Integrated plant conservation through the Global Conservation Consortia.

The 2020 State of the World's Plants and Fungi report revealed that two in five plant species are threatened with extinction. Despite their diverse ecosystem services and myriad human uses, plants receive a fraction of the conservation resources directed at animal taxa. Several existing frameworks-including International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Specialist Groups, the American Public Gardens Association Plant Collections Network, and the Center for Plant Conservation National Collection of Endangered Plants-have spurred conservation action, but there remains an urgent need to scale up conservation efforts for the world's plants.

Testing protocols to optimize DNA extraction from tough leaf tissue: A case study in .

Premise: Plants with stiff, leathery leaves pose a challenge for standard DNA extraction protocols. These tissues are recalcitrant to mechanical disruption via TissueLyser (or analogous devices) and are often high in secondary metabolites. These compounding factors result in low yields, which may be sufficient for PCR amplification but are generally inadequate for genomic applications that require large quantities of high-quality DNA.

Exploring Similarity and Stability of Differentiation in Relationships: A Dyadic Study of Bowen's Theory.

Bowen family systems theory (BFST) identifies differentiation of self as a crucial characteristic that relates to one's individual and relational maturity. Bowen theorizes that an individual's level of differentiation typically remains static over time and that individuals select and pair in relationships with others who have similar levels of differentiation. This study aimed to test the hypotheses of BFST by using components of differentiation of self, emotional reactivity, and emotional cutoff, in dyadic structural equation modeling.

Informed consent checklists for midurethral slings: a common-sense approach.

Introduction And Hypothesis: Following the US Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) warning about the use of transvaginal mesh to treat pelvic organ prolapse (POP) and the use of single-incision slings to treat incontinence, the number of lawsuits for medical negligence regarding the use of any polypropylene mesh in the vagina has increased tremendously.

Methods: This same FDA document did not question the use of polypropylene midurethral slings and polypropylene for sacrocolpopexies. Surprisingly, despite all the evidence and recommendations from respected international scientific societies, we are constantly being called upon by our patients to defend the use of midurethral slings.

Conditional Deletion of the L-Type Calcium Channel Cav1.2 in Oligodendrocyte Progenitor Cells Affects Postnatal Myelination in Mice.

Unlabelled: To determine whether L-type voltage-operated Ca channels (L-VOCCs) are required for oligodendrocyte progenitor cell (OPC) development, we generated an inducible conditional knock-out mouse in which the L-VOCC isoform Cav1.2 was postnatally deleted in NG2-positive OPCs. A significant hypomyelination was found in the brains of the Cav1.

Golli Myelin Basic Proteins Modulate Voltage-Operated Ca(++) Influx and Development in Cortical and Hippocampal Neurons.

The golli proteins, products of the myelin basic protein gene, are widely expressed in oligodendrocyte progenitor cells and neurons during the postnatal development of the brain. While golli appears to be important for oligodendrocyte migration and differentiation, its function in neuronal development is completely unknown. We have found that golli proteins function as new and novel modulators of voltage-operated Ca(++) channels (VOCCs) in neurons.

Golli myelin basic proteins stimulate oligodendrocyte progenitor cell proliferation and differentiation in remyelinating adult mouse brain.

Golli myelin basic proteins are necessary for normal myelination, acting via voltage and store-dependent Ca(2+) entry at multiple steps during oligodendrocyte progenitor cell (OPC) development. To date nothing is known regarding the role of golli proteins in demyelination or remyelination events. Here the effects of golli ablation and overexpression in myelin loss and recovery were examined using the cuprizone (CPZ) model of demyelination/remyelination.

Developmental activation of the proteolipid protein promoter transgene in neuronal and oligodendroglial cells of neostriatum in mice.

Prior studies suggest that non-canonical proteolipid protein (PLP) gene expression occurs during development in non-myelinating neurons as well as myelinating oligodendroglia in mammalian brain. To assess this possibility in neostriatum, a region of uncertain PLP gene expression in neurons, morphological and electrophysiological tools were used to determine phenotypes of cells with activation of a PLP promoter transgene during the early postnatal period in mice. PLP gene expression is evident in both neuronal and oligodendroglial phenotypes in developing neostriatum, a conclusion based on three novel observations: (1) An enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) reporter of PLP promoter activation was localized in two distinct populations of cells, which exhibit collective, developmental differences of morphological and electrophysiological characteristics in accord with neuronal and oligodendroglial phenotypes of neostriatal cells found during the early postnatal period in both transgenic and wild-type mice.

Modulation of canonical transient receptor potential channel 1 in the proliferation of oligodendrocyte precursor cells by the golli products of the myelin basic protein gene.

Golli proteins, products of the myelin basic protein gene, function as a new type of modulator of intracellular Ca(2+) levels in oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs). Because of this, they affect a number of Ca(2+)-dependent functions, such as OPC migration and process extension. To examine further the Ca(2+) channels regulated by golli, we studied the store-operated Ca(2+) channels (SOCCs) in OPCs and acute brain slice preparations from golli knock-out and golli-overexpressing mice.

Regulation of L-type Ca++ currents and process morphology in white matter oligodendrocyte precursor cells by golli-myelin proteins.

The golli myelin basic proteins are expressed in oligodendroglial precursor cells (OPCs) where they play a role in regulating Ca(2+) homeostasis. During depolarization, they influence process outgrowth and migration through their action on voltage-operated Ca(2+) channels (VOCCs). To identify ion channels that are modulated by golli, we examined the electrophysiological properties of VOCCs in OPCs in the white matter of golli knock-out and control mice.

Multiple kinase pathways regulate voltage-dependent Ca2+ influx and migration in oligodendrocyte precursor cells.

It is becoming increasingly clear that voltage-operated Ca(2+) channels (VOCCs) play a fundamental role in the development of oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs). Because direct phosphorylation by different kinases is one of the most important mechanisms involved in VOCC modulation, the aim of this study was to evaluate the participation of serine-threonine kinases and tyrosine kinases (TKs) on Ca(2+) influx mediated by VOCCs in OPCs. Calcium imaging revealed that OPCs exhibited Ca(2+) influx after plasma membrane depolarization via L-type VOCCs.

Targeted overexpression of a golli-myelin basic protein isoform to oligodendrocytes results in aberrant oligodendrocyte maturation and myelination.

Recently, several in vitro studies have shown that the golli-myelin basic proteins regulate Ca2+ homoeostasis in OPCs (oligodendrocyte precursor cells) and immature OLs (oligodendrocytes), and that a number of the functions of these cells are affected by cellular levels of the golli proteins. To determine the influence of golli in vivo on OL development and myelination, a transgenic mouse was generated in which the golli isoform J37 was overexpressed specifically within OLs and OPCs. The mouse, called JOE (J37-overexpressing), is severely hypomyelinated between birth and postnatal day 50.

Regulation of store-operated and voltage-operated Ca2+ channels in the proliferation and death of oligodendrocyte precursor cells by golli proteins.

OPCs (oligodendrocyte precursor cells) express golli proteins which, through regulation of Ca2+ influx, appear to be important in OPC process extension/retraction and migration. The aim of the present study was to examine further the role of golli in regulating OPC development. The effects of golli ablation and overexpression were examined in primary cultures of OPCs prepared from golli-KO (knockout) and JOE (golli J37-overexpressing) mice.

Golli myelin basic proteins regulate oligodendroglial progenitor cell migration through voltage-gated Ca2+ influx.

Migration of oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs) from proliferative zones to their final location in the brain is an essential step in nervous system development. Golli proteins, products of the myelin basic protein gene, can modulate voltage-gated Ca(2+) uptake in OPCs during process extension and retraction. Given the importance of process extension/retraction on movement, the consequences of golli expression on OPC migration were examined in vivo and in vitro using time-lapse imaging of isolated OPCs and acute brain slice preparations from golli KO and golli J37 overexpressing mice (JOE).

Increased expression of golli myelin basic proteins enhances calcium influx into oligodendroglial cells.

The myelin basic protein (MBP) gene encodes two families of proteins: the classic MBP constituents of myelin and the golli-MBPs, the function of which is less well understood. Previous work suggests that golli proteins may play a role in Ca2+ homeostasis in oligodendrocytes (OLs) and in T-cells. Overexpression of golli in OL cell lines induces elaboration of sheets and processes.

Visualization of corticofugal projections during early cortical development in a tau-GFP-transgenic mouse.

The first postmitotic neurons in the developing neocortex establish the preplate layer. These early-born neurons have a significant influence on the circuitry of the developing cortex. However, the exact timing and trajectory of their projections, between cortical hemispheres and intra- and extra-cortical regions, remain unresolved.

Region-specific myelin pathology in mice lacking the golli products of the myelin basic protein gene.

The myelin basic protein (MBP) gene encodes two families of proteins, the classic MBP constituents of myelin and the golli-MBPs, the function of which is less well understood. In this study, targeted ablation of the golli-MBPs, but not the classic MBPs, resulted in a distinct phenotype unlike that of knock-outs (KOs) of the classic MBPs or other myelin proteins. Although the golli KO animals did not display an overt dysmyelinating phenotype, they did exhibit delayed and/or hypomyelination in selected areas of the brain, such as the visual cortex and the optic nerve, as determined by Northern and Western blots and immunohistochemical analysis with myelin protein markers.

EDS1 in tomato is required for resistance mediated by TIR-class R genes and the receptor-like R gene Ve.

In tobacco and other Solanaceae species, the tobacco N gene confers resistance to tobacco mosaic virus (TMV), and leads to induction of standard defense and resistance responses. Here, we report the use of N-transgenic tomato to identify a fast-neutron mutant, sun1-1 (suppressor of N), that is defective in N-mediated resistance. Induction of salicylic acid (SA) and expression of pathogenesis-related (PR) genes, each signatures of systemic acquired resistance, are both dramatically suppressed in sun1-1 plants after TMV treatment compared to wild-type plants.

Identification & characterisation of the two novel streptococcal pyrogenic exotoxins SPE-L & SPE-M.

Background & Objectives: The streptococcal pyrogenic exotoxins (SPEs) are produced by Streptococcus pyogenes and belong to the family of bacterial superantigens, a group of highly mitogenic proteins. The aim of this study was to search unfinished streptococcal genomes for novel superantigens, to generate recombinant proteins from potential open reading frames (ORFs) and to analyse them for superantigen activity.

Methods: The microbial genome database was searched using a TBLASTN search programme.

Identification of a protein that interacts with the golli-myelin basic protein and with nuclear LIM interactor in the nervous system.

The myelin basic protein (MBP) gene encodes the classic MBPs and the golli proteins, which are related structurally to the MBPs but are not components of the myelin sheath. A yeast two-hybrid approach was used to identify molecular partners that interact with the golli proteins. A mouse cDNA was cloned that encoded a protein of 261 amino acids and called golli-interacting protein (GIP).

Experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis relapses are reduced in heterozygous golli MBP knockout mice.

Increased golli MBP (golli) expression has been observed in the peripheral immune system of mice in the relapsing phase of EAE, raising the possibility that golli MBP expression in the periphery may contribute to relapses. Here we describe the generation of golli MBP-deficient mice and a comparison of the clinical course of EAE between heterozygous (golli(+/-)) and wild-type (golli(+/+)) mice. There was no difference between the two groups in incidence of disease, severity of the first episode of disease, or remission after the first episode.

Two novel superantigens found in both group A and group C Streptococcus.

Two novel streptococcal superantigen genes (speL(Se) and speM(Se)) were identified from the Streptococcus equi genome database at the Sanger Center. Genotyping of 8 S. equi isolates and 40 Streptococcus pyogenes isolates resulted in the detection of the orthologous genes speL and speM in a restricted number of S.

Influence of the embryonic preplate on the organization of the cerebral cortex: a targeted ablation model.

Transgenic mice were generated to permit the targeted ablation of cortical preplate cells at the time they are born. In these mice, the 1.3 kb golli promoter of the myelin basic protein gene was used to drive the herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase (TK) transgene in cortical preplate cells.

Identification of genes in the oligodendrocyte lineage through the analysis of conditionally immortalized cell lines.

The mouse oligodendrocyte cell lines, N19 and N20.1, were used as sources of potential stage-specific RNA in order to construct a subtraction library enriched in cDNAs expressed early in the oligodendrocyte (OL) lineage. From this library, 23 clones were examined and three were examined in most detail.