Influence of initial substratum surface tension on marine micro- and macro-fouling in the Gulf of Thailand

The density of five major groups of fouling organisms (bacteria, diatoms, choanoflagellates, ciliates, macroorganisms) on seven artificial substrata with surface tensions between 19.0 and 64.5 mN m⁻¹ was studied in the Gulf of Thailand. Two series of test panels of the different substrata were immersed into the sea between 3 hours and 64 days (macrofauna 128 days). The results show that surface tension has a limited impact on the density of the organisms. Only bacteria settled continuously in significantly lower numbers on materials within the minimum bioadhesive range (20–25 mN m⁻¹) than on other substrata. Significant differences between the substrata may disappear after long exposure, as in series 2 after 16 days. For diatoms and protozoa, a colonisation pattern similar to that of bacteria with a minimum of 20–25 mN m⁻¹ was detected after several exposure intervals. However, it was never recorded in more than 3 exposure intervals in a row. The colonisation pattern of macroorganisms could not be attributed to substratum surface tension. An index, called “colonisation degree” is introduced to give a general impression of the density of organisms on the materials tested. The colonisation degree did not show any significant difference at any exposure interval. The present results clearly suggest that substratum surface tension is easily overshadowed by other factors in colonisation processes under natural conditions. *** DIRECT SUPPORT *** A03B6037 00003     

Functional and physical interactions between components of the Prp19p-associated complex

The Prp19p-associated complex is essential for the yeast pre-mRNA splicing reaction. The complex consists of at least eight protein components, but is not tightly associated with spliceosomal snRNAs. By a combination of genetic and biochemical methods we previously identified four components of this complex, Ntc25p, Ntc85p, Ntc30p and Ntc20p, all of them being novel splicing factors. We have now identified three other components of the complex, Ntc90p, Ntc77p and Ntc31p. These three proteins were also associated with the spliceosome during the splicing reaction in the same manner as Prp19p, concurrently with or immediately after dissociation of U4 snRNA. Two-hybrid analysis revealed that none of these proteins interacted with Prp19p or Ntc25p, but all interacted with Ntc85p. An interaction network between the identified components of the Prp19p-associated complex is demonstrated. Biochemical analysis revealed that Ntc90p, Ntc31p, Ntc30p and Ntc20p form a subcomplex, which, through interacting with Ntc85p and Ntc77p, can associate with Prp19p and Ntc25p to form the Prp19p-associated complex. Genetic analysis suggests that Ntc31p, Ntc30p and Ntc20p may play roles in modulating the function of Ntc90p.     

Polymorphisms at newly identified lipid-associated loci are associated with blood lipids and cardiovascular disease in an Asian Malay population

We conducted a cross-sectional study of Malay participants aged 40-80 years (n = 2,932) to examine the associations between polymorphisms at newly identified, lipid-associated loci with blood lipid levels and prevalent cardiovascular disease (CVD) in a Malay population in Asia. A polymorphism adjacent to the TRIB1 locus (rs17321515) was associated with elevated total cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol (LDL-C) after adjustment for age and sex (both P values <0.007) and with increased risk of coronary heart disease and CVD [odds ratio (OR) 1.23, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.03-1.46; and OR 1.2, 95% CI 1.02-1.42, respectively] under an additive model of inheritance. In addition, using recessive models of inheritance, polymorphisms on chromosome 19 adjacent to the CILP2 and PBX4 loci (rs16996148) and on chromosome 1 at the GALNT2 locus (rs4846914) were associated with elevated HDL-C (P = 0.005) and lower LDL-C (P = 0.048), respectively. Although novel, the former is consistent with the association between this polymorphism and lower blood triglycerides observed in the initial studies conducted in populations of European ancestry. Neither showed statistically significant association with CVD. These observations should form the basis of further investigation to identify the causative polymorphisms at this locus, and also to understand the mechanistic roles that this protein may play in lipoprotein metabolism in Asians and other populations.     

Snt309p, a Component of the Prp19p-Associated Complex That Interacts with Prp19p and Associates with the Spliceosome Simultaneously with or Immediately after Dissociation of U4 in the Same Manner as Prp19p

The yeast protein Prp19p is essential for pre-mRNA splicing and is associated with the spliceosome concurrently with or just after dissociation of U4 small nuclear RNA. In splicing extracts, Prp19p is associated with several other proteins in a large protein complex of unknown function, but at least one of these proteins is also essential for splicing (W.-Y. Tarn, C.-H. Hsu, K.-T. Huang, H.-R. Chen, H.-Y. Kao, K.-R. Lee, and S.-C. Cheng, EMBO J. 13:2421–2431, 1994). To identify proteins in the Prp19p-associated complex, we have isolated trans-acting mutations that exacerbate the phenotypes of conditional alleles of prp19, using the ade2-ade3 sectoring system. A novel splicing factor, Snt309p, was identified through such a screen. Although the SNT309 gene was not essential for growth of Saccharomyces cerevisiae under normal conditions, yeast cells containing a null allele of the SNT309 gene were temperature sensitive and accumulated pre-mRNA at the nonpermissive temperature. Far-Western blot analysis revealed direct interaction between Prp19p and Snt309p. Snt309p was shown to be a component of the Prp19p-associated complex by Western blot analysis. Immunoprecipitation studies demonstrated that Snt309p was also a spliceosomal component and associated with the spliceosome in the same manner as Prp19p during spliceosome assembly. These results suggest that the functions of Prp19p and Snt309p in splicing may require coordinate action of these two proteins.     

Relevance of crustacean carapace wettability for fouling

Carapace wettability and density of fouling organisms (bacteria, diatoms, protozoa, fungi, macro-organisms) were investigated for 45 crustacean species (Hoplocarida, Decapoda) from 15 families in the Gulf of Thailand. The results show that crustaceans can create and maintain characteristic carapace wettabilities. About 21 species (47%) possess highly wettable carapaces with contact angles below 20°. Contact angles between 20° and 40° were recorded for four species (2%), angles between 40° and 60° for eight species (4%) and from 60° to 70° for 11 (24%) species. One species, Alpheus euphrosyne (Alpheidae, Decapoda), exhibited an extremely low surface wettability (contact angle: 91°). Densities of colonisers and contact angles did not correlate. Very low wettability by water ( > 90°) may only contribute little to fouling reduction in A. euphrosyne which showed the most hydrophobic carapace surface and was colonised by the lowest numbers of bacteria among all species and no other colonisers at all. We conclude that surface wettability is of little relevance for antifouling defence in crustaceans.