Pennycress reduces potential for nutrient loss in Illinois.

Nutrient export of nitrogen and phosphorus from row crop agriculture in the Upper US Midwest is a threat to the structure and function of aquatic systems. To meet Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) nutrient reduction goals, the Upper US Midwest needs to implement strategies to reduce nutrient export from agriculture. Studies demonstrate the potential of cover crops to reduce the export of nitrate-nitrogen from the Upper US Midwest.

Cover crop species influences soil fungal species richness and community structure.

Despite the well documented link between cover cropping and soil microbiology, the influence of specific cover crop species on soil microbes remains poorly understood. We evaluated how soil fungal communities in a no till system respond to four cover crop treatments: no cover crop (REF), cereal ryegrass (CRYE), wild pennycress (WPEN), and a mix of pea, clover, radish, and oat (PCRO). Soil samples were collected from experimental plots following termination of cover crops from depths of 0-2 cm and 2-4 cm where cover crops had significantly increased soil organic matter.

Adeno-Associated Virus (AAV) as a Vector for Gene Therapy.

There has been a resurgence in gene therapy efforts that is partly fueled by the identification and understanding of new gene delivery vectors. Adeno-associated virus (AAV) is a non-enveloped virus that can be engineered to deliver DNA to target cells, and has attracted a significant amount of attention in the field, especially in clinical-stage experimental therapeutic strategies. The ability to generate recombinant AAV particles lacking any viral genes and containing DNA sequences of interest for various therapeutic applications has thus far proven to be one of the safest strategies for gene therapies.

The role of C:N:P stoichiometry in affecting denitrification in sediments from agricultural surface and tile-water wetlands.

Nutrient stoichiometry within a wetland is affected by the surrounding land use, and may play a significant role in the removal of nitrate (NO3-N). Tile-drained, agricultural watersheds experience high seasonal inputs of NO3-N, but low phosphorus (PO4-P) and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) loads relative to surface water dominated systems. This difference may present stoichiometric conditions that limit denitrification within receiving waterways.

The acyl coenzymeA:monoacylglycerol acyltransferase 3 (MGAT3) gene is a pseudogene in mice but encodes a functional enzyme in rats.

Triglyceride (TAG) absorption involves its initial hydrolysis to fatty acids and monoacylglycerol (MAG), which are resynthesized back to diacylglycerol (DAG) and TAG within enterocytes. The resynthesis of DAG is facilitated by fatty acyl-CoA dependent monoacylglycerol acyltransferases (MGATs). Three MGAT enzymes have been isolated in humans and the expression of MGAT2 and MGAT3 in the intestines suggests their functional role in the TAG absorption.

The development of molecularly targeted anticancer therapies: an Eli Lilly and Company perspective.

The ability to identify activated pathways that drive the growth and progression of cancer and to develop specific and potent inhibitors of key proteins in these pathways promises to dramatically change the treatment of cancer: A patient's cancer could be characterized at the molecular level and the information used to select the best treatment options. The development of successful therapies not only requires extensive target validation, but also new approaches to evaluating drug efficacy in animal models and in the clinic compared to the development of traditional cytotoxic agents. This article highlights Eli Lilly and Company's approach to developing targeted therapies, from target identification and validation through evaluation in the clinic.

Human splicing factor SPF45 (RBM17) confers broad multidrug resistance to anticancer drugs when overexpressed--a phenotype partially reversed by selective estrogen receptor modulators.

The splicing factor SPF45 (RBM17) is frequently overexpressed in many solid tumors, and stable expression in HeLa cells confers resistance to doxorubicin and vincristine. In this study, we characterized stable transfectants of A2780 ovarian carcinoma cells. In a 3-day cytotoxicity assay, human SPF45 overexpression conferred 3- to 21-fold resistance to carboplatin, vinorelbine, doxorubicin, etoposide, mitoxantrone, and vincristine.

Evaluation of the binding of the tricyclic isoxazole photoaffinity label LY475776 to multidrug resistance associated protein 1 (MRP1) orthologs and several ATP- binding cassette (ABC) drug transporters.

Several of the ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters confer resistance to anticancer agents and/or antiviral agents when overexpressed in drug-sensitive cells. Recently a MRP1 (ABCC1) tricyclic isoxazole inhibitor, LY475776 was shown to be a glutathione-dependent photoaffinity label of human MRP1 and showed poor labeling of murine mrp1, an ortholog that does not confer anthracycline resistance. In the present study, the specificity of LY475776 was examined for its ability to modulate or photolabel orthologs of MRP1 and several other drug efflux transporters of the ABC transporter family.

Human SPF45, a splicing factor, has limited expression in normal tissues, is overexpressed in many tumors, and can confer a multidrug-resistant phenotype to cells.

Our effort to identify novel drug-resistant genes in cyclophosphamide-resistant EMT6 mouse mammary tumors led us to the identification of SPF45. Simultaneously, other groups identified SPF45 as a component of the spliceosome that is involved in alternative splicing. We isolated the human homologue and examined the normal human tissue expression, tumor expression, and the phenotype caused by overexpression of human SPF45.

Allopatric genetic origins for sympatric host-plant shifts and race formation in Rhagoletis.

Tephritid fruit flies belonging to the Rhagoletis pomonella sibling species complex are controversial because they have been proposed to diverge in sympatry (in the absence of geographic isolation) by shifting and adapting to new host plants. Here, we report evidence suggesting a surprising source of genetic variation contributing to sympatric host shifts for these flies. From DNA sequence data for three nuclear loci and mtDNA, we infer that an ancestral, hawthorn-infesting R.

Cloning and functional characterization of the multidrug resistance-associated protein (MRP1/ABCC1) from the cynomolgus monkey.

The multidrug resistance-associated protein 1 (ABCC1) gene from human (hMRP1), dog (canMRP1), and mouse (muMRP1) all encode proteins that efficiently transport the endogenous MRP1 substrate glutathione-S-leukotriene C(4) and confer resistance to anticancer agents, including vincristine and etoposide. hMRP1 also confers resistance to anthracyclines, whereas this is not true of canMRP1 or muMRP1. To determine whether MRP1 from another animal species used in toxicological studies would be more functionally similar to hMRP1, we cloned and characterized two alleles of the MRP1 homologue from the cynomolgus monkey Macaca fascicularis (monMRP1).

JavaScript DNA translator: DNA-aligned protein translations.

There are many instances in molecular biology when it is necessary to identify ORFs in a DNA sequence. While programs exist for displaying protein translations in multiple ORFs in alignment with a DNA sequence, they are often expensive, exist as add-ons to software that must be purchased, or are only compatible with a particular operating system. JavaScript DNA Translator is a shareware application written in JavaScript, a scripting language interpreted by the Netscape Communicator and Internet Explorer Web browsers, which makes it compatible with several different operating systems.

Importance of hybridization between indigenous and nonindigenous freshwater species: an overlooked threat to North American biodiversity.

Biodiversity of North American freshwaters is among the greatest in the world. However, due to extensive habitat degradation, pollution, and introductions of nonindigenous species, this biodiversity is also among the most endangered. Unlike habitat degradation and pollution, nonindigenous species represent a permanent loss of biodiversity because their removal or control is often impossible.