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At least 1,099 records · Page 61Linked to original sources

Discovery of a unique Ig heavy-chain isotype (IgT) in rainbow trout: Implications for a distinctive B cell developmental pathway in teleost fish.

During the analysis of Ig superfamily members within the available rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) EST gene index, we identified a unique Ig heavy-chain (IgH) isotype. cDNAs encoding this isotype are composed of a typical IgH leader sequence and a VDJ rearranged segment followed by four Ig superfamily C-1 domains represented as either membrane-bound or secretory versions. Because teleost fish were previously thought to encode and express only two IgH isotypes (IgM and IgD) for their humoral immune repertoire, we isolated all three cDNA isotypes from a single homozygous trout (OSU-142) to confirm that all three are indeed independent isotypes. Bioinformatic and phylogenetic analysis indicates that this previously undescribed divergent isotype is restricted to bony fish, thus we have named this isotype "IgT" (tau) for teleost fish. Genomic sequence analysis of an OSU-142 bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) clone positive for all three IgH isotypes revealed that IgT utilizes the standard rainbow trout V(H) families, but surprisingly, the IgT isotype possesses its own exclusive set of D(H) and J(H) elements for the generation of diversity. The IgT D and J segments and tau constant (C) region genes are located upstream of the D and J elements for IgM, representing a genomic IgH architecture that has not been observed in any other vertebrate class. All three isotypes are primarily expressed in the spleen and pronephros (bone marrow equivalent), and ontogenically, expression of IgT is present 4 d before hatching in developing embryos.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Large-scale computational identification of HIV T-cell epitopes.

Bioinformatics-driven T-cell epitope-identification methods can enhance vaccine target selection significantly. We evaluated three unrelated computational methods to screen Pol, Gag and Env sequences extracted from the Los Alamos HIV database for HLA-A*0201 and HLA-B*3501 T-cell epitope candidates. The hidden Markov model predicted 389 HLA-B*3501-restricted candidates from 374 HIV-1 and 97 HIV-2 sequences. The artificial neural network (ANN) model, and Bioinformatics and Molecular Analysis Section (BIMAS) quantitative matrix predictions for A*0201 yielded 1122 HIV-1 and 548 HIV-2 candidates. The overall sequence coverage of the predicted A*0201 T-cell epitopes was 2.7% (HIV-1)and 3.0% (HIV-2). HLA-B*3501-predicted epitopes covered 0.9% (HIV-1) and 1.4% (HIV-2) of the total sequence. Comparison of 890 ANN- and 397 BIMAS-derived HIV-1 A*0201- restricted epitope candidates showed that only 13-19% of the predicted and 26% of the experimentally confirmed T-cell epitopes were captured by both methods. Extrapolating these results, we estimated that at least 247 predicted HIV-1 epitopes are yet to be discovered as active A*0201-restricted T-cell epitopes. Adequate comparison and combined usage of various predictive bioinformatics methods, rather than uncritical use of any single prediction method, will enable cost-effective and efficient T-cell epitope screening.

Computational Biology↗

[The present status and future prospect of the molecular diagnostic tests].

Assays for DNA or RNA sequences to diagnose infectious, neoplastic and genetic diseases have been widely used through recent progress in the molecular biology and biotechnology, and are now essential in care of patients under the advanced medicine through earlier and more accurate diagnosis. Automated systems have been developed for amplification and detection of nucleic acid sequence for infectious agents, using various nucleic acid amplification technology such as PCR. A fully automated PCR system and automated extraction of specific sequence for infectious agents such as hepatitis C virus RNA has been developed. These automated systems have provided improvement of not only assay efficiency but also quality control of the tests and have contributed to the standardization of them. Importance of development of systems for quality assessment and laboratory accreditation has been emphasized, particularly in those that still have been performed with manual methods. Based on the information on the genome sequence as the outcome of the human genome project, functions of genes and proteins have been studied by post-genomics such as expression profiling using DNA microarray, proteomics, single nucleotide polymorphisms analysis, coupled with bioinformatics. Along with advances in pharmacogenomics, these studies have raised the prospect of the development of tests for individualized medicine based on genetic information such as those predicting individual susceptibility to diseases for prevention and responsiveness to drugs for choice of treatment. For practice of such medicine, each genetic information and tests for it must be carefully evaluated and determined whether it is appropriate for cost-effective medicine through contributions to efficient process of decision-makings on patient care for prevention or avoidance of diseases and thus to cost savings.

Cytogenetic Analysis↗

[Construction of standard human transcript dataset based on RefSeq and human genome sequence database].

The NCBI Reference Sequence (RefSeq) database aimed to provide a biologically non-redundant collection of DNA, RNA, and protein sequences and to promote the research on genes and proteins of human beings and other species. However, because of widely distributed polymorphisms and different quality control of experiments in individual laboratories, there are potential problems need to be identified in the RefSeq database. Regarding which, we herein define the concept, standard transcript, based on the Central Dogmas of Biology that each standard transcript should be perfectly mapped to the standard genomic DNA sequence at the exon level. A large scale analysis for mapping all of the RefSeq records of human being (2005-4-18) to the officially released human genome sequence database (2005-4-20) was further performed using BLAT, Sim4 and a homemade program, EIparser, which was especially designed for this purpose. The standard transcripts based on the RefSeq database were obtained according to the alignment with standard human genome database. There are 9,771 RefSeq records of human being labeled with "NM_" and "NR_" could be perfectly mapped to human genome sequences, while other 10,943 records could be considered as standard transcripts after reasonable revision by comparing with the genome sequences according to all of the three methods. Moreover, the left 203 unrevisable records and 2,676 inconsistent records reported by the above programs could not be considered as standard transcripts and should be checked critically before using because of potential errors in them. Our study has thus provided a reference standard dataset of human beings with high quality for further bioinformatic and experimental analysis such as polymorphism and mutation of human genes. The reference standard dataset based on above criteria could be retrieved from http://biocompute.bmi.ac.cn/transcriptome/index.htm.

Databases, Genetic↗

Identification by Real-time PCR of 13 mature microRNAs differentially expressed in colorectal cancer and non-tumoral tissues.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short non-coding RNA molecules playing regulatory roles by repressing translation or cleaving RNA transcripts. Although the number of verified human miRNA is still expanding, only few have been functionally described. However, emerging evidences suggest the potential involvement of altered regulation of miRNA in pathogenesis of cancers and these genes are thought to function as both tumours suppressor and oncogenes. In our study, we examined by Real-Time PCR the expression of 156 mature miRNA in colorectal cancer. The analysis by several bioinformatics algorithms of colorectal tumours and adjacent non-neoplastic tissues from patients and colorectal cancer cell lines allowed identifying a group of 13 miRNA whose expression is significantly altered in this tumor. The most significantly deregulated miRNA being miR-31, miR-96, miR-133b, miR-135b, miR-145, and miR-183. In addition, the expression level of miR-31 was correlated with the stage of CRC tumor. Our results suggest that miRNA expression profile could have relevance to the biological and clinical behavior of colorectal neoplasia.

Cluster Analysis↗

[Establishment of diagnostic model of cerebrospinal protein fingerprint pattern for glioma and its clinical application].

OBJECTIVE: To establish the diagnostic model of cerebrospinal protein profile for gliomas by surface-enhanced laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (SELDI-TOF MS) and bioinformatics. METHODS: Seventy-five samples of cerebrospinal fluid from patients with gliomas, benign brain tumors and mild brain traumas were collected. A total of 50 samples from gliomas and non-brain-tumors were divided into training sets (33 cases including 17 gliomas and 16 non-brain-tumors) and testing sets (17 cases including 5 gliomas and 12 non-brain-tumors). The cerebrospinal proteins bound to H4 chip were detected by SELDI-TOF MS, the profiles of cerebrospinal protein were gained and then analyzed with artificial neural network algorithm (ANN); and the diagnostic model of cerebrospinal protein profiles for differentiating gliomas from non-brain-tumors was established. Forty-seven of cerebrospinal samples of gliomas and benign brain tumors were divided into training sets (31 cases including 13 gliomas and 18 benign brain tumors) and testing sets (16 cases including 9 gliomas and 7 benign brain tumors), the diagnostic model of cerebrospinal protein profiles for differentiating gliomas from benign brain tumors was established based on the same method. The support vector machine (SVM) algorithm was also used for evaluation, both results were very similar, but the result derived from ANN was more stable than that from SVM. RESULT: The diagnostic model of cerebrospinal protein profiles for differentiating gliomas from non-brain-tumors was established and was challenged with the test set randomly, the sensitivity and specificity were 100% and 91.7%, respectively. The cerebrospinal protein profiling model for differentiating gliomas from benign brain tumors was also developed and was challenged with the test set randomly, the sensitivity and specificity were 88.9%, and 100%, respectively. CONCLUSION: The technology of SELDI-TOF MS which combined with analysis tools of bioinformatics is a novel effective method for screening and identifying tumor biomarkers of gliomas and it may provide a new approach for the clinical diagnosis of glioma.

Adult↗

Whole-Genome Sequence Dataset of Rhodococcus qingshengii IEGM 267-Terpenoid Biotransformer Toward Genetic Functional Annotation.

Background/Objectives: Microbial biotransformation of monoterpenoids is a promising approach for obtaining bioactive compounds. Rhodococcus species are attractive biocatalysts due to their metabolic versatility and ability to transform hydrophobic substrates. In this study, we investigated the catalytic potential of Rhodococcus qingshengii IEGM 267 toward carveol isomers and explored genomic features that may underlie this activity. Methods: The strain was cultivated in mineral medium supplemented with (-)-trans-carveol. Biotransformation products were analyzed by TLC and GC-MS. The draft genome was sequenced, assembled, taxonomically assigned, and annotated using standard bioinformatics tools. Results: Rhodococcus qingshengii IEGM 267 efficiently converted (-)-trans-carveol to carvone. Genome analysis confirmed the taxonomic assignment of the strain and revealed a large repertoire of oxidoreductases, including monooxygenases, hydroxylases, and dehydrogenases. Seven genes encoding cytochrome P450-dependent oxygenases were identified as candidate enzymes potentially involved in carveol oxidation. Conclusions: R. qingshengii IEGM 267 is an efficient and stereoselective biocatalyst for (-)-trans-carveol oxidation. The results of bioinformatics analysis suggest an alternative enzymatic basis for this transformation and provide a foundation for future functional characterization.

Rhodococcus↗

Cloning and characterization of a novel cardiac-specific kinase that interacts specifically with cardiac troponin I.

Cardiac-restricted genes play important roles in cardiovascular system. In an effort to identify such novel genes we identified a novel cardiac-specific kinase gene TNNI3K localized on 1p31.1 based on bioinformatics analyses. Sequence analysis suggested that TNNI3K is a distant family member of integrin-linked kinase. Northern blot and 76-tissue array analyses showed that TNNI3K is highly expressed in heart, but is undetectable in other tissues. Immunohistochemical analysis predominantly localized TNNI3K in the nucleus of cardiac myocytes. In vitro kinase assay showed that TNNI3K is a functional kinase. The yeast two-hybrid system showed that TNNI3K could directly interact with cardiac troponin I, results that were further confirmed by coimmunoprecipitation in vivo. Our data suggest that TNNI3K is a cardiac-specific kinase and play important roles in cardiac system.

Adult↗

Expression of mouse membrane-associated prostaglandin E2 synthase-2 (mPGES-2) along the urogenital tract.

Prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)) is the most common prostanoid and has a variety of bioactivities including a crucial role in urogenital function. Multiple enzymes are involved in its biosynthesis. Among 3 PGE(2) terminal synthetic enzymes, membrane-associated PGE(2) synthase-2 (mPGES-2) is the most recently identified, and its role remains uncharacterized. In previous studies, membrane-associated PGE(2) synthase-1 (mPGES-1) and cytosolic PGE(2) synthase (cPGES) were reported to be expressed along the urogenital tracts. Here we report the genomic structure and tissue distribution of mPGES-2 in the urogenital system. Analysis of several bioinformatic databases demonstrated that mouse mPGES-2 spans 7 kb and consists of 7 exons. The mPGES-2 promoter contains multiple Sp1 sites and a GC box without a TATA box motif. Real-time quantitative PCR revealed that constitutive mPGES-2 mRNA was most abundant in the heart, brain, kidney and small intestine. In the urogenital system, mPGES-2 was highly expressed in the renal cortex, followed by the renal medulla and ovary, with lower levels in the ureter, bladder and uterus. Immunohistochemistry studies indicated that mPGES-2 was ubiquitously expressed along the nephron, with much lower levels in the glomeruli. In the ureter and bladder, mPGES-2 was mainly localized to the urothelium. In the reproductive system, mPGES-2 was restricted to the epithelial cells of the testis, epididymis, vas deferens and seminal vesicle in males, and oocytes, stroma cells and corpus luteum of the ovary and epithelial cells of the oviduct and uterus in females. This expression pattern is consistent with an important role for mPGES-2-mediated PGE(2) in urogenital function.

Animals↗

A simplified QTL mapping approach for screening and mapping of novel AFLP markers associated with beef marbling.

Genome screening of quantitative trait loci (QTL) for a complex trait is usually costly and highly laborious, as it requires a large number of markers spanning the whole genome. Here we present a simplified approach for screening and mapping of QTL-linked markers for beef marbling using a WagyuxLimousin F(2) reference population. This simplified approach involves integration of the amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) with DNA pooling and selective genotyping and comparative bioinformatics tools. AFLP analysis on two high and two low marbling DNA pools yielded ten visually different markers. Among them, four were confirmed based on individual AFLP validation. Sequencing and in silico characterization assigned two of these AFLP markers to bovine chromosomes 1 (BTA1) and 13 (BTA13), which are orthologous to human chromosomes HSA21q22.2 and HSA10p11.23 with both regions harboring QTL for obesity-related phenotypes. Both AFLP markers showed significantly large additive genetic effects (0.28+/-0.11 on BTA1 and 0.54+/-0.21 on BTA13) on beef-marbling score (BMS) (P<0.05). Overall, this approach is less time consuming, inexpensive and in particular, suitable for screening and mapping QTL-linked markers when targeting one or a few complex traits.

Animals↗

Identification and characterization of a novel member of the dystrobrevin gene family.

A new member of the dystrobrevin gene family was identified using a bioinformatics approach. Sequence analysis indicates that this gene, named DTN-B, is highly homologous to the rabbit A0, the previously described dystrobrevin (DTN), Torpedo 87 kDa and to the C-terminus of dystrophin. The coiled-coil domain, shown to be the site of interaction between dystrobrevins and dystrophin, is highly conserved. Immunostaining studies indicate that DTN-B and DTN expression is absent in affected muscle fibers from DMD patients and carriers.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Distribution of new human beta-defensin genes clustered on chromosome 20 in functionally different segments of epididymis.

Human beta-defensins are a family of cationic peptides that share a pattern of six conserved cysteine residues. We describe the cloning and characterization of the cDNAs of five novel beta-defensin genes (DEFB25-DEFB29) clustered on chromosome 20p13, which were identified using a bioinformatics approach. Expression analysis revealed the occurrence of the transcripts in only a few organs, with the highest abundance in the male genital tract. Examination of beta-defensin expression in human epididymis by real-time quantitative RT-PCR revealed a distribution along the functionally different segments of the epididymal duct. In situ hybridization for one of the cDNAs shows mRNA restriction to the epithelial cell layer of the epididymis, known to secrete factors responsible for sperm maturation. We suggest that the novel peptides carry out physiological functions in the male genital tract that may not be directly related to bacterial growth inhibition in host defense.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Expressed sequence tags: alternative or complement to whole genome sequences?

Over three million sequences from approximately 200 plant species have been deposited in the publicly available plant expressed sequence tag (EST) sequence databases. Many of the ESTs have been sequenced as an alternative to complete genome sequencing or as a substrate for cDNA array-based expression analyses. This creates a formidable resource from both biodiversity and gene-discovery standpoints. Bioinformatics-based sequence analysis tools have extended the scope of EST analysis into the fields of proteomics, marker development and genome annotation. Although EST collections are certainly no substitute for a whole genome scaffold, this "poor man's genome" resource forms the core foundations for various genome-scale experiments within the as yet unsequenceable plant genomes.

Computational Biology↗

Integration of a two-phase partition method into proteomics research on rat liver plasma membrane proteins.

To comprehensively identify proteins of the rat liver plasma membrane (PM), we have adopted a proteomics strategy that utilizes sucrose density centrifugation in conjunction with aqueous two-phase partition for plasma membrane isolation, followed by SDS-PAGE, mass spectrometry and bioinformatics. Western blot analysis showed that this method results in highly purified plasma membrane fractions, which is a key to successful plasma membrane proteomics. The PM proteins were separated by SDS-PAGE and digested with trypsin. Through nano-ESI-LC MS/MS analysis we identified 428 rat liver membrane proteins, of which 304 had a gene ontology (GO) annotation indicating a cellular component, and 204 (67%) of the latter were known integral membrane proteins or membrane-associated proteins. In addition to proteins known to be associated with the plasma membrane, several hypothetical proteins have also been identified. This study not only provides a tool to study plasma membrane proteins with low levels of contamination, but also provides a data set for proteins of high to moderate abundance in rat liver plasma membranes, thus allowing for more comprehensive characterization of membrane proteins and a better understanding of membrane dynamics.

Animals↗

Neutralization epitope responsible for the hepatitis B virus subtype-specific protection in chimpanzees.

Neutralizing monoclonal antibody (BX-182) directed against the d determinant of hepatitis B virus (HBV) surface antigen protected chimpanzees from infection by HBV subtype adw but not by subtype ayw, as demonstrated by intravenously inoculating a mixture of the antibody with the respective subtype of the virus. To elucidate the mechanism underlying the subtype-specific protection, a combinatorial approach of screening random peptide phage libraries, bioinformatics, and structure analysis was used in this study to identify the neutralization epitope responsible for the observed protection. The epitope was mapped at the N terminus of the pre-S1 region of the hepatitis B surface antigen between residues 17 and 21, of which the residues Val-18/Pro-19 were critical for antibody binding. Alignment of amino acid sequences derived from diverse genetic variants of HBV revealed that the epitope was present in ad subtypes and in their corresponding genotypes A, B, C, F, and H. By contrast, this epitope was not found in a majority of ay subtypes or in genotypes D, E, and G, where the antigenic residues Val-18/Pro-19 within the epitope were replaced by Thr/Ser, Thr/Thr, or Ala/Ser, respectively, resulting in a drastic conformational change of the epitope. These data indicate that, by binding discriminately to the subtype "d" epitope in the pre-S1 region, neutralizing antibody BX-182 protects chimpanzees from HBV infection in a subtype-specific manner, suggesting a potential escape mechanism for HBV genetic variants.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Comprehensive analysis of the secreted proteins of the parasite Haemonchus contortus reveals extensive sequence variation and differential immune recognition.

Haemonchus contortus is a nematode that infects small ruminants. It releases a variety of molecules, designated excretory/secretory products (ESP), into the host. Although the composition of ESP is largely unknown, it is a source of potential vaccine components because ESP are able to induce up to 90% protection in sheep. We used proteomic tools to analyze ESP proteins and determined the recognition of these individual proteins by hyperimmune sera. Following two-dimensional electrophoresis of ESP, matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry were used for protein identification. Few sequences of H. contortus have been determined. Therefore, the data base of expressed sequence tags (dbEST) and a data base consisting of contigs from Haemonchus ESTs were also consulted for identification. Approximately 200 individual spots were observed in the two-dimensional gel. Comprehensive proteomics analysis, combined with bioinformatic search tools, identified 107 proteins in 102 spots. The data include known as well as novel proteins such as serine, metallo- and aspartyl proteases, in addition to H. contortus ESP components like Hc24, Hc40, Hc15, and apical gut GA1 proteins. Novel proteins were identified from matches with H. contortus ESTs displaying high similarity with proteins like cyclophilins, nucleoside diphosphate kinase, OV39 antigen, and undescribed homologues of Caenorhabditis elegans. Of special note is the finding of microsomal peptidase H11, a vaccine candidate previously regarded as a "hidden antigen" because it was not found in ESP. Extensive sequence variation is present in the abundant Hc15 proteins. The Hc15 isoforms are differentially recognized by hyperimmune sera, pointing to a possible specific role of Hc15 in the infectious process and/or in immune evasion. This concept and the identification of multiple novel immune-recognized components in ESP should assist future vaccine development strategies.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Analysis of the ribosomal protein S19 interactome.

Ribosomal protein S19 (RPS19) is a 16-kDa protein found mainly as a component of the ribosomal 40 S subunit. Its mutations are responsible for Diamond Blackfan anemia, a congenital disease characterized by defective erythroid progenitor maturation. Dysregulation of RPS19 has therefore been implicated in this defective erythropoiesis, although the link between them is still unclear. Two not mutually exclusive hypotheses have been proposed: altered protein synthesis and loss of unknown functions not directly connected with the structural role of RPS19 in the ribosome. A role in rRNA processing has been surmised for the yeast ortholog, whereas the extracellular RPS19 dimer has a monocyte chemotactic activity. Three proteins are known to interact with RPS19: FGF2, complement component 5 receptor 1, and a nucleolar protein called RPS19-binding protein. We have used a yeast two-hybrid approach to identify a fourth protein: the serine-threonine kinase PIM1. The present study describes our use of proteomics strategies to look for proteins interacting with RPS19 to determine its functions. Proteins were isolated by affinity purification with a GST-RPS19 recombinant protein and identified using LCMS/MS analysis coupled to bioinformatics tools. We identified 159 proteins from the following Gene Ontology categories: NTPases (ATPases and GTPases; five proteins), hydrolases/helicases (19 proteins), isomerases (two proteins), kinases (three proteins), splicing factors (five proteins), structural constituents of ribosome (29 proteins), transcription factors (11 proteins), transferases (five proteins), transporters (nine proteins), DNA/RNA-binding protein species (53 proteins), other (one dehydrogenase protein, one ligase protein, one peptidase protein, one receptor protein, and one translation elongation factor), and 13 proteins of still unknown function. Proteomics results were validated by affinity purification and Western blotting. These interactions were further confirmed by co-immunoprecipitation using a monoclonal RPS19 antibody. Many interactors are nucleolar proteins and thus are expected to take part in the RPS19 interactome; however, some proteins suggest additional functional roles for RPS19.

Glutathione Transferase↗

Emerging bioinformatics for the metabolome.

Metabolic profiling applied to functional genomics (metabolomics) is in an early stage of development. Here, the technologies used for metabolite profiling are briefly covered, illustrated by a few pioneering studies. Issues related to bioinformatics, namely data analysis, visualisation and archival, are the main focus of this review. Arguably there is already a need for databases containing metabolite profiles specific for a single organism, and a generic repository containing all metabolite profiling results, regardless of species. Data analyses and visualisations that combine the biological context with chemistry details are suggested as being the most promising.

Animals↗