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Biomedical subjects

J C Hu

Publications and source records attributed to J C Hu.

46 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1990

Hobbies of retired people in the People's Republic of China: a preliminary study.

This study describes and analyzes the hobbies of over 500 retired individuals (ages fifty to eighty-eight in the People's Republic of China. Data were obtained through questionnaires and compared with the responses of 100 younger people (twenty to thirty-nine years of age). Hobbies of the retired people were classified into five categories: reading, physical exercise, productive, visual-auditory, and recreational. This classification is at variance with the one proposed by some Western writers. The following conclusions were reached: 1) there are significant differences between the hobbies of retired people and those of younger people; 2) reading is the hobby most preferred by the retired person in China; and 3) gender, age, education, and previous occupation are the factors that most influence the retired person's choice of hobbies.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1989

Altered promoter recognition by mutant forms of the sigma 70 subunit of Escherichia coli RNA polymerase.

We have systematically assayed the in vivo promoter recognition properties of 13 mutations in rpoD, the gene that encodes the sigma 70 subunit of Escherichia coli RNA polymerase holoenzyme, using transcriptional fusions to 37 mutant and wild-type promoters. We found three classes of rpoD mutations: (1) mutations that suggest contacts between amino acid side-chains of sigma 70 and specific bases in the promoter; (2) mutations that appear to affect either sequence independent contacts to promoter DNA or isomerization of the polymerase; and (3) mutations that have little or no effect on promoter recognition. Our results lead us to suggest that a sequence near the C terminus of sigma 70, which is similar to the helix-turn-helix DNA binding motif of phage and bacterial DNA binding proteins, is responsible for recognition of the -35 region, and that a sequence internal to sigma 70, in a region which is highly conserved among sigma factors, recognizes the -10 region of the promoter. rpoD mutations that lie in the recognition helix of the proposed helix-turn-helix motif affect interactions with specific bases in the -35 region, while mutations in the upstream helix, which is thought to contact the phosphate backbone, have sequence-independent effect on promoter recognition.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1988

Mutations in rpoD that increase expression of genes in the mal regulon of Escherichia coli K-12.

The sigma subunits of eubacterial RNA polymerases determine the site selectivity of initiation of transcription at promoters. Mutations in rpoD, the gene that encodes sigma 70, the major sigma factor in Escherichia coli, should be useful in determining the molecular details of the process of transcription initiation. However, such mutations are likely to be deleterious or lethal, since sigma70 is an essential gene product. We designed a system for the rapid isolation and fine structure mapping of mutations in rpoD, which allows selection of mutations that would otherwise be deleterious to the cell. We used this system to isolate a new class of mutations in rpoD, mutations that relieve the requirement for CAP-cAMP for initiation at promoters in the mal regulon. These mutations, which we designate rpoD(Mal) mutations, occur in two clusters in the rpoD gene within regions previously suggested by amino acid sequence comparisons to be important for sigma structure or function. We cannot distinguish whether the rpoD(Mal) mutations affect mal expression by altering interaction between RNA polymerase and mal promoters or between RNA polymerase and the accessory transcription factor MalT. However, the effects of the mutations on activator-independent transcription from the lac promoter (4 rpoD(Mal) mutations decrease CAP-independent expression of the lac promoter in vivo) suggest that the regions of sigma identified by our mutations may be directly involved in promoter recognition.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1988

Mutations in rpoD, the gene encoding the sigma 70 subunit of Escherichia coli RNA polymerase, that increase expression of the lac operon in the absence of CAP-cAMP.

We have isolated a new class of mutations in rpoD, the gene encoding the sigma 70 subunit of Escherichia coli RNA polymerase, that alter the transcription initiation properties of RNA polymerase holoenzyme. The rpoD(Lac) mutations increase expression of the lac operon in the absence of CAP-cAMP, allowing a strain lacking adenyl cyclase to grow on lactose. Four of the six alleles isolated have three- to fivefold increases in the amount of lac mRNA and beta-galactosidase per cell. We show that these four mutations increase transcription initiation from the same promoter used by wild-type RNA polymerase. The mutations were mapped and sequenced. One mutation occurs in the codon for amino acid 389 of the sigma 70 polypeptide. The remaining five mutations are clustered, affecting residues 570, 571 and 575. These five mutations are within or near a proposed helix-turn-helix motif in the C terminus of sigma 70.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1985

Mutations in the sigma subunit of E. coli RNA polymerase which affect positive control of transcription.

The sigma subunits of bacterial RNA polymerases are required for the selective initiation of transcription. We have isolated and characterized mutations in rpoD, the gene which encodes the major form of sigma in E. coli, which affect the selectivity of transcription. These mutations increase the expression of araBAD up to 12-fold in the absence of CAP-cAMP. Expression of lac is unaffected, while expression of malT-activated operons is decreased. We determined the DNA sequence of 17 independently isolated mutations, and found that they consist of three different changes in a single CGC arginine codon at position 596 in the sigma polypeptide.

Arabinose↗
PubMed1983

Isolation and characterization of genomic mouse DNA clones containing sequences homologous to tRNAs and 5S rRNA.

We have cloned and characterized three fragments of Balb/c mouse DNA which hybridize to mouse cell tRNAs. Fractionation of the tRNAs which hybridize to these clones reveals that two of the clones, lambda Mt-4A and lambda Mt-6A hybridize to only one or two tRNAs, while one clone, lambda Mt-4B, hybridizes to at least seven tRNAs. Two of the tRNAs were identified as tRNAProCCG and tRNAGlyGGA, and others have been identified as tRNAs which are selectively encapsidated into virions of murine leukemia virus and avian reticuloendotheliosis virus. The DNA sequences of putative genes for tRNAProCCG and tRNAGlyGGA, plus flanking regions, were determined. A clone of Balb/c mouse DNA which selectively hybridized to 5S rRNA was also isolated and partially characterized.

Animals↗
PubMed1983

Structural features required for the binding of tRNATrp to avian myeloblastosis virus reverse transcriptase.

The basis of the specific binding of tRNATrp by avian myeloblastosis virus reverse transcriptase was studied by chemical and enzymatic modification of the RNA. Binding does not depend on recognition of the tryptophan anticodon since molecules cleaved in the anticodon are stably bound by the enzyme. Modification of pseudouridine residues in the tRNA destroys binding to reverse transcriptase. These results are consistent with a model in which reverse transcriptase-tRNATrp interaction occurs not at the anticodon, but at regions in the tRNA which contain or are stabilized by pseudouridine residues.

Animals↗
PubMed1983

Marker rescue with plasmids bearing deletions in rpoD identifies a dispensable part of E. coli sigma factor.

Recombinant DNA techniques allow rapid construction and characterization of tools for genetic dissection of essential genes. In this report, we describe construction of a set of deletions in rpoD, the gene which encodes the sigma subunit of E. coli RNA polymerase. We used this deletion set to identify a region of the sigma polypeptide which is dispensable for its function.

Amino Acid Sequence↗