No abstract

The remarkable potency and pharmacological diversity of animal venoms has made them an increasingly valuable source of lead molecules for drug and insecticide discovery. Nevertheless, most of the chemical diversity encoded within these venoms remains uncharacterized, despite decades of research, in part because of the small quantities of venom available. However, recent advances in the miniaturization of bioassays and improvements in the sensitivity of mass spectrometry and NMR spectroscopy have allowed unprecedented access to the molecular diversity of animal venoms. Here, we discuss these technological developments in the context of establishing a high-throughput pipeline for venoms-based drug discovery.

Background: RGS-PX proteins are regulators of signaling and trafficking within the endosomal system. Results: A structural basis for membrane interactions of RGS-PX proteins is established. Conclusion: The four mammalian paralogues display different membrane interaction properties. Significance: RGS-PX proteins possess a conserved functional architecture in all eukaryotes.

A coherent management plan for coral reef communities should take into account the patterns of connections among distant reefs in order to prioritise conservation efforts to those areas that are important larval sources. At present, the inclusion of such connectivity assessments into Marine Protected Area (MPA) planning is hindered by the lack of knowledge of the exact patterns of connectivity among reefs. To evaluate such patterns, microsatellite loci were used to assess the population genetic structure of the coral Pocillopora verrucosa in currently established MPAs in South Africa and southern Mozambique. All local collections were sexually reproducing (mean genotypic diversity ratio N g :N = 0.88) and differed significantly from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium due to heterozygote deficits, and genetic diversity decreased with increasing latitude. Bayesian analyses (using STRUCTURE) and F ST analysis (F ST = 0.054) identified southern Mozambique as a separate cluster from South Africa, suggesting weak connectivity between southern Mozambique and South African reef communities over ecological time scales. However, southern Mozambican reefs may contribute recruits to the South African reefs over many generations via a stepping-stone approach, highlighting that the conservation of reefs operates on scales that are often beyond geographical/political boundaries. KEY WORDS: Coral · Microsatellites · Connectivity · MPAs · Southern Africa Resale or republication not permitted without written consent of the publisherMar Ecol Prog Ser 354: [161][162][163][164][165][166][167][168] 2008 larval sources (Palumbi 2003). Scleractinian corals are the major framework builders of coral reefs providing the reef matrix, which in turn sustains the most biologically diverse ecosystem in the ocean. Scleractinian corals are therefore important candidates for connectivity assessments, and allozyme electrophoresis has shown that populations of some brooding and broadcasting corals are at least partially maintained by localised settlement of larvae, yet there are sufficient widely dispersed larvae to maintain high levels of gene flow (Ayre & Hughes 2000). Furthermore, high latitude reefs appear to be genetically depauperate, and levels of gene flow among corals separated by a few hundred kilometres of open water are generally low (e.g. Ayre & Hughes 2004).The inclusion of connectivity assessments into MPA planning is currently hindered by the lack of knowledge of the exact patterns of connectivity among reefs (Mora & Sale 2002). For the Western Indian Ocean, Ridgway & Sampayo (2005) recently reviewed the level of genetic knowledge in the region and revealed that the Western Indian Ocean shows little apparent genetic exchange with the rest of the Indo-Pacific, but from a regional perspective there was very limited information available. Only 27 potentially relevant references were found, with only one purely Western Indian Ocean regional population genetic study on a single coral species on a restricted scale (Ridgway et al. 20...

The development of explosives detection technologies has increased significantly over the years as environmental and national security agencies implement tighter pollution control measures and methods for improving homeland security. 2, 4, 6-Trinitrotoluene (TNT), known primarily as a component in munitions, has been targeted for both its toxicity and carcinogenic properties that if present at high concentrations can be a detriment to both humans, marine and plant ecosystems. Enabling end users with environmental detection and monitoring systems capable of providing real-time, qualitative and quantitative chemical analysis of these toxic compounds would be extremely beneficial. Reported herein is the development of a multi-channeled microfluidic device immobilized with single chain fragment variable (scFv) recombinant proteins specific for the explosive, TNT. Fluorescence displacement immunoassays performed under constant flow demonstrated trace level sensitivity and specificity for TNT. The utility of three multi-channeled devices immobilized with either (1) scFv recombinant protein, (2) biotinylated-scFv (bt-scFv) and (3) monoclonal anti-TNT (whole IgG molecule) were investigated and compared. Fluorescence dose response curves, crossreactivity measurements and limits of detection (LOD) for TNT were determined. Fluorescence displacement immunoassays for TNT in natural seawater demonstrated detection limits at sub-parts-per-billion levels (0.5 ppb) utilizing the microfluidic device with immobilized bt-scFv.