The Conserved Dcw Gene Cluster of R. sphaeroides Is Preceded by an Uncommonly Extended 5’ Leader Featuring the sRNA UpsM

Cell division and cell wall synthesis mechanisms are similarly conserved among bacteria. Consequently some bacterial species have comparable sets of genes organized in the dcw (division and cell wall) gene cluster. Dcw genes, their regulation and their relative order within the cluster are outstandingly conserved among rod shaped and gram negative bacteria to ensure an efficient coordination of growth and division. A well studied representative is the dcw gene cluster of E. coli. The first promoter of the gene cluster (mraZ1p) gives rise to polycistronic transcripts containing a 38 nt long 5’ UTR followed by the first gene mraZ. Despite reported conservation we present evidence for a much longer 5’ UTR in the gram negative and rod shaped bacterium Rhodobacter sphaeroides and in the family of Rhodobacteraceae. This extended 268 nt long 5’ UTR comprises a Rho independent terminator, which in case of termination gives rise to a non-coding RNA (UpsM). This sRNA is conditionally cleaved by RNase E under stress conditions in an Hfq- and very likely target mRNA-dependent manner, implying its function in trans. These results raise the question for the regulatory function of this extended 5’ UTR. It might represent the rarely described case of a trans acting sRNA derived from a riboswitch with exclusive presence in the family of Rhodobacteraceae

GEMAS: colours of dry and moist agricultural soil samples of Europe

High resolution HDR colour images of all Ap samples from the GEMAS survey were acquired using a GeoTek Linescan camera. This data set will help to develop new methods for world-wide characterization and monitoring of agricultural soils which is essential for quantifying geologic and human impact on the critical zone environment

Semi-Global Matching of Pléiades Tri-Stereo Imagery to Generate Detailed Digital Topography for High-Alpine Regions. GI_Forum|GI_Forum 2015 – Geospatial Minds for Society|

Nowadays, several sensors are capable of acquiring very high resolution (VHR) satellite images in stereo, and even in tri-stereo mode. These data can be efficiently exploited with photogrammetric methods, such as semi-global matching (SGM), to produce high quality 2.5D digital terrain information. Regarding the production of digital terrain models, since VHR (tri-)stereo satellite images are available at high temporal frequencies for nearly the whole globe, they can be considered an attractive alternative to restricted and expensive airborne laserscanning (ALS) data. In this study, SGM is applied to a Pléiades-1A image triplet, to generate an accurate and detailed 3D point cloud and a 2.5D digital surface model (DSM) for a high-alpine study area in South Tyrol with complex, snow- and ice-covered topography. Visual and quantitative comparison to an ALS reference DSM showed that there were only small elevation errors for large parts of the study area. Errors were higher in regions that were obscured by shade. This is one of the first studies demonstrating that SGM is not only capable of delivering reliable digital surface information for flat and hilly regions, but also for high-alpine areas with complex terrain

3/4/25, conseil des ministres, [M. Anatole] de Monzie [quittant l'Elysée] : [photographie de presse] / [Agence Rol]

Référence bibliographique : Rol, 99651Appartient à l’ensemble documentaire : Pho20RolImage de press

A Comparative Life Cycle Assessment of Different Production Processes for Waterborne Polyurethane Dispersions

This study provides a comparative life cycle assessment (LCA) of four different polyurethane dispersion production processes from cradle-to-gate. The environmental performances of the NMP process, the acetone process, the melt process, and a conceptualized continuous flow process were evaluated and compared following the CML 2001 methodology. The LCA revealed that the conceptualized flow process exhibits the lowest environmental impact in all investigated impact categories. Depending on the impact category, the melt process or the acetone process rank second. The NMP process was observed to have the highest impact in all categories. Consequently, the flow process has the lowest carbon footprint (1.13 kg CO2-eq), according to the global warming potential (100 years), followed by the melt (1.45 kg CO2-eq), the acetone (1.95 kg CO2-eq) and the NMP process (3.11 kg CO2-eq)

Transcription of <i>mraZ</i> is enabled by the UpsM promotor.

<p>(A) β-galactosidase activity assays of <i>R</i>. <i>sphaeroides</i> 2.4.1 with reporter plasmids with <i>mraZ</i>::<i>lacZ</i> translational fusion and <i>mraZ</i> upstream regions of varying length (long upstream region including the promotor of UpsM, 188 and 67 upstream nucleotides). pPHU235 represents the empty vector control. For each strain, three independent biological experiments with technical duplicates were performed. Error bars indicate standard deviations and an asterisk a significance level of P<0.01 compared to pPHU235. (B) 5’ RACE with RNA from <i>R</i>. <i>sphaeroides</i> 2.4.1 after 90 min of ¹O₂ stress. cDNA was generated with the primer depicted as black arrow, whereas cDNAs were amplified by the primer shown as grey arrow. The PCR product was visualized on a gel (10% PAA/TBE) by ethidium bromide staining. 5’ ends (dashed lines) identified by subcloning and sequencing and their corresponding frequencies are highlighted. (C) qRT-PCR products of primer pairs pUpsM, pmraZ (155 bp and 153 bp, both specific for the corresponding mRNA segments) and pUpsM_<i>mraZ</i> (143 bp, spanning from UpsM to <i>mraZ</i>) visualized on a gel (10% PAA/TBE) by ethidium bromide staining. Samples without initial RT step were loaded as control. On the right relative transcript levels are shown in relation to the product quantity of primer pair pUpsM_<i>mraZ</i>. qRT-PCRs were performed in technical duplicates with RNA from three biological independent and unstressed <i>R</i>. <i>sphaeroides</i> 2.4.1 cultures. Error bars indicate standard deviations. (D) β-galactosidase activity assays of <i>R</i>. <i>sphaeroides</i> 2.4.1 conjugated with a reporter plasmid with translational <i>lacZ</i> fusion to the start codon (ATG) within the UpsM gene in comparison to the promoter-less empty vector control (pPHU235) and a control plasmid (pPHU4352) containing a strong 16S rRNA promoter. For each strain, three independent biological experiments with technical duplicates were performed. Error bars indicate standard deviations and an asterisk a significance level of P<0.01 compared to both controls.</p

Structural analysis of UpsM.

<p>Analogous structured regions are indicated as R1-R4. RNAfold structure of UpsM in <i>R</i>. <i>sphaeroides</i> with and without constraint terminator (R4).</p

Comprehensive view of <i>mraZ</i> upstream regions in different species.

<p>Terminator predictions are indicated in red. Respective energies are given in kcal/mol. Regions between Start and Stop codons in frame are shown as grey bars. Transcription start sites are derived from public available deep sequencing data (see <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0165694#pone.0165694.s004" target="_blank">S4 Fig</a> for details). The phylogenetic tree was build using clustalx [<a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0165694#pone.0165694.ref058" target="_blank">58</a>] (NJ, 10000 bootstraps) based on a clustalOmega [<a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0165694#pone.0165694.ref059" target="_blank">59</a>] alignment of the respective <i>mraZ</i> coding regions. Bootstrap support values are indicated. Seemingly the long <i>mraZ</i> 5’ UTR with an intrinsic terminator is special to the family of <i>Rhodobacteraceae</i>.</p