Phylogeny-wide analysis of social amoeba genomes highlights ancient origins for complex intercellular communication.

Dictyostelium discoideum (DD), an extensively studied model organism for cell and developmental biology, belongs to the most derived group 4 of social amoebas, a clade of altruistic multicellular organisms. To understand genome evolution over long time periods and the genetic basis of social evolution, we sequenced the genomes of Dictyostelium fasciculatum (DF) and Polysphondylium pallidum (PP), which represent the early diverging groups 1 and 2, respectively. In contrast to DD, PP and DF have conventional telomere organization and strongly reduced numbers of transposable elements.

Cytokine gene polymorphisms in preterm infants with necrotising enterocolitis: genetic association study.

Background: The inflammatory cytokine cascade is implicated in the pathogenesis of necrotising enterocolitis (NEC). Genetic association studies of cytokine polymorphisms may help to detect molecular mechanisms that are causally related to the disease process.

Aim: To examine associations between the common genetic variants in candidate inflammatory cytokine genes and NEC in preterm infants.

SARP, a new alternatively spliced protein phosphatase 1 and DNA interacting protein.

PP1 (protein phosphatase 1) is a ubiquitously expressed serine/threonine-specific protein phosphatase whose activity towards different substrates appears to be mediated via binding to specific proteins that play critical regulatory and targeting roles. In the present paper we report the cloning and characterization of a new protein, termed SARP (several ankyrin repeat protein), which is shown to interact with all isoforms of PP1 by a variety of techniques. A region encompassing a consensus PP1-binding motif in SARP (K354VHF357) modulates endogenous SARP-PP1 activity in mammalian cells.

Interaction with protein phosphatase 1 Is essential for bifocal function during the morphogenesis of the Drosophila compound eye.

The gene bifocal (bif), required for photoreceptor morphogenesis in the Drosophila compound eye, encodes a protein that is shown to interact with protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) using the yeast two-hybrid system. Complex formation between Bif and PP1 is supported by coprecipitation of the two proteins. Residues 992 to 995 (RVQF) in the carboxy-terminal region of Bif, which conform to the consensus PP1-binding motif, are shown to be essential for the interaction of Bif with PP1.

NIMA-related kinase 2 (Nek2), a cell-cycle-regulated protein kinase localized to centrosomes, is complexed to protein phosphatase 1.

The cell cycle-regulated protein serine/threonine NIMA-related kinase 2 (Nek2), which shows a predominant localization at centrosomes, is identified as a protein which interacts with protein phosphatase 1 (PP1) using the yeast two-hybrid system. Complex formation between Nek2 and PP1 is supported by co-precipitation of the two proteins using transfected expression constructs of Nek2 and the endogenous Nek2/PP1 proteins. The sequence KVHF in the C-terminal region of Nek2, which conforms to the consensus PP1-binding motif, is shown to be essential for the interaction of Nek2 with PP1.