Neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2) is a genetic disorder caused by the inactivation of the
merlin tumor suppressor gene. NF2 patients develop bilateral vestibular schwannomas
(VS) and other nervous system tumors with no effective drug treatment option. In
pathological conditions, including NF2, production of the oxidant peroxynitrite leads to
protein tyrosine...
Marine primary production can be modeled and estimated using remotely-observable physiological signatures such as chlorophyll and carbon. Current models are based on strict physiological relationships based on photoautotrophic phytoplankton, and discrepancies between modeled and in situ data may stem from unaccounted-for physiological deviations from photoautotrophy. Mixotrophic phytoplankton can obtain energy...
A compound series capable of reversing the antiviral effect of Ribavirin (RBV) against H1N1 was
identified from a high throughput screen designed to discover compounds capable of increasing the
fidelity of the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RDRP) n ribovirus quasispecies. Two lead compounds,
RIC-1 (EC50 of 78.4 nM) and RIC-2 (EC50...
Barley yellow dwarf (BYD) is a damaging luteovirus disease responsible for reduced tillering, delayed heading, sterility, and stunting in many cereals worldwide. Well-characterized resistance genes to barley yellow dwarf viruses (BYDV) are scarce and genes conferring tolerance to BYDV are limited in wheat. In an attempt to generate plants with...
Antigen presentation is a mechanism used by cells to present peptides on the cell surface. Peptides, derived from both viral or self-proteins are presented on the cell surface by MHC Class I molecules to be recognized and detected by cytotoxic T cells. T cells comprise the defense system to protect...
Pancreatic beta cells produce and release insulin, a vital hormone that regulates blood glucose levels, and their dysfunction contributes to the development of diabetes mellitus. Dietary zinc deficiency and exposure to the toxicant inorganic arsenic have both independently been associated with diabetes, although the effects of their combination on pancreatic...
The opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa possesses two LuxR-LuxI
type quorum-sensing systems that use diffusible acyl-homoserine lactone molecules to
autoinduce and coordinate expression of multiple virulence factors. We conducted a highthroughput
screen for mutants deficient in skim-milk proteolysis—a quorum-sensing
dependent phenotype—using a nonredundant transposon-insertion library representing
most nonessential genes in P....
Cytoplasmic dynein is a 1.6MDa motor protein complex that functions in transporting cargo along the cytoskeleton. It is made up of different subunits, heavy chain (HC), intermediate chain (IC), and light chains (LC7, LC8, Tctex). The intermediate and light chains interact with accessory proteins NudE and Dynactin (through the large...
Pantoea vagans C9-1 (C9-1) is a biological control agent sprayed onto apple and pear trees during bloom for suppression of fire blight, a devastating bacterial disease caused by Erwinia amylovora. Prior bioinformatics studies of C9-1 focused on predicted phenotypes associated with the three native megaplasmids, pPag1, pPag2, and pPag3, and...
Aging is a complex biological phenomenon that alters many different physiological processes. Although many age-related phenotypes, such as neurodegeneration, weakening circadian rhythms, and inflammaging, are well-studied, the links between them are not. To elucidate these links we created an inflammation-like state in Drosophila melanogaster by overexpressing Relish (Rel), an NFκB...