CMV promoter is inadequate for expression of mutant human RyR2 in transgenic rabbits.

Introduction: Fundamental differences in Ca²+ homeostasis between mice and larger mammals require the validation of the mechanisms of arrhythmogenesis before translation into human pathophysiology. The purpose of this study was to create transgenic rabbits that express defective human cardiac ryanodine receptor (hRyR2) with a mutation (R4497C) causing a clinically relevant arrhythmogenic syndrome.

Methods: The construct pcDNA3-EGFP-hRyR2-R4497C with the CMV promoter was used to generate transgenic rabbits.

Alternatively spliced transcripts of the thymus-specific protease PRSS16 are differentially expressed in human thymus.

The putative serine protease PRSS16 is abundantly expressed in the thymic cortex and the gene is encoded within the HLA I complex. Although its function is not yet defined, the very restricted expression points to a role in T-cell development in the thymus. In this study, we show that the PRSS16 mRNA is alternatively spliced to generate at least five transcripts.

PCR bias in ecological analysis: a case study for quantitative Taq nuclease assays in analyses of microbial communities.

Succession of ecotypes, physiologically diverse strains with negligible rRNA sequence divergence, may explain the dominance of small, red-pigmented (phycoerythrin-rich) cyanobacteria in the autotrophic picoplankton of deep lakes (C. Postius and A. Ernst, Arch.

A susceptibility locus for Parkinson's disease maps to chromosome 2p13.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a common degenerative neurologic disorder, which is pathologically characterized by a selective degeneration of dopaminergic neurons of the substantia nigra pars compacta, and the presence of characteristic eosinophilic inclusions, known as Lewy-bodies in affected brain areas. The cause of PD is unknown but, in recent years, genetic factors have been implicated in the aetiology of the disease. Firstly, clinico-genetic, epidemiologic and twin studies revealed inheritable effects and questioned earlier studies which had denied such influences.

Evaluating a case-based discovery system: a case-study in content-oriented evaluation.

Research in case-based reasoning has explored the ideas of retrieving and adapting previous experience in the form of cases. The retrieval process uses an index vocabulary which attempts to capture content and context of previous cases. Current approaches to empirical evaluation of case-based reasoning systems often do not consider the crucial role which a content-oriented index vocabulary plays in the various stages of the case-based reasoning process.

Autosomal recessive non-syndromic deafness locus (DFNB8) maps on chromosome 21q22 in a large consanguineous kindred from Pakistan.

Autosomal recessive childhood-onset non-syndromic deafness is one of the most frequent forms of inherited hearing impairment. Recently five different chromosomal regions, 7q31, 11q13.5, 13q12, 14q and the pericentromeric region of chromosome 17, have been shown to harbour disease loci for this type of neurosensory deafness.

Oguchi disease: suggestion of linkage to markers on chromosome 2q.

Oguchi disease is a rare autosomal recessive form of congenital stationary night blindness. The condition is associated with fundus discolouration and abnormally slow dark adaptation. Earlier studies suggested that the 48 kD protein S antigen may be involved in the recovery phase of light transduction.

Autosomal recessive retinitis pigmentosa locus maps on chromosome 1q in a large consanguineous family from Pakistan.

A large Pakistani family with several consanguineous marriages is described, in which autosomal recessive retinitis pigmentosa is segregating. Linkage studies revealed close linkage between the disease locus and six loci on chromosome 1q (D1S158, F13B, D1S422, D1S412, D1S413, and D1S53) with maximum lod scores ranging from 0.988-4.

Genetic linkage mapping of multiple epiphyseal dysplasia to the pericentromeric region of chromosome 19.

Multiple epiphyseal dysplasia (MED) is an inherited chondrodystrophy that results in deformity of articular surfaces and in subsequent degenerative joint disease. The disease is inherited as an autosomal dominant trait with high penetrance. An MED mutation has been mapped by genetic linkage analysis of DNA polymorphisms in a single large pedigree.

Localization of the Krabbe disease gene (GALC) on chromosome 14 by multipoint linkage analysis.

The gene responsible for Krabbe disease, an autosomal recessive disorder caused by deficiency of galactocerebrosidase (GALC), was localized by multipoint linkage analysis on chromosome 14. Eight mapped dinucleotide repeat polymorphisms were tested for linkage to GALC. Two-point linkage analysis demonstrated close linkage of GALC and D14S48, with Z = 13.

Exclusion of type II and type VI procollagen gene mutations in a five-generation family with multiple epiphyseal dysplasia.

We have studied a family with an autosomal dominant form of multiple epiphyseal dysplasia (MED) inherited through at least 5 generations. Bilateral deformity of the hips with subsequent degenerative arthritis was the most common and most severe change observed in the affected relatives. Abnormalities of the knees, ankles, and shoulders were also noted in some affected individuals.

Amplified DNA in cells of genetic melanoma of Xiphophorus.

Melanomas of genetic origin develop in interspecies hybrids of the fish Xiphophorus. Cytogenetic analyses have indicated chromosomal manifestations of amplified DNA in cells of an in vitro established cell line derived from a melanoma. We have employed strategies of differential hybridization in agarose gels to isolate and clone a portion of the amplified DNA.