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Cell elongation and septation are two mutually exclusive processes in Escherichia coli.

Bacterial rod morphogenesis was studied in synchronously growing cells of Escherichia coli C600 during the reshaping process that follows the removal of mecillinam, a beta-lactam antibiotic that specifically inhibits lateral wall formation of gram-negative rods and causes transition to coccal shape. Removal of mecillinam after 30 min of action did not affect the timing of subsequent cell division, but removal after 50 min delayed resumption of cell division for approximately one generation time. In order to study the interplay between lateral wall elongation and septum formation in determining and maintaining the bacterial rod shape, we evaluated the effect of re-adding mecillinam or of adding aztreonam (a specific inhibitor of septum formation) at various stages of the reshaping process. We conclude that mecillinam was active only during the reshaping process, while aztreonam was active only later when the cells were close to dividing again. These results provide further evidence for our previous proposal according to which elongation and septation are two alternating and competing events of the cell cycle and are linked to each other to force bacterial rods to grow to a given length.

Amdinocillin↗

Neurofilament M and calbindin D28k are present in mutually exclusive subpopulations of enteric neurons in the rat submucous plexus.

Immunocytochemical methods have been used to examine the localisation of 3 neurofilament proteins and the calcium binding protein, calbindin D28k, in whole mount preparations of the submucous plexus in the Wistar rat. Neurofilament-M (160 kDA protein) was present in 40% of the submucosal neurons, staining fine filaments in the soma and the axonal processes. Calbindin D28k was present in 40% of the submucosal neurons staining both the soma and nerves within the plexus. The neurofilament proteins and calbindin D28k were never observed within the same neurons. Neurofilament-M was co-localised with substance P and calcitonin gene-related peptide but not somatostatin or the other neuropeptides investigated. Calbindin D28k was co-localised with vasoactive intestinal polypeptide and neuropeptide Y. Galanin- and somatostatin-immunoreactive neurons did not contain either the neurofilament proteins or calbindin D28k. The results demonstrate the presence of subsets of submucosal neurons that can be distinguished by the presence of neurofilament-M or calbindin D28k.

Animals↗

Density-dependent tumor cell death and reversible cell cycle arrest: mutually exclusive modes of monocyte-mediated growth control.

The population development of five human tumor cell lines is examined under the influence of elutriator-prepared human monocytes in a serum-free hormone- and growth factor-supplemented medium. Analysis was performed by electronic counting and sizing of tumor cell nuclei and flow cytometric detection of cell cycle phases. Tumor cell death is triggered at rather low monocyte:tumor cell ratios (1:2 to 1:4) whereas it is strongly reduced at high monocyte densities. Furthermore, it is shown that confluence of the target cell population is a necessary prerequisite for lysis. The data suggest that in monocyte/tumor cell cocultures the decision on target cell lysis is not made by the effector cell, but rather by the target cell and that the criterion for this decision is the target cell's ability or inability to respond to a monocyte challenge by arresting the cell cycle in G1. Interactions between target cells play an important role in determining the result of this decision process. A common basis is suggested for this kind of density-dependent monocyte-triggered lysis and density-dependent cell death in 3T3 cell cultures as described previously.

Cell Cycle↗

Expression of the vasopressin and oxytocin genes in rats occurs in mutually exclusive sets of hypothalamic neurons.

The genes for the hypothalamic hormones vasopressin and oxytocin are located in close proximity to each other within the rat genome. They are separated by only approx. 11 kbp of DNA sequence and oriented in such a way that their transcription occurs on opposite DNA strands. Although the two genes are structurally very similar including common potential regulatory elements in their putative promotor regions, they are expressed in discrete populations of magnocellular neurons of the hypothalamus. In rats placed under osmotic stress, the vasopressin gene is upregulated; concomitantly transcription of the oxytocin gene is also stimulated. To address the question of whether this coordinated rise in oxytocin-encoding mRNA is the result of switching on oxytocin gene transcription in vasopressinergic neurons, in situ hybridization with double labelled cRNA probes was carried out. Biotinylated and [alpha-35S]CTP labelled antisense cRNA probes specific for either vasopressin or oxytocin mRNA were constructed and hybridized to hypothalamic sections from salt-loaded rats. The results demonstrate that upregulation of oxytocin gene transcription is restricted solely to oxytocinergic cells; no oxytocin gene transcripts can be detected in vasopressinergic neurons.

Animals↗

Amyloid precursor protein secretion and beta A4 amyloid generation are not mutually exclusive.

The cellular factors regulating the generation of beta A4 from the amyloid precursor protein (APP) are unknown. Protein phosphorylation by protein kinase C (PKC) has been found to influence the processing and metabolism of APP. In this report, we show that in the human neuroblastoma cell line SY5Y, beta A4 generation from full-length APP is not changed by PKC activation whereas production of the non-amyloidogenic secretory fragment (APPsec) and of the C-terminal fragment of beta A4 (p3) are stimulated. In addition, beta A4 generation from the membrane inserted C-terminal 100 residues (SPA4CT) of APP is stimulated by PKC activation. Accordingly attempts to divert APP processing from the amyloidogenic, beta A4-generating, to the non-amyloidogenic, secretory, pathway, have to address the nature and regulation of the two pathways and/or of the process leading to the cleavage of APP at the C-terminus of the beta A4 domain. The data reported here suggest that these mechanisms are cell-type specific.

Amyloid beta-Peptides↗

Mutually exclusive interaction of the CCAAT-binding factor and of a displacement protein with overlapping sequences of a histone gene promoter.

The sperm histone H2B-1 gene of the sea urchin Psammechinus miliaris contains two octamer sequences (ATTTGCAT) and two CCAAT motifs upstream of its TATA box. The CCAAT-binding factors present in nuclear extracts from testis and from blastula and gastrula embryos are indistinguishable by mobility shift and methylation interference analysis. However, there is a testis-specific octamer-binding factor in addition to the ubiquitous form. In DNAase I protection experiments, the CCAAT-binding factor of only the testis extract is able to interact with the sperm H2B promoter. In the two embryonic extracts a novel factor binds with high affinity to sequences overlapping the proximal CCAAT element, thus preventing the DNA interaction of the CCAAT-binding factor in the embryo where the sperm H2B gene is not expressed. This CCAAT displacement protein may therefore act as a repressor of sperm H2B gene transcription.

Base Sequence↗

Mutual exclusion of sensory bristles and tendons on the notum of dipteran flies.

BACKGROUND: Genes of the achaete-scute complex encode transcription factors whose activity regulates the development of neural cells. The spatially restricted expression of achaete-scute on the mesonotum of higher flies governs the development and positioning of the large sensory bristles. On the scutum the bristles are arranged into conserved patterns, based on an ancestral arrangement of four longitudinal rows. This pattern appears to date back to the origin of cyclorraphous flies about 100-140 million years ago. The origin of the four-row bauplan, which is independent of body size, and the reasons for its conservation, are not known. RESULTS: We report that tendons for attachment of the indirect flight muscles are invariably located between the bristle rows of the scutum throughout the Diptera. Tendon development depends on the activity of a transcription factor encoded by the gene stripe. In Drosophila, stripe and achaete-scute have separate expression domains, leading to spatial segregation of tendon precursors and bristle precursors. Furthermore the products of these genes act antagonistically: ectopic sr expression prevents bristle development and ectopic sc expression prevents normal muscle attachment. The product of stripe acts downstream of Achaete-Scute and interferes with the development of bristle precursors. CONCLUSIONS: The pattern of flight muscles has changed little throughout the Diptera and we argue that the sites of muscle attachment may have constrained the positioning of bristles during the course of evolution. This could account for the pattern of four bristle rows on the scutum.

Animals↗

Activation, silencing and mutually exclusive expression within the var gene family of Plasmodium falciparum.

The var gene family of the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum remains a topic of intense research focus due to the key role these antigen-encoding genes play in the ability of parasites to cause disease and avoid the human immune response. In recent years, as molecular tools for investigating the mechanisms that coordinate var gene expression have become more sophisticated, numerous insights have been acquired into how parasites manage to regulate transcription of this large gene family such that only a single gene is expressed at a time. The results of different experimental approaches have implicated mechanisms of chromatin modification, subnuclear localisation, promoter/promoter interactions and sterile RNAs in the silencing and activation of individual var genes, however, the roles that each of these different aspects play remain ill defined. In addition, some conflicting data regarding silencing and monoallelic expression of recombinant var promoters have recently been published, thus adding to the difficulty of understanding this complex phenomenon. In this review, we hope to present some of the existing data regarding this controversial topic in a way that will be both informative and constructive in our efforts to understand the molecular aspects of antigenic variation by malaria parasites.

Animals↗

Modular enzyme design: regulation by mutually exclusive protein folding.

A regulatory mechanism is introduced whereupon the catalytic activity of a given enzyme is controlled by ligand binding to a receptor domain of choice. A small enzyme (barnase) and a ligand-binding polypeptide (GCN4) are fused so that a simple topological constraint prevents them from existing simultaneously in their folded states. The two domains consequently engage in a thermodynamic tug-of-war in which the more stable domain forces the less stable domain to unfold. In the absence of ligand, the barnase domain is more stable and is therefore folded and active; the GCN4 domain is substantially unstructured. DNA binding induces folding of GCN4, forcibly unfolding and inactivating the barnase domain. Barnase-GCN4 is thus a "natively unfolded" protein that uses ligand binding to switch between partially folded forms. The key characteristics of each parent protein (catalytic efficiency of barnase, DNA binding affinity and sequence specificity of GCN4) are retained in the chimera. Barnase-GCN4 thus defines a modular approach for assembling enzymes with novel sensor capabilities from a variety of catalytic and ligand binding domains.

Animals↗