In this work, a new set of amino acid descriptors, i.e., VHSE (principal components score Vectors of Hydrophobic, Steric, and Electronic properties), is derived from principal components analysis (PCA) on independent families of 18 hydrophobic properties, 17 steric properties, and 15 electronic properties, respectively, which are included in total 50 physicochemical variables of 20 coded amino acids. Using the stepwise multiple regression (SMR) method combined with partial least squares (PLS), the VHSE scales are then applied to QSAR studies of bitter-tasting dipeptides (BTD), angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, and bradykinin-potentiating pentapeptides (BPP). To validate the predictive power of resulting models, external validation are also performed. A comparison of the results to those obtained with z scores and other two-dimensional (2D) or three-dimensional(3D) descriptors shows that the VHSE scales are comparable for parameterizing the structural variability of the peptide series.
The full-length cDNA of Pinellia ternata agglutinin (PTA) was cloned from inflorescences using RACE-PCR. Through comparative analysis of PTA gene (pta) and its deduced amino acid sequence with those of other Araceae species, pta was found to encode a precursor lectin with signal peptide and to have extensive homology with those of other Araceae species. PTA was a heterotetrameric mannose-binding lectin with three mannosebinding boxes like lectins from other Araceae and Amaryllidaceae species. Southern blot analysis of the genomic DNA revealed that pta belonged to a low-copy gene family. Northern blot analysis demonstrated that pta constitutively expressed in various plant tissues including root, leaf, stem and inflorescence. The pta cDNA sequence encoding for mature PTA protein was cloned into pET-32a plasmid and the resulting plasmid, pET32a-PTA containing Trx-PTA fusion protein, was investigated for the expression in E. coli BL21. SDS-PAGE gel analysis showed that the Trx-PTA fusion protein was successfully expressed in E. coli BL21 when induced by IPTG. Artificial diet assay revealed that PTA fusion protein had significant levels of resistance against peach potato aphids when incorporated into artificial diet at 0.1% (w/v). The cloning of the pta gene will enable us to further test its effect in depth on aphids by transferring the gene into crop plants.
Molecular Psychiatryimplying an effect on the variance instead of on the mean. 10A second advantage of including measured genotypes in etiological models is that it may improve our understanding of psychiatric conditions. Measured genotypes represent a whole new class of epidemiological risk variables that may provide additional predictive power, shed new light on traditional research issues, and make it possible to examine the mechanisms that describe how genes and environmental risk variables co-act. In comparison with traditional epidemiological risk variables, measured genotypes have advantageous methodological properties arising from the fact that phenotypes or environmental factors cannot cause variations in genotypes. This property facilitates the evaluation of causal relations between health problems and their putative risk factors. 7 EJCG van den Oord
Variations in the Y-chromosome are usually correlated with male-specific traits. However, this condition has been described only sporadically, even in human genetics. The present study was conducted to clone the full-length gene sequence of ovine DEAD-box helicase 3, Y-linked (DDX3Y), and investigate the effect of the expression and variation of DDX3Y on the reproductive traits of Hu sheep. Consequently, we identified the full coding sequence and genomic sequence of ovine DDX3Y. Quantitative PCR (qPCR) analysis showed that ovine DDX3Y was highly expressed in testis, and the expression level increased during testicular development. Furthermore, individuals with larger testis at 6 months expressed significantly more DDX3Y mRNA in the testis than individuals with smaller testis. Notably, a novel SNP (g. 12657 C>A) in the 3′ untranslated region was identified in Hu sheep and Tan sheep according to the investigation of the full DDX3Y genomic sequence of 1069 individuals from nine sheep breeds.Association analysis revealed that the SNP was significantly related to testis size in Hu sheep. Meanwhile, Hu rams with the derived C allele showed significantly higher expression levels of DDX3Y in testis than those with the ancestral A allele. In addition, data mining in a previous study showed that the C allele cosegregated with the globally major Y-chromosomal haplogroups y-HA and y-HC, and the A allele is found in all rams with haplogroups y-HB1, y-HB2 and y-HD. This study suggests that the association of the Y-chromosomal haplogroups with testis size in Hu sheep can be extrapolated to the sheep population worldwide.
Mussels Mytilus coruscus can adhere to various solid surface in the presence of moisture. Mussel foot protein-3 (mfp-3) has been suggested as the main adhesive protein in the plaques closest to the adhesion interface and been the focus of substantial biomaterials development research within the last decade. The byssal plaques of M. coruscus were accumulated and variants of a family known as mcofp3 (Mytilus coruscus foot protein 3) were purified from acetic acid/urea extracts of plaques, with their N-terminal sequences determined thereafter. The cDNA sequence coding for the mcofp3 precursor was obtained from M. coruscus foot cDNA library. These precursors contain a putative signal peptide of 24 residues, a mature peptide sequence of 41-56 amino acids rich in Tyr, Gly, Pro, and Asn. The recombinant mcofp3 fused with a hexa-histidine affinity ligand was successfully expressed through an Escherichia coli expression system, and the recombinant mcofp3 was purified using affinity chromatography followed by reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The DOPA content and adhesive properties of purified recombinant mcofp3 with or without tyrosinase modification were compared with the native mcofp3. These assays showed that recombinant mcofp3 has significant adhesive ability and may be useful as a bioadhesive in medical or underwater environments.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.