Cellulose-binding modules from extracellular matrix proteins of Dictyostelium discoideum stalk and sheath

Cellulose-binding modules (CBMs) of two extracellular matrix proteins, St15 and ShD, from the slime mold Dictyostelium discoideum were expressed in Escherichia coli. The expressed proteins were purified to > 98% purity by extracting inclusion bodies at pH 11.5 and refolding proteins at pH 7.5. The two refolded CBMs bound tightly to amorphous phosphoric acid swollen cellulose (PASC), but had a low affinity toward xylan. Neither protein exhibited cellulase activity. St15, the stalk-specific protein, had fourfold higher binding affinity toward microcrystalline cellulose (Avicel) than the sheath-specific ShD CBM. St15 is unusual in that it consists of a solitary CBM homologous to family IIa CBMs. Sequence analysis of ShD reveals three putative domains containing: (a) a C-terminal CBM homologous to family IIb CBMs; (b) a Pro/Thr-rich linker domain; and (c) a N-terminal Cys-rich domain. The biological functions and potential role of St15 and ShD in building extracellular matrices during D. discoideum development are discussed.

Expression of growth factors in Dictyostelium discoideum

Growth factors and their binding proteins are important proteins regulating mammalian cell proliferation and differentiation so there is considerable interest in producing them as recombinant proteins, especially in hosts that do not already produce a complex mixture of growth factors. Many growth factors require post-translational modifications making them unsuitable for production in Escherichia coli or other prokaryotes. Since several expression vector systems have been recently developed for foreign protein production in the cellular slime mould, Dictyostelium discoideum, we attempted to use two of these systems to express human insulin-like growth factor binding protein 6 (hIGFBP6) and bovine beta-cellulin (bBTC) as secreted proteins. Although both proteins were successfully produced in stably transformed amoebae, no secretion was detected in spite of several attempts to facilitate this occurring.

A major locus for fasting insulin concentrations and insulin resistance on chromosome 6q with strong pleiotropic effects on obesity-related phenotypes in nondiabetic Mexican Americans

Insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia are strong correlates of obesity and type 2 diabetes, but little is known about their genetic determinants. Using data on nondiabetics from Mexican American families and a multipoint linkage approach, we scanned the genome and identified a major locus near marker D6S403 for fasting "true" insulin levels (LOD score 4.1, empirical P<.0001), which do not crossreact with insulin precursors. Insulin resistance, as assessed by the homeostasis model using fasting glucose and specific insulin (FSI) values, was also strongly linked (LOD score 3.5, empirical P<.0001) with this region. Two other regions across the genome were found to be suggestively linked to FSI: a location on chromosome 2q, near marker D2S141, and another location on chromosome 6q, near marker D6S264. Since several insulin-resistance syndrome (IRS)-related phenotypes were mapped independently to the regions on chromosome 6q, we conducted bivariate multipoint linkage analyses to map the correlated IRS phenotypes. These analyses implicated the same chromosomal region near marker D6S403 (6q22-q23) as harboring a major gene with strong pleiotropic effects on obesity and on lipid measures, including leptin concentrations (e.g., LOD(eq) for traits-specific insulin and leptin was 4.7). A positional candidate gene for insulin resistance in this chromosomal region is the plasma cell-membrane glycoprotein PC-1 (6q22-q23). The genetic location on chromosome 6q, near marker D6S264 (6q25.2-q26), was also identified by the bivariate analysis as exerting significant pleiotropic influences on IRS-related phenotypes (e.g., LOD(eq) for traits-specific insulin and leptin was 4.1). This chromosomal region harbors positional candidate genes, such as the insulin-like growth factor 2 receptor (IGF2R, 6q26) and acetyl-CoA acetyltransferase 2 (ACAT2, 6q25.3-q26). In sum, we found substantial evidence for susceptibility loci on chromosome 6q that influence insulin concentrations and other IRS-related phenotypes in Mexican Americans.

Characterization of murine BATF: a negative regulator of activator protein-1 activity in the thymus

BATF belongs to the AP-1/ATF superfamily of transcription factors and forms heterodimers with Jun proteins to bind AP-1 consensus DNA. Unlike Fos/Jun heterodimers which stimulate gene transcription, BATF/Jun heterodimers are transcriptionally inert and inhibit biological processes that are associated with the overstimulation of AP-1 activity. Here, we describe the murine BATF cDNA and genomic clones and map the BATF locus to chromosome 12 D2-3. Using in situ hybridization of BATF mRNA, we show that BATF gene expression is highly restricted, with the most prominent signals detected in the thymus. BATF mRNA levels are regulated differentially during discrete stages of T cell development and are up-regulated following activation of T cells in the periphery. To demonstrate the impact of BATF on AP-1 activity in vivo, AP-1 luciferase reporter mice were crossed to transgenic mice overexpressing BATF exclusively in thymic T cells. Results show that elevated levels of BATF protein correlate with reduced transactivation by AP-1. Since the differential regulation of AP-1 activity is linked to key transitions in the developing immune system, our observations support a critical role for BATF in determining the overall level of AP-1 activity, and thus AP-1 target gene expression, in specific T cell subtypes.

Enhanced survival and mucosal repair after dextran sodium sulfate-induced colitis in transgenic mice that overexpress growth hormone

BACKGROUND & AIMS

Growth hormone (GH) is used as therapy for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), but the specific effects on intestine are unknown. Transgenic mice overexpressing GH (MT1-bGH-TG) were used to test whether increased plasma GH levels alter inflammation or crypt damage during dextran sodium sulfate (DSS)-induced colitis.

METHODS

MT1-bGH-TG and wild-type (WT) littermates were given 3% DSS for 5 days followed by up to 10 days of recovery. Colitis and epithelial cell proliferation were evaluated histologically. Plasma insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-I and colonic IGF-I, interleukin (IL)-1beta, and intestinal trefoil factor (ITF) messenger RNAs (mRNAs) were measured.

RESULTS

DSS induced similar disease onset in MT1-bGH-TG and WT. More MT1-bGH-TG survived than WT. By recovery day 7, MT1-bGH-TG had less inflammation and crypt damage, elevated plasma IGF-I, and increased colonic ITF expression relative to WT. Colonic IL-1beta was elevated in DSS-treated MT1-bGH-TG and WT, but IL-1beta mRNA abundance correlated with disease only in WT. MT1-bGH-TG showed earlier increases in epithelial cell proliferation than WT during recovery but only WT showed atypical repair.

CONCLUSIONS

GH does not alter susceptibility to acute DSS-induced colitis but enhances survival, remission of inflammation, and mucosal repair during recovery. GH therapy may be beneficial during active IBD by improving mucosal repair.

Context-dependent memory under stressful conditions: the case of skydiving

Two experiments examined the effect of differing levels of emotional arousal on learning and memory for words in matching and mismatching contexts. In Experiment 1, experienced skydivers learned words either in the air or on the ground and recalled them in the same context or in the other context. Experiment 2 replicated the stimuli and design of the first experiment except that participants were shown a skydiving video in lieu of skydiving. Recall was poor in air-learning conditions with actual skydiving, but when lists were learned on land, recall was higher in the matching context than in the mismatching context. In the skydiving video experiment, recall was higher in matching learn-recall contexts regardless of the situation in which learning occurred. We propose that under extremely emotionally arousing circumstances, environmental and/or mood cues are unlikely to become encoded or linked to newly acquired information and thus cannot serve as cues to retrieval. Results can be applied to understanding variations in context-dependent memory in occupations (e.g., police, military special operations, and Special Weapons and Tactics teams) in which the worker experiences considerable emotional stress while learning or recalling new information.

Characterization of a major sporozoite surface glycoprotein of Cryptosporidum parvum

We have identified S60, a new Cryptosporidium parvum sporozoite surface glycoprotein. S60 was cleaved into two subunits, S16 and S45, approximately 16-18 and 45-47 kDa respectively, with cleavage occurring at an SRSRR motif likely to be sensitive to trypsin in vivo. Analysis by surface biotinylation, lectins and monoclonal antibodies suggests S60 is an abundant sporozoite surface glycoprotein that is shed by migrating sporozoites. The major glycosylation on S60 was identified as single O-linked N-acetylgalactosamine sugars on threonine and serine residues. The gene encoding the S60 protein was identified and revealed a C-terminal consensus sequence for the addition of a glycosylphosphatidyl inositol anchor. Antisera raised against recombinant S60 produced in Escherichia coli reacted with the surface of sporozoites and the inner wall of excysted oocysts.

Fibrogenesis. IV. Fibrosis and inflammatory bowel disease: cellular mediators and animal models

The cellular mediators of intestinal fibrosis and the relationship between fibrosis and normal repair are not understood. Identification of the types of intestinal mesenchymal cells that produce collagen during normal healing and fibrosis is vital for elucidating the answers to these questions. Acute injury may cause normal mesenchymal cells to convert to a fibrogenic phenotype that is not maintained during normal healing but may lead to fibrosis when inappropriately sustained. Proliferation of normal or fibrogenic mesenchymal cells may lead to muscularis overgrowth associated with fibrosis. The presence of increased numbers of vimentin-positive cells within fibrotic, hypertrophied muscularis in Crohn's disease suggests that changes in mesenchymal cell phenotype and number may indeed be associated with fibrosis. Fibrosis is induced in rats by peptidoglycan polysaccharides or trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid-ethanol administration, but inducing fibrosis in mice has been technically challenging. The development of current mouse models of colitis, such as dextran sodium sulfate or trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid-ethanol administration, into models of fibrosis will allow us to use genetic manipulation to study molecular mediators of fibrosis.

Phenotypic and genetic characterization of Paecilomyces lilacinus strains with biocontrol activity against root-knot nematodes

Efficient selection of fungi for biological control of nematodes requires a series of screening assays. Assessment of genetic diversity in the candidate species maximizes the variety of the isolates tested and permits the assignment of a particular genotype with high nematophagous potential using a rapid novel assay. Molecular analyses also facilitate separation between isolates, allowing the identification of proprietary strains and trace biocontrol strains in the environment. The resistance of propagules to UV radiation is an important factor in the survival of a biocontrol agent. We have analyzed 15 strains of the nematophagous fungus Paecilomyces lilacinus using these principles. Arbitrarily primed DNA and allozyme assays were applied to place the isolates into genetic clusters, and demonstrated that some genetically related P. lilacinus strains exhibit widespread geographic distributions. When exposed to UV radiation, some weakly nematophagous strains were generally more susceptible than effective isolates. A microtitre tray-based assay used to screen the pathogenic activity of each isolate to Meloidogyne javanica egg masses revealed that the nematophagous ability varied between 37%-100%. However, there was no clear relationship between nematophagous ability and genetic clusters. Molecular characterizations revealed sufficient diversity to allow tracking of strains released into the environment.

Dictyostelium discoideum as expression host: isotopic labeling of a recombinant glycoprotein for NMR studies

The advantages of the organism Dictyostelium discoideum as an expression host for recombinant glycoproteins have been exploited for the production of an isotopically labeled cell surface protein for NMR structure studies. Growth medium containing [(15)N]NH(4)Cl and [(13)C]glycerol was used to generate isotopically labeled Escherichia coli, which was subsequently introduced to D. discoideum cells in simple Mes buffer. A variety of growth conditions were screened to establish minimal amounts of nitrogen and carbon metabolites for a cost-effective protocol. Following single-step purification by anion-exchange chromatography, 8 mg of uniformly (13)C,(15)N-labeled protein secreted by approximately 10(10) D. discoideum cells was isolated from 3.3 liters of supernatant. Mass spectrometry showed the recombinant protein of 16 kDa to have incorporated greater than 99.9% isotopic label. The two-dimensional (1)H-(13)C HSQC spectrum confirms (13)C labeling of both glycan and amino acid residues of the glycoprotein. All heteronuclear NMR spectra showed a good dispersion of cross-peaks essential for high-quality structure determination.

A behavioral economic analysis of concurrent ethanol- and water-reinforced responding in different preference conditions

BACKGROUND

The reinforcing properties of orally self-administered drugs have been evaluated by using choice procedures. The preference for the drug over a nondrug alternative has indicated that the drug has greater value than the nondrug alternative as a reinforcer at some drug concentrations. However, at large drug concentrations, the fluid deliveries of the drug may be equal to or less than those of the nondrug alternative, whereas the actual drug intake (milligrams per kilogram of body weight) may continue to increase. In this study, we used behavioral economics to evaluate the reinforcing strength of ethanol in conditions where baseline ethanol fluid deliveries were greater than, equal to, or less than those of the concurrently available water.

METHODS

Four male rhesus monkeys were allowed access to ethanol (2%, 8%, or 32%) and water for 2 hr/day under a fixed ratio (FR) 4 reinforcement schedule. At each ethanol concentration, the FR for both fluids was gradually increased to FR 64.

RESULTS

During the FR 4 schedule, the fluid deliveries of ethanol at 2%, 8%, and 32% were greater than, equal to, and less than those of water, respectively. When the FR was increased at 2% ethanol, fluid deliveries and responding decreased for both the ethanol and water. When the FR was increased at 8% ethanol, water fluid deliveries and responding decreased more rapidly than did those of ethanol. When the FR was increased at 32% ethanol, the ethanol fluid deliveries remained the same across all FRs, whereas water fluid deliveries decreased rapidly. At 8% and 32% ethanol, the responding for ethanol, relative to water, increased dramatically.

CONCLUSIONS

In behavioral economic terms, demand for ethanol was more inelastic regardless of whether the ethanol or water maintained more absolute fluid deliveries at baseline FRs. Therefore, researchers should examine the reinforcing effects of ethanol in a variety of concentration and schedule conditions rather than drawing inferences regarding reinforcing effects simply based on a preference measure.

Automatic poisson peak harvesting for high throughput protein identification

High throughput identification of proteins by peptide mass fingerprinting requires an efficient means of picking peaks from mass spectra. Here, we report the development of a peak harvester to automatically pick monoisotopic peaks from spectra generated on matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionisation time of flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometers. The peak harvester uses advanced mathematical morphology and watershed algorithms to first process spectra to stick representations. Subsequently, Poisson modelling is applied to determine which peak in an isotopically resolved group represents the monoisotopic mass of a peptide. We illustrate the features of the peak harvester with mass spectra of standard peptides, digests of gel-separated bovine serum albumin, and with Escherictia coli proteins prepared by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. In all cases, the peak harvester proved effective in its ability to pick similar monoisotopic peaks as an experienced human operator, and also proved effective in the identification of monoisotopic masses in cases where isotopic distributions of peptides were overlapping. The peak harvester can be operated in an interactive mode, or can be completely automated and linked through to peptide mass fingerprinting protein identification tools to achieve high throughput automated protein identification.

Serotype classification and characterisation of the rotavirus SA11 VP6 protein using mass spectrometry and two-dimensional gel electrophoresis

VP6, which makes up the inner capsid of rotavirus, is the major structural protein of this virus. Whilst VP6 has been sequenced at the DNA level in several rotavirus strains, there has been less effort to characterise the protein at the amino acid level. This paper reports the use of peptide mass fingerprinting and post-source decay fragmentation studies using MALDI-TOF and electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry to identify and characterise, in detail, the VP6 protein. We show that mass spectrometric analysis of VP6 peptides successfully distinguished SA11 from other rotavirus serotypes, and identify unique peptides that can be used for serotypic differentiation. For VP6 characterisation, the ExPASy FindMod tool was used to predict post-translational modifications on the protein. Analysis of trypsin and AspN digests predicted that the N-terminal methionine of VP6 was acetylated and this was confirmed using post source decay and electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry-mass spectrometry. An asparagine residue (aa107), which is followed by a glycine residue, was shown to undergo partial deamidation to aspartic acid. VP6 has two additional asparagine-glycine sequences and, in this sequence context, asparagine is known to be particularly susceptible to deamidation. Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis revealed a complex series of VP6 isoforms with an apparent molecular mass of approximately 45,000 Da and a pI ranging from 5.25 to 5.8. This pattern could partly be explained by the potential for deamidation at several sites within the protein.

Proteomic analysis of the Escherichia coli outer membrane

Outer membrane proteins (OMPs) of Gram-negative bacteria are key molecules that interface the cell with the environment. Traditional biochemical and genetic approaches have yielded a wealth of knowledge relating to the function of OMPs. Nonetheless, with the completion of the Escherichia coli genome sequencing project there is the opportunity to further expand our understanding of the organization, expression and function of the OMPs in this Gram-negative bacterium. In this report we describe a proteomic approach which provides a platform for parallel analysis of OMPs. We propose a rapid method for isolation of bacterial OMPs using carbonate incubation, purification and protein array by two-dimensional electrophoresis, followed by protein identification using mass spectrometry. Applying this method to examine E. coli K-12 cells grown in minimal media we identified 21 out of 26 (80%) of the predicted integral OMPs that are annotated in SWISS-PROT release 37 and predicted to separate within the range of pH 4-7 and molecular mass 10-80 kDa. Five outer membrane lipoproteins were also identified and only minor contamination by nonmembrane proteins was observed. Importantly, this research readily demonstrates that integral OMPs, commonly missing from 2D gel maps, are amenable to separation by two-dimensional electrophoresis. Two of the identified OMPs (YbiL, YeaF) were previously known only from their ORFs, and their identification confirms the cognate genes are transcribed and translated. Furthermore, we show that like the E. coli iron receptors FhuE and FhuA, the expression of YbiL is markedly increased by iron limitation, suggesting a putative role for this protein in iron transport. In an additional demonstration we show the value of parallel protein analysis to document changes in E. coli OMP expression as influenced by culture temperature.

Multiple O-glycoforms on the spore coat protein SP96 in Dictyostelium discoideum. Fuc(alpha1-3)GlcNAc-alpha-1-P-Ser is the major modification

A decreased level of fucosylation on certain spore coat proteins of Dictyostelium discoideum alters the permeability of the spore coat. Here the post-translational modifications of a major spore coat protein, SP96, are studied in a wild type strain (X22) and a fucosylation-defective mutant (HU2470). A novel phosphoglycan structure on SP96 of the wild type strain, consisting of Fuc(alpha1-3)GlcNAc-alpha-1-P-Ser(,) was identified by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry and NMR. It was shown using monosaccharide and gas chromatography mass spectrometry analysis that SP96 in the mutant HU2470 contained approximately 20% of wild type levels of fucose, as a result of a missing terminal fucose on the novel glycan structure. The results support previous predictions, based on inhibition studies on different fucose-deficient strains, about the nature of monoclonal antibody epitopes identified by monoclonal antibodies MUD62 and MUD166, which are known to identify O-linked glycans (Champion, A., Griffiths, K., Gooley, A. A., Gonzalez, B. Y., Gritzali, M., West, C. M., and Williams, K. L. (1995) Microbiology 141, 785-797). Quantitative studies on wild type SP96 indicated that there were approximately 60 sites with phosphodiester-linked N-acetylglucosamine-fucose disaccharide units and a further approximately 20 sites with fucose directly linked to the protein. Over 70% of the serine sites are modified, with less than 1% of these sites as phosphoserine. Threonine and tyrosine residues were not found to be modified.

Proteomics: capacity versus utility

Until recently scientists studied genes or proteins one at a time. With improvements in technology, new tools have become available to study the complex interactions that occur in biological systems. Global studies are required to do this, and these will involve genomic and proteomic approaches. High-throughput methods are necessary in each case because the number of genes and proteins in even the simplest of organisms are immense. In the developmental phase of genomics, the emphasis was on the generation and assembly of large amounts of nucleic acid sequence data. Proteomics is currently in a phase of technological development and establishment, and demonstrating the capacity for high throughput is a major challenge. However, funding bodies (both in the public and private sector) are increasingly focused on the usefulness of this capacity. Here we review the current state of proteome research in terms of capacity and utility.

A major susceptibility locus influencing plasma triglyceride concentrations is located on chromosome 15q in Mexican Americans

Although several genetic forms of rare or syndromic hypertriglyceridemia have been reported, little is known about the specific chromosomal regions across the genome harboring susceptibility genes for common forms of hypertriglyceridemia. Therefore, we conducted a genomewide scan for susceptibility genes influencing plasma triglyceride (TG) levels in a Mexican American population. We used both phenotypic and genotypic data from 418 individuals distributed across 27 low-income, extended Mexican American families. For the analyses, TG values were log transformed (ln TG). We used a variance-components technique to conduct multipoint linkage analyses for localizing susceptibility genes that determine variation in TG levels. We used an approximately 10-15-cM map, which was made on the basis of information from 295 microsatellite markers. After accounting for the effects of sex and sex-specific age terms, we found significant evidence for linkage (LOD = 3.88) of ln TG levels to a genetic location between the markers GABRB3 and D15S165 on chromosome 15q. This putative locus explains 39.7+/-7% (P=.000012) of total phenotypic variation in ln TG levels. Suggestive evidence was found for linkage of ln TG levels to two different locations on chromosome 7, which are approximately 85 cM apart from each other. Also, there is some evidence for linkage of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol concentrations to a genetic location near one of the regions on chromosome 7. In conclusion, we found strong evidence for linkage of ln TG levels to a genetic location on chromosome 15q in a Mexican American population, which is prone to disease conditions such as type 2 diabetes and the insulin-resistance syndrome that are associated with hypertriglyceridemia. This putative locus appears to have a major influence on ln TG variation.

Acoustic scattering by a three-dimensional elastic object near a rough surface

The ensemble-averaged field scattered by a smooth, bounded, elastic object near a penetrable surface with small-scale random roughness is formulated. The formulation consists of combining a perturbative solution for modeling propagation through the rough surface with a transition (T-) matrix solution for scattering by the object near a planar surface. All media bounding the rough surface are assumed to be fluids. By applying the results to a spherical steel shell buried within a rough sediment bottom, it is demonstrated that the ensemble-averaged "incoherent" intensity backscattered by buried objects illuminated with shallow-grazing-angle acoustic sources can be well enhanced at high frequencies over field predictions based on scattering models where all environmental surfaces are planar. However, this intensity must compete with the incoherent intensity scattered back from the interface itself, which can defeat detection attempts. The averaged "coherent" component of the field maintains the strong evanescent spectral decay exhibited by flat interface predictions of shallow-angle measurements but with small deviations. Nevertheless, bistatic calculations of the coherent field suggest useful strategies for improving long-range detection and identification of buried objects.

Effect of screening algorithm, parameter values and median smoothing on patient-specific risk estimates for Down's syndrome screening

The efficiency of a screening programme for Down's syndrome is usually expressed in terms of the detection rate for a given false positive rate. Two programmes with approximately equal detection rates and false positive rates would then be regarded as being broadly equivalent. While this might be the case at a population level, we show in this paper that it may be far from true at the individual patient level. Different algorithms, or even different implementations of the same algorithm can lead to calculation of very different individual risks and can result in different decisions for individual patients. Even though two programmes might lead to the same number of referrals, they could be referring quite different women. We consider the effect of using different parameter values within an algorithm, different algorithms and alternative ways of estimating the gestational age-dependent medians of the marker values. We show that the combined effects of these factors could explain much of the range of risks reported in the UK National External Quality Assessment Scheme for Down's syndrome screening.

Modeling of subcritical penetration into sediments due to interface roughness

Recent experimental results reveal acoustic penetration into sandy sediments at grazing angles below the critical angle. A mechanism for this subcritical penetration is described based on scattering at a rough water-sediment interface. Using perturbation theory, a numerically tractable three-dimensional model is used for simulating experiments. The rough interface scattering has been treated using formally averaged methods as well as with single rough surface realizations. Data-model comparisons show that scattering by interface roughness is a viable hypothesis for the observed subcritical penetration.

BOLD--a biological O-linked glycan database

Glycans can be O-linked to proteins via the hydroxyl group of serine, threonine, tyrosine, hydroxylysine or hydroxyproline. Sometimes the glycan is O-linked to the hydroxyl group via a phosphodiester bond. The core monosaccharide residue may be N-acetylgalactosamine, N-acetylglucosamine, galactose, glucose, fucose, mannose, xylose or arabinose. These O-linked glycans can remain as a monosaccharide, but often a complex structure is built up by stepwise addition of monosaccharides. Monosaccharides known to be added include galactose, N-acetylglucosamine, fucose, N-acetylneuraminic acid, N-glycolylneuraminic acid and 2-keto-3-deoxynonulosonic acid. O-linked glycans can also contain sulfate and phosphate residues. This leads to the possibility of the existence of numerous O-glycan structures. The biological O-linked database (BOLD) is a relational database that contains information on O-linked glycan structures, their biological sources (with a link to the SWISS-PROT protein database), the references in which the glycan was described (with a link to MEDLINE), and the methods used to determine the glycan structure. The database provides a valuable resource for glycobiology researchers interested in O-linked oligosaccharide structures that have been previously described on proteins from different species and tissues.

Scanning the available Dictyostelium discoideum proteome for O-linked GlcNAc glycosylation sites using neural networks

Dictyostelium discoideum has been suggested as a eukaryotic model organism for glycobiology studies. Presently, the characteristics of acceptor sites for the N-acetylglucosaminyl-transferases in Dictyostelium discoideum, which link GlcNAc in an alpha linkage to hydroxyl residues, are largely unknown. This motivates the development of a species specific method for prediction of O-linked GlcNAc glycosylation sites in secreted and membrane proteins of D. discoideum. The method presented here employs a jury of artificial neural networks. These networks were trained to recognize the sequence context and protein surface accessibility in 39 experimentally determined O-alpha-GlcNAc sites found in D. discoideum glycoproteins expressed in vivo. Cross-validation of the data revealed a correlation in which 97% of the glycosylated and nonglycosylated sites were correctly identified. Based on the currently limited data set, an abundant periodicity of two (positions-3, -1, +1, +3, etc.) in Proline residues alternating with hydroxyl amino acids was observed upstream and downstream of the acceptor site. This was a consequence of the spacing of the glycosylated residues themselves which were peculiarly found to be situated only at even positions with respect to each other, indicating that these may be located within beta-strands. The method has been used for a rapid and ranked scan of the fraction of the Dictyostelium proteome available in public databases, remarkably 25-30% of which were predicted glycosylated. The scan revealed acceptor sites in several proteins known experimentally to be O-glycosylated at unmapped sites. The available proteome was classified into functional and cellular compartments to study any preferential patterns of glycosylation. A sequence based prediction server for GlcNAc O-glycosylations in D. discoideum proteins has been made available through the WWW at http://www.cbs.dtu.dk/services/DictyOGlyc/ and via E-mail to DictyOGlyc@cbs.dtu.dk.

Naltrexone reduces ethanol- and/or water-reinforced responding in rhesus monkeys: effect depends upon ethanol concentration

BACKGROUND

The opioid antagonist naltrexone reduces responding for ethanol. If naltrexone produces this effect by blocking ethanol-induced opioid activity, then naltrexone should reduce responding for ethanol regardless of level of the ethanol responding relative to an alternatively available reinforcer. In addition, if naltrexone competitively blocks ethanol-induced opioid activity, then the naltrexone effect may be surmountable by increasing ethanol concentration and, thus, ethanol intake (g/kg). This study was conducted to determine whether naltrexone will selectively reduce ethanol-reinforced responding when the ethanol concentration is varied such that ethanol fluid deliveries are less than, greater than, or equal to the fluid deliveries of concurrently available water.

METHODS

Four adult male rhesus monkeys were allowed to respond for ethanol or water concurrently for 2 hr per day. Ethanol concentration was either 2%, 8%, or 32%. On various days, either saline or naltrexone (0.1 mg/kg) was given intramuscularly 30 min before the drinking session.

RESULTS

When ethanol fluid deliveries were greater than those of water (at 2% ethanol), naltrexone reduced responding for ethanol. When the ethanol and water fluid deliveries were approximately equal (at 8% ethanol), naltrexone reduced both ethanol and water fluid deliveries. When water fluid deliveries were greater than those of ethanol (at 32% ethanol), naltrexone reduced responding for water.

CONCLUSIONS

Thus, naltrexone reduced responding for the preferred fluid, either ethanol or water, depending on ethanol concentration. The effect was not surmountable by increasing ethanol concentration and, therefore, ethanol intake (g/kg). Naltrexone may reduce ethanol-reinforced responding by a mechanism other than that of blocking ethanol-induced opioid activity. Naltrexone may be inducing an aversive interoceptive state.

Flow cytometry and RT-PCR for rotavirus detection in artificially seeded oyster meat

A flow cytometry (FC)-based method was developed for the detection of rotavirus in oyster meat using simian rotavirus SA11 as a model. To study virus recovery, oyster meat was injected with rotavirus and the oyster extract used to infect MA104 cell monolayers. Following varying periods of infection, the cells were recovered and reacted with the monoclonal antibody M60 which is specific for the rotavirus group A serotypes 1-4 outer capsid protein, VP7, followed by a second antibody (anti mouse IgG-FITC). A FACScan FC was used to estimate the number of infected cells as well as the level of infection. To evaluate the sensitivity of the method, non-inoculated oysters were processed following the same extraction protocol and, at the end, they were seeded with the same amount of virus used for oyster inoculation. This seeded oyster extract was then used to infect MA104 cells and the number of infected cells determined using the same FC procedure. A semi-nested two-step PCR for detection of rotavirus nucleic acid was undertaken to compare the sensitivity of FC with RT-PCR. Using FC, as little as 0.02 flow cytometry units (fcu) (number of infected cells counted by FC) could be detected after 72 h of cell infection. This is a very similar limit of sensitivity to that obtained with RT-PCR. Both methods are approximately 100 times more sensitive than the plaque-forming units (pfu) assay.

High-throughput mass spectrometric discovery of protein post-translational modifications

The availability of genome sequences, affordable mass spectrometers and high-resolution two-dimensional gels has made possible the identification of hundreds of proteins from many organisms by peptide mass fingerprinting. However, little attention has been paid to how information generated by these means can be utilised for detailed protein characterisation. Here we present an approach for the systematic characterisation of proteins using mass spectrometry and a software tool FindMod. This tool, available on the internet at http://www.expasy.ch/sprot/findmod.html , examines peptide mass fingerprinting data for mass differences between empirical and theoretical peptides. Where mass differences correspond to a post-translational modification, intelligent rules are applied to predict the amino acids in the peptide, if any, that might carry the modification. FindMod rules were constructed by examining 5153 incidences of post-translational modifications documented in the SWISS-PROT database, and for the 22 post-translational modifications currently considered (acetylation, amidation, biotinylation, C-mannosylation, deamidation, flavinylation, farnesylation, formylation, geranyl-geranylation, gamma-carboxyglutamic acids, hydroxylation, lipoylation, methylation, myristoylation, N -acyl diglyceride (tripalmitate), O-GlcNAc, palmitoylation, phosphorylation, pyridoxal phosphate, phospho-pantetheine, pyrrolidone carboxylic acid, sulphation) a total of 29 different rules were made. These consider which amino acids can carry a modification, whether the modification occurs on N-terminal, C-terminal or internal amino acids, and the type of organisms on which the modification can be found. We illustrate the utility of the approach with proteins from 2-D gels of Escherichia coli and sheep wool, where post-translational modifications predicted by FindMod were confirmed by MALDI post-source decay peptide fragmentation. As the approach is amenable to automation, it presents a potentially large-scale means of protein characterisation in proteome projects.