Comparison of the unlabeled and labeled pre-mRNA splicing assays in vitro

Pre-mRNA splicing is a fundamental process required for the expression of most metazoan genes. It is carried out by the spliceosome that catalyzes the removal of non-coding intron sequences to ligate exons into mature mRNA prior to transport and translation. The purpose of our study is to explore whether the in vitro unlabeled pre-mRNA splicing assay could be performed as an alternative method of splicing reaction other than the radiolabeled one. Two different splicing methods in vitro, 32p labeled and unlabeled pre-mRNA as the substrates in the reaction, were investigated. The radiolabeled products were visualized by autoradiography while the unlabeled products were observed by Ethidium Bromide （EB） staining. As a result, although there are more unspecific bands in the EB staining assay than 32p labeled one, the RNA products of in vitro splicing could be observed clearly. This suggests that the unlabeled pre-mRNA splicing assay can be an optional substitution for the isotope-labeled assay.

Cadmium Toxicity in Plants and Role of Mineral Nutrients in Its Alleviation

Cadmium (Cd) is a toxic heavy metal that enters the environment through various anthropogenic sources, and inhibits plant growth and development. Cadmium toxicity may result from disturbance in plant metabolism as a consequence of disturbance in the uptake and translocation of mineral nutrients. Plant nutrients and Cd compete for the same transporters and, therefore, presence of Cd results in mineral nutrients deficiency. The optimization of mineral nutrients under Cd stress could reduce Cd toxicity by greater availability at the transport site resulting in reduced accumulation of Cd, and could also alleviate Cd-induced toxic effects by enhancing biochemical reactions and physiological processes in plants. In the present review the role of plant macro, micro and beneficial elements in alleviating Cd stress in crop plants is discussed.

Investigation of Biobutanol Efficiency of Chlorella sp. Cultivated in Municipal Wastewater

Many strains of microalgae can grow in wastewaters through their ability to utilize inorganic nitrogen and phosphorus in wastewater. The content of municipal wastewater changes from a location to others. Biofuel production from municipal wastewater has gained huge importance due to progresses in cultivation of microalgae in wastewaters. Biobutanol is produced by the acetone-butanol-ethanol (ABE) fermentation. In this study, we examined the biobutanol production efficiency of Chlorella sp. DEE006 which is cultivated in the municipal wastewater in flat-photobioreactor. Growth of microalgae was monitored at 680 nm using spectrophotometer and the biomass was also pre-treated with acidic hydrolysis (1 M H2SO4). Total carbohydrate and protein contents were measured. Fermented microalgae samples were taken for calculation of biobutanol concentration. We obtained both high biobutanol content (6.23 ± 0.19 g·L−1) and high bioethanol yield 0.16 ± 0.005 g (g sugar)−1. 50% wastewater had the highest biomass concentration (1930 ± 11 mg/L) among the wastewaters with five various concentrations. It had the highest biomass productivity with 0.28 ± 0.001 g L−1d−1. Also, it obtained the highest carbohydrate and protein concentration with 0.80 ± 0.02 gL−1 and 0.95 ± 0.01 gL−1, respectively. According to our results, Chlorella sp. DEE006 can be used for large scale biobutanol production in the future.

Effects of Two-Year Variation in Soil Moisture Condition on the Development of Larch Root System in Eastern Siberia

Recent climate changes, including an increase in precipitation, have affected tree physiology in eastern Siberia. We investigated the response of larch to wet and dry soil water conditions in pot experiments using larch seedlings grown under near-natural conditions in eastern Siberia over two growing seasons. Three patterns of wet- and dry-treatment combinations were applied over 2 years: wet treatments in 2006 and 2007 (WW treatment), dry in 2006 and wet in 2007 (DW treatment), and dry in 2006 and 2007 (DD treatment). After 1 year of treatment, no significant difference between the dry and wet treatment was found in root distribution and needle water content, except for the content of abscisic acid in roots. After 2 years of treatment, the DW treatment induced different tendencies in the gas exchange activity and in the needle biomass and root distribution of seedlings in comparison with WW treatments, despite the same water condition in 2007. We suggest a possibility that seedlings that experience drought stress might store some memory of drought that influences their physiology in the next growing season.

Fluorescence color diversity of great barrier reef corals

A group of variously colored proteins belonging to the green fAuorescent protein(GFP)family are responsible for coloring coral tissues.Corals of the Great Barrier Reef were studied with the custom-built fiber laser fluorescence spectrometers.Spectral analysis showed that most of the excarmined corals contained multiple fuorescent peaks ranging from 470 to 620nm.This obser-vation was attributed to the presence of multiple genes of GFP-like proteins in a single coral,as well as by the photo-induced post-translational modifcations of certain GFP-like proteins.We isolated a novel photo-convertible fuorescent protein(FP)from one of the tested corals.We:propose that two processes may explain the observed diversity of the fuorescent spectra in corals:(1)dark post-translational modifcation(maturation),and(2)color photo-conversion of certain maturated proteins in response to sunlight.

Platelet aggregation responses in type 2 diabetic patients

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is associated with platelet dysfunction. In diabetic patients, alterations in platelet functions, especially increased platelet agregation, have been suggested to cause increasing in cardiovascular morbidity and mortality or in accelaretion of athersclerotic process. In this study, we aimed to investigate the platelet aggregation response alterations and the effects of DM duration, HbA1c, treatment options among the patients with Type 2 DM. Fortyfive patients (case group;21 male, 24 female) with Type 2 DM and forty-eight healthy individuals (control group;22 male, 26 female) were included in this study. Platelet aggregation was determinated with Chorono-log 500 (USA) named device by using Chorono-log/ADP, Chorono-log/ collagen and Chorono-log/epinephrine kits. ADP-induced platelet aggregation was significantly higher in the case group compared with control group (p 【0.05). Epinephrine induced platelet aggregation were significant in negatively correlation with the diabetes duration (P 【0.05). Platelet aggregation responses did not differ according to their treatment type (sulphonylurea or insulin) was statistically insignificiant among the case groups (p 】0.05). In conclusion, our findings supported that type 2 diabetes may interfere with platelet functions without any relationship age, gender, the treatment types and the regulation levels. These findings supports that existence potential new factors or mechanism affecting platelet agregation. The subject requires more detailed studies in the future.