Suppression of dnaZ mutation during integration of factor F' into the chromosome of a mutant strain

The phenomenon of suppression of dnaZ mutation has been revealed in the course of F' factor integration into the chromosome of the mutant strain. We have shown that under non-permissive conditions (t = 43 degrees C), chromosome replication in dnaZts strains proceeds under control of the factor F' replicon stably integrated into the chromosome. Possible mechanism of suppression effect, based on the formation of a bireplicon replication system, is discussed.     

Isolation and characteristics of mutation pfm affecting the penetration of phage Mu into Escherichia coli K-12 cells

A mutant of Escherichia coli K-12 strain with the destroyed process of establishment of lysogenic state for phage Mu in the course of zygotic induction has been obtained. The mutation revealed, designated pfm (penetration factor for Mu), interferes with adsorption of phage Mu to the surface of E. coli K-12 cells. On the basis of data obtained, there is every reason to believe that the phage Mu DNA connection with the membrane components of the bacterial cell provides optimizing condition for the primary integrative transposition of phage Mu at the stage of Mu DNA introduction into the cell.     

European checkerspots (Melitaeini: Lepidoptera,Nymphalidae) are not aposematic – the point of view of great tits (Parus major)

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Fluorescent organophosphonates as inhibitors of microbial lipases

Short- and long-chain 1-O-alkyl-2-acylaminodeoxyglycero- and alkoxy-alkylphosphonic acid p-nitrophenyl esters were synthesized as inhibitors for analytical and mechanistic studies on lipolytic enzymes. The respective compounds contain perylene or nitrobenzoxadiazole as reporter fluorophores covalently bound to the omega-ends of the respective 2-acylamino- and alkoxy- residues. Their inhibitory effects on the activities of three selected lipases showing different substrate preferences were determined, including the lipases from Rhizopus oryzae, Pseudomonas species, and Pseudomonas cepacia. R. oryzae lipase reacted much better with the single-chain inhibitors than the two-chain deoxyglycerolipids. In contrast, P. cepacia lipase was inactivated by perylene-containing two-chain phosphonate (XXII) to a larger extent as compared to the other inhibitors whereas Pseudomonas species lipase interacted efficiently and without any preferences with all inhibitors used in this study. In summary, the different lipases show a very characteristic reactivity pattern not only with respect to triacylglycerol substrates but also to their structurally related inhibitors. Thus, the novel phosphonates might be useful tools not only for analysis and discrimination of known lipolytic enzymes but also for discovery of yet unknown lipases/esterases in biological samples.     

Fluorescent inhibitors reveal solvent-dependent micropolarity in the lipid binding sites of lipases

Triacylglycerol analogue p-nitrophenyl phosphonates specifically react with the active-site serine of lipolytic enzymes to give covalent lipase-inhibitor complexes, mimicking the first transition state which is involved in lipase-mediated ester hydrolysis. Here we report on a new type of phosphonate inhibitors containing a polarity-sensitive fluorophore to monitor micropolarity around the active site of the enzyme in different solvents. The respective compounds are hexyl and methyl dimethylamino-naphthalenecarbonylethylmercaptoethoxy-phosphonates. The hexyl phosphonate derivative was reacted with lipases from Rhizopus oryzae (ROL), Chromobacterium viscosum (CVL), and Pseudomonas cepacia (PCL). The resulting lipid-protein complexes were characterized in solution with respect to water penetration into the lipid binding site and the associated conformational changes of the proteins as a consequence of solvent polarity changes. We found that the accessibility of the lipid-binding site in all lipases studied was lowest in water. It was much higher when the protein was dissolved in aqueous ethanol. These biophysical effects may contribute to the previously observed dramatic changes of enzyme functions such as activity and stereoselectivity depending on the respective solvents.     

Hypochlorite-modified high density lipoprotein,a high affinity ligand to scavenger receptor class B,type I,impairs high density lipoprotein-dependent selective lipid uptake and reverse cholesterol transport

Hypochlorous acid/hypochlorite (HOCl/OCl(-)), a potent oxidant generated in vivo by the myeloperoxidase-H(2)O(2)-chloride system of activated phagocytes, alters the physiological properties of high density lipoprotein (HDL) by generating a proatherogenic lipoprotein particle. On endothelial cells lectin-like oxidized low density lipoprotein receptor 1 (LOX-1) and scavenger receptor class B, type I (SR-BI), act in concert by mediating the holoparticle of and selective cholesteryl ester uptake from HOCl-HDL. We therefore investigated the ligand specificity of HOCl-HDL to SR-BI-overexpressing Chinese hamster ovary cells. Binding of HOCl-HDL was saturable, and the degree of HOCl modification was the determining factor for increased binding affinity to SR-BI. Competition experiments further confirmed that HOCl-HDL binds with increased affinity to the same or overlapping domain(s) of SR-BI as does native HDL. Furthermore, SR-BI-mediated selective HDL-cholesteryl ester association as well as time- and concentration-dependent cholesterol efflux from SR-BI overexpressing Chinese hamster ovary cells were, depending on the degree of HOCl modification of HDL, markedly impaired. The most significant findings of this study were that the presence of very low concentrations of HOCl-HDL severely impaired SR-BI-mediated bidirectional cholesterol flux mediated by native HDL. The colocalization of immunoreactive HOCl-modified epitopes with apolipoprotein A-I along with deposits of lipids in serial sections of human atheroma shown here indicates that the myeloperoxidase-H(2)O(2)-halide system contributes to oxidative damage of HDL in vivo.     

Oxidized phospholipids are more potent antagonists of lipopolysaccharide than inducers of inflammation

Polyunsaturated fatty acids are precursors of multiple pro- and anti-inflammatory molecules generated by enzymatic stereospecific and positionally specific insertion of oxygen, which is a prerequisite for recognition of these mediators by cellular receptors. However, nonenzymatically oxidized free and esterified polyunsaturated fatty acids also demonstrate activities relevant to inflammation. In particular, phospholipids containing oxidized fatty acid residues (oxidized phospholipids; OxPLs) were shown to induce proinflammatory changes in endothelial cells but paradoxically also to inhibit inflammation induced via TLR4. In this study, we show that half-maximal inhibition of LPS-induced elevation of E-selectin mRNA in endothelial cells developed at concentrations of oxidized 1-palmitoyl-2-arachidonoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (OxPAPC) 10-fold lower than those required to induce proinflammatory response. Similar concentration difference was observed for other classes and molecular species of OxPLs. Upon injection into mice, OxPAPC did not elevate plasma levels of IL-6 and keratinocyte chemoattractant but strongly inhibited LPS-induced upregulation of these inflammatory cytokines. Thus, both in vitro and in vivo, anti-LPS effects of OxPLs are observed at lower concentrations than those required for their proinflammatory action. Quantification of the most abundant oxidized phosphatidylcholines by HPLC/tandem mass spectrometry showed that circulating concentrations of total oxidized phosphatidylcholine species are close to the range where they demonstrate anti-LPS activity but significantly lower than that required for induction of inflammation. We hypothesize that low levels of OxPLs in circulation serve mostly anti-LPS function and protect from excessive systemic response to TLR4 ligands, whereas proinflammatory effects of OxPLs are more likely to develop locally at sites of tissue deposition of OxPLs (e.g., in atherosclerotic vessels).     

A simplified procedure for semi-targeted lipidomic analysis of oxidized phosphatidylcholines induced by UVA irradiation

Oxidized phospholipids (OxPLs) are increasingly recognized as signaling mediators that are not only markers of oxidative stress but are also "makers" of pathology relevant to disease pathogenesis. Understanding the biological role of individual molecular species of OxPLs requires the knowledge of their concentration kinetics in cells and tissues. In this work, we describe a straightforward "fingerprinting" procedure for analysis of a broad spectrum of molecular species generated by oxidation of the four most abundant species of polyunsaturated phosphatidylcholines (OxPCs). The approach is based on liquid-liquid extraction followed by reversed-phase HPLC coupled to electrospray ionization MS/MS. More than 500 peaks corresponding in retention properties to polar and oxidized PCs were detected within 8 min at 99 m/z precursor values using a single diagnostic product ion in extracts from human dermal fibroblasts. Two hundred seventeen of these peaks were fluence-dependently and statistically significantly increased upon exposure of cells to UVA irradiation, suggesting that these are genuine oxidized or oxidatively fragmented species. This method of semitargeted lipidomic analysis may serve as a simple first step for characterization of specific "signatures" of OxPCs produced by different types of oxidative stress in order to select the most informative peaks for identification of their molecular structure and biological role.     

ONTOGENETIC NICHE SHIFT IN THE BRACHIOPOD TEREBRATALIA TRANSVERSA: RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE LOSS OF ROTATION ABILITY AND ALLOMETRIC GROWTH

Abstract: Many articulated brachiopods experience marked life habit variations during ontogeny because they experience their fluid environment at successively higher Reynolds numbers, and they can change the configuration of their inhalant and exhalant flows as body size increases. We show that the extant brachiopod Terebratalia transversa undergoes a substantial ontogenetic change in reorientation governed by rotation around the pedicle. T. transversa′s reorientation angle (maximum ability to rotate on the pedicle) decreases during ontogeny, from 180 degrees in juveniles to 10–20 degrees in individuals exceeding 5 mm, to complete cessation of rotation in individuals larger than 10 mm. Rotation ability is substantially reduced after T. transversa achieves the adult lophophore configuration and preferred orientation with respect to ambient water currents at a length of 2.5–5 mm. We hypothesize that the rotation angle of T. transversa is determined mainly by the position of ventral and dorsal points of attachment of dorsal pedicle muscles relative to the pedicle. T. transversa shows a close correlation between the ontogenetic change in reorientation angle and ontogeny of morphological traits that are related to points of attachment of dorsal pedicle muscles, although other morphological features can also limit rotation in the adult stage. The major morphological change in cardinalia shape and the observed reduction of rotation affect individuals 2.5–10 mm in length. The position of ventral insertions of dorsal pedicle muscles remains constant, but contraction of dorsal pedicle muscles is functionally handicapped because dorsal insertions shift away from the valve midline, rise above the dorsal valve floor, and become limited by a wide cardinal process early in ontogeny (<5 mm). The rate of increase of cardinal process width and of distance between dorsal pedicle muscle scars substantially decreases in the subadult stage (5–10 mm), and most of the cardinalia shell traits grow nearly isometrically in the adult stage (>10 mm). T. transversa attains smaller shell length in crevices than on exposed substrates. The proportion of small‐sized individuals and population density is lower on exposed substrates than in crevices, indicating higher juvenile mortality on substrates prone to grazing and physical disturbance. The loss of reorientation ability can be a consequence of morphological changes that strengthen substrate attachment and maximize protection against biotic or physical disturbance (1) by minimizing torques around the pedicle axis and/or (2) by shifting energy investments into attachment strength at the expense of the cost involved in reorientation.