Genome Organization and Pathogenicity of Corynebacterium diphtheriae C7(−) and PW8 Strains

ABSTRACT Corynebacterium diphtheriae is the causative agent of diphtheria. In 2003, the complete genomic nucleotide sequence of an isolate (NCTC13129) from a large outbreak in the former Soviet Union was published, in which the presence of 13 putative pathogenicity islands (PAIs) was demonstrated. In contrast, earlier work on diphtheria mainly employed the C7(−) strain for genetic analysis; therefore, current knowledge of the molecular genetics of the bacterium is limited to that strain. However, genomic information on the NCTC13129 strain has scarcely been compared to strain C7(−). Another important C. diphtheriae strain is Park-Williams no. 8 (PW8), which has been the only major strain used in toxoid vaccine production and for which genomic information also is not available. Here, we show by comparative genomic hybridization that at least 37 regions from the reference genome, including 11 of the 13 PAIs, are considered to be absent in the C7(−) genome. Despite this, the C7(−) strain still retained signs of pathogenicity, showing a degree of adhesion to Detroit 562 cells, as well as the formation of and persistence in abscesses in animal skin comparable to that of the NCTC13129 strain. In contrast, the PW8 strain, suggested to lack 14 genomic regions, including 3 PAIs, exhibited more reduced signs of pathogenicity. These results, together with great diversity in the presence of the 37 genomic regions among various C. diphtheriae strains shown by PCR analyses, suggest great heterogeneity of this pathogen, not only in genome organization, but also in pathogenicity.

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Research gaps and new insights in the intriguing evolution of Drosophila seminal proteins

10.1101/2021.05.11.443674 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Juan Hurtado ◽

Francisca Cunha Almeida ◽

Silvina Anahí Belliard ◽

Santiago Revale ◽

Esteban Hasson

Keyword(s):

Seminal Fluid ◽

Current Knowledge ◽

Comparative Genomic ◽

Genomic Information ◽

Research Gaps ◽

Seminal Fluid Proteins ◽

Open Questions ◽

Starting Point ◽

Genomic Analyses ◽

Multiple Species

While the striking effects that seminal fluid proteins (SFPs) exert on females are fairly conserved among Diptera, they exhibit remarkable evolutionary lability. Consequently, most SFPs lack detectable homologs among the repertoire of SFPs of phylogenetically distant species. How such a rapidly changing proteome "manages" to conserve functions across taxa is a fascinating question. However, this and other pivotal aspects of SFPs' evolution remain elusive because discoveries on these proteins have been mainly restricted to the model D. melanogaster. Here, we provide an overview of the current knowledge on the inter-specific divergence of Drosophila SFPs and compile the increasing amount of relevant genomic information from multiple species. Capitalizing the accumulated knowledge in D. melanogaster, we present novel sets of high-confidence SFP candidates and transcription factors presumptively involved in regulating the expression of SFPs. We also address open questions by performing comparative genomic analyses that failed to support the existence of conserved SFPs shared by most dipterans and indicated that gene co-option is the most frequent mechanism accounting for the origin of Drosophila SFP-coding genes. We hope our update establishes a starting point to integrate, as more species are assayed for SFPs, further data and thus, to widen the understanding of the intricate evolution of these proteins.

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ReprDB and panDB: minimalist databases with maximal microbial representation

10.1101/214916 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Wei Zhou ◽

Nicole Gay ◽

Julia Oh

Keyword(s):

Open Access ◽

Comparative Genomic ◽

Sequence Information ◽

Alignment Algorithm ◽

Genomic Information ◽

Memory Space ◽

Microbial Genomes ◽

Reference Databases ◽

Genomic Regions ◽

Reference Genomes

AbstractBackgroundProfiling of shotgun metagenomic samples is hindered by a lack of unified microbial reference genome databases that i) assemble genomic information from all open access microbial genomes, ii) have relatively small sizes, and iii) are compatible to various metagenomic read mapping tools. Moreover, computational tools to rapidly compile and update such databases to accommodate the rapid increase in new reference genomes do not exist. As a result, database-guided analyses often fail to profile a substantial fraction of metagenomic shotgun sequencing reads from complex microbiomes.ResultsWe report pipelines that efficiently traverse all open access microbial genomes and assemble non-redundant genomic information. The pipelines result in two species-resolution microbial reference databases of relatively small sizes: reprDB, which assembles microbial representative or reference genomes, and panDB, for which we developed a novel iterative alignment algorithm to identify and assemble non-redundant genomic regions in multiple sequenced strains. With the databases, we managed to assign taxonomic labels and genome positions to the majority of metagenomic reads from human skin and gut microbiomes, demonstrating a significant improvement over a previous database-guided analysis on the same datasets.ConclusionsreprDB and panDB leverage the rapid increases in the number of open access microbial genomes to more fully profile metagenomic samples. Additionally, the databases exclude redundant sequence information to avoid inflated storage or memory space and indexing or analyses time. Finally, the novel iterative alignment algorithm significantly increases efficiency in pan-genome identification and can be useful in comparative genomic analyses.

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Marital Stability Among Jewish and Mixed Couples Following Immigration to Israel From the Former Soviet Union

European Psychologist ◽

10.1027/1016-9040/a000112 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 17 (2) ◽

pp. 158-167 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Yoav Lavee ◽

Ludmila Krivosh

Keyword(s):

Soviet Union ◽

Cultural Identity ◽

Social Adjustment ◽

Former Soviet Union ◽

Marital Stability ◽

Marital Instability ◽

Factors Associated ◽

Mixed Marriages ◽

Marital Outcomes ◽

Jewish Immigrants

This research aims to identify factors associated with marital instability among Jewish and mixed (Jewish and non-Jewish) couples following immigration from the former Soviet Union. Based on the Strangeness Theory and the Model of Acculturation, we predicted that non-Jewish immigrants would be less well adjusted personally and socially to Israeli society than Jewish immigrants and that endogamous Jewish couples would have better interpersonal congruence than mixed couples in terms of personal and social adjustment. The sample included 92 Jewish couples and 92 ethnically-mixed couples, of which 82 couples (40 Jewish, 42 mixed) divorced or separated after immigration and 102 couples (52 Jewish, 50 ethnically mixed) remained married. Significant differences were found between Jewish and non-Jewish immigrants in personal adjustment, and between endogamous and ethnically-mixed couples in the congruence between spouses in their personal and social adjustment. Marital instability was best explained by interpersonal disparity in cultural identity and in adjustment to life in Israel. The findings expand the knowledge on marital outcomes of immigration, in general, and immigration of mixed marriages, in particular.

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The Contribution of Pavlov's Typology of CNS Properties to Personality Research

European Psychologist ◽

10.1027/1016-9040.2.2.125 ◽

1997 ◽

Vol 2 (2) ◽

pp. 125-138 ◽

Cited By ~ 17

Author(s):

Jan Strelau

Keyword(s):

Soviet Union ◽

Former Soviet Union ◽

Animal Species ◽

Special Significance ◽

The West ◽

Personality Dimensions ◽

Personality Research ◽

Personality Theories ◽

Strength Of Excitation ◽

Point Of Departure

This paper presents Pavlov's contribution to the development of biological-oriented personality theories. Taking a short description of Pavlov's typology of central nervous system (CNS) properties as a point of departure, it shows how, and to what extent, this typology influenced further research in the former Soviet Union as well as in the West. Of special significance for the development of biologically oriented personality dimensions was the conditioned reflex paradigm introduced by Pavlov for studying individual differences in dogs. This paradigm was used by Russian psychologists in research on types of nervous systems conducted in different animal species as well as for assessing temperament in children and adults. Also, personality psychologists in the West, such as Eysenck, Spence, and Gray, incorporated the CR paradigm into their theories. Among the basic properties of excitation and inhibition on which Pavlov's typology was based, strength of excitation and the basic indicator of this property, protective inhibition, gained the highest popularity in arousaloriented personality theories. Many studies have been conducted in which the Pavlovian constructs of CNS properties have been related to different personality dimensions. In current research the behavioral expressions of the Pavlovian constructs of strength of excitation, strength of inhibition, and mobility of nervous processes as measured by the Pavlovian Temperament Survey (PTS) have been related to over a dozen of personality dimensions, mostly referring to temperament.

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Migration pattern and mortality of ethnic German migrants from the former Soviet Union

10.1055/s-0037-1605625 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

S Kaucher ◽

H Becher ◽

A Deckert ◽

V Winkler

Keyword(s):

Soviet Union ◽

Former Soviet Union ◽

Migration Pattern

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Transmigration und Kapitalismus

PROKLA Zeitschrift für kritische Sozialwissenschaft ◽

10.32387/prokla.v35i140.592 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 35 (140) ◽

pp. 407-422

Author(s):

Julia Bernstein

Keyword(s):

Soviet Union ◽

Former Soviet Union ◽

Different Sources

Based on an ethnographical study the article presents the problems of Soviet migrants with capitalistic every day life. The reaction of the migrants and the role of their imagination of capitalism, which was formed by different sources in the former Soviet Union, is investigated.

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