Unveiling the impact of cryptic plasmids curing on Escherichia coli Nissle 1917: massive increase in Ag43c expression.

Escherichia coli Nissle 1917 (EcN) is an important chassis strain widely used for the development of live biotherapeutic products (LBPs). EcN strain naturally harbors two cryptic plasmids with unknown function. During the development of LBPs using EcN strain, the cryptic plasmids were cured usually to avoid plasmid incompatibility or alleviate metabolic burdens associated with these cryptic plasmids.

Hyphococcus flavus gen. nov., sp. nov., a novel alphaproteobacterium isolated from deep seawater.

A Gram-staining-negative, aerobic, non-spore-forming, coccoid to rod shaped bacteria with prosthecate and flagellum, designated as HSF6, was isolated from deep seawater samples collected from the South China Sea at depth of 2.5 km and subjected to a polyphasic taxonomic investigation. Colonies of strain HSF6 were 1-2 mm in diameter, smooth, circular, convex and yellow.

Discovery of alkyl bis(oxy)dibenzimidamide derivatives as novel protein arginine methyltransferase 1 (PRMT1) inhibitors.

Protein arginine methylation, a post-translational modification critical for a variety of biological processes, is catalyzed by protein arginine N-methyltransferases (PRMTs). In particular, PRMT1 is responsible for over 85% of the arginine methylation in mammalian cells. Dysregulation of PRMT1 is involved in diverse pathological diseases including cancers.

Hyphobacterium vulgare gen. nov., sp. nov., a novel alphaproteobacterium isolated from seawater.

A Gram-stain-negative, aerobic, non-spore-forming, non-motile, oval to rod-shaped, prosthecate bacterium, designated strain WM6T, was isolated from a seawater sample collected from the South China Sea at a depth of 150 m and subjected to a polyphasic taxonomic investigation. Cells of strain WM6T were approximately 0.5-0.

[Effects of bm47 deletion on viral replication and transcription of Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus].

Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV) bm47 gene is found in all sequenced lepidopteran nucleopolyhedroviruses (NPVs). It is one of the core genes of NPVs. However, the role of bm47 in the biological cycle of NPV remains unknown.

Characterization of late gene expression factor LEF-10 from Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus.

The LEF-10 expression factor from the Bombyx mori nuclear polyhedrosis virus (BmNPV) does not have significant homology with other late expression factors and is thought to be a transcriptional cofactor. To investigate the function of LEF-10, a Red recombination system was used to knock out the lef-10 gene from the BmNPV genome and a lef-10 gene knockout virus (ko-Bacmid) was constructed. The lef-10 gene was repaired back to the viral genome using a Bac-to-Bac system to create the repaired virus (re-Bacmid).

Complete sequence and organization of Antheraea pernyi nucleopolyhedrovirus, a dr-rich baculovirus.

Background: The completion and reporting of baculovirus genomes is extremely important as it advances our understanding of gene function and evolution. Due to the large number of viral genomes now sequenced it is very important that authors present significantly detailed analyses to advance the understanding of the viral genomes. However, there is no report of the Antheraea pernyi nucleopolyhedrovirus (AnpeNPV) genome.

Expression and functional analysis of the cellular retinoic acid binding protein from silkworm pupae (Bombyx mori).

Cellular retinoic acid binding protein (CRABP) is a member of intracellular lipid-binding protein (iLBP), and closely associated with retinoic acid (RA) activity. We have cloned the CRABP gene from silkworm pupae and studied the interaction between Bombyx mori CRABP (BmCRABP) and all-trans retinoic acid (atRA). The MTT assay data indicated that when BmCRABP is overexpressed in Bm5 cells, the cells dramatically resisted to atRA-induced growth inhibition.

Expression, purification and characterization of a three-domain Kazal-type inhibitor from silkworm pupae (Bombyx mori).

Serine protease inhibitors are essential for host physiological and immunological activities in insects. Analyzing the amino-acid sequence of a cDNA coding for a serine protease inhibitor in Bombyx mori (BmSPI), we found that BmSPI contained three homologous domains with a conserved sequence of C-X(3)-C-X(9)-C-X(6)-Y-X(7)-C-X(3)-C-X(11)-C similar to that of Kazal-type serine protease inhibitors, suggesting BmSPI as a new member of the Kazal-type serine protease inhibitor family. To characterize the three-domain Kazal-type inhibitor from silkworm pupae, the recombinant protein was expressed in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3) Star.

Study on hepatoprotective effect of peptide S-8300 from shark liver.

Aim: To explore the effects of peptide S-8300 from shark liver (S-8300) on liver function as well as in regulating immune functions in experimental injury models.

Methods: Mice were administered with different doses of S-8300 for four consecutive days, followed by mice injected with tetrachloromethane (CCl(4)) on d 3. The activity of ALT, AST, LDH, SOD and contents of MDA and GSH in the mice liver were tested.