Sustained Activation of Lyn Tyrosine Kinase In Vivo Leads to Autoimmunity

Genetic ablation of the Lyn tyrosine kinase has revealed unique inhibitory roles in B lymphocyte signaling. We now report the consequences of sustained activation of Lyn in vivo using a targeted gain-of-function mutation (Lynup/up mice). Lynup/up mice have reduced numbers of conventional B lymphocytes, down-regulated surface immunoglobulin M and costimulatory molecules, and elevated numbers of B1a B cells. Lynup/up B cells are characterized by the constitutive phosphorylation of negative regulators of B cell antigen receptor (BCR) signaling including CD22, SHP-1, and SHIP-1, and display attributes of lymphocytes rendered tolerant by constitutive engagement of the antigen receptor. However, exaggerated positive signaling is also apparent as evidenced by the constitutive phosphorylation of Syk and phospholipase Cγ2 in resting Lynup/up B cells. Similarly, Lynup/up B cells show a heightened calcium flux in response to BCR stimulation. Surprisingly, Lynup/up mice develop circulating autoreactive antibodies and lethal autoimmune glomerulonephritis, suggesting that enhanced positive signaling eventually overrides constitutive negative signaling. These studies highlight the difficulty in maintaining tolerance in the face of chronic stimulation and emphasize the pivotal role of Lyn in B cell signaling

Transcriptomic and metabolite analyses of Cabernet Sauvignon grape berry development

BACKGROUND: Grape berry development is a dynamic process that involves a complex series of molecular genetic and biochemical changes divided into three major phases. During initial berry growth (Phase I), berry size increases along a sigmoidal growth curve due to cell division and subsequent cell expansion, and organic acids (mainly malate and tartrate), tannins, and hydroxycinnamates accumulate to peak levels. The second major phase (Phase II) is defined as a lag phase in which cell expansion ceases and sugars begin to accumulate. Véraison (the onset of ripening) marks the beginning of the third major phase (Phase III) in which berries undergo a second period of sigmoidal growth due to additional mesocarp cell expansion, accumulation of anthocyanin pigments for berry color, accumulation of volatile compounds for aroma, softening, peak accumulation of sugars (mainly glucose and fructose), and a decline in organic acid accumulation. In order to understand the transcriptional network responsible for controlling berry development, mRNA expression profiling was conducted on berries of V. vinifera Cabernet Sauvignon using the Affymetrix GeneChip® Vitis oligonucleotide microarray ver. 1.0 spanning seven stages of berry development from small pea size berries (E-L stages 31 to 33 as defined by the modified E-L system), through véraison (E-L stages 34 and 35), to mature berries (E-L stages 36 and 38). Selected metabolites were profiled in parallel with mRNA expression profiling to understand the effect of transcriptional regulatory processes on specific metabolite production that ultimately influence the organoleptic properties of wine. RESULTS: Over the course of berry development whole fruit tissues were found to express an average of 74.5% of probes represented on the Vitis microarray, which has 14,470 Unigenes. Approximately 60% of the expressed transcripts were differentially expressed between at least two out of the seven stages of berry development (28% of transcripts, 4,151 Unigenes, had pronounced (≥2 fold) differences in mRNA expression) illustrating the dynamic nature of the developmental process. The subset of 4,151 Unigenes was split into twenty well-correlated expression profiles. Expression profile patterns included those with declining or increasing mRNA expression over the course of berry development as well as transient peak or trough patterns across various developmental stages as defined by the modified E-L system. These detailed surveys revealed the expression patterns for genes that play key functional roles in phytohormone biosynthesis and response, calcium sequestration, transport and signaling, cell wall metabolism mediating expansion, ripening, and softening, flavonoid metabolism and transport, organic and amino acid metabolism, hexose sugar and triose phosphate metabolism and transport, starch metabolism, photosynthesis, circadian cycles and pathogen resistance. In particular, mRNA expression patterns of transcription factors, abscisic acid (ABA) biosynthesis, and calcium signaling genes identified candidate factors likely to participate in the progression of key developmental events such as véraison and potential candidate genes associated with such processes as auxin partitioning within berry cells, aroma compound production, and pathway regulation and sequestration of flavonoid compounds. Finally, analysis of sugar metabolism gene expression patterns indicated the existence of an alternative pathway for glucose and triose phosphate production that is invoked from véraison to mature berries. CONCLUSION: These results reveal the first high-resolution picture of the transcriptome dynamics that occur during seven stages of grape berry development. This work also establishes an extensive catalog of gene expression patterns for future investigations aimed at the dissection of the transcriptional regulatory hierarchies that govern berry development in a widely grown cultivar of wine grape. More importantly, this analysis identified a set of previously unknown genes potentially involved in critical steps associated with fruit development that can now be subjected to functional testing.National Science Foundation Plant Genome Project (DBI-0217653); Bioinformatics program (DBI-0136561); National Institute of Health Biomedical Research Infrastructure Network (NIH-NCRR P20 RR16464; National Institute of Health IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE, RR-03-008); Nevada Agricultural Experimental Statio

Water deficit alters differentially metabolic pathways affecting important flavor and quality traits in grape berries of Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Water deficit has significant effects on grape berry composition resulting in improved wine quality by the enhancement of color, flavors, or aromas. While some pathways or enzymes affected by water deficit have been identified, little is known about the global effects of water deficit on grape berry metabolism.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The effects of long-term, seasonal water deficit on berries of Cabernet Sauvignon, a red-wine grape, and Chardonnay, a white-wine grape were analyzed by integrated transcript and metabolite profiling. Over the course of berry development, the steady-state transcript abundance of approximately 6,000 Unigenes differed significantly between the cultivars and the irrigation treatments. Water deficit most affected the phenylpropanoid, ABA, isoprenoid, carotenoid, amino acid and fatty acid metabolic pathways. Targeted metabolites were profiled to confirm putative changes in specific metabolic pathways. Water deficit activated the expression of numerous transcripts associated with glutamate and proline biosynthesis and some committed steps of the phenylpropanoid pathway that increased anthocyanin concentrations in Cabernet Sauvignon. In Chardonnay, water deficit activated parts of the phenylpropanoid, energy, carotenoid and isoprenoid metabolic pathways that contribute to increased concentrations of antheraxanthin, flavonols and aroma volatiles. Water deficit affected the ABA metabolic pathway in both cultivars. Berry ABA concentrations were highly correlated with 9-cis-epoxycarotenoid dioxygenase (<it>NCED1</it>) transcript abundance, whereas the mRNA expression of other <it>NCED </it>genes and ABA catabolic and glycosylation processes were largely unaffected. Water deficit nearly doubled ABA concentrations within berries of Cabernet Sauvignon, whereas it decreased ABA in Chardonnay at véraison and shortly thereafter.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The metabolic responses of grapes to water deficit varied with the cultivar and fruit pigmentation. Chardonnay berries, which lack any significant anthocyanin content, exhibited increased photoprotection mechanisms under water deficit conditions. Water deficit increased ABA, proline, sugar and anthocyanin concentrations in Cabernet Sauvignon, but not Chardonnay berries, consistent with the hypothesis that ABA enhanced accumulation of these compounds. Water deficit increased the transcript abundance of lipoxygenase and hydroperoxide lyase in fatty metabolism, a pathway known to affect berry and wine aromas. These changes in metabolism have important impacts on berry flavor and quality characteristics. Several of these metabolites are known to contribute to increased human-health benefits.</p

Artificial gravity partially protects space-induced neurological deficits in Drosophila melanogaster

Spaceflight poses risks to the central nervous system (CNS), and understanding neurological responses is important for future missions. We report CNS changes in Drosophila aboard the International Space Station in response to spaceflight microgravity (SFμg) and artificially simulated Earth gravity (SF1g) via inflight centrifugation as a countermeasure. While inflight behavioral analyses of SFμg exhibit increased activity, postflight analysis displays significant climbing defects, highlighting the sensitivity of behavior to altered gravity. Multi-omics analysis shows alterations in metabolic, oxidative stress and synaptic transmission pathways in both SFμg and SF1g; however, neurological changes immediately postflight, including neuronal loss, glial cell count alterations, oxidative damage, and apoptosis, are seen only in SFμg. Additionally, progressive neuronal loss and a glial phenotype in SF1g and SFμg brains, with pronounced phenotypes in SFμg, are seen upon acclimation to Earth conditions. Overall, our results indicate that artificial gravity partially protects the CNS from the adverse effects of spaceflight

Koolrabi : rassenproef 1e beoordeling stookteelt en 1 beoordeling hetelucht voorjaar 1980

<p><b>Copyright information:</b></p><p>Taken from "Transcriptomic and metabolite analyses of Cabernet Sauvignon grape berry development"</p><p>http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2164/8/429</p><p>BMC Genomics 2007;8():429-429.</p><p>Published online 22 Nov 2007</p><p>PMCID:PMC2220006.</p><p></p>me array and by real-time RT-PCR. Data were from 11 probe sets across seven developmental stages. The difference in the number of PCR cycles required to produce the same amount of product is plotted against the logexpression ratio averaged over the first time point. The linear regression line was constrained to pass through the origin. Grey solid square (1615402_at, TC56083)-ferulate-5-hydroxylase, Apricot solid triangle (1606794_at, TC63891)-osmotin precursor, red solid triangle (1616700_at, TC53526)-sucrose synthase, orange solid diamond (1607760_at, TC51695) flavonoid-3'5'-hydroxylase, light green solid round (1611650_at, TC57228)-WRKY7, dark green open square (1616880_at, TC54034)-cinnamoyl alcohol dehydrogenase, dark blue open triangle (1613896_at, TC62182)-nitrate/chloride transporter), blue open triangle (1615722_s_at, TC51776)-aquaporin PIP1.1, lavender open diamond (1611342_at, TC55943)-serine/threonine kinase, pink open circle (1612132_s_at, TC68311)-protein phosphatase 2C, brown cross (1614931_at, TC61058)-MYB transcription factor

Molecular Characterization of Podoviral Bacteriophages Virulent for Clostridium perfringens and Their Comparison with Members of the Picovirinae

Clostridium perfringens is a Gram-positive, spore-forming anaerobic bacterium responsible for human food-borne disease as well as non-food-borne human, animal and poultry diseases. Because bacteriophages or their gene products could be applied to control bacterial diseases in a species-specific manner, they are potential important alternatives to antibiotics. Consequently, poultry intestinal material, soil, sewage and poultry processing drainage water were screened for virulent bacteriophages that lysed C. perfringens. Two bacteriophages, designated ΦCPV4 and ΦZP2, were isolated in the Moscow Region of the Russian Federation while another closely related virus, named ΦCP7R, was isolated in the southeastern USA. The viruses were identified as members of the order Caudovirales in the family Podoviridae with short, non-contractile tails of the C1 morphotype. The genomes of the three bacteriophages were 17.972, 18.078 and 18.397 kbp respectively; encoding twenty-six to twenty-eight ORF's with inverted terminal repeats and an average GC content of 34.6%. Structural proteins identified by mass spectrometry in the purified ΦCP7R virion included a pre-neck/appendage with putative lyase activity, major head, tail, connector/upper collar, lower collar and a structural protein with putative lysozyme-peptidase activity. All three podoviral bacteriophage genomes encoded a predicted N-acetylmuramoyl-L-alanine amidase and a putative stage V sporulation protein. Each putative amidase contained a predicted bacterial SH3 domain at the C-terminal end of the protein, presumably involved with binding the C. perfringens cell wall. The predicted DNA polymerase type B protein sequences were closely related to other members of the Podoviridae including Bacillus phage Φ29. Whole-genome comparisons supported this relationship, but also indicated that the Russian and USA viruses may be unique members of the sub-family Picovirinae

Multicentre, double-blind, crossover trial to identify the Optimal Pathway for TreatIng neurOpathic paiN in Diabetes Mellitus (OPTION-DM): study protocol for a randomised controlled trial

BACKGROUND: The number of people with diabetes is growing rapidly. Diabetes can cause nerve damage leading to severe pain in the feet, legs and hands, which is known as diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain (DPNP). In the UK, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommends amitriptyline, duloxetine, pregabalin or gabapentin as initial treatment for DPNP. If this is not effective, adding one of the other drugs in combination with the first is recommended. NICE points out that these recommendations are not based on robust evidence. The OPTION-DM randomised controlled trial has been designed to address this evidence deficit, with the aims of determining the most clinically beneficial, cost-effective and tolerated treatment pathway for patients with DPNP. METHODS/DESIGN: A multicentre, double-blind, centre-stratified, multi-period crossover study with equal allocation to sequences (1:1:1:1:1:1) of treatment pathways. Three hundred and ninety-two participants will be recruited from secondary care DPNP centres in the UK. There are three treatment pathways: amitriptyline supplemented with pregabalin, pregabalin supplemented with amitriptyline and duloxetine supplemented with pregabalin. All participants will receive all three pathways and randomisation will determine the order in which they are received. The primary outcome is the difference between 7-day average 24-h pain scores on an 11-point NRS scale measured during the final follow-up week of the treatment pathway. Secondary outcomes for efficacy, cost-effectiveness, safety, patient-perceived tolerability and subgroup analysis will be measured at week 6 and week 16 of each pathway. DISCUSSION: The study includes direct comparisons of the mainstay treatment for DPNP. This novel study is designed to examine treatment pathways and capture clinically relevant outcomes which will make the results generalisable to current clinical practice. The study will also provide information on health economic outcomes and will include a subgroup study to provide information on whether patient phenotypes predict response to treatment. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN17545443 . Registered on 12 September 2016