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Molecular cloning and characterization of the t(2;14) translocation associated with childhood chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

Two rare cases of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) in children, patients AS and LH, have been found to be associated with a unique chromosomal translocation, t(2;14)(p13;q32). Previous studies have shown the breakpoints of this translocation to be in the gamma 2 switch region of the Ig heavy-chain locus on chromosome 14 and in an uncharacterized region of chromosome 2. We have cloned and characterized the translocation breakpoints to examine the possibility that an oncogene contributed to the pathogenesis of these cases of CLL. Sequence analysis of AS and LH breakpoints established that the chromosome 2 breakage in the two patients occurred only 38 bp apart and within a strong non-methylated CpG island. Furthermore, human probes from the region cross-hybridized to other species, indicating strong evolutionary conservation. Northern analysis using the chromosome 2 probes detected a 2.85-kb transcript in the tumor cells and in a CD5+ B-cell line. These data suggest that a potential oncogene located near the 2p13 breakpoint may have been activated by the t(2;14) translocation in these two cases of chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

Alleles↗

Sporangium-specific gene expression in the oomycete phytopathogen Phytophthora infestans.

The oomycete genus Phytophthora includes many of the world's most destructive plant pathogens, which are generally disseminated by asexual sporangia. To identify factors relevant to the biology of these propagules, genes induced in sporangia of the potato late blight pathogen Phytophthora infestans were isolated using cDNA macroarrays. Of approximately 1,900 genes known to be expressed in sporangia, 61 were up-regulated >5-fold in sporangia versus hyphae based on the arrays, including 17 that were induced >100-fold. A subset were also activated by starvation and in a nonsporulating mutant. mRNAs of some genes declined in abundance after germination, while others persisted through the germinated zoospore cyst stage. Functions were predicted for about three-quarters of the genes, including potential regulators (protein kinases and phosphatases, transcription factors, and G-protein subunits), transporters, and metabolic enzymes. Predominant among the last were several dehydrogenases, especially a highly expressed sorbitol dehydrogenase that accounted for 3% of the mRNA. Sorbitol dehydrogenase activity also rose during sporulation and several stress treatments, paralleling the expression of the gene. Another interesting metabolic enzyme resembled creatine kinases, which previously were reported only in animals and trypanosomes. These results provide insight into the transcriptional and cellular processes occurring in sporangia and identify potential targets for crop protection strategies.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Scale-invariant structure of strongly conserved sequence in genomic intersections and alignments.

A power-law distribution of the length of perfectly conserved sequence from mouse/human whole-genome intersection and alignment is exhibited. Spatial correlations of these elements within the mouse genome are studied. It is argued that these power-law distributions and correlations are comprised in part by functional noncoding sequence and ought to be accounted for in estimating the statistical significance of apparent sequence conservation. These inter-genomic correlations of conservation are placed in the context of previously observed intra-genomic correlations, and their possible origins and consequences are discussed.

Animals↗

A molecular view of pinniped relationships with particular emphasis on the true seals.

Phylogenetic analysis of conservative nucleotide substitutions in 18 complete sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene of Phocidae (true seals), Odobenidae (walruses), and Otariidae (sea lions and fur seals), plus three ursid and three felid sequences, identified the pinnipeds as monophyletic with Otariidae and Odobenidae on a common evolutionary branch. Analysis of total nucleotide differences separated the evolutionary lineages of northern and southern phocids. Both lineages are distinct from the most ancestral phocid genus, Monachus (monk seals), represented by the Hawaiian monk seal. The inclusion of the Hawaiian monk seal in the subfamily Monachinae makes the subfamily paraphyletic. Among the northern phocids, the hooded seal (genus Cystophora, chromosome number 2n = 34) is sister taxon to the Phoca complex. The Phoca complex, which is characterized by the chromosome number 2n = 32, includes genus Phoca and the monotypic genus Halichoerus (grey seal). The comparison does not support a generic distinction of Halichoerus within the Phoca complex. The present data suggest that Cystophora and Phoca separated > or = 6 million years ago. Among the southern phocids the close molecular relationship of the Weddell and leopard seals relative to their morphological distinction exemplifies rapid adaptation to different ecological niches. This result stands in contrast to the limited morphological differentiation relative to the pronounced molecular distinctions that may occur within the Phoca complex.

Animals↗

Structural consequences of histidine phosphorylation: NMR characterization of the phosphohistidine form of histidine-containing protein from Bacillus subtilis and Escherichia coli.

The bacterial phosphoenolpyruvate:sugar phosphotransferase system involves a series of reactions in which phosphoprotein intermediates are formed. Histidine-containing protein (HPr) is phosphorylated on the N delta 1 position of the imidazole ring of His15 by enzyme I and acts as a phosphoryl donor to the sugar-specific enzymes IIA. The structure of phosphorylated HPr from Bacillus subtilis, primarily, and from Escherichia coli has been studied by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Phosphorylation of His15 results in large downfield shifts in amide proton and nitrogen resonances for residues 16 and 17 but results in only modest or no shifts in other backbone resonances. The exchange rates of these two amide groups are decreased more than 10-fold upon phosphorylation. Analysis of the coupling constants 3JNH alpha revealed no significant changes throughout the protein, indicating that backbone phi dihedral angles do not change detectably. 3J alpha beta and 3JN beta patterns determined from P.E.COSY and HNHB spectra, respectively, revealed a change in one side chain, that of conserved Arg17. Analysis of NOESY spectra revealed a limited number of changes in NOEs involving protons in Ser12, His15, Arg71, and Pro18 in B. subtilis HPr. The NMR results indicate that the Arg17 side chain becomes limited in its conformational range in the phosphorylated protein, taking on a conformation that points its guanidinium group toward the phosphoryl group on His15. In addition, the tautomeric and ionization states of His15 have been determined using 15N and 31P NMR. At neutral pH, the imidazole is predominantly in the protonated form and the phosphoryl group is in the dianionic form in P-His15. Altogether, the results indicate that phosphorylation of His15 yields only a local effect on the protein's structure. The data are consistent with a small change in the disposition of the histidine side chain, allowing phosphoryl group oxygens to serve as hydrogen bond acceptors for the amide protons of residues Ala16 and Arg17, which constitute the first two residues of an alpha-helix. Thus, similar to many proteins that bind phosphoryl moieties noncovalently, the phosphoryl group in P-His15-HPr is situated to allow for a favorable electrostatic interaction at the N-terminal end of an alpha-helix.

Amides↗

Genetic variation in the endangered wild apple (Malus sylvestris (L.) Mill.) in Belgium as revealed by amplified fragment length polymorphism and microsatellite markers.

The genetic variation within and between wild apple samples (Malus sylvestris) and cultivated apple trees was investigated with amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLP) and microsatellite markers to develop a conservation genetics programme for the endangered wild apple in Belgium. In total, 76 putative wild apples (originating from Belgium and Germany), six presumed hybrids and 39 cultivars were typed at 12 simple sequence repeats (SSR) and 139 amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) loci. Principal co-ordinate analysis and a model-based clustering method classified the apples into three major gene pools: wild Malus sylvestris genotypes, edible cultivars and ornamental cultivars. All presumed hybrids and two individuals (one Belgian, one German) sampled as M. sylvestris were assigned completely to the edible cultivar gene pool, revealing that cultivated genotypes are present in the wild. However, gene flow between wild and cultivated gene pools is shown to be almost absent, with only three genotypes that showed evidence of admixture between the wild and edible cultivar gene pools. Wild apples sampled in Belgium and Germany constitute gene pools that are clearly differentiated from cultivars and although some geographical pattern of genetic differentiation among wild apple populations exists, most variation is concentrated within samples. Concordant conclusions were obtained from AFLP and SSR markers, which showed highly significant correlations in both among-genotypes and among-samples genetic distances.

Belgium↗

Transcriptome mining and comparative genomics reveal 36 putative novel marafivirus species and conserved evolution of the marafibox regulatory element.

BACKGROUND: Marafiviruses are plant-infecting RNA viruses associated with several economically important crops, but their genomic diversity remains incompletely characterized. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to identify previously unrecognized marafivirus genomes and investigate their genomic features and evolutionary relationships. METHODS: Publicly available plant transcriptome datasets were systematically mined to detect marafivirus-like sequences. Recovered genomes were analyzed using comparative sequence analysis, phylogenetic reconstruction, and genome organization characterization. RESULTS: A total of 62 marafivirus-like genomes were recovered from 33 independent sources representing diverse plant hosts. Polyprotein-based comparative and phylogenetic analyses grouped these genomes into 36 lineages likely representing novel species. All newly identified viruses clustered within the Marafivirus clade. Genome organization analysis revealed conserved polyprotein architecture and widespread presence of the marafibox promoter element. Conservation of additional open reading frames among closely related isolates aided identification of potentially functional genes. CONCLUSION: These findings substantially expand the known diversity of marafiviruses and demonstrate the effectiveness of transcriptome mining for discovering previously unrecognized plant viruses.

Phylogeny↗

Unusual organization of a ribosomal protein operon in the plastid genome of Cryptomonas phi: evolutionary considerations.

The region of the plastid genome containing the genes for ribosomal proteins S12 and S7 and the elongation factor Tu (corresponding to three of the four str operon genes of Escherichia coli) was investigated in the unicellular marine alga Cryptomonas. Sequence analysis shows the gene organization to be rps12-60 bp spacer-rps7-68 bp spacer-tufA. No introns are present in any of the genes. Comparisons of the deduced amino acid sequence of these genes with homologues from other organisms show rps12 to be very highly conserved, except at the amino terminus, and rps7 and tufA to be less well-conserved. Transcript analysis suggests that these genes are co-transcribed along with several up and/or down-stream genes. The evolutionary significance of this unique gene organization is discussed.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Genomic structure of the gene for mouse germ-cell nuclear factor (GCNF). II. Comparison with the genomic structure of the human GCNF gene.

BACKGROUND: Germ-cell nuclear factor (GCNF, NR6AI) is an orphan nuclear receptor. Its expression pattern suggests it functions during embryogenesis, in the placenta and in germ-cell development. Mouse GCNF cDNA codes for a protein of 495 amino acids, whereas the four reported human cDNA variants code for proteins of 454 to 480 amino acids. Apart from this size difference, there is sequence conservation of up to 98.7%. To elucidate the genomic structure that gives rise to the different human GCNF mRNAs, the sequence information of the human GCNF locus is compared to the previously reported structure of the mouse locus. RESULTS: The genomic structures of the mouse and human GCNF genes are highly conserved. The comparison reveals that the shorter human protein results from skipping the 45 base-pair third exon. Three different human isoforms - GCNF-1, GCNF-2a and GCNF-2b - are generated by differential usage of alternative splice acceptor sites of the fourth and the seventh exon. CONCLUSION: By homology with the mouse gene, 11 GCNF coding exons can be defined on human chromosome 9. All human GCNF cDNAs identified so far are, however, derived from mRNAs generated by splicing the fourth to the second exon. Although the genomic sequence is highly conserved, the analysis suggests that alternative splicing generates a higher complexity of human GCNF isoforms compared with the situation in the mouse.

Alternative Splicing↗

Gastroesophageal reflux disease as a cause of death: analysis of fatal cases under conservative treatment.

BACKGROUND: Treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) with modern acid-suppressive agents is supposed to be effective and safe. However, there have been only a few studies on the mortality in GERD today. In the 1960s the mortality was 0.10-0.17/100,000 per year. METHODS: From 1990 to 1995, according to Statistics Finland, 78 official death certificates were issued in which GERD was stated to have been the immediate or a primary cause of death. RESULTS: On completion of analysis data on 52 patients were included in the study. The annual death rate was 0.20/100,000. The causes were hemorrhagic reflux esophagitis in 51.9%, aspiration pneumonia in 34.6%, perforation of esophageal ulcer in 9.6%, and spontaneous esophageal rupture with reflux esophagitis in 3.9%. Thirty-eight patients had been treated with omeprazole or an H2 antagonist, and 44 patients (85%) had severe concomitant disease. CONCLUSION: The mortality in conservatively treated GERD has not decreased. Patients with mental disorder, heart disease, or alcoholism constitute the group in which risk of death from conservatively treated GERD is likely to be greatest.

Aged↗

Appraisal of the consequences of the DDT-induced bottleneck on the level and geographic distribution of neutral genetic variation in Canadian peregrine falcons, Falco peregrinus.

Peregrine falcon populations underwent devastating declines in the mid-20th century due to the bioaccumulation of organochlorine contaminants, becoming essentially extirpated east of the Great Plains and significantly reduced elsewhere in North America. Extensive re-introduction programs and restrictions on pesticide use in Canada and the United States have returned many populations to predecline sizes. A proper population genetic appraisal of the consequences of this decline requires an appropriate context defined by (i) meaningful demographic entities; and (ii) suitable reference populations. Here we explore the validity of currently recognized subspecies designations using data from the mitochondrial control region and 11 polymorphic microsatellite loci taken from 184 contemporary individuals from across the breeding range, and compare patterns of population genetic structure with historical patterns inferred from 95 museum specimens. Of the three North American subspecies, the west coast marine subspecies Falco peregrinus pealei is well differentiated genetically in both time periods using nuclear loci. In contrast, the partitioning of continental Falco peregrinus anatum and arctic Falco peregrinus tundrius subspecies is not substantiated, as individuals from these subspecies are historically indistinguishable genetically. Bayesian clustering analyses demonstrate that contemporary genetic differentiation between these two subspecies is mainly due to changes within F. p. anatum (specifically the southern F. p. anatum populations). Despite expectations and a variety of tests, no genetic bottleneck signature is found in the identified populations; in fact, many contemporary indices of diversity are higher than historical values. These results are rationalized by the promptness of the recovery and the possible introduction of new genetic material.

Animals↗

Ex-situ conservation of Black poplar in Europe: genetic diversity in nine gene bank collections and their value for nature development.

Populus nigra L. is a pioneer tree species of riparian ecosystems that is threatened with extinction because of the loss of its natural habitat. To evaluate the existing genetic diversity of P. nigra within ex-situ collections, we analyzed 675 P. nigra L. accessions from nine European gene banks with three amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) and five microsatellite [or simple sequence repeat (SSR)] primer combinations, and 11 isozyme systems. With isozyme analysis, hybrids could be detected, and only 3% were found in the gene bank collection. AFLP and SSR analyses revealed effectively that 26% of the accessions were duplicated and that the level of clonal duplication varied from 0% in the French gene bank collection up to 78% in the Belgian gene bank collection. SSR analysis was preferred because AFLP was technically more demanding and more prone to scoring errors. To assess the genetic diversity, we grouped material from the gene banks according to topography of the location from which the accessions were originally collected (river system or regions separated by mountains). Genetic diversity was expressed in terms of the following parameters: percentage of polymorphic loci, observed and effective number of alleles, and Nei's expected heterozygosity or gene diversity (for AFLP). Genetic diversity varied from region to region and depended, to some extent, on the marker system used. The most unique alleles were identified in the Danube region (Austria), the Rhône region (France), Italy, the Rijn region (The Netherlands), and the Ebro region (Spain). In general, the diversity was largest in the material collected from the regions in Southern Europe. Dendrograms and principal component analysis resulted in a clustering according to topography. Material from the same river systems, but from different countries, clustered together. The genetic differentiation among the regions (F(st)/G(st)) was moderate.

Cluster Analysis↗

Structural and evolutionary studies on sterol 14-demethylase P450 (CYP51), the most conserved P450 monooxygenase: II. Evolutionary analysis of protein and gene structures.

Phylogenetic analyses based on protein sequence data indicated that sterol 14-demethylase P450 (CYP51) and bacterial CYP51-like protein were joined into a distinctive evolutionary cluster, CYP51 cluster, within the CYP protein superfamily. The most probable branch topology of the CYP51 phylogenetic tree was (bacteria, (plants, (fungi, mammals))), which is comparable to the phylogeny of major kingdoms of living matter, suggesting that CYP51 has been conserved from the era of prokaryotic evolution. This may be strong evidence supporting the prokaryotic origin of P450. Structure of flanking regions and the number and insertion sites of introns are quite different between mammalian and fungal CYP51s. This fact indicates that different mechanisms are operative in evolution of protein sequences and gene structures. CYP51 is the first example violating the well-documented rule that the basic structure of a gene, including intron insertion sites, is well conserved in each P450 family. One CYP51 processed a pseudogene was found in rat genome. Nonsynonymous nucleotide divergence observed between the pseudogene and CYP51 cDNA was less than one-fifth of the synonymous divergence. This unusually low rate of nonsynonymous nucleotide changes in the pseudogene suggests that it may be derived from another CYP51, which might have been active for a significant duration in the past.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Evolutionarily conserved networks of residues mediate allosteric communication in proteins.

A fundamental goal in cellular signaling is to understand allosteric communication, the process by which signals originating at one site in a protein propagate reliably to affect distant functional sites. The general principles of protein structure that underlie this process remain unknown. Here, we describe a sequence-based statistical method for quantitatively mapping the global network of amino acid interactions in a protein. Application of this method for three structurally and functionally distinct protein families (G protein-coupled receptors, the chymotrypsin class of serine proteases and hemoglobins) reveals a surprisingly simple architecture for amino acid interactions in each protein family: a small subset of residues forms physically connected networks that link distant functional sites in the tertiary structure. Although small in number, residues comprising the network show excellent correlation with the large body of mechanistic data available for each family. The data suggest that evolutionarily conserved sparse networks of amino acid interactions represent structural motifs for allosteric communication in proteins.

Allosteric Regulation↗

Ab and T cell epitopes of influenza A virus, knowledge and opportunities.

The Immune Epitope Database and Analysis Resources (IEDB) (www.immuneepitope.org) was recently developed to capture epitope related data. IEDB also hosts various bioinformatics tools that can be used to identify novel epitopes as well as to analyze and visualize existing epitope data. Herein, a comprehensive analysis was undertaken (i) to compile and inventory existing knowledge regarding influenza A epitopes and (ii) to determine possible cross-reactivities of identified epitopes among avian H5N1 and human influenza strains. At present, IEDB contains >600 different epitopes derived from 58 different strains and 10 influenza A proteins. By using the IEDB analysis resources, conservancy analyses were performed, and several conserved and possibly cross-reactive epitopes were identified. Significant gaps in the current knowledge were also revealed, including paucity of Ab epitopes in comparison with T cell epitopes, limited number of epitopes reported for avian influenza strains/subtypes, and limited number of epitopes reported from proteins other than hemagglutinin and nucleoprotein. This analysis provides a resource for researchers to access existing influenza epitope data. At the same time, the analysis illustrates gaps in our collective knowledge that should inspire directions for further study of immunity against the influenza A virus.

Animals↗

A comparative method for identification of gene structures and alternatively spliced variants.

MOTIVATION: Alternative splicing (AS) serves as a mechanism to create diversity among functional proteins. Increasing evidence indicates that a large portion of genes have AS forms. Hence AS variants should be considered while analyzing gene structures. RESULTS: A new cross-species gene identification and AS analysis system, PSEP, has been developed. The system is based on expressed sequence tag (EST)-to-genome and genome-to-genome comparisons and is implemented in two steps: sequence alignment and a series of post-alignment processes, including progressive signal extraction and patching. For gene identification, these post-alignment processes serve as noise filters and enable PSEP to eliminate approximately 88% of potential overprediction. The overall accuracy of PSEP is better than or comparable to that of other well-known cross-species gene prediction programs, including the ROSETTA program, TWINSCAN, SGP-1/-2 and SLAM, when tested on three benchmark datasets (the ELN gene region, the HoxA cluster and the ROSETTA set). In addition, 76.2 and 76.0% of multiple-exon genes in the ROSETTA dataset and human chromosome 20, respectively, are found to have AS forms. Approximately 23% of the 210 elementary alternatives identified in the ROSETTA dataset are not conserved between the human and mouse genomes, and none of the 210 transcripts is found in the RefSeq annotation. With its dual functions in cross-species conserved sequence analysis and AS analysis, PSEP is highly suitable for studying the evolution of AS patterns and for finding unidentified gene expression features.

Algorithms↗

Sequence analysis and genotypes of glutamate rich protein of Plasmodium falciparum isolates from different malaria endemic areas in China.

OBJECTIVE: To sequence the gene encoding glutamate rich protein (GLURP) and identify the genotypes of geographically different Plasmodium falciparum (P. f) isolates from China. METHODS: The gene of R2 repeat region of GLURP was amplified by nested polymerase chain reaction and cloned into T-vector. The nucleotide sequence of GLURP gene was determined by automatic sequencer (Dideoxy termination method) and analyzed by DNA Star software. RESULTS: At least 7 different GLURP genotypes ranging from 600 bp to 1,500 bp were found in Yunnan and Hainan provinces. R2 region of GLURP gene consisted of several repeat units. Each repeat unit was composed of 19-20 residues which were shown to be highly conserved. GLURP gene was also size polymorphic due to differences in the number of repeat units, whereas the repeat sequence was conserved. Sequence analysis showed that DNA sequences and deduced amino acid sequences were highly homologous among the geographically dispersed isolates or various isolates from the same geographical region. No obvious differences were found in the GLURP gene sequences among geographically different isolates. CONCLUSION: GLURP gene is highly structure conserved and size polymorphic, and so is useful in searching for malaria vaccine candidate antigen and developing a genotyping method for malaria research.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Multi-species risk analysis, species evaluation and biodiversity conservation.

The multi-species conservation approaches starting from Vane-Wright et al. (1991) search for a biologically valid basis to evaluate biodiversity. Such evaluations can be used to optimize reserve boundaries so reserves contain a high level of biodiversity. However, these optimization procedures do not minimize the future loss of biodiversity. We provide a method that can be used to minimize the loss of biodiversity. The method integrates an evolutionary species evaluation with an ecological multi-species risk analysis to estimate the expected loss of phylogenetic diversity. A minimization of this loss will optimize the preservation of phylogenetic diversity.

Biological Evolution↗