Syntrophothermus lipocalidus gen. nov., sp. nov., a novel thermophilic, syntrophic, fatty-acid-oxidizing anaerobe which utilizes isobutyrate.

A new anaerobic, thermophilic, syntrophic, fatty-acid-oxidizing bacterium designated strain TGB-C1T was isolated from granular sludge in a thermophilic upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor. The cells were slightly curved rods and were weakly motile. Spore formation was not observed.

Burkholderia kururiensis sp. nov., a trichloroethylene (TCE)-degrading bacterium isolated from an aquifer polluted with TCE.

A trichloroethylene (TCE)-degrading bacterium was isolated from an aquifer sample collected at a TCE-polluted site in Japan by enriching with phenol as sole carbon source. The isolate, designated strain KP23T, was a Gram-negative, oval-shaped micro-organism. A phylogenetic study based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that strain KP23T should be placed in the genus Burkholderia.

Soluble methane monooxygenase gene clusters from trichloroethylene-degrading Methylomonas sp. strains and detection of methanotrophs during in situ bioremediation.

The soluble MMO (sMMO) gene clusters from group I methanotrophs were characterized. An 8.1-kb KpnI fragment from Methylomonas sp.

Fluorescence in situ hybridization using 16S rRNA-targeted oligonucleotides reveals localization of methanogens and selected uncultured bacteria in mesophilic and thermophilic sludge granules.

16S rRNA-targeted in situ hybridization combined with confocal laser scanning microscopy was used to elucidate the spatial distribution of microbes within two types of methanogenic granular sludge, mesophilic (35 degrees C) and thermophilic (55 degrees C), in upflow anaerobic sludge blanket reactors fed with sucrose-, acetate-, and propionate-based artificial wastewater. The spatial organization of the microbes was visualized in thin sections of the granules by using fluorescent oligonucleotide probes specific to several phylogenetic groups of microbes. In situ hybridization with archaeal- and bacterial-domain probes within granule sections clearly showed that both mesophilic and thermophilic granules had layered structures and that the outer layer harbored mainly bacterial cells while the inner layer consisted mainly of archaeal cells.

Phylogenetic affiliation of soil bacteria that degrade aliphatic polyesters available commercially as biodegradable plastics.

Thirty-nine morphologically different soil bacteria capable of degrading poly(beta-hydroxyalkanoate), poly(epsilon-caprolactone), poly(hexamethylene carbonate), or poly(tetramethylene succinate) were isolated. Their phylogenetic positions were determined by 16S ribosomal DNA sequencing, and all of them fell into the classes Firmicutes and Proteobacteria. Determinations of substrate utilization revealed characteristic patterns of substrate specificities.

Phylogenetic diversity of mesophilic and thermophilic granular sludges determined by 16S rRNA gene analysis.

The microbial diversity of two types of methanogenic granular sludge, mesophilic (35 degrees C) and thermophilic (55 degrees C), which had been treating sucrose/propionate/acetate-based artificial wastewater were compared. 16S rDNA clone libraries were constructed by PCR with a prokaryote-specific primer set, and partial sequencing of the clonal 16S rDNAs was conducted for phylogenetic analysis. Of 115 mesophilic granule and 110 thermophilic granule clones sequenced, 19 and 22%, respectively, were phylogenetically affiliated with the domain Archaea, and the remainder in each case were assigned to the domain Bacteria.

Alpha- and beta-subunits of a V-type membrane ATPase in a hyperthermophilic sulfur-dependent archaeum, Thermococcus sp. KI.

The genes encoding alpha- and beta-subunits of a V-type ATPase in a sulfur-dependent hyperthermophilic archaeum, Thermococcus sp. KI, were cloned and sequenced. The deduced amino acid sequences were approximately 60, 50 and 25% identical to those of other archaeal, eukaryotic V-type and E.

Pristine environments harbor a new group of oligotrophic 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid-degrading bacteria.

2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D)-degrading bacteria were isolated from pristine environments which had no history of 2,4-D exposure. By using 2,4-D dye indicator medium or 14C-labeled 2,4-D medium, six strains were isolated from eight enrichment cultures capable of degrading 2,4-D. Phylogenetic analyses based on 16S ribosomal DNA (rDNA) sequencing and physiological properties revealed that one isolate from Hawaiian volcanic soil could be classified in the genus Variovorax (a member of the beta subdivision of the class Proteobacteria) and that the other five isolates from Hawaiian volcanic soils, Saskatchewan forest soil, and Chilean forest soil have 16S rDNAs with high degrees of similarity to those of the Bradyrhizobium group (a member of the alpha subdivision of the class Proteobacteria).

Vacuolar-type ATPase in a hyperthermophilic archaeum, Thermococcus sp. KI.

Membrane ATPase was purified from a hyperthermophilic heterotrophic archaeum, Thermococcus sp. KI, which grew anaerobically at 90 degrees C in the presence of sulfur. The purified enzyme had an optimal temperature of 90 degrees C and its molecular mass was estimated to be 600 kDa.

Microlunatus phosphovorus gen. nov., sp. nov., a new gram-positive polyphosphate-accumulating bacterium isolated from activated sludge.

Polyphosphate-accumulating bacteria that were previously isolated from activated sludge and exhibited high phosphate removal activity were studied taxonomically and phylogenetically. These organisms were gram-positive, coccus-shaped, aerobic chemoorganotrophs that had a strictly respiratory type of metabolism in which oxygen was a terminal electron acceptor. They accumulated large amounts of polyphosphate under aerobic conditions.

Isolation and sequencing of cDNAs for proteins with multiple domains of Gly-Xaa-Yaa repeats identify a distinct family of collagenous proteins.

We have isolated overlapping mouse cDNAs encoding a collagenous polypeptide that we have designated alpha 1(XVIII) collagen. Nucleotide sequence analysis shows that alpha 1(XVIII) collagen contains 10 triple-helical domains separated and flanked by non-triple-helical regions. Within the non-triple-helical regions, there are several Ser-Gly-containing sequences that conform to consensus sequences for glycosaminoglycan attachment sites in proteoglycan core proteins.

Membrane ATPase from the aceticlastic methanogen Methanothrix thermophila.

A new isolate of the aceticlastic methanogen Methanothrix thermophila utilizes only acetate as the sole carbon and energy source for methanogenesis (Y. Kamagata and E. Mikami, Int.

Isolation and sequencing of cDNAs and genomic DNAs encoding the alpha 4 chain of basement membrane collagen type IV and assignment of the gene to the distal long arm of human chromosome 2.

We cloned three overlapping cDNAs covering 2,452 base pairs encoding a new basement membrane collagen chain, alpha 4(IV), from rabbit corneal endothelial cell RNA. Nucleotide sequence analysis demonstrated that the clones encoded a triple-helical domain of 392 1/3 amino acid residues and a carboxyl non-triple-helical (NC1) domain of 231 residues. We also isolated a genomic DNA fragment for the human alpha 4(IV) chain, which contained two exons encoding from the carboxyl end of the triple-helical domain to the amino end of the NC1 domain.

Characterization of three thermophilic strains of Methanothrix ("Methanosaeta") thermophila sp. nov. and rejection of Methanothrix ("Methanosaeta") thermoacetophila.

Three thermophilic Methanothrix ("Methanosaeta") strains, strains PTT (= DSM 6194T) (T = type strain), CALS-1 (= DSM 3870), and Z-517 (= DSM 4774), were characterized chemotaxonomically and compared with five mesophilic strains, Methanothrix soehngenii ("Methanosaeta concilii") GP6 (= DSM 3671), Opfikon (= DSM 2139), FE (= DSM 3013), UA, and PM. These methanogens were exclusively acetotrophic and had a characteristic sheathed structure. The DNA base compositions of the strains which we studied ranged from 50.

Induction of Cellulase by Gentiobiose and Its Sulfur-Containing Analog in Penicillium purpurogenum.

Cellulase induction by beta-glucodisaccharides was investigated by using non-cellulase-induced mycelia of Penicillium purpurogenum P-26, a highly-cellulase-producing fungus. Gentiobiose induced significant amounts of cellulase compared with cellobiose when nojirimycin was added to the induction medium to inhibit extracellular beta-glucosidase activity. Thiogentiobiose (6-S-beta-d-glucopyranosyl-6-thio-d-glucose), a sulfur-containing analog of gentiobiose, was more effective for cellulase induction than gentiobiose even in the absence of nojirimycin.

Utilization of methoxylated benzoates and formation of intermediates by Desulfotomaculum thermobenzoicum in the presence or absence of sulfate.

Desulfotomaculum thermobenzoicum strain TSB (DSM 6193) was found to utilize some methoxylated benzoates as carbon and energy source with or without sulfate. 3- or 4-Methoxybenzoate, vanillate (4-hydroxy-3-methoxybenzoate), syringate (3,5-dimethoxy-4-hydroxybenzoate) and 3,4,5-trimethoxybenzoate were converted to corresponding hydroxybenzoates. However, neither 2-methoxybenzoate nor 2,6-dimethoxybenzoate was utilized.

[Cytokine production in inflamed human gingival tissues--interleukin-6].

Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is involved in the final differentiation of B cells into antibody-producing cells. Recent studies reveal that IL-6 plays an important role in inflammation. Histopathological studies showed that a large number of plasma cells in periodontitis is usually seen in the apical parts of cellular infiltrates beneath the periodontal connective tissues.

[Study of cytokine production in inflamed human gingival tissues in periodontitis. Interleukin-1 (IL-1 alpha, beta) and tumor necrosis factor (TNF alpha)].

It seems to be generally agreed that periodontal disease is a local manifestation of a systemic immune response. Interleukin-1 (IL-1), which has multiple biologic activities, is detected in the gingival sulcus fluid of periodontitis sites. Recent investigations have revealed that IL-1 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) are analogous to osteoclast activating factor and promote bone resorption.

[Dental radiographic survey of rapidly progressive periodontitis].

The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of rapidly progressive periodontitis (RPP) by radiographic evaluation in patient at the department of conservative dentistry, Ohu University hospital during two years from 1987 to 1988. The survey was conducted on 370 patients. The radiographic evaluation was done by the method of Schei.

[Pathophysiological analysis of rapidly progressive periodontitis].

Pathophysiological features were studied on 7 patients with rapidly progressive periodontitis but without any evidence of systemic disease, to analyse the clinical pathogenesis. The patients consisted of 5 females, 2 males, between the ages of 32 and 42 years. All patients had severe and rapid alveolar bone destruction on the basis of radiographic measurement.

Relative strength of the mitogenic and interleukin-2-production-inducing activities of staphylococcal exotoxins presumed to be causative exotoxins of toxic shock syndrome: toxic shock syndrome toxin-1 and enterotoxins A, B and C to murine and human T cells.

Several observations suggest that staphylococcal enterotoxins A, B and C (SEA, SEB and SEC, respectively), in addition to toxic shock syndrome toxin-1 (TSST-1), are causative exotoxins of toxic shock syndrome (TSS). Based on the view that polyclonal T cell activation with the causative exotoxins, resulting in over-production of lymphokines, is involved in the development of the pathological changes observed in TSS, we investigated the activities of these four exotoxins to induce proliferation and interleukin 2 production in murine and human lymphocytes by using in vitro culture systems. The results showed that all these exotoxins are strong polyclonal inducers of proliferation and interleukin 2 production in human T cells, whereas TSST-1 and SEA are strong and SEB and SEC are weak polyclonal inducers in murine T cells.

Study of the biological activities of toxic shock syndrome toxin-1: II. Induction of the proliferative response and the interleukin 2 production by T cells from human peripheral blood mononuclear cells stimulated with the toxin.

Toxic shock syndrome toxin-1 (TSST-1) is an exotoxin produced by Staphylococcus aureus isolated from patients with toxic shock syndrome. We investigated the proliferative response of human lymphocytes and their interleukin 2 (IL-2) production after stimulation with TSST-1 in vitro. Human cord blood mononuclear cells (HCBM) and human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (HPBM) could proliferate with TSST-1 stimulation.