Morphologic Variability of the Shoulder between the Populations of North American and East Asian.

Background: The aim of this study was to determine if there were significant differences in glenohumeral joint morphology between North American and East Asian populations that may influence sizing and selection of shoulder arthroplasty systems.

Methods: Computed tomography reconstructions of 92 North American and 58 East Asian patients were used to perform 3-dimensional measurements. The proximal humeral position was normalized in all patients by aligning it with the scapular plane utilizing anatomic landmarks.

Loss of HMW1 and HMW3 in noncytadhering mutants of Mycoplasma pneumoniae occurs post-translationally.

The genomic sequence of Mycoplasma pneumoniae establish this cell-wall-less prokaryote as among the smallest known microorganisms capable of self-replication. However, this genomic simplicity and corresponding biosynthetic austerity are sharply contrasted by the complex terminal structure found in this species. This tip structure (attachment organelle) directs colonization of the human respiratory mucosa, leading to bronchitis and atypical pneumonia.

Expression in Mycoplasma pneumoniae of the recombinant gene encoding the cytadherence-associated protein HMW1 and identification of HMW4 as a product.

Mycoplasma pneumoniae is a major cause of tracheobronchitis and pneumonia in older children and young adults. The lack of adequate tools for genetic analysis has hindered the elucidation of function and regulation of mycoplasma virulence determinants. We describe here the use of a transposon vector to deliver the cloned gene for the cytadherence-associated protein HMW1 in M.

Phosphorylation of Mycoplasma pneumoniae cytadherence-accessory proteins in cell extracts.

A cell-free system was used to characterize the phosphorylation of Mycoplasma pneumoniae proteins HMW1 and HMW2, which are involved in the adherence of this organism to human tracheal epithelium during infection. The pH and cation requirements for phosphorylation of HMW1 and HMW2 were determined, and the effects of glycolytic intermediates, cyclic AMP, and eukaryotic kinase-phosphatase inhibitors and stimulators on this process were examined. Phosphoamino acid analysis identified serine as the major phosphate acceptor for both HMW1 and HMW2 in this system.

Phosphorylation of cytadherence-accessory proteins in Mycoplasma pneumoniae.

Attachment to host cells of the respiratory epithelium by Mycoplasma pneumoniae is a complex, multicomponent process, requiring a number of accessory proteins in addition to adhesins directly involved in receptor binding. In this study, protein phosphorylation of the cytadherence-accessory proteins HMW1, HMW2, and HMW4 of M. pneumoniae was examined using biochemical and immunological techniques.