Diversity, abundance, and distribution of anammox bacteria in shipping channel sediment of Hong Kong by analysis of DNA and RNA

Soluble carbohydrates are the major nutritional reward in the pulp of most vertebrate dispersed fruits (Corlett 1996, Herrera 1987, Johnson et al. 1985, Jordano 1995). However, although detailed analyses have been made of the carbohydrate content of many cumtivated fruits (e.g. Nagy et al. 1990, Widdowson & McCance 1935), most studies of wild fruits have only quantified total soluble carbohydrates (e.g. Conklin & Wrangham 1994, Corlett 1996, Foster & McDiarmid 1983, Herrera 1987, Izhaki 1992). This is unfortunate because relatively minor differences in the chemical structure of nutrients can have profound implications for frugivorous animals (Martinez del Rio & Restrepo 1993), and the fruit choices of these animals in turn, may have major implications for the abundance and distribution of the plant species.

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No Evidence of Human Papillomavirus in Patients with Breast Cancer in Hong Kong, Southern China

ISRN Virology ◽

10.5402/2013/546503 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 2013 ◽

pp. 1-4 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Ava Kwong ◽

Candy P. Leung ◽

Vivian Y. Shin ◽

Enders K. O. Ng

Keyword(s):

Breast Cancer ◽

Hong Kong ◽

Human Papillomavirus ◽

Dna Sequences ◽

Southern China ◽

Breast Tumour ◽

Breast Cancer Patients ◽

Tissue Samples ◽

Hpv Dna ◽

Dna And Rna

Several studies have suggested that viral oncogenesis is one of the etiologic factors of breast cancer, while others are provocative, however, their association remains controversial. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA is present in the blood and tissue samples of breast cancer patients in Hong Kong. A total of 102 patients with breast tumour tissues and adjacent normal tissues were available and recruited unselectively. Both DNA and RNA were extracted from those samples, and real-time quantitative PCR was performed to detect HPV-16, with 18 sequences targeting the E6 and L1 regions. Results showed that HPV DNA sequences were absent in all the blood and breast tissues. These data argue against the role of oncogenic HPV in the pathogenesis of breast cancer. Additional lines of evidence need to be obtained in order to assess the possibility of breast cancer prevention using HPV vaccines.

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Environmental Factors Shape Sediment Anammox Bacterial Communities in Hypernutrified Jiaozhou Bay, China

Applied and Environmental Microbiology ◽

10.1128/aem.01264-10 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 76 (21) ◽

pp. 7036-7047 ◽

Cited By ~ 102

Author(s):

Hongyue Dang ◽

Ruipeng Chen ◽

Lin Wang ◽

Lizhong Guo ◽

Pingping Chen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Environmental Factors ◽

Bacterial Community ◽

16S Rrna ◽

Jiaozhou Bay ◽

16S Rrna Genes ◽

Rrna Genes ◽

Organic N ◽

Anammox Bacteria ◽

Nitrite Concentration ◽

Abundance And Distribution

ABSTRACT Bacterial anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) is an important process in the marine nitrogen cycle. Because ongoing eutrophication of coastal bays contributes significantly to the formation of low-oxygen zones, monitoring of the anammox bacterial community offers a unique opportunity for assessment of anthropogenic perturbations in these environments. The current study used targeting of 16S rRNA and hzo genes to characterize the composition and structure of the anammox bacterial community in the sediments of the eutrophic Jiaozhou Bay, thereby unraveling their diversity, abundance, and distribution. Abundance and distribution of hzo genes revealed a greater taxonomic diversity in Jiaozhou Bay, including several novel clades of anammox bacteria. In contrast, the targeting of 16S rRNA genes verified the presence of only “Candidatus Scalindua,” albeit with a high microdiversity. The genus “Ca. Scalindua” comprised the apparent majority of active sediment anammox bacteria. Multivariate statistical analyses indicated a heterogeneous distribution of the anammox bacterial assemblages in Jiaozhou Bay. Of all environmental parameters investigated, sediment organic C/organic N (OrgC/OrgN), nitrite concentration, and sediment median grain size were found to impact the composition, structure, and distribution of the sediment anammox bacterial community. Analysis of Pearson correlations between environmental factors and abundance of 16S rRNA and hzo genes as determined by fluorescent real-time PCR suggests that the local nitrite concentration is the key regulator of the abundance of anammox bacteria in Jiaozhou Bay sediments.

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Diversity, Abundance, and Distribution of Wood-Decay Fungi in Major Parks of Hong Kong

Forests ◽

10.3390/f11101030 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (10) ◽

pp. 1030

Author(s):

Shunping Ding ◽

Hongli Hu ◽

Ji-Dong Gu

Keyword(s):

Hong Kong ◽

Human Life ◽

Wood Decay ◽

Botanical Garden ◽

Abundant Species ◽

Fungal Species ◽

Decay Fungi ◽

Wood Decay Fungi ◽

Old Trees ◽

Abundance And Distribution

Wood-decay fungi are one of the major threats to the old and valuable trees in Hong Kong and constitute a main conservation and management challenge because they inhabit dead wood as well as living trees. The diversity, abundance, and distribution of wood-decay fungi associated with standing trees and stumps in four different parks of Hong Kong, including Hong Kong Park, Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Garden, Kowloon Park, and Hong Kong Observatory Grounds, were investigated. Around 4430 trees were examined, and 52 fungal samples were obtained from 44 trees. Twenty-eight species were identified from the samples and grouped into twelve families and eight orders. Phellinus noxius, Ganoderma gibbosum, and Auricularia polytricha were the most abundant species and occurred in three of the four parks. Most of the species were detected on old trees, indicating that older trees were more susceptible to wood-decay fungi than younger ones. More wood-decay fungal species were observed on Ficus microcarpa trees than on other tree species. These findings expanded the knowledge of wood-decay fungi in urban environments in Hong Kong and provided useful information for the conservation of old trees and the protection of human life and property from the danger of falling trees.

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High-resolution nucleic acid sequence mapping via in situ hybridization at the Electron Microscope level

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100140130 ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 53 ◽

pp. 752-753

Author(s):

B.A. Hamkalo ◽

S. Narayanswami ◽

A.P. Kausch

Keyword(s):

Nucleic Acid ◽

Interphase Nucleus ◽

Genome Mapping ◽

Precise Location ◽

Electron Microscope Level ◽

Rna Sequences ◽

Fundamental Interest ◽

Whole Cells ◽

Dna And Rna

The availability of nonradioactive methods to label nucleic acids an the resultant rapid and greater sensitivity of detection has catapulted the technique of in situ hybridization to become the method of choice to locate of specific DNA and RNA sequences on chromosomes and in whole cells in cytological preparations in many areas of biology. It is being applied to problems of fundamental interest to basic cell and molecular biologists such as the organization of the interphase nucleus in the context of putative functional domains; it is making major contributions to genome mapping efforts; and it is being applied to the analysis of clinical specimens. Although fluorescence detection of nucleic acid hybrids is routinely used, certain questions require greater resolution. For example, very closely linked sequences may not be separable using fluorescence; the precise location of sequences with respect to chromosome structures may be below the resolution of light microscopy(LM); and the relative positions of sequences on very small chromosomes may not be feasible.

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Scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) of DNA and RNA

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100152148 ◽

1989 ◽

Vol 47 ◽

pp. 34-35

Author(s):

Patricia G. Arscott ◽

Gil Lee ◽

Victor A. Bloomfield ◽

D. Fennell Evans

Keyword(s):

Molecular Structures ◽

Inorganic Materials ◽

Resolving Power ◽

Scanning Tunneling ◽

Tunneling Microscopy ◽

Form And Function ◽

Dna And Rna ◽

Calf Thymus ◽

And Function ◽

The Relationship

STM is one of the most promising techniques available for visualizing the fine details of biomolecular structure. It has been used to map the surface topography of inorganic materials in atomic dimensions, and thus has the resolving power not only to determine the conformation of small molecules but to distinguish site-specific features within a molecule. That level of detail is of critical importance in understanding the relationship between form and function in biological systems. The size, shape, and accessibility of molecular structures can be determined much more accurately by STM than by electron microscopy since no staining, shadowing or labeling with heavy metals is required, and there is no exposure to damaging radiation by electrons. Crystallography and most other physical techniques do not give information about individual molecules.We have obtained striking images of DNA and RNA, using calf thymus DNA and two synthetic polynucleotides, poly(dG-me5dC)·poly(dG-me5dC) and poly(rA)·poly(rU).

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