Polymorphisms at codons 108 and 189 in murine PrP play distinct roles in the control of scrapie incubation time

Rona Barron - ORCID: 0000-0003-4512-9177 https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4512-9177Item not available from this repository.Susceptibility to transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs) is associated strongly with PrP polymorphisms in humans, sheep and rodents. In mice, scrapie incubation time is controlled by polymorphisms at PrP codons 108 (leucine or phenylalanine) and 189 (threonine or valine), but the precise role of each polymorphism in the control of disease is unknown. The L108F and T189V polymorphisms are present in distinct structural regions of PrP and thus provide an excellent model with which to investigate the role of PrP structure and gene variation in TSEs. Two unique lines of transgenic mice, in which 108F and 189V have been targeted separately into the endogenous murine Prnp a gene, have been produced. TSE inoculation of inbred lines of mice expressing all allelic combinations at codons 108 and 189 has revealed a complex relationship between PrP allele and incubation time. It has been established that both codons 108 and 189 control TSE incubation time, and that each polymorphism plays a distinct role in the disease process. Comparison of ME7 incubation times in mouse lines that are heterozygous at both codons has also identified a previously unrecognized intramolecular interaction between PrP codons 108 and 189.https://doi.org/10.1099/vir.0.80525-086pubpub

Electrochemical analysis of nucleic acids at boron-doped diamond electrodes.

Highly conductive boron-doped diamond (BDD) electrodes are well suited for performing electrochemical measurements of nucleic acids in aqueous solution under diffusion-only control. The advantageous properties of this electrodic material in this context include reproducibility and the small background currents observed at very positive potentials, along with its robustness under extreme conditions so offering promising capabilities in future applications involving thermal heating or ultrasonic treatment. tRNA, single and double stranded DNA and 2'-deoxyguanosine 5'-monophosphate (dGMP) have been studied and well defined peaks were observed in all cases, directly assignable to the electro-oxidation of deoxyguanosine monophosphate

Efficient ternary organic solar cells based on immiscible blends

Organic photovoltaic cells based on ternary blends of materials with complementary properties represent an approach to improve the photon-absorption and/or charge transport within the devices. However, the more complex nature of the ternary system, i.e. in diversity of materials' properties and morphological features, complicates the understanding of the processes behind such optimizations. Here, organic photovoltaic cells with wider absorption spectrum composed of two electron-donor polymers, F8T2, poly(9,9-dioctylfluorene-alt-bithiophene), and PTB7, poly([4,8-bis[(2'-ethylhexyl) oxy] benzo[1,2-b: 4,5-b'] dithiophene-2,6-diyl][3-fluoro-2-[(2'-ethylhexyl) carbonyl] thieno[3,4-b] thiophenediyl]), mixed with [6,6]-phenyl-C-61-butyric acid methyl ester (PC61BM) are investigated. We demonstrate an improvement of 25% in power conversion efficiency in comparison with the most efficient binary blend control devices. The active layers of these ternary cells exhibit gross phase separation, as determined by Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and Synchrotron-based Scanning Transmission X-ray Microscopy (STXM).</p