Expression and functional identification of the hypothetical adhesin P32 from Mycoplasma genitalium

Mycoplasma genitalium is the main causative agent for non-gonococcal and non-chlamydial urethritis. P32 is the putative surface-exposed membrane protein of M. genitalium and it has substaintial identity in amino acid sequence with adhesin protein P30 from M. pneumoniae. Since M. pneumoniae mutants lacking P30 protein is defective in cytadherence, P32 protein has been proposed to be an essential adhesin implicated in the adherence of M. genitaliurn to host cells. The prokaryotic expression vector pET-30 （ ＋ ）/p32 was constructed in the present study, and the recombinant protein was expressed in E. coli and purified under denaturing condition. As demonstrated by the immuno- blotting analysis, the recombinant protein could react with rabbit antisera against M. genitalium, and adherence inhibition assays were performed with antisera against this recombinant protein. It was demonstrated that P32 protein apperared to be an adhesion protein of M. genitalium, thus providing the experimental basis for better understanding of the pathogenesis of M. genitalium infection and for the development of the related vaccines against the infection.

Identification of Differentially Expressed Genes Associated with Cotton Fiber Development in a Chromosomal Substitution Line(CS-B22sh)

One of the impediments in the genetic improvement of cotton fiber is the paucity of information about genes associated with fiber development.Availability of chromosome arm substitution line CS-

Identification and analysis of differentially expressed genes involved in dark-induced photoperiod response and senescence of soybean leaves by suppression subtractive hybridization

A cDNA subtractive library enriched for dark-induced up-regulated ESTs was constructed by suppression subtractive hybridization(SSH) from leaf tissues of soybean cultivar DongNong L13 treated with short-day(8-h light/16-h dark) and long-day(16-h light/8-h dark) conditions.A total of 148 clones were sequenced,representing 76 unique ESTs which corresponded to about 20% of 738 clones from the cDNA library and showed a significant up-regulation of at least three fold verified by dot blot hybridization.The putative functions of ESTs were predicted by Blastn and Blastx.The 43 differentially expressed genes identified by subtractions were classified according to their putative functions generated by Blast analysis.Genetic functional analysis indicated that putative proteins encoded by these genes were related to diverse functions during organism development,which include biological regulation pathways such as transcription,signal transduction and programmed cell death,protein,nucleic acid and carbohydrate macromolecule degradation,the cell wall modification,primary and secondary metabolism and stress response.Two soybean transcription factors enhanced in SD conditions,GAMYB-binding protein and DNA binding protein RAV cDNAs that may be involved in SD soybean photoperiod response,had been isolated using 5'-and 3'-rapid amplification of cDNA ends(RACE)(Genbank Accession numbers DQ112540 and DQ147914).

Identification and Cloning of Differentially Expressed Genes Involved in the Interaction Between Potato and Phytophthora infestans using a Subtractive Hybridization and cDNA-AFLP Combinational Approach

Using a subtractive hybridization （SH）/cDNA-AFLP combinational approach, differentially expressed genes involved in the potato-Phytophthora infestans interaction were identified. These included genes potentially controlling pathogenesis or avr genes in P. infestans as well as those potentially involved in potato resistance or susceptibility to this pathogen. Forty-one differentially expressed transcript, derived fragments （TDFs）, resulting from the interaction, were cloned and sequenced. Two TDFs, suggested as potential pathogenicity factors, have sequence similarity to N-succinyl diaminopimelate aminotransferase and a transcriptional regulator, TetR family gene, respectively. Two other TDFs, suggested as potential avr genes, have sequence similarity to an EST sequence from Avr41Cf.41Avr91Cf- 9 and a P. infestans avirulence-associated gene, respectively. Genes＇ expression and origin were confirmed using Southern blots, Northern blots and qRT-PCR, he., potential resistance gene DL81 was induced at 12 hpi in the moderately resistant cultivar, whereas it was down-regulated as early as 6 hpi in the susceptible cultivar. On the other hand, DL21 was induced at 6 hpi （3.38-fold） in response to the highly aggressive isolate （US8） and strongly up-regulated thereafter （25.13-fold at 120 hpi.）, whereas it was only slightly up-regulated in response to the weakly aggressive isolate US11 （3.82-fold at 96 hpi）, suggesting its potential involvement as a susceptibility gene.