Identification of two metallothioneins as novel inhalative coffee allergens cof a 2 and cof a 3.

Background: Dust of green coffee beans is known to be a relevant cause for occupational allergic disorders in coffee industry workers. Recently, we described the first coffee allergen (Cof a 1) establishing an allergenic potential of green coffee dust.

Objective: Our aim was to identify allergenic components of green coffee in order to enhance inhalative coffee allergy diagnosis.

An essential pentatricopeptide repeat protein facilitates 5' maturation and translation initiation of rps3 mRNA in maize mitochondria.

Pentatricopeptide repeat (PPR) proteins are members of one of the largest nucleus-encoded protein families in plants. Here, we describe the previously uncharacterized maize (Zea mays) PPR gene, MPPR6, which was isolated from a Mutator-induced collection of maize kernel mutants by a cDNA-based forward genetic approach. Identification of a second mutant allele and cosegregation analysis confirmed correlation with the mutant phenotype.

Cof a 1: identification, expression and immunoreactivity of the first coffee allergen.

Background: Over the past years, dust of green coffee beans has become known to be a relevant cause for occupational type I allergies. Up to now, allergy diagnostics is based on native green coffee bean extract which exhibits insufficient specificity due to interfering substances as well as batch-to-batch variations. No coffee allergen has been described on the molecular level so far.

TRANSPARENT LEAF AREA1 encodes a secreted proteolipid required for anther maturation, morphogenesis, and differentiation during leaf development in maize.

We report the identification and functional analysis of TRANSPARENT LEAF AREA1 (TLA1), a maize (Zea mays) gene representing a novel class of secreted, extremely hydrophobic peptides (proteolipids) with a C-terminal Caax box-like motif. ZmTLA1 encodes 27 amino acid residues and is most strongly expressed in the egg cell and microspores. Lower transcript amounts were detected during vegetative development.