored. Under the influence of solutions with low and high pH values the duration of the action potential was increased. Changes in the action potential and in V_max with an increase in pH can be attributed to increased inactivation of the sodium permeability of the membrane, and in solutions with low pH to a decrease in the maximal sodium permeability and to weakening of its inactivation.A. V. Vishnevskii Institute of Surgery, Academy of Medical Sciences of the USSR, Moscow. Translated from Neirofiziologiya, Vol. 6, No. 2, pp. 205–210, March–April, 1974.     

Spontaneous and induced activation of genes affecting the phenotypic expression of glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase in Daphnia pulex

Summary Evidence has previously been presented on the occurrence spontaneous variations in the electrophoretic mobility (EM) of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD E.C. 1.1.1.49) in laboratory clones of parthenogenetically reproducing Daphnia (Ruvinsky et al. 1983). The present study is concerned with a natural population of Daphnia living under the extreme conditions of shallow, dessicating pond. The number of individuals having the slow (S) variant of the EM of G6PD increased sharply during their 1.5 month life span. This increase is suggested to result from alternational variability related to activation of latent genetic material.     

Description of “<Emphasis Type="Italic">Desulfotomaculum nigrificans</Emphasis> subsp. <Emphasis Type="Italic">salinus</Emphasis>” as a New Species, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Desulfotomaculum salinum</Emphasis> sp. nov.

This study focused on the physiological, chemotaxonomic, and genotypic characteristics of two thermophilic spore-forming sulfate-reducing bacterial strains, 435^T and 781, of which the former has previously been assigned to the subspecies “Desulfotomaculum nigrificans subsp. salinus”. Both strains reduced sulfate with the resulting production of H₂S on media supplemented with H₂ + CO₂, formate, lactate, pyruvate, malate, fumarate, succinate, methanol, ethanol, propanol, butanol, butyrate, valerate, or palmitate. Lactate oxidation resulted in acetate accumulation; butyrate was oxidized completely, with acetate as an intermediate product. Growth on acetate was slow and weak. Sulfate, sulfite, thiosulfate, and elemental sulfur, but not nitrate, served as electron acceptors for growth with lactate. The bacteria performed dismutation of thiosulfate to sulfate and hydrogen sulfide. In the absence of sulfate, pyruvate but not lactate was fermented. Cytochromes of b and c types were present. The temperature and pH optima for both strains were 60–6°C and pH 7.0. Bacteria grew at 0 to 4.5–6.0% NaCl in the medium, with the optimum being at 0.5–1.0%. Phylogenetic analysis based on a comparison of incomplete 16S rRNA sequences revealed that both strains belonged to the C cluster of the genus Desulfotomaculum, exhibiting 95.5–98.3% homology with the previously described species. The level of DNA–DNA hybridization of strains 435^T and 781 with each other was 97%, while that with closely related species D. kuznetsovii 17^T was 51–52%. Based on the phenotypic and genotypic properties of strains 435^T and 781, it is suggested that they be assigned to a new species: Desulfotomaculum salinum sp. nov., comb. nov. (type strain 435^T = VKM B 1492^T).     

“Double” Pyrimidine Derivatives: Synthesis and Primary Assessment of Hepatoprotective Properties In Vitro

Russian Journal of Bioorganic Chemistry - “Double” derivatives of the drug Xymedon (1,2-dihydro-4,6-dimethyl-1-N-(hydroxyethyl)pyrimidone-2), hereafter referred to as pyrimidine (I), in...     

Effect on the Medium Salinity on Oil Degradation by Nocardioform Bacteria

Oil degradation by cultures of Rhodococcus erythropolisand Dietzia mariswas found to depend on the NaCl concentration in the medium. Optimal utilization of turbine oil by R. erythropolisand D. mariswas observed at 0.5 and 2 to 5% NaCl concentration, respectively. Mineral oil and a mixture of paraffins (C₁₄–C₁₈) were utilized within a broader range of the medium salinity. As shown by fluorescent microscopy, D. mariscolonies formed on the oil drop surface, whereas R. erythropoliscells penetrated the drops. The strains studied may populate various ecological niches in oil-containing ecosystems. They are promising for the development of microbial preparations for cleaning the environment from oil pollution.     

Euchromatic domains in plant chromosomes as revealed by H4 histone acetylation and early DNA replication.

Using specific polyclonal antisera raised against acetylated isoforms of histone H4, we have analyzed their distribution in the dioecious plant Silene latifolia (syn. Melandrium album) possessing heteromorphic sex chromosomes. Our previous studies on this species have shown that one of the two X chromosomes in homogametic female cells is heavily methylated and late replicating, as a possible consequence of dosage compensation. Here we report that there are no detectable differences in intensity and distribution of H4 acetylation between these two X chromosomes. In S. latifolia only distal-subtelomeric chromosome regions, on both the sex chromosomes and autosomes, display strong signals of H4 acetylation at N-terminal lysines 5, 8, and 12. These acetylated domains correspond to the very early replicating distal chromosome regions as revealed by 5-bromodeoxyuridine pulses followed by the indirect immunofluorescence microscopy. The distribution of H4 acetylated at lysine 16 was uniform along the chromosomes. The unique distal-subtelomeric H4 acetylation signals were also observed in three other Silene species (S. vulgaris, S. pendula, and S. chalcedonica), but not in two non-related plant species tested (Allium cepa and Nicotiana tobacum). The presented data as well as our recent studies on the structure of S. latifolia chromosome ends indicate that Silene species possess the specific distal-subtelomeric location of euchromatin, gene-rich regions on chromosomes.     

Toxicity and SOS-response to ELF magnetic fields and nalidixic acid in E. coli cells

Extremely low-frequency magnetic fields (ELF-MF) have previously been shown to affect conformation of chromatin and cell proliferation. Possible genotoxic and carcinogenic effects of ELF-MF have also been discussed and tested. In this study, we analysed the effect of ELF-MF on chromatin conformation in E. coli GE499 cells by the anomalous viscosity time-dependence (AVTD) technique. Possible genotoxic effects of the specific combination of static and ELF-MF, which has been proven to affect chromatin conformation, were investigated by a clonogenic assay, by assessing cell-growth kinetics, and by analysis of the SOS-response by means of inducible recA-lacZ fusion-gene products and the β-galactosidase assay. The genotoxic agent nalidixic acid (NAL) was used as a positive control and in combination with ELF-MF. Nalidixic acid at 3-30μg/ml decreased the AVTD peaks and induced a cytotoxic effect. In contrast to NAL, ELF-MF fields increased AVTD, stimulated cell growth, and increased cloning efficiency. These effects depended on the frequency within the range of 7-11Hz. While NAL induced an SOS-response, exposure to ELF-MF did not induce the recA-lacZ fusion-gene product. Exposure to ELF-MF did not modify the genotoxic effects of NAL either. All together, the data show that ELF-MF, under specific conditions of exposure, acted as a non-toxic but cell-growth stimulating agent.     

Methanogenic Bacteria from the Bondyuzhskoe Oil Field: General Characterization and Analysis of Stable-Carbon Isotopic Fractionation

Selective enrichment culture techniques were employed to obtain mixed cultures of methanogenic rods and sarcina from surface flooding waters and deep subsurface (~1650 m) oil-bearing sedimentary rocks and formation waters sampled from an old oil field in the U.S.S.R. previously reported to display active biological methanogenesis. The methanogens were selectively isolated as colonies on agar petri dishes that were incubated in a novel container. The general cellular and growth features of three Methanobacterium isolates were determined. These strains grew optimally at 37 to 45°C in anaerobic pressure tube cultures with a doubling time of 16 to 18 h on H₂-CO₂ and proliferated as autotrophs. Acetate addition significantly enhanced the final cell yield. Growth of these strains was completely inhibited by either 0.6 g of sodium sulfide per liter or 31.0 of sodium chloride per liter, but growth was not inhibited by either 0.3 g of sodium sulfide per liter or 1.0 g of sodium sulfate per liter. One novel isolate, Methanobacterium sp. strain ivanov, was grown on H₂-CO₂, and the stable-carbon isotopic fractionations that occurred during synthesis of methane, cell carbon, and lipids were determined. The results of this study were used to examine the anomalous relationship between the isotopic and chemical compositions of natural gas occurring in the deep subsurface environment of the oil field.