The peroxisome biogenesis disorders (PBDs) are lethal recessive diseases caused by defects in peroxisome assembly. We have isolated PXR1, a human homologue of the yeast P. pastoris PAS8 (peroxisome assembly) gene. PXR1, like PAS8, encodes a receptor for proteins with the type-1 peroxisomal targeting signal (PTS1). Mutations in PXR1 define complementation group 2 of PBDs and expression of PXR1 rescues the PTS1 import defect of fibroblasts from these patients. Based on the observation that PXR1 exists both in the cytosol and in association with peroxisomes, we propose that PXR1 protein recognizes PTS1-containing proteins in the cytosol and directs them to the peroxisome.

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Gyrate atrophy of the choroid and retina (GA) is an inherited chorioretinal degeneration caused by deficiency of ornithine 8-aminotransferase (OAT; L-ornithine: 2-oxo-acid aminotransferase; EC 2.6.1.13). GA is one of the "Finnish genetic diseases," a group of several rare monogenic disorders that occur with increased frequency in the Finnish population. Using a combination of RNase A protection, genomic cloning, and polymerase chain reaction amplification of genomic DNA, we found one of two missense mutant OAT alleles to be present in each of 16 Finnish GA pedigrees. The first mutation R180T, in which arginine-180 is replaced by threonine, was present in homozygous form in patients from two pedigrees. The second mutation L402P, in which leucine-402 is replaced by proline, was present in homozygous form in patients from 14 pedigrees. Neither mutation was present in 19 Finnish controls. L402P was not present in 18 non-Finnish GA patients but R180T was found in an American GA patient. We constructed full-length mutant cDNAs by amplifying patient cDNA with the polymerase chain reaction and cloning a restriction fragment containing the mutation into an otherwise normal human OAT cDNA. These mutant cDNAs were then expressed in CHO-K1 cells, which lack endogenous OAT. Both R180T and L402P inactivate OAT. These results show molecular heterogeneity in GA alleles even in the Finnish population.Ornithine 8-aminotransferase (OAT; L-ornithine:2-oxo-acid aminotransferase; EC 2.6.1.13) is a mitochondrial matrix enzyme that catalyzes the reversible transamination of ornithine to Al-pyrroline 5-carboxylate (1). Deficiency of OAT in man causes the autosomal recessive chorioretinal degeneration, gyrate atrophy of the choroid and retina (GA). To study the cell biology of OAT and the mutations causing GA, we have cloned and sequenced a near full-length human liver OAT cDNA and have determined the structure of the human OAT structural gene, which has 11 exons and spans 22 kilobases (kb) (2). We (2, 3) and others (4, 5) have shown that the OAT structural gene is located on chromosome 10 and that there is a group of nonfunctional OAT-related sequences on the X chromosome.Three missense mutations of OAT causing GA have been reported. The first mutation, in which the initiation methionine was replaced with an isoleucine, was found in affected members of two unrelated pedigrees of Lebanese Maronite descent (6). GA probands from 17 pedigrees of a variety of other ethnic backgrounds, including Finnish, were shown to lack this mutation (6). The second mutation was the Val-332 -* Met change found in a pyridoxine-responsive patient, and the third was the Asn-54 --Lys change (7). The ethnic background of the latter two patients was not provided.The Finnish population, which expanded from -250,000 in 1700 A.D. to -5 million at present, has been isolated genetically by geographical, linguistic, and cultural barriers (8). For these reasons, the variety and frequency of monogenic disorders in Finns is quite different from other European pop...

The Haptic Paddle was developed previously as an inexpensive haptic device for educational use, and has been applied to course topics such as dynamic systems and introductory controls. However, it has only a single degree of freedom, limiting it to very simple modeling and simulation exercises. Through modifications to the original Haptic Paddle design, a "Snaptic Paddle" has been created that allows two modular one-degree-of-freedom devices to be connected to form a single two-degree-of-freedom device that operates like a traditional joystick. The devices can also be used separately, creating a flexible, economical haptic interface for educational applications. The device successfully provides force feedback interaction, as will be shown in a demonstration at the World Haptics Conference.

We have identified two novel RNA-splicing mutations affecting a critical nucleotide (nt) in the acceptor consensus sequences at both the IVS-1/exon 2 and IVS-2/exon 3 junctions of the human beta-globin gene. Both mutations are single nt substitutions, T to G and C to A, at position -3 adjacent to the invariant AG dinucleotide. For the IVS- 2/exon 3 mutation abnormal splicing into the cryptic splice site at IVS- 2 nt 579 is documented. Identification of these two mutations provides further support for the importance of the location of specific nucleotides within the consensus sequences in splice site selection and RNA processing.