Modeling of growth and energy metabolism of Pichia pastoris producing a fusion protein

A fusion protein composed of a cellulose binding domain from Neocallimastix patriciarum cellulase A and Candida antarctica lipase B (CBD-lipase) was produced by Pichia pastoris methanol utilization plus phenotype in high cell-density cultures. The genes expressing CBD-lipase were fused to the alpha-factor secretion signal sequence of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and placed under the control of the alcohol oxidase gene (AOX1) promoter. To control the repression and induction of AOX1 and oxygen demand at high cell density, a four-stage process was used. Batch growth on glycerol was used in the first step to provide biomass (28 g L^-1) while product formation was prevented due to repression of the AOX1. The second stage was exponential fed-batch growth on glycerol, which caused a slight increase of the enzyme alcohol oxidase activity due to derepression of the AOX1. This procedure resulted in smooth transition to exponential fed-batch growth on methanol, the third stage, in which the AOX1 was strongly induced. The fourth stage was constant fed-batch growth on methanol used to control the oxygen demand at the high cell density. A kinetic model was developed that could predict biomass growth and oxygen consumption in processes with and without oxygen-enriched air. With oxygen enrichment to 34% O₂ in the inlet air the methanol feed rate could be increased by 50% and this resulted in 14% higher final cell density (from 140 to 160 g L^-1 cell dry weight). The increased methanol feed rate resulted in a proportionally increased specific rate of product secretion to the medium. After an initial decrease, the synthesis capacity of the cell was kept constant throughout the cultivation, which made the product concentration increase almost constantly during the process. The kinetic model also describes how the low maintenance demand of P. pastoris compared with E. coli enables this organism to grow to such high cell densities.     

Disintegration of Dung Pats from Cattle Treated with the Ivermectin Anthelmintic Bolus,or the Biocontrol Agent Duddingtonia flagrans

An experiment was performed during the grazing seasons of 1998, 1999 and 2000 to study the influence of the antiparasitic drug ivermectin and the nematophagous fungus Duddingtonia flagrans on cattle dung disintegration. The faeces originated from groups of animals that were part of a separate grazing experiment where different control strategies for nematode parasite infections were investigated. Each group consisted of 10 first-season grazing cattle that were either untreated, treated with the ivermectin sustained-release bolus, or fed chlamydospores of D. flagrans. Faeces were collected monthly on 4 occasions and out of pooled faeces from each group, 4 artificial 1 kg dung pats were prepared and deposited on nylon mesh on an enclosed pasture and protected from birds. The position of the new set of pats was repeated throughout the 3 years of the study. Each year, the dung pats were weighed 4, 6, 8 and 10 weeks after deposition and immediately afterwards replaced to their initial positions.

Results showed that there was no difference in faecal pat disintegration between groups. However, the time-lag between deposition and complete disintegration of the faeces varied significantly between deposition occasions. Dung pats disappeared within 2 weeks (visual observation) when subjected to heavy rainfall early after deposition, whereas an extended dry period coincided with faeces still remaining 12 months after deposition.

     

Synthetic statistical approach reveals a high degree of richness of microbial eukaryotes in an anoxic water column

Molecular surveys suggest that communities of microbial eukaryotes are remarkably rich, because even large clone libraries seem to capture only a minority of species. This provides a qualitative picture of protistan richness but does not measure its real extent either locally or globally. Statistical analysis can estimate a community's richness, but the specific methods used to date are not always well grounded in statistical theory. Here we study a large protistan molecular survey from an anoxic water column in the Cariaco Basin (Caribbean Sea). We group individual 18S rRNA gene sequences into operational taxonomic units (OTUs) using different cutoff values for sequence similarity (99 to 50%) and systematically apply parametric models and nonparametric estimators to the OTU frequency data to estimate the total protistan diversity. The parametric models provided statistically sound estimates of protistan richness, with biologically meaningful standard errors, maximal data usage, and extensive model diagnostics and were preferable to the available nonparametric tools. Our clone library exceeded 700 clones but still covered only a minority of species and less than half of the larger protistan clades. Our estimates of total protistan richness portray the target community as very rich at all OTU levels, with hundreds of different populations apparently co-occurring in the small (3-liter) volume of our sample, as well as dozens of clades of the highest taxonomic order. These estimates are among the first for microbial eukaryotes that are obtained using state-of-the-art statistical methods and can serve as benchmark numbers for the local diversity of protists.     

Involvement of nitric oxide in the regulation of regional hemodynamics in streptozotocin-diabetic rats

In experimental and human diabetes mellitus, evidence for an impaired function of the vascular endothelium has been found and has been suggested to contribute to the development of vascular complications in this disease. The aim of the study was to evaluate possible regional hemodynamic in vivo differences between healthy and diabetic rats which would involve nitric oxide (NO). Central hemodynamics and regional blood flow (RBF) were studied using radioactive microspheres in early streptozotocin (STZ)-diabetic rats and compared to findings in healthy control animals. This method provides a possibility to study the total blood flow and vascular resistance (VR) in several different organs simultaneously. L-NAME iv induced widespread vasoconstriction to a similar extent in both groups. In the masseter muscle of both groups, acetylcholine 2 microg/kg per min, induced a RBF increase, which was abolished by pretreatment with L-NAME, suggesting NO as a mediator of vasodilation. In the heart muscle of both groups, acetylcholine alone was without effect while the combined infusion of acetylcholine and L-arginine induced an L-NAME-sensitive increase in RBF. The vasodilation induced by high-dose acetylcholine (10 microg/kg per min) in the kidney was more pronounced in the STZ-diabetic rats. The results indicate no reduction in basal vasodilating NO-tone in the circulation of early diabetic rats. The sensitivity to vasodilating effects of acetylcholine at the level of small resistance arterioles vary between tissues but was not impaired in the diabetic rats. In the heart muscle the availability of L-arginine was found to limit the vasodilatory effect of acetylcholine in both healthy and diabetic rats. In conclusion, the results indicate a normal action of NO in the investigated tissues of the early STZ-diabetic rat.     

Disease Recording Systems and Herd Health Schemes for Production Diseases

Disease recording of cattle is compulsory in Sweden and Norway. Sweden and Denmark also have mandatory disease recording for swine, whereas Finland and Norway only have compulsory recording of infectious diseases. Both compulsory and voluntary systems are databased, the first ones developed in the 1970's.Disease recording at pig slaughtering is somewhat older. The veterinary practitioner, and often also the farmer, can report treated cases as well as fertility disturbances to the systems. Disease recording at slaughter is carried out by veterinarians and inspection officers. The databases are handled by the veterinary authorities or the agricultural organisations in each country. Costs are defrayed by the authorities and/or the agricultural industry. The farmers receive periodic reports. Data are stored for three to ten years, often longer. Affiliation to animal health schemes for cattle or swine is voluntary. In Sweden and Denmark (cattle) they are run within the scope of government regulations. Affiliation to animal health programmes may also be demanded by organisations within the agricultural industry. These organisations are also responsible for the administration of the programmes. Costs to take part in herd health schemes are covered by the farmers themselves. In certain cases, grants are received from agricultural organisations, authorities, or the European Union. Recording of diseases and the format of animal health schemes in the Nordic countries are described here in order to illustrate the possibilities to compare data between countries.     

Electric chips for rapid detection and quantification of nucleic acids

A silicon chip-based electric detector coupled to bead-based sandwich hybridization (BBSH) is presented as an approach to perform rapid analysis of specific nucleic acids. A microfluidic platform incorporating paramagnetic beads with immobilized capture probes is used for the bio-recognition steps. The protocol involves simultaneous sandwich hybridization of a single-stranded nucleic acid target with the capture probe on the beads and with a detection probe in the reaction solution, followed by enzyme labeling of the detection probe, enzymatic reaction, and finally, potentiometric measurement of the enzyme product at the chip surface. Anti-DIG-alkaline phosphatase conjugate was used for the enzyme labeling of the DIG-labeled detection probe. p-Aminophenol phosphate (pAPP) was used as a substrate. The enzyme reaction product, p-aminophenol (pAP), is oxidized at the anode of the chip to quinoneimine that is reduced back to pAP at the cathode. The cycling oxidation and reduction of these compounds result in a current producing a characteristic signal that can be related to the concentration of the analyte. The performance of the different steps in the assay was characterized using in vitro synthesized RNA oligonucleotides and then the instrument was used for analysis of 16S rRNA in Escherichia coli extract. The assay time depends on the sensitivity required. Artificial RNA target and 16S rRNA, in amounts ranging from 10(11) to 10(10) molecules, were assayed within 25 min and 4 h, respectively.     

Drosophila homolog of APP-BP1 (dAPP-BP1) interacts antagonistically with APPL during Drosophila development

beta-Amyloid precursor protein binding protein 1 (APP-BP1) was previously identified based on its binding to the carboxyl terminal of beta-amyloid precursor protein. In this report, we have discovered that a mutation of dAPP-BP1 (Drosophila ortholog of APP-BP1) hinders tissue development, causes apoptosis in imaginal disc cells, and blocks the NEDD8 conjugation pathway. We show that dAPP-BP1 specifically binds the intracellular domain of APP-like protein (APPL). The dAPP-BP1 mutation partially suppresses the abnormal macrochaete phenotype of Appl(d), while overexpression of dAPP-BP1 causes abnormal macrochaetes. When APPL is overexpressed, the normal bristle pattern in the fly thorax is disturbed and apoptosis is induced in wing imaginal discs. APPL overexpression phenotypes are enhanced by reducing the level of dAPP-BP1. APPL overexpression is shown to inhibit the NEDD8 conjugation pathway. APPL-induced apoptosis is rescued by overexpression of dAPP-BP1. Our data suggest that APPL and dAPP-BP1 interact antagonistically during Drosophila development.     

Disease Recording Systems and Herd Health Schemes for Production Diseases

Disease recording of cattle is compulsory in Sweden and Norway. Sweden and Denmark also have mandatory disease recording for swine, whereas Finland and Norway only have compulsory recording of infectious diseases. Both compulsory and voluntary systems are databased, the first ones developed in the 1970's.

Disease recording at pig slaughtering is somewhat older. The veterinary practitioner, and often also the farmer, can report treated cases as well as fertility disturbances to the systems. Disease recording at slaughter is carried out by veterinarians and inspection officers. The databases are handled by the veterinary authorities or the agricultural organisations in each country. Costs are defrayed by the authorities and/or the agricultural industry. The farmers receive periodic reports. Data are stored for three to ten years, often longer. Affiliation to animal health schemes for cattle or swine is voluntary. In Sweden and Denmark (cattle) they are run within the scope of government regulations. Affiliation to animal health programmes may also be demanded by organisations within the agricultural industry. These organisations are also responsible for the administration of the programmes. Costs to take part in herd health schemes are covered by the farmers themselves. In certain cases, grants are received from agricultural organisations, authorities, or the European Union. Recording of diseases and the format of animal health schemes in the Nordic countries are described here in order to illustrate the possibilities to compare data between countries.