Pattern analysis of stem cell differentiation during <Emphasis Type="Italic">in vitro Arabidopsis</Emphasis> organogenesis

Plant somatic cells have the capability to switch their cell fates from differentiated to undifferentiated status under proper culture conditions, which is designated as totipotency. As a result, plant cells can easily regenerate new tissues or organs from a wide variety of explants. However, the mechanism by which plant cells have such remarkable regeneration ability is still largely unknown. In this study, we used a set of meristem-specific marker genes to analyze the patterns of stem cell differentiation in the processes of somatic embryogenesis as well as shoot or root organogenesis in vitro. Our studies furnish preliminary and important information on the patterns of the de novo stem cell differentiation during various types of in vitro organogenesis.     

Engineering lysine‐rich caleosins as carrier proteins to render biotin as a hapten on artificial oil bodies for antibody production

It has been demonstrated that caleosin alone is sufficient to stabilize artificial oil bodies. A series of recombinant caleosins, mutated with 3, 5, 8, 11, 13, 15, and 17 extra Lys residues and over‐expressed in Escherichia coli, were used as carrier proteins to render biotin as a hapten on the surface of artificial oil bodies for antibody production. Biotinylation levels of the recombinant caleosins were step‐wisely elevated as the number of extra Lys residues increased, and the biotinylated Lys residues were identified by mass spectrometric analysis. Polyclonal antibodies against biotin were successfully generated in rats injected with artificial oil bodies constituted with each of the biotinylated caleosins. Moreover, those generated via the biotinylated caleosins with eight or more extra Lys residues no longer recognized caleosin. It appears that engineered Lys‐rich caleosins are suitable carrier proteins for the production of antibodies against small molecules. © 2011 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 2011     

Autumnal moth – why autumnal?

1. As for some other spring‐feeding moths, adult flight of Epirrita autumnata (Lepidoptera: Geometridae) occurs in late autumn. Late‐season flight is a result of a prolonged pupal period. Potential evolutionary explanations for this phenological pattern are evaluated. 2. In a laboratory rearing, there was a weak correlation between pupation date and the time of adult emergence. A substantial genetic difference in pupal period was found between two geographic populations. Adaptive evolution of eclosion time can thus be expected. 3. Metabolic costs of a prolonged pupal period were found to be moderate but still of some ecological significance. Pupal mortality is likely to form the main cost of the prolonged pupal period. 4. Mortality rates of adults, exposed in the field, showed a declining temporal trend from late summer to normal eclosion time in autumn. Lower predation pressure on adults may constitute the decisive selective advantage of late‐season flight. It is suggested that ants, not birds, were the main predators responsible for the temporal trend. 5. Egg mortality was estimated to be low; it is thus unlikely that the late adult period is selected for to reduce the time during which eggs are exposed to predators. 6. In a laboratory experiment, oviposition success was maximal at the time of actual flight peak of E. autumnata, however penalties resulting from sub‐optimal timing of oviposition remained limited.     

Semiparametric Regression in Size-Biased Sampling

Summary .  Size-biased sampling arises when a positive-valued outcome variable is sampled with selection probability proportional to its size. In this article, we propose a semiparametric linear regression model to analyze size-biased outcomes. In our proposed model, the regression parameters of covariates are of major interest, while the distribution of random errors is unspecified. Under the proposed model, we discover that regression parameters are invariant regardless of size-biased sampling. Following this invariance property, we develop a simple estimation procedure for inferences. Our proposed methods are evaluated in simulation studies and applied to two real data analyses.     

Role of Hsp70 ATPase Domain Intrinsic Dynamics and Sequence Evolution in Enabling its Functional Interactions with NEFs

Catalysis of ADP-ATP exchange by nucleotide exchange factors (NEFs) is central to the activity of Hsp70 molecular chaperones. Yet, the mechanism of interaction of this family of chaperones with NEFs is not well understood in the context of the sequence evolution and structural dynamics of Hsp70 ATPase domains. We studied the interactions of Hsp70 ATPase domains with four different NEFs on the basis of the evolutionary trace and co-evolution of the ATPase domain sequence, combined with elastic network modeling of the collective dynamics of the complexes. Our study reveals a subtle balance between the intrinsic (to the ATPase domain) and specific (to interactions with NEFs) mechanisms shared by the four complexes. Two classes of key residues are distinguished in the Hsp70 ATPase domain: (i) highly conserved residues, involved in nucleotide binding, which mediate, via a global hinge-bending, the ATPase domain opening irrespective of NEF binding, and (ii) not-conserved but co-evolved and highly mobile residues, engaged in specific interactions with NEFs (e.g., N57, R258, R262, E283, D285). The observed interplay between these respective intrinsic (pre-existing, structure-encoded) and specific (co-evolved, sequence-dependent) interactions provides us with insights into the allosteric dynamics and functional evolution of the modular Hsp70 ATPase domain.     

Bayesian Quantile Regression for Longitudinal Studies with Nonignorable Missing Data

Summary .  We study quantile regression (QR) for longitudinal measurements with nonignorable intermittent missing data and dropout. Compared to conventional mean regression, quantile regression can characterize the entire conditional distribution of the outcome variable, and is more robust to outliers and misspecification of the error distribution. We account for the within-subject correlation by introducing a   ℓ₂   penalty in the usual QR check function to shrink the subject-specific intercepts and slopes toward the common population values. The informative missing data are assumed to be related to the longitudinal outcome process through the shared latent random effects. We assess the performance of the proposed method using simulation studies, and illustrate it with data from a pediatric AIDS clinical trial.     

Short hairpin RNAs against eotaxin or interleukin‐5 decrease airway eosinophilia and hyper‐responsiveness in a murine model of asthma

Background

Eosinophilia plays the major role in the pathogenesis of asthma and correlates with the up‐regulation of eotaxin, which, together with interleukin (IL)‐5, is important for differentiation, chemo‐attraction, degranulation, and survival of eosinophils in local tissue. In a previous study, we found that administration of lentivirus‐delivered short hairpin RNA (shRNA) to suppress the expression of IL‐5 inhibited airway inflammation. The present study aimed to investigate the role of eotaxin shRNA and the synergistic effect of eotaxin and IL‐5 shRNAs on airway inflammation in an ovalbumin (OVA)‐induced murine model of asthma.

Methods

Lentivirus‐delivered shRNAs were used to suppress the expression of eotaxin and/or IL‐5 in local tissue in an OVA‐induced murine asthma model.

Results

Intra‐tracheal administration of lentivirus containing eotaxin shRNA expressing cassette (eoSEC3.3) efficiently moderated the characteristics of asthma, including airway hyper‐responsiveness, cellular infiltration of lung tissues, and eotaxin and IL‐5 levels in bronchio‐alveolar lavage fluid. Administration of lentiviruses expressing IL‐5 or eotaxin shRNAs (IL5SEC4 + eoSEC3.3) also moderated the symptoms of asthma in a mouse model.

Conclusions

Local delivery of lentiviruses expressing IL‐5 and eotaxin shRNAs provides a potential tool in moderating airway inflammation and also has the potential for developing clinical therapy based on the application of shRNAs of chemokines and cytokines involved in T helper 2 cell inflammation and eosinophilia. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

On the classification of Calligonum juochiangense and C. pumilum (Polygonaceae)

After observing specimens of Calligonum pumilum Losinsk. and C. juochiangense Y. X. Liou in both the field and in herbarium collections, it was found that the morphological characters of these two species are quite different, especially with respect of the twisted direction of fruit ribs, number of bristle rows along each rib, rigidity and degree of interweaving of bristles, as well as their geographic distribution. Therefore, it is concluded that C. pumilum and C. juochiangense should be accepted as two independent species.