Priming the Semantic Neighbourhood during the Attentional Blink

Background: When two targets are presented in close temporal proximity amongst a rapid serial visual stream of distractors, a period of disrupted attention and attenuated awareness lasting 200–500 ms follows identification of the first target (T1). This phenomenon is known as the ‘‘attentional blink’ ’ (AB) and is generally attributed to a failure to consolidate information in visual short-term memory due to depleted or disrupted attentional resources. Previous research has shown that items presented during the AB that fail to reach conscious awareness are still processed to relatively high levels, including the level of meaning. For example, missed word stimuli have been shown to prime later targets that are closely associated words. Although these findings have been interpreted as evidence for semantic processing during the AB, closely associated words (e.g., day-night) may also rely on specific, well-worn, lexical associative links which enhance attention to the relevant target. Methodology/Principal Findings: We used a measure of semantic distance to create prime-target pairs that are conceptually close, but have low word associations (e.g., wagon and van) and investigated priming from a distractor stimulus presented during the AB to a subsequent target (T2). The stimuli were words (concrete nouns) in Experiment 1 and the corresponding pictures of objects in Experiment 2. In both experiments, report of T2 was facilitated when this item was preceded by a semantically-related distractor

Orientation Sensitivity at Different Stages of Object Processing: Evidence from Repetition Priming and Naming

An ongoing debate in the object recognition literature centers on whether the shape representations used in recognition are coded in an orientation-dependent or orientation-invariant manner. In this study, we asked whether the nature of the object representation (orientation-dependent vs orientation-invariant) depends on the information-processing stages tapped by the task

Identification and characterization of calcium and manganese transporting ATPase (PMR1) gene of Pichia pastoris

A gene homologous to Saccharomyces cerevisiae PMR1 has been cloned in the methylotrophic yeast Pichia pastoris.The entire P. pastoris PMR1 gene (PpPMR1 ) codes a protein of 924 amino acids. Sequence analysis of the PpPMR1 cDNA and the genomic DNA revealed that there is no intron in the coding region. The putative gene product contains all of the conserved regions observed in P-type ATPases and exhibits 66.2%, 60.3% and 50.6% identity to Pichia angusta (Hansenula polymorpha), Saccharomyces cerevisiae PMR1 and human ATP2C1 gene products, respectively. A pmr1 null mutant strain of P. pastoris exhibited growth defects in media with the addition of EGTA, but with supplementation of Ca2+ to a calcium-deficient media reversed the growth defects of the mutant strain. Manganese reversed the growth defects of the mutant strain; however, the cell growth was not as profound as the Ca2+-supplemented media. The results demonstrated that the P. pastoris gene encodes the functional homologue of the S. cerevisiae PMR1 gene product, a P-type Ca2+/Mn2+-ATPase. The DNA sequence of the P. pastoris PMR1 gene has been submitted to GenBank under Accession No. DQ239958

Purification of a recombinant heavy chain fragment C vaccine candidate against botulinum serotype C neurotoxin [rBoNTC(H\u3csub\u3ec\u3c/sub\u3e)] expressed in \u3ci\u3ePichia pastoris\u3c/i\u3e

A purification process for the manufacture of a recombinant C-terminus heavy chain fragment from botulinum neurotoxin serotype C [rBoNTC(Hc)], a potential vaccine candidate, has been defined and successfully scaled-up. The rBoNTC(Hc) was produced intracellularly in Pichia pastoris X-33 using a three step fermentation process, i.e., glycerol batch phase, a glycerol fed-batch phase to achieve high cell densities, followed by a methanol induction phase. The rBoNTC(Hc) was captured from the soluble protein fraction of cell lysate using hydrophobic charge induction chromatography (HCIC; MEP HyperCel™), and then further purified using a CM 650M ion exchange chromatography step followed by a polishing step using HCIC once again. Method development at the bench scale was achieved using 5–100 mL columns and the process was performed at the pilot scale using 0.6–1.6 L columns in preparation for technology transfer to cGMP manufacturing. The process yielded approximately 2.5 g of rBoNTC(Hc)/kg wet cell - weight (WCW) at the bench scale and 1.6 g rBoNTC(Hc)/kg WCW at the pilot scale. The purified rBoNTC(Hc) was stable for at least 3 months at 5 and -80 °C as determined by reverse phase-HPLC and SDS–PAGE and was stable for 24 months at -80 °C based on mouse potency bioassay. N-Terminal amino acid sequencing confirmed that the N-terminus of the purified rBoNTC(Hc) was intact

Purification and Scale-Up of a Recombinant Heavy Chain Fragment C of Botulinum Neurotoxin Serotype E in \u3ci\u3ePichia Pastoris\u3c/i\u3e GS115

A recombinant C-terminus heavy chain fragment from botulinum neurotoxin serotype E (BoNT/E) is proposed as a vaccine against the serotype E neurotoxin. This fragment, rBoNTE(Hc), was produced intracellular in Pichia pastoris GS115 by a three-step fermentation process, i.e., glycerol batch phase and a glycerol fed-batch phase to achieve high cell densities, followed by a methanol fed-batch induction phase. The rBoNTE(Hc) protein was purified from the soluble fraction of cell lysates using three ion-exchange chromatography steps (SP Sepharose Fast Flow, Q Sepharose Fast Flow, Sp Sepharose High Performance) and polished with a hydrophobic charge induction chromatography step (MEP HyperCel). Method development at the bench scale was achieved using 7– 380 mL columns and the process was performed at the pilot scale using 0.5–3.1 L columns in preparation for technology transfer to cGMP manufacturing. The purification process resulted in greater than 98% pure rBoNTE(Hc) based on HPLC and yielded up to 1.01 g of rBoNTE(Hc)/kg cells at the bench scale and 580mg vaccine/kg cells at the pilot scale. N-terminal sequencing showed that the purified rBoNTE(Hc) N-terminus is intact and was found to protect mice against a challenge of 1000 mouse intraperitoneal LD50’s of BoNT/E

Purification and scale-up of a recombinant heavy chain fragment C of botulinum neurotoxin serotype E in Pichia pastoris GS115

A recombinant C-terminus heavy chain fragment from botulinum neurotoxin serotype E (BoNT/E) is proposed as a vaccine against the serotype E neurotoxin. This fragment, rBoNTE(Hc), was produced intracellular in Pichia pastoris GS115 by a three-step fermentation process, i.e., glycerol batch phase and a glycerol fed-batch phase to achieve high cell densities, followed by a methanol fed-batch induction phase. The rBoNTE(Hc) protein was purified from the soluble fraction of cell lysates using three ion-exchange chromatography steps (SP Sepharose Fast Flow, Q Sepharose Fast Flow, Sp Sepharose High Performance) and polished with a hydrophobic charge induction chromatography step (MEP HyperCel). Method development at the bench scale was achieved using 7– 380 mL columns and the process was performed at the pilot scale using 0.5–3.1 L columns in preparation for technology transfer to cGMP manufacturing. The purification process resulted in greater than 98% pure rBoNTE(Hc) based on HPLC and yielded up to 1.01 g of rBoNTE(Hc)/kg cells at the bench scale and 580 mg vaccine/kg cells at the pilot scale. N-terminal sequencing showed that the purified rBoNTE(Hc) N-terminus is intact and was found to protect mice against a challenge of 1000 mouse intraperitoneal LD50’s of BoNT/E

The Transient Accumulation of the Signaling State of Photoactive Yellow Protein Is Controlled by the External pH

The signaling state of the photoreceptor photoactive yellow protein is the long-lived intermediate I(2)′. The pH dependence of the equilibrium between the transient photocycle intermediates I(2) and I(2)′ was investigated. The formation of I(2)′ from I(2) is accompanied by a major conformational change. The kinetics and intermediates of the photocycle and of the photoreversal were measured by transient absorption spectroscopy from pH 4.6 to 8.4. Singular value decomposition (SVD) analysis of the data at pH 7 showed the presence of three spectrally distinguishable species: I(1), I(2), and I(2)′. Their spectra were determined using the extrapolated difference method. I(2) and I(2)′ have electronic absorption spectra, with maxima at 370 ± 5 and 350 ± 5 nm, respectively. Formation of the signaling state is thus associated with a change in the environment of the protonated chromophore. The time courses of the I(1), I(2), and I(2)′ intermediates were determined from the wavelength-dependent transient absorbance changes at each pH, assuming that their spectra are pH-independent. After the formation of I(2)′ (∼2 ms), these three intermediates are in equilibrium and decay together to the initial dark state. The equilibrium between I(2) and I(2)′ is pH dependent with a pK(a) of 6.4 and with I(2)′ the main species above this pK(a). Measurements of the pH dependence of the photoreversal kinetics with a second flash of 355 nm at a delay of 20 ms confirm this pK(a) value. I(2) and I(2)′ are photoreversed with reversal times of ∼55 μs and several hundred microseconds, respectively. The corresponding signal amplitudes are pH dependent with a pK(a) of ∼6.1. Photoreversal from I(2)′ dominates above the pK(a). The transient accumulation of I(2)′, the active state of photoactive yellow protein, is thus controlled by the proton concentration. The rate constant k(3) for the recovery to the initial dark state also has a pK(a) of ∼6.3. This equality of the equilibrium and kinetic pK(a) values is not accidental and suggests that k(3) is proportional to [I(2)′]

Training Improves Multitasking Performance by Increasing the Speed of Information Processing in Human Prefrontal Cortex

Our ability to multitask is severely limited: task performance deteriorates when we attempt to undertake two or more tasks simultaneously. Remarkably, extensive training can greatly reduce such multitasking costs. While it is not known how training alters the brain to solve the multitasking problem, it likely involves the prefrontal cortex given this brain region’s purported role in limiting multitasking performance. Here, we show that the reduction of multitasking interference with training is not achieved by diverting the flow of information processing away from the prefrontal cortex or by segregating prefrontal cells into independent task-specific neuronal ensembles, but rather by increasing the speed of information processing in this brain region, thereby allowing multiple tasks to be processed in rapid succession. These results not only reveal how training leads to efficient multitasking, they also provide a mechanistic account of multitasking limitations, namely the poor speed of information processing in human prefrontal cortex

Role of a Conserved Salt Bridge between the PAS Core and the N-Terminal Domain in the Activation of the Photoreceptor Photoactive Yellow Protein

The effect of ionic strength on the conformational equilibrium between the I2 intermediate and the signaling state I2′ of the photoreceptor PYP and on the rate of recovery to the dark state were investigated by time-resolved absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy. With increasing salt concentration up to ∼600 mM, the recovery rate k3 decreases and the I2/I2′ equilibrium (K) shifts in the direction of I2′. At higher ionic strength both effects reverse. Experiments with mono-(KCl, NaBr) and divalent (MgCl2, MgSO4) salts show that the low salt effect depends on the ionic strength and not on the cation or anion species. These observations can be described over the entire ionic strength range by considering the activity coefficients of an interdomain salt bridge. At low ionic strength the activity coefficient decreases due to counterion screening whereas at high ionic strength binding of water by the salt leads to an increase in the activity coefficient. From the initial slopes of the plots of log k3 and log K versus the square root of the ionic strength, the product of the charges of the interacting groups was found to be −1.3 ± 0.2, suggesting a monovalent ion pair. The conserved salt bridge K110/E12 connecting the β-sheet of the PAS core and the N-terminal domain is a prime candidate for this ion pair. To test this hypothesis, the mutants K110A and E12A were prepared. In K110A the salt dependence of the I2/I2′ equilibrium was eliminated and of the recovery rate was greatly reduced below ∼600 mM. Moreover, at low salt the recovery rate was six times slower than in wild-type. In E12A significant salt dependence remained, which is attributed to the formation of a novel salt bridge between K110 and E9. At high salt reversal occurs in both mutants suggesting that salting out stabilizes the more compact I2 structure. However, chaotropic anions like SCN shift the I2/I2′ equilibrium toward the partially unfolded I2′ form. The salt linkage K110/E12 stabilizes the photoreceptor in the inactive state in the dark and is broken in the light-induced formation of the signaling state, allowing the N-terminal domain to detach from the β-scaffold PAS core