In this study, we aimed to prepare a neovascularization-relevant inflammatory cytokine-targeted ultrasound contrast agent and apply it in the ultrasound imaging of atherosclerotic plaque. An interleukin-8 (IL-8) monoclonal antibody was conjugated to SonoVue microbubbles using the N-succinimidyl-3-(2-pyridyldithio)propionate cross-linking method. Then, a prepared IL-8-targeted contrast agent was used for contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEU) to detect rabbit abdominal aorta atherosclerotic plaque and to investigate the imaging characteristics of atherosclerotic plaque with the contrast agent. We found that an IL-8 monoclonal antibody can be successfully coupled to SonoVue microbubbles with stable biological characteristics. CEU with this IL-8-targeted contrast agent can increase the atherosclerotic plaque detection sensitivity, with stronger echo, so that three more plaques were detected compared with using non-targeted SonoVue microbubbles. Thus, an inflammatory cytokine-targeting ultrasound contrast agent carrying IL-8 monoclonal antibody can provide unique advantages for researching the characteristics of atherosclerotic plaque.

Escherichia coli and Proteus mirabilis are important urinary tract pathogens. The constant increase in the antibiotic resistance of clinical bacterial strains has become an important clinical problem. The aim of this study was to compare the antibiotic resistance of 141 clinical (Sweden and Poland) and 42 laboratory (Czech Republic) P.mirabilis strains and 129 clinical (Poland) uropathogenic E. coli strains. The proportion of unique versus diverse patterns in Swedish clinical and laboratory P. mirabilis strain collections was comparable. Notably, a similar proportion of unique versus diverse patterns was observed in Polish clinical P. mirabilis and E. coli strain collections. Mathematical models of the antibiotic resistance of E. coli and P. mirabilis strains based on Kohonen networks and association analysis are presented. In contrast to the three clinical strain collections, which revealed complex associations with the antibiotics tested, laboratory P. mirabilis strains provided simple antibiotic association diagrams. The monitoring of antibiotic resistance patterns of clinical E. coli and P. mirabilis strains plays an important role in the treatment procedures for urinary tract infections and is important in the context of the spreading drug resistance in uropathogenic strain populations. The adaptability and flexibility of the genomes of E. coli and P.mirabilis strains are discussed.

Gene-directed enzyme prodrug therapy (GDEPT) has been investigated as a means of cancer treatment without affecting normal tissues. This system is based on the delivery of a suicide gene, a gene encoding an enzyme which is able to convert its substrate from non-toxic prodrug to cytotoxin. In this experiment, we have developed a targeted suicide gene therapeutic system that is completely contained within tumor-tropic cells and have tested this system for melanoma therapy in a preclinical model. First, we established double stable RAW264.7 monocyte/macrophage-like cells (Mo/Ma) containing a Tet-On® Advanced system for intracellular carboxylesterase (InCE) expression. Second, we loaded a prodrug into the delivery cells, double stable Mo/Ma. Third, we activated the enzyme system to convert the prodrug, irinotecan, to the cytotoxin, SN-38. Our double stable Mo/Ma homed to the lung melanomas after 1 day and successfully delivered the prodrug-activating enzyme/prodrug package to the tumors. We observed that our system significantly reduced tumor weights and numbers as targeted tumor therapy after activation of the InCE. Therefore, we propose that this system may be a useful targeted melanoma therapy system for pulmonary metastatic tumors with minimal side effects, particularly if it is combined with other treatments.

Fuchs endothelial corneal dystrophy (FECD) is a slowly progressive eye disease leading to blindness, mostly affecting people above 40 years old. The only known method of curing FECD is corneal transplantation. The disease is characterized by the presence of extracellular deposits called “cornea guttata”, apoptosis of corneal endothelial cells, dysfunction of Descement’s membrane and corneal edema. Oxidative stress is suggested to play a role in FECD pathogenesis. Reactive oxygen species produced during the stress may damage biomolecules, including DNA. In the present study we evaluated the extent of endogenous DNA damage, including oxidatively modified DNA bases, and damage induced by hydrogen peroxide as well as the kinetics of DNA repair in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of 50 patients with FECD and 43 age-matched controls without visual disturbances. To quantify DNA damage and repair we used the alkaline comet assay technique with the enzymes recognizing oxidative DNA damage, hOGG1 and EndoIII. We did not observe differences in the extent of endogenous and hydrogen peroxide-induced DNA damage between FECD patients and controls. However, we found a lower efficacy of DNA repair in FECD patients as compared with control individuals. The results obtained suggest that the lowering of the DNA repair capacity may be one of the mechanisms underlying the role of oxidative stress in the FECD pathology.

Actin protein has many other cellular functions such as movement, chemotaxis, secretion and cytodiaresis. Besides, it have structural function. Actin is a motor protein that it has an important role in the movement process of toxin in the cell. It is known that F-actin gives carriage support during the endosomal process. Actin is found in globular (G) and filamentous (F) structure in the cell. The helix of actin occurs as a result of polymerisation of monomeric G-actin molecules through sequential rowing, is called F-actin (FA). Actin interacts with a great number of cellular proteins along with cell skeleton and plasma membrane. It is also known that some bacterial toxins have ADP-ribosylation affect on actin. Diphteria toxin is the part which has the FA enzymatic activity corresponding the N-terminal section of the toxin, which inhibits the protein synthesis by ADP-ribosylating the elongation factor 2 in the presence of NAD. FA, taken into the cell by endocytosis inhibits protein synthesis by ADP-ribosyltransferase activity and breaks the cytoskeleton. In the studies both in vitro and in vivo, actin with interaction FA of diphteria toxin has been yet to be fully elucidated. The aim of this study was to determine the three dimensional structures of actin with interaction FA of diphteria toxin by the amprical methods and in paralel with the computing technology, theoretical methods have gained significant importance. In our study, actin with interaction FA of diphteria toxin has been determined as the most possible interaction area with the theoretical method; analogy modelling. This area has been closed in the presence of polypeptides and FA-actin interactions have been tested with the gel filtration chromatography techniques. As a result of the findings, we found that 15 amino acid artificial peptides (DAMYETMAQACAGNR) corresponding to 201–215 amino acid residues of FA interacts with G-actin and closes this area. Secondly, in the model formed with the analogy modelling, it appears that the most possible interaction area is between FA (tyr204) and G-actin (gly48). Results obtained from both theoretical and experimental data support the idea that the interaction occurs in this area.

Protein phosphatases type 2C (PP2Cs) from group A, which includes the ABI1/HAB1 and PP2CA branches, are key negative regulators of ABA signaling. HAI-1 gene had been shown to affect both seed and vegetative responses to ABA, which is one of PP2Cs clade A in Arabidopsis thaliana. Transgenic plants containing pHAI-1::GUS (β-glucuronidase) displayed GUS activity existing in the vascular system of leave veins, stems and petioles. Green fluorescent protein fused HAI-1 (HAI-1-GFP) was found in the nucleus through transient transformation assays with onion epidermal cells. The water-loss assays indicated the loss-of-function mutants did not show symptoms of wilting and they had still turgid green rosette leaves. The assays of seed germination by exogenous ABA and NaCl manifested that the loss-of-function mutants displayed higher insensitivity than wild-type plants. Taken together, the final results suggest that the HAI-1 (AT5G59220) encoded a nuclear protein and it can be highly induced by ABA and wound in Arabidposis, the stress-tolerance phenotype showed a slightly improvement when HAI-1 gene was disrupted.

The objective of the present study was to analyze the level of intramuscular fat (IMF) in loin (musculus longissimus dorsi) and ham (musculus semimembranosus) and the level of subcutaneous fat in these cuts depending on breed, age and the expression level of FABP3 and LEPR genes. The results obtained showed that only the breed influenced on the level of both intramuscular and subcutaneous fat to the same extent (P ≤ 0.001). The age of animals had an effect on fat content of the cuts (P ≤ 0.001) and to a lower extent on the level of IMF in both muscles (P ≤ 0.05). We confirmed highly significant effect of breed and age on the LEPR mRNA abundance—the expression of the this gene increased significantly (P ≤ 0.01) with age and the highest expression was found for the Puławska breed in m. longissimus dorsi and for the Polish Landrace breed in m. semimembranosus. We observed the high correlations between the transcript level of the LEPR gene and the fat content of individual cuts (P ≤ 0.01). The expression level of FABP3 gene influenced the level of IMF (P ≤ 0.01), but not the level of subcutaneous fat in loin and ham.

Among many alterations within the TP53 gene the rs1042522 (C72G, p.Pro72Arg) has been associated with numerous cancers , however the results differ between populations for opposite Pro or Arg alleles. Similar thus inconclusive results are observed in ovarian cancer, which may suggest that the rs1042522 does not influence ovarian carcinogensis directly, but might be linked to another pathogenic alteration. WRAP53 which overlaps the TP53 is required to maintain normal levels of p53 upon DNA damage, but also when altered may independently increase the risk of cancer. To evaluate the association between three SNPs located in WRAP53–TP53 region: rs1042522, rs2287497, rs2287498 and ovarian cancer risk in Polish population we genotyped 626 cases and 1,045 healthy controls. Our results provide the evidence for an association between studied SNPs and a risk of invasive ovarian cancer in Poland. We found that CC homozygotes in rs1042522 were more frequent in cancers when compared to controls (OR = 1.46, p = 0.03). Similarly in WRAP53 both TT homozygotes in rs2287497 (OR = 1.95, p = 0.03) and AA homozygotes in rs2287498 (OR = 2.65, p = 0,01) were more frequent among cases than healthy individuals. There is also a suggestive evidence that specific homozygosity of studied SNPs in TP53–WRAP53 region is significantly overrepresented in ovarian cancer patients. In conclusion SNPs in WRAP53 (rs2287497 and rs2287498) have stronger association with an ovarian cancer risk than rs1042522 in TP53.

Lamellar ichthyosis (LI, MIM# 242300) is a severe autosomal recessive genodermatosis present at birth in the form of collodion membrane covering the neonate. Mutations in the TGM1 gene encoding transglutaminase-1 are a major cause of LI. In this study molecular analysis of two LI Tunisian patients revealed a common nonsense c.788G>A mutation in TGM1 gene. The identification of a cluster of LI pedigrees carrying the c.788G>A mutation in a specific area raises the question of the origin of this mutation from a common ancestor. We carried out a haplotype-based analysis by way of genotyping 4 microsatellite markers and 8 SNPs flanking and within the TGM1 gene spanning a region of 6 Mb. Haplotype reconstruction from genotypes of all members of the affected pedigrees indicated that all carriers for the mutation c.788G>A harbored the same haplotype, indicating common ancestor. The finding of a founder effect in a rare disease is essential for the genetic diagnosis and the genetic counselling of affected LI pedigrees in Tunisia.

The gene coding for catecol-o-methyltransferase (COMT), participant in the metabolism of catecholamines, has long been implicated as a candidate gene for schizophrenia. We determined the relation of the COMT Val108/158Met polymorphism with schizophrenia or its symptomatology (negative, disorganized and psychotic dimension). We conducted a case–control study comprising 186 patients with schizophrenia and 247 controls. The diagnosis of schizophrenia was established using the DSM-IV criteria for this illness. The clinical symptomatology was assessed through the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms and the Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms. No significant differences were found in the distribution of alleles (χ2 = 0.01, df = 1, p = 0.90) or genotypes (χ2 = 1.66, df = 2, p = 0.43) between schizophrenic patients and the control group. Multivariate analysis showed that the COMT Val108/158Met polymorphism has no influence in the clinical symptomatology of schizophrenia. Our results showed no association between COMT Val108/158Met and schizophrenia or evidence for an association between COMT and the clinical symptomatology of this illness. This suggests that the COMT gene may not contribute to the risk for schizophrenia among the Mexican population.

Allelic expression imbalance (AEI) is an important genetic factor being the cause of differences in phenotypic traits that can be heritable. Studying AEI can be useful in searching for factors that modulate gene expression and help to understand molecular mechanisms underlying phenotypic changes. Although it was commonly recognized in many species and we know many genes show allelic expression imbalance, this phenomena was not studied on a larger scale in cattle. Using the pyrosequencing method we analyzed a set of 29 bovine genes in order to find those that have preferential allelic expression. The study was conducted in three tissues: liver, pituitary and kindey. Out of the studied group of genes 3 of them—LEP (leptin), IGF2 (insulin-like growth factor 2), CCL2 (chemokine C–C motif ligand 2) showed allelic expression imbalance.

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To investigate the intervention therapy effect on the growth of malignant melanoma, we have made an observation of expression levels of Ang2 in malignant melanoma cells, which was transduced by small interfering RNA (Ang2-siRNA) of Ang2 in vitro and in vivo. We successfully constructed Ang2-siRNA lent virus, and constructed nude mice model by transplanting malignant melanoma. Ang2-siRNA lent virus inhibited Ang2 mRNA of malignant melanoma in vitro and in vivo, and inhibited malignant melanoma tumor growth at the same time. Ang2-siRNA lent virus can interfere expression levels of Ang2 in malignant melanoma cells, inhibit tumor growth, and silent Ang2 gene expression, which may pave a new way for clinical gene therapy of malignant melanoma.

As a major concern in public health, methicillin-resistant staphylococci (MRS) still remains one of the most prevalent pathogens that cause nosocomial infections throughout the world and has been recently labeled as a “super bug” in antibiotic resistance. Thus, surveillance and investigation on antibiotic resistance mechanisms involved in clinical MRS strains may raise urgent necessity and utmost significance. As a novel antibiotic resistance mechanism, class 1 integron has been identified as a primary source of antimicrobial resistance genes in Gram-negative organisms. However, most available studies on integrons had been limited within Gram-negative microbes, little is known for clinical Gram-positive bacteria. Based on series studies of systematic integrons investigation in hundreds of staphylococci strains during 2001–2006, this review concentrated on the latest development of class 1 integron in MRS isolates, including summary of prevalence and occurrence of class 1 integron, analysis of correlation between integron and antibiotic resistance, further demonstration of the role integrons play as antibiotic determinants, as well as origin and evolution of integron-associated gene cassettes during this study period.

Lung cancer is recognized as a leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide and its frequency is still increasing. The prognosis in lung cancer is poor and limited by the difficulties of diagnosis at early stage of disease, when it is amenable to surgery treatment. Therefore, the advance in identification of lung cancer genetic and epigenetic markers with diagnostic and/or prognostic values becomes an important tool for future molecular oncology and personalized therapy. As in case of other tumors, aberrant epigenetic landscape has been documented also in lung cancer, both at early and late stage of carcinogenesis. Hypermethylation of specific genes, mainly tumor suppressor genes, as well as hypomethylation of oncogenes and retrotransposons, associated with histopathological subtypes of lung cancer, has been found. Epigenetic aberrations of histone proteins and, especially, the lower global levels of histone modifications have been associated with poorer clinical outcome in lung cancer. The recently discovered role of epigenetic modifications of microRNA expression in tumors has been also proven in lung carcinogenesis. The identified epigenetic events in lung cancer contribute to its specific epigenotype and correlated phenotypic features. So far, some of them have been suggested to be cancer biomarkers for early detection, disease monitoring, prognosis, and risk assessment. As epigenetic aberrations are reversible, their correction has emerged as a promising therapeutic target.

MYH3 is a major contractile protein which converts chemical energy into mechanical energy through the ATP hydrolysis. MYH3 is mainly expressed in the skeletal muscle in different stages especially embryonic period, and it has a role in the development of skeletal muscle and heart. In this study, polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) was applied to analyze the genetic variations of the MYH3 gene and verify the effect on growth and carcass traits in a total of 365 Qinchuan cattles. The PCR product was digested with some restriction enzyme and demonstrated the polymorphism in the population, the single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) at nucleotides g. +1215T>C, g. +3377C>T, and g. +28625C>T were in linkage disequilibrium with each other. The result of haplotype analysis showed that nineteen different haplotypes were identified among the five SNPs. The statistical analyses indicated that the five SNPs were significant association with growth and carcass traits (P < 0.05, N = 365); whereas the five SNPs were no significant association between 18 combined genotypes of MYH3 gene and growth and carcass traits. Taken together, our results provide the evidence that polymorphisms in MYH3 are associated with growth and carcass traits in Qinchuan cattle, and may be used as a possible candidate for marker-assisted selection and management in beef cattle breeding program.

The goal of the study was to investigate the possibility of an association between polymorphisms and single alleles of BsmI, ApaI, TaqI of the vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene with bone mineral density (BMD) and prevalence of vertebral/non-vertebral fractures in a group of postmenopausal Polish women with osteoporosis. The study group comprised of 501 postmenopausal females with osteoporosis (mean age 66.4 ± 8.9), who were diagnosed on the basis of either the WHO criteria or self-reported history of low-energy fractures. The three polymorphisms were determined by PCR (polymerase chain reaction) and RFLP (restriction fragment length polymorphism). BMD at the lumbar spine and femoral neck was assessed by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). 285 fractures were reported in the whole group (168 vertebral and 117 non-vertebral). Incidence of non-vertebral fractures was significantly higher in the carriers of single alleles a of ApaI, b of BsmI and T of TaqI VDR gene polymorphisms (p = 0.021, 0.032, 0.020, respectively). No significant associations between allelic variants of the studied polymorphisms and BMD or fracture incidence were found. (1).The presence of single alleles a,b and T of ApaI, BsmI, TaqI VDR gene polymorphisms respectively, might serve as an indicator of non-vertebral fractures. (2). Lack of association between the VDR gene polymorphisms and BMD suggests that VDR contributes to low-energy fractures also through other ways.

Depressive disorder is a disease characterized by disturbances in the hypothalamo–pituitary–adrenal axis. Abnormalities include the increased level of glucocorticoids (GC) and changes in sensitivity to these hormones. The changes are related to glucocorticoid receptors gene (NR3C1) variants. The NR3C1 gene is suggested to be a candidate gene affecting depressive disorder risk and management. The aim of this study was to investigate polymorphisms within the NR3C1 gene and their role in the susceptibility to recurrent depressive disorder (rDD). 181 depressive patients and 149 healthy ethnically matched controls were included in the study. Single nucleotide polymorphisms were assessed using polymerase chain reaction/restriction fragment length polymorphism method. Statistical significance between rDD patients and controls was observed for the allele and genotype frequencies at three loci: BclI, N363S, and ER22/23EK. The presence of C allele, CC, and GC genotype of BclI polymorphism, G allele and GA genotype for N363S and ER22/23EK variants respectively were associated with increased rDD risk. Two haplotypes indicated higher susceptibility for rDD, while haplotype GAG played a protective role with ORdis 0.29 [95 % confidence interval (CI) = 0.13–0.64]. Data generated from this study support the earlier results that genetic variants of the NR3C1 gene are associated with rDD and suggest further consideration on the possible involvement of these variants in etiology of the disease.

Cathelicidins are small, cationic, antimicrobial peptides found in humans and other species, including farm animals (cattle, horses, pigs, sheep, goats, chickens, rabbits and in some species of fish). These proteolytically activated peptides are part of the innate immune system of many vertebrates. These peptides show a broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity against bacteria, enveloped viruses and fungi. Apart from exerting direct antimicrobial effects, cathelicidins can also trigger specific defense responses in the host. Their roles in various pathophysiological conditions have been studied in mice and humans, but there are limited information about their expression sites and activities in livestock. The aim of the present review is to summarize current information about these antimicrobial peptides in farm animals, highlighting peptide expression sites, activities, and future applications for human and veterinary medicine.

Recently, several studies have demonstrated the role of vitamin D receptor (VDR) polymorphisms in the development of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE); however, these results are inconsistent between different cohorts. Therefore, we studied the prevalence of the VDR FokI (rs2228570), BsmI (rs1544410), ApaI (rs7975232) and TaqI (rs731236) genotypes and alleles in SLE patients (n = 258) and healthy individuals (n = 545) in a Polish population. We did not observe significant differences for either the VDR FokI, BsmI, ApaI and TaqI genotype and allele frequencies in patients with SLE and healthy individuals. However, the frequency of the VDR F/F and F/f genotypes of FokI was statistically different between patients with renal disease and patients without this symptom OR = 3.228 (1.534–6.792, p = 0.0014), pcorr = 0.0476)]. There was no association of the studied VDR BsmI, ApaI and TaqI polymorphisms with clinical manifestations and laboratory profiles in patients with SLE. Our study indicates that the studied VDR FokI variant might increase the risk of some clinical presentations in patients with SLE.

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The search for effective plant-derived anti-cancer agents or their synthetic analogs has continued to gain interest in drug development. The anti-cancer activity of parthenolide (PTL) isolated from Tanacetum parthenium, has been attributed to the presence of α-methylene-γ-lactone skeleton. In the present study we aimed to investigate the anti-cancer potential of a new synthetic compound, 3-isopropyl-2-methyl-4-methyleneisoxazolidin-5-one (MZ-6), with the same as in PTL α-methylene-γ-lactone motif, on two breast cancer cell lines, MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231. For comparison, PTL was included in the study. PTL and MZ-6 reduced the number of viable MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 cells, with half maximal inhibitory concentration values between 6 and 9 μM. Both compounds dose-dependently inhibited incorporation of [3H]thymidine, up-regulated Bax and down regulated Bcl-2 mRNA. The levels of the end product of lipid peroxidation, malondialdehyde, were significantly higher. In MCF-7 cells, MZ-6 induced early apoptosis and cell cycle arrest in G0/G1 phase. The effect produced by MZ-6 was much stronger compared with PTL. In MDA-MB-231 cells, both tested compounds had similar effect and induced mostly late apoptosis. In conclusion, the observed anticancer activity makes MZ-6 an attractive drug candidate and shows that simple analogs of α-methylene-γ-lactones can be good substitutes for more complex structures isolated from plants.

Centricnemus leucogrammus is a weevil characteristic of European xerothermic habitats and steppes. The species was probably more widespread during the Pleistocene glaciations, while its current distribution is limited to “warm-stage refugia.” It may be regarded as a typical representative of flightless xerothermophilous beetles. Previous studies concentrated on its genetic variation using mitochondrial genes. Here, we identified, tested and characterized 24 polymorphic microsatellite loci with the use of 454 sequencing of microsatellite enriched genomic libraries. The new set of loci will be used in studies on the population structure of this weevil and may provide valuable information for its conservation.

Metabolic syndrome (MS) is associated with occurrence of the many cardiovascular risk factors such as atherogenic dyslipidemia, visceral fat distribution, arterial hypertension and pro-thrombotic and pro-inflammatory status. In our study the effect of disorders that appear in MS on red-ox balance and erythrocyte cell membrane properties were estimated. The study comprised 50 patients with diagnosed MS and in 25 healthy subjects. Content of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and catalase, superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase activity were estimated in red blood cells. Moreover, conformation status of membrane proteins, membrane fluidity and osmotic fragility were evaluated. MS was found to manifest: (1) the increase of the concentration of TBARS in erythrocytes with no statistically significant differences in antioxidant enzymes activity, (2) disorders in the structure of erythrocyte cytoskeleton proteins, (3) the increase in membrane lipids fluidity at the depth of 5th and 12th carbon atom of fatty acid hydrocarbon chain and significantly decreased fluidity at the depth of 16th carbon atom, (4) increased erythrocyte osmotic fragility.

Increasing evidence suggests that Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2/neu) is involved in progression of prostate cancer. Recently, sarcosine was reported to be highly increased during prostate cancer progression, and exogenous sarcosine induces an invasive phenotype in benign prostate epithelial cells. The aim of this work was to investigate the effect of sarcosine on HER2/neu expression in prostate cancer cell lines LNCaP (androgen dependent), PC-3 and DU145(both androgen independent).

Relative amounts of HER2/neu and androgen receptor (AR) transcripts were determined using RT-qPCR. Total expression of HER2/neu was confirmed by Western blot (WB). HER2/neu protein on the surface of living LNCaP cells was visualized by confocal microscopy using a HER2/neu-specific fluorescent probe. Exposure of LNCaP cells to 50 μM sarcosine for 24 h resulted in a 58% increase of the HER2/neu mRNA level (p<0.001) indicating that sarcosine effects HER2/neu expression on the level of transcription. Control experiments with alanine, an isomer of sarcosine, showed no significant effect on HER2/neu transcription. The upregulation of HER2/neu mRNA preceded the corresponding increment of the protein level after the 48-h exposure to sarcosine as shown by WB and confocal microscopy. Interestingly, sarcosine had no effect on the activated (phosphorylated) form of HER2/neu. No significant change in AR expression was observed after exposure to sarcosine. This is the first report indicating that sarcosine is involved in the regulation of the oncoprotein HER2/neu. Thus, sarcosine may induce prostate cancer progression by increased HER2/neu expression. However, detailed information on cellular mechanisms remains to be elucidated.

Curculin, a sweet protein found in Curculigo latifolia fruit has great potential for the pharmaceutical industry. This protein interestingly has been found to have both sweet taste and taste-modifying capacities comparable with other natural sweeteners. According to our knowledge this is the first reported case on the isolation of microsatellite loci in this genus. Hence, the current development of microsatellite markers for C. latifolia will facilitate future population genetic studies and breeding programs for this valuable plant. In this study 11 microsatellite markers were developed using 3′ and 5′ ISSR markers. The primers were tested on 27 accessions from all states of Peninsular Malaysia. The number of alleles per locus ranged from three to seven, with allele size ranging from 141 to 306 bp. The observed and expected heterozygosity ranged between 0.00–0.65 and 0.38–0.79, respectively. The polymorphic information content ranged from 0.35 to 0.74 and the Shannon’s information index ranged from 0.82 to 1.57. These developed polymorphic microsatellites were used for constructing a dendrogram by unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean cluster analysis using the Dice’s similarity coefficient. Accessions association according to their geographical origin was observed. Based on characteristics of isolated microsatellites for C. latifolia accessions all genotype can be distinguished using these 11 microsatellite markers. These polymorphic markers could also be applied to studies on uniformity determination and somaclonal variation of tissue culture plantlets, varieties identification, genetic diversity, analysis of phylogenetic relationship, genetic linkage maps and quantitative trait loci in C. latifolia.

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For the further characterization of foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV)-induced foot-and-mouth disease, we investigated the association between polymorphism of BoLA-DRB3 gene and FMD resistance/susceptibility of Wanbei cattle challenged with FMDV. One hundred cattle were challenged with FMDV and exon 2 of BoLA-DRB3 genes was amplified by hemi-nested polymerase chain reaction from asymptomatic animals and from animals with FMD. PCR products were characterized by the RFLP technique using restriction enzymes Hae III. The results revealed extensive polymorphisms, 6 RFLP patterns were identified. By analyzing alleles and genotypic frequencies between healthy and infection with FMD cattle, we found that allele Hae III A was associated with susceptibility to FMD in Wanbei cattle (P < 0.05), whereas Hae III C was associated with resistance to FMD (P < 0.01) and may have a strong protective effect against FMD. Hae IIICC and Hae III BC genotype were associated with resistance to FMD (P < 0.01). By contrast, Hae III AA genotype was associated with susceptibility to FMD (P < 0.01). Sequence analysis show that 89 amino acids were translated in exon 2 of BoLA-DRB3 and 13.70 % of nucleotide mutated, which resulted in 14.61 % of amino acid change. One PKC, one Tyr and one CAMP phosphorylation were increased; the hydrophobicity and secondary structure of proteins produced change after amino acid substitution. These results revealed that Wanbei cattle had the ability of resistance to disease by mutation which result changes of the protein structure to perform the regulation of the cell using different signaling pathways in the long process of choice evolution.