Histone-like protein H1 (H-NS) family proteins are nucleoid-associated proteins (NAPs) conserved among many bacterial species. The IncP-7 plasmid pCAR1 is transmissible among various Pseudomonas strains and carries a gene encoding the H-NS family protein, Pmr. Pseudomonas putida KT2440 is a host of pCAR1, which harbors five genes encoding the H-NS family proteins PP_1366 (TurA), PP_3765 (TurB), PP_0017 (TurC), PP_3693 (TurD), and PP_2947 (TurE). Quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (qRT-PCR) demonstrated that the presence of pCAR1 does not affect the transcription of these five genes and that only pmr, turA, and turB were primarily transcribed in KT2440(pCAR1). In vitro pull-down assays revealed that Pmr strongly interacted with itself and with TurA, TurB, and TurE. Transcriptome comparisons of the pmr disruptant, KT2440, and KT2440(pCAR1) strains indicated that pmr disruption had greater effects on the host transcriptome than did pCAR1 carriage. The transcriptional levels of some genes that increased with pCAR1 carriage, such as the mexEF-oprN efflux pump genes and parI, reverted with pmr disruption to levels in pCAR1-free KT2440. Transcriptional levels of putative horizontally acquired host genes were not altered by pCAR1 carriage but were altered by pmr disruption. Identification of genome-wide Pmr binding sites by ChAP-chip (chromatin affinity purification coupled with high-density tiling chip) analysis demonstrated that Pmr preferentially binds to horizontally acquired DNA regions. The Pmr binding sites overlapped well with the location of the genes differentially transcribed following pmr disruption on both the plasmid and the chromosome. Our findings indicate that Pmr is a key factor in optimizing gene transcription on pCAR1 and the host chromosome.
        
Title: Purification and molecular cloning of an intracellular 3-hydroxybutyrate-oligomer hydrolase from Paucimonas lemoignei Uchino K, Katsumata Y, Takeda T, Arai H, Shiraki M, Saito T Ref: J Biosci Bioeng, 104:224, 2007 : PubMed
An intracellular 3-hydroxybutyrate-oligomer hydrolase was purified from a poly(3-hydroxybutyrate)-degrading bacterium, Paucimonas lemoignei. It hydrolyzed the 3-hydroxybutyrate dimer with the highest specific activity of any of the enzymes reported so far. The gene was cloned and sequenced. The deduced amino acid sequence showed that the enzyme is a homolog of the PhaZc of Ralstonia eutropha H16.
        
Title: Parasitization by Cotesia plutellae enhances detoxifying enzyme activity in Plutella xylostella Takeda T, Nakamatsu Y, Tanaka T Ref: Pesticide Biochemistry and Physiology, 86:15, 2006 : PubMed
Insecticidal tests using diazinon showed that the mortality of Plutella xylostella larvae parasitized by Cotesia plutellae was reduced by 4.6-fold compared to that of the nonparasitized hosts. The use of chemicals with synergistic effect to insecticides in toxicity assay helps to elucidate the kind of enzyme involved in lowering insect mortality. Synergism of diethyl maleate and piperonyl butoxide with diazinon resulted to 2.4- and 1.9-fold increase, respectively, in susceptibility of parasitized larvae compared to those of nonparasitized larvae. These results indicated the possibility that the decrease in susceptibility to diazinon was due to the elevated activities of glutathione-S-transferase (GST) and cytochrome P450 monooxygenase (CYP), respectively. The GST activities in parasitized larvae were significantly higher than those of nonparasitized ones starting from three days post-parasitization until emergence of parasitoid larva. High GST activities during late parasitism could be attributed to both enzyme activities toward diazinon of parasitized P. xylostella larva itself and C. plutellae larva inside larval host. High GST activity one day after parasitization, although statistical significance was not detected, was caused by polydnavirus (PDV) and the venom of C. plutellae not by parasitoid larvae. Artificial injection of PDV plus venom demonstrated that the resulting increase in GST activity is similar to the increase brought by parasitization. High CYP activity after 3 days post-parasitization in parasitized larva was attributed mainly to the activity of parasitoid larva. Carboxylesterase activity in the parasitized host remained at a high level, while that in the nonparasitized host decreased slightly as pupation approaches. On the other hand, acetylcholinesterase activity also remained constant after parasitization until larval emergence, while that of the nonparasitized hosts decreased gradually as the host larvae approach pupation. These results were supported by inhibition tests using diazoxon in vitro.
Chromosome 11, although average in size, is one of the most gene- and disease-rich chromosomes in the human genome. Initial gene annotation indicates an average gene density of 11.6 genes per megabase, including 1,524 protein-coding genes, some of which were identified using novel methods, and 765 pseudogenes. One-quarter of the protein-coding genes shows overlap with other genes. Of the 856 olfactory receptor genes in the human genome, more than 40% are located in 28 single- and multi-gene clusters along this chromosome. Out of the 171 disorders currently attributed to the chromosome, 86 remain for which the underlying molecular basis is not yet known, including several mendelian traits, cancer and susceptibility loci. The high-quality data presented here--nearly 134.5 million base pairs representing 99.8% coverage of the euchromatic sequence--provide scientists with a solid foundation for understanding the genetic basis of these disorders and other biological phenomena.