Localization of new peptidoglycan at poles in Bacillus mycoides, a member of the Bacillus cereus group.

Bacillus mycoides is a sporogenic Gram-positive soil bacillus of the B. cereus group. This bacillus, which forms hyphal colonies, is composed of cells connected in filaments that make up bundles and turn clock- or counterclockwise depending on the strain.

Four new species of Dolichopoda Bolivar, 1880 from Southern Sporades and Western Turkey (Orthoptera, Rhaphidophoridae, Dolichopodainae).

A description of four new species of Dolichopoda Bolivar, 1880 (Orthoptera, Rhaphidophoridae) from Eastern Aegean region (Southern Sporades), including Western Turkey, is reported. This brings to a total of 11 the number of Dolichopoda species recorded for caves of the Aegean area. Overall, these species show a high degree of morphological homogeneity and they are very close to Dolichopoda paraskevi Boudou-Saltet, 1973 from Crete and Dolichopoda naxia Boudou-Saltet, 1972 from Cyclades (Naxos Island).

Oligogalacturonide-auxin antagonism does not require posttranscriptional gene silencing or stabilization of auxin response repressors in Arabidopsis.

α-1-4-Linked oligogalacturonides (OGs) derived from plant cell walls are a class of damage-associated molecular patterns and well-known elicitors of the plant immune response. Early transcript changes induced by OGs largely overlap those induced by flg22, a peptide derived from bacterial flagellin, a well-characterized microbe-associated molecular pattern, although responses diverge over time. OGs also regulate growth and development of plant cells and organs, due to an auxin-antagonistic activity.

Structural resolution of the complex between a fungal polygalacturonase and a plant polygalacturonase-inhibiting protein by small-angle X-ray scattering.

We report here the low-resolution structure of the complex formed by the endo-polygalacturonase from Fusarium phyllophilum and one of the polygalacturonase-inhibiting protein from Phaseolus vulgaris after chemical cross-linking as determined by small-angle x-ray scattering analysis. The inhibitor engages its concave surface of the leucine-rich repeat domain with the enzyme. Both sides of the enzyme active site cleft interact with the inhibitor, accounting for the competitive mechanism of inhibition observed.

A revised root for the human Y chromosomal phylogenetic tree: the origin of patrilineal diversity in Africa.

To shed light on the structure of the basal backbone of the human Y chromosome phylogeny, we sequenced about 200 kb of the male-specific region of the human Y chromosome (MSY) from each of seven Y chromosomes belonging to clades A1, A2, A3, and BT. We detected 146 biallelic variant sites through this analysis. We used these variants to construct a patrilineal tree, without taking into account any previously reported information regarding the phylogenetic relationships among the seven Y chromosomes here analyzed.

Engineering plant resistance by constructing chimeric receptors that recognize damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs).

An efficient sensing of danger and a rapid activation of the immune system are crucial for the survival of plants. Conserved pathogen/microbe-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs/MAMPs) and endogenous molecular patterns, which are present only when the tissue is infected or damaged (damage-associated molecular patterns or DAMPs), can act as danger signals and activate the plant immune response. These molecules are recognized by surface receptors that are indicated as pattern recognition receptors (PRRs).

HUVEC respond to radiation by inducing the expression of pro-angiogenic microRNAs.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) represent a class of small non-coding RNAs that control gene expression by targeting mRNAs and triggering either repression of translation or RNA degradation. They have been shown to be involved in a variety of biological processes such as development, differentiation and cell cycle control, but little is known about their involvement in the response to irradiation. We showed here that in human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) some miRNAs previously shown to have a crucial role in vascular biology are transiently modulated in response to a clinically relevant dose of ionizing radiation.