Analysis and visualization of H7 influenza using genomic,evolutionary and geographic information in a modular web service

We have reported previously on use of a web‐based application, Supramap ( http://supramap.org ) for the study of biogeographic, genotypic, and phenotypic evolution. Using Supramap we have developed maps of the spread of drug‐resistant influenza and host shifts in H1N1 and H5N1 influenza and coronaviruses such as SARS. Here we report on another zoonotic pathogen, H7 influenza, and provide an update on the implementation of Supramap as a web service. We find that the emergence of pathogenic strains of H7 is labile with many transitions from high to low pathogenicity, and from low to high pathogenicity. We use Supramap to put these events in a temporal and geospatial context. We identify several lineages of H7 influenza with biomarkers of high pathogenicity in regions that have not been reported in the scientific literature. The original implementation of Supramap was built with tightly coupled client and server software. Now we have decoupled the components to provide a modular web service for POY ( http://poyws.org ) that can be consumed by a data provider to create a novel application. To demonstrate the web service, we have produced an application, Geogenes ( http://geogenes.org ). Unlike in Supramap, in which the user is required to create and upload data files, in Geogenes the user works from a graphical interface to query an underlying dataset. Geogenes demonstrates how the web service can provide underlying processing for any sequence and metadata database. © The Willi Hennig Society 2012.     

Antitumour activities of levans produced by Zymomonas mobilis strains

Levans produced by four Zymomonas mobilis strains showed antitumour activity against sarcoma 180 and Ehrlich carcinoma in Swiss albino mice. Levans from two strains (ZAP and CP4) had the highest effects. NMR analysis showed that the polymers were composed only of fructose units. The results suggested that the antineoplasic effect is associated to the polysaccharide molecular weight and that a particular molecular weight range may be responsible for this effect.     

Pyridoxal phosphate-sensitized photoinactivation of glutamate decarboxylase from Clostridium perfringens

1. l-Glutamate decarboxylase (EC 4.1.1.15) from Clostridium perfringens was inactivated by exposure to visible light at pH6.2. 2. Inactivation does not occur at pH4.6 or in the absence of bound pyridoxal phosphate. 3. On prolonged photo-oxidation six histidine residues per molecule of enzyme were destroyed. 4. The loss of six cysteine residues per molecule occurred both in irradiated samples and in controls oxygenated in the dark. 5. This dark-oxidation of cysteine residues is apparently required before the photo-oxidation process. 6. The absorbance, fluorescence and circular-dichroism properties of the enzyme as well as its elution volume during Sephadex gel-filtration were unaffected by prolonged irradiation. 7. However, an apparently homogeneous product of photo-oxidation could be separated from the control enzyme by ion-exchange chromatography. 8. The K(m) for l-glutamate was unchanged in an irradiated sample retaining 22% of control activity. 9. These data and the catalytic role of imidazole residues at the active sites of amino acid decarboxylases are discussed.     

Primary hyperparathyroidism in an adult female olive baboon (Papio anubis)

During an annual physical examination, a middle-aged adult female olive baboon (Papio anubis) in the time-mated breeding colony at the Biologic Resources Laboratory at the University of Illinois at Chicago was found to have a high serum calcium value (> 12 mg/dl). To determine the cause of the hypercalcemia, additional diagnostic tests, including thoracic and abdominal radiographs and a parathyroid panel (parathyroid hormone (PTH), ionized calcium, and parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTH-rp) assays), were performed. The radiographs did not reveal lesions suggestive of neoplasia. A parathyroid panel was obtained twice. Both times the PTH (23.4 and 46.4 pmol/L, normal = 2.91 to 4.57 pmol/L) and ionized calcium (1.68 and 2.10 mmol/L, normal = 1.31 to 1.37 mmol/L) were increased above values for adult females with normal calcium concentration. A tentative diagnosis of primary hyperparathyroidism was made. After a gamma-radiation scan and magnetic resonance imaging of the neck were done, exploratory surgery was performed to identify and remove the affected gland. After gland removal, the baboon's serum calcium, PTH (1.6 pmol/L), and ionized calcium (1.59 mmol/L) values decreased. Results of histologic examination confirmed the diagnosis of benign solitary parathyroid adenoma.     

Oleosin expression and trafficking during oil body biogenesis in tobacco leaf cells

We have established a versatile method for studying the interaction of the oleosin gene product with oil bodies during oil body biogenesis in plants. Our approach has been to transiently express a green fluorescent protein (GFP)-tagged Arabidopsis oleosin gene fusion in tobacco leaf cells containing bona fide oil bodies and then to monitor oleosin-GFP expression using real-time confocal laser scanning microscopy. We show that normally non-oil-storing tobacco leaf cells are able to synthesize and then transport oleosin-GFP fusion protein to leaf oil bodies. Synthesis and transport of oleosin-GFP fusion protein to oil bodies occurred within the first 6 h posttransformation. Oleosin-GFP fusion protein exclusively associated with the endoplasmic reticulum and was trafficked in a Golgi-independent manner at speeds approaching 0.5 microm sec(-1) along highly dynamic endoplasmic reticulum positioned over essentially static polygonal cortical endoplasmic reticulum. Our data indicate that oil body biogenesis can occur outside of the embryo and that oleosin-GFP can be used to monitor early events in oil body biogenesis in real-time.     

The biology and use of the African brush-tailed porcupine (Atherurus africanus, Gray, 1842)as a food animal. A review

The brush-tailed porcupine (Atherurus africanus) is a hystricomorph rodent, which frequents the forests of West and Central Africa. With an average weight of 3 kg, it is a favourite source of meat for urban and rural populations of Gabon, Nigeria, Cameroon or Congo. Hunted in large quantities, its price is often higher than that of other game or domestic animals. Although its current productivity in captivity is limited to a single young per birth and two to three births per year per female, this species could be a good candidate for minilivestock programmes in African forest areas if its current reproductive potential in captivity could be improved. Further research should be encouraged on its biology and reproduction since the current level of hunting for this species is probably not sustainable. Captive breeding programmes could play a role in assessing a better knowledge of the species' biology, and in reducing the effects of intensive hunting in areas where this activi ty is no longer sustainable.     

Mechanisms involved in the photosensitized inactivation of Acanthamoeba palestinensis trophozoites

Aims:  To advance our understanding of the mechanisms involved in the RLP068 phthalocyanine-photosensitized inactivation of Acanthamoeba palestinensis trophozoites through a precise identification of the targets of the photoprocess in both the cytosolic and mitochondrial compartments.
Methods and Results:  We followed the activities of selected marker enzymes as well as we performed fluorescence and transmission electron microscopy investigations of the alterations induced by the photoprocess in the fine structure of subcellular compartments. RLP068 is preferentially located in the contractile vacuole: the fluorescence in that site is particularly evident in the unirradiated cells and becomes more diffused after irradiation. Electron microscopic analysis of photosensitized A. palestinensis cells clearly shows that the swelling of trophozoites and the appearance of vacuoles spread throughout the cytoplasm after phototreatment. The activity of a typical cytoplasmic enzyme, such as lactate dehydrogenase, underwent a 35% decrease as a consequence of the photoprocess, reflecting the photodamage induced by migrating phthalocyanine molecules in their micro-environment.
Conclusions:  The presence of multiple targets for the phthalocyanine-photosensitized process is of utmost importance because this pattern of cell damage makes it unlikely that photoresistant A. palestinensis strains are gradually selected or mutagenic phenomena are developed as a consequence of the photoinduced damage.
Significance and Impact of the Study:  Photosensitization via phthalocyanines appears to represent an efficient and safe approach for achieving a close control of the population of a potentially pathogenic protozoan such as A. palestinensis , opening new perspectives for the disinfection of microbiologically polluted waters.     

On temporal partitioning of a community of ectomycorrhizal fungi

Several mechanisms may contribute to the high species richness often reported in ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungal communities, including spatial and temporal partitioning. Here, we focus on temporal partitioning. Using molecular methods, we determined the frequencies of occurrence of ECM fungal species detected as hyphae and ECM roots in the forest floor of a Pinus resinosa plantation during a 13-month period. We then used a novel statistical procedure to place the most frequently occurring ECM fungal species into groups distinguished by their patterns of relative frequency over time. Three groups with contrasting temporal patterns were distinguishable for fungal species detected as hyphae. Two groups were distinguishable for species detected as ECM roots. Our results support the hypothesis that temporal partitioning occurs among the species of ECM fungi in this community, but we did not address its causes, which may have involved interactions among species' physiological tolerances, temporal environmental variability, temporal patterns of root production, and variation in fungal genet lifespan. These interactions should be the subjects of future research.