Functional characterization of serine proteinase inhibitor Kazal-Type in the red claw crayfish Cherax quadricarinatus.

Serine protease inhibitors Kazal type (SPINKs) function in physiological and immunological processes across multicellular organisms. In the present study, we identified a SPINK gene, designated as CqSPINK, in the red claw crayfish Cherax quadricarinatus, which is the ortholog of human SPINK5. The deduced CqSPINK contains two Kazal domains consisting of 45 amino acid residues with a typical signature motif C-X-C-X-PVCG-X-Y-X-C-X-C-X-C.

Colony and bacterial LAMP: Simple alternative methods for bacterial determination.

In this study, we developed colony and bacterial LAMP, which directly use bacterial colony and bacterial culture as the templates without DNA extraction for rapid and simple detection of bacteria. The end-point readouts were determined by naked eye under ultraviolet light, and real-time fluorescence curve was also used to confirm that the sensitivity of this method to Salmonella typhimurium and Bacillus cereus was 10 and 10 CFU/reaction, respectively. Results presented here provide alternative methods for colony and bacterial PCR that can greatly contribute to reliable and cost-effective diagnosis in resource-poor settings.

An all-dielectric metasurface based on Fano resonance with tunable dual-peak insensitive polarization for high-performance refractive index sensing.

A symmetric all-dielectric metasurface based on silicon and GaAs is proposed and numerically studied. In the mid-infrared region, two Fano resonant peaks with a reflectance exceeding 90% are observed. By altering the geometric parameters of the metasurface, the wavelength location and quality factor (-factor) of the resonant peaks can be tuned.

Bloom forming species transported by ballast water under the management of D-1 and D-2 standards-Implications for current ballast water regulations.

Ballast water (BW) is a well-known transporter for introducing non-indigenous aquatic organisms. To reduce such risks associated with BW discharge, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) adopted the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships' Ballast Water and Sediments (BWM Convention). We examined the abundance and diversity of bloom forming species in BW under the management of Regulation D-1 Ballast Water Exchange Standard and D-2 Ballast Water Performance Standard.

The function and regulation of OTU deubiquitinases.

Post-translational modification of cellular proteins by ubiquitin regulates numerous cellular processes, including cell division, immune responses, and apoptosis. Ubiquitin-mediated control over these processes can be reversed by deubiquitinases (DUBs), which remove ubiquitin from target proteins and depolymerize polyubiquitin chains. Recently, much progress has been made in the DUBs.

Crystal structures of the isochorismatase domains from Vibrio anguillarum.

Antibiotic resistance is becoming a global threat and overuse of antibiotics in aquaculture disease control worsens the situation. To reduce the risk of drug resistance developed in aquaculture, safer biocontrol programs are needed. Antivirulence therapy, with less chance for developing drug resistance, is a promising approach.

Structural and functional characterization of EIAV gp45 fusion peptide proximal region and asparagine-rich layer.

Equine infectious anaemia virus (EIAV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) are members of the lentiviral genus. Similar to HIV gp41, EIAV gp45 is a fusogenic protein that mediates fusion between the viral particle and the host cell membrane. The crystal structure of gp45 reported reveals a different conformation in the here that includes the fusion peptide proximal region (FPPR) and neighboring asparagine-rich layer compared with previous HIV-1 gp41 structures.

Insights into vaccine development for acquired immune deficiency syndrome from crystal structures of human immunodeficiency virus-1 gp41 and equine infectious anemia virus gp45.

An effective vaccine against acquired immune deficiency syndrome is still unavailable after dozens of years of striving. The glycoprotein gp41 of human immunodeficiency virus is a good candidate as potential immunogen because of its conservation and relatively low glycosylation. As a reference of human immunodeficiency virus gp41, gp45 from equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV) could be used for comparison because both wild-type and vaccine strain of EIAV have been extensively studied.

Structural and biochemical insights into the V/I505T mutation found in the EIAV gp45 vaccine strain.

Background: The equine infectious anemia virus (EIAV) is a lentivirus of the Retrovirus family, which causes persistent infection in horses often characterized by recurrent episodes of high fever. It has a similar morphology and life cycle to the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Its transmembrane glycoprotein, gp45 (analogous to gp41 in HIV), mediates membrane fusion during the infection.

The crystal structure of HIV CRF07 B'/C gp41 reveals a hyper-mutant site in the middle of HR2 heptad repeat.

HIV CRF07 B'/C is a strain circulating mainly in northwest region of China. The gp41 region of CRF07 is derived from a clade C virus. In order to compare the difference of CRF07 gp41 with that of typical clade B virus, we solved the crystal structure of the core region of CRF07 gp41.

A quantitative assay for measuring of bovine immunodeficiency virus using a luciferase-based indicator cell line.

In order to quantitate the bovine immunodeficiency virus (BIV) infection in vitro, a BIV indicator cell line (BIVL) was established by transfecting baby hamster kidney cells with reporter plasmids containing the firefly luciferase gene driven by a BIV long terminal repeat promoter. The BIV activates promoter activity of the LTR to express luciferase upon infection. BIV infection could therefore by quantified by detection of luciferase activity.

Comparative functional analysis of Jembrana disease virus Tat protein on lentivirus long terminal repeat promoters: evidence for flexibility at its N-terminus.

Background: Jembrana disease virus (JDV) encodes a potent regulatory protein Tat that strongly stimulates viral expression by transactivating the long terminal repeat (LTR) promoter. JDV Tat (jTat) promotes the transcription from its own LTR as well as non-cognate LTRs, by recruiting host transcription factors and facilitating transcriptional elongation. Here, we compared the sequence requirements of jTat for transactivation of JDV, bovine immunodeficiency virus (BIV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) LTRs.