Elucidation of the interactome of the sucrose transporter StSUT4: sucrose transport is connected to ethylene and calcium signalling.

Sucrose transporters of the SUT4 clade show dual targeting to both the plasma membrane as well as to the vacuole. Previous investigations revealed a role for the potato sucrose transporter StSUT4 in flowering, tuberization, shade avoidance response, and ethylene production. Down-regulation of StSUT4 expression leads to early flowering, tuberization under long days, far-red light insensitivity, and reduced diurnal ethylene production.

Skewed X-inactivation patterns in ageing healthy and myelodysplastic haematopoiesis determined by a pyrosequencing based transcriptional clonality assay.

Background: Investigation of X-chromosome inactivation patterns (XCIP) by determination of differential CpG-methylation has been widely applied for investigation of female cell clonality. Using this approach the clonal origin of various tumours has been corroborated. Controversially, strong age-related increase of peripheral blood (PB) cell clonality in haematologically healthy female subjects was reported.

The potato sucrose transporter StSUT1 interacts with a DRM-associated protein disulfide isomerase.

Organization of proteins into complexes is crucial for many cellular functions. Recently, the SUT1 protein was shown to form homodimeric complexes, to be associated with lipid raft-like microdomains in yeast as well as in plants and to undergo endocytosis in response to brefeldin A. We therefore aimed to identify SUT1-interacting proteins that might be involved in dimerization, endocytosis, or targeting of SUT1 to raft-like microdomains.

Expression of IGFBP7 in acute leukemia is regulated by DNA methylation.

The important role of insulin-like growth factor binding protein 7 (IGFBP7) as a tumor suppressor in solid tumors has been revealed in several studies. Interestingly, in a recent study IGFBP7 was also shown to be aberrantly expressed in acute leukemia. Moreover, in acute T-lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL), high IGFBP7 expression predicts primary therapy resistance.

Transcriptional down-regulation of the Wnt antagonist SFRP1 in haematopoietic cells of patients with different risk types of MDS.

Secreted frizzled related protein 1 (SFRP1) is an extracellular antagonist of the Wnt signalling pathway that plays an important role in the pathogenesis of solid tumours and haematopoietic malignancies. SFRP1 has been observed to be transcriptionally down-regulated due to hypermethylation in acute and chronic leukaemia, but so far not in myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). Moreover, it has been shown that the epigenetic inactivation of SFRP1 correlates with an overexpression of the Wnt receptor Frizzled 3 (Fzd3) in acute leukaemia.