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A recombinant Bacillus anthracis strain producing the Clostridium perfringens Ib component induces protection against iota toxins.

The Bacillus anthracis toxinogenic Sterne strain is currently used as a live veterinary vaccine against anthrax. The capacity of a toxin-deficient derivative strain to produce a heterologous antigen by using the strong inducible promoter of the B. anthracis pag gene was investigated. The expression of the foreign gene ibp, encoding the Ib component of iota toxin from Clostridium perfringens, was analyzed. A pag-ibp fusion was introduced by allelic exchange into a toxin-deficient Sterne strain, thereby replacing the wild-type pag gene. This recombinant strain, called BAIB, was stable and secreted large quantities of Ib protein in induced culture conditions. Mice given injections of live BAIB spores developed an antibody response specific to the Ib protein. The pag-ibp fusion was therefore functional both in vitro and in vivo. Moreover, the immunized animals were protected against a challenge with C. perfringens iota toxin or with the homologous Clostridium spiroforme toxin. The protective immunity was mediated by neutralizing antibodies. In conclusion, B. anthracis is promising for the development of live veterinary vaccines.

ADP Ribose Transferases↗

Citrate synthase mutants of Sinorhizobium meliloti are ineffective and have altered cell surface polysaccharides.

The gltA gene, encoding Sinorhizobium meliloti 104A14 citrate synthase, was isolated by complementing an Escherichia coli gltA mutant. The S. meliloti gltA gene was mutated by inserting a kanamycin resistance gene and then using homologous recombination to replace the wild-type gltA with the gltA::kan allele. The resulting strain, CSDX1, was a glutamate auxotroph, and enzyme assays confirmed the absence of a requirement for glutamate. CSDX1 did not grow on succinate, malate, aspartate, pyruvate, or glucose. CSDX1 produced an unusual blue fluorescence on medium containing Calcofluor, which is different from the green fluorescence found with 104A14. High concentrations of arabinose (0.4%) or succinate (0. 2%) restored the green fluorescence to CSDX1. High-performance liquid chromatography analyses showed that CSDX1 produced partially succinylated succinoglycan. CSDX1 was able to form nodules on alfalfa, but these nodules were not able to fix nitrogen. The symbiotic defect of a citrate synthase mutant could thus be due to disruption of the infection process or to the lack of energy generated by the tricarboxylic acid cycle.

Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid↗

ADR1-mediated regulation of ADH2 requires an inverted repeat sequence.

DNA sequence analysis of wild-type and mutant ADH2 loci suggested that two unusual features 5' of the promoter, a 22-base-pair perfect dyad sequence and a (dA)20 tract, were important for regulation of this gene (D. W. Russell, M. Smith, D. Cox, V. M. Williamson, and E. T. Young, Nature [London] 304:652-654, 1983). Oligonucleotide-directed mutagenesis was used to construct ADH2 genes lacking the 22-base-pair dyad or the (dA)20 tract (V.-L. Chan and M. Smith, Nucleic Acids Res. 12:2407-2419, 1984). These mutant genes and other ADH2 deletions constructed by BAL 31 endonuclease digestion were studied after replacing the wild-type chromosomal locus with the altered alleles by the technique of gene transplacement (T. L. Orr-Weaver, J. W. Szostak, and R. S. Rothstein, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 78:6354-6358, 1981), using canavanine resistance as the selectable marker. Deletions lacking the dyad failed to derepress normally and did not respond to mutations at the ADR1 locus, which encodes a protein necessary to activate ADH2. Deletions of the (dA)20 tract did not have a detectable phenotype. A small deletion located just 3' to the (dA)20 tract (between positions -164 and -146) had a low amount of ADR1-dependent transcription during repressed growth conditions, indicating that the regulatory protein encoded by ADR1 is present in a potentially active form during repression and that alterations of a DNA sequence in the promoter region can unmask its latent activity.

Alcohol Dehydrogenase↗

Screening for Pax8 mutations in patients with congenital hypothyroidism in South-West Germany.

AIMS: To study the frequency of mutations in the Pax8 gene in a cohort of patients with congenital hypothyroidism (CH) in South West Germany. METHODS: A cohort of 95 patients with CH (60 females, 35 males), identified in our newborn screening program, was analyzed for mutations in Pax8 by single-stranded conformational polymorphism (SSCP) and DNA sequencing. RESULTS: SSCP analysis and direct sequencing of exon 3 of a female patient with a hypoplastic thyroid gland revealed two heterozygous mutations in Pax8 resulting in a transition of T to C (codon 34) and G to A (codon 35), replacing isoleucine by threonine and valine by isoleucine. Using allele-specific PCR we could demonstrate that both mutations are located on the same allele. Furthermore, a polymorphism was documented in 24 patients with thyroid hypoplasia in intron 6 at nucleotide +51 (CC, GG, CG). Comparison of the polymorphisms between hypothyroid patients and controls revealed no significant differences suggesting that this polymorphism does not play a role in the pathogenesis of hypothyroidism. No further mutations or polymorphisms were found in the cohort. CONCLUSIONS: These findings confirm the contribution of mutations in the Pax8 gene to the etiology of thyroid dysgenesis with a variable penetrance, but also demonstrate the rare overall incidence in CH.

Adult↗

[Serologic detection of HLA antigens and HLA antibodies].

The discovery of the HLA system as well as the progress of knowledge over several decades were based on serological methods. Today, methods of molecular biology tend to replace serological tests for HLA typing, particularly for class II alleles. However, HLA serology is still indispensable in all domains where HLA antibodies play a role. In this contribution, classical and more recently developed methods of HLA serology are described, and problems and solutions concerning the interpretation of results are discussed.

B-Lymphocytes↗

Human hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase. Detection of a mutant allele by restriction endonuclease analysis.

We have developed a method for the direct analysis of a hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (HPRT) allele associated with a deficiency of enzyme activity and an early onset of gout. The functionally abnormal enzyme coded for by this mutant allele (HPRTToronto) differs from the normal enzyme by an arginine-to-glycine substitution at position 50. A single base change in the codon for arginine 50 can explain this substitution. Direct analysis of this point mutation is based on the observation that it abolishes a Taq I recognition site in HPRT DNA. As predicted, DNA from individuals with the HPRTToronto allele exhibited an abnormal restriction pattern when digested with Taq I and probed with HPRT complimentary DNA: a normal 2.0-kb fragment is replaced by a 4.0-kb fragment. The 4.0/2.0-kb restriction fragment variation was used to detect the HPRTToronto allele in a heterozygote that was otherwise normal with respect to the classical techniques used to diagnose heterozygosity in HPRT deficiency.

Adenine Phosphoribosyltransferase↗

A new h allele detected in Europe has a missense mutationin alpha(1,2)-fucosyltransferase motif II.

BACKGROUND: The FUT1 gene encodes an alpha(1,2)-fucosyltransferase (H transferase), which determines the blood group H. Nonfunctional alleles of this gene, called h alleles and carrying loss-of-function mutations, are observed in the exceedingly rare Bombay phenotype. Twenty-three distinct h alleles have been characterized at the molecular level in various populations. The FUT2 (SE) gene is highly homologous to FUT1 (H:). STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: The FUT1 gene of an Austrian proband with the Bombay phenotype was characterized by nucleotide sequencing of the full-length coding sequence. A PCR method using sequence-specific primers for FUT2 genotyping in whites was developed. The plasma alpha(1,2)-fucosyltransferase activity was determined. The distribution of the mutations underlying 24 h alleles and 7 se alleles was analyzed. RESULTS: The proband carried a new h allele. Two nucleotide changes, G785A and C786A, in codon 262 of the FUT1 gene resulted in the replacement of serine by lysine. No alpha(1,2)-fucosyltransferase activity was detected in the proband's plasma. The proband was homozygous for the seG428A allele. Six of 17 missense mutations in nonfunctional h and se alleles occurred in highly conserved fucosyltransferase motifs. No loss-of-function mutation was observed in the aminoterminal section encompassing the transmembraneous helix. CONCLUSION: The missense mutation S262K in the FUT1 gene caused the loss of H transferase activity. The analysis of the distribution of mutations in nonfunctional FUT1 and FUT2 genes can point to functionally important domains in the H transferase.

ABO Blood-Group System↗

Requirement for ubiquinone downstream of cytochrome(s) b in the oxygen-terminated respiratory chains of Escherichia coli K-12 revealed using a null mutant allele of ubiCA.

An Escherichia coli knockout ubiCA mutant has been constructed using a gene replacement method and verified using both Southern hybridization and PCR. The mutant, which was unable to synthesize ubiquinone (Q), showed severely diminished growth yields aerobically but not anaerobically with either nitrate or fumarate as terminal electron acceptors. Low oxygen uptake rates were demonstrated in membrane preparations using either NADH or lactate as substrates. However, these rates were greatly stimulated by the addition of ubiquinone-1 (Q-1). The rate of electron transfer to those oxidase components observable by photodissociation of their CO complexes was studied at sub-zero temperatures. In the ubiCA mutant, the reduced form of haemoproteins--predominantly cytochrome b595--was reoxidized significantly faster in the presence of oxygen than in a Ubi+ strain, indicating the absence of Q as electron donor. Continuous multiple-wavelength recordings of the oxidoreduction state of cytochrome(s) b during steady-state respiration showed greater reduction in membranes from the ubiCA mutant than in wildtype membranes. A scheme for the respiratory electron-transfer chain in E. coli is proposed, in which Q functions downstream of cytochrome(s) b.

Aerobiosis↗

A mouse with a monoclonal primary immunoglobulin repertoire not further diversified by V-gene replacement.

We have generated a monoclonal B-cell mouse by introducing homozygous, nonfunctional RAG-2 alleles and a lambda1 light-chain transgene into the quasi-monoclonal (QM) mouse, which contains a "knocked-in" V(H)DJ(H) rearrangement. Thus, this mouse, which we call MonoB, is devoid of T cells and contains preformed heavy- and light-chain genes encoding immunoglobulin with an anti-NP specificity. The MonoB mouse allows us to examine immunoglobulin diversity in the absence of processes mediated by V(D)J recombination and T cells. Here we report that not only is the MonoB's primary immunoglobulin repertoire monoclonal, but also that its secondary repertoire is not further diversified by V-gene replacement or gene conversion. Among 99 heavy-chain and 41 lambda light-chain genes from peripheral B cells of the MonoB mouse, there were no V-gene replacements. When compared to the QM mouse, which has RAG activity, and for which V-gene replacement is the major diversifying mechanism, these data suggest that V-gene replacement is mediated by V(D)J recombination and not by other recombination systems.

Animals↗

Identification of two novel HLA-DRB1 alleles, DRB1*0903 and DRB1*1145.

Two new HLA-DRB1 alleles were identified by sequencing-based typing in the oral submucous fibrosis and buccal cancer patients of Taiwan. They have been officially named HLA-DRB1*0903 and DRB1*1145 by the World Health Organization Nomenclature Committee. The complete exon 2 sequence of DRB1*0903 was identical to that of the DRB1*090102 but differed by nucleotides of position 207-210 and 216 (AGAC, C replacing GCGG, and G). The DRB1*1145 was identical to the DRB1*110101 except for three nucleotide substitutions at codon 199, 220, and 221 (A, CT replacing T, and GC). Two complete exon 2 sequences of those new alleles had been deposited in the EMBL Sequence Database under accession number AY465114 and AY465115, respectively.

Alleles↗

Analysis of the role of flagella in the heat-labile Lior serotyping scheme of thermophilic Campylobacters by mutant allele exchange.

Flagellin mutations originally constructed in Campylobacter coli VC167 (serotype LIO8) by a gene replacement mutagenesis technique (P. Guerry, S. M. Logan, S. Thornton, and T. J. Trust, J. Bacteriol. 172:1853-1860, 1990) were moved from the original host into Campylobacter strains of a number of other Lior serogroups by a natural transformation procedure. This is the first report of the use of this transformation method to transfer a mutated locus among Campylobacter strains. Flagellin mutants were constructed in a number of heat-labile LIO serotypes and were serotyped and analyzed by immunoelectron microscopy with LIO typing antisera. In six cases, isogenic nonflagellated mutants were able to be serotyped in the same serogroup as their parent, and immunogold electron microscopy confirmed that antibodies in the typing antisera bound to components on the surface of both parent and mutant cells. However, in only one case, a strain belonging to serogroup LIO4, was a nonflagellated mutant untypeable, and immunogold electron microscopy showed that antibodies bound to the flagella filament of the parent but not to the cell surface. Furthermore, after introduction and expression as a flagellar filament of a LIO8 flagellin gene in this mutant, the strain could not be serotyped. These results indicate that a nonflagellar antigen is often the serodeterminant in the heat-labile Lior serotyping scheme.

Alleles↗

Expression of mutant alanine tRNAs increases spontaneous mutagenesis in Escherichia coli.

The expression of mutA, an allele of the glycine tRNA gene glyV, can confer a novel mutator phenotype that correlates with its ability to promote Asp-->Gly mistranslation. Both activities are mediated by a single base change within the anticodon such that the mutant tRNA can decode aspartate codons (GAC/U) instead of the normal glycine codons (GCC/U). Here, we investigate whether specific Asp-->Gly mistranslation is required for the unexpected mutator phenotype. To address this question, we created and expressed 18 individual alleles of alaV, the gene encoding an alanine tRNA, in which the alanine anticodon was replaced with those specifying other amino acids such that the mutant (alaVX) tRNAs are expected to potentiate X-->Ala mistranslation, where X is one of the other amino acids. Almost all alaVX alleles proved to be mutators in an assay that measured the frequency of rifampicin-resistant mutants, with one allele (alaVGlu) being a stronger mutator than mutA. The alaVGlu mutator phenotype resembles that of mutA in mutational specificity (predominantly transversions), as well as SOS independence, but in a puzzling twist differs from mutA in that it does not require a functional recA gene. Our results suggest that general mistranslation (as opposed to Asp-->Gly alone) can induce a mutator phenotype. Furthermore, these findings predict that a large number of conditions that increase translational errors, such as genetic defects in the translational apparatus, as well as environmental and physiological stimuli (such as amino acid starvation or exposure to antibiotics) are likely to activate a mutator response. Thus, both genetic and epigenetic mechanisms can accelerate the acquisition of mutations.

Alleles↗

Rheumatoid arthritis susceptibility and interleukin 10: a study of two ethnically diverse populations.

INTRODUCTION: IL-10 is an immunoregulatory cytokine which may modulate disease expression in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The IL-10 gene is highly polymorphic with a number of single nucleotide polymorphisms in the promoter region and two microsatellite loci, IL10.R and IL10.G, 4 kb and 1.1 kb 5' of the transcription initiation site. It has been reported that allele 2 of the IL10.R microsatellite (IL10.R2) is associated with increased IL-10 secretion and IL10.R3 with reduced secretion. Subsequently, over-representation of IL10.R2 and under-representation of IL10.R3 in three independent RA groups has been reported. The aim of the current study is to determine whether there is an association between the IL10.R2 allele and RA in two ethnically distinct populations. METHODS: IL10.R genotypes were determined by semi-automated DNA sequencing technology in 186 UK Caucasians and 138 South Africans of Zulu or Sotho origin, fulfilling the 1987 American College of Rheumatology (ACR) criteria for RA. The Caucasian patients had relatively severe disease and comprised 75 patients with RA vasculitis, 22 with Felty's syndrome and 89 who had undergone a joint replacement (hip or knee) within 15 years of the onset of disease. Allele frequencies were compared with 296 Caucasians and/or 73 South Africans. RESULTS: The frequency of the IL10.R2 allele was significantly greater in the South Africans (RA and controls) than in the Caucasians (0.78 vs 0.66, P=1 x 10(-6)), while the frequency of IL10.R3 was less common (0.16 vs 0.3, P=1 x 10(-8)). No differences were observed in either IL10.R2 or IL10.R3 frequencies between patients and controls in either population. CONCLUSIONS: We were unable to confirm any association between IL10.R alleles and RA in this study. However, significant differences were demonstrated in the frequency of IL10.R2 and IL10.R3 between the two ethnic groups. The relatively high frequency of IL10.R2 in the South African population (0.78) would have reduced the power to detect an association with RA.

Adult↗

SMN(T) and NAIP mutations in Canadian families with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA): genotype/phenotype correlations with disease severity.

Childhood-onset spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is an autosomal recessive neuropathy characterized by selective degeneration of alpha-motor neuron cells of the spinal cord. Age of onset and motor development varies greatly among patients, but the molecular basis of this variability remains unclear. The SMA locus contains two copies of a 500-kb element and deletions within the telomeric element have been shown to be the most common cause of SMA. To study the relationship between genotype and phenotype, 60 SMA families, all but two of which are of French Canadian origin, were screened for deletions in the telomeric survival motor neuron (SMN(T)) and the intact neuronal apoptosis inhibitory protein (NAIP) genes. Combining these results with those obtained for the multicopy microsatellite marker Ag1-CA (D5S1556) indicated that there are at least two types of SMA alleles. Most type I SMA patients are homozygous for large scale deletions involving the entire SMN(T) gene as well as exons 5 and 6 of the NAIP gene. The strong association between the 100-bp allele of Ag1-CA and large scale deletions in populations of diverse ethnic origin suggests that this allele marks an unstable or founder SMA chromosome. In contrast, most chronic SMA patients have at least one SMA allele with either an intragenic SMN(T) deletion or a SMN(C):SMN(T) chimeric gene which replaces the normal SMN(T) gene. The broad continuum of disease presentation in chronic SMA is most likely a consequence of the interaction between different SMA alleles.

Canada↗

Genotyping of alpha-antitrypsin in ten Croatian families.

OBJECTIVES: The aims of the study were to determine alpha-antitrypsin (AAT) genotype by a simple DNA-based method and to investigate the association of AAT genotype and serum AAT concentration in a group of ten families. METHODS AND RESULTS: AAT genotype was determined by PCR-RFLP and serum concentration by radial immunodiffusion in samples from each member of ten families (mother, father, and child/children). In the group of parents, five normal genotypes, Pi MM, with a normal serum AAT concentration, and fifteen Pi MZ genotypes, four of them with slightly decreased (43%-66% of the mean) AAT concentration were detected. In the group of children, particular genotypes followed the mode of inheritance. There were eight Pi MZ, three of them with slightly decreased (52%-60% of the mean) AAT concentration, and five Pi ZZ genotypes with considerably decreased (24%-45% of the mean) AAT concentration. CONCLUSIONS: PCR-RFLP is the method of choice for AAT genotyping. AAT concentration is not a reliable biochemical marker of AAT deficiency. Determination of AAT genotype in family studies allows the risk of deficient allele inheritance to be followed up and assessed. Early diagnosis of a deficient AAT genotype contributes to the success of currently widely available AAT replacement therapy.

Adolescent↗

FABP2 genotype is associated with insulin sensitivity in older women.

This study determined whether sequence variations in genes related to glucose and insulin metabolism are associated with insulin sensitivity in postmenopausal women after accounting for habitual physical activity levels, body composition, and hormone-replacement therapy (HRT). Eighteen sedentary, 19 physically active, and 23 athletic postmenopausal white women underwent a frequently sampled intravenous glucose tolerance test to determine insulin sensitivity (S(I)) and dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry to determine body composition. After accounting for the effects of body composition, habitual physical activity levels, and HRT status, S(I) was 26% lower in subjects with the Thr54 fatty acid-binding protein 2 (FABP2) allele compared with Ala54 homozygotes (4.3 +/- 0.5 v 5.8 +/- 0.6 microU x 10(-4)/min/mL; P <.05). Angiotensin-converting enzyme genotype was not significantly associated with S(I). There were no significant associations between Gln27Glu beta(2)-adrenergic receptor or Pro12Ala peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma variants and glucose or insulin kinetic parameters. It was concluded that FABP2 genotype influences insulin sensitivity independent of body composition, habitual physical activity levels, and HRT status in postmenopausal white women.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗

Frequency of insularia during the decline in melanics in the peppered moth Biston betularia in Britain.

Over the last three decades the frequency of the dark melanic form carbonaria of the peppered moth Biston betularia has declined in Britain. Data have been examined which show the intermediate phenotype insularia, controlled by alleles at the same locus, to have increased or remained level in frequency. Phenotype frequency of insularia does not always track allele frequency accurately because it is recessive to its alternative when carbonaria is common but dominant to the alternative when typical is common. It is shown that if insularia fitness lies between that of carbonaria and typical, and melanics replace typicals or vice versa, there will be a rise and fall in insularia allele frequency during a transitory period. The path followed is strongly affected by initial gene frequencies. During the high melanic period in Britain, differences in insularia frequency between localities may have been influenced by history of arrival of the novel morphs as well as by local selective conditions.

Alleles↗

A comprehensive polymerase chain reaction-oligonucleotide typing system for the HLA class I A locus.

A comprehensive system for genetic typing of the HLA class I A locus is described, based on PCR amplification and typing with nonradioactively labeled SSO probes. Exons 1-3 of the A locus are amplified and typing is performed with a set of 30 nonradioactively labeled oligonucleotide probes. This system resolves 34 of 39 known alleles and 561 (94%) of 595 possible genotypes. Among a sample of 354 individuals from Sweden and China, 97.5% of the genotypes were resolved. Probes were directed preferentially at replacement substitutions in foreign antigen-binding sites, in order to detect not only the known alleles but also new combinations of polymorphic motifs, indicative of previously unrecognized alleles. Three individuals were found with a new combination of polymorphic motifs, suggesting the presence of at least one previously undescribed allele in the populations sampled. This typing system is useful for disease association studies, tissue typing, and in forensic medicine.

Base Sequence↗