Immunoreactivity of the AAA plus chaperone ClpB from Leptospira interrogans with sera from Leptospira-infected animals

Citation: Krajewska, J., Arent, Z., Wieckowski, D., Zolkiewski, M., & Kedzierska-Mieszkowska, S. (2016). Immunoreactivity of the AAA plus chaperone ClpB from Leptospira interrogans with sera from Leptospira-infected animals. Bmc Microbiology, 16, 8. doi:10.1186/s12866-016-0774-8Leptospira interrogans is a spirochaete responsible for leptospirosis in mammals. The molecular mechanisms of the Leptospira virulence remain mostly unknown. Recently, it has been demonstrated that L. interrogans ClpB (ClpB(Li)) is essential for bacterial survival under stressful conditions and also during infection. The aim of this study was to provide further insight into the role of ClpB in L. interrogans and answer the question whether ClpB(Li) as a potential virulence factor may be a target of the humoral immune response during leptospiral infections in mammals. Results: ClpB(Li) consists of 860 amino acid residues with a predicted molecular mass of 96.3 kDa and shows multi-domain organization similar to that of the well-characterized ClpB from Escherichia coli. The amino acid sequence identity between ClpB(Li) and E. coli ClpB is 52 %. The coding sequence of the clpB(Li) gene was cloned and expressed in E. coli BL21(DE3) strain. Immunoreactivity of the recombinant ClpB(Li) protein was assessed with the sera collected from Leptospira-infected animals and uninfected healthy controls. Western blotting and ELISA analysis demonstrated that ClpB(Li) activates the host immune system, as evidenced by an increased level of antibodies against ClpB(Li) in the sera from infected animals, as compared to the control group. Additionally, ClpB(Li) was found in kidney tissues of Leptospira-infected hamsters. Conclusions: ClpB(Li) is both synthesized and immunogenic during the infectious process, further supporting its involvement in the pathogenicity of Leptospira. In addition, the immunological properties of ClpB(Li) point to its potential value as a diagnostic antigen for the detection of leptospirosis

ANTIMICROBIAL SUSCEPTIBILITY OF SALMONELLA ISOLATES OBTAINED FROM WEST TEXAS SHEEP: A STUDY INTO BACTERIAL RESISTANCE

Antibiotic resistance is becoming an increasingly prevalent issue within the health and food production industries. The purpose of this study is to analyze antimicrobial susceptibility in Salmonella isolates from small ruminants due to the lack of available literature. Salmonella is one bacterial pathogen often found in sheep. Using Sensititre® susceptibility plates, 24 confirmed isolates of Salmonella spp. were tested against 15 of the most important antibiotics determined by the National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System. The data obtained was compared against the NARMS determined breakpoints and analyzed using various processes of Statistical Analysis Software (SAS). Of the 24 isolates tested, 58.33% exhibited resistance to antibiotics, specifically 37.5% were found to be resistant to only one of the antimicrobials tested against, 4.17% were resistant to two antimicrobial drugs, 12.5% of the isolates were resistant to three antimicrobials and 4.17% were resistant to a total of five antimicrobials. The most commonly observed resistance was to Tetracycline at 50%. There were eight antimicrobials that the Salmonella isolates showed no significant resistance to, and seven antimicrobials where the minimum inhibitory concentration was found to be higher than the reported breakpoint. Results from this study show that some antibiotic resistance does exist within Salmonella obtained from sheep related sources, and prudent use of antibiotics should be advocated to help prevent further spread of resistance

Electronic structure of intentionally disordered AlAs/GaAs superlattices

We use realistic pseudopotentials and a plane-wave basis to study the electronic structure of non-periodic, three-dimensional, 2000-atom (AlAs)_n/(GaAs)_m (001) superlattices, where the individual layer thicknesses n,m = {1,2,3} are randomly selected. We find that while the band gap of the equivalent (n = m = 2) ordered superlattice is indirect, random fluctuations in layer thicknesses lead to a direct gap in the planar Brillouin zone, strong wavefunction localization along the growth direction, short radiative lifetimes, and a significant band-gap reduction, in agreement with experiments on such intentionally grown disordered superlattices.Comment: 10 pages, REVTeX and EPSF macros, 4 figures in postscript. e-mail to [email protected]

Renewable Energy

This chapter presents an in-depth examination of major renewable energy technologies, including their installed capacity and energy supply in 2009 , the current state of market and technology development, their economic and financial feasibility in 2009 and in the near future, as well as major issues they may face relative to their sustainability or implementation. Renewable energy sources have been important for humankind since the beginning of civilization. For centuries, biomass has been used for heating, cooking, steam generation, and power production; solar energy has been used for heating and drying; geothermal energy has been used for hot water supplies; hydropower, for movement; and wind energy, for pumping and irrigation. For many decades renewable energy sources have also been used to produce electricity or other modern energy carriers

Diabetes and Driving

Of the nearly 19 million people in the U.S. with diagnosed diabetes (1), a large percentage will seek or currently hold a license to drive. For many, a driver's license is essential to work; taking care of family; securing access to public and private facilities, services, and institutions; interacting with friends; attending classes; and/or performing many other functions of daily life. Indeed, in many communities and areas of the U.S. the use of an automobile is the only (or the only feasible or affordable) means of transportation available. There has been considerable debate whether, and the extent to which, diabetes may be a relevant factor in determining driver ability and eligibility for a license. This position statement addresses such issues in light of current scientific and medical evidence. Sometimes people with a strong interest in road safety, including motor vehicle administrators, pedestrians, drivers, other road users, and employers, associate all diabetes with unsafe driving when in fact most people with diabetes safely operate motor vehicles without creating any meaningful risk of injury to themselves or others. When legitimate questions arise about the medical fitness of a person with diabetes to drive, an individual assessment of that person's diabetes management—with particular emphasis on demonstrated ability to detect and appropriately treat potential hypoglycemia—is necessary in order to determine any appropriate restrictions. The diagnosis of diabetes is not sufficient to make any judgments about individual driver capacity. This document provides an overview of existing licensing rules for people with diabetes, addresses the factors that impact driving for this population, and identifies general guidelines for assessing driver fitness and determining appropriate licensing restrictions

Strategic Energy Analysis at NREL

This presentation on strategic energy analysis at NREL was presented as part of NREL's Industry Growth Forum on in November 2007

Impact of Distributed Energy Resources on the Reliability of Critical Telecommunications Facilities: Preprint

This paper documents a probabilistic risk assessment of existing and alternative power supply systems at a large telecommunications office. The analysis characterizes the increase in the reliability of power supply through the use of two alternative power configurations. Failures in the power systems supporting major telecommunications service nodes are a main contributor to significant telecommunications outages. A logical approach to improving the robustness of telecommunication facilities is to increase the depth and breadth of technologies available to restore power during power outages. Distributed energy resources such as fuel cells and gas turbines could provide additional on-site electric power sources to provide backup power, if batteries and diesel generators fail. The analysis is based on a hierarchical Bayesian approach and focuses on the failure probability associated with each of three possible facility configurations, along with assessment of the uncertainty or confidence level in the probability of failure. A risk-based characterization of final best configuration is presented

Understanding and Informing the Policy Environment: State-Level Renewable Fuels Standards

Renewable fuels standard (RFS) policies are becoming a popular public policy mechanism for developing the market for renewable fuels in the transportation sector. During the past decade, U.S. states and several countries began implementing these more market-based (less command and control) policies to support increased biofuels production and use. This paper presents an overview of current and proposed U.S. state-level policies, as well as selected electric sector policies and international fuel standard policies. Current U.S. state-level renewable fuel policies list drivers including an improved economy and environment, as well as fuel self-sufficiency. Best practices and experience from an evaluation of renewable portfolio standards (RPS) in the United States and international RFS policies can inform U.S. state-level policy by illustrating the importance of policy flexibility, binding targets, effective cost caps, and tradable permits. Understanding and building on the experiences from these previous policies can improve the policy mechanism and further develop a market for renewable fuels to meet the goals of improved economy, environment, and fuel self-sufficiency