microPublication biology最新文献

In Chlamydomonas , the central pair (CP) and radial spoke (RS) complexes in the axoneme are key regulators of ciliary motility. Radial spoke protein 3 (RSP3) is an A-kinase anchoring protein (AKAP), and mutation of the RII-binding domain ( 388 ) results in specific ciliary motility defects. When combined with ida1 , a mutant defective in the 1α-dynein heavy chain required for assembly of the I1 dynein complex, the phenotype of the resulting 388; ida1 double mutant is ida1 -like, not 388 -like; thus, ida1 is epistatic to 388 . These results support I1 dynein being downstream of the RSP3 RII-binding domain function in a signaling pathway that regulates Chlamydomonas ciliary motility.

The impact of intestinal gases, including gasotransmitters, on antibiotic efficacy is severely understudied. This study assessed the effects of low-dose CO (85 µg/g) on the efficacy of various antibiotics in low oxygen conditions using the Kirby-Bauer method against E. coli BW20767/pRL27. Preliminary results showed that exposure to CO exerts variable effects on antibiotic efficacy. This indicates that CO exerts its effects not only through modulation of E. coli 's respiratory chain, but may also involve additional, as-yet unidentified targets independent of terminal oxidase binding. We also observed that E. coli endogenously produces CO as it switches to anaerobic metabolism.

Hemp ( Cannabis sativa ) is a dioecious species whose glandular trichomes, found predominantly on female flowers, produce a variety of phytocannabinoids. Determining plant sex during the vegetative stage is not feasible, as only flowering plants allow accurate distinction. To efficiently utilize cultivation space and prevent unwanted pollination, it is therefore essential to reliably identify male hemp plants at an early developmental stage. Although numerous methods for sex identification in hemp have been reported, most rely on multi-step DNA extraction workflows and require costly equipment and consumables. Here, we present CRISP (Cannabis Rapid Identification of Sex by PCR), a simple, rapid, and cost-effective high-throughput approach. CRISP combines a simplified genomic DNA extraction via high-temperature chemical lysis with PCR detection of the male hemp marker SCAR323 in a 96-well format. We identified male seedlings from two cultivars with 100% accuracy, demonstrating the suitability of CRISP for large-scale sex identification in a highly cost-efficient manner.

In C. elegans hermaphrodites, the distal tip cells (DTCs) capping the gonad arms provide a Notch ligand, the niche signal that maintains germline stem cell pools. Using fixed germlines, it was recently shown that the transcription of a Notch target gene decreased relatively early-on during adulthood. Here, we used the genetically encoded Notch Sensor Able to detect Lateral Signaling Activity (SALSA) to examine the pattern of GLP-1/Notch activity across the aging distal gonad in vivo . Interestingly, we find that the robust and progressively decreasing distal-proximal Notch activation gradient that is observed in young adults gets largely lost during aging.

We observed the aggregation of starved C. elegans into web-like patterns scaffolded by an unknown chemoattractive extracellular substance that is protein-rich, mucoid, water-insoluble, elastic, and likely to be both secreted and consumed by C. elegans . Under time-lapse imaging, we observed the formation of both the aggregation structures and the proteinaceous substance after populating an NGM plate with 100-200 worms and letting them starve over seven days. We preliminarily characterized the substance using Coomassie, WGA, and DAPI staining. We surmise that the substance may be composed of cuticles, remnants of dead worms, and worm yolk.

Drosophila carrying the Shudderer (Shu) allele of the voltage-gated Na ⁺ gene paralytic display spontaneous convulsions and immobilization phenotypes that are exacerbated by high temperature. To automate identification of these aberrant behaviors in Shu mutants, we trained a machine-learning classifier on a manually annotated dataset. The system reliably classified walking activity and immobilization periods, while uncoordinated movement events were detected with moderate sensitivity and high specificity. We then characterized the behavioral repertoire of Shu mutants and wild-type flies over a temperature-ramp protocol (20 - 40 °C) using the classifier. Our developments facilitate quantitative studies of environmental or genetic factors that alter behaviors characteristic of Drosophila models of neurological disease.

Phages Piku and Utopia were isolated from soil samples in Illinois, USA, on A. globiformis B-2979 and B-2880, respectively. Both phages have genomes encoding 22 genes, including an endolysin. The genomes are highly conserved, differing by only three genes, including genes involved in structural and replication functions, and one of unknown function. Based on gene content, both phages are assigned to cluster FE.

Imbalances between pathogenic and commensal bacteria cause microbial dysbiosis that disrupts host development. Streptococcus mutans ' virulence factors promote human oral cell colonization, leading to dysbiosis if unchecked. When grown with the probiotic Lacticaseibacillus casei , a competitive relationship ensues. Using Caenorhabditis elegans , two assays quantified the effects of these bacteria on egg production and worm growth. Worms exposed to S. mutans exhibited fewer offspring, egg defects, delayed development, and twisted pharynx and dumpy phenotypes. L. casei did not prevent these effects.

We report the discovery and genome sequence of three phages with siphovirus morphology isolated from soil collected in Socorro, New Mexico. Phages Natasha and RustyBoy, which were isolated using Arthrobacter globiformis B-2979, are both assigned to actinobacteriophage cluster AW based on gene content. Phage Fazel was isolated using Gordonia rubripertincta NRRL B-16540 and assigned to cluster DJ.

Enzymes contributing to amino acid metabolism are among the most ancient in the proteome. A growing appreciation that many of these proteins have evolved to contribute multiple, distinct functions has led to an increased focus on defining such moonlighting molecules and their diverse roles. A focus on the metabolic enzyme anthranilate phosphoribosyltransferase, encoded by TRP4 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae , revealed that Ser121, identified in structural studies as critical for substrate binding, is not required for two documented in vivo functions. These findings add functional complexity to the Trp4 active site beyond crystallographic characterization.