Codon usage in the vertebrate hemoglobins and its implications

A study of codon usage in vertebrate hemoglobins revealed an evolutionary trend toward elevated numbers of CpG codon boundary pairs in mammalian hemoglobin alpha genes. Selection for CpG codon boundaries countering the generally observed CpG suppression is strongly suggested by these data. These observations parallel recently published experimental results that indicate that constitutive expression of the human alpha-globin gene appears to be determined by regulatory information encoded within the structural gene. The possibility is raised that, in the absence of selection, CpG decay can be used to date the evolutionary origin of a mammalian alpha pseudogene from its active alpha gene.      

Evolution of crystallins: expression of lens-specific proteins in the blind mammals mole (Talpa europaea) and mole rat (Spalax ehrenbergi)

The mole (Talpa europaea; Insectivora) and the mole rat (Spalax ehrenbergi; Rodentia) both have degenerated eyes as a convergent adaptation to subterranean life. The rudimentary eye lenses of these blind mammals no longer function in a visual process. The crystallin genes, which display a lens-specific expression pattern, were studied in these blind mammals and in related species with normal eyes by hybridizing their genomic DNAs with probes obtained from cDNA clones for alpha A-, alpha B-, and beta Bp-crystallins from calf and gamma 3- crystallin from the rat. For all crystallin genes examined, the hybridization signals of mole and mole rat genomic DNA were comparable, respectively, with those of shrew and of rat and mouse, normal-vision representatives of the orders Insectivora and Rodentia. The expression of the crystallins at the protein level was tested by using antiserum specific for alpha-crystallin in immunofluorescence reactions on lens sections of mole and mole rat eyes and by using antisera against the beta- and gamma-crystallins on sections of the mole eye. All antisera gave positive fluorescence reactions exclusively with lens tissue of these blind mammals, indicating that the crystallins are still normally expressed despite the fact that these lenses have had no function in a visual process in these mammals for at least many million years. These findings apparently imply that some unknown selective advantage has conserved the crystallin genes and their expression after the loss of normal function of the lenses.      

Physical mechanisms by which low-frequency magnetic fields can affect the distribution of counterions on cylindrical biological cell surfaces

Effects of dc and low-frequency ac magnetic fields on the motion and distribution of counterions on surfaces of cylindrical biological cells are examined. Magnetic fields along the cell axis as well as perpendicular to it are considered. When a dc magnetic field of any physically realizable magnitude is parallel to the cell axis it has no effect on ion motion, since the resulting Lorentz force is much smaller than the counterion-to-ion attractive force. However a dc magnetic field perpendicular to the cell surface will distort any preexisting ion motion and the resulting current (i) perpendicular to the original motion will be much larger than any current induced by a low-frequency ac magnetic field of the same magnitude as the dc field and parallel to it. Nevertheless i will still be much smaller than the current i_o constituting the original ion motion since (i/i_o)=/, where is the ion cyclotron frequency and the effective counterion collision frequency. With no preexisting coherent ion motion (i_o=0) the circulating current induced by a sinusoidally time-varying magnetic field parallel to the cell axis will be well below thermal fluctuation noise as long as only a single cell is considered; however when even an infinitesimal exchange of ions between adjacent cells is assumed the magnetic field will cause a redistribution of counterions on the cell surface. The resulting steady-state distribution becomes independent of the frequency of the applied magnetic field () when , where is 1/2 of the relaxation frequency for counterion diffusion. On the basis of these results it is suggested that whenever modification of cell behavior in response to application of a low-frequency magnetic field is established, measurements of dielectric permittivity versus frequency of the cell preparation be performed. Redistribution of counterions on the cell surface would be a likely cause if the noted effect becomes independent of the frequency of the applied magnetic field above the counterion dielectric relaxation frequency. It is also suggested that in magnetic field exposure of cell preparations the size of the sample (e.g. diameter of Petri dish) and direction of the magnetic field relative to average cell orientation can critically affect experimental results.     

The evolutionary history of the amylase multigene family in Drosophila pseudoobscura

In Drosophila pseudoobscura, the amylase (Amy) multigene family is contained within a series of inversions, or gene arrangements, on the third chromosome. The Standard (ST), Santa Cruz (SC), and Tree Line (TL) inversions are central to the phylogeny of arrangements, and have clusters of other arrangements derived from them. The gene arrangements belonging to each of these three clusters have a characteristic number of Amy genes, ranging from three in ST to two in SC to one in TL. This distribution pattern can reflect a history of either duplications or deletions, although the data available in the past did not permit a decision between these alternatives. We provide unambiguous evidence that three Amy genes were present before the divergence of the ST, SC, and TL arrangements. Thus, the current status of the Amy multigene family is the result of deletions in the TL and SC arrangements, which created three new pseudogenes: TL Amy2-psi, TL Amy3-psi, and SC Amy3- psi. Analysis of pseudogene sequences revealed that, in the SC and ST arrangements, pseudogene evolution has been retarded, most likely due to the homogenization effect of gene conversion. Finally, by determining the original copy number, we have reconstructed the evolutionary history of the Amy multigene family and linked it with the evolution of the central gene arrangements.      

Nutrition and Physical Activity Program to Attenuate Obesity and Promote Physical and Metabolic Fitness in Elementary School Children

Obesity and low levels of physical and metabolic fitness are risk factors for cardiovascular disease and diabetes. The purpose of this investigation was to attenuate obesity and improve physical and metabolic fitness in elementary school children. Schools have the opportunity, mechanisms, and personnel in place to deliver nutrition education, fitness activities, and a school food service that is nutritious and healthy. Cohorts from grades 3 to 5 in two school districts in rural Nebraska (Intervention/Control) participated in a 2-year study of physical activity and modified school lunch program. Data collection for aerobic capacity, body composition, blood chemistry, nutrition knowledge, energy intake, and physical activity was at the beginning and end of each year. Int received enhanced physical activity, grade specific nutrition education, and a lower fat and sodium school lunch program. Con continued with a regular school lunch and team sports activity program. At year 2, Int lunches had significantly less energy (9%), fat (25%), sodium (21%), and more fiber (17%). However, measures of 24-hour energy intake for Int and Con showed significant differences for sodium only. Physical activity in the classroom was 6% greater for Int compared to Con (p < 0.05) but physical activity outside of school was ?16 % less for Int compared to Con (p < 0.05). Body weight and body fat were not different between schools for normal weight or obese children. No differences were found for cholesterol, insulin, and glucose; however, HDL cholesterol was significantly greater and cholesterol/HDL was significantly less for Int compared to Con (p < 0.05). It appears that compensation in both energy intake and physical activity outside of school may be responsible for the lack of differences between Int and Con.     

Postnatal lung function and protein permeability after fetal or maternal corticosteroids in preterm lambs

Rebello, Celso M., Machiko Ikegami, M. Gore Ervin, Daniel H. Polk, and Alan H. Jobe. Postnatal lung function and protein permeability after fetal or maternal corticosteroids in preterm lambs.J. Appl. Physiol. 83(1): 213-218, 1997.We evaluated postnatal lung function andintravascular albumin loss to tissues of 123-days-gestation pretermsurfactant-treated and ventilated lambs 15 h after direct fetal(n = 8) or maternal(n = 9) betamethasone treatment orsaline placebo (n = 9). Thebetamethasone-treated groups had similar increases in dynamiccompliances, ventilatory efficiency indexes, and lung volumes relativeto controls (P < 0.05). The lossesof ¹²⁵I-labeled albumin fromblood, a marker of intravascular integrity, and the recoveries of¹²⁵I-albumin in muscle and brainwere similar for control and betamethasone-exposed lambs.Betamethasone-treated lambs had lower recoveries of¹²⁵I-albumin in lung tissues andin alveolar washes than did controls (P < 0.01). Although blood pressureswere higher for the treated groups (P < 0.05), all groups had similar blood volumes, cardiac outputs, andorgan blood flows. Maternal or fetal treatment with betamethasone 15 hbefore preterm delivery equivalently improved postnatal lung function,reduced albumin recoveries in lungs, and increased blood pressures.However, prenatal betamethasone had no effects on the systemicintravascular losses of albumin or did not change blood volumes.

     

Evidence for gene conversion in the amylase multigene family of Drosophila pseudoobscura

The alpha-amylase (Amy) multigene family in Drosophila pseudoobscura is located on the third chromosome, which is polymorphic for more than 40 inverted gene arrangements. The number of copies in this family ranges from one to three, depending on the arrangement in question. A previous study of the three Amy genes from the Standard (ST) arrangement suggested either that duplicated copies (Amy2 and Amy3) are functionally constrained or that they are undergoing gene conversion with Amy1. In order to elucidate further the pattern of molecular evolution in this family, we cloned and sequenced four additional Amy genes, two from the Santa Cruz (SC) and two from the Chiricahua (CH) gene arrangement. Of the two alternatives, only the hypothesis of gene conversion is supported by the sequence analysis. The homogenization effect of gene conversion has been strongest in SC, whose copies differ by only two nucleotides, less noticeable in ST, and negligible in the CH. Furthermore, the action of gene conversion is apparently localized, occurring only in the coding region. Interestingly, these results concur with the findings of other workers for the duplicated Amy genes in the Drosophila melanogaster group. Thus, the occurrence of gene conversion in the Amy multigene family seems to be a common feature in the Drosophila species studied so far.      

THE EVOLUTION OF LOCOMOTOR RHYTHMICITY IN TETRAPODS

Differences in rhythmicity (relative variance in cycle period) among mammal, fish, and lizard feeding systems have been hypothesized to be associated with differences in their sensorimotor control systems. We tested this hypothesis by examining whether the locomotion of tachymetabolic tetrapods (birds and mammals) is more rhythmic than that of bradymetabolic tetrapods (lizards, alligators, turtles, salamanders). Species averages of intraindividual coefficients of variation in cycle period were compared while controlling for gait and substrate. Variance in locomotor cycle periods is significantly lower in tachymetabolic than in bradymetabolic animals for datasets that include treadmill locomotion, non‐treadmill locomotion, or both. When phylogenetic relationships are taken into account the pooled analyses remain significant, whereas the non‐treadmill and the treadmill analyses become nonsignificant. The co‐occurrence of relatively high rhythmicity in both feeding and locomotor systems of tachymetabolic tetrapods suggests that the anatomical substrate of rhythmicity is in the motor control system, not in the musculoskeletal components.