scholarly journals Detection and Characterization of Autoagglutination Activity by Campylobacter jejuni

2000 ◽  
Vol 68 (11) ◽  
pp. 6168-6175 ◽  
Author(s):  
Naoaki Misawa ◽  
Martin J. Blaser
Keyword(s):  
Campylobacter Jejuni ◽  
Natural Transformation ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Vitro Assay ◽  
Sodium Metaperiodate ◽  
Bacterial Hydrophobicity ◽  
Phosphate Buffered Saline ◽  
Common Cell

ABSTRACT In several gram-negative bacterial pathogens, autoagglutination (AAG) activity is a marker for interaction with host cells and virulence. Campylobacter jejuni strains also show AAG, but this property varies considerably among strains. To examine the characteristics of C. jejuni AAG, we developed a quantitative in vitro assay. For strain 81-176, which shows high AAG, activity was optimal for cells grown for ≤24 h, was independent of growth temperature, and was best measured for cells suspended in phosphate-buffered saline at 25°C for 24 h. AAG activity was heat labile and was abolished by pronase or acid-glycine (pH 2.2) treatment but not by lipase, DNase, or sodium metaperiodate. Strain 4182 has low AAG activity, but extraction with water increased AAG, suggesting the loss of an inhibitor. Strain 6960 has weak AAG with no effect due to water extraction. Our study with clinical isolates suggests that C. jejuni strains may be grouped into three AAG phenotypes. A variant derived from strain 81116 that is flagellate but immotile showed the strong AAG exhibited by the parent strain, suggesting that motility per se is not necessary for the AAG activity. AAG correlated with both bacterial hydrophobicity and adherence to INT407 cells. Mutants which lack flagella (flaA,flaB, and flbA) or common cell surface antigen (peb1A) were constructed in strain 81-176 by natural transformation-mediated allelic exchange. Both AAG activity and bacterial hydrophobicity were abolished in the aflagellate mutants but not the peb1A mutant. In total, these findings indicate that C. jejuni AAG is highly associated with flagellar expression.

scholarly journals Transposon mutagenesis in a hyper-invasive clinical isolate of Campylobacter jejuni reveals a number of genes with potential roles in invasion

Microbiology ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 156 (4) ◽  
pp. 1134-1143 ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Afzal Javed ◽  
Andrew J. Grant ◽  
Mary. C. Bagnall ◽  
Duncan J. Maskell ◽  
Diane G. Newell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Isolate ◽  
Campylobacter Jejuni ◽  
Transposon Mutagenesis ◽  
Genomic Variation ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Transposon Insertion ◽  
Strain Nctc ◽  
Transposon Insertions

Transposon mutagenesis has been applied to a hyper-invasive clinical isolate of Campylobacter jejuni, 01/51. A random transposon mutant library was screened in an in vitro assay of invasion and 26 mutants with a significant reduction in invasion were identified. Given that the invasion potential of C. jejuni is relatively poor compared to other enteric pathogens, the use of a hyper-invasive strain was advantageous as it greatly facilitated the identification of mutants with reduced invasion. The location of the transposon insertion in 23 of these mutants has been determined; all but three of the insertions are in genes also present in the genome-sequenced strain NCTC 11168. Eight of the mutants contain transposon insertions in one region of the genome (∼14 kb), which when compared with the genome of NCTC 11168 overlaps with one of the previously reported plasticity regions and is likely to be involved in genomic variation between strains. Further characterization of one of the mutants within this region has identified a gene that might be involved in adhesion to host cells.

In Vitro Assay for Single-cell Characterization of Impaired Deformability in Red Blood Cells under Recurrent Episodes of Hypoxia

Lab on a Chip ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
YUHAO QIANG ◽  
Jia Liu ◽  
Ming Dao ◽  
E Du
Keyword(s):  
Shear Stress ◽  
Red Blood Cells ◽  
Single Cell ◽  
Blood Cells ◽  
Blood Circulation ◽  
In Vitro Assay ◽  
Vitro Assay ◽  
Cyclic Shear

Red blood cells (RBCs) are subjected to recurrent changes in shear stress and oxygen tension during blood circulation. The cyclic shear stress has been identified as an important factor that...

scholarly journals In Vitro Characterization of the Enzyme Properties of the Phospholipid N-Methyltransferase PmtA from Agrobacterium tumefaciens

2009 ◽  
Vol 191 (7) ◽  
pp. 2033-2041 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meriyem Aktas ◽  
Franz Narberhaus
Keyword(s):  
Agrobacterium Tumefaciens ◽  
In Vitro Assay ◽  
Enzyme Properties ◽  
Vitro Assay ◽  
Plant Infection ◽  
In Vitro Characterization ◽  
End Products ◽  
And Control

ABSTRACT Agrobacterium tumefaciens requires phosphatidylcholine (PC) in its membranes for plant infection. The phospholipid N-methyltransferase PmtA catalyzes all three transmethylation reactions of phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) to PC via the intermediates monomethylphosphatidylethanolamine (MMPE) and dimethylphosphatidylethanolamine (DMPE). The enzyme uses S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) as the methyl donor, converting it to S-adenosylhomocysteine (SAH). Little is known about the activity of bacterial Pmt enzymes, since PC biosynthesis in prokaryotes is rare. In this article, we present the purification and in vitro characterization of A. tumefaciens PmtA, which is a monomeric protein. It binds to PE, the intermediates MMPE and DMPE, the end product PC, and phosphatidylglycerol (PG) and phosphatidylinositol. Binding of the phospholipid substrates precedes binding of SAM. We used a coupled in vitro assay system to demonstrate the enzymatic activity of PmtA and to show that PmtA is inhibited by the end products PC and SAH and the antibiotic sinefungin. The presence of PG stimulates PmtA activity. Our study provides insights into the catalysis and control of a bacterial phospholipid N-methyltransferase.

scholarly journals In Vitro Import of a Nuclearly Encoded tRNA into Mitochondria of Solanum tuberosum

2003 ◽  
Vol 23 (11) ◽  
pp. 4000-4012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ludovic Delage ◽  
André Dietrich ◽  
Anne Cosset ◽  
Laurence Maréchal-Drouard
Keyword(s):  
Solanum Tuberosum ◽  
Higher Plants ◽  
Plant Mitochondria ◽  
Protein Translation ◽  
Trna Genes ◽  
Vitro Assay ◽  
Trna Import

ABSTRACT Some of the mitochondrial tRNAs of higher plants are nuclearly encoded and imported into mitochondria. The import of tRNAs encoded in the nucleus has been shown to be essential for proper protein translation within mitochondria of a variety of organisms. Here, we report the development of an in vitro assay for import of nuclearly encoded tRNAs into plant mitochondria. This in vitro system utilizes isolated mitochondria from Solanum tuberosum and synthetic tRNAs transcribed from cloned nuclear tRNA genes. Although incubation of radioactively labeled in vitro-transcribed tRNAAla, tRNAPhe, and tRNAMet-e with isolated potato mitochondria resulted in importation, as measured by nuclease protection, the amount of tRNA transcripts protected at saturation was at least five times higher for tRNAAla than for the two other tRNAs. This difference in in vitro saturation levels of import is consistent with the in vivo localization of these tRNAs, since cytosolic tRNAAla is naturally imported into potato mitochondria whereas tRNAPhe and tRNAMet-e are not. Characterization of in vitro tRNA import requirements indicates that mitochondrial tRNA import proceeds in the absence of any added cytosolic protein fraction, involves at least one protein component on the surface of mitochondria, and requires ATP-dependent step(s) and a membrane potential.

scholarly journals In Vitro Selection and Characterization of Hepatitis C Virus Serine Protease Variants Resistant to an Active-Site Peptide Inhibitor

2003 ◽  
Vol 77 (6) ◽  
pp. 3669-3679 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caterina Trozzi ◽  
Linda Bartholomew ◽  
Alessandra Ceccacci ◽  
Gabriella Biasiol ◽  
Laura Pacini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hepatitis C Virus ◽  
Hepatitis C ◽  
Serine Protease ◽  
In Vitro Selection ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Dimensional Structure ◽  
In Vitro Systems

ABSTRACT The hepatitis C virus (HCV) serine protease is necessary for viral replication and represents a valid target for developing new therapies for HCV infection. Potent and selective inhibitors of this enzyme have been identified and shown to inhibit HCV replication in tissue culture. The optimization of these inhibitors for clinical development would greatly benefit from in vitro systems for the identification and the study of resistant variants. We report the use HCV subgenomic replicons to isolate and characterize mutants resistant to a protease inhibitor. Taking advantage of the replicons' ability to transduce resistance to neomycin, we selected replicons with decreased sensitivity to the inhibitor by culturing the host cells in the presence of the inhibitor and neomycin. The selected replicons replicated to the same extent as those in parental cells. Sequence analysis followed by transfection of replicons containing isolated mutations revealed that resistance was mediated by amino acid substitutions in the protease. These results were confirmed by in vitro experiments with mutant enzymes and by modeling the inhibitor in the three-dimensional structure of the protease.

scholarly journals A Novel 3-Deoxy-d-manno-Octulosonic Acid (Kdo) Hydrolase That Removes the Outer Kdo Sugar of Helicobacter pylori Lipopolysaccharide

2005 ◽  
Vol 187 (10) ◽  
pp. 3374-3383 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Stead ◽  
An Tran ◽  
Donald Ferguson ◽  
Sara McGrath ◽  
Robert Cotter ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Helicobacter Pylori ◽  
Lipid A ◽  
In Vitro Assay ◽  
Spectrometric Analysis ◽  
Vitro Assay ◽  
The Core ◽  
H Pylori

ABSTRACT The lipid A domain anchors lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to the outer membrane and is typically a disaccharide of glucosamine that is both acylated and phosphorylated. The core and O-antigen carbohydrate domains are linked to the lipid A moiety through the eight-carbon sugar 3-deoxy-d-manno-octulosonic acid known as Kdo. Helicobacter pylori LPS has been characterized as having a single Kdo residue attached to lipid A, predicting in vivo a monofunctional Kdo transferase (WaaA). However, using an in vitro assay system we demonstrate that H. pylori WaaA is a bifunctional enzyme transferring two Kdo sugars to the tetra-acylated lipid A precursor lipid IVA. In the present work we report the discovery of a Kdo hydrolase in membranes of H. pylori capable of removing the outer Kdo sugar from Kdo2-lipid A. Enzymatic removal of the Kdo group was dependent upon prior removal of the 1-phosphate group from the lipid A domain, and mass spectrometric analysis of the reaction product confirmed the enzymatic removal of a single Kdo residue by the Kdo-trimming enzyme. This is the first characterization of a Kdo hydrolase involved in the modification of gram-negative bacterial LPS.

scholarly journals Preparation and Characterization of Chitosan obtained from Pacific White Shrimp Shells and its in vitro Antifungal Activity

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (10) ◽  
pp. 2515-2519
Author(s):  
Arnannit Kuyyogsuy
Keyword(s):  
Pacific White Shrimp ◽  
White Shrimp ◽  
X Ray Diffraction ◽  
Vitro Assay ◽  
Shrimp Shells ◽  
Xrd Patterns ◽  
Two Peaks ◽  
In Vitro Antifungal Activity

In this article, a method for the processing of chitosan from Pacific white shrimp shells is developed which involves three steps viz. demineralization, deproteinization, and deacetylation. The samples of chitosan with more than 90% degree of deacetylation (DD%) were obtained by FTIR. This indicated that the current processing method of shrimp shells was beneficial for chitosan production. The morphology of chitosan sample was determined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns exhibited two peaks of crystalline character approximately at 10º and 20º (2θ). The effect of 0.1% (w/v) of chitosan on the growth of Penicillium digitatum was tested by an in vitro assay and the results showed an almost complete inhibition (98% ± 0.56).

Characterization of an ineffective actinorhizal microsymbiont, Frankia sp. EuI1 (Actinomycetales)

1980 ◽  
Vol 26 (9) ◽  
pp. 1072-1089 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dwight Baker ◽  
William Newcomb ◽  
John G. Torrey
Keyword(s):  
Host Range ◽  
Nitrogenase Activity ◽  
Root Nodules ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Vesicle Formation ◽  
Nitrogen Fixing ◽  
Elaeagnus Umbellata

The actinomycete, Frankia sp. EuI1, isolated from root nodules of Elaeagnus umbellata is an infective endophyte but which lacks the ability to form an effective nitrogen-fixing symbiosis with its host. This ineffective organism can be distinguished easily from other frankiae, in vitro, on the basis of size, morphology, and the elaboration of a diffusible pigment. Cross-inoculation studies indicated that the host range of this symbiont is narrow and probably restricted to the Elaeagnaceae. In all cases of nodulation the symbiosis never developed nitrogenase activity and the microsymbiont never produced endophytic vesicles within the infected host cells. Sporangia were produced in vivo and in vitro so the morphogenetic block is apparently restricted to vesicle formation.

Biomimetic In Vitro Assay for the Characterization of Bitter Tastants and Identification of Bitter Taste Blockers

2003 ◽  
pp. 91-101 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen A. Gravina ◽  
Richard A. McGregor ◽  
Rita Nossoughi ◽  
John Kherlopian ◽  
Thomas Hofmann
Keyword(s):  
Bitter Taste ◽  
In Vitro Assay ◽  
Vitro Assay
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