Cloning and molecular characterization of a copper chaperone gene (HbCCH1) from Hevea brasiliensis

The cDNA encoding a copper chaperone, designated as HbCCH1, was isolated from Hevea brasiliensis. HbCC1 was 589 bp long containing a 261 bp open reading frame encoding a putative protein of 86 amino acids, flanked by a 103 bp 5’UTR and a 225 bp 3’UTR. The predicted molecular mass of HbCCH1 was 9.2 kDa, with an isoelectric point (pI) of 5.13. The HbCCH1 share the conserved N-terminal metalbinding domain (MXCXXC) and a lysine-rich C-terminus. Reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis revealed that HbCCH1 was constitutively expressed in all the tested tissues. HbCCH1 transcripts were accumulated at relatively low levels in the flower, bud and leaves, while HbCCH1 transcripts were accumulated at relatively high levels in the latex. The transcription of HbCCH1 in the latex was induced by jasmonate.Key words: Copper chaperone, Hevea brasiliensis, latex

Molecular characterization of HbEREBP2, a jasmonateresponsive transcription factor from Hevea brasiliensis Muell. Arg.

Transcription factors of AP2/ERF superfamily are generally involved in defense responses of plants to biotic and abiotic stresses. Although, defense proteins are present in abundance in laticifers of rubber tree, little is known about their transcriptional regulation. In this study, a full length cDNA, referred to as HbEREBP2 was characterized by means of bioinformatic analysis and quantitative real-time RT-PCR. The HbEREBP2 was 786-bp in length and contained a 480-bp open reading frame (ORF) encoding a protein of 159 amino acid residues. Bioinformatic analysis showed that the deduced amino acid sequence of HbEREBP2 had a specific domain of AP2 superfamily and shared relative high identity with members of CBF/DREB subfamily from different plant species. Quantitative real-time RT-PCR revealed that methyl jasmonate was more effective than ethylene and rapidly than mechanical wounding on upregulating HbEREBP2 expression. The results suggest that HbEREBP2 may be involved in the regulation of jasmonate-mediated defense responses in laticifers of rubber tree.Key words: Hevea brasiliensis, Laticifer, defense proteins, AP2/ERF transcription factor, Methyl jasmonates, Ethephon, mechanical wounding

Adenovirus vectors can induce activation of endothelial cells: CD40-CD40L interactions partly participate in the endothelial cells activation induced by adenovirus vectors in an NF-kappaB-dependent manner

Replication-defective adenovirus vector without both E1 and E3 is one of the most popular tools in transgenic therapies. However, more attention should be paid to adenovirus vectors mediated-gene modified study on endothelial cells (ECs). To verify the possible danger in that process, we explored the effect of adenovirus on ECs in this study. By using western blot analysis, we showed that the level of both CD40 and CD40L on human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were upregraduated by adenovirus vector infection at 100 multiplicity of infection (MOI). The activation of ECs induced by adenovirus vector infection at MOI 100 can be partly inhibited by a blockade of CD40/CD40L interactions by using the recombinant adenovirus Ad-sCD40LIg or an anti-CD40L monoclonal antibody (mAb) in vitro. On ECs, blockade of CD40/CD40L decreased the expression of IL (interleukin)-6, IL-8 and intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM) in adenovirus vector-induced cells. In electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA), both Ad-sCD40LIg and anti-CD40L mAb can attenuate the activity of NF-kappaB (NF-κB) pathway contributing to the activation of ECs, which indicated that CD40-CD40L interactions played significant role in the activation of ECs induced by adenovirus vectors via an NF-κB pathway. Our study provide evidences for a supplementary mechanism of the ECs activation induced by adenovirus vector infection and suggests that CD40-CD40L interactions partly participate in the ECs activation induced by adenovirus vectors in an NF-κB-dependent manner.Key words: Adenovirus vector, CD40, CD40L, endothelial cells, NF-kappaB

Could the compact remnant of SN 1987A be a quark star?

The standard model for Type II supernovae explosions, confirmed by the detection of neutrinos emitted during the supernova explosion, predicts the formation of a compact object, usually assumed to be a neutron star. However, the lack of detection of a neutron star or pulsar formed in the SN 1987A still remains an unsolved mystery. In this paper, we suggest that the newly formed neutron star at the center of SN 1987A may undergo a phase transition after the neutrino trapping timescale (∼10 s). Consequently the compact remnant of SN 1987A may be a strange quark star, which has a softer equation of state than that of neutron star matter. Such a phase transition can induce stellar collapse and result in large amplitude stellar oscillations.We use a three-dimensional Newtonian hydrodynamic code to study the time evolution of the temperature and density at the neutrinosphere. Extremely intense pulsating neutrino fluxes, with submillisecond period and with neutrino energy (greater than 30 MeV), can be emitted because the oscillations of the temperature and density are out of phase almost 180◦. If this is true we predict that the current X-ray emission from the compact remnant of SN 1987A will be lower than 1034 erg s−1, and it should be a thermal bremsstrahlung spectrum for a bare strange star with a surface temperature of around ∼107 K.published_or_final_versio

InP Nanowire lasers Epitaxially Grown on (001) Silicon 'V-groove' templates

We demonstrate an ultra-low threshold nanowire laser monolithically integrated on a (001) silicon substrate. By using a V-groove template we were able to reduce the laser threshold by one order of magnitude (0.19pJ per pulse) compared with our earlier devices and dramatically increased the yield throughout the wafer

Tracing Noble Gas Radionuclides in the Environment

Trace analysis of radionuclides is an essential and versatile tool in modern science and technology. Due to their ideal geophysical and geochemical properties, long-lived noble gas radionuclides, in particular, 39Ar (t1/2 = 269 yr), 81Kr (t1/2 = 2.3x10^5 yr) and 85Kr (t1/2 = 10.8 yr), have long been recognized to have a wide range of important applications in Earth sciences. In recent years, significant progress has been made in the development of practical analytical methods, and has led to applications of these isotopes in the hydrosphere (tracing the flow of groundwater and ocean water). In this article, we introduce the applications of these isotopes and review three leading analytical methods: Low-Level Counting (LLC), Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) and Atom Trap Trace Analysis (ATTA)

Vacuolin-1 potently and reversibly inhibits autophagosome-lysosome fusion by activating RAB5A

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Genome wide analysis of gene expression changes in skin from patients with type 2 diabetes

Non-healing chronic ulcers are a serious complication of diabetes and are a major healthcare problem. While a host of treatments have been explored to heal or prevent these ulcers from forming, these treatments have not been found to be consistently effective in clinical trials. An understanding of the changes in gene expression in the skin of diabetic patients may provide insight into the processes and mechanisms that precede the formation of non-healing ulcers. In this study, we investigated genome wide changes in gene expression in skin between patients with type 2 diabetes and non-diabetic patients using next generation sequencing. We compared the gene expression in skin samples taken from 27 patients (13 with type 2 diabetes and 14 non-diabetic). This information may be useful in identifying the causal factors and potential therapeutic targets for the prevention and treatment of diabetic related diseases

Hospitalizations for varicella in children and adolescents in a referral hospital in Hong Kong, 2004 to 2008: A time series study

Background: Varicella accounts for significant morbidities and remains a public health issue worldwide. Climatic factors have been shown to associate with the incidence and transmission of various infectious diseases. We describe the epidemiology of varicella in paediatric patients hospitalized at a tertiary referral hospital in Hong Kong from 2004 to 2008, and to explore the possible association between the occurrence of varicella infection and various climatic factors. Methods. The hospital discharge database of Princess Margaret Hospital was retrospectively analyzed for admissions associated with varicella from 2004 to 2008. Meteorological data were obtained from the monthly meteorological reports from the Hong Kong Observatory website. Time series analysis was performed with Poisson regression using a Generalized Estimating Equation (GEE) approach. Results: During the study period, 598 children were hospitalized for varicella. The mean age on admission was 57.6 months, and the mean duration of hospitalization was 3.7 days. The overall complication rate was 47%. The mean monthly relative humidity, especially in cool seasons, was inversely correlated with the monthly varicella cases of the same month. Conclusions: Varicella can lead to serious complications and prolonged hospitalization, even in previously healthy children. Lower relative humidity in cool seasons is associated with higher number of paediatric varicella hospital admissions. These findings are useful for a better understanding of the pattern of paediatric varicella hospitalization in Hong Kong. © 2011 Chan et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.link_to_subscribed_fulltex