Biomedical subjects

M A Moran

Publications and source records attributed to M A Moran.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2003

Diversity of ascomycete laccase gene sequences in a southeastern US salt marsh.

The diversity of ascomycete laccase sequences was surveyed in a southeastern US salt marsh using a degenerate primer set designed around copper binding sites conserved in fungal laccases. This gene was targeted for diversity analysis because of its potential function in lignin degradation in the salt marsh ecosystem and because few studies have assessed functional gene diversity in natural fungal communities. Laccase sequences were amplified from genomic DNA extracted from 24 isolates (representing 10 ascomycete species) cultured from decaying blades of Spartina alterniflora, and from DNA extracted directly from the decaying blades. Among the ascomycete isolates, 21 yielded a PCR product of expected size (900 bp) that was tentatively identified as laccase based on sequence similarities to previously published laccase sequences from related organisms. Overall, 13 distinct sequence types, containing 39 distinct sequences, were identified among the isolates, with several species yielding multiple distinct laccase types. PCR amplifications from early and late decay blades of S. alterniflora yielded seven laccase types. Of these, five were composed of sequences >96% similar at the amino acid level to sequences from three cultured ascomycetes previously found to be dominant members of the fungal communities on decaying S. alterniflora blades. Two of the laccase types from the natural-decay clone library were novel and did not match any of the sequences obtained from the cultured ascomycetes. The 39 distinct sequences and 15 distinct laccase sequence types retrieved from the S. alterniflora decay system demonstrate high sequence diversity of this functional gene in a natural fungal community.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed2002

Analysis of internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions of rRNA genes in fungal communities in a southeastern U.S. salt marsh.

The ascomycete community colonizing decaying Spartina alterniflora blades in a southeastern U.S. salt marsh was characterized by analysis of internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions of fungal rRNA genes. ITS sequences were amplified with ascomycete-specific primers from DNA extracted from S. alterniflora blades at two stages of decay (early and late) and were identified based on sequence analysis of a companion ascomycete culture collection. The S. alterniflora ITS libraries were dominated by clones from three species of ascomycetes: Mycosphaerella sp. 2, Phaeosphaeria spartinicola, and Phaeosphaeria halima. ITS sequences from five other less abundant ascomycete species were also found in the clone libraries, only two of which could be identified based on the culture collection, Hydropisphaera erubescens and a new species nicknamed '4clt'. Ascospore expulsion assays indicated dominance by the same three species as the ITS analysis, although this non-molecular approach differed from the molecular method in relative ranking of the dominant species and in characterization of minor species. Analysis of ITS amplicons from three replicate plots by terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) analysis showed significant spatial homogeneity in ascomycete community composition for both early- and late-stage decay. ITS sequence analysis identified morphologically cryptic subgroups for two of the three dominant salt marsh ascomycetes.

Ascomycota↗

PubMed2001

Diversity of the ring-cleaving dioxygenase gene pcaH in a salt marsh bacterial community.

Degradation of lignin-related aromatic compounds is an important ecological process in the highly productive salt marshes of the southeastern United States, yet little is known about the mediating organisms or their catabolic pathways. Here we report the diversity of a gene encoding a key ring-cleaving enzyme of the beta-ketoadipate pathway, pcaH, amplified from bacterial communities associated with decaying Spartina alterniflora, the salt marsh grass that dominates these coastal systems, as well as from enrichment cultures with aromatic substrates (p-hydroxybenzoate, anthranilate, vanillate, and dehydroabietate). Sequence analysis of 149 pcaH clones revealed 85 unique sequences. Thirteen of the 53 amino acid residues compared were invariant in the PcaH proteins, suggesting that these residues have a required catalytic or structural function. Fifty-eight percent of the clones matched sequences amplified from a collection of 36 bacterial isolates obtained from seawater, marine sediments, or senescent Spartina. Fifty-two percent of the pcaH clones could be assigned to the roseobacter group, a marine lineage of the class alpha-Proteobacteria abundant in coastal ecosystems. Another 6% of the clones matched genes retrieved from isolates belonging to the genera Acinetobacter, Bacillus, and Stappia, and 42% of the clones could not be assigned to a cultured bacterium based on sequence identity. These results suggest that the diversity of the genes encoding a single step in aromatic compound degradation in the coastal marsh examined is high.

Bacteria↗

PubMed2000

Bacterial community structure associated with a dimethylsulfoniopropionate-producing North Atlantic algal bloom.

The bacteria associated with oceanic algal blooms are acknowledged to play important roles in carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur cycling, yet little information is available on their identities or phylogenetic affiliations. Three culture-independent methods were used to characterize bacteria from a dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP)-producing algal bloom in the North Atlantic. Group-specific 16S rRNA-targeted oligonucleotides, 16S ribosomal DNA (rDNA) clone libraries, and terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis all indicated that the marine Roseobacter lineage was numerically important in the heterotrophic bacterial community, averaging >20% of the 16S rDNA sampled. Two other groups of heterotrophic bacteria, the SAR86 and SAR11 clades, were also shown by the three 16S rRNA-based methods to be abundant in the bloom community. In surface waters, the Roseobacter, SAR86, and SAR11 lineages together accounted for over 50% of the bacterial rDNA and showed little spatial variability in abundance despite variations in the dominant algal species. Depth profiles indicated that Roseobacter phylotype abundance decreased with depth and was positively correlated with chlorophyll a, DMSP, and total organic sulfur (dimethyl sulfide plus DMSP plus dimethyl sulfoxide) concentrations. Based on these data and previous physiological studies of cultured Roseobacter strains, we hypothesize that this lineage plays a role in cycling organic sulfur compounds produced within the bloom. Three other abundant bacterial phylotypes (representing a cyanobacterium and two members of the alpha Proteobacteria) were primarily associated with chlorophyll-rich surface waters of the bloom (0 to 50 m), while two others (representing Cytophagales and delta Proteobacteria) were primarily found in deeper waters (200 to 500 m).

Alphaproteobacteria↗

PubMed2000

Key aromatic-ring-cleaving enzyme, protocatechuate 3,4-dioxygenase, in the ecologically important marine Roseobacter lineage.

Aromatic compound degradation in six bacteria representing an ecologically important marine taxon of the alpha-proteobacteria was investigated. Initial screens suggested that isolates in the Roseobacter lineage can degrade aromatic compounds via the beta-ketoadipate pathway, a catabolic route that has been well characterized in soil microbes. Six Roseobacter isolates were screened for the presence of protocatechuate 3,4-dioxygenase, a key enzyme in the beta-ketoadipate pathway. All six isolates were capable of growth on at least three of the eight aromatic monomers presented (anthranilate, benzoate, p-hydroxybenzoate, salicylate, vanillate, ferulate, protocatechuate, and coumarate). Four of the Roseobacter group isolates had inducible protocatechuate 3, 4-dioxygenase activity in cell extracts when grown on p-hydroxybenzoate. The pcaGH genes encoding this ring cleavage enzyme were cloned and sequenced from two isolates, Sagittula stellata E-37 and isolate Y3F, and in both cases the genes could be expressed in Escherichia coli to yield dioxygenase activity. Additional genes involved in the protocatechuate branch of the beta-ketoadipate pathway (pcaC, pcaQ, and pobA) were found to cluster with pcaGH in these two isolates. Pairwise sequence analysis of the pca genes revealed greater similarity between the two Roseobacter group isolates than between genes from either Roseobacter strain and soil bacteria. A degenerate PCR primer set targeting a conserved region within PcaH successfully amplified a fragment of pcaH from two additional Roseobacter group isolates, and Southern hybridization indicated the presence of pcaH in the remaining two isolates. This evidence of protocatechuate 3, 4-dioxygenase and the beta-ketoadipate pathway was found in all six Roseobacter isolates, suggesting widespread abilities to degrade aromatic compounds in this marine lineage.

Adipates↗

PubMed1999

Dimethylsulfoniopropionate and methanethiol are important precursors of methionine and protein-sulfur in marine bacterioplankton.

Organic sulfur compounds are present in all aquatic systems, but their use as sources of sulfur for bacteria is generally not considered important because of the high sulfate concentrations in natural waters. This study investigated whether dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP), an algal osmolyte that is abundant and rapidly cycled in seawater, is used as a source of sulfur by bacterioplankton. Natural populations of bacterioplankton from subtropical and temperate marine waters rapidly incorporated 15 to 40% of the sulfur from tracer-level additions of [(35)S]DMSP into a macromolecule fraction. Tests with proteinase K and chloramphenicol showed that the sulfur from DMSP was incorporated into proteins, and analysis of protein hydrolysis products by high-pressure liquid chromatography showed that methionine was the major labeled amino acid produced from [(35)S]DMSP. Bacterial strains isolated from coastal seawater and belonging to the alpha-subdivision of the division Proteobacteria incorporated DMSP sulfur into protein only if they were capable of degrading DMSP to methanethiol (MeSH), whereas MeSH was rapidly incorporated into macromolecules by all tested strains and by natural bacterioplankton. These findings indicate that the demethylation/demethiolation pathway of DMSP degradation is important for sulfur assimilation and that MeSH is a key intermediate in the pathway leading to protein sulfur. Incorporation of sulfur from DMSP and MeSH by natural populations was inhibited by nanomolar levels of other reduced sulfur compounds including sulfide, methionine, homocysteine, cysteine, and cystathionine. In addition, propargylglycine and vinylglycine were potent inhibitors of incorporation of sulfur from DMSP and MeSH, suggesting involvement of the enzyme cystathionine gamma-synthetase in sulfur assimilation by natural populations. Experiments with [methyl-(3)H]MeSH and [(35)S]MeSH showed that the entire methiol group of MeSH was efficiently incorporated into methionine, a reaction consistent with activity of cystathionine gamma-synthetase. Field data from the Gulf of Mexico indicated that natural turnover of DMSP supplied a major fraction of the sulfur required for bacterial growth in surface waters. Our study highlights a remarkable adaptation by marine bacteria: they exploit nanomolar levels of reduced sulfur in apparent preference to sulfate, which is present at 10(6)- to 10(7)-fold higher concentrations.

Animals↗

PubMed1999

Transformation of sulfur compounds by an abundant lineage of marine bacteria in the alpha-subclass of the class Proteobacteria.

Members of a group of marine bacteria that is numerically important in coastal seawater and sediments were characterized with respect to their ability to transform organic and inorganic sulfur compounds. Fifteen strains representing the Roseobacter group (a phylogenetic cluster of marine bacteria in the alpha-subclass of the class Proteobacteria) were isolated from seawater, primarily from the southeastern United States. Although more than one-half of the isolates were obtained without any selection for sulfur metabolism, all of the isolates were able to degrade the sulfur-containing osmolyte dimethyl sulfoniopropionate (DMSP) with production of dimethyl sulfide (DMS). Five isolates also degraded DMSP with production of methanethiol, indicating that both cleavage and demethylation pathways for DMSP occurred in the same organism, which is unusual. Five isolates were able to reduce dimethyl sulfoxide to DMS, and several isolates also degraded DMS and methanethiol. Sulfite oxygenase activity and methanesulfonic acid oxygenase activity were also present in some of the isolates. The ability to incorporate the reduced sulfur in DMSP and methanethiol into cellular material was studied with one of the isolates. A group-specific 16S rRNA probe indicated that the relative abundance of uncultured bacteria in the Roseobacter group increased in seawater enriched with DMSP or DMS. Because this group typically accounts for >10% of the 16S ribosomal DNA pool in coastal seawater and sediments of the southern United States, clues about its potential biogeochemical role are of particular interest. Studies of culturable representatives suggested that the group could mediate a number of steps in the cycling of both organic and inorganic forms of sulfur in marine environments.

Alphaproteobacteria↗

PubMed1997

Microbulbifer hydrolyticus gen. nov., sp. nov., and Marinobacterium georgiense gen. nov., sp. nov., two marine bacteria from a lignin-rich pulp mill waste enrichment community.

Two numerically important bacteria in marine pulp mill effluent enrichment cultures were isolated. These organisms were gram-negative, rod-shaped, strictly aerobic bacteria. Isolate IRE-31T (T = type strain) produced hydrolytic enzymes for the breakdown of cellulose, xylan, chitin, gelatin, and Tween 80. It also utilized a variety of monosaccharides, disaccharides, amino acids, and volatile fatty acids for growth. Isolate KW-40T did not utilize natural polymers, but it could grow on a variety of monosaccharides, disaccharides, alcohols, and amino acids. It also utilized methanol and aromatic compounds. The surfaces of both organisms were covered by blebs and vesicles. 16S rRNA analyses placed both organisms in the gamma-3 subclass of the phylum Proteobacteria. They were related to Oceanospirillum linum, Marinomonas vaga, Pseudomonas putida, and Halomonas elongata, although a close association with any of these bacteria was not found. The guanine-plus-cytosine contents of strain IRE-31T and KW-40T were 57.6 and 54.9 mol%, respectively. On the basis of 16S rRNA sequence and phenotypic characterizations, these isolates were different enough so that they could be considered members of new genera. Thus, the following two new genera and species are proposed: Microbulbifer hydrolyticus, with type strain IRE-31 (= ATCC 700072), and Marinobacterium georgiense, with type strain KW-40 (= ATCC 700074).

Base Composition↗

PubMed1997

Sagittula stellata gen. nov., sp. nov., a lignin-transforming bacterium from a coastal environment.

A numerically important member of marine enrichment cultures prepared with lignin-rich, pulp mill effluent was isolated. This bacterium was gram negative and rod shaped, did not form spores, and was strictly aerobic. The surfaces of its cells were covered by blebs or vesicles and polysaccharide fibrils. Each cell also had a holdfast structure at one pole. The cells formed rosettes and aggregates. During growth in the presence of lignocellulose or cellulose particles, cells attached to the surfaces of the particles. The bacterium utilized a variety of monosaccharides, disaccharides, amino acids, and volatile fatty acids for growth. It hydrolyzed cellulose, and synthetic lignin preparations were partially solubilized and mineralized. As determined by 16S rRNA analysis, the isolate was a member of the alpha subclass of the phylum Proteobacteria and was related to the genus Roseobacter. A signature secondary structure of the 16S rRNA is proposed. The guanine-plus-cytosine content of the genomic DNA was 65.0 mol%. On the basis of the results of 16S rRNA sequence and phenotypic characterizations, the isolate was sufficiently different to consider it a member of a new genus. Thus, a novel genus and species, Sagittula stellata, are proposed; the type strain is E-37 (= ATCC 700073).

Bacterial Adhesion↗

PubMed1997

Numerical dominance of a group of marine bacteria in the alpha-subclass of the class Proteobacteria in coastal seawater.

A cluster of marine bacteria within the alpha-3 subclass of the class Proteobacteria accounted for up to 28% of the 16S ribosomal DNA (rDNA) sequences in seawater samples from the coast of the southeastern United States. Two independent oligonucleotide probes targeting 16S rDNA of this "marine alpha" cluster indicate that the group dominates bacterioplankton communities in estuarine and nearshore regions of the southeastern U.S. coast. Marine alpha bacteria decline predictably in abundance with decreasing salinity along estuarine transsects and are not detectable in low-salinity (5%) or freshwater samples. Sequences of 16S rDNA obtained from seawater by PCR with one group-specific oligonucleotide as a primer confirm that the oligonucleotide targets only members of this phylogenetic cluster. Likewise, sequences of 16S rDNA obtained from seawater by PCR with several different pairs of nonspecific primers show an unusually high abundance of marine alpha sequences (52 to 84%) among the clones, which possibly indicates a PCR bias toward the group. Members of the marine alpha group were readily cultured from coastal seawater, accounting for 40% of the colonies isolated on low-nutrient marine agar, based on hybridizations with the group-specific 16S rDNA probe and on sequence analysis. This is the first description of a numerically dominant cluster of coastal bacteria, identified by molecular techniques, that can be readily cultured and studied in the laboratory.

Bacteria↗

PubMed1997

In situ reverse transcription, an approach to characterize genetic diversity and activities of prokaryotes.

Reverse transcription of RNA molecules inside intact bacterial cells was carried out by using reverse transcriptase with a single oligonucleotide complementary to specific 16S rRNA or mRNA sequences. Fluorescently labeled nucleotides were incorporated into each transcribed cDNA inside cells. This protocol is termed in situ reverse transcription (ISRT). In this study, by using species-specific primers targeting unique regions of the 16S rRNA sequences, ISRT was used successfully to detect and enumerate the two lignin-degrading bacteria Microbulbifer hydrolyticus IRE-31 and Sagittula stellata E-37 in culture mixtures and complex enrichment communities selected for lignin degradation. Image analysis revealed that M. hydrolyticus IRE-31 and S. stellata E-37 accounted for approximately 30 and 2%, respectively, of the total bacterial cells in lignin enrichment communities. Populations estimated by ISRT were comparable to those estimated by in situ hybridization (ISH) techniques and to those estimated by hybridization against extracted community DNA. ISRT was also successfully used to detect Pseudomonas putida F1 expressing the todC1 gene in seawater exposed to toluene vapor. ISRT provided a higher signal intensity than ISH, especially when targeting mRNA. The calculated pixel intensities resulting from ISRT were up to 4.2 times greater than those from ISH. This suggests that multiple incorporation of fluorescently labeled nucleotides into cDNA provides a high sensitivity for phylogenetic identification of bacterial populations as well as detection of cells expressing a specific functional gene within complex bacterial communities.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1996

Impact of a genetically engineered bacterium with enhanced alkaline phosphatase activity on marine phytoplankton communities.

An indigenous marine Achromobacter sp. was isolated from coastal Georgia seawater and modified in the laboratory by introduction of a plasmid with a phoA hybrid gene that directed constitutive overproduction of alkaline phosphatase. The effects of this "indigenous" genetically engineered microorganism (GEM) on phosphorus cycling were determined in seawater microcosms following the addition of a model dissolved organic phosphorus compound, glycerol 3-phosphate, at a concentration of 1 or 10 (mu)M. Within 48 h, a 2- to 10-fold increase in the concentration of inorganic phosphate occurred in microcosms containing the GEM (added at an initial density equivalent to 8% of the total bacterial population) relative to controls containing only natural microbial populations, natural populations with the unmodified Achromobacter sp., or natural populations with the Achromobacter sp. containing the plasmid but not the phoA gene. Secondary effects of the GEM on the phytoplankton community were observed after several days, evident as sustained increases in phytoplankton biomass (up to 14-fold) over that in controls. Even in the absence of added glycerol 3-phosphate, a numerically stable GEM population (averaging 3 to 5% of culturable bacteria) was established within 2 to 3 weeks of introduction into seawater. Moreover, alkaline phosphatase activity in microcosms with the GEM was substantially higher than that in controls for up to 25 days, and microcosms containing the GEM maintained the potential for net phosphate accumulation above control levels for longer than 1 month.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1996

Identifying numerically abundant culturable bacteria from complex communities: an example from a lignin enrichment culture.

Culturable bacteria that were numerically important members of a marine enrichment community were identified and characterized phylogenetically. Selective and nonselective isolation methods were used to obtain 133 culturable bacterial isolates from model marine communities enriched with the high-molecular-weight (lignin-rich) fraction of pulp mill effluent. The culture collection was screened against community DNA from the lignin enrichments by whole-genome hybridization methods, and three marine bacterial isolates were identified as being numerically important in the communities. One isolate was in the alpha-subclass of Proteobacteria, and the other two were in the gamma-subclass of Proteobacteria. Isolate-specific 16S rRNA oligonucleotide probes designed to precisely quantify the isolates in the lignin enrichment communities indicated contributions ranging from 2 to 32% of enrichment DNA, values nearly identical to those originally obtained by the simpler whole-genome hybridization method. Two 16S rRNA sequences closely related to that of one of the isolates, although not identical, were amplified via PCR from the seawater sample originally used to inoculate the enrichment medium. Partial sequences of 14 other isolates revealed significant phylogenetic diversity and unusual sequences among the culturable lignin enrichment bacteria, with the Proteobacteria, Cytophaga-Flavobacterium, and gram-positive groups represented.

Bacteria↗

PubMed1995

Peptide from a prokaryotic adhesin blocks leukocyte migration in vitro and in vivo.

The integrin CD11b/CD18 promotes leukocyte extravasation during inflammation. Filamentous hemagglutinin (FHA) of Bordetella pertussis binds to CD11b/CD18, raising the possibility that peptides derived from FHA might inhibit leukocyte migration. The Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD) sequence of FHA has been suggested to modulate binding of ligands to CD11b/CD18. Peptides derived from this region inhibited adherence and transendothelial migration of neutrophils in vitro and prevented recruitment of leukocytes into the cerebrospinal fluid in an experimental model of meningitis in rabbits. The mechanism of the antiinflammatory effect may involve modulation of the activity of CD11b/CD18 through peptide interaction with the leukocyte response integrin/integrin-associated protein complex.

Adhesins, Bacterial↗

PubMed1995

Evidence for indigenous Streptomyces populations in a marine environment determined with a 16S rRNA probe.

A 16S rRNA genus-specific probe was used to determine whether Streptomyces populations are an indigenous component of marine sediment bacterial communities. Previous debates have suggested that marine Streptomyces isolates are derived not from resident populations but from spores of terrestrial species which have been physically transported to marine ecosystems but remain dormant until isolation. Rigorously controlled hybridization of rRNA extracted from coastal marsh sediments with the genus-specific probe indicated that Streptomyces rRNA accounted for 2 to 5% of the sediment community rRNA and that spores are not the source of the hybridization signal. Streptomyces populations must therefore be at least the 26th most abundant genus-level source of bacterial rRNA. the relative amounts of rRNAs from Streptomyces spp. and members of the Bacteria (69 to 79%) and Archaea (4 to 7%) domains were highly consistent in these marine sediments throughout an annual cycle, indicating that the species composition of sediment bacterial communities may be more stable than recent studies suggest for marine planktonic bacterial communities. Laboratory studies designed to investigate the possible functional roles of Streptomyces populations in coastal sediments demonstrated that population levels of this genus changed relatively rapidly (within a time frame of 6 weeks) in response to manipulation of substrate availability. Amendments of intact sediment cores with two compounds (vanillic acid and succinic acid) consistently resulted in Streptomyces populations contributing an increased percentage of rRNA (6 to 15%) to the total bacterial rRNA pool.

Base Sequence↗

PubMed1995

In situ PCR for visualization of microscale distribution of specific genes and gene products in prokaryotic communities.

Obtaining information on the genetic capabilities and phylogenetic affinities of individual prokaryotic cells within natural communities is a high priority in the fields of microbial ecology, microbial biogeochemistry, and applied microbiology, among others. A method for prokaryotic in situ PCR (PI-PCR), a technique which will allow single cells within complex mixtures to be identified and characterized genetically, is presented here. The method involves amplification of specific nuclei acid sequences inside intact prokaryotic cells followed by color or fluorescence detection of the localized PCR product via bright-field or epifluorescence microscopy. Prokaryotic DNA and mRNA were both used successfully as targets for PI-PCR. We demonstrate the use of PI-PCR to identify nahA-positive cells in mixtures of bacterial isolates and in model marine bacterial communities.

Base Sequence↗

PubMed1993

Direct extraction and purification of rRNA for ecological studies.

Microgram quantities of rRNA were recovered from natural microbial communities in sediment, soil, and water with a lysozyme-hot phenol direct extraction method. Gel filtration with Sephadex G-75 spun columns readily removed humic-like contaminants without any measurable loss of rRNA and rendered RNA extracts of sufficient quality for molecular procedures.

Bacteria↗

PubMed1992

Ultrastructural localization of acetylcholinesterase in neurofibrillary tangles, neuropil threads and senile plaques in aged and Alzheimer's brain.

Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) histochemistry was used to evaluate the accumulation of this enzyme in senile plaques, neurofibrillary tangles and neuropil threads using light and electron microscopy in Alzheimer's disease as well as non-demented aged brains. Under the electron microscope, a crystalline-like AChE precipitate was localized over paired helical filaments and straight filaments in both neurofibrillary tangles and neuropil threads. AChE reaction product also decorated the amyloid fibrils in diffuse plaques as well as the halo and the heavy accumulation of amyloid which forms the core of classical plaques. In both diffuse plaques and the halo of classical plaques, we found AChE-positive structures resembling cell processes, which in some cases appeared to contain amyloid fibrils. The possible origin and significance of AChE localized over paired helical filaments, straight filaments and amyloid is discussed.

Acetylcholinesterase↗