bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Cloning and Expression Analysis of Rice Sucrose Transporter Genes OsSUT2M and OsSUT5Z
Authors: Sun Ai‐Jun , Xu Hong‐Lin , Gong Wan‐Kui , Zhai Hong‐Li , Meng Kun , Wang Yong‐Qin , Wei Xiao‐Li , Xiao Gui‐Fang , Zhu Zhen 
Published: November 2008

Abstract Two sucrose transporter (SUT) cDNAs, OsSUT2M and OsSUT5Z, were isolated from rice (Oryza sativa L.) by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR). Sequencing results indicate they are 1 531 bp and 1 635 bp in length including complete open reading frame 1 506 bp and 1 608 bp, which encode 502 amino acids and 536 amino acids, respectively. The TopPred program suggested that both sucrose transporter proteins, OsSUT2M and OsSUT5Z, consist of potentially 12 transmembrane domains. Semi‐quantitative RT‐PCR was carried out to investigate the gene expression patterns of OsSUT2M and OsSUT5Z. In vegetative organs, transcripts of OsSUT2M were higher in source leaf blades than in other organs at the same development stage, whereas transcripts of OsSUT5Z were less traceable in all organs investigated. In reproductive organs, both transcripts of these two genes were high in panicles from the booting stage to 7 days after flowering (DAF) and then sharply declined. The potential physiology functions of these two sucrose transporters are discussed.
Heat shock protein translocation and expression response is attenuated in response to repeated eccentric exercise
Authors: Vissing K. , Bayer M. L. , Overgaard K. , Schjerling P. , Raastad T. 
Published: November 2008

AbstractAim:  This study hypothesized that heat shock protein (HSP) translocation and upregulation is more probable to occur after eccentric exercise than after concentric exercise or repeated eccentric exercise.Methods:  Fourteen young, healthy, untrained male subjects completed two bench‐stepping exercise bouts with 8 weeks between bouts, and were compared with a control group (n = 6). Muscle biopsies collected from m. vastus lateralis of both legs prior to and at 3 h, 24 h and 7 days after exercise were quantified for mRNA levels and/or for HSP27, αβ‐crystallin and inducible HSP70 content in cytosolic and cytoskeletal protein fractions.Results:  The first bout of exercise reduced muscle strength and increased muscle soreness predominantly in the eccentric leg (P < 0.05). These responses were attenuated after the repeated eccentric exercise bout (P < 0.05), suggesting a repeated bout adaptation. Increases in inducible HSP70 and HSP27 protein content in cytoskeletal fractions were observed exclusively after eccentric exercise (P < 0.05). For HSP27, an approx. 10‐fold upregulation after first‐bout eccentric exercise was attenuated to a an approximately fourfold upregulation after the repeated eccentric exercise bout. mRNA levels for HSP70, HSP27 and αβ‐crystallin were upregulated within approximately two to fourfold ranges at time points 3 and 24 h post‐exercise (P < 0.05). This upregulation was induced exclusively by eccentric exercise but with a tendency to attenuated expression 3 h after the repeated eccentric exercise bout.Conclusion:  Our results show that HSP translocation and expression responses are induced by muscle damaging exercise, and suggest that such HSP responses are closely related to the extent of muscle damage.
Prospects of the practical use of silk sericins
Authors: SEHNAL František 
Published: November 2008

AbstractIn Lepidoptera and Trichoptera, a blend of sericin proteins seals the pair of fibroin filaments into the silk fiber that is coated by additional layers of adhesive sericins. The structure and function, and even the number of sericin proteins, are poorly known. Most sericin applications to date employ mixtures of proteins extracted by hot alkaline water during the cocoon processing in the reeling mills. The extracts were shown to have antioxidant, moistening, UV‐shielding and also moderate antibiotic properties. They are used as additives to various cosmetic products and in some countries also as remedies in human medicine. Sericins were reported to suppress tumor promotion, provide protection against ulcers and exert other health supporting effects. They also support proliferation and can provide a basic matrix for the differentiation of the cells cultured in vitro. Commercial production of sericin hydrolyzates as components of the tissue culture media will probably expand with the use of stem cells for the tissue repair. Sericins can polymerize to fibers, films and 3‐D structures that provide scaffolds for complex tissue reconstructions. The use of recombinant sericin‐type proteins for these applications is in the phase of basic investigations.
Advances in insect biotechnology for human welfare
Authors: MILLER Thomas A. 
Published: November 2008

AbstractBiotechnology is the latest scientific breakthrough in the history of agriculture. Yet despite the promise of developing new tools for pest and disease control, transgenic organisms have encountered a mixed reception by the lay and scientific public alike. Yields are unable to keep pace with rising costs resulting in a decline in traditional farming. Switching to a new organic growing paradigm is occurring in Korea and the United States today. These new approaches ignore traditional tools that were responsible for the increased yields that support the current affluence and allowed us to protect crops while buying time to find more ecologically‐friendly methods. The perception that we understand crop diseases and pests is false and those making this assumption risk destabilizing global food production. There are new pests and diseases that are very difficult to control without these traditional non‐organic methods. Invasive species continue to arrive at high rates adding to the burden of farming. Global climate change is already causing changes in the pest and disease complexes and is forcing the entomologist and plant pathologist to make drastic changes to adjust to them.
Bombiculture: A fascinating insect industry for crop pollination in Korea
Authors: KWON Yong Jung 
Published: November 2008

AbstractThe Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has recently taken on the leading roles internationally in the conservation and sustainable use of insect pollinators, which initiated the artificial rearing project of a European bumblebee of Bombus terrestris in Korea since 1999 (project number FAO/TCP/ROK/8921). The main purpose of the present project has focused on unveiling the production technology of B. terrestris for environmentally‐friendly crop pollination. Currently, the new establishment of a mass rearing system can be facilitated with compatibility commercially, and is expected to supply the domestic demand with reduced costs for the crop pollination. Therefore, bombiculture is a new technology in the entomological industry, utilizing one of the wild insect resources previously overlooked. This technology shows how the wild insects can contribute to our welfare as one of the useful biological resources.
Production of therapeutic proteins with baculovirus expression system in insect cell
Authors: AHN Mi‐Hyun , SONG Mira , OH Eun‐Yi , JAMAL Arshad , KIM HyunSoon , KO Kinarm , CHOO Young‐Kug , KIM Byung‐Jin , KO Kisung 
Published: November 2008

AbstractRecombinant DNA technology has a major advantage in that it is capable of producing specific therapeutic proteins on demand in a heterologous expression system. The extent of this notion can be understood when one considers how crucial such proteins are, and how problematic the economical and safe production of such proteins are. Therapeutic recombinant protein production is a fundamental aspect of 21st century biotechnology industries. The improved therapeutic recombinant protein expression systems that use prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells have enabled the development of a multi‐billion dollar industry. Among the variety of available heterologous expression systems, the baculovirus‐based insect cell expression system has been utilized frequently for the high‐level production of therapeutic recombinant proteins. Thus, the baculovirus expression system has been recognized as one of the most powerful expression technologies for production, by virtue of the achievable amount and purity, and the ease of the eukaryotic production process. The majority of therapeutic proteins are glycoproteins originating from humans. The insect‐based expression system harbors glycosylation processing pathways, which constitute an advantage over other prokaryotic systems that lack glycosylation. However, there are several drawbacks which must be circumvented in order to establish an efficient system for the production of recombinant proteins. This review presents a brief overview of the perspective, particularly the glycosylation aspect, of the production of therapeutic recombinant proteins via a baculovirus‐based insect cell expression system.
New Results on the Photochemistry of Biopterin and Neopterin in Aqueous Solution
Authors: Vignoni Mariana , Cabrerizo Franco M. , Lorente Carolina , Thomas Andrés H. 
Published: November 2008

AbstractNew photochemical studies of the reactivity of biopterin (BPT) and neopterin (NPT) in acidic (pH = 5.5) and alkaline (pH = 10.5) aqueous solutions at 350 nm and room temperature were performed. The photochemical properties of BPT are of particular interest because the photolysis of this compound takes place in the white skin patches of patients affected by vitiligo. The photochemical reactions were followed by UV/VIS spectrophotometry, HPLC, electrochemical measurement of dissolved O2 and enzymatic methods for hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and superoxide anion (O2•−) determinations. When BPT or NPT are exposed to UVA radiation, a red intermediate, very likely 6‐formyl‐5,8‐dihydropterin, is generated in an O2‐independent process. That product is rapidly oxidized on admission of O2 to yield 6‐formylpterin and H2O2. When the photolysis takes place in aerobic conditions, no additional pathways exist. On the other hand, in the absence of O2, the intermediate generated is not stable and leads to the formation of many products. O2•− is also generated during photo‐oxidation of BPT and NPT. The quantum yields of reactant consumption depends on the O2 concentration: the higher the O2 concentration, the lower the quantum yields. This behavior is discussed in connection with the excited state of the pterins.
Genetic variability of the soil‐feeding termite Labiotermes labralis (Termitidae, Nasutitermitinae) in the Amazonian primary forest and remnant patches
Authors: DUPONT LISE , ROY VIRGINIE , BAKKALI ASMAE , HARRY MYRIAM 
Published: November 2008

Abstract.

Tropical rainforest fragmentation may increase the risk of extinction of limited dispersers such as soil‐feeding termites which play a fundamental role in soil structure and fertility.
We tested the hypothesis that population genetic structure of Labiotermes labralis, one of the most abundant soil‐feeders in the Amazonian primary forest, may vary in response to local ecological conditions.
As a pre‐requisite, two factors that may have important consequences on population genetic structure were examined: colony social organisation and infection by Wolbachia bacterium. This cytoplasmic endosymbiont is able to manipulate arthropod reproduction and thus, to alter patterns of mtDNA variation.
Three sites in French Guiana showing variable level of forest disturbance were studied. Three hundred and thirty‐eight neuters and 14 primary reproductives from 17 colonies were genotyped using six microsatellites to analyse colony and population genetic structure. Moreover, one sequence of the COII mitochondrial gene was obtained for each nest.
We showed that all nests were monogamous. In a single site, all nests were infected by the same Wolbachia strain. This pattern of infection was not associated to a particular mitochondrial haplotype.
In the most disturbed site, a significant inbreeding coefficient associated with high relatedness between primary reproductives suggested that anthropogenic habitat fragmentation has induced genetic isolation of the population; a result reinforced by the mitochondrial data. Thus, habitat fragmentation might have serious consequences for the persistence of L. labralis populations in French Guiana.
Development of a Hybrid Turbulent Particle Dispersion Model and
Implementation in the Gasflow Code
Authors: Xu Zhanjie , Travis John R. , Breitung Wolfgang 
Published: November 2008

Abstract
Dust mobilization in a vacuum vessel is one of the key issues endangering the security of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) in case of loss of vacuum accidents. The turbulent behavior of particles in turbulent flows has to be modeled for successful numerical simulations about particle mobilization. In this study a Lagrangian approach is adopted to formulate the particle transport especially for dust-dilute flows mostly encountered in the vacuum vessel of ITER. Based on the logic frame of the approach and the used computational fluid dynamics (CFD) computer code in the study, a hybrid turbulent particle dispersion model is proposed. The hybrid model features both a deterministic separated flow model and a stochastic separated flow (SSF) model, which are two popular turbulent dispersion models applied in particle simulations, and takes the advantages of the both models. The proposed model is implemented into the particle model of the CFD code successfully and the simulation results are verified against the experimental data. The verifications manifest the validities of the proposed model. In this paper general information about the work of dust mobilization is introduced and the particle turbulent dispersion models are reviewed briefly at first. The hybrid model is then proposed based on the SSF model. An experiment about particle dispersions in an advective wind channel flow with decaying turbulence in the streamwise direction is reviewed in the third section. In the following section about model verification, the decaying turbulence parameters in the channel flow are verified against the experimental data as the first step, and the parameters about the particle dispersions in the verified flow field are then verified against the data. The work is concluded finally.
Development of an Antigen Capture Immunoassay Based on Monoclonal Antibodies Specific for Dengue Virus Serotype 2 Nonstructural Protein 1 for Early and Rapid Identification of Dengue Virus Serotype 2 Infections
Authors: Qiu Li-wen , Di Biao , Wen Kun , Wang Xin-shuai , Liang Wei-hua , Wang Ya-di , Pan Yu-xian , Wang Ming , Ding Yan-qing , Che Xiao-yan 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACT
The dengue virus (DENV) has four distinct serotypes (DENV1, DENV2, DENV3, and DENV4) that require differentiation for effective prevention of morbid diseases. The recently developed DENV1-specific NS1 antigen capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) based on the monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) that recognize distinct epitopes on nonstructural protein 1 (NS1) of a specific DENV serotype is convenient and cost-effective, but assays have not yet been developed for DENV serotypes 2 to 4. This paper describes the development and validation of a DENV2-specific NS1 antigen capture ELISA by selection and optimization of the pair of well-characterized MAbs that recognized epitopes specific for DENV2 NS1 from a large panel of MAbs. The DENV2 NS1 ELISA displayed exclusive sensitivity with the DENV2 serotype and did not cross-react with the other three DENV serotypes. The sensitivity and specificity of the DENV2 NS1 ELISA were 83.3% (25/30) and 100% (504/504) when used to test 30 acute-phase serum samples from patients infected with DENV2 identified by virus isolation or reverse transcription-PCR serotyping and 504 serum samples from healthy individuals, respectively. The specificity of this assay was also evaluated using a panel of serum samples which were positive for DENV1, other flaviviruses, and nonflaviviruses; no cross-reactions were observed in these clinical samples. The DENV2 NS1 ELISA was eightfold more sensitive than a commercially available serotype-cross-reactive NS1 ELISA (Panbio Diagnostics, Brisbane, Australia) when the two assays were used to test the DENV2-infected cell culture supernatants in parallel. The Panbio NS1 ELISA displayed variation in sensitivity between DENV serotypes. The DENV2-specific NS1 antigen capture ELISA can be used as a tool for the rapid identification of DENV2 infections.
Construction and Characterization of an Attenuated
Listeria monocytogenes
Strain for Clinical Use in Cancer Immunotherapy
Authors: Wallecha Anu , Maciag Paulo Cesar , Rivera Sandra , Paterson Yvonne , Shahabi Vafa 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACT

Listeria monocytogenes
has been exploited previously as a vaccine vector for the delivery of heterologous proteins such as tumor-specific antigens for active cancer immunotherapy. However, for effective use of live vector in clinics, safety is a major concern. In the present study, we describe an irreversibly attenuated and highly immunogenic
L. monocytogenes
platform, the
L. monocytogenes dal
-,
dat
-, and
actA
-deleted strain that expresses the human prostate-specific antigen (PSA) using an antibiotic resistance marker-free plasmid (the
dal dat
Δ
actA
142 strain expressing PSA). Despite limited in vivo survival, the
dal dat
Δ
actA
142 strain was able to elicit efficient immune responses required for tumor clearance. Our results showed that immunization of mice with the
dal dat
Δ
actA
142 strain caused the regression of the tumors established by the prostate adenocarcinoma cell line expressing PSA. An evaluation of immunologic potency indicated that the
dal dat
Δ
actA
142 strain elicits a high frequency of PSA-specific immune responses. Interestingly, immunization with the
dal dat
Δ
actA
142 strain induced significant infiltration of PSA-specific T cells in the intratumoral milieu. Collectively, our data suggest that the
dal dat
Δ
actA
142 strain is a safe and potent vector for clinical use and that this platform may be further exploited as a potential candidate to express other single or multiple antigens for cancer immunotherapy.
Abnormal Immunological Profile and Vaginal Microbiota in Women Prone to Urinary Tract Infections
Authors: Kirjavainen Pirkka V. , Pautler Stephen , Baroja Miren L. , Anukam Kingsley , Crowley Kate , Carter Kristine , Reid Gregor 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACT

The host determinants of susceptibility to recurrent urinary tract infections (UTI) are poorly understood. We investigated whether the susceptibility is associated with abnormalities in the immunological defense and further explored the linkage to vaginal microbiota. For this purpose, we compared vaginal, urine, and blood samples collected during a disease-free period from 22 women with recurrent UTI and from 17 controls. In UTI-prone women, interleukin-12 (IL-12) production in peripheral monocytes and myeloid dendritic cells (DCs) was significantly (
P
< 0.05) enhanced whether measured in relative numbers of IL-12-producing cells or in mean IL-12 production per cell. In contrast, no T-cell polarization was observed. Interestingly, it seemed that the cytokine production of DCs and monocytes did not translate into T-cell activation in the UTI-prone group in a manner similar to that seen with the controls. In vaginal mucosa, UTI-prone women had a lower concentration of tissue repair-associated vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) (
P
= 0.006) and less often had detectable amounts of the chief monocyte and DC chemoattractant, monocyte chemotactic protein 1 (
P
= 0.005), than the controls. The microbiota of UTI-prone women was characterized by a diminished lactobacillus morphotype composition, with an abnormally high (>3) mean Nugent score of 4.6 compared to 1.7 for the controls (
P
= 0.003). Normal lactobacillus composition was associated with increased IL-17 and VEGF concentrations in vaginal mucosa. In conclusion, immunological defects and a persistently aberrant microbiota, a lack of lactobacilli in particular, may contribute to susceptibility to recurrent UTI. Further studies of antigen-presenting-cell function and T-cell activation in recurrent UTI are called for.
Phylogenetic Analysis of Rubella Virus Strains from an Outbreak in Madrid, Spain, from 2004 to 2005
Authors: Martínez-Torres A. O. , Mosquera M. M. , Sanz J. C. , Ramos B. , Echevarría J. E. 
Published: November 2008

ABSTRACT
An outbreak of rubella affected 460 individuals in 2004 and 2005 in the community of Madrid, Spain. Most of the patients were nonvaccinated Latin American immigrants or Spanish males. This study presents the first data on rubella virus genotypes in Spain. Forty selected clinical samples (2 urine, 5 serum, 3 blood, 2 saliva, and 28 pharyngeal exudate samples) from 40 cases were collected. The 739-nucleotide sequence recommended by the World Health Organization obtained from viral RNA in these samples was analyzed by using the MEGA v4.0 software. Seventeen isolates were obtained from 40 clinical samples from the outbreak, including two isolated from congenital rubella syndrome cases. Only viral RNA of genotype 1j was detected in both isolates and clinical specimens. Two variations in amino acids, G253C and T394S, which are involved in neutralization epitopes arose during the outbreak, but apparently there was no positive selection of either of them. The origin of the outbreak remains unknown because of poor virologic surveillance in Latin America and the African countries neighboring Spain. On the other hand, this is the first report of this genotype in Europe. The few published sequences of genotype 1j indicate that it comes from Japan and the Philippines, but there are no epidemiological data supporting this as the origin of the Madrid outbreak.