University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute

About: University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute is a based out in . It is known for research contribution in the topics: Gene & Population. The organization has 1565 authors who have published 2458 publications receiving 171434 citations. The organization is also known as: UMBI.

Expression of multiple flagellin-encoding genes of Proteus mirabilis.

Abstract: The overproduction of flagella is a distinguishing characteristic of Proteus mirabilis swarmer cell differentiation. The synthesis of flagellin, the principal protein composing the flagellar filament, is coordinately regulated as part of a larger regulon of genes whose expression is a prerequisite in urinary pathogenesis. In this report, the regulation of expression of the flaA locus, comprising flaA and flaB, two tandemly linked and nearly identical copies of flagellin-encoding genes, is examined. Transcriptional expression studies reveal that flaA, but not flaB, is expressed by wild-type cells, and flaA transcription increases eightfold during differentiation. The flaA transcriptional start site for both swimmer and swarmer cells was determined to be located at a guanine, 8 bases downstream of the flaA sigma 28 promoter. FlaA- mutants are nonmotile and undifferentiated and do not synthesize flagellin, while FlaB- mutants are wild type, thus verifying that FlaA is the sole flagellin produced by wild-type cells and that flaB is silent. FlaA- mutants frequently revert to a Mot+ phenotype that is antigenically distinct from that of wild-type cells. Southern blot analysis of the flaA Mot+ revertants reveals a deletion of between 2 and 7kb in the flaA locus. Biochemical analyses of revertant flagellin indicate major changes in protein size and composition but conservation of the first 28 N-terminal residues. The result of this process is to produce an antigenically distinct flagellum that may be significant in ensuring the survival of P. mirabilis during pathogenesis.

Outer Mitochondrial Membrane Protein Degradation by the Proteasome

Abstract: Protein turnover is used for regulatory processes and to eliminate superfluous, denatured or chemically inactivated polypeptides. Mitochondrial proteins may be particularly susceptible to damage induced by reactive oxygen species and several pathways of mitochondrial proteolysis have been illuminated. However, in contrast to matrix and inner mitochondrial membrane protein degradation, little is known about the turnover of integral outer mitochondrial membrane (OMM) proteins or the mechanisms involved. We have found that pheromone treatment of Saccharomyces cerevisiae induces the proteasome-dependent elimination of the OMM spanning protein, Fzo1, from the mitochondria and that Fzo1 is ubiquitylated while still associated with the membrane. These characteristic processing steps are similar to those of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-associated degradation (ERAD) pathway suggesting the term OMMAD, outer mitochondrial membrane-associated degradation, to describe the process. ERAD is dependent upon ER membrane spanning RING domain E3 ubiquitin ligases suggesting that certain E3 ligases in the OMM may also regulate OMMAD. This led us to clone and characterize all 54 predicted human gene products that contain both RING domains and predicted membrane spanning domains. A surprising number of these localize to mitochondria where some may control OMMAD. Some of these mitochondrial RING domain proteins also regulate mitochondrial morphology, indicating a critical role of ubiquitin signalling in the maintenance of mitochondrial homeostasis.

The generation of free radicals by nitric oxide synthase.

Abstract: Nitric oxide synthase (NOS) is an example of a family of heme-containing monooxygenases that, under the restricted control of a specific substrate, can generate free radicals. While the generation of nitric oxide (NO ) depends solely on the binding of l -arginine, NOS produces superoxide (O2 −) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) when the concentration of the substrate is low. Not surprisingly, effort has been put forth to understand the pathway by which NOS generates NO , O2 − and H2O2, including the role of substrate binding in determining the pathways by which free radicals are generated. By binding within the distal heme pocket near the sixth coordination position of the NOS heme iron, l -arginine alters the coordination properties of the heme iron that promotes formation of the perferryl complex NOS–[Fe5+O]3+. This reactive iron intermediate has been shown to abstract a hydrogen atom from a carbon α to a heteroatom and generate carbon-centered free radicals. The ability of NOS to produce free radicals during enzymic cycling demonstrates that NOS–[Fe5+O]3+ behaves like an analogous iron–oxo complex of cytochrome P-450 during aliphatic hydroxylation. The present review discusses the mechanism(s) by which NOS generates secondary free radicals that may initiate pathological events, along with the cell signaling properties of NO , O2 − and H2O2.

Construction of a bacterial artificial chromosome library from the spikemoss Selaginella moellendorffii: A new resource for plant comparative genomics

Abstract: Background: The lycophytes are an ancient lineage of vascular plants that diverged from the seed plant lineage about 400 Myr ago. Although the lycophytes occupy an important phylogenetic position for understanding the evolution of plants and their genomes, no genomic resources exist for this group of plants. Results: Here we describe the construction of a large-insert bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) library from the lycophyte Selaginella moellendorffii. Based on cell flow cytometry, this species has the smallest genome size among the different lycophytes tested, including Huperzia lucidula, Diphaiastrum digita, Isoetes engelmanii and S. kraussiana. The arrayed BAC library consists of 9126 clones; the average insert size is estimated to be 122 kb. Inserts of chloroplast origin account for 2.3% of the clones. The BAC library contains an estimated ten genome-equivalents based on DNA hybridizations using five single-copy and two duplicated S. moellendorffii genes as probes. Conclusion: The S. moellenforffii BAC library, the first to be constructed from a lycophyte, will be useful to the scientific community as a resource for comparative plant genomics and evolution.