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Sample records for post-translationally modified staphylococcus

  1. Radical SAM Enzymes in the Biosynthesis of Ribosomally Synthesized and Post-translationally Modified Peptides (RiPPs

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    Alhosna Benjdia

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Ribosomally-synthesized and post-translationally modified peptides (RiPPs are a large and diverse family of natural products. They possess interesting biological properties such as antibiotic or anticancer activities, making them attractive for therapeutic applications. In contrast to polyketides and non-ribosomal peptides, RiPPs derive from ribosomal peptides and are post-translationally modified by diverse enzyme families. Among them, the emerging superfamily of radical SAM enzymes has been shown to play a major role. These enzymes catalyze the formation of a wide range of post-translational modifications some of them having no counterparts in living systems or synthetic chemistry. The investigation of radical SAM enzymes has not only illuminated unprecedented strategies used by living systems to tailor peptides into complex natural products but has also allowed to uncover novel RiPP families. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge on radical SAM enzymes catalyzing RiPP post-translational modifications and discuss their mechanisms and growing importance notably in the context of the human microbiota.

  2. Human Immunodeficiency Virus type-1 reverse transcriptase exists as post-translationally modified forms in virions and cells

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    Warrilow David

    2008-12-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background HIV-1 reverse transcriptase (RT is a heterodimer composed of p66 and p51 subunits and is responsible for reverse transcription of the viral RNA genome into DNA. RT can be post-translationally modified in vitro which may be an important mechanism for regulating RT activity. Here we report detection of different p66 and p51 RT isoforms by 2D gel electrophoresis in virions and infected cells. Results Major isoforms of the p66 and p51 RT subunits were observed, with pI's of 8.44 and 8.31 respectively (p668.44 and p518.31. The same major isoforms were present in virions, virus-infected cell lysates and intracellular reverse transcription complexes (RTCs, and their presence in RTCs suggested that these are likely to be the forms that function in reverse transcription. Several minor RT isoforms were also observed. The observed pIs of the RT isoforms differed from the pI of theoretical unmodified RT (p668.53 and p518.60, suggesting that most of the RT protein in virions and cells is post-translationally modified. The modifications of p668.44 and p518.31 differed from each other indicating selective modification of the different RT subunits. The susceptibility of RT isoforms to phosphatase treatment suggested that some of these modifications were due to phosphorylation. Dephosphorylation, however, had no effect on in vitro RT activity associated with virions, infected cells or RTCs suggesting that the phospho-isoforms do not make a major contribution to RT activity in an in vitro assay. Conclusion The same major isoform of p66 and p51 RT is found in virions, infected cells and RTC's and both of these subunits are post-translationally modified. This post-translational modification of RT may be important for the function of RT inside the cell.

  3. Incorporation of post-translational modified amino acids as an approach to increase both chemical and biological diversity of conotoxins and conopeptides.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Espiritu, Michael J; Cabalteja, Chino C; Sugai, Christopher K; Bingham, Jon-Paul

    2014-01-01

    Bioactive peptides from Conus venom contain a natural abundance of post-translational modifications that affect their chemical diversity, structural stability, and neuroactive properties. These modifications have continually presented hurdles in their identification and characterization. Early endeavors in their analysis relied on classical biochemical techniques that have led to the progressive development and use of novel proteomic-based approaches. The critical importance of these post-translationally modified amino acids and their specific assignment cannot be understated, having impact on their folding, pharmacological selectivity, and potency. Such modifications at an amino acid level may also provide additional insight into the advancement of conopeptide drugs in the quest for precise pharmacological targeting. To achieve this end, a concerted effort between the classical and novel approaches is needed to completely elucidate the role of post-translational modifications in conopeptide structure and dynamics. This paper provides a reflection in the advancements observed in dealing with numerous and multiple post-translationally modified amino acids within conotoxins and conopeptides and provides a summary of the current techniques used in their identification.

  4. Proteomic analysis of post-translational modifications

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mann, Matthias; Jensen, Ole N

    2003-01-01

    Post-translational modifications modulate the activity of most eukaryote proteins. Analysis of these modifications presents formidable challenges but their determination generates indispensable insight into biological function. Strategies developed to characterize individual proteins are now...... systematically applied to protein populations. The combination of function- or structure-based purification of modified 'subproteomes', such as phosphorylated proteins or modified membrane proteins, with mass spectrometry is proving particularly successful. To map modification sites in molecular detail, novel...

  5. Cell signaling, post-translational protein modifications and NMR spectroscopy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Theillet, Francois-Xavier; Smet-Nocca, Caroline; Liokatis, Stamatios; Thongwichian, Rossukon; Kosten, Jonas; Yoon, Mi-Kyung; Kriwacki, Richard W.; Landrieu, Isabelle; Lippens, Guy; Selenko, Philipp

    2012-01-01

    Post-translationally modified proteins make up the majority of the proteome and establish, to a large part, the impressive level of functional diversity in higher, multi-cellular organisms. Most eukaryotic post-translational protein modifications (PTMs) denote reversible, covalent additions of small chemical entities such as phosphate-, acyl-, alkyl- and glycosyl-groups onto selected subsets of modifiable amino acids. In turn, these modifications induce highly specific changes in the chemical environments of individual protein residues, which are readily detected by high-resolution NMR spectroscopy. In the following, we provide a concise compendium of NMR characteristics of the main types of eukaryotic PTMs: serine, threonine, tyrosine and histidine phosphorylation, lysine acetylation, lysine and arginine methylation, and serine, threonine O-glycosylation. We further delineate the previously uncharacterized NMR properties of lysine propionylation, butyrylation, succinylation, malonylation and crotonylation, which, altogether, define an initial reference frame for comprehensive PTM studies by high-resolution NMR spectroscopy.

  6. Tubulin post-translational modifications in the primitive protist Trichomonas vaginalis.

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    Delgado-Viscogliosi, P; Brugerolle, G; Viscogliosi, E

    1996-01-01

    Using several specific monoclonal antibodies, we investigated the occurrence and distribution of different post-translationally modified tubulin during interphase and division of the primitive flagellated protist Trichomonas vaginalis. Immunoblotting and immunofluorescence experiments revealed that interphasic microtubular structures of T. vaginalis contained acetylated and glutamylated but non-tyrosinated and non-glycylated [Brugerolle and Adoutte, 1988: Bio Systems 21: 255-268] tubulin. Immunofluorescence studies performed on dividing cells showed that the extranuclear mitotic spindle (or paradesmosis) was acetylated and glutamylated, which contrast with the ephemeral nature of this structure. Newly formed short axostyles also contained acetylated and glutamylated tubulin suggesting that both post-translational modifications might take place very early after assembly of microtubular structures. Our results indicate that acetylation and glutamylation of tubulin appeared early in the history of eukaryotes and could reflect the occurrence of post-translational modifications of tubulin in the primitive eukaryotic cells. These cells probably had a highly ordered cross-linked microtubular cytoskeleton in which microtubules showed a low level of subunit exchange dynamics.

  7. Elucidating Host-Pathogen Interactions Based on Post-Translational Modifications Using Proteomics Approaches

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ravikumar, Vaishnavi; Jers, Carsten; Mijakovic, Ivan

    2015-01-01

    can be efficiently applied to gain an insight into the molecular mechanisms involved. The measurement of the proteome and post-translationally modified proteome dynamics using mass spectrometry, results in a wide array of information, such as significant changes in protein expression, protein...... display host specificity through a complex network of molecular interactions that aid their survival and propagation. Co-infection states further lead to complications by increasing the microbial burden and risk factors. Quantitative proteomics based approaches and post-translational modification analysis...... pathogen interactions....

  8. Spatial and Temporal Effects in Protein Post-translational Modification Distributions in the Developing Mouse Brain

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Edwards, Alistair V G; Edwards, Gregory J; Schwämmle, Veit

    2014-01-01

    Protein post-translational modification (PTM) is a powerful way to modify the behavior of cellular proteins and thereby cellular behavior. Multiple recent studies of evolutionary trends have shown that certain pairs of protein post-translational modifications tend to occur closer to each other than...... for observations of increasingly frequent and diverse protein modification in cell biology. In this study, we use mass spectrometry and proteomic strategies to present biological data showing spatiotemporal PTM co-localization across multiple PTM categories, which display changes over development of the brain...

  9. Plant cytoplasmic GAPDH: redox post-translational modifications and moonlighting properties

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    Mirko eZaffagnini

    2013-11-01

    Full Text Available Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH is a ubiquitous enzyme involved in glycolysis and shown, particularly in animal cells, to play additional roles in several unrelated non-metabolic processes such as control of gene expression and apoptosis. This functional versatility is regulated, in part at least, by redox post-translational modifications that alter GAPDH catalytic activity and influence the subcellular localization of the enzyme. In spite of the well established moonlighting (multifunctional properties of animal GAPDH, little is known about non-metabolic roles of GAPDH in plants. Plant cells contain several GAPDH isoforms with different catalytic and regulatory properties, located both in the cytoplasm and in plastids, and participating in glycolysis and the Calvin-Benson cycle. A general feature of all GAPDH proteins is the presence of an acidic catalytic cysteine in the active site that is overly sensitive to oxidative modifications, including glutathionylation and S-nitrosylation. In Arabidopsis, oxidatively-modified cytoplasmic GAPDH has been successfully used as a tool to investigate the role of reduced glutathione, thioredoxins and glutaredoxins in the control of different types of redox post-translational modifications. Oxidative modifications inhibit GAPDH activity, but might enable additional functions in plant cells. Mounting evidence support the concept that plant cytoplasmic GAPDH may fulfill alternative, non-metabolic functions that are triggered by redox post-translational modifications of the protein under stress conditions. The aim of this review is to detail the molecular mechanisms underlying the redox regulation of plant cytoplasmic GAPDH in the light of its crystal structure, and to provide a brief inventory of the well known redox-dependent multi-facetted properties of animal GAPDH, together with the emerging roles of oxidatively-modified GAPDH in stress signaling pathways in plants.

  10. The interplay of post-translational modification and gene therapy

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    Osamor VC

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available Victor Chukwudi Osamor,1–3 Shalom N Chinedu,3,4 Dominic E Azuh,3,5 Emeka Joshua Iweala,3,4 Olubanke Olujoke Ogunlana3,4 1Covenant University Bioinformatics Research (CUBRe Unit, Department of Computer and Information Sciences, College of Science and Technology (CST, Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria; 2Institute of Informatics (Computational biology and Bioinformatics, Faculty of Mathematics, Informatics and Mechanics, University of Warsaw (Uniwersytet Warszawski, Warszawa, Poland; 3Covenant University Public Health and Well-being Research Group (CUPHWERG, Covenant University, 4Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Unit, Department of Biological Sciences, College of Science and Technology, Covenant University, Canaan Land, 5Department of Economics and Development Studies, Covenant University, Ota, Ogun State, Nigeria Abstract: Several proteins interact either to activate or repress the expression of other genes during transcription. Based on the impact of these activities, the proteins can be classified into readers, modifier writers, and modifier erasers depending on whether histone marks are read, added, or removed, respectively, from a specific amino acid. Transcription is controlled by dynamic epigenetic marks with serious health implications in certain complex diseases, whose understanding may be useful in gene therapy. This work highlights traditional and current advances in post-translational modifications with relevance to gene therapy delivery. We report that enhanced understanding of epigenetic machinery provides clues to functional implication of certain genes/gene products and may facilitate transition toward revision of our clinical treatment procedure with effective fortification of gene therapy delivery. Keywords: post-translational modification, gene therapy, epigenetics, histone, methylation

  11. Post-translationally modified muscle-specific ubiquitin ligases as circulating biomarkers in experimental cancer cachexia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mota, Roberto; Rodríguez, Jessica E; Bonetto, Andrea; O’Connell, Thomas M; Asher, Scott A; Parry, Traci L; Lockyer, Pamela; McCudden, Christopher R; Couch, Marion E; Willis, Monte S

    2017-01-01

    Cancer cachexia is a severe wasting syndrome characterized by the progressive loss of lean body mass and systemic inflammation. Up to 80% of cancer patients experience cachexia, with 20-30% of cancer-related deaths directly linked to cachexia. Despite efforts to identify early cachexia and cancer relapse, clinically useful markers are lacking. Recently, we identified the role of muscle-specific ubiquitin ligases Atrogin-1 (MAFbx, FBXO32) and Muscle Ring Finger-1 in the pathogenesis of cardiac atrophy and hypertrophy. We hypothesized that during cachexia, the Atrogin-1 and MuRF1 ubiquitin ligases are released from muscle and migrate to the circulation where they could be detected and serve as a cachexia biomarker. To test this, we induced cachexia in mice using the C26 adenocarcinoma cells or vehicle (control). Body weight, tumor volume, and food consumption were measured from inoculation until ~day 14 to document cachexia. Western blot analysis of serum identified the presence of Atrogin-1 and MuRF1 with unique post-translational modifications consistent with mono- and poly- ubiquitination of Atrogin-1 and MuRF1 found only in cachectic serum. These findings suggest that both increased Atrogin-1 and the presence of unique post-translational modifications may serve as a surrogate marker specific for cachexia. PMID:28979816

  12. Ribosomally Synthesized and Post-translationally Modified Peptide Natural Products: New Insights Into the Role of Leader and Core Peptides During Biosynthesis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Xiao; van der Donk, Wilfred A.

    2013-01-01

    Ribosomally synthesized and post-translationally modified peptides (RiPPs) are a major class of natural products with a high degree of structural diversity and a wide variety of bioactivities. Understanding the biosynthetic machinery of these RiPPs will benefit the discovery and development of new molecules with potential pharmaceutical applications. In this review, we discuss the features of the biosynthetic pathways to different RiPP classes, and propose mechanisms regarding recognition of the precursor peptide by the posttranslational modification enzymes. We propose that the leader peptides function as allosteric regulators that bind the active form of the biosynthetic enzymes in a conformational selection process. We also speculate how enzymes that generate polycyclic products of defined topologies may have been selected for during evolution. PMID:23666908

  13. Contribution of Post-translational Phosphorylation to Sarcomere-linked Cardiomyopathy Phenotypes

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    Margaret V Westfall

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Secondary shifts develop in post-translational phosphorylation of sarcomeric proteins in multi¬ple animal models of inherited cardiomyopathy. These signaling alterations together with the primary mutation are predicted to contribute to the overall cardiac phenotype. As a result, identification and integration of post-translational myofilament signaling responses are identified as priorities for gaining insights into sarcomeric cardiomyopathies. However, significant questions remain about the nature and contribution of post-translational phosphorylation to structural remodeling and cardiac dysfunction in animal models and human patients. This perspective essay discusses specific goals for filling critical gaps about post-translational signaling in response to these inherited mutations, especially within sarcomeric proteins. The discussion focuses primarily on pre-clinical analysis of animal models and defines challenges and future directions in this field.

  14. Interactive Translation Prediction versus Conventional Post-editing in Practice

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sanchis-Trilles, German; Alabau, Vicent; Buck, Christian

    2014-01-01

    We conducted a field trial in computer-assisted professional translation to compare Interactive Translation Prediction (ITP) against conventional post- editing (PE) of machine translation (MT) output. In contrast to the conventional PE set-up, where an MT system first produces a static translatio...

  15. Post-translational regulation enables robust p53 regulation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shin, Yong-Jun; Chen, Kai-Yuan; Sayed, Ali H; Hencey, Brandon; Shen, Xiling

    2013-08-30

    The tumor suppressor protein p53 plays important roles in DNA damage repair, cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. Due to its critical functions, the level of p53 is tightly regulated by a negative feedback mechanism to increase its tolerance towards fluctuations and disturbances. Interestingly, the p53 level is controlled by post-translational regulation rather than transcriptional regulation in this feedback mechanism. We analyzed the dynamics of this feedback to understand whether post-translational regulation provides any advantages over transcriptional regulation in regard to disturbance rejection. When a disturbance happens, even though negative feedback reduces the steady-state error, it can cause a system to become less stable and transiently overshoots, which may erroneously trigger downstream reactions. Therefore, the system needs to balance the trade-off between steady-state and transient errors. Feedback control and adaptive estimation theories revealed that post-translational regulation achieves a better trade-off than transcriptional regulation, contributing to a more steady level of p53 under the influence of noise and disturbances. Furthermore, post-translational regulation enables cells to respond more promptly to stress conditions with consistent amplitude. However, for better disturbance rejection, the p53- Mdm2 negative feedback has to pay a price of higher stochastic noise. Our analyses suggest that the p53-Mdm2 feedback favors regulatory mechanisms that provide the optimal trade-offs for dynamic control.

  16. Identification of novel post-translational modifications in linker histones from chicken erythrocytes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sarg, Bettina; Lopez, Rita; Lindner, Herbert; Ponte, Inma; Suau, Pedro; Roque, Alicia

    2015-01-15

    Chicken erythrocyte nuclei were digested with micrococcal nuclease and fractionated by centrifugation in low-salt buffer into soluble and insoluble fractions. Post-translational modifications of the purified linker histones of both fractions were analyzed by LC-ESI-MS/MS. All six histone H1 subtypes (H1.01, H1.02, H1.03, H1.10, H1.1L and H1.1R) and histone H5 were identified. Mass spectrometry analysis enabled the identification of a wide range of PTMs, including N(α)-terminal acetylation, acetylation, formylation, phosphorylation and oxidation. A total of nine new modifications in chicken linker histones were mapped, most of them located in the N-terminal and globular domains. Relative quantification of the modified peptides showed that linker histone PTMs were differentially distributed among both chromatin fractions, suggesting their relevance in the regulation of chromatin structure. The analysis of our results combined with previously reported data for chicken and some mammalian species showed that most of the modified positions were conserved throughout evolution, highlighting their importance in specific linker histone functions and epigenetics. Post-translational modifications of linker histones could have a role in the regulation of gene expression through the modulation of chromatin higher-order structure and chromatin remodeling. Finding new PTMs in linker histones is the first step to elucidate their role in the histone code. In this manuscript we report nine new post-translational modifications of the linker histones from chicken erythrocytes, one in H5 and eight in the H1 subtypes. Chromatin fractionated by centrifugation in low-salt buffer resulted in two fractions with different contents and compositions of linker histones and enriched in specific core histone PTMs. Of particular interest is the fact that linker histone PTMs were differentially distributed in both chromatin fractions, suggesting specific functions. Future studies are needed to

  17. Predicting Post-Editor Profiles from the Translation Process

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Singla, Karan; Orrego-Carmona, David; Gonzales, Ashleigh Rhea

    2014-01-01

    The purpose of the current investigation is to predict post-editor profiles based on user behaviour and demographics using machine learning techniques to gain a better understanding of post-editor styles. Our study extracts process unit features from the CasMaCat LS14 database from the CRITT...... of translation process features. The classification and clustering of participants resulting from our study suggest this type of exploration could be used as a tool to develop new translation tool features or customization possibilities....

  18. Eye-tracking Post-editing Behaviour in an Interactive Translation Prediction Environment

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mesa-Lao, Bartolomé

    2013-01-01

    challenges faced by translators. This paper reports on a preliminary pilot test within the CasMaCat project. Based in user activity data (key-logging and eye-tracking), this project aims at defining the functionalities of a new translator's workbench focusing on post-editing and advanced computer......-aided translation methods. The main aim of this preliminary pilot was to assess one of the new features implemented in the second prototype of the workbench: the interactive translation prediction (ITP) feature. This ITP feature is set to provide translators with different suggestion as they post......-edit. For this purpose 6 translators were asked to post-edit 1,000 words from English to Spanish in five different tasks while their eye movements were being tracked. Each task was designed to test different modalities of ITP. Translators were also asked to fill out a questionnaire expressing their attitudes towards...

  19. Regulation of the tumor suppressor PML by sequential post-translational modifications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Schmitz, M. Lienhard; Grishina, Inna

    2012-01-01

    Post-translational modifications (PTMs) regulate multiple biological functions of the promyelocytic leukemia (PML) protein and also the fission, disassembly, and rebuilding of PML nuclear bodies (PML-NBs) during the cell cycle. Pathway-specific PML modification patterns ensure proper signal output from PML-NBs that suit the specific functional requirements. Here we comprehensively review the signaling pathways and enzymes that modify PML and also the oncogenic PML-RARα fusion protein. Many PTMs occur in a hierarchical and timely organized fashion. Phosphorylation or acetylation constitutes typical starting points for many PML modifying events, while degradative ubiquitination is an irreversible end point of the modification cascade. As this hierarchical organization of PTMs frequently turns phosphorylation events as primordial events, kinases or phosphatases regulating PML phosphorylation may be interesting drug targets to manipulate the downstream modifications and thus the stability and function of PML or PML-RARα.

  20. Expression of the lysostaphin gene of Staphylococcus simulans in a eukaryotic system.

    OpenAIRE

    Williamson, C M; Bramley, A J; Lax, A J

    1994-01-01

    The lysostaphin gene of Staphylococcus simulans was cloned into Escherichia coli. The 5' end of the gene was modified to include a eukaryotic start codon, the Kozak expression start site consensus sequence, and an enzyme site to facilitate manipulation of the gene. Transcription of the modified gene in vitro yielded an RNA transcript which, when added to a rabbit reticulocyte cell-free translation system, directed the synthesis of several products. The largest product, migrating at approximat...

  1. Post-Translational Modifications of TRP Channels

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    Olaf Voolstra

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available Transient receptor potential (TRP channels constitute an ancient family of cation channels that have been found in many eukaryotic organisms from yeast to human. TRP channels exert a multitude of physiological functions ranging from Ca2+ homeostasis in the kidney to pain reception and vision. These channels are activated by a wide range of stimuli and undergo covalent post-translational modifications that affect and modulate their subcellular targeting, their biophysical properties, or channel gating. These modifications include N-linked glycosylation, protein phosphorylation, and covalent attachment of chemicals that reversibly bind to specific cysteine residues. The latter modification represents an unusual activation mechanism of ligand-gated ion channels that is in contrast to the lock-and-key paradigm of receptor activation by its agonists. In this review, we summarize the post-translational modifications identified on TRP channels and, when available, explain their physiological role.

  2. Hunting for unexpected post-translational modifications by spectral library searching with tier-wise scoring.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, Chun Wai Manson; Lam, Henry

    2014-05-02

    Discovering novel post-translational modifications (PTMs) to proteins and detecting specific modification sites on proteins is one of the last frontiers of proteomics. At present, hunting for post-translational modifications remains challenging in widely practiced shotgun proteomics workflows due to the typically low abundance of modified peptides and the greatly inflated search space as more potential mass shifts are considered by the search engines. Moreover, most popular search methods require that the user specifies the modification(s) for which to search; therefore, unexpected and novel PTMs will not be detected. Here a new algorithm is proposed to apply spectral library searching to the problem of open modification searches, namely, hunting for PTMs without prior knowledge of what PTMs are in the sample. The proposed tier-wise scoring method intelligently looks for unexpected PTMs by allowing mass-shifted peak matches but only when the number of matches found is deemed statistically significant. This allows the search engine to search for unexpected modifications while maintaining its ability to identify unmodified peptides effectively at the same time. The utility of the method is demonstrated using three different data sets, in which the numbers of spectrum identifications to both unmodified and modified peptides were substantially increased relative to a regular spectral library search as well as to another open modification spectral search method, pMatch.

  3. An improved ChIP-seq peak detection system for simultaneously identifying post-translational modified transcription factors by combinatorial fusion, using SUMOylation as an example.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cheng, Chia-Yang; Chu, Chia-Han; Hsu, Hung-Wei; Hsu, Fang-Rong; Tang, Chung Yi; Wang, Wen-Ching; Kung, Hsing-Jien; Chang, Pei-Ching

    2014-01-01

    Post-translational modification (PTM) of transcriptional factors and chromatin remodelling proteins is recognized as a major mechanism by which transcriptional regulation occurs. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) in combination with high-throughput sequencing (ChIP-seq) is being applied as a gold standard when studying the genome-wide binding sites of transcription factor (TFs). This has greatly improved our understanding of protein-DNA interactions on a genomic-wide scale. However, current ChIP-seq peak calling tools are not sufficiently sensitive and are unable to simultaneously identify post-translational modified TFs based on ChIP-seq analysis; this is largely due to the wide-spread presence of multiple modified TFs. Using SUMO-1 modification as an example; we describe here an improved approach that allows the simultaneous identification of the particular genomic binding regions of all TFs with SUMO-1 modification. Traditional peak calling methods are inadequate when identifying multiple TF binding sites that involve long genomic regions and therefore we designed a ChIP-seq processing pipeline for the detection of peaks via a combinatorial fusion method. Then, we annotate the peaks with known transcription factor binding sites (TFBS) using the Transfac Matrix Database (v7.0), which predicts potential SUMOylated TFs. Next, the peak calling result was further analyzed based on the promoter proximity, TFBS annotation, a literature review, and was validated by ChIP-real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) and ChIP-reChIP real-time qPCR. The results show clearly that SUMOylated TFs are able to be pinpointed using our pipeline. A methodology is presented that analyzes SUMO-1 ChIP-seq patterns and predicts related TFs. Our analysis uses three peak calling tools. The fusion of these different tools increases the precision of the peak calling results. TFBS annotation method is able to predict potential SUMOylated TFs. Here, we offer a new approach that enhances Ch

  4. Antibodies against post-translationally modified vimentin peptides in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

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    P. A. Kuznetsova

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Rheumatoid arthritis (RA is the most common autoimmune rheumatic disease (ARD associated with the production of broad-spectrum antibodies, the detection of which is of important diagnostic and prognostic values. The problems of RA diagnosis are associated with the limited sensitivity of currently used serological markers.Objective: to evaluate the diagnostic informative value of autoantibodies against different post-translationally modified (PTM vimentin peptides in patients with RA and other ARDs.Patients and methods. The frequency of autoantibodies against different isoforms of vimentin was estimated in 144 patients with RA, in 36 patients with other ARDs (ankylosing spondylitis and scleroderma systematica, and in 25 patients of a control group, who had no rheumatic diseases. Antibodies against different PTM vimentin peptides obtained using citrullination, carbamylation/homocitrullination, and acetylation were determined. Anti-citrullinated vimentin (anti-CitVim peptide, anti-carbamylated vimentin (anti-CarVim peptide, and anti-acetylated vimentin (anti-AcVim peptide autoantibodies of IgG and IgA classes were estimated in the serum by enzyme immunoassay.Results. The results of the study showed that IgG and IgA anti-CitVim had the maximum area under the ROC curve (AUC (0.859 and 0.855, respectively. A slightly smaller AUC was seen in IgG anti-CarVim (0.85, IgG anti-AcVim (0.784, and IgA anti-AcVim (0.651. The diagnostic sensitivity and diagnostic specificity were 66.2 and 96.77% for IgG anti-CitVim, 60.56 and 91.94% for IgA anti-CitVim, 91.55 and 53.23% for IgG anti-CarVim, 63.38 and 93.55% for IgG anti-AcVim, and 49.3 and 70.97%, IgA anti-AcVim, respectively. Positivity for IgG anti-CitVim, IgG anti-CarVim, and IgG anti-AcVim, and anti-IgA CitVim was significantly more frequently detected in patients with RA than in those with other ARDs and in the control group (p<0.05. Thus, the identified autoantibodies against modified

  5. Post-Translational Modifications of Histones in Human Sperm.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krejčí, Jana; Stixová, Lenka; Pagáčová, Eva; Legartová, Soňa; Kozubek, Stanislav; Lochmanová, Gabriela; Zdráhal, Zbyněk; Sehnalová, Petra; Dabravolski, Siarhei; Hejátko, Jan; Bártová, Eva

    2015-10-01

    We examined the levels and distribution of post-translationally modified histones and protamines in human sperm. Using western blot immunoassay, immunofluorescence, mass spectrometry (MS), and FLIM-FRET approaches, we analyzed the status of histone modifications and the protamine P2. Among individual samples, we observed variability in the levels of H3K9me1, H3K9me2, H3K27me3, H3K36me3, and H3K79me1, but the level of acetylated (ac) histones H4 was relatively stable in the sperm head fractions, as demonstrated by western blot analysis. Sperm heads with lower levels of P2 exhibited lower levels of H3K9ac, H3K9me1, H3K27me3, H3K36me3, and H3K79me1. A very strong correlation was observed between the levels of P2 and H3K9me2. FLIM-FRET analysis additionally revealed that acetylated histones H4 are not only parts of sperm chromatin but also appear in a non-integrated form. Intriguingly, H4ac and H3K27me3 were detected in sperm tail fractions via western blot analysis. An appearance of specific histone H3 and H4 acetylation and H3 methylation in sperm tail fractions was also confirmed by both LC-MS/MS and MALDI-TOF MS analysis. Taken together, these data indicate that particular post-translational modifications of histones are uniquely distributed in human sperm, and this distribution varies among individuals and among the sperm of a single individual. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  6. Modulations of DNA Contacts by Linker Histones and Post-translational Modifications Determine the Mobility and Modifiability of Nucleosomal H3 Tails.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stützer, Alexandra; Liokatis, Stamatios; Kiesel, Anja; Schwarzer, Dirk; Sprangers, Remco; Söding, Johannes; Selenko, Philipp; Fischle, Wolfgang

    2016-01-21

    Post-translational histone modifications and linker histone incorporation regulate chromatin structure and genome activity. How these systems interface on a molecular level is unclear. Using biochemistry and NMR spectroscopy, we deduced mechanistic insights into the modification behavior of N-terminal histone H3 tails in different nucleosomal contexts. We find that linker histones generally inhibit modifications of different H3 sites and reduce H3 tail dynamics in nucleosomes. These effects are caused by modulations of electrostatic interactions of H3 tails with linker DNA and largely depend on the C-terminal domains of linker histones. In agreement, linker histone occupancy and H3 tail modifications segregate on a genome-wide level. Charge-modulating modifications such as phosphorylation and acetylation weaken transient H3 tail-linker DNA interactions, increase H3 tail dynamics, and, concomitantly, enhance general modifiability. We propose that alterations of H3 tail-linker DNA interactions by linker histones and charge-modulating modifications execute basal control mechanisms of chromatin function. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. A Minimal Cognitive Model for Translating and Post-editing

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schaeffer, Moritz; Carl, Michael

    2017-01-01

    This study investigates the coordination of reading (input) and writing (output) activities in from-scratch translation and post-editing. We segment logged eye movements and keylogging data into minimal units of reading and writing activity and model the process of post-editing and from-scratch t...

  8. Post-translational modifications regulate signalling by Ror1

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Kaucká, M.; Krejčí, Pavel; Plevová, K.; Pavlová, Š.; Procházková, Jiřina; Janovská, P.; Valnohová, J.; Kozubík, Alois; Pospíšilová, Š.; Bryja, Vítězslav

    2011-01-01

    Roč. 203, č. 3 (2011), s. 351-362 ISSN 1748-1708 Institutional support: RVO:68081707 Keywords : chronic lymphocytic leukaemia * glycosylation * post-translational modification Subject RIV: BO - Biophysics Impact factor: 3.090, year: 2011

  9. A single cysteine post-translational oxidation suffices to compromise globular proteins kinetic stability and promote amyloid formation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Patrizia Marinelli

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Oxidatively modified forms of proteins accumulate during aging. Oxidized protein conformers might act as intermediates in the formation of amyloids in age-related disorders. However, it is not known whether this amyloidogenic conversion requires an extensive protein oxidative damage or it can be promoted just by a discrete, localized post-translational modification of certain residues. Here, we demonstrate that the irreversible oxidation of a single free Cys suffices to severely perturb the folding energy landscape of a stable globular protein, compromise its kinetic stability, and lead to the formation of amyloids under physiological conditions. Experiments and simulations converge to indicate that this specific oxidation-promoted protein aggregation requires only local unfolding. Indeed, a large scale analysis indicates that many cellular proteins are at risk of undergoing this kind of deleterious transition; explaining how oxidative stress can impact cell proteostasis and subsequently lead to the onset of pathological states. Keywords: Protein oxidation, Protein misfolding, Protein aggregation, Oxidative stress, Post-translational modification

  10. Pdx1 is post-translationally modified in vivo and serine 61 is the principal site of phosphorylation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Frogne, Thomas; Sylvestersen, Kathrine Beck; Kubicek, Stefan

    2012-01-01

    signaling. Several studies have shown that post-translational modifications are regulating Pdx1 activity through intracellular localization and binding to co-factors. Understanding the signaling cues converging on Pdx1 and modulating its activity is therefore an attractive approach in diabetes treatment. We...... alanine scanning and mass spectrometry we map this phosphorylation to serine 61 in both Min6 cells and in exogenous Pdx1 over-expressed in HEK293 cells. A single phosphorylation is also present in cultured islets but it remains unaffected by changes in glucose levels. It is present during embryogenesis...

  11. Post-Translational Modifications of Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough Sulfate Reduction Pathway Proteins

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gaucher, S.P.; Redding, A.M.; Mukhopadhyay, A.; Keasling, J.D.; Singh, A.K.

    2008-03-01

    Recent developments in shotgun proteomics have enabled high-throughput studies of a variety of microorganisms at a proteome level and provide experimental validation for predicted open reading frames in the corresponding genome. More importantly, advances in mass spectrometric data analysis now allow mining of large proteomics data sets for the presence of post-translational modifications(PTMs). Although PTMs are a critical aspectof cellular activity, such information eludes cell-wide studies conducted at the transcript level. Here, we analyze several mass spectrometric data sets acquired using two-dimensional liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry, 2D-LC/MS/MS, for the sulfate reducing bacterium, Desulfovibrio vulgaris Hildenborough. Our searches of the raw spectra led us to discover several post-translationally modified peptides in D. vulgaris. Of these, several peptides containing a lysine with a +42 Da modification were found reproducibly across all data sets. Both acetylation and trimethylation have the same nominal +42 Da mass, and are therefore candidates for this modification. Several spectra were identified having markers for trimethylation, while one is consistent with an acetylation. Surprisingly, these modified peptides predominantly mapped to proteins involved in sulfate respiration. Other highly expressed proteins in D. vulgaris, such as enzymes involved in electron transport and other central metabolic processes, did not contain this modification. Decoy database searches were used to control for random spectrum/sequence matches. Additional validation for these modifications was provided by alternate workflows, for example, two-dimensional gel electrophoresis followed by mass spectrometry analysis of the dissimilatory sulfite reductase gamma-subunit(DsrC) protein. MS data for DsrC in this alternate workflow also contained the +42 Da modification at the same loci. Furthermore, the DsrC homologue in another sulfate reducing bacterium

  12. On the Jewish Nature of Medieval Spanish Biblical Translations Linguistic Differences between Medieval and Post-Exilic Spanish Translations of the Bible

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Schwarzwald, Ora

    2010-06-01

    Full Text Available A linguistic comparison of medieval Spanish translations of the Hebrew Bible and the Constantinople and Ferrara post exilic Ladino translations reveals systematic lexical and grammatical variations. These differences can be explained by the population groups to which the translations were targeted: Christian for the medieval translations; Jewish (or former converso for the post-exilic ones. The conclusion is that the medieval translations are not Jewish in nature and could therefore not have been a source for the post-exilic versions which were based on oral tradition.

    Una comparación lingüística de las traducciones hispano-medievales de la Biblia hebrea y las postexílicas de Constantinopla y Ferrara revela variaciones sistemáticas léxicas y gramaticales. Esas diferencias pueden explicarse por la audiencia a las que iban dirigidas dichas traducciones: cristiana, en el caso de las medievales; judía (o exconversa en el de las post-exílicas. La autora concluye que las traducciones medievales no son judías, por naturaleza, y en consecuencia, no podrían haber sido una fuente para las versiones post-exílicas que estaban basadas en la tradición oral.

  13. Using the TED Talks to Evaluate Spoken Post-editing of Machine Translation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Liyanapathirana, Jeevanthi; Popescu-Belis, Andrei

    2016-01-01

    This paper presents a solution to evaluate spoken post-editing of imperfect machine translation output by a human translator. We compare two approaches to the combination of machine translation (MT) and automatic speech recognition (ASR): a heuristic algorithm and a machine learning method...

  14. Experimental annotation of post-translational features and translated coding regions in the pathogen Salmonella Typhimurium

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ansong, Charles; Tolic, Nikola; Purvine, Samuel O.; Porwollik, Steffen; Jones, Marcus B.; Yoon, Hyunjin; Payne, Samuel H.; Martin, Jessica L.; Burnet, Meagan C.; Monroe, Matthew E.; Venepally, Pratap; Smith, Richard D.; Peterson, Scott; Heffron, Fred; Mcclelland, Michael; Adkins, Joshua N.

    2011-08-25

    Complete and accurate genome annotation is crucial for comprehensive and systematic studies of biological systems. For example systems biology-oriented genome scale modeling efforts greatly benefit from accurate annotation of protein-coding genes to develop proper functioning models. However, determining protein-coding genes for most new genomes is almost completely performed by inference, using computational predictions with significant documented error rates (> 15%). Furthermore, gene prediction programs provide no information on biologically important post-translational processing events critical for protein function. With the ability to directly measure peptides arising from expressed proteins, mass spectrometry-based proteomics approaches can be used to augment and verify coding regions of a genomic sequence and importantly detect post-translational processing events. In this study we utilized “shotgun” proteomics to guide accurate primary genome annotation of the bacterial pathogen Salmonella Typhimurium 14028 to facilitate a systems-level understanding of Salmonella biology. The data provides protein-level experimental confirmation for 44% of predicted protein-coding genes, suggests revisions to 48 genes assigned incorrect translational start sites, and uncovers 13 non-annotated genes missed by gene prediction programs. We also present a comprehensive analysis of post-translational processing events in Salmonella, revealing a wide range of complex chemical modifications (70 distinct modifications) and confirming more than 130 signal peptide and N-terminal methionine cleavage events in Salmonella. This study highlights several ways in which proteomics data applied during the primary stages of annotation can improve the quality of genome annotations, especially with regards to the annotation of mature protein products.

  15. Fidelity in the translation of reovirus mRNA in oocytes of Xenopus laevis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Opperman, D.P.J.; Van der Walt, M.P.K.; Reinecke, C.J.

    1988-01-01

    The translation products formed from reovirus mRNA micro-injected into oocytes of Xenopus laevis were compared with authentic reovirus proteins by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, immunoprecipition, isolation of immune complexes by affinity chromatography and peptide mapping using proteolytic digestion with Staphylococcus aureus V8 protease. Products from the s-, m- and l-class mRNAs were detectable in quantities comparable to those synthesized in vivo, confirming that the differences in the translational efficiencies in the oocyte system resemble those found in vivo. The experimental procedures during this study, include the labelling of these translation products with [ 35 S]methionine. Protein μ1C was formed in the oocytes by post-translational cleavage of its precursor, protein μ1. The V8 protease peptide profile of the translation product with the same electrophoretic mobility as protein, σ3, is identical to that of the authentic reovirus protein. All these observations indicate a high degree of fidelity in the translation of reovirus mRNA in the oocyte system. The fidelity in translation, ratios of the various translation products, as well as post-translational modification suggest that the oocyte system might provide a means for studying the mechanism of reovirus morphogenesis

  16. Fluorescent polymer-based post-translational differentiation and subtyping of breast cancer cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scott, Michael D; Dutta, Rinku; Haldar, Manas K; Wagh, Anil; Gustad, Thomas R; Law, Benedict; Friesner, Daniel L; Mallik, Sanku

    2012-12-07

    Herein, we report the application of synthesized fluorescent, water soluble polymers for post-translational subtyping and differentiation of breast cancer cells in vitro. The fluorescence emission spectra from these polymers were modulated differently in the presence of conditioned cell culture media from various breast cancer cells. These polymers differentiate at a post-translation level possibly due to their ability to interact with extracellular enzymes that are over-expressed in cancerous conditions.

  17. Mission Connect Mild TBI Translational Research Consortium, Post Traumatic Hypopituitarism

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-08-01

    10 Aug 2010 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE The Mission Connect MTBI Translational Research Consortium 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER Post traumatic hypopituitarism 5b...distribution unlimited 13. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES 14. ABSTRACT The purpose of this project is to identify the incidence of post traumatic hypopituitarism ...June 21, 2010; however, none have reached the six month milestone for blood testing 15. SUBJECT TERMS post traumatic hypopituitarism 16. SECURITY

  18. Multiple γ-glutamylation: A novel type of post-translational modification in a diapausing Artemia cyst protein

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hasegawa, Mai; Ikeda, Yuka; Kanzawa, Hideaki; Sakamoto, Mika; Goto, Mina; Tsunasawa, Susumu; Uchiumi, Toshio; Odani, Shoji

    2010-01-01

    A highly hydrophilic, glutamate-rich protein was identified in the aqueous phenol extract from the cytosolic fraction of brine shrimp (Artemia franciscana) diapausing cysts and termed Artemia phenol soluble protein (PSP). Mass spectrometric analysis revealed the presence of many protein peaks around m/z 11,000, separated by 129 atomic mass units; this value corresponds to that of glutamate, which is strongly suggestive of heterogeneous polyglutamylation. Polyglutamylation has long been known as the functionally important post-translational modification of tubulins, which carry poly(L-glutamic acid) chains of heterogeneous length branching off from the main chain at the γ-carboxy groups of a few specific glutamate residues. In Artemia PSP, however, Edman degradation of enzymatic peptides revealed that at least 13, and presumably 16, glutamate residues were modified by the attachment of a single L-glutamate, representing a hitherto undescribed type of post-translational modification: namely, multiple γ-glutamylation or the addition of a large number of glutamate residues along the polypeptide chain. Although biological significance of PSP and its modification is yet to be established, suppression of in vitro thermal aggregation of lactate dehydrogenase by glutamylated PSP was observed.

  19. A novel post-translational modification in nerve terminals: O-linked N-acetylglucosamine phosphorylation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Graham, Mark E; Thaysen-Andersen, Morten; Bache, Nicolai

    2011-01-01

    Protein phosphorylation and glycosylation are the most common post-translational modifications observed in biology, frequently on the same protein. Assembly protein AP180 is a synapse-specific phosphoprotein and O-linked beta-N-acetylglucosamine (O-GlcNAc) modified glycoprotein. AP180 is involved......NAc-P to a Thr residue was confirmed by electron transfer dissociation MS. A second AP180 tryptic peptide was also glycosyl phosphorylated, but the site of modification was not assigned. Sequence similarities suggest there may be a common motif within AP180 involving glycosyl phosphorylation and dual flanking...... phosphorylation sites within 4 amino acid residues. This novel type of protein glycosyl phosphorylation adds a new signaling mechanism to the regulation of neurotransmission and more complexity to the study of O-GlcNAc modification....

  20. Brazilian Portuguese translation, cross-cultural adaptation and reproducibility assessment of the modified Bristol Stool Form Scale for children.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jozala, Debora Rodrigues; Oliveira, Isabelle Stefan de Faria; Ortolan, Erika Veruska Paiva; Oliveira Junior, Wilson Elias de; Comes, Giovana Tuccille; Cassettari, Vanessa Mello Granado; Self, Mariella Marie; Lourenção, Pedro Luiz Toledo de Arruda

    2018-03-15

    To translate and culturally adapt the modified Bristol Stool Form Scale for children into Brazilian Portuguese, and to evaluate the reproducibility of the translated version. The stage of translation and cross-cultural adaptation was performed according to an internationally accepted methodology, including the translation, back-translation, and pretest application of the translated version to a sample of 74 children to evaluate the degree of understanding. The reproducibility of the translated scale was assessed by applying the final version of Brazilian Portuguese modified Bristol Stool Form Scale for children to a sample of 64 children and 25 healthcare professionals, who were asked to correlate a randomly selected description from the translated scale with the corresponding representative illustration of the stool type. The final version of Brazilian Portuguese modified Bristol Stool Form Scale for children were evidently reproducible, since almost complete agreement (k>0,8) was obtained among the translated descriptions and illustrations of the stool types, both among the children and the group of specialists. The Brazilian Portuguese modified Bristol Stool Form Scale for children was shown to be reliable in providing very similar results for the same respondents at different times and for different examiners. The Brazilian Portuguese modified Bristol Stool Form Scale for children is reproducible; it can be applied in clinical practice and in scientific research in Brazil. Copyright © 2018 Sociedade Brasileira de Pediatria. Published by Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

  1. Transcription and translation products of the cytolysin gene psm-mec on the mobile genetic element SCCmec regulate Staphylococcus aureus virulence.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chikara Kaito

    Full Text Available The F region downstream of the mecI gene in the SCCmec element in hospital-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (HA-MRSA contains two bidirectionally overlapping open reading frames (ORFs, the fudoh ORF and the psm-mec ORF. The psm-mec ORF encodes a cytolysin, phenol-soluble modulin (PSM-mec. Transformation of the F region into the Newman strain, which is a methicillin-sensitive S. aureus (MSSA strain, or into the MW2 (USA400 and FRP3757 (USA300 strains, which are community-acquired MRSA (CA-MRSA strains that lack the F region, attenuated their virulence in a mouse systemic infection model. Introducing the F region to these strains suppressed colony-spreading activity and PSMα production, and promoted biofilm formation. By producing mutations into the psm-mec ORF, we revealed that (i both the transcription and translation products of the psm-mec ORF suppressed colony-spreading activity and promoted biofilm formation; and (ii the transcription product of the psm-mec ORF, but not its translation product, decreased PSMα production. These findings suggest that both the psm-mec transcript, acting as a regulatory RNA, and the PSM-mec protein encoded by the gene on the mobile genetic element SCCmec regulate the virulence of Staphylococcus aureus.

  2. Profiling of integral membrane proteins and their post translational modifications using high-resolution mass spectrometry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Souda, Puneet; Ryan, Christopher M.; Cramer, William A.; Whitelegge, Julian

    2011-01-01

    Integral membrane proteins pose challenges to traditional proteomics approaches due to unique physicochemical properties including hydrophobic transmembrane domains that limit solubility in aqueous solvents. A well resolved intact protein molecular mass profile defines a protein’s native covalent state including post-translational modifications, and is thus a vital measurement toward full structure determination. Both soluble loop regions and transmembrane regions potentially contain post-translational modifications that must be characterized if the covalent primary structure of a membrane protein is to be defined. This goal has been achieved using electrospray-ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) with low-resolution mass analyzers for intact protein profiling, and high-resolution instruments for top-down experiments, toward complete covalent primary structure information. In top-down, the intact protein profile is supplemented by gas-phase fragmentation of the intact protein, including its transmembrane regions, using collisionally activated and/or electroncapture dissociation (CAD/ECD) to yield sequence-dependent high-resolution MS information. Dedicated liquid chromatography systems with aqueous/organic solvent mixtures were developed allowing us to demonstrate that polytopic integral membrane proteins are amenable to ESI-MS analysis, including top-down measurements. Covalent post-translational modifications are localized regardless of their position in transmembrane domains. Top-down measurements provide a more detail oriented high-resolution description of post-transcriptional and post-translational diversity for enhanced understanding beyond genomic translation. PMID:21982782

  3. A post-translational balancing act: the good and the bad of SUMOylation in pancreatic islets.

    Science.gov (United States)

    MacDonald, Patrick E

    2018-04-01

    Post-translational modification of proteins contributes to the control of cell function and survival. The balance of these in insulin-producing pancreatic beta cells is important for the maintenance of glucose homeostasis. Protection from the damaging effects of reactive oxygen species is required for beta cell survival, but if this happens at the expense of insulin secretory function then the ability of islets to respond to changing metabolic conditions may be compromised. In this issue of Diabetologia, He et al ( https://doi.org/10.1007/s00125-017-4523-9 ) show that post-translational attachment of small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) to target lysine residues (SUMOylation) strikes an important balance between the protection of beta cells from oxidative stress and the maintenance of insulin secretory function. They show that SUMOylation is required to stabilise nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (NRF2) and increase antioxidant gene expression. Decreasing SUMOylation in beta cells impairs their antioxidant capacity, causes cell death, hyperglycaemia, and increased sensitivity to streptozotocin-induced diabetes, while increasing SUMOylation is protective. However, this protection from overt diabetes occurs in concert with glucose intolerance due to impaired beta cell function. A possible role for SUMOylation as a key factor balancing beta cell protection vs beta cell responsiveness to metabolic cues is discussed in this Commentary.

  4. Prediction of post-translational glycosylation and phosphorylation of proteins from the amino acid sequence

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Blom, Nikolaj; Sicheritz-Pontén, Thomas; Gupta, Ramneek

    2004-01-01

    Post-translational modifications (PTMs) occur on almost all proteins analyzed to date. The function of a modified protein is often strongly affected by these modifications and therefore increased knowledge about the potential PTMs of a target protein may increase our understanding of the molecular...... steps by integrating computational approaches into the validation procedures. Many advanced methods for the prediction of PTMs exist and many are made publicly available. We describe our experiences with the development of prediction methods for phosphorylation and glycosylation sites...... and the development of PTM-specific databases. In addition, we discuss novel ideas for PTM visualization (exemplified by kinase landscapes) and improvements for prediction specificity (by using ESS-evolutionary stable sites). As an example, we present a new method for kinase-specific prediction of phosphorylation...

  5. Golgi structure formation, function, and post-translational modifications in mammalian cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Shijiao; Wang, Yanzhuang

    2017-01-01

    The Golgi apparatus is a central membrane organelle for trafficking and post-translational modifications of proteins and lipids in cells. In mammalian cells, it is organized in the form of stacks of tightly aligned flattened cisternae, and dozens of stacks are often linked laterally into a ribbon-like structure located in the perinuclear region of the cell. Proper Golgi functionality requires an intact architecture, yet Golgi structure is dynamically regulated during the cell cycle and under disease conditions. In this review, we summarize our current understanding of the relationship between Golgi structure formation, function, and regulation, with focus on how post-translational modifications including phosphorylation and ubiquitination regulate Golgi structure and on how Golgi unstacking affects its functions, in particular, protein trafficking, glycosylation, and sorting in mammalian cells.

  6. ReportSites - A Computational Method to Extract Positional and Physico- Chemical Information from Large-Scale Proteomic Post-Translational Modification Datasets

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Edwards, Alistair; Edwards, Gregory; Larsen, Martin Røssel

    2012-01-01

    -translational modification data sets, wherein patterns of sequence surrounding processed sites may reveal more about the functional and structural requirements of the modification and the biochemical processes that regulate them. Results: We developed Report Sites using a test set of phosphoproteomic data from rat......-chemical environment (local pI and hydrophobicity). These were then also compared to corresponding values extracted from the full database to allow comparison of phosphorylation trends. Conclusions: Report Sites enabled physico-chemical aspects of protein phosphorylation to be deciphered in a test set of eleven...... thousand phospho sites. Basic properties of modified proteins, such as site location in the context of the complete protein, were also documented. This program can be easily adapted to any post-translational modification (or, indeed, to any defined amino acid sequence), or expanded to include more...

  7. Regulation of multispanning membrane protein topology via post-translational annealing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Van Lehn, Reid C; Zhang, Bin; Miller, Thomas F

    2015-09-26

    The canonical mechanism for multispanning membrane protein topogenesis suggests that protein topology is established during cotranslational membrane integration. However, this mechanism is inconsistent with the behavior of EmrE, a dual-topology protein for which the mutation of positively charged loop residues, even close to the C-terminus, leads to dramatic shifts in its topology. We use coarse-grained simulations to investigate the Sec-facilitated membrane integration of EmrE and its mutants on realistic biological timescales. This work reveals a mechanism for regulating membrane-protein topogenesis, in which initially misintegrated configurations of the proteins undergo post-translational annealing to reach fully integrated multispanning topologies. The energetic barriers associated with this post-translational annealing process enforce kinetic pathways that dictate the topology of the fully integrated proteins. The proposed mechanism agrees well with the experimentally observed features of EmrE topogenesis and provides a range of experimentally testable predictions regarding the effect of translocon mutations on membrane protein topogenesis.

  8. Analysis of Histones H3 and H4 Reveals Novel and Conserved Post-Translational Modifications in Sugarcane.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moraes, Izabel; Yuan, Zuo-Fei; Liu, Shichong; Souza, Glaucia Mendes; Garcia, Benjamin A; Casas-Mollano, J Armando

    2015-01-01

    Histones are the main structural components of the nucleosome, hence targets of many regulatory proteins that mediate processes involving changes in chromatin. The functional outcome of many pathways is "written" in the histones in the form of post-translational modifications that determine the final gene expression readout. As a result, modifications, alone or in combination, are important determinants of chromatin states. Histone modifications are accomplished by the addition of different chemical groups such as methyl, acetyl and phosphate. Thus, identifying and characterizing these modifications and the proteins related to them is the initial step to understanding the mechanisms of gene regulation and in the future may even provide tools for breeding programs. Several studies over the past years have contributed to increase our knowledge of epigenetic gene regulation in model organisms like Arabidopsis, yet this field remains relatively unexplored in crops. In this study we identified and initially characterized histones H3 and H4 in the monocot crop sugarcane. We discovered a number of histone genes by searching the sugarcane ESTs database. The proteins encoded correspond to canonical histones, and their variants. We also purified bulk histones and used them to map post-translational modifications in the histones H3 and H4 using mass spectrometry. Several modifications conserved in other plants, and also novel modified residues, were identified. In particular, we report O-acetylation of serine, threonine and tyrosine, a recently identified modification conserved in several eukaryotes. Additionally, the sub-nuclear localization of some well-studied modifications (i.e., H3K4me3, H3K9me2, H3K27me3, H3K9ac, H3T3ph) is described and compared to other plant species. To our knowledge, this is the first report of histones H3 and H4 as well as their post-translational modifications in sugarcane, and will provide a starting point for the study of chromatin regulation in

  9. Post-translational processing targets functionally diverse proteins in Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tacchi, Jessica L; Raymond, Benjamin B A; Haynes, Paul A; Berry, Iain J; Widjaja, Michael; Bogema, Daniel R; Woolley, Lauren K; Jenkins, Cheryl; Minion, F Chris; Padula, Matthew P; Djordjevic, Steven P

    2016-02-01

    Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae is a genome-reduced, cell wall-less, bacterial pathogen with a predicted coding capacity of less than 700 proteins and is one of the smallest self-replicating pathogens. The cell surface of M. hyopneumoniae is extensively modified by processing events that target the P97 and P102 adhesin families. Here, we present analyses of the proteome of M. hyopneumoniae-type strain J using protein-centric approaches (one- and two-dimensional GeLC-MS/MS) that enabled us to focus on global processing events in this species. While these approaches only identified 52% of the predicted proteome (347 proteins), our analyses identified 35 surface-associated proteins with widely divergent functions that were targets of unusual endoproteolytic processing events, including cell adhesins, lipoproteins and proteins with canonical functions in the cytosol that moonlight on the cell surface. Affinity chromatography assays that separately used heparin, fibronectin, actin and host epithelial cell surface proteins as bait recovered cleavage products derived from these processed proteins, suggesting these fragments interact directly with the bait proteins and display previously unrecognized adhesive functions. We hypothesize that protein processing is underestimated as a post-translational modification in genome-reduced bacteria and prokaryotes more broadly, and represents an important mechanism for creating cell surface protein diversity. © 2016 The Authors.

  10. Cysteine S-glycosylation, a new post-translational modification found in glycopeptide bacteriocins

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Stepper, J.; Shastri, S.; Loo, T. S.; Preston, J. C.; Novák, Petr; Man, Petr; Moore, Ch. H.; Havlíček, Vladimír; Patchett, M. L.; Norris, G. E.

    2011-01-01

    Roč. 585, č. 4 (2011), s. 645-650 ISSN 0014-5793 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z50200510 Keywords : Post-translational modification * Glycosylation * Bacteriocin Subject RIV: CE - Biochemistry Impact factor: 3.538, year: 2011

  11. Extracellular and Intracellular Cyclophilin A, Native and Post-Translationally Modified, Show Diverse and Specific Pathological Roles in Diseases.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xue, Chao; Sowden, Mark P; Berk, Bradford C

    2018-05-01

    CypA (cyclophilin A) is a ubiquitous and highly conserved protein with peptidyl prolyl isomerase activity. Because of its highly abundant level in the cytoplasm, most studies have focused on the roles of CypA as an intracellular protein. However, emerging evidence suggests an important role for extracellular CypA in the pathogenesis of several diseases through receptor (CD147 or other)-mediated autocrine and paracrine signaling pathways. In this review, we will discuss the shared and unique pathological roles of extracellular and intracellular CypA in human cardiovascular diseases. In addition, the evolving role of post-translational modifications of CypA in the pathogenesis of disease is discussed. Finally, recent studies with drugs specific for extracellular CypA show its importance in disease pathogenesis in several animal models and make extracellular CypA a new therapeutic target. © 2018 American Heart Association, Inc.

  12. Health and economic burden of post-partum Staphylococcus aureus breast abscess.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Branch-Elliman, Westyn; Lee, Grace M; Golen, Toni H; Gold, Howard S; Baldini, Linda M; Wright, Sharon B

    2013-01-01

    To determine the health and economic burdens of post-partum Staphylococcus aureus breast abscess. We conducted a matched cohort study (N = 216) in a population of pregnant women (N = 32,770) who delivered at our center during the study period from 10/1/03-9/30/10. Data were extracted from hospital databases, or via chart review if unavailable electronically. We compared cases of S. aureus breast abscess to controls matched by delivery date to compare health services utilization and mean attributable medical costs in 2012 United States dollars using Medicare and hospital-based estimates. We also evaluated whether resource utilization and health care costs differed between cases with methicillin-resistant and -susceptible S. aureus isolates. Fifty-four cases of culture-confirmed post-partum S. aureus breast abscess were identified. Breastfeeding cessation (41%), milk fistula (11.1%) and hospital readmission (50%) occurred frequently among case patients. Breast abscess case patients had high rates of health services utilization compared to controls, including high rates of imaging and drainage procedures. The mean attributable cost of post-partum S. aureus breast abscess ranged from $2,340-$4,012, depending on the methods and data sources used. Mean attributable costs were not significantly higher among methicillin-resistant vs. -susceptible S. aureus cases. Post-partum S. aureus breast abscess is associated with worse health and economic outcomes for women and their infants, including high rates of breastfeeding cessation. Future study is needed to determine the optimal treatment and prevention of these infections.

  13. Health and economic burden of post-partum Staphylococcus aureus breast abscess.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Westyn Branch-Elliman

    Full Text Available To determine the health and economic burdens of post-partum Staphylococcus aureus breast abscess.We conducted a matched cohort study (N = 216 in a population of pregnant women (N = 32,770 who delivered at our center during the study period from 10/1/03-9/30/10. Data were extracted from hospital databases, or via chart review if unavailable electronically. We compared cases of S. aureus breast abscess to controls matched by delivery date to compare health services utilization and mean attributable medical costs in 2012 United States dollars using Medicare and hospital-based estimates. We also evaluated whether resource utilization and health care costs differed between cases with methicillin-resistant and -susceptible S. aureus isolates.Fifty-four cases of culture-confirmed post-partum S. aureus breast abscess were identified. Breastfeeding cessation (41%, milk fistula (11.1% and hospital readmission (50% occurred frequently among case patients. Breast abscess case patients had high rates of health services utilization compared to controls, including high rates of imaging and drainage procedures. The mean attributable cost of post-partum S. aureus breast abscess ranged from $2,340-$4,012, depending on the methods and data sources used. Mean attributable costs were not significantly higher among methicillin-resistant vs. -susceptible S. aureus cases.Post-partum S. aureus breast abscess is associated with worse health and economic outcomes for women and their infants, including high rates of breastfeeding cessation. Future study is needed to determine the optimal treatment and prevention of these infections.

  14. Lysine-Directed Post-translational Modifications of Tau Protein in Alzheimer's Disease and Related Tauopathies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christiana Kontaxi

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Tau is a microtubule-associated protein responsible mainly for stabilizing the neuronal microtubule network in the brain. Under normal conditions, tau is highly soluble and adopts an “unfolded” conformation. However, it undergoes conformational changes resulting in a less soluble form with weakened microtubule stabilizing properties. Altered tau forms characteristic pathogenic inclusions in Alzheimer's disease and related tauopathies. Although, tau hyperphosphorylation is widely considered to be the major trigger of tau malfunction, tau undergoes several post-translational modifications at lysine residues including acetylation, methylation, ubiquitylation, SUMOylation, and glycation. We are only beginning to define the site-specific impact of each type of lysine modification on tau biology as well as the possible interplay between them, but, like phosphorylation, these modifications are likely to play critical roles in tau's normal and pathobiology. This review summarizes the latest findings focusing on lysine post-translational modifications that occur at both endogenous tau protein and pathological tau forms in AD and other tauopathies. In addition, it highlights the significance of a site-dependent approach of studying tau post-translational modifications under normal and pathological conditions.

  15. Ultra-sensitive chemiluminescent detection of Staphylococcus aureus based on competitive binding of Staphylococcus protein A-modified magnetic beads to immunoglobulin G

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xiong, Jie; Wang, Wenwen; Zhou, Yali; Kong, Weijun; Wang, Zhenxing; Fu, Zhifeng

    2016-01-01

    Staphylococcus protein A (SPA) is a surface protein only expressed naturally in the cell walls of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and binds specifically to the Fc region of immunoglobulin G (IgG). This fact can be utilized for the detection of S. aureus. Specifically, SPA-modified magnetic beads, compete with S. aureus pathogens for binding to rabbit IgG that previously was labeled with horseradish peroxidase (HRP). The beads were then magnetically separated, and chemiluminescence (CL) was generated by adding the reagents luminol and H_2O_2. Under optimal conditions, the intensity of CL decreases with increasing concentration of S. aureus over a very wide linear range (10 to 1.0 × 10"9 cfu·mL"−"1), with a limit of detection of 6.0 cfu·mL"−"1 at an S/N ratio of 3. The assay (including binding reaction, magnetic separation, washing of beads and detection) is completed within 50 min which is faster than many reported methods. It can well distinguish S. aureus from other Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The magnetic beads have the beneficial effect of eliminating undesired matrix effects and of concentrating the sample. The method was applied to the analysis of urine, apple juice and glucose injection samples spiked with S. aureus, and recoveries ranged from 85 to 107 %. (author)

  16. Comparison at the peptide level with post-translational modification consideration reveals more differences between two unenriched samples.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yin, Jianrui; Shao, Chen; Jia, Lulu; Gao, Youhe

    2014-06-30

    In shotgun strategies, peptide sequences are first identified from tandem mass (MS/MS) spectra, and the existence and abundance of the proteins are then inferred from the peptide information. However, the protein inference step can produce errors and a loss of information. To identify the information that is lost using the traditional approaches, this study compared the proteomic data of two leukemia cell lines (Jurkat and K562) at the peptide level with consideration of post-translational modifications (PTMs). The raw files from the two cell lines were searched against the decoy IPI-human database version 3.68, which contains forward and reverse sequences. Then the observed modification name in the results was matched with the modification classification on the Unimod website by a manual search. Only the peptides with 'post-translational' modifications were compared between the two cell lines. After searching the database with consideration of PTMs, a total of 44046 non-redundant peptides were identified in both the Jurkat and K562 cell lines. Of these peptides, even without specific PTM enrichment, 11.43% of them (with at least two spectra in one cell line) existed in different PTM forms between the two cell lines, and 1.73% of the peptides were modified in both cell lines, but with different modifications or possibly on different sites. Comparing proteomic data at the peptide level with consideration of PTMs can reveal more differences between two unenriched samples. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  17. Translation and equivalence assessment for a Japanese version of the modified Parental Nurturance Scale: a comparative study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Griffiths Peter

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background This paper reports on the modification of the Parental Nurturance Scale (PNS, translation of the modified version (PNSM from English to Japanese, and equivalence assessment between the PNSM and the translated version (PNSM-J. The PNS was modified so as to enable its use in nurturance studies where the prime source of nurturance might vary between respondents. Method It was translated into Japanese through the forward-backward translation procedure. With attempting to enhance representativeness of language in the target populations, translators used were married couples that consisted of a native English speaker and a native Japanese speaker. Multiple translations were produced and used to make a single Japanese version. A panel of reviewers identified problems in conceptual and semantic equivalence between the original and the translated versions. The Japanese version was altered accordingly with reference to alternate Japanese forms from the original English to Japanese translations. The altered translation was again re-translated into English and problematic differences were checked. This forward-backward process was repeated until satisfactory agreement was attained. The PNSM was administered to 222 native English speakers and the PNSM-J to 1320 native Japanese speakers. Results Factor analysis and target rotation revealed a nearly identical factor structure and factor loadings of the items of the PNSM and PNSM-J between the different cultural groups. High Cronbach's alpha coefficient supported the reliability of the test scores on both versions. Conclusion The equivalence between the two scales was supported. It is suggested that the PNSM and PNSM-J are suitable tools for comparative cross-cultural studies.

  18. Importance of post-translational modifications for functionality of a chloroplast-localized carbonic anhydrase (CAH1 in Arabidopsis thaliana.

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    Stefan Burén

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: The Arabidopsis CAH1 alpha-type carbonic anhydrase is one of the few plant proteins known to be targeted to the chloroplast through the secretory pathway. CAH1 is post-translationally modified at several residues by the attachment of N-glycans, resulting in a mature protein harbouring complex-type glycans. The reason of why trafficking through this non-canonical pathway is beneficial for certain chloroplast resident proteins is not yet known. Therefore, to elucidate the significance of glycosylation in trafficking and the effect of glycosylation on the stability and function of the protein, epitope-labelled wild type and mutated versions of CAH1 were expressed in plant cells. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Transient expression of mutant CAH1 with disrupted glycosylation sites showed that the protein harbours four, or in certain cases five, N-glycans. While the wild type protein trafficked through the secretory pathway to the chloroplast, the non-glycosylated protein formed aggregates and associated with the ER chaperone BiP, indicating that glycosylation of CAH1 facilitates folding and ER-export. Using cysteine mutants we also assessed the role of disulphide bridge formation in the folding and stability of CAH1. We found that a disulphide bridge between cysteines at positions 27 and 191 in the mature protein was required for correct folding of the protein. Using a mass spectrometric approach we were able to measure the enzymatic activity of CAH1 protein. Under circumstances where protein N-glycosylation is blocked in vivo, the activity of CAH1 is completely inhibited. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: We show for the first time the importance of post-translational modifications such as N-glycosylation and intramolecular disulphide bridge formation in folding and trafficking of a protein from the secretory pathway to the chloroplast in higher plants. Requirements for these post-translational modifications for a fully functional native

  19. Variable elimination in post-translational modification reaction networks with mass-action kinetics

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Feliu, Elisenda; Wiuf, Carsten

    2013-01-01

    We define a subclass of chemical reaction networks called post-translational modification systems. Important biological examples of such systems include MAPK cascades and two-component systems which are well-studied experimentally as well as theoretically. The steady states of such a system...

  20. Designing and Producing Modified, New-to-Nature Peptides with Antimicrobial Activity by Use of a Combination of Various Lantibiotic Modification Enzymes

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Heel, Auke J.; Mu, Dongdong; Montalban-Lopez, Manuel; Hendriks, Djoke; Kuipers, Oscar P.

    Lanthipeptides are peptides that contain several post-translationally modified amino acid residues and commonly show considerable antimicrobial activity. After translation, the amino acid residues of these peptides are modified by a distinct set of modification enzymes. This process results in

  1. Muc1 based breast cancer vaccines: role of post translational modifications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Begum, M.; Khurshid, R.; Nagra, S.A.

    2008-01-01

    Vaccine development is one of the most promising fields in cancer research. After autologous transplantation, due to low tumour burden, patients are more likely to respond immunologically to a cancer vaccine. MUC1 with its adhesive and anti adhesive functions, immunostimulatory and immunosuppressive activities, is therefore a good candidate for breast cancer vaccine. A structure-based insight into the immunogenicity of natural MUC1 glyco forms, of its sub-domains, motifs and post translational modification like glycosylation and myriostoylation may aid the design of tumour vaccines. Primary sequences of human MUC1 were retrieved from the SWISSPROT data bank. Protein pattern search: The primary sequence of Human MUC1 was searched at PROSITE (a dictionary of protein sites and patterns) database. Our study observes that post-translational modifications play an important role in presenting MUC1 as a candidate for breast cancer vaccine. It is found that the phosphorylation and glycosylation of important functional motifs of MUC1 may take part in the production of cytokines that may provide immunization. (author)

  2. Post-Translational Modifications of RelB NF-κB Subunit and Associated Functions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Véronique Baud

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available The family of NF-κB transcription factors plays a key role in diverse biological processes, such as inflammatory and immune responses, cell survival and tumor development. Beyond the classical NF-κB activation pathway, a second NF-κB pathway has more recently been uncovered, the so-called alternative NF-κB activation pathway. It has been shown that this pathway mainly controls the activity of RelB, a member of the NF-κB family. Post-translational modifications, such as phosphorylation, acetylation, methylation, ubiquitination and SUMOylation, have recently emerged as a strategy for the fine-tuned regulation of NF-κB. Our review discusses recent progress in the understanding of RelB regulation by post-translational modifications and the associated functions in normal and pathological conditions.

  3. Label-free, electrochemical detection of methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus DNA with reduced graphene oxide-modified electrodes

    KAUST Repository

    Wang, Zhijuan

    2011-05-01

    Reduced graphene oxide (rGO)-modified glassy carbon electrode is used to detect the methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) DNA by using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Our experiments confirm that ssDNA, before and after hybridization with target DNA, are successfully anchored on the rGO surface. After the probe DNA, pre-adsorbed on rGO electrode, hybridizes with target DNA, the measured impedance increases dramatically. It provides a new method to detect DNA with high sensitivity (10-13M, i.e., 100 fM) and selectivity. © 2011 Elsevier B.V.

  4. THE PROBLEM OF ―CULTURAL UNTRANSLATABILITY‖ FOUND IN THE ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF JOKOWI‘S INSTAGRAM POSTS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bety Mawarni

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available The massive feasibility of social media has been utilised by numerous organisations and public figures, particularly world leaders, as an interactive way to spread information and to engage people from various backgrounds. In response to the language challenges in the global community environment, social media sites are adopting automatic machine translation to stretch the vastness of information reception. This mini research aims to analyse the problems of cultural untranslatability found in the machine-generated translation of the Instagram posts shared by the President of the Republic of Indonesia, Joko Widodo. The first part of this paper explores the major factors of cultural untranslatability resulted from machine-generated translation in 17 Jokowi‘s Instagram posts during May 2017. Deploying Hofstede‘s theory of cultural dimension, the second part of this paper analyses how these factors affect the cross-cultural communication in the framework of global environment. The result of this mini research present cultural translatability problems generated from machine translation and how it affects cross-cultural communication in social media. It is expected that the results of this mini research contribute in the development of machine translation as a device to boost cross-cultural communication in social media.

  5. Comparative Efficacy of Ceftaroline with Linezolid against Staphylococcus Aureus and Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hafeez, A.; Munir, T.; Rehman, S.; Najeeb, S.; Gilani, M.; Latif, M.; Ansari, M.; Saad, N.

    2015-01-01

    Objective:To compare the in vitro antimicrobial efficacy of ceftaroline with linezolid against Staphylococcus aureus and methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Study Design: Quasi-experimental study. Place and Duration of Study: Microbiology Department, Army Medical College, Rawalpindi, from January to December 2013. Methodology: Clinical samples from respiratory tract, blood, pus and various catheter tips routinely received in the Department of Microbiology, Army Medical College, Rawalpindi were innoculated on blood and MacConkey agar. Staphylococcus aureus was identified by colony morphology, Gram reaction, catalase test and coagulase test. Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus detection was done by modified Kirby Bauer disc diffusion method using cefoxitin disc (30g) and the isolates were considered methicillin resistant if the zone of inhibition around cefoxitin disc was /sup 2/ 21 mm. Bacterial suspensions of 56 Staphylococcus aureus isolates and 50 MRSA isolates were prepared, which were standardized equal to 0.5 McFarland's turbidity standard and inoculated on Mueller-Hinton agar plates followed by application of ceftaroline and linezolid disc (Oxoid, UK), according to manufacturer's instructions. The plates were then incubated at 37 Degree C aerobically for 18 - 24 hours. Diameters of inhibition zone were measured and interpretated as per Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) guidelines. Results: Out of 106 isolates all of the 56 Staphylococcus aureus (100%) were sensitive to ceftaroline and linezolid. However, out of 50 methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus, 48 (96%) were sensitive to ceftaroline whereas, 49 (98%) were sensitive to linezolid. Conclusion: Ceftaroline is equally effective as linezolid against Staphylococcus aureus and methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus. (author)

  6. Global turnover of histone post-translational modifications and variants in human cells

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zee Barry M

    2010-12-01

    peptide. Lastly, we observed little difference in the turnover between nearly all modified forms of the H3.1, H3.2 and H3.3 variants, with the notable exception that H3.2K36me2 has a faster turnover than this mark on the other H3 variants. Conclusions Quantitative proteomics provides complementary insight to previous work aimed at quantitatively measuring histone turnover, and our results suggest that turnover rates are dependent upon site-specific post-translational modifications and sequence variants.

  7. Parenthetical Cohesive Explicitness: A Linguistic Approach for a Modified Translation of the Quranic Text

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammad Amin Hawamdeh

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available Motivated by the severe criticism the Hilali and Khan (HK Translation of the Holy Quran has received for its too many parenthetical insertions, this study aimed at linguistically realizing how such added pieces of information could be for necessary cohesive explicitness or worthless redundant interpolation. Methodically, the HK translation of the first 8 verses of Chapter 18 (The Cave, Surah Al Kahf of the Holy Quran was selected to be a subject material. A number of 15 instances of explicitation put in parentheses were encountered; they were found to be based upon 23 cohesive (grammatical/lexical relationships and, hence, to be considered as ones of cohesive explicitness. Eventually, such an analysis could be of use for modifying the available translations of the Holy Quran.

  8. Post-translational modification of ribosomally synthesized peptides by a radical SAM epimerase in Bacillus subtilis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benjdia, Alhosna; Guillot, Alain; Ruffié, Pauline; Leprince, Jérôme; Berteau, Olivier

    2017-07-01

    Ribosomally synthesized peptides are built out of L-amino acids, whereas D-amino acids are generally the hallmark of non-ribosomal synthetic processes. Here we show that the model bacterium Bacillus subtilis is able to produce a novel type of ribosomally synthesized and post-translationally modified peptide that contains D-amino acids, and which we propose to call epipeptides. We demonstrate that a two [4Fe-4S]-cluster radical S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAM) enzyme converts L-amino acids into their D-counterparts by catalysing Cα-hydrogen-atom abstraction and using a critical cysteine residue as the hydrogen-atom donor. Unexpectedly, these D-amino acid residues proved to be essential for the activity of a peptide that induces the expression of LiaRS, a major component of the bacterial cell envelope stress-response system. Present in B. subtilis and in several members of the human microbiome, these epipeptides and radical SAM epimerases broaden the landscape of peptidyl structures accessible to living organisms.

  9. Post-translational processing of synaptophysin in the rat retina is disrupted by diabetes.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Travis S D'Cruz

    Full Text Available Synaptophysin, is an abundant presynaptic protein involved in synaptic vesicle recycling and neurotransmitter release. Previous work shows that its content is significantly reduced in the rat retina by streptozotocin (STZ-diabetes. This study tested the hypothesis that STZ-diabetes alters synaptophysin protein turnover and glycosylation in the rat retina. Whole explant retinas from male Sprague-Dawley rats were used in this study. Rats were made diabetic by a single intraperitoneal STZ injection (65 mg/kg body weight in 10 mM sodium citrate, pH 4.5. mRNA translation was measured using a (35S-methionine labeling assay followed by synaptophysin immunoprecipitation and autoradiography. A pulse-chase study was used to determine the depletion of newly synthesized synaptophysin. Depletion of total synaptophysin was determined after treatment with cycloheximide. Mannose rich N-glycosylated synaptophysin was detected by treating retinal lysates with endoglycosidase H followed by immunoblot analysis. Synaptophysin mRNA translation was significantly increased after 1 month (p<0.001 and 2 months (p<0.05 of STZ-diabetes, compared to age-matched controls. Newly synthesized synaptophysin degradation was significantly accelerated in the retina after 1 and 2 months of diabetes compared to controls (p<0.05. Mannose rich glycosylated synaptophysin was significantly increased after 1 month of STZ-diabetes compared to controls (p<0.05.These data suggest that diabetes increases mRNA translation of synaptophysin in the retina, resulting in an accumulation of mannose rich glycosylated synaptophysin, a transient post-translational state of the protein. This diabetes-induced irregularity in post-translational processing could explain the accelerated degradation of retinal synaptophysin in diabetes.

  10. In vitro growth inhibition of major mastitis pathogens by Staphylococcus chromogenes originating from teat apices of dairy heifers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Vliegher, S; Opsomer, G; Vanrolleghem, A; Devriese, L A; Sampimon, O C; Sol, J; Barkema, H W; Haesebrouck, F; de Kruif, A

    2004-07-14

    Earlier field observations suggest that teat apex colonization by Staphylococcus chromogenes pre-partum in dairy heifers protects udder quarters against elevated somatic cell counts early post-partum. To explain these findings, the in vitro inhibitory capability of S. chromogenes from teat apices of heifers towards some major mastitis pathogens was tested using a modified cross-streaking method. Two out of 10 S. chromogenes isolates, both originating from two different teats from the same heifer, consistently inhibited growth of all Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus dysgalactiae, and Streptococcus uberis strains, but none of the Escherichia coli strains. The present study, therefore, supports the protective effect of teat apex colonization by S. chromogenes by in vitro production of inhibitory substances.

  11. Environment-Mediated Accumulation of Diacyl Lipoproteins over Their Triacyl Counterparts in Staphylococcus aureus

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kurokawa, Kenji; Kim, Min-Su; Ichikawa, Rie; Ryu, Kyoung-Hwa; Dohmae, Naoshi

    2012-01-01

    Bacterial lipoproteins are believed to exist in only one specific lipid-modified structure, such as the diacyl form or the triacyl form, in each bacterium. In the case of Staphylococcus aureus, recent extensive matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization–time of flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry analysis revealed that S. aureus lipoproteins exist in the α-aminoacylated triacyl form. Here, we discovered conditions that induce the accumulation of diacyl lipoproteins that lack α-aminoacylation in S. aureus. The accumulation of diacyl lipoproteins required a combination of conditions, including acidic pH and a post-logarithmic-growth phase. High temperatures and high salt concentrations additively accelerated the accumulation of the diacyl lipoprotein form. Following a post-logarithmic-growth phase where S. aureus MW2 cells were grown at pH 6, SitC lipoprotein was found almost exclusively in its diacyl structure rather than in its triacyl structure. This is the first report showing that the environment mediates lipid-modified structural alterations of bacterial lipoproteins. PMID:22467779

  12. Machine Translation in Post-Contemporary Era

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lin, Grace Hui Chin

    2010-01-01

    This article focusing on translating techniques via personal computer or laptop reports updated artificial intelligence progresses before 2010. Based on interpretations and information for field of MT [Machine Translation] by Yorick Wilks' book, "Machine Translation, Its scope and limits," this paper displays understandable theoretical frameworks…

  13. Identification of nuclear protein targets for six leukemogenic tyrosine kinases governed by post-translational regulation.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrew Pierce

    Full Text Available Mutated tyrosine kinases are associated with a number of different haematological malignancies including myeloproliferative disorders, lymphoma and acute myeloid leukaemia. The potential commonalities in the action of six of these leukemogenic proteins on nuclear proteins were investigated using systematic proteomic analysis. The effects on over 3600 nuclear proteins and 1500 phosphopeptide sites were relatively quantified in seven isogenic cell lines. The effects of the kinases were diverse although some commonalities were found. Comparison of the nuclear proteomic data with transcriptome data and cytoplasmic proteomic data indicated that the major changes are due to post-translational mechanisms rather than changes in mRNA or protein distribution. Analysis of the promoter regions of genes whose protein levels changed in response to the kinases showed the most common binding site found was that for NFκB whilst other sites such as those for the glucocorticoid receptor were also found. Glucocorticoid receptor levels and phosphorylation were decreased by all 6 PTKs. Whilst Glucocorticoid receptor action can potentiate NFκB action those proteins where genes have NFκB binding sites were in often regulated post-translationally. However all 6 PTKs showed evidence of NFkB pathway modulation via activation via altered IkB and NFKB levels. Validation of a common change was also undertaken with PMS2, a DNA mismatch repair protein. PMS2 nuclear levels were decreased in response to the expression of all 6 kinases, with no concomitant change in mRNA level or cytosolic protein level. Response to thioguanine, that requires the mismatch repair pathway, was modulated by all 6 oncogenic kinases. In summary common targets for 6 oncogenic PTKs have been found that are regulated by post-translational mechanisms. They represent potential new avenues for therapies but also demonstrate the post-translational regulation is a key target of leukaemogenic kinases.

  14. Analyzing the evolution of beta-endorphin post-translational processing events: studies on reptiles.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shoureshi, Pezhman; Baron, Andrea; Szynskie, Laura; Dores, Robert M

    2007-01-01

    In many cartilaginous fishes, most ray-finned fishes, lungfishes, and amphibians, the post-translational processing of POMC includes the monobasic cleavage of beta-endorphin to yield an opioid that is eight to ten amino acids in length. The amino acid motif within the beta-endorphin sequence required for a monobasic cleavage event is -E-R-(S/G)-Q-. Mammals and birds lack this motif and as a result beta-endorphin(1-8) is a not an end-product in either group. Since both mammals and birds were derived from ancestors with reptilian origins, an analysis of beta-endorphin sequences from extant groups of reptiles should provide insights into the manner in which beta-endorphin post-translational processing mechanisms have evolved in amniotes. To this end a POMC cDNA was cloned from the pituitary of the turtle, Chrysemys scripta. The beta-endorphin sequence in this species was compared to other reptile beta-endorphin sequences (i.e., Chinese soft shell turtle and gecko) and to known bird and mammal sequences. This analysis indicated that either the loss of the arginine residue at the cleavage site (the two turtle species, chick, and human) or a substitution at the glutamine position in the consensus sequence (gecko and ostrich) would account for the loss of the monobasic cleavage reaction in that species. Since amphibians are capable of performing the beta-endorphin monobasic reaction, it would appear that the amino acid substitutions that eliminated this post-translational process event in reptilian-related tetrapods must have occurred in the ancestral amniotes.

  15. Protein redox chemistry: post-translational cysteine modifications that regulate signal transduction and drug pharmacology

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Revati eWani

    2014-10-01

    Full Text Available The perception of reactive oxygen species (ROS has evolved over the past decade from agents of cellular damage to secondary messengers which modify signaling proteins in physiology and the disease state (e.g. cancer. New protein targets of specific oxidation are rapidly being identified. One emerging class of redox modification occurs to the thiol side chain of cysteine residues which can produce multiple chemically-distinct alterations to the protein (e.g. sulfenic/sulfinic/sulfonic acid, disulfides. These post-translational modifications (PTM are shown to affect the protein structure and function. Because redox-sensitive proteins can traffic between subcellular compartments that have different redox environments, cysteine oxidation enables a spatio-temporal control to signaling. Understanding ramifications of these oxidative modifications to the functions of signaling proteins is crucial for understanding cellular regulation as well as for informed-drug discovery process. The effects of EGFR oxidation of Cys797 on inhibitor pharmacology are presented to illustrate the principle. Taken together, cysteine redox PTM can impact both cell biology and drug pharmacology.

  16. Characterizing the Range of Extracellular Protein Post-Translational Modifications in a Cellulose-Degrading Bacteria Using a Multiple Proteolyic Digestion/Peptide Fragmentation Approach

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dykstra, Andrew B [ORNL; Rodriguez, Jr., Miguel [ORNL; Raman, Babu [Dow Chemical Company, The; Cook, Kelsey [ORNL; Hettich, Robert {Bob} L [ORNL

    2013-01-01

    Post-translational modifications (PTMs) are known to play a significant role in many biological functions. The focus of this study is to characterize the post-translational modifications of the cellulosome protein complex used by the bacterium Clostridium thermocellum to better understand how this protein machine is tuned for enzymatic cellulose solubilization. To enhance comprehensive characterization, the extracellular cellulosome proteins were analyzed using multiple proteolytic digests (trypsin, Lys-C, Glu-C) and multiple fragmentation techniques (collisionally-activated dissociation, electron transfer dissociation, decision tree). As expected, peptide and protein identifications were increased by utilizing alternate proteases and fragmentation methods, in addition to the increase in protein sequence coverage. The complementarity of these experiments also allowed for a global exploration of PTMs associated with the cellulosome based upon a set of defined PTMs that included methylation, oxidation, acetylation, phosphorylation, and signal peptide cleavage. In these experiments, 85 modified peptides corresponding to 28 cellulosome proteins were identified. Many of these modifications were located in active cellulolytic or structural domains of the cellulosome proteins, suggesting a level of possible regulatory control of protein function in various cellulotyic conditions. The use of multiple enzymes and fragmentation technologies allowed for independent verification of PTMs in different experiments, thus leading to increased confidence in PTM identifications.

  17. Targeting post-translational modifications of histones for cancer therapy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hsu, Y-C; Hsieh, Y-H; Liao, C-C; Chong, L-W; Lee, C-Y; Yu, Y-L; Chou, R-H

    2015-10-30

    Post-translational modifications (PTMs) on histones including acetylation, methylation, phosphorylation, citrullination, ubiquitination, ADP ribosylation, and sumoylation, play important roles in different biological events including chromatin dynamics, DNA replication, and transcriptional regulation. Aberrant histones PTMs leads to abnormal gene expression and uncontrolled cell proliferation, followed by development of cancers. Therefore, targeting the enzymes required for specific histone PTMs holds a lot of potential for cancer treatment. In this review article, we retrospect the latest studies in the regulations of acetylation, methylation, and phosphorylation of histones. We also summarize inhibitors/drugs that target these modifications for cancer treatment.

  18. Post-translational modifications of voltage-gated sodium channels in chronic pain syndromes.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cédric James Laedermann

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available In the peripheral sensory nervous system the neuronal expression of voltage-gated sodium channels (Navs is a very important for the transmission of nociceptive information since they give rise to the upstroke of the action potential. Navs are composed of 9 different isoforms with distinct biophysical properties. Studying the mutations associated with the increase or absence of pain sensitivity in humans, as well as other expression studies, have highlighted Nav1.7, Nav1.8 and Nav1.9 as being the most important contributors to the control of nociceptive neuronal electrogenesis. Modulating their expression and/or function can impact the shape of the action potential and consequently modify pain transmission, a process that is observed in persistent pain conditions.Post-translational modification (PTM of Navs is a well-known process that modifies their expression and function. In chronic pain syndromes, the release of inflammatory molecules into the direct environment of dorsal root ganglia (DRG sensory neurons leads to an abnormal activation of enzymes that induce Navs PTM. The addition of small molecules, i.e. peptides, phosphoryl groups, ubiquitin moieties and/or carbohydrates, can modify the function of Navs in two different ways: via direct physical interference with the subunit of Nav gating, or via the control of Nav trafficking. Both mechanisms have a profound impact on neuronal excitability. In this review we will discuss the role of Protein Kinase A, B and C, Mitogen Activated Protein Kinases and Ca++/Calmodulin-dependent Kinase II in peripheral chronic pain syndromes. We will also discuss more recent findings that the ubiquitination of Nav1.7 by Nedd4-2 and the effect of methylglyoxal on Nav1.8 are also implicated in the development of experimental neuropathic pain. We will address the potential roles of other PTMs in chronic pain and highlight the need for further investigation of PTMs of Navs in order to develop new pharmacological

  19. Increasing knowledge of best practices for occupational therapists treating post-stroke unilateral spatial neglect: results of a knowledge-translation intervention study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Petzold, Anita; Korner-Bitensky, Nicol; Salbach, Nancy M; Ahmed, Sara; Menon, Anita; Ogourtsova, Tatiana

    2012-02-01

    The aim of this study was to investigate: (i) the feasibility of delivering a multi-modal knowledge translation intervention specific to the management of acute post-stroke unilateral spatial neglect; and (ii) the impact of the knowledge translation intervention on occupational therapists' knowledge of evidence-based unilateral spatial neglect problem identification, assessment and treatment, and self-efficacy related to evidence-based practice implementation. A 3-period (pre-post) repeated measures design. Acute care occupational therapists treating patients with post-stroke unilateral spatial neglect were recruited from two major Canadian cities. Participants completed two pre-intervention assessments, took part in a day-long interactive multi-modal knowledge translation intervention and a subsequent 8-week follow-up, and completed a post-intervention assessment. Knowledge of evidence-based problem identification, assessment and treatment of unilateral spatial neglect, and self-efficacy to perform evidence-based practice activities were measured using standard scales. The intervention was tested on 20 occupational therapists. Results indicate a significant improvement in knowledge of best practice unilateral spatial neglect management (p knowledge translation intervention is feasible and can significantly improve occupational therapists' knowledge of unilateral spatial neglect best practices and self-efficacy. The findings should help advance best practices specific to the management of post-stroke unilateral spatial neglect as well as informing knowledge translation studies in other areas of practice.

  20. The phosphopantetheinyl transferases: catalysis of a post-translational modification crucial for life

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Beld, Joris; Sonnenschein, Eva; Vickery, Christopher R.

    2013-01-01

    Covering: up to 2013 Although holo-acyl carrier protein synthase, AcpS, a phosphopantetheinyl transferase (PPTase), was characterized in the 1960s, it was not until the publication of the landmark paper by Lambalot et al. in 1996 that PPTases garnered wide-spread attention being classified...... knowledge on this class of enzymes that post-translationally install a 4′-phosphopantetheine arm on various carrier proteins....

  1. Rho GTPases, their post-translational modifications, disease-associated mutations and pharmacological inhibitors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Olson, Michael F

    2018-05-04

    The 20 members of the Rho GTPase family are key regulators of a wide-variety of biological activities. In response to activation, they signal via downstream effector proteins to induce dynamic alterations in the organization of the actomyosin cytoskeleton. In this review, post-translational modifications, mechanisms of dysregulation identified in human pathological conditions, and the ways that Rho GTPases might be targeted for chemotherapy will be discussed.

  2. Translation of Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2 upon Liver- and Lung-Targeted Delivery of Optimized Chemically Modified mRNA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eva Schrom

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Changes in lifestyle and environmental conditions give rise to an increasing prevalence of liver and lung fibrosis, and both have a poor prognosis. Promising results have been reported for recombinant angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2 protein administration in experimental liver and lung fibrosis. However, the full potential of ACE2 may be achieved by localized translation of a membrane-anchored form. For this purpose, we advanced the latest RNA technology for liver- and lung-targeted ACE2 translation. We demonstrated in vitro that transfection with ACE2 chemically modified messenger RNA (cmRNA leads to robust translation of fully matured, membrane-anchored ACE2 protein. In a second step, we designed eight modified ACE2 cmRNA sequences and identified a lead sequence for in vivo application. Finally, formulation of this ACE2 cmRNA in tailor-made lipidoid nanoparticles and in lipid nanoparticles led to liver- and lung-targeted translation of significant amounts of ACE2 protein, respectively. In summary, we provide evidence that RNA transcript therapy (RTT is a promising approach for ACE2-based treatment of liver and lung fibrosis to be tested in fibrotic disease models.

  3. Molecular dynamics simulation of phosphorylated KID post-translational modification.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hai-Feng Chen

    2009-08-01

    Full Text Available Kinase-inducible domain (KID as transcriptional activator can stimulate target gene expression in signal transduction by associating with KID interacting domain (KIX. NMR spectra suggest that apo-KID is an unstructured protein. After post-translational modification by phosphorylation, KID undergoes a transition from disordered to well folded protein upon binding to KIX. However, the mechanism of folding coupled to binding is poorly understood.To get an insight into the mechanism, we have performed ten trajectories of explicit-solvent molecular dynamics (MD for both bound and apo phosphorylated KID (pKID. Ten MD simulations are sufficient to capture the average properties in the protein folding and unfolding.Room-temperature MD simulations suggest that pKID becomes more rigid and stable upon the KIX-binding. Kinetic analysis of high-temperature MD simulations shows that bound pKID and apo-pKID unfold via a three-state and a two-state process, respectively. Both kinetics and free energy landscape analyses indicate that bound pKID folds in the order of KIX access, initiation of pKID tertiary folding, folding of helix alpha(B, folding of helix alpha(A, completion of pKID tertiary folding, and finalization of pKID-KIX binding. Our data show that the folding pathways of apo-pKID are different from the bound state: the foldings of helices alpha(A and alpha(B are swapped. Here we also show that Asn139, Asp140 and Leu141 with large Phi-values are key residues in the folding of bound pKID. Our results are in good agreement with NMR experimental observations and provide significant insight into the general mechanisms of binding induced protein folding and other conformational adjustment in post-translational modification.

  4. Quantitative proteomic analysis of post-translational modifications of human histones

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Beck, Hans Christian; Nielsen, Eva C; Matthiesen, Rune

    2006-01-01

    , and H4 in a site-specific and dose-dependent manner. This unbiased analysis revealed that a relative increase in acetylated peptide from the histone variants H2A, H2B, and H4 was accompanied by a relative decrease of dimethylated Lys(57) from histone H2B. The dose-response results obtained...... by quantitative proteomics of histones from HDACi-treated cells were consistent with Western blot analysis of histone acetylation, cytotoxicity, and dose-dependent expression profiles of p21 and cyclin A2. This demonstrates that mass spectrometry-based quantitative proteomic analysis of post-translational...

  5. (R)-β-lysine-modified elongation factor P functions in translation elongation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bullwinkle, Tammy J; Zou, S Betty; Rajkovic, Andrei

    2013-01-01

    Post-translational modification of bacterial elongation factor P (EF-P) with (R)-β-lysine at a conserved lysine residue activates the protein in vivo and increases puromycin reactivity of the ribosome in vitro. The additional hydroxylation of EF-P at the same lysine residue by the YfcM protein has......-(β)-lysyl-EF-P showed 30% increased puromycin reactivity but no differences in dipeptide synthesis rates when compared with the β-lysylated form. Unlike disruption of the other genes required for EF-P modification, deletion of yfcM had no phenotypic consequences in Salmonella. Taken together, our findings indicate...

  6. Parametrized post-Friedmann framework for modified gravity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hu, Wayne; Sawicki, Ignacy

    2007-01-01

    We develop a parametrized post-Friedmann (PPF) framework which describes three regimes of modified gravity models that accelerate the expansion without dark energy. On large scales, the evolution of scalar metric and density perturbations must be compatible with the expansion history defined by distance measures. On intermediate scales in the linear regime, they form a scalar-tensor theory with a modified Poisson equation. On small scales in dark matter halos such as our own galaxy, modifications must be suppressed in order to satisfy stringent local tests of general relativity. We describe these regimes with three free functions and two parameters: the relationship between the two metric fluctuations, the large and intermediate scale relationships to density fluctuations, and the two scales of the transitions between the regimes. We also clarify the formal equivalence of modified gravity and generalized dark energy. The PPF description of linear fluctuation in f(R) modified action and the Dvali-Gabadadze-Porrati braneworld models show excellent agreement with explicit calculations. Lacking cosmological simulations of these models, our nonlinear halo-model description remains an ansatz but one that enables well-motivated consistency tests of general relativity. The required suppression of modifications within dark matter halos suggests that the linear and weakly nonlinear regimes are better suited for making a complementary test of general relativity than the deeply nonlinear regime

  7. Modelling severe Staphylococcus aureus sepsis in conscious pigs: are implications for animal welfare justified?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Olsen, Helle G; Kjelgaard-Hansen, Mads; Tveden-Nyborg, Pernille

    2016-01-01

    A porcine model of haematogenous Staphylococcus aureus sepsis has previously been established in our research group. In these studies, pigs developed severe sepsis including liver dysfunction during a 48 h study period. As pigs were awake during the study, animal welfare was challenged by the sev......A porcine model of haematogenous Staphylococcus aureus sepsis has previously been established in our research group. In these studies, pigs developed severe sepsis including liver dysfunction during a 48 h study period. As pigs were awake during the study, animal welfare was challenged....... Prior to euthanasia, a galactose elimination capacity test was performed to assess liver function. Pigs were euthanised 48 h post inoculation for necropsy and histopathological evaluation. While infusion times of 6.66 min, and higher, did not induce liver dysfunction (n = 3), the infusion time of 3......, according to humane endpoints. A usable balance between scientific purpose and animal welfare could not be achieved, and we therefore find it hard to justify further use of this conscious porcine sepsis model. In order to make a model of translational relevance for human sepsis, we suggest that future model...

  8. Post-irradiation hardness of resin-modified glass ionomer cements and a polyacid-modified composite resin

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yap, A.U.J.

    1997-01-01

    This study examined the post-irradiation hardness of resin-modified glass ionomer cements and a polyacid-modified composite resin using a digital microhardness tester. Change in hardness of these materials over a period of 6 months was compared to that of conventional glass ionomer cements and a composite resin. With the exception of the composite resin, all materials showed a significant increase in hardness over 24 h after their initial set. Dual-cure resin-modified glass ionomer cements showed decreased hardness with increased storage time in saline at 37 o C. Results suggest that the addition of resins to glass ionomer cements does not improve initial hardness and does not negate the acid-base reaction of conventional cements. Resin addition may, however, lead to increased water sorption and decreased hardness. (author)

  9. Modifying the 5'-Cap for Click Reactions of Eukaryotic mRNA and To Tune Translation Efficiency in Living Cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Holstein, Josephin M; Anhäuser, Lea; Rentmeister, Andrea

    2016-08-26

    The 5'-cap is a hallmark of eukaryotic mRNAs and plays fundamental roles in RNA metabolism, ranging from quality control to export and translation. Modifying the 5'-cap may thus enable modulation of the underlying processes and investigation or tuning of several biological functions. A straightforward approach is presented for the efficient production of a range of N7-modified caps based on the highly promiscuous methyltransferase Ecm1. We show that these, as well as N(2) -modified 5'-caps, can be used to tune translation of the respective mRNAs both in vitro and in cells. Appropriate modifications allow subsequent bioorthogonal chemistry, as demonstrated by intracellular live-cell labeling of a target mRNA. The efficient and versatile N7 manipulation of the mRNA cap makes mRNAs amenable to both modulation of their biological function and intracellular labeling, and represents a valuable addition to the chemical biology toolbox. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  10. Broadening the targeting range of Staphylococcus aureus CRISPR-Cas9 by modifying PAM recognition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kleinstiver, Benjamin P; Prew, Michelle S; Tsai, Shengdar Q; Nguyen, Nhu T; Topkar, Ved V; Zheng, Zongli; Joung, J Keith

    2015-12-01

    CRISPR-Cas9 nucleases target specific DNA sequences using a guide RNA but also require recognition of a protospacer adjacent motif (PAM) by the Cas9 protein. Although longer PAMs can potentially improve the specificity of genome editing, they limit the range of sequences that Cas9 orthologs can target. One potential strategy to relieve this restriction is to relax the PAM recognition specificity of Cas9. Here we used molecular evolution to modify the NNGRRT PAM of Staphylococcus aureus Cas9 (SaCas9). One variant we identified, referred to as KKH SaCas9, showed robust genome editing activities at endogenous human target sites with NNNRRT PAMs, thereby increasing SaCas9 targeting range by two- to fourfold. Using GUIDE-seq, we show that wild-type and KKH SaCas9 induce comparable numbers of off-target effects in human cells. Our strategy for evolving PAM specificity does not require structural information and therefore should be applicable to a wide range of Cas9 orthologs.

  11. Post-translational Control of Intracellular Pathogen Sensing Pathways.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chiang, Cindy; Gack, Michaela U

    2017-01-01

    Mammalian cells recognize virus-derived nucleic acids using a defined set of intracellular sensors including the DNA sensors cyclic GMP-AMP (cGAMP) synthase (cGAS) and interferon gamma (IFNγ)-inducible protein 16 (IFI16) as well as viral RNA receptors of the retinoic acid-inducible gene I (RIG-I)-like receptor (RLR) family. Following innate immune recognition, these sensors launch an immune response that is characterized by the transcriptional upregulation of many antiviral molecules, including proinflammatory cytokines, chemokines, and IFN-stimulated genes. Recent studies have demonstrated that the signal transduction initiated by these sensors is sophisticatedly regulated by post-translational modifications (PTMs) resulting in a robust yet 'tunable' cytokine response to maintain immune homeostasis. Here we summarize recent advances in our understanding of how PTMs and regulatory enzymes control the signaling activity of RLRs, cGAS, and IFI16 as well as their proximal adaptor proteins. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. In Vitro Antibacterial and Antibiotic Resistance Modifying Effect of Bioactive Plant Extracts on Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Romana Chovanová

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available The crude extracts of plants from Asteraceae and Lamiaceae family and essential oils from Salvia officinalis and Salvia sclarea were studied for their antibacterial as well as antibiotic resistance modifying activity. Using disc diffusion and broth microdilution assays we determined higher antibacterial effect of three Salvia spp. and by evaluating the leakage of 260 nm absorbing material we detected effect of extracts and, namely, of essential oils on the disruption of cytoplasmic membrane. The evaluation of in vitro interactions between plant extracts and oxacillin described in terms of fractional inhibitory concentration (FIC indices revealed synergistic or additive effects of plant extracts and clearly synergistic effects of essential oil from Salvia officinalis with oxacillin in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis.

  13. Prediction of human protein function from post-translational modifications and localization features

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jensen, Lars Juhl; Gupta, Ramneek; Blom, Nikolaj

    2002-01-01

    a number of functional attributes that are more directly related to the linear sequence of amino acids, and hence easier to predict, than protein structure. These attributes include features associated with post-translational modifications and protein sorting, but also much simpler aspects......We have developed an entirely sequence-based method that identifies and integrates relevant features that can be used to assign proteins of unknown function to functional classes, and enzyme categories for enzymes. We show that strategies for the elucidation of protein function may benefit from...

  14. Role of post-translational modifications at the β-subunit ectodomain in complex association with a promiscuous plant P4-ATPase

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Costa, Sara; Marek, Magdalena; Axelsen, Kristian Buhl

    2016-01-01

    and can interact with several isoforms. In the present study, we used a site-directed mutagenesis approach to assess the role of post-translational modifications at the plant ALIS5 β-subunit ectodomain in the functionality of the promiscuous plant P4-ATPase ALA2. We identified two N-glycosylated residues......) compromises complex association, but the mutant β-subunits still promote complex trafficking and activity to some extent. In contrast, disruption of a conserved disulfide bond between Cys(158) and Cys(172) has no effect on the P4-ATPase complex. Our results demonstrate that post-translational modifications...

  15. Genomics of Staphylococcus

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lindsay, Jodi A.

    The staphylococci are Gram-positive cocci that divide to form clusters that look like grapes. By 16S ribosomal sequencing, they are most closely related to the Gram-positive, low G+C content Bacillus-Lactobacillus-Staphylococcus genera (Woese, 1987). There are over 30 species of staphylococci identified, and they are typically found on the skin and mucous membranes of mammals. About a dozen species are frequently carried on humans, including Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Staphylococcus haemolyticus, Staphylococcus capitis, Staphylococcus hominis, Staphylococcus cohnii, Staphylococcus lugdunensis, Staphylococcus schleiferi, Staphylococcus saprophyticus, Staphylococcus simulans, Staphylococcus warneri and Staphylococcus xylosus.

  16. Electrospray mass spectrometry characterization of post-translational modifications of barley alpha-amylase 1 produced in yeast

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Søgaard, M; Andersen, Jens S.; Roepstorff, P

    1993-01-01

    We have used electrospray mass spectrometry (ESMS) in combination with protein chemistry and genetics to delineate post-translational modifications in yeast of barley alpha-amylase 1 (AMY1), a 45 kD enzyme crucial for production of malt, an important starting material in the manufacture of beer...

  17. Post-translational control of nitrate reductase activity responding to light and photosynthesis evolved already in the early vascular plants.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nemie-Feyissa, Dugassa; Królicka, Adriana; Førland, Nina; Hansen, Margarita; Heidari, Behzad; Lillo, Cathrine

    2013-05-01

    Regulation of nitrate reductase (NR) by reversible phosphorylation at a conserved motif is well established in higher plants, and enables regulation of NR in response to rapid fluctuations in light intensity. This regulation is not conserved in algae NR, and we wished to test the evolutionary origin of the regulatory mechanism by physiological examination of ancient land plants. Especially a member of the lycophytes is of interest since their NR is candidate for regulation by reversible phosphorylation based on sequence analysis. We compared Selaginella kraussiana, a member of the lycophytes and earliest vascular plants, with the angiosperm Arabidopsis thaliana, and also tested the moss Physcomitrella patens. Interestingly, optimization of assay conditions revealed that S. kraussiana NR used NADH as an electron donor like A. thaliana, whereas P. patens NR activity depended on NADPH. Examination of light/darkness effects showed that S. kraussiana NR was rapidly regulated similar to A. thaliana NR when a differential (Mg(2+) contra EDTA) assay was used to reveal activity state of NR. This implies that already existing NR enzyme was post-translationally activated by light in both species. Light had a positive effect also on de novo synthesis of NR in S. kraussiana, which could be shown after the plants had been exposed to a prolonged dark period (7 days). Daily variations in NR activity were mainly caused by post-translational modifications. As for angiosperms, the post-translational light activation of NR in S. kraussiana was inhibited by 3-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-1*1-dimethylurea (DCMU), an inhibitor of photosynthesis and stomata opening. Evolutionary, a post-translational control mechanism for NR have occurred before or in parallel with development of vascular tissue in land plants, and appears to be part of a complex mechanisms for coordination of CO2 and nitrogen metabolism in these plants. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

  18. Modifying Post-Operative Medical Care after EBV Implant May Reduce Pneumothorax Incidence.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dominik Herzog

    Full Text Available Endoscopic lung volume reduction (ELVR with valves has been shown to improve COPD patients with severe emphysema. However, a major complication is pneumothoraces, occurring typically soon after valve implantation, with severe consequences if not managed promptly. Based on the knowledge that strain activity is related to a higher risk of pneumothoraces, we asked whether modifying post-operative medical care with the inclusion of strict short-term limitation of strain activity is associated with a lower incidence of pneumothorax.Seventy-two (72 emphysematous patients without collateral ventilation were treated with bronchial valves and included in the study. Thirty-two (32 patients received standard post-implantation medical management (Standard Medical Care (SMC, and 40 patients received a modified medical care that included an additional bed rest for 48 hours and cough suppression, as needed (Modified Medical Care (MMC.The baseline characteristics were similar for the two groups, except there were more males in the SMC cohort. Overall, ten pneumothoraces occurred up to four days after ELVR, eight pneumothoraces in the SMC, and only two in the MMC cohorts (p=0.02. Complicated pneumothoraces and pneumothoraces after upper lobe treatment were significantly lower in MMC (p=0.02. Major clinical outcomes showed no significant differences between the two cohorts.In conclusion, modifying post-operative medical care to include bed rest for 48 hours after ELVR and cough suppression, if needed, might reduce the incidence of pneumothoraces. Prospective randomized studies with larger numbers of well-matched patients are needed to confirm the data.

  19. Managing the complexity of communication: regulation of gap junctions by post-translational modification

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Axelsen, Lene Nygaard; Callø, Kirstine; von Holstein-Rathlou, Niels-Henrik

    2013-01-01

    Gap junctions are comprised of connexins that form cell-to-cell channels which couple neighboring cells to accommodate the exchange of information. The need for communication does, however, change over time and therefore must be tightly controlled. Although the regulation of connexin protein...... probability, single channel conductance or selectivity. The most extensively investigated post translational modifications are phosphorylations, which have been documented in all mammalian connexins. Besides phosphorylations, some connexins are known to be ubiquitinated, SUMOylated, nitrosylated, hydroxylated...

  20. TRANSLATION PROCESS AND THE USE OF COMPUTER A REPORT ON PROBLEM-SOLVING BEHAVIOUR DURING TRANSLATING

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Engliana Engliana

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available Emphasising on translation process including pre- and post-editing task using a text taken randomly from news on the Internet, this paper attempts to illustrate the behaviour patterns of some students currently studying English language at the university level in Jakarta. The students received texts to be translated using the computer equipped with screen recording software aimed to record all related activities during the translation process, including the pre- and post-editing. The method involves observing the participants‘ behaviour during translating focusing on the actions performed before and after using translation tool(s. The purposes of this investigation are to determine if the students: 1 use any software and the Internet to help them; 2 use the information in the translation process; 3 apply the translation theories. The results indicates that no pre-editing task was performed prior to translation

  1. Translation, adaptation and validation of the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities osteoarthritis index (WOMAC) for an Arab population: the Sfax modified WOMAC.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guermazi, Mohammad; Poiraudeau, Serge; Yahia, Monem; Mezganni, Monia; Fermanian, Jacques; Habib Elleuch, M; Revel, Michel

    2004-06-01

    To translate into Arabic and validate the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities (WOMAC) index. Arabic translation was obtained with use of the forward and backward translation method. Adaptations were made after a pilot study. Patients with symptomatic knee OA fulfilling the revised criteria of the American College of Rheumatology were included. Impairment outcome measures (pain as measured on a visual analog scale, the maximum distance walked, Kellgren's radiological score), Lequesne index score and Beck depression scale score were recorded. Each item was analyzed. Test-retest reliability was assessed with use of the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) and the Bland and Altman method. Construct validity was investigated with use of Spearman's rank correlation coefficient, and a factor analysis was performed. One hundred and three patients were included in the study. Eight questions of the WOMAC physical function subscale (PF) had insufficient psychometric properties and were excluded. Although test-retest reliability of the questionnaire was good (0.84, 0.84, and 0.92 for pain, stiffness, and modified PF subscales respectively), construct validity could not be demonstrated. Factor analysis of the modified form of the WOMAC extracted four factors, which differed from the a priori triple stratification. However, factor analysis of the modified PF subscales extracted two factors, which accounted for 68.4% of the total variance and could be clinically characterized (disability during activities requiring knee flexion within the first 90 degrees and activities requiring knee flexion over more than 90 degrees ). We translated and adapted the WOMAC index into Arabic to suit Tunisian people. The translated questionnaire is reliable but not valid in its original form. We propose the use of a modified version of PF subscale of the WOMAC, although the psychometric properties of this instrument must be examined in a larger population.

  2. English-to-Japanese Translation vs. Dictation vs. Post-editing

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Carl, Michael; Aizawa, Akiko; Yamada, Masaru

    2016-01-01

    of text production. This paper introduces and evaluates a corpus of more than 55 hours of English-to-Japanese user activity data that were collected within the ENJA15 project, in which translators were observed while writing and speaking translations (translation dictation) and during machine translation...

  3. Tyrosine Sulfation as a Protein Post-Translational Modification

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yuh-Shyong Yang

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Integration of inorganic sulfate into biological molecules plays an important role in biological systems and is directly involved in the instigation of diseases. Protein tyrosine sulfation (PTS is a common post-translational modification that was first reported in the literature fifty years ago. However, the significance of PTS under physiological conditions and its link to diseases have just begun to be appreciated in recent years. PTS is catalyzed by tyrosylprotein sulfotransferase (TPST through transfer of an activated sulfate from 3'-phosphoadenosine-5'-phosphosulfate to tyrosine in a variety of proteins and peptides. Currently, only a small fraction of sulfated proteins is known and the understanding of the biological sulfation mechanisms is still in progress. In this review, we give an introductory and selective brief review of PTS and then summarize the basic biochemical information including the activity and the preparation of TPST, methods for the determination of PTS, and kinetics and reaction mechanism of TPST. This information is fundamental for the further exploration of the function of PTS that induces protein-protein interactions and the subsequent biochemical and physiological reactions.

  4. A sensitive mass spectrometric method for hypothesis-driven detection of peptide post-translational modifications: multiple reaction monitoring-initiated detection and sequencing (MIDAS).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Unwin, Richard D; Griffiths, John R; Whetton, Anthony D

    2009-01-01

    The application of a targeted mass spectrometric workflow to the sensitive identification of post-translational modifications is described. This protocol employs multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) to search for all putative peptides specifically modified in a target protein. Positive MRMs trigger an MS/MS experiment to confirm the nature and site of the modification. This approach, termed MIDAS (MRM-initiated detection and sequencing), is more sensitive than approaches using neutral loss scanning or precursor ion scanning methodologies, due to a more efficient use of duty cycle along with a decreased background signal associated with MRM. We describe the use of MIDAS for the identification of phosphorylation, with a typical experiment taking just a couple of hours from obtaining a peptide sample. With minor modifications, the MIDAS method can be applied to other protein modifications or unmodified peptides can be used as a MIDAS target.

  5. Automatic Evaluation of Machine Translation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Martinez, Mercedes Garcia; Koglin, Arlene; Mesa-Lao, Bartolomé

    2015-01-01

    The availability of systems capable of producing fairly accurate translations has increased the popularity of machine translation (MT). The translation industry is steadily incorporating MT in their workflows engaging the human translator to post-edit the raw MT output in order to comply with a s...

  6. Profiling Changes in Histone Post-translational Modifications by Top-Down Mass Spectrometry

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhou, Mowei; Wu, Si; Stenoien, David L.; Zhang, Zhaorui; Connolly, Lanelle; Freitag, Michael; Pasa-Tolic, Ljiljana

    2016-11-11

    Top-down mass spectrometry is a valuable tool for charactering post-translational modifications on histones for understanding of gene control and expression. In this protocol, we describe a top-down workflow using liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry for fast global profiling of changes in histone proteoforms between a wild-type and a mutant of a fungal species. The proteoforms exhibiting different abundances can be subjected to further targeted studies by other mass spectrometric or biochemical assays. This method can be generally adapted for preliminary screening for changes in histone modifications between samples such as wild-type vs. mutant, and control vs. disease.

  7. Designing a post-genomics knowledge ecosystem to translate pharmacogenomics into public health action.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dove, Edward S; Faraj, Samer A; Kolker, Eugene; Ozdemir, Vural

    2012-01-01

    Translation of pharmacogenomics to public health action is at the epicenter of the life sciences agenda. Post-genomics knowledge is simultaneously co-produced at multiple scales and locales by scientists, crowd-sourcing and biological citizens. The latter are entrepreneurial citizens who are autonomous, self-governing and increasingly conceptualizing themselves in biological terms, ostensibly taking responsibility for their own health, and engaging in patient advocacy and health activism. By studying these heterogeneous 'scientific cultures', we can locate innovative parameters of collective action to move pharmacogenomics to practice (personalized therapeutics). To this end, we reconceptualize knowledge-based innovation as a complex ecosystem comprising 'actors' and 'narrators'. For robust knowledge translation, we require a nested post-genomics technology governance system composed of first-order narrators (for example, social scientists, philosophers, bioethicists) situated at arm's length from innovation actors (for example, pharmacogenomics scientists). Yet, second-order narrators (for example, an independent and possibly crowd-funded think-tank of citizen scholars, marginalized groups and knowledge end-users) are crucial to prevent first-order narrators from gaining excessive power that can be misused in the course of steering innovations. To operate such 'self-calibrating' and nested innovation ecosystems, we introduce the concept of 'wiki-governance' to enable mutual and iterative learning among innovation actors and first- and second-order narrators. '[A] scientific expert is someone who knows more and more about less and less, until finally knowing (almost) everything about (almost) nothing.' [1] 'Ubuntu: I am because you are.' [2].

  8. Role of post-translational modifications on structure, function and pharmacology of class C G protein-coupled receptors

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nørskov-Lauritsen, Lenea; Bräuner-Osborne, Hans

    2015-01-01

    taste receptors (T1R1-3), one calcium-sensing (CaS) receptor, one GPCR, class C, group 6, subtype A (GPRC6) receptor, and seven orphan receptors. G protein-coupled receptors undergo a number of post-translational modifications, which regulate their structure, function and/or pharmacology. Here, we...

  9. Computational and statistical methods for high-throughput analysis of post-translational modifications of proteins

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schwämmle, Veit; Braga, Thiago Verano; Roepstorff, Peter

    2015-01-01

    The investigation of post-translational modifications (PTMs) represents one of the main research focuses for the study of protein function and cell signaling. Mass spectrometry instrumentation with increasing sensitivity improved protocols for PTM enrichment and recently established pipelines...... for high-throughput experiments allow large-scale identification and quantification of several PTM types. This review addresses the concurrently emerging challenges for the computational analysis of the resulting data and presents PTM-centered approaches for spectra identification, statistical analysis...

  10. Large scale analysis of co-existing post-translational modifications in histone tails reveals global fine structure of cross-talk

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schwämmle, Veit; Aspalter, Claudia-Maria; Sidoli, Simone

    2014-01-01

    Mass spectrometry (MS) is a powerful analytical method for the identification and quantification of co-existing post-translational modifications in histone proteins. One of the most important challenges in current chromatin biology is to characterize the relationships between co-existing histone...... sample-specific patterns for the co-frequency of histone post-translational modifications. We implemented a new method to identify positive and negative interplay between pairs of methylation and acetylation marks in proteins. Many of the detected features were conserved between different cell types...... sites but negative cross-talk for distant ones, and for discrete methylation states at Lys-9, Lys-27, and Lys-36 of histone H3, suggesting a more differentiated functional role of methylation beyond the general expectation of enhanced activity at higher methylation states....

  11. Modification-specific proteomics: strategies for characterization of post-translational modifications using enrichment techniques

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zhao, Yingming; Jensen, Ole N

    2009-01-01

    More than 300 different types of protein post-translational modifications (PTMs) have been described, many of which are known to have pivotal roles in cellular physiology and disease. Nevertheless, only a handful of PTMs have been extensively investigated at the proteome level. Knowledge of protein...... substrates and their PTM sites is key to dissection of PTM-mediated cellular processes. The past several years have seen a tremendous progress in developing MS-based proteomics technologies for global PTM analysis, including numerous studies of yeast and other microbes. Modification-specific enrichment...

  12. Why Translation Is Difficult

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Carl, Michael; Schaeffer, Moritz Jonas

    2017-01-01

    The paper develops a definition of translation literality that is based on the syntactic and semantic similarity of the source and the target texts. We provide theoretical and empirical evidence that absolute literal translations are easy to produce. Based on a multilingual corpus of alternative...... translations we investigate the effects of cross-lingual syntactic and semantic distance on translation production times and find that non-literality makes from-scratch translation and post-editing difficult. We show that statistical machine translation systems encounter even more difficulties with non-literality....

  13. Evolutionary constraint and disease associations of post-translational modification sites in human genomes.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jüri Reimand

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Interpreting the impact of human genome variation on phenotype is challenging. The functional effect of protein-coding variants is often predicted using sequence conservation and population frequency data, however other factors are likely relevant. We hypothesized that variants in protein post-translational modification (PTM sites contribute to phenotype variation and disease. We analyzed fraction of rare variants and non-synonymous to synonymous variant ratio (Ka/Ks in 7,500 human genomes and found a significant negative selection signal in PTM regions independent of six factors, including conservation, codon usage, and GC-content, that is widely distributed across tissue-specific genes and function classes. PTM regions are also enriched in known disease mutations, suggesting that PTM variation is more likely deleterious. PTM constraint also affects flanking sequence around modified residues and increases around clustered sites, indicating presence of functionally important short linear motifs. Using target site motifs of 124 kinases, we predict that at least ∼180,000 motif-breaker amino acid residues that disrupt PTM sites when substituted, and highlight kinase motifs that show specific negative selection and enrichment of disease mutations. We provide this dataset with corresponding hypothesized mechanisms as a community resource. As an example of our integrative approach, we propose that PTPN11 variants in Noonan syndrome aberrantly activate the protein by disrupting an uncharacterized cluster of phosphorylation sites. Further, as PTMs are molecular switches that are modulated by drugs, we study mutated binding sites of PTM enzymes in disease genes and define a drug-disease network containing 413 novel predicted disease-gene links.

  14. Proteomic analysis of post translational modifications in cyanobacteria.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xiong, Qian; Chen, Zhuo; Ge, Feng

    2016-02-16

    Cyanobacteria are a diverse group of Gram-negative bacteria and the only prokaryotes capable of oxygenic photosynthesis. Recently, cyanobacteria have attracted great interest due to their crucial roles in global carbon and nitrogen cycles and their ability to produce clean and renewable biofuels. To survive in various environmental conditions, cyanobacteria have developed a complex signal transduction network to sense environmental signals and implement adaptive changes. The post-translational modifications (PTMs) systems play important regulatory roles in the signaling networks of cyanobacteria. The systematic investigation of PTMs could contribute to the comprehensive description of protein species and to elucidate potential biological roles of each protein species in cyanobacteria. Although the proteomic studies of PTMs carried out in cyanobacteria were limited, these data have provided clues to elucidate their sophisticated sensing mechanisms that contribute to their evolutionary and ecological success. This review aims to summarize the current status of PTM studies and recent publications regarding PTM proteomics in cyanobacteria, and discuss the novel developments and applications for the analysis of PTMs in cyanobacteria. Challenges, opportunities and future perspectives in the proteomics studies of PTMs in cyanobacteria are also discussed. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  15. Comparative proteomic analysis of histone post-translational modifications upon ischemia/reperfusion-induced retinal injury

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zhao, Xiaolu; Sidoli, Simone; Wang, Leilei

    2014-01-01

    We present a detailed quantitative map of single and coexisting histone post-translational modifications (PTMs) in rat retinas affected by ischemia and reperfusion (I/R) injury. Retinal I/R injury contributes to serious ocular diseases, which can lead to vision loss and blindness. We applied linear...... ion trap-orbitrap hybrid tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) to quantify 131 single histone marks and 143 combinations of multiple histone marks in noninjured and injured retinas. We observed 34 histone PTMs that exhibited significantly (p

  16. Post-translational regulation and trafficking of the granulin-containing protease RD21 of Arabidopsis thaliana.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christian Gu

    Full Text Available RD21-like proteases are ubiquitous, plant-specific papain-like proteases typified by carrying a C-terminal granulin domain. RD21-like proteases are involved in immunity and associated with senescence and various types of biotic and abiotic stresses. Here, we interrogated Arabidopsis RD21 regulation and trafficking by site-directed mutagenesis, agroinfiltration, western blotting, protease activity profiling and protein degradation. Using an introduced N-glycan sensor, deglycosylation experiments and glyco-engineered N. benthamiana plants, we show that RD21 passes through the Golgi where it becomes fucosylated. Our studies demonstrate that RD21 is regulated at three post-translational levels. Prodomain removal is not blocked in the catalytic Cys mutant, indicating that RD21 is activated by a proteolytic cascade. However, RD21 activation in Arabidopsis does not require vacuolar processing enzymes (VPEs or aleurain-like protease AALP. In contrast, granulin domain removal requires the catalytic Cys and His residues and is therefore autocatalytic. Furthermore, SDS can (re-activate latent RD21 in Arabidopsis leaf extracts, indicating the existence of a third layer of post-translational regulation, possibly mediated by endogenous inhibitors. RD21 causes a dominant protease activity in Arabidopsis leaf extracts, responsible for SDS-induced proteome degradation.

  17. TRANSLATING BLACKNESS: A CHALLENGE TO TRANSLATION STUDIES IN CONTEMPORANEITY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maria Aparecida Andrade Salgueiro

    2014-07-01

    Full Text Available The present article presents aspects of a work in progress about both African-American and Afro-Brazilian Literatures as well as Translation Studies. As it makes observations about how blackness has been translated in different contexts and geographical spaces, it calls the reader’s attention to power relations, processes of colonial and post-colonial identity construction, the rising of literary canons, cultural hegemony and globalization, demystifying spaces and showing translation as an activity that does not take place in a neutral space, but, for sure, inside social and political concrete situations.

  18. Prediction of protein post-translational modifications: main trends and methods

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sobolev, B. N.; Veselovsky, A. V.; Poroikov, V. V.

    2014-02-01

    The review summarizes main trends in the development of methods for the prediction of protein post-translational modifications (PTMs) by considering the three most common types of PTMs — phosphorylation, acetylation and glycosylation. Considerable attention is given to general characteristics of regulatory interactions associated with PTMs. Different approaches to the prediction of PTMs are analyzed. Most of the methods are based only on the analysis of the neighbouring environment of modification sites. The related software is characterized by relatively low accuracy of PTM predictions, which may be due both to the incompleteness of training data and the features of PTM regulation. Advantages and limitations of the phylogenetic approach are considered. The prediction of PTMs using data on regulatory interactions, including the modular organization of interacting proteins, is a promising field, provided that a more carefully selected training data will be used. The bibliography includes 145 references.

  19. Post-recombination early Universe cooling by translation-internal inter-conversion: The role of minor constituents.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCaffery, Anthony J

    2015-09-14

    Little is known of the mechanism by which H and H2, the principal constituents of the post-re-combination early Universe, cooled sufficiently to permit cluster formation, nucleosynthesis, and, eventually, the formation of structured objects. Radiative decay primarily cools the internal modes of H2, as Δj = - 2 jumps accompany quadrupolar emission. This, however, would be a self-limiting mechanism. In this work, a translational energy cooling mechanism based on collision-induced, translation-to-internal mode conversion, is extended, following an earlier study [A. J. McCaffery and R. J. Marsh, J. Chem. Phys. 139, 234310 (2013)] of ensembles comprising H2 in a H atom bath gas. Here, the possible influence of minor species, such as HD, on this cooling mechanism is investigated. Results suggest that the influence of HD is small but not insignificant. Conversion is very rapid and an overall translation-to-internal energy conversion efficiency of some 5% could be expected. This finding may be of use in the further development of models of this complex phase of early Universe evolution. An unexpected finding in this study was that H2 + HD ensembles are capable of very rapid translation-to-internal conversion with efficiencies of >40% and relaxation rates that appear to be relatively slow. This may have potential as an energy storage mechanism.

  20. Staphylococcus aureus redirects central metabolism to increase iron availability.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    David B Friedman

    2006-08-01

    Full Text Available Staphylococcus aureus pathogenesis is significantly influenced by the iron status of the host. However, the regulatory impact of host iron sources on S. aureus gene expression remains unknown. In this study, we combine multivariable difference gel electrophoresis and mass spectrometry with multivariate statistical analyses to systematically cluster cellular protein response across distinct iron-exposure conditions. Quadruplicate samples were simultaneously analyzed for alterations in protein abundance and/or post-translational modification state in response to environmental (iron chelation, hemin treatment or genetic (Deltafur alterations in bacterial iron exposure. We identified 120 proteins representing several coordinated biochemical pathways that are affected by changes in iron-exposure status. Highlighted in these experiments is the identification of the heme-regulated transport system (HrtAB, a novel transport system which plays a critical role in staphylococcal heme metabolism. Further, we show that regulated overproduction of acidic end-products brought on by iron starvation decreases local pH resulting in the release of iron from the host iron-sequestering protein transferrin. These findings reveal novel strategies used by S. aureus to acquire scarce nutrients in the hostile host environment and begin to define the iron and heme-dependent regulons of S. aureus.

  1. Evaluation of the Biotyper MALDI-TOF MS system for identification of Staphylococcus species.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhu, Wenming; Sieradzki, Krzysztof; Albrecht, Valerie; McAllister, Sigrid; Lin, Wen; Stuchlik, Olga; Limbago, Brandi; Pohl, Jan; Kamile Rasheed, J

    2015-10-01

    The Bruker Biotyper MALDI-TOF MS (Biotyper) system, with a modified 30 minute formic acid extraction method, was evaluated by its ability to identify 216 clinical Staphylococcus isolates from the CDC reference collection comprising 23 species previously identified by conventional biochemical tests. 16S rDNA sequence analysis was used to resolve discrepancies. Of these, 209 (96.8%) isolates were correctly identified: 177 (84.7%) isolates had scores ≥2.0, while 32 (15.3%) had scores between 1.70 and 1.99. The Biotyper identification was inconsistent with the biochemical identification for seven (3.2%) isolates, but the Biotyper identifications were confirmed by 16S rDNA analysis. The distribution of low scores was strongly species-dependent, e.g. only 5% of Staphylococcus epidermidis and 4.8% of Staphylococcus aureus isolates scored below 2.0, while 100% of Staphylococcus cohnii, 75% of Staphylococcus sciuri, and 60% of Staphylococcus caprae produced low but accurate Biotyper scores. Our results demonstrate that the Biotyper can reliably identify Staphylococcus species with greater accuracy than conventional biochemicals. Broadening of the reference database by inclusion of additional examples of under-represented species could further optimize Biotyper results. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  2. Mass-spectrometry analysis of histone post-translational modifications in pathology tissue using the PAT-H-MS approach

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Roberta Noberini

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Aberrant histone post-translational modifications (hPTMs have been implicated with various pathologies, including cancer, and may represent useful epigenetic biomarkers. The data described here provide a mass spectrometry-based quantitative analysis of hPTMs from formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded (FFPE tissues, from which histones were extracted through the recently developed PAT-H-MS method. First, we analyzed FFPE samples from mouse spleen and liver or human breast cancer up to six years old, together with their corresponding fresh frozen tissue. We then combined the PAT-H-MS approach with a histone-focused version of the super-SILAC strategy-using a mix of histones from four breast cancer cell lines as a spike-in standard- to accurately quantify hPTMs from breast cancer specimens belonging to different subtypes. The data, which are associated with a recent publication (Pathology tissue-quantitative mass spectrometry analysis to profile histone post-translational modification patterns in patient samples (Noberini, 2015 [1], are deposited at the ProteomeXchange Consortium via the PRIDE partner repository with the dataset identifier http://www.ebi.ac.uk/pride/archive/projects/PXD002669.

  3. An in vitro assay to study the recruitment and substrate specificity of chromatin modifying enzymes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vermeulen Michiel

    2004-01-01

    Full Text Available Post-translational modifications of core histones play an important role in regulating fundamental biological processes such as DNA repair, transcription and replication. In this paper, we describe a novel assay that allows sequential targeting of distinct histone modifying enzymes to immobilized nucleosomal templates using recombinant chimeric targeting molecules. The assay can be used to study the histone substrate specificity of chromatin modifying enzymes as well as whether and how certain enzymes affect each other's histone modifying activities. As such the assay can help to understand how a certain histone code is established and interpreted.

  4. Tandem affinity purification of histones, coupled to mass spectrometry, identifies associated proteins and new sites of post-translational modification in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Valero, M Luz; Sendra, Ramon; Pamblanco, Mercè

    2016-03-16

    Histones and their post-translational modifications contribute to regulating fundamental biological processes in all eukaryotic cells. We have applied a conventional tandem affinity purification strategy to histones H3 and H4 of the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Mass spectrometry analysis of the co-purified proteins revealed multiple associated proteins, including core histones, which indicates that tagged histones may be incorporated to the nucleosome particle. Among the many other co-isolated proteins there are histone chaperones, elements of chromatin remodeling, of nucleosome assembly/disassembly, and of histone modification complexes. The histone chaperone Rtt106p, two members of chromatin assembly FACT complex and Psh1p, an ubiquitin ligase, were the most abundant proteins obtained with both H3-TAP and H4-TAP, regardless of the cell extraction medium stringency. Our mass spectrometry analyses have also revealed numerous novel post-translational modifications, including 30 new chemical modifications in histones, mainly by ubiquitination. We have discovered not only new sites of ubiquitination but that, besides lysine, also serine and threonine residues are targets of ubiquitination on yeast histones. Our results show the standard tandem affinity purification procedure is suitable for application to yeast histones, in order to isolate and characterize histone-binding proteins and post-translational modifications, avoiding the bias caused by histone purification from a chromatin-enriched fraction. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. Status of large-scale analysis of post-translational modifications by mass spectrometry

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Olsen, Jesper V; Mann, Matthias

    2013-01-01

    Cellular function can be controlled through the gene expression program but often protein post translations modifications (PTMs) provide a more precisely and elegant mechanism. Key functional roles of specific modification events for instance during the cell cycle have been known for decades...... of protein modifications. For many PTMs, including phosphorylation, ubiquitination, glycosylation and acetylation, tens of thousands of sites can now be confidently identified and localized in the sequence of the protein. Quantitation of PTM levels between different cellular states is likewise established......, with label-free methods showing particular promise. It is also becoming possible to determine the absolute occupancy or stoichiometry of PTMS sites on a large scale. Powerful software for the bioinformatic analysis of thousands of PTM sites has been developed. However, a complete inventory of sites has...

  6. Communications of Staphylococcus aureus and non-aureus Staphylococcus species from bovine intramammary infections and teat apex colonization.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mahmmod, Yasser S; Klaas, Ilka Christine; Svennesen, Line; Pedersen, Karl; Ingmer, Hanne

    2018-05-16

    The role of non-aureus staphylococci (NAS) in the risk of acquisition of intramammary infections with Staphylococcus aureus is vague and still under debate. The objectives of this study were to (1) investigate the distribution patterns of NAS species from milk and teat skin in dairy herds with automatic milking systems, and (2) examine if the isolated NAS influences the expression of S. aureus virulence factors controlled by the accessory gene regulator (agr) quorum sensing system. In 8 herds, 14 to 20 cows with elevated somatic cell count were randomly selected for teat skin swabbing and aseptic quarter foremilk samples from right hind and left front quarters. Teat skin swabs were collected using the modified wet-dry method and milk samples were taken aseptically for bacterial culture. Colonies from quarters with suspicion of having NAS in milk or teat skin samples (or both) were subjected to MALDI-TOF assay for species identification. To investigate the interaction between S. aureus and NAS, 81 isolates NAS were subjected to a qualitative β-galactosidase reporter plate assay. In total, 373 NAS isolates were identified representing 105 from milk and 268 from teat skin of 284 quarters (= 142 cows). Sixteen different NAS species were identified, 15 species from teat skin and 10 species from milk. The most prevalent NAS species identified from milk were Staphylococcus epidermidis (50%), Staphylococcus haemolyticus (15%), and Staphylococcus chromogenes (11%), accounting for 76%. Meanwhile, the most prevalent NAS species from teat skin were Staphylococcus equorum (43%), S. haemolyticus (16%), and Staphylococcus cohnii (14%), accounting for 73%. Using reporter gene fusions monitoring transcriptional activity of key virulence factors and regulators, we found that out of 81 supernatants of NAS isolates, 77% reduced expression of hla, encoding a-hemolysin, 70% reduced expression of RNAIII, the key effector molecule of agr, and 61% reduced expression of spa encoding

  7. Prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus colonization in renal transplant patients

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Luiz Carlos Ribeiro Lamblet

    2014-10-01

    Full Text Available Objective to evaluate the prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus nasal colonization in renal transplant patients and to identify the related risk factors. Method Swabs were used to collect nasal samples from 160 patients who had undergone a transplant within the previous year at the Kidney and Hypertension Hospital. The ‘National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards’ norms were followed for the collection, isolation, identification and sensitivity measurements. Results There was a 9.4% (15 prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus nasal colonization, of which one (6.7% was resistant to oxacillin. It was possible to identify as an associated risk factor a wait of more than one year for accessing dialysis prior to the transplant (p=0.029. Conclusion Given the high morbidity and mortality rates that this microorganism causes in the target population, other studies should be carried out, and pre- and post-transplant screening should occur in order to develop strategies that improve the prevention and control of the spread of Staphylococcus aureus.

  8. Lost in Translation: Defects in Transfer RNA Modifications and Neurological Disorders

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrea Bednářová

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available Transfer RNAs (tRNAs are key molecules participating in protein synthesis. To augment their functionality they undergo extensive post-transcriptional modifications and, as such, are subject to regulation at multiple levels including transcription, transcript processing, localization and ribonucleoside base modification. Post-transcriptional enzyme-catalyzed modification of tRNA occurs at a number of base and sugar positions and influences specific anticodon–codon interactions and regulates translation, its efficiency and fidelity. This phenomenon of nucleoside modification is most remarkable and results in a rich structural diversity of tRNA of which over 100 modified nucleosides have been characterized. Most often these hypermodified nucleosides are found in the wobble position of tRNAs, where they play a direct role in codon recognition as well as in maintaining translational efficiency and fidelity, etc. Several recent studies have pointed to a link between defects in tRNA modifications and human diseases including neurological disorders. Therefore, defects in tRNA modifications in humans need intensive characterization at the enzymatic and mechanistic level in order to pave the way to understand how lack of such modifications are associated with neurological disorders with the ultimate goal of gaining insights into therapeutic interventions.

  9. AMS 4.0: consensus prediction of post-translational modifications in protein sequences.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Plewczynski, Dariusz; Basu, Subhadip; Saha, Indrajit

    2012-08-01

    We present here the 2011 update of the AutoMotif Service (AMS 4.0) that predicts the wide selection of 88 different types of the single amino acid post-translational modifications (PTM) in protein sequences. The selection of experimentally confirmed modifications is acquired from the latest UniProt and Phospho.ELM databases for training. The sequence vicinity of each modified residue is represented using amino acids physico-chemical features encoded using high quality indices (HQI) obtaining by automatic clustering of known indices extracted from AAindex database. For each type of the numerical representation, the method builds the ensemble of Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) pattern classifiers, each optimising different objectives during the training (for example the recall, precision or area under the ROC curve (AUC)). The consensus is built using brainstorming technology, which combines multi-objective instances of machine learning algorithm, and the data fusion of different training objects representations, in order to boost the overall prediction accuracy of conserved short sequence motifs. The performance of AMS 4.0 is compared with the accuracy of previous versions, which were constructed using single machine learning methods (artificial neural networks, support vector machine). Our software improves the average AUC score of the earlier version by close to 7 % as calculated on the test datasets of all 88 PTM types. Moreover, for the selected most-difficult sequence motifs types it is able to improve the prediction performance by almost 32 %, when compared with previously used single machine learning methods. Summarising, the brainstorming consensus meta-learning methodology on the average boosts the AUC score up to around 89 %, averaged over all 88 PTM types. Detailed results for single machine learning methods and the consensus methodology are also provided, together with the comparison to previously published methods and state-of-the-art software tools. The

  10. Overview of xeroderma pigmentosum proteins architecture, mutations and post-translational modifications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feltes, Bruno César; Bonatto, Diego

    2015-01-01

    The xeroderma pigmentosum complementation group proteins (XPs), which include XPA through XPG, play a critical role in coordinating and promoting global genome and transcription-coupled nucleotide excision repair (GG-NER and TC-NER, respectively) pathways in eukaryotic cells. GG-NER and TC-NER are both required for the repair of bulky DNA lesions, such as those induced by UV radiation. Mutations in genes that encode XPs lead to the clinical condition xeroderma pigmentosum (XP). Although the roles of XPs in the GG-NER/TC-NER subpathways have been extensively studied, complete knowledge of their three-dimensional structure is only beginning to emerge. Hence, this review aims to summarize the current knowledge of mapped mutations and other structural information on XP proteins that influence their function and protein-protein interactions. We also review the possible post-translational modifications for each protein and the impact of these modifications on XP protein functions. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  11. Translating Management Practices in Hierarchical Organizations

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wæraas, Arild; Nielsen, Jeppe Agger

    structures affect translators’ approaches taken towards management ideas. This paper reports the findings from a longitudinal case study of the translation of Leadership Pipeline in a Danish fire department and how the translators’ approach changed over time from a modifying to a reproducing mode. The study......This study examines how translators in a hierarchical context approach the translation of management practices. Although current translation theory and research emphasize the importance of contextual factors in translation processes, little research has investigated how strongly hierarchical...... finds that translation does not necessarily imply transformation of the management idea, pointing instead to aspects of exact imitation and copying of an ”original” idea. It also highlights how translation is likely to involve multiple and successive translation modes and, furthermore, that strongly...

  12. Root cause analysis of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aslam, Nadia; Mehdi, Naima; Izhar, Mateen

    2015-10-01

    To find the important risk factors and sources of bacteraemia in patients suffering from methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia. The descriptive study was carried out at Shaikh Zayed Hospital, Lahore, from October 2010 to August 2011. Blood cultures were processed to isolate methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus. A questionnaire was completed by the participating patients suffering from bacteraemia. Information about risk factors present at the time and risk factors that served as the source of bacteraemia were noted. Total 4058 blood cultures were processed and 669(16.5%) were positive. Of them, 194(29%) cultures were found to be positive for staphylococci. Out of these 194 blood cultures, coagulase-negative staphylococci were isolated from 117(60%), and 77(40%) were positive for S. aureus. Out of these 77 samples, 26(34%) were found to be methicillin-sensitive staphylococcus aureus and 51(66%) were methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus. The overall frequency of methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus was 1.25%; 7.62% out of positive blood culture; 26.28% out of total staphylococci; and 66% out of total S. aureus. As for the source of infection, central venous pressure line 11(21.6%), post-influenza pneumonia 9(17.6%), peripheral intravenous line 8(15.7%) and dialysis line 7(13.7%) were major reasons. Taking care of aseptic measures while insertion, frequent change and early removal of the central venous and dialysis lines is of critical significance.

  13. Specific capture and detection of Staphylococcus aureus with high-affinity modified aptamers to cell surface components.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Baumstummler, A; Lehmann, D; Janjic, N; Ochsner, U A

    2014-10-01

    Slow off-rate modified aptamer (SOMAmer) reagents were generated to several Staphylococcus aureus cell surface-associated proteins via SELEX with multiple modified DNA libraries using purified recombinant or native proteins. High-affinity binding agents with sub-nanomolar Kd 's were obtained for staphylococcal protein A (SpA), clumping factors (ClfA, ClfB), fibronectin-binding proteins (FnbA, FnbB) and iron-regulated surface determinants (Isd). Further screening revealed several SOMAmers that specifically bound to Staph. aureus cells from all strains that were tested, but not to other staphylococci or other bacteria. SpA and ClfA SOMAmers proved useful for the selective capture and enrichment of Staph. aureus cells, as shown by culture and PCR, leading to improved limits of detection and efficient removal of PCR inhibitors. Detection of Staph. aureus cells was enhanced by several orders of magnitude when the bacterial cell surface was coated with SOMAmers followed by qPCR of the SOMAmers. Furthermore, fluorescence-labelled SpA SOMAmers demonstrated their utility as direct detection agents in flow cytometry. Significance and impact of the study: Monitoring for microbial contamination of food, water, nonsterile products or the environment is typically based on culture, PCR or antibodies. Aptamers that bind with high specificity and affinity to well-conserved cell surface epitopes represent a promising novel type of reagents to detect bacterial cells without the need for culture or cell lysis, including for the capture and enrichment of bacteria present at low cell densities and for the direct detection via qPCR or fluorescent staining. © 2014 Soma Logic, Inc. published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd On behalf of the society for Applied Microbiology.

  14. GARCILASO 'S TRANSLATION OF LEÓN HEBREO 'S LOVE DIALOGUES: RENAISSANCE TRANSLATION AND LITERALITY

    OpenAIRE

    Riva Camino, Fernando

    2014-01-01

    In this article the autor analyzes Garcilaso' s translation ofthe Dialogues ofLove ofLeon Hebreo from Italian to Spanish, ata time when abstracts, freeadaptations, texts modified in content and form and paraphrasis werecommon practice in the task of translation later, influenced by Italianhumanism, translators paid respect to the original. El presente estudio se centrará en el análisis de las características especialesde la traducción del italiano al español de los Diálogos de Amor deLeón ...

  15. Identification and characterization of HTLV-1 HBZ post-translational modifications.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nathan Dissinger

    Full Text Available Human T-cell leukemia virus type-1 (HTLV-1 is estimated to infect 15-25 million people worldwide, with several areas including southern Japan and the Caribbean basin being endemic. The virus is the etiological agent of debilitating and fatal diseases, for which there is currently no long-term cure. In the majority of cases of leukemia caused by HTLV-1, only a single viral gene, hbz, and its cognate protein, HBZ, are expressed and their importance is increasingly being recognized in the development of HTLV-1-associated disease. We hypothesized that HBZ, like other HTLV-1 proteins, has properties and functions regulated by post-translational modifications (PTMs that affect specific signaling pathways important for disease development. To date, PTM of HBZ has not been described. We used an affinity-tagged protein and mass spectrometry method to identify seven modifications of HBZ for the first time. We examined how these PTMs affected the ability of HBZ to modulate several pathways, as measured using luciferase reporter assays. Herein, we report that none of the identified PTMs affected HBZ stability or its regulation of tested pathways.

  16. The interplay of multiple feedback loops with post-translational kinetics results in bistability of mycobacterial stress response

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tiwari, Abhinav; Igoshin, Oleg A; Balázsi, Gábor; Gennaro, Maria Laura

    2010-01-01

    Bacterial persistence is the phenomenon in which a genetically identical fraction of a bacterial population can survive exposure to stress by reduction or cessation of growth. Persistence in mycobacteria has been recently linked to a stress-response network, consisting of the MprA/MprB two-component system and alternative sigma factor σ E . This network contains multiple positive transcriptional feedback loops which may give rise to bistability, making it a good candidate for controlling the mycobacterial persistence switch. To analyze the possibility of bistability, we develop a method that involves decoupling of the network into transcriptional and post-translational interaction modules. As a result we reduce the dimensionality of the dynamical system and independently analyze input–output relations in the two modules to formulate a necessary condition for bistability in terms of their logarithmic gains. We show that neither the positive autoregulation in the MprA/MprB network nor the σ E -mediated transcriptional feedback is sufficient to induce bistability in a biochemically realistic parameter range. Nonetheless, inclusion of the post-translational regulation of σ E by RseA increases the effective cooperativity of the system, resulting in bistability that is robust to parameter variation. We predict that overexpression or deletion of RseA, the key element controlling the ultrasensitive response, can eliminate bistability

  17. Selective biosensing of Staphylococcus aureus using chitosan quantum dots

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abdelhamid, Hani Nasser; Wu, Hui-Fen

    2018-01-01

    Selective biosensing of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) using chitosan modified quantum dots (CTS@CdS QDs) in the presence of hydrogen peroxide is reported. The method is based on the intrinsic positive catalase activity of S. aureus. CTS@CdS quantum dots provide high dispersion in aqueous media with high fluorescence emission. Staphylococcus aureus causes a selective quenching of the fluorescence emission of CTS@CdS QDs in the presence of H2O2 compared to other pathogens such as Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The intrinsic enzymatic character of S. aureus (catalase positive) offers selective and fast biosensing. The present method is highly selective for positive catalase species and requires no expensive reagents such as antibodies, aptamers or microbeads. It could be extended for other species that are positive catalase.

  18. Staphylococcus aureus biofilm formation on different gentamicin-loaded polymethylmethacrylate bone cements

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van de Belt, H; Neut, D; Schenk, W; van Horn, [No Value; van der Mei, HC; Busscher, HJ

    In this in vitro study, the formation of a Staphylococcus aureus biofilm on six gentamicin-loaded bone cements (CMW1, CMW3, CMW Endurance, CMW2000, Palacos. and Palamed) was determined in a modified Robbins device over a 3 days time span and related with previously (Van de Belt et al., Biomaterials

  19. Post-translational processing and secretion of atrial natriuretic factor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shields, P.P.

    1988-01-01

    The post-translational processing and regulated secretion of atrial natriuretic factor (ANF) were studied in primary cultures of rat cardiac myocytes. Cultures were established from neonatal rat atria or ventricles, and were maintained for 7-14 days in complete serum free medium. The cultures contained high and constant levels of ANF-(1-126), the known storage form of the hormone in vivo. The cultures also secreted ANF-(1-126), instead of the known circulating form of the hormone, ANF-(99-126). However, the inclusion of the glucocorticoids dexamethasone or hydrocortisone in the culture medium increased the levels of ir-ANF contained and secreted by the cultures, and caused both atrial and ventricular cultures to secrete principally ANF-(99-126) instead of ANF-(1-126). The secreted peptide was shown to be authentic ANF-(99-126) by chromatographic, amino acid composition and radiosequence analysis, thus confirming that the cultures were accurately processing ANF to the in vivo circulating form in the presence of glucocorticoids. Glucocorticoids also caused an increase in size and clustering of atrial myocytes as determined by immunocytochemical analysis, but the morphological effects could be dissociated from the stimulation of ANF-(99-126) secretion by manipulating the timing of glucocorticoid exposure. The location of ANF-(99-126) formation was investigated using biosynthetically labeled 35 S-Cys-ANF-(1-126) in conjunction with actively processing cultures

  20. Characterization of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii Core Histones by Top-Down Mass Spectrometry Reveals Unique Algae-Specific Variants and Post-Translational Modifications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khan, Aliyya; Eikani, Carlo K; Khan, Hana; Iavarone, Anthony T; Pesavento, James J

    2018-01-05

    The unicellular microalga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii has played an instrumental role in the development of many new fields (bioproducts, biofuels, etc.) as well as the advancement of basic science (photosynthetic apparati, flagellar function, etc.). Chlamydomonas' versatility ultimately derives from the genes encoded in its genome and the way that the expression of these genes is regulated, which is largely influenced by a family of DNA binding proteins called histones. We characterize C. reinhardtii core histones, both variants and their post-translational modifications, by chromatographic separation, followed by top-down mass spectrometry (TDMS). Because TDMS has not been previously used to study Chlamydomonas proteins, we show rampant artifactual protein oxidation using established nuclei purification and histone extraction methods. After addressing oxidation, both histones H3 and H4 are found to each have a single polypeptide sequence that is minimally acetylated and methylated. Surprisingly, we uncover a novel monomethylation at lysine 79 on histone H4 present on all observed molecules. Histone H2B and H2A are found to have two and three variants, respectively, and both are minimally modified. This study provides an updated assessment of the core histone proteins in the green alga C. reinhardtii by top-down mass spectrometry and lays the foundation for further investigation of these essential proteins.

  1. Chemical and semisynthesis of modified histones.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maity, Suman Kumar; Jbara, Muhammad; Brik, Ashraf

    2016-05-01

    Post-translational modifications (PTMs) of histones play critical roles in the epigenetic regulation of eukaryotic genome by directly altering the biophysical properties of chromatin or by recruiting effector proteins. The large number of PTMs and the inherent complexity in their population and signaling processes make it highly challenging to understand epigenetics-related processes. To address these challenges, accesses to homogeneously modified histones are obligatory. Over the last decade, synthetic protein chemists have been devising novel synthetic tools and applying state-of-the-art chemoselective ligation strategies to prepare precious materials useful in answering fundamental questions in this area. In this short review, we cover some of the recent breakthroughs in these directions in particular the synthesis and semi-synthesis of modified histones and their use to unravel the mysteries of epigenetics. Copyright © 2016 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2016 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  2. Regulation of dynamin family proteins by post-translational

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    2017-04-22

    Apr 22, 2017 ... School of Biological Sciences, National Institute of Science Education and Research-. Bhubaneswar .... translational modifications provides the cell a dynamic and ..... Drp1 which confers cellular protection from mitochondrial.

  3. Efficiency of Database Search for Identification of Mutated and Modified Proteins via Mass Spectrometry

    OpenAIRE

    Pevzner, Pavel A.; Mulyukov, Zufar; Dancik, Vlado; Tang, Chris L

    2001-01-01

    Although protein identification by matching tandem mass spectra (MS/MS) against protein databases is a widespread tool in mass spectrometry, the question about reliability of such searches remains open. Absence of rigorous significance scores in MS/MS database search makes it difficult to discard random database hits and may lead to erroneous protein identification, particularly in the case of mutated or post-translationally modified peptides. This problem is especially important for high-thr...

  4. Beyond gene expression: the impact of protein post-translational modifications in bacteria.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cain, Joel A; Solis, Nestor; Cordwell, Stuart J

    2014-01-31

    The post-translational modification (PTM) of proteins plays a critical role in the regulation of a broad range of cellular processes in eukaryotes. Yet their role in governing similar systems in the conventionally presumed 'simpler' forms of life has been largely neglected and, until recently, was thought to occur only rarely, with some modifications assumed to be limited to higher organisms alone. Recent developments in mass spectrometry-based proteomics have provided an unparalleled power to enrich, identify and quantify peptides with PTMs. Additional modifications to biological molecules such as lipids and carbohydrates that are essential for bacterial pathophysiology have only recently been detected on proteins. Here we review bacterial protein PTMs, focusing on phosphorylation, acetylation, proteolytic degradation, methylation and lipidation and the roles they play in bacterial adaptation - thus highlighting the importance of proteomic techniques in a field that is only just in its infancy. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Trends in Microbial Proteomics. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. Developmentally Regulated Post-translational Modification of Nucleoplasmin Controls Histone Sequestration and Deposition

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Takashi Onikubo

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available Nucleoplasmin (Npm is an abundant histone chaperone in vertebrate oocytes and embryos. During embryogenesis, regulation of Npm histone binding is critical for its function in storing and releasing maternal histones to establish and maintain the zygotic epigenome. Here, we demonstrate that Xenopus laevis Npm post-translational modifications (PTMs specific to the oocyte and egg promote either histone deposition or sequestration, respectively. Mass spectrometry and Npm phosphomimetic mutations used in chromatin assembly assays identified hyperphosphorylation on the N-terminal tail as a critical regulator for sequestration. C-terminal tail phosphorylation and PRMT5-catalyzed arginine methylation enhance nucleosome assembly by promoting histone interaction with the second acidic tract of Npm. Electron microscopy reconstructions of Npm and TTLL4 activity toward the C-terminal tail demonstrate that oocyte- and egg-specific PTMs cause Npm conformational changes. Our results reveal that PTMs regulate Npm chaperoning activity by modulating Npm conformation and Npm-histone interaction, leading to histone sequestration in the egg.

  6. Post-translational glutamylation and tyrosination in tubulin of tritrichomonads and the diplomonad Giardia intestinalis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Boggild, A K; Sundermann, C A; Estridge, B H

    2002-01-01

    Glutamylated and tyrosinated tubulin were localized in Giardia intestinalis and selected trichomonads of the Tritrichomonadinae subfamily, using specific monoclonal antibodies directed at each of the post-translational modifications. Analysis was carried out using indirect immunofluorescence microscopy. Although trichomonad tubulins remained unlabeled by anti-tyrosine tubulin (TUB-1A2), the presence of the glutamylation motif (GT 335) was confirmed and found to differ in distribution among tritrichomonads. Tritrichomonas muris was most heavily labeled with GT 335, while T. foetus was the least so. Like trichomonads, Giardia was unreactive to anti-tyrosine tubulin; however, the GT 335 antibody produced marked fluorescence in Giardia trophozoites. This study is the first to report immunofluorescent localization of tubulin glutamylation in Giardia and confirms previously reported mass spectrometry data.

  7. Stk1-mediated phosphorylation stimulates the DNA-binding properties of the Staphylococcus aureus SpoVG transcriptional factor.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bischoff, Markus; Brelle, Solène; Minatelli, Sabrina; Molle, Virginie

    2016-05-13

    The stage V sporulation protein G (SpoVG) homolog of Staphylococcus aureus is a modulator of virulence factor synthesis and antibiotic resistance in this clinically important gram-positive pathogen. Here we demonstrate that SpoVG can be phosphorylated by the staphylococcal Ser/Thr protein kinase Stk1 and that phosphorylation positively affects its DNA-binding properties. Mass spectrometric analyses and site directed mutagenesis identified Thr4, Thr13, Thr24 and Ser41 as phospho-acceptors. Stk1-mediated phosphorylation markedly enhanced the DNA binding activity of SpoVG towards the promoter regions of target genes such as capA, lip, and nuc1. Similarly, trans-complementation of the S. aureus ΔyabJ-spoVG mutant SM148 with a SpoVG derivative that mimics constitutive phosphorylation, SpoVG_Asp, exhibited capA, lip, and nuc1 transcript levels that were comparable to the levels seen with the wild-type, whereas trans-complementation with a phosphoablative variant of SpoVG (SpoVG_Ala) produced transcript levels similar to the ones seen in SM148. Our data suggest that the expression/activity of this transcription factor is tightly controlled in S. aureus by transcriptional, post-transcriptional and post-translational mechanisms. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. Prediction of post translational modifications in avicennia marina Cu-Zn superoxide dismutase: implication of glycation on the enzyme structure

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jabeen, U.; Salim, A.; Abbasi, A.

    2012-01-01

    3D homology model of Cu-Zn superoxide dismutase (SOD) from Avicennia marina (AMSOD) was constructed using the structural coordinates of Spinach SOD (SSOD). Prediction of post translational modification was done by PROSITE. The predicted sites were examined in the 3D model. AMSOD model was glycated using modeling software and changes in the structure was analyzed after glycation. The analysis revealed some potential sites and structural changes after glycation. (author)

  9. Dietary fat and fiber interact to uniquely modify global histone post-translational epigenetic programming in a rat colon cancer progression model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Triff, Karen; McLean, Mathew W; Callaway, Evelyn; Goldsby, Jennifer; Ivanov, Ivan; Chapkin, Robert S

    2018-04-16

    Dietary fermentable fiber generates short-chain fatty acids (SCFA), e.g., butyrate, in the colonic lumen which serves as a chemoprotective histone deacetylase inhibitor and/or as an acetylation substrate for histone acetylases. In addition, n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFA) in fish oil can affect the chromatin landscape by acting as ligands for tumor suppressive nuclear receptors. In an effort to gain insight into the global dimension of post-translational modification of histones (including H3K4me3 and H3K9ac) and clarify the chemoprotective impact of dietary bioactive compounds on transcriptional control in a preclinical model of colon cancer, we generated high-resolution genome-wide RNA (RNA-Seq) and "chromatin-state" (H3K4me3-seq and H3K9ac-seq) maps for intestinal (epithelial colonocytes) crypts in rats treated with a colon carcinogen and fed diets containing bioactive (i) fish oil, (ii) fermentable fiber (a rich source of SCFA), (iii) a combination of fish oil plus pectin or (iv) control, devoid of fish oil or pectin. In general, poor correlation was observed between differentially transcribed (DE) and enriched genes (DERs) at multiple epigenetic levels. The combinatorial diet (fish oil + pectin) uniquely affected transcriptional profiles in the intestinal epithelium, e.g., upregulating lipid catabolism and beta-oxidation associated genes. These genes were linked to activated ligand-dependent nuclear receptors associated with n-3 PUFA and were also correlated with the mitochondrial L-carnitine shuttle and the inhibition of lipogenesis. These findings demonstrate that the chemoprotective fish oil + pectin combination diet uniquely induces global histone state modifications linked to the expression of chemoprotective genes. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. © 2018 UICC.

  10. Translation of satellite tobacco necrosis virus RNA modified by (not equal to)-r-7,t-8-dihydroxy-t-9,10-epoxy-7,8,9,10-tetrahydrobenzo[a]pyrene is inhibited in a wheat germ cell-free system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Haas, R.; Pulkrabek, P.; Takanami, Y.; Grunberger, D.

    1983-01-01

    It has been shown that (not equal to)-r-7-,t-8-dihydroxy-t-9,10-epoxy-7,8,9,10-tetrahydrobenzo[a]pyrene (BPDE) modification of rabbit globin mRNA results in inhibition of translational initiation. In order to explore the possibility that modification of the 5' cap structure was responsible for this inhibition, the naturally non-capped mRNA from satellite tobacco necrosis virus (STNV) was reacted with BPDE and translated in a wheat germ cell-free system. The extent of modification was 1.3 and 2.9 BPDE residues/molecule. High performance liquid chromatography of the modified nucleosides from enzymatically hydrolyzed STNV RNA revealed that greater than 90% of the nucleoside adducts were substituted at the exocyclic amino group of guanosine. The translational ability of the lower and higher modified STNV, measured by incorporation of [ 14 C]amino acids into acid-precipitable polypeptides is inhibited by 55% and 63%, respectively. Polyacrylamide gel electrophoretic analyses of the translation products indicate that predominantly full-length coat proteins are synthesized but with the carcinogen-modified STNV the amount is reduced. On the other hand, 80S initiation complex formation is not inhibited as measured by binding of the BPDE-modified STNV to ribosomes and followed by glycerol gradient centrifugation. Under these conditions, aurintricarboxylic acid completely inhibits 80S initiation complex formation in the presence of either modified or native STNV. These results suggest that inhibition of in vitro translation of BPDE-modified STNV, in contrast to that of globin mRNA, is not at the level of initiation complex formation but possibly by premature termination of growing polypeptides

  11. Protean and boundaryless career attitudes scales: Spanish translation and validation Protean and boundaryless career attitudes scales: Spanish translation and validation Protean and boundaryless career attitudes scales: Spanish translation and validation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Oriol Lordan

    2012-04-01

    Full Text Available Purpose: The aim of this paper is to translate into Spanish and examine the psychometric properties of the resulting Spanish version of Briscoe, Hall and DeMuth (2006’s Protean and Boundayless Career Attitude Scale, encompassing: Self-Direction, Values-driven predispositions, Boundaryless mindset and Organizational Mobility Preference. Design/methodology/approach: Translation of the Protean and Boundayless Career Attitude Scale was carried out using a back-translation procedure and cognitive interviews were conducted to ensure an accurate interpretation of questionnaire items. The validity and reliability of the scale were evaluated using exploratory factor analysis and Cronbach’s alpha coefficients. Finally, confirmatory factor analysis was performed to evaluate the factor structure of the modified version of the scale, which consists in those items with higher factor loadings.Findings: The reliability coefficients of the modified scale are consistent with those reported by Briscoe et al. (2006. Nevertheless, the values-driven attitudes scale seem to measure two latent traits: strong core beliefs regarding one’s definition of career success and individual emphasis of core personal values through work (reliance on personal values when individual and organizational values do not match.Originality/value: This is the first study which provides a Spanish translation of the Protean and Boundaryless Career Attitude Scale.Purpose: The aim of this paper is to translate into Spanish and examine the psychometric properties of the resulting Spanish version of Briscoe, Hall and DeMuth (2006’s Protean and Boundayless Career Attitude Scale, encompassing: Self-Direction, Values-driven predispositions, Boundaryless mindset and Organizational Mobility Preference.Design/methodology/approach: Translation of the Protean and Boundayless Career Attitude Scale was carried out using a back-translation procedure and cognitive interviews were conducted to

  12. Amyloid β production is regulated by β2-adrenergic signaling-mediated post-translational modifications of the ryanodine receptor.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bussiere, Renaud; Lacampagne, Alain; Reiken, Steven; Liu, Xiaoping; Scheuerman, Valerie; Zalk, Ran; Martin, Cécile; Checler, Frederic; Marks, Andrew R; Chami, Mounia

    2017-06-16

    Alteration of ryanodine receptor (RyR)-mediated calcium (Ca 2+ ) signaling has been reported in Alzheimer disease (AD) models. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying altered RyR-mediated intracellular Ca 2+ release in AD remain to be fully elucidated. We report here that RyR2 undergoes post-translational modifications (phosphorylation, oxidation, and nitrosylation) in SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells expressing the β-amyloid precursor protein (βAPP) harboring the familial double Swedish mutations (APPswe). RyR2 macromolecular complex remodeling, characterized by depletion of the regulatory protein calstabin2, resulted in increased cytosolic Ca 2+ levels and mitochondrial oxidative stress. We also report a functional interplay between amyloid β (Aβ), β-adrenergic signaling, and altered Ca 2+ signaling via leaky RyR2 channels. Thus, post-translational modifications of RyR occur downstream of Aβ through a β2-adrenergic signaling cascade that activates PKA. RyR2 remodeling in turn enhances βAPP processing. Importantly, pharmacological stabilization of the binding of calstabin2 to RyR2 channels, which prevents Ca 2+ leakage, or blocking the β2-adrenergic signaling cascade reduced βAPP processing and the production of Aβ in APPswe-expressing SH-SY5Y cells. We conclude that targeting RyR-mediated Ca 2+ leakage may be a therapeutic approach to treat AD. © 2017 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

  13. Modification of a translator of mnemocode the M-6000 computer

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kurkina, N.V.; Medved', S.V.; Pshenichnikov, O.V.; Shchirov, A.G.

    1975-01-01

    A modification of the mnemonic code translator for the M-6000 computer is described. The modified translator provides diagnostics in the source program and efficient translation-time error recovery and editing procedures. This increases the productivity of programmers labour and decreases the debugging time

  14. Notch-mediated post-translational control of Ngn3 protein stability regulates pancreatic patterning and cell fate commitment

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Qu, Xiaoling; Afelik, Solomon; Jensen, Jan Nygaard

    2013-01-01

    of ducts. On one hand, Ngn3 cell-intrinsically activates endocrine target genes; on the other, Ngn3 cell-extrinsically promotes lateral signaling via the Dll1>Notch>Hes1 pathway which substantially limits its ability to sustain endocrine formation. Prior to endocrine commitment, the Ngn3-mediated...... involves transcriptional repression as previously shown, but also incorporates a novel post-translational mechanism. In addition to its ability to promote endocrine fate, we provide evidence of a competing ability of Ngn3 in the patterning of multipotent progenitor cells in turn controlling the formation...

  15. Eficácia in vitro de desinfetantes comerciais utilizados no pré e pós-dipping frente a Staphylococcus spp. isolados em rebanhos leiteiros In vitro efficacy of commercial disinfectants used in pre-and post-dipping against Staphylococcus spp. isolated from dairy cattle

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ayodhya C. Ramalho

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available Objetivou-se com esse estudo avaliar a eficácia in vitro de desinfetantes comerciais utilizados no pré e pós- -dipping, frente a Staphylococcus spp. isolados do leite de vacas procedentes de propriedades leiteiras do Agreste e Zona da Mata do Estado de Alagoas. Foram utilizados iodo (0,57%, clorexidine (2,0%, cloro (2,5% e composto de amônio quaternário (4,0%, nas concentrações indicadas, como desinfetantes comerciais usados convencionalmente no pré e pós-dipping. Analisou-se um total de 97 isolados de Staphylococcus spp. identificados como S. aureus (16, Staphylococcus coagulase positiva (7 e Staphylococcus coagulase negativa (74. Os desinfetantes foram avaliados em três tempos distintos (15", 30" e 60". Observou-se que 56,3% de Staphylococcus aureus foram sensíveis ao iodo, 68,8% sensíveis ao cloro, 87,5% à clorexidine e 37,5% ao composto de amônia no tempo de 60". Quanto aos Staphylococcus coagulase positiva (SCP, 100% dos isolados foram resistentes ao clorexidine, 85,7% ao composto de amônio, 57,1% ao cloro, e 42,9 resistentes ao iodo no tempo de 60". Em relação aos Staphylococcus coagulase negativa (SCN foi observado 91,9% de sensibilidade ao clorexidine, 70,3% sensíveis ao cloro, 66,2% ao iodo e 24,3% sensíveis ao composto de amônio no tempo de 60". Conclui-se com esse estudo que a maior atividade desinfetante in vitro foi verificada para clorexidine e cloro frente aos S. aureus, iodo e cloro para os SCP e clorexidine e cloro para os SCN. Devido às variações no perfil de sensibilidade e resistência encontradas, é necessária a avaliação regular da eficiência dos desinfetantes usados nas propriedades, com o intuito de observar a eficácia do produto e assim garantir o controle da mastite no rebanho.The objective of this study was to evaluate the in vitro efficacy of commercial disinfectants used in pre- and post-dipping, against Staphylococcus spp. isolated from milk originating from dairy cattle farms in the

  16. The significance of translation regulation in the stress response

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-01-01

    Background The stress response in bacteria involves the multistage control of gene expression but is not entirely understood. To identify the translational response of bacteria in stress conditions and assess its contribution to the regulation of gene expression, the translational states of all mRNAs were compared under optimal growth condition and during nutrient (isoleucine) starvation. Results A genome-scale study of the translational response to nutritional limitation was performed in the model bacterium Lactococcus lactis. Two measures were used to assess the translational status of each individual mRNA: the fraction engaged in translation (ribosome occupancy) and ribosome density (number of ribosomes per 100 nucleotides). Under isoleucine starvation, half of the mRNAs considered were translationally down-regulated mainly due to decreased ribosome density. This pattern concerned genes involved in growth-related functions such as translation, transcription, and the metabolism of fatty acids, phospholipids and bases, contributing to the slowdown of growth. Only 4% of the mRNAs were translationally up-regulated, mostly related to prophagic expression in response to stress. The remaining genes exhibited antagonistic regulations of the two markers of translation. Ribosome occupancy increased significantly for all the genes involved in the biosynthesis of isoleucine, although their ribosome density had decreased. The results revealed complex translational regulation of this pathway, essential to cope with isoleucine starvation. To elucidate the regulation of global gene expression more generally, translational regulation was compared to transcriptional regulation under isoleucine starvation and to other post-transcriptional regulations related to mRNA degradation and mRNA dilution by growth. Translational regulation appeared to accentuate the effects of transcriptional changes for down-regulated growth-related functions under isoleucine starvation although m

  17. Reflections on the role and design of online dictionaries for specialised translation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tarp, Sven

    2014-01-01

    This article is an updated and modified version of a Spanish article published in MonTi 6 (cf. Tarp 2014a). It deals with specialised translation dictionaries. Based on the principles of the function theory, it analyses the different phases and sub-phases of the translation process from a lexicog......This article is an updated and modified version of a Spanish article published in MonTi 6 (cf. Tarp 2014a). It deals with specialised translation dictionaries. Based on the principles of the function theory, it analyses the different phases and sub-phases of the translation process from...

  18. Speech-enabled Computer-aided Translation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mesa-Lao, Bartolomé

    2014-01-01

    The present study has surveyed post-editor trainees’ views and attitudes before and after the introduction of speech technology as a front end to a computer-aided translation workbench. The aim of the survey was (i) to identify attitudes and perceptions among post-editor trainees before performing...... a post-editing task using automatic speech recognition (ASR); and (ii) to assess the degree to which post-editors’ attitudes and expectations to the use of speech technology changed after actually using it. The survey was based on two questionnaires: the first one administered before the participants...

  19. Testing post-editing guidelines

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Flanagan, Marian; Christensen, Tina Paulsen

    2014-01-01

    guidelines to use in translator training programmes. Recently, the first set of publicly available industry-focused PE guidelines (for ‘good enough’ and ‘publishable’ quality) were developed by Translation Automation User Society (TAUS) in partnership with the Centre for Global Intelligent Content (CNGL......), which can be used as a basis on which to instruct post-editors in professional environments. This paper reports on a qualitative study that investigates how trainee translators on an MA course, which is aimed at preparing the trainees for the translation industry, interpret these PE guidelines...... for publishable quality. The findings suggest trainees have difficulties interpreting the guidelines, primarily due to trainee competency gaps, but also due to the wording of the guidelines. Based on our findings we propose training measures to address these competency gaps. Furthermore, we provide post...

  20. A modified risk assessment scoring system for post laser in situ keratomileusis ectasia in topographically normal patients

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammad Miraftab

    2014-01-01

    Conclusion: Our modified ectasia risk scoring system for patients with normal corneal topography can predict post LASIK ectasia risk with acceptable sensitivity and specificity. However, there are still unidentified risk factors for which further studies are required.

  1. PREVALENCIA DE Staphylococcus epidermidis Y Staphylococcus aureus EN PACIENTES CON CONJUNTIVITIS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    P. Hernández-Rodríguez

    2005-12-01

    Full Text Available Con el fin de establecer la prevalencia de Staphylococcus epidermidis y Staphylococcus aureus en pacientes con conjuntivitis, se evaluaron clínica y bacteriológicamente 131 pacientes con diagnóstico clínico presuntivo de conjuntivitis. A cada participante se le tomó muestra de secreción ocular, para la coloración de Gram y cultivo; además, se probó la susceptibilidad de los aislamientos frente a Oxacilina (Ox, Gentamicina (GM, Vancomicina (Va, Trimetoprim Sulfamethoxazole (SXT, Tetraciclina (Te, Cefalothin (CF, Ceftriaxone (CRO y Ciprofloxacina (CIP. El 53% de los cultivos bacteriológicos fueron positivos, donde el 87% de los aislamientos correspondieron a Gram positivos, siendo los más frecuentes Staphylococcus epidermidis (43%, Staphylococcus aureus (30%, Streptococcus sp. (15%, Enterococcus (7%, Corynebacterium sp. 5%. Se observó multirresistencia frente a 3 ó más antibióticos en S. epidermidis (44% y S.aureus (42%. La alta frecuencia de estos microorganismos y la multirresistencia encontrada en este estudio, determinan la importancia que tienen, como posibles patógenos oculares, y la necesidad de implementar las pruebas de susceptibilidad bacteriana en el ámbito oftalmológico. Este es el primer estudio publicado en Colombia sobre la prevalencia de Staphylococcus epidermidis y Staphylococcus aureus en pacientes con conjuntivitis, el cual seguramente originará la iniciación de posteriores investigaciones, encaminadas a determinar el verdadero papel de estos microorganismos, en el proceso infeccioso ocular.

  2. Quantitative proteomic characterization of redox-dependent post-translational modifications on protein cysteines

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Duan, Jicheng; Gaffrey, Matthew J.; Qian, Wei-Jun

    2017-01-01

    Protein cysteine thiols play a crucial role in redox signaling, regulation of enzymatic activity and protein function, and maintaining redox homeostasis in living systems. The unique chemical reactivity of thiol groups makes cysteine susceptible to oxidative modifications by reactive oxygen and nitrogen species to form a broad array of reversible and irreversible protein post-translational modifications (PTMs). The reversible modifications in particular are one of the major components of redox signaling and are involved in regulation of various cellular processes under physiological and pathological conditions. The biological significance of these redox PTMs in health and diseases has been increasingly recognized. Herein, we review the recent advances of quantitative proteomic approaches for investigating redox PTMs in complex biological systems, including the general considerations of sample processing, various chemical or affinity enrichment strategies, and quantitative approaches. We also highlight a number of redox proteomic approaches that enable effective profiling of redox PTMs for addressing specific biological questions. Although some technological limitations remain, redox proteomics is paving the way towards a better understanding of redox signaling and regulation in human health and diseases.

  3. Tax-1 and Tax-2 similarities and differences: focus on post-translational modifications and NF-κB activation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shirinian, Margret; Kfoury, Youmna; Dassouki, Zeina; El-Hajj, Hiba; Bazarbachi, Ali

    2013-01-01

    Although human T cell leukemia virus type 1 and 2 (HTLV-1 and HTLV-2) share similar genetic organization, they have major differences in their pathogenesis and disease manifestation. HTLV-1 is capable of transforming T lymphocytes in infected patients resulting in adult T cell leukemia/lymphoma whereas HTLV-2 is not clearly associated with lymphoproliferative diseases. Numerous studies have provided accumulating evidence on the involvement of the viral transactivators Tax-1 versus Tax-2 in T cell transformation. Tax-1 is a potent transcriptional activator of both viral and cellular genes. Tax-1 post-translational modifications and specifically ubiquitylation and SUMOylation have been implicated in nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-κB) activation and may contribute to its transformation capacity. Although Tax-2 has similar protein structure compared to Tax-1, the two proteins display differences both in their protein–protein interaction and activation of signal transduction pathways. Recent studies on Tax-2 have suggested ubiquitylation and SUMOylation independent mechanisms of NF-κB activation. In this present review, structural and functional differences between Tax-1 and Tax-2 will be summarized. Specifically, we will address their subcellular localization, nuclear trafficking and their effect on cellular regulatory proteins. A special attention will be given to Tax-1/Tax-2 post-translational modification such as ubiquitylation, SUMOylation, phosphorylation, acetylation, NF-κB activation, and protein–protein interactions involved in oncogenecity both in vivo and in vitro. PMID:23966989

  4. Translation and redevelopment in post-communist Europe | Brisset ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The article describes the nature and scope of the means deployed around translation as a phenomenon that underpinned the development of Eastern Europe once it had been liberated from Soviet control. The concept of redevelopment is introduced as best describing what followed in most of the countries of the 'socialist ...

  5. Preparation of melt-spun antimicrobially modified LDH/polyolefin nanocomposite fibers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kutlu, Burak; Schröttner, Percy; Leuteritz, Andreas; Boldt, Regine; Jacobs, Enno; Heinrich, Gert

    2014-08-01

    Layered double hydroxide (LDH) was synthesized and organically modified with camphorsulfonic acid (CSA) and ciprofloxacin. The thermal stability of CSA was improved remarkably under LDH shielding. A minimal inhibitory concentration of free CSA against tested bacteria was determined in order to define the essential quantity in LDH modification. The modified LDHs were melt-compounded with high density polyethylene and the prepared nanocomposites were further melt-spun using a piston-type spinning device. The melt-spun fibers were tested for their antimicrobial activity against Escherichia coli, Proteus vulgaris, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Enterobacter cloacae, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, and Streptococcus pyogenes. CSA integrated fibers show susceptibility against Gram-positive bacteria and ciprofloxacin integrated fibers showed activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. An improved dual approach to post bariatric contouring - Staged liposuction and modified medial thigh lift: A case series

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zaher Jandali

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Objective: Following massive weight loss (MWL medial contouring of the thigh is frequently requested to improve appearance and function. Thigh lifting can be associated with significant complications. We present a case series of post bariatric patients undergoing thigh lift using staged the liposuction, a modified T incision and a buried de-epithelialised dermal flap. Materials and Methods: From January to December 2012, 21 consecutive patients underwent a modified medial thigh lift. A retrospective review of the case notes was performed to assess complications that occurred. Results: There were no major post-operative complications in terms of reoperation, hematoma, thromboembolism and no seromas. Seven patients, all of which were smokers had minor superficial wound healing complications. Aesthetic outcomes were satisfactory for all patients at a minimum follow-up of 6 months. Conclusions: The modified ′T′ incision with staged liposuction is described. We have found the technique to be useful for a variety of different thighs. It is a reproducible method for contouring the medial thigh in MWL patients. In this series, our overall complications were low, and no seromas occurred.

  7. Semantic text relatedness on Al-Qur’an translation using modified path based method

    Science.gov (United States)

    Irwanto, Yudi; Arif Bijaksana, Moch; Adiwijaya

    2018-03-01

    Abdul Baquee Muhammad [1] have built Corpus that contained AlQur’an domain, WordNet and dictionary. He has did initialisation in the development of knowledges about AlQur’an and the knowledges about relatedness between texts in AlQur’an. The Path based measurement method that proposed by Liu, Zhou and Zheng [3] has never been used in the AlQur’an domain. By using AlQur’an translation dataset in this research, the path based measurement method proposed by Liu, Zhou and Zheng [3] will be used to test this method in AlQur’an domain to obtain similarity values and to measure its correlation value. In this study the degree value is proposed to be used in modifying the path based method that proposed in previous research. Degree Value is the number of links that owned by a lcs (lowest common subsumer) node on a taxonomy. The links owned by a node on the taxonomy represent the semantic relationship that a node has in the taxonomy. By using degree value to modify the path-based method that proposed in previous research is expected that the correlation value obtained will increase. After running some experiment by using proposed method, the correlation measurement value can obtain fairly good correlation ties with 200 Word Pairs derive from Noun POS SimLex-999. The correlation value that be obtained is 93.3% which means their bonds are strong and they have very strong correlation. Whereas for the POS other than Noun POS vocabulary that owned by WordNet is incomplete therefore many pairs of words that the value of its similarity is zero so the correlation value is low.

  8. The 5'-poly(A leader of poxvirus mRNA confers a translational advantage that can be achieved in cells with impaired cap-dependent translation.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pragyesh Dhungel

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available The poly(A leader at the 5'-untranslated region (5'-UTR is an unusually striking feature of all poxvirus mRNAs transcribed after viral DNA replication (post-replicative mRNAs. These poly(A leaders are non-templated and of heterogeneous lengths; and their function during poxvirus infection remains a long-standing question. Here, we discovered that a 5'-poly(A leader conferred a selective translational advantage to mRNA in poxvirus-infected cells. A constitutive and uninterrupted 5'-poly(A leader with 12 residues was optimal. Because the most frequent lengths of the 5'-poly(A leaders are 8-12 residues, the result suggests that the poly(A leader has been evolutionarily optimized to boost poxvirus protein production. A 5'-poly(A leader also could increase protein production in the bacteriophage T7 promoter-based expression system of vaccinia virus, the prototypic member of poxviruses. Interestingly, although vaccinia virus post-replicative mRNAs do have 5'- methylated guanosine caps and can use cap-dependent translation, in vaccinia virus-infected cells, mRNA with a 5'-poly(A leader could also be efficiently translated in cells with impaired cap-dependent translation. However, the translation was not mediated through an internal ribosome entry site (IRES. These results point to a fundamental mechanism poxvirus uses to efficiently translate its post-replicative mRNAs.

  9. Brake Stops Both Rotation And Translation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Allred, Johnny W.; Fleck, Vincent J., Jr.

    1995-01-01

    Combination of braking and positioning mechanisms allows both rotation and translation before brake engaged. Designed for use in positioning model airplane in wind tunnel. Modified version used to position camera on tripod. Brake fast and convenient to use; contains single actuator energizing braking actions against both rotation and translation. Braking actuator electric, but pneumatic actuator could be used instead. Compact and lightweight, applies locking forces close to load, and presents minimal cross section to airflow.

  10. Regulation of mRNA translation during mitosis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tanenbaum, Marvin E; Stern-Ginossar, Noam; Weissman, Jonathan S; Vale, Ronald D

    2015-08-25

    Passage through mitosis is driven by precisely-timed changes in transcriptional regulation and protein degradation. However, the importance of translational regulation during mitosis remains poorly understood. Here, using ribosome profiling, we find both a global translational repression and identified ~200 mRNAs that undergo specific translational regulation at mitotic entry. In contrast, few changes in mRNA abundance are observed, indicating that regulation of translation is the primary mechanism of modulating protein expression during mitosis. Interestingly, 91% of the mRNAs that undergo gene-specific regulation in mitosis are translationally repressed, rather than activated. One of the most pronounced translationally-repressed genes is Emi1, an inhibitor of the anaphase promoting complex (APC) which is degraded during mitosis. We show that full APC activation requires translational repression of Emi1 in addition to its degradation. These results identify gene-specific translational repression as a means of controlling the mitotic proteome, which may complement post-translational mechanisms for inactivating protein function.

  11. Impact of Post-Translational Modifications of Crop Proteins under Abiotic Stress

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Akiko Hashiguchi

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The efficiency of stress-induced adaptive responses of plants depends on intricate coordination of multiple signal transduction pathways that act coordinately or, in some cases, antagonistically. Protein post-translational modifications (PTMs can regulate protein activity and localization as well as protein–protein interactions in numerous cellular processes, thus leading to elaborate regulation of plant responses to various external stimuli. Understanding responses of crop plants under field conditions is crucial to design novel stress-tolerant cultivars that maintain robust homeostasis even under extreme conditions. In this review, proteomic studies of PTMs in crops are summarized. Although the research on the roles of crop PTMs in regulating stress response mechanisms is still in its early stage, several novel insights have been retrieved so far. This review covers techniques for detection of PTMs in plants, representative PTMs in plants under abiotic stress, and how PTMs control functions of representative proteins. In addition, because PTMs under abiotic stresses are well described in soybeans under submergence, recent findings in PTMs of soybean proteins under flooding stress are introduced. This review provides information on advances in PTM study in relation to plant adaptations to abiotic stresses, underlining the importance of PTM study to ensure adequate agricultural production in the future.

  12. Staphylococcus chromogenes, a Coagulase-Negative Staphylococcus Species That Can Clot Plasma

    OpenAIRE

    dos Santos, Danielle Cabral; Lange, Carla Christine; Avellar-Costa, Pedro; dos Santos, Katia Regina Netto; Brito, Maria Aparecida Vasconcelos Paiva; Giambiagi-deMarval, Marcia

    2016-01-01

    Staphylococcus chromogenes is one of the main coagulase-negative staphylococci isolated from mastitis of dairy cows. We describe S. chromogenes isolates that can clot plasma. Since the main pathogen causing mastitis is coagulase-positive Staphylococcus aureus, the coagulase-positive phenotype of S. chromogenes described here can easily lead to misidentification.

  13. Characteristic bacteriolytic activities of Staphylococcus hyicus.

    OpenAIRE

    Lämmler, C

    1989-01-01

    Staphylococcus hyicus demonstrated characteristic bacteriolytic activities towards a Micrococcus luteus reference strain. This lytic activity was demonstrated on medium containing M. luteus cells as large zones of transparency around the culture streak. Smaller zones of transparency were observed with Staphylococcus intermedius, Staphylococcus chromogenes, and some strains of Staphylococcus aureus but not with other coagulase-negative staphylococcal species. The distribution and extent of the...

  14. Multiple post-translational modifications in hepatocyte nuclear factor 4α

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yokoyama, Atsushi; Katsura, Shogo; Ito, Ryo; Hashiba, Waka; Sekine, Hiroki; Fujiki, Ryoji; Kato, Shigeaki

    2011-01-01

    Highlights: → We performed comprehensive PTM analysis for HNF4α protein. → We identified 8 PTMs in HNF4α protein including newly identified PTMs. → Among them, we found acetylation at lysine 458 was one of the prime PTMs for HNF4α function. → Acetylation at lysine 458 was inhibitory for HNF4α transcription function. → This modification fluctuated in response to extracellular condition. -- Abstract: To investigate the role of post-translational modifications (PTMs) in the hepatocyte nuclear factor 4α (HNF4α)-mediated transcription, we took a comprehensive survey of PTMs in HNF4α protein by massspectrometry and identified totally 8 PTM sites including newly identified ubiquitilation and acetylation sites. To assess the impact of identified PTMs in HNF4α-function, we introduced point mutations at the identified PTM sites and, tested transcriptional activity of the HNF4α. Among the point-mutations, an acetylation site at lysine 458 was found significant in the HNF4α-mediated transcriptional control. An acetylation negative mutant at lysine 458 showed an increased transcriptional activity by about 2-fold, while an acetylation mimic mutant had a lowered transcriptional activation. Furthermore, this acetylation appeared to be fluctuated in response to extracellular nutrient conditions. Thus, by applying an comprehensive analysis of PTMs, multiple PTMs were newly identified in HNF4α and unexpected role of an HNF4α acetylation could be uncovered.

  15. Identification and characterization of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Staphylococcus haemolyticus and Staphylococcus pettenkoferi from a small animal clinic.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weiss, Sonja; Kadlec, Kristina; Fessler, Andrea T; Schwarz, Stefan

    2013-12-27

    The aim of this study was to isolate and characterize methicillin-resistant staphylococci (MRS) in a small animal clinic and to investigate their distribution and possible transmission. Swabs (n=72) were taken from hospitalized pets, the environment and employees of a small animal clinic and screened for the presence of MRS. The staphylococcal species was confirmed biochemically or by 16S rDNA sequencing. Susceptibility to antimicrobial agents was tested by broth dilution. The presence of mecA and other resistance genes was confirmed by PCR. Molecular typing of the isolates followed standard procedures. In total, 34 MRS belonging to the four species Staphylococcus aureus (n=5), Staphylococcus epidermidis (n=21), Staphylococcus haemolyticus (n=6) or Staphylococcus pettenkoferi (n=2) were isolated. All isolates were multidrug-resistant with resistance to at least three classes of antimicrobial agents. Among the five methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) isolates, four belonged to the clonal complex CC398; two of them were isolated from cats, the remaining two from pet cages. Overall, the MRS isolates differed in their characteristics, except for one S. epidermidis clone (n=9) isolated from hospitalized cats without clinical staphylococcal infections, pet cages, the clinic environment as well as from a healthy employee. This MRSE clone was resistant to 10 classes of antimicrobial agents, including aminocyclitols, β-lactams, fluoroquinolones, lincosamides, macrolides, phenicols, pleuromutilins, sulfonamides, tetracyclines and trimethoprim. These findings suggest a possible transmission of specific MRS isolates between animal patients, employees and the clinic environment. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  16. Staphylococcus chromogenes, a Coagulase-Negative Staphylococcus Species That Can Clot Plasma

    Science.gov (United States)

    dos Santos, Danielle Cabral; Lange, Carla Christine; Avellar-Costa, Pedro; dos Santos, Katia Regina Netto; Brito, Maria Aparecida Vasconcelos Paiva

    2016-01-01

    Staphylococcus chromogenes is one of the main coagulase-negative staphylococci isolated from mastitis of dairy cows. We describe S. chromogenes isolates that can clot plasma. Since the main pathogen causing mastitis is coagulase-positive Staphylococcus aureus, the coagulase-positive phenotype of S. chromogenes described here can easily lead to misidentification. PMID:26912749

  17. Unrestrictive identification of post-translational modifications in the urine proteome without enrichment

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-01-01

    Background Research on the human urine proteome may lay the foundation for the discovery of relevant disease biomarkers. Post-translational modifications (PTMs) have important effects on the functions of protein biomarkers. Identifying PTMs without enrichment adds no extra steps to conventional identification procedures for urine proteomics. The only difference is that this method requires software that can conduct unrestrictive identifications of PTMs. In this study, routine urine proteomics techniques were used to identify urine proteins. Unspecified PTMs were searched by MODa and PEAKS 6 automated software, followed by a manual search to screen out in vivo PTMs by removing all in vitro PTMs and amino acid substitutions. Results There were 75 peptides with 6 in vivo PTMs that were found by both MODa and PEAKS 6. Of these, 34 peptides in 18 proteins have novel in vivo PTMs compared with the annotation information of these proteins on the Universal Protein Resource website. These new in vivo PTMs had undergone methylation, dehydration, oxidation, hydroxylation, phosphorylation, or dihydroxylation. Conclusions In this study, we identified PTMs of urine proteins without the need for enrichment. Our investigation may provide a useful reference for biomarker discovery in the future. PMID:23317149

  18. DIACHRONIC ANALYSIS OF THREE PALESTINIAN MARRIAGE CONTRACTS: IMPLICATIONS FOR TRANSLATORS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammad Ahmad Thawabteh

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available Unlike other discourses, legal discourse should be very simple, straightforward and unambiguous, and so should legal translation. However, legal translation implies multifarious challenges. Though, it is still under-research in the Arab World and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT. The present article attempts to shed some light on the development of the language of legal texts in the OPT as illustrated in the study of three marriage contracts representing three sporadic periods of time— post-First World War, post-Israeli occupation to Palestine and post-foundation of Palestinian National Authority (PNA. The rationale beyond this selection is that the OPT has witnessed a political upheaval since the First World War, started with British Mandate until 1948, Israeli occupation in 1948 and now the rule of PNA. A thorough investigation into the contracts over these periods of time shows a noticeable development of the language of the contracts in terms of terminologies, structure and cultural components. The article reveals a good affinity between the language employed in the structure of the contracts and the social, economic and political situations when the contracts were written. Translation-wise, the article reflects on sample translations of the contracts by Hatim et al. (1995 with a view to examining the intricacies of legal translation. The findings show how important for legal translator to be well-versed in the language of law and the development of legal discourse diachronically. The article finally draws some conclusions which may be useful for legal translator trainers/trainees.

  19. Development of An Impedimetric Aptasensor for the Detection of Staphylococcus aureus

    OpenAIRE

    Reich, Peggy; Stoltenburg, Regina; Strehlitz, Beate; Frense, Dieter; Beckmann, Dieter

    2017-01-01

    In combination with electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, aptamer-based biosensors are a powerful tool for fast analytical devices. Herein, we present an impedimetric aptasensor for the detection of the human pathogen Staphylococcus aureus. The used aptamer targets protein A, a surface bound virulence factor of S. aureus. The thiol-modified protein A-binding aptamer was co-immobilized with 6-mercapto-1-hexanol onto gold electrodes by self-assembly. Optimization of the ratio of aptamer to 6-...

  20. Co-and post-translational events in the biogenesis of pig small intestinal aminopeptidase N

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Danielsen, Erik Michael; Norén, O; Sjöström, H

    1982-01-01

    The biogenesis of pig small intestinal aminopeptidase N (EC 3. 4. 11. 2) was studied by cell-free translation of intestinal mRNA and by labelling of organ cultured intestinal explants. In cell-free translation, the primary mRNA translation product of aminopeptidase N was a polypeptide of Mr 115......,000. When translation was performed in the presence of dog pancreatic microsomes, a Mr 140,000 polypeptide was also observed. A polypeptide of Mr 115,000 was seen for the enzyme, purified from tunicamycin exposed explants. This result suggests that aminopeptidase N is co-translationally inserted...

  1. Antioxidant systems are regulated by nitric oxide-mediated post-translational modifications (NO-PTMs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Juan Carlos Begara-Morales

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available Nitric oxide (NO is a biological messenger that orchestrates a plethora of plant functions, mainly through post-translational modifications (PTMs such as S-nitrosylation or tyrosine nitration. In plants, hundreds of proteins have been identified as potential targets of these NO-PTMs under physiological and stress conditions indicating the relevance of NO in plant-signaling mechanisms. Among these NO protein targets, there are different antioxidant enzymes involved in the control of reactive oxygen species (ROS, such as H2O2, which is also a signal molecule. This highlights the close relationship between ROS/NO signaling pathways. The major plant antioxidant enzymes, including catalase, superoxide dismutases (SODs peroxiredoxins (Prx and all the enzymatic components of the ascorbate-glutathione (Asa-GSH cycle, have been shown to be modulated to different degrees by NO-PTMs. This mini-review will update the recent knowledge concerning the interaction of NO with these antioxidant enzymes, with a special focus on the components of the Asa-GSH cycle and their physiological relevance.

  2. One-year mortality in coagulase-negative Staphylococcus and Staphylococcus aureus infective endocarditis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rasmussen, Rasmus V; Snygg-Martin, Ulrika; Olaison, Lars

    2009-01-01

    The aim of this study was to investigate in-hospital mortality and 12-month mortality in patients with coagulase-negative Staphylococcus (CoNS) compared to Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) infective endocarditis (IE). We used a prospective cohort study of 66 consecutive CoNS and 170 S. aureus IE...

  3. Molecular classification of fatty liver by high-throughput profiling of protein post-translational modifications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Urasaki, Yasuyo; Fiscus, Ronald R; Le, Thuc T

    2016-04-01

    We describe an alternative approach to classifying fatty liver by profiling protein post-translational modifications (PTMs) with high-throughput capillary isoelectric focusing (cIEF) immunoassays. Four strains of mice were studied, with fatty livers induced by different causes, such as ageing, genetic mutation, acute drug usage, and high-fat diet. Nutrient-sensitive PTMs of a panel of 12 liver metabolic and signalling proteins were simultaneously evaluated with cIEF immunoassays, using nanograms of total cellular protein per assay. Changes to liver protein acetylation, phosphorylation, and O-N-acetylglucosamine glycosylation were quantified and compared between normal and diseased states. Fatty liver tissues could be distinguished from one another by distinctive protein PTM profiles. Fatty liver is currently classified by morphological assessment of lipid droplets, without identifying the underlying molecular causes. In contrast, high-throughput profiling of protein PTMs has the potential to provide molecular classification of fatty liver. Copyright © 2016 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  4. Alpha1-acid glycoprotein post-translational modifications: a comparative two dimensional electrophoresis based analysis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    P. Roncada

    2010-04-01

    Full Text Available Alpha1-acid glycoprotein (AGP is an immunomodulatory protein expressed by hepatocytes in response to the systemic reaction that follows tissue damage caused by inflammation, infection or trauma. A proteomic approach based on two dimensional electrophoresis, immunoblotting and staining of 2DE gels with dyes specific for post-translational modifications (PTMs such as glycosylation and phosphorylation has been used to evaluate the differential interspecific protein expression of AGP purified from human, bovine and ovine sera. By means of these techniques, several isoforms have been identified in the investigated species: they have been found to change both with regard to the number of isoforms expressed under physiological condition and with regard to the quality of PTMs (i.e. different oligosaccharidic chains, presence/absence of phosphorilations. In particular, it is suggested that bovine serum AGP may have one of the most complex pattern of PTMs among serum proteins of mammals studied so far.

  5. Controlled release of moxifloxacin from intraocular lenses modified by Ar plasma-assisted grafting with AMPS or SBMA: An in vitro study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pimenta, A F R; Vieira, A P; Colaço, R; Saramago, B; Gil, M H; Coimbra, P; Alves, P; Bozukova, D; Correia, T R; Correia, I J; Guiomar, A J; Serro, A P

    2017-08-01

    Intraocular lenses (IOLs) present an alternative for extended, local drug delivery in the prevention of post-operative acute endophthalmitis. In the present work, we modified the surface of a hydrophilic acrylic material, used for manufacturing of IOLs, through plasma-assisted grafting copolymerization of 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane sulfonic acid (AMPS) or [2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyl]dimethyl-(3-sulfopropyl)ammonium hydroxide (SBMA), with the aim of achieving a controlled and effective drug release. The material was loaded with moxifloxacin (MFX), a commonly used antibiotic for endophthalmitis prevention. The characterization of the modified material showed that relevant properties, like swelling capacity, wettability, refractive index and transmittance, were not affected by the surface modification. Concerning the drug release profiles, the most promising result was obtained when AMPS grafting was done in the presence of MFX. This modification led to a higher amount of drug being released for a longer period of time, which is a requirement for the prevention of endophthalmitis. The material was found to be non-cytotoxic for rabbit corneal endothelial cells. In a second step, prototype IOLs were modified with AMPS and loaded with MFX as previously and, after sterilization and storage (30days), they were tested under dynamic conditions, in a microfluidic cell with volume and renovation rate similar to the eye aqueous humour. MFX solutions collected in this assay were tested against Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis and the released antibiotic proved to be effective against both bacteria until the 12th day of release. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Assigning Quantitative Function to Post-Translational Modifications Reveals Multiple Sites of Phosphorylation That Tune Yeast Pheromone Signaling Output

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pincus, David; Ryan, Christopher J.; Smith, Richard D.; Brent, Roger; Resnekov, Orna; Hakimi, Mohamed Ali

    2013-03-12

    Cell signaling systems transmit information by post-­translationally modifying signaling proteins, often via phosphorylation. While thousands of sites of phosphorylation have been identified in proteomic studies, the vast majority of sites have no known function. Assigning functional roles to the catalog of uncharacterized phosphorylation sites is a key research challenge. Here we present a general approach to address this challenge and apply it to a prototypical signaling pathway, the pheromone response pathway in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The pheromone pathway includes a mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascade activated by a G-­protein coupled receptor (GPCR). We used mass spectrometry-based proteomics to identify sites whose phosphorylation changed when the system was active, and evolutionary conservation to assign priority to a list of candidate MAPK regulatory sites. We made targeted alterations in those sites, and measured the effects of the mutations on pheromone pathway output in single cells. Our work identified six new sites that quantitatively tuned system output. We developed simple computational models to find system architectures that recapitulated the quantitative phenotypes of the mutants. Our results identify a number of regulated phosphorylation events that contribute to adjust the input-­output relationship of this model eukaryotic signaling system. We believe this combined approach constitutes a general means not only to reveal modification sites required to turn a pathway on and off, but also those required for more subtle quantitative effects that tune pathway output. Our results further suggest that relatively small quantitative influences from individual regulatory phosphorylation events endow signaling systems with plasticity that evolution may exploit to quantitatively tailor signaling outcomes.

  7. Staphylococcus chromogenes, a Coagulase-Negative Staphylococcus Species That Can Clot Plasma.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dos Santos, Danielle Cabral; Lange, Carla Christine; Avellar-Costa, Pedro; Dos Santos, Katia Regina Netto; Brito, Maria Aparecida Vasconcelos Paiva; Giambiagi-deMarval, Marcia

    2016-05-01

    Staphylococcus chromogenes is one of the main coagulase-negative staphylococci isolated from mastitis of dairy cows. We describe S. chromogenes isolates that can clot plasma. Since the main pathogen causing mastitis is coagulase-positive Staphylococcus aureus, the coagulase-positive phenotype of S. chromogenes described here can easily lead to misidentification. Copyright © 2016, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

  8. Inducible Clindamycin Resistance in Staphylococcus Species

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Afridi, F. I.; Zeb, M.; Farooqi, B. J.; Murtaza, G.; Hussain, A.

    2014-01-01

    Objective: To determine the frequency of inducible clindamycin resistance in clinical isolates of Staphylococcus species by phenotypic D-test. Study Design: Observational study. Place and Duration of Study: Ziauddin University Hospital, Karachi, from July to December 2011. Methodology: Consecutive clinical isolates of Staphylococcus species were collected and identified by conventional microbiological techniques. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing and inducible clindamycin resistance was carried out by performing D-test using CLSI criteria. Methicillin resistance was detected by using Cefoxitin disk as a surrogate marker. Statistical analysis was performed by SPSS version-17. Results: A total of 667 clinical isolates of Staphylococcus species were obtained during the study period. In these isolates, 177 (26.5%) were Staphylococcus aureus, and 490 (73.5%) were coagulase negative Staphylococci. The total frequency of inducible clindamycin resistance among isolates of Staphylococcus species was 120/667 (18%). Frequency of inducible clindamycin resistance among coagulase negative Staphylococci group and Staphylococcus aureus group were 18.57% and 16.38% respectively. Median age of patients in D-test positive group was 19.5 (1 - 54) years. Conclusion: The frequency of inducible clindamycin resistance among Staphylococcus species may differ in different hospital setup. Clinical microbiology laboratories should implement testing simple and effective D-test on all Staphylococcus species. D-test positive isolates should be reported clindamycin resistant to decrease treatment failure. (author)

  9. Tandem Affinity Purification Approach Coupled to Mass Spectrometry to Identify Post-translational Modifications of Histones Associated with Chromatin-Binding Proteins.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beyer, Sophie; Robin, Philippe; Ait-Si-Ali, Slimane

    2017-01-01

    Protein purification by tandem affinity purification (TAP)-tag coupled to mass spectrometry analysis is usually used to reveal protein complex composition. Here we describe a TAP-tag purification of chromatin-bound proteins along with associated nucleosomes, which allow exhaustive identification of protein partners. Moreover, this method allows exhaustive identification of the post-translational modifications (PTMs) of the associated histones. Thus, in addition to partner characterization, this approach reveals the associated epigenetic landscape that can shed light on the function and properties of the studied chromatin-bound protein.

  10. The Impact of Power on Translation of News Stories

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Javad Azodi

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available Translation has always undergone the impact of various metalinguistic factors which impose their impact during the process of translation and rendering its final linguistic product. News stories or better to say political discourses are among those linguistic materials that more than other textual materials undergo the impact of factors such as ideology. Not being aware of such discursive practices leads the so-called translator to suffice to linguistic substitutions without observing imbedded intentions. For the purpose of this study through a qualitative type of research and based on critical discourse analysis (CDA approach for textual analysis and following Tymoczko’s concept of power (2002 in translation this study aimed to scrutinize the impact of power on Persian translations of different pieces of news stories in English in 2012. The corpus consists of some pieces of English news stories in worldwide news agencies (namely, Reuters, Washington Post, New York Post, and Forbes about Iran’s nuclear program. Results of the study showed that ideology is the very important stimulus which can control and direct the purpose of the news stories being translated from English to Persian and reveal its impact in a desired way as news stories for target audience.

  11. Nasal Carriage Rate of Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus among Health Care Workers at a Tertiary Care Hospital in Kathmandu, Nepal.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khatri, S; Pant, N D; Bhandari, R; Shrestha, K L; Shrestha, C D; Adhikari, N; Poudel, A

    2017-01-01

    Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus is one of the most common causes of nosocomial infections. Due to its multidrug resistant nature; infections due to Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus are often very difficult to treat. Colonized health care workers are the important sources of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. The objectives of this study were to determine the nasal carriage rate of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus among health care workers at Kathmandu Medical College and Teaching Hospital, Nepal and to assess their antimicrobial susceptibility patterns. A cross sectional study was conducted among 252 health care workers from July to November 2013. Mannitol salt agar was used to culture the nasal swabs. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed by Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion technique following Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute guidelines. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains were confirmed by using cefoxitin disc and by determining the minimum inhibitory concentration of oxacillin by agar dilution method. Of 252 healthcare workers, 46(18.3%) were positive for Staphylococcus aureus among which 19(41.3%) were Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus carriers. Overall rate of nasal carriage of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus was 7.5% (19/252).The higher percentages of lab personnel were nasal carriers of S. aureus (31.6%) and Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (10.5%).The percentages of nasal carriage of S. aureus (35.7%) and Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (14.3%) were highest in the health care workers from post operative department. Higher percentage of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus were susceptible toward amikacin (100%) and vancomycin (100%) followed by cotrimoxazole (84.2%). High rates of nasal carriage of S. aureus and Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus were observed among the healthcare workers, which indicate the need of

  12. Frequency of the Occurence of Methicilin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA Infections in Hyderabad, Pakistan

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nazir Ahmed Brohi

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Staphylococcus aureus is a potential pathogen of hospital and community related infections. It secretes toxins or the enzymes as virulence factor of mild to severe infections and show resistance to beta-lactam antibiotic including penicillin, methicillin, oxacillin and now vancomycin that could alarm of equal risk factors of Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA infections in the patients. The survey report of 381 patients of Hyderabad, Pakistan was collected from March 2013 to June 2014 in which 176 cases were reported for Staphylococcus aureus in both genders of different age groups of 3-15 y kids, 16-45 y adults and 45-70 y olds, which showed 208 and 132 specimens Staphylococcus infection and 16 and 4 cases of MRSA infections in male and female patients, respectively whereas other 31 cases showed no infection. The laboratory diagnosis of the 200 samples from various hospitalized patients revealed the highest percentage of Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus MRSA in pus and post-operative wounds (17% followed by skin swabs (10%, sputum (7% and blood (0%. The observations revealed greater prevalence of MRSA infection in elderly age 16-45 years males than the females and other age groups. Antibiotic susceptibility test of 26 antibiotics revealed resistance (R-53%, sensitive (S-39 and variable (V-7% sensitivity zones (mm. Amplification of mecA gene was done using PCR reaction that revealed mecA gene bands up to 150-200 base pairs by test resistant strains.

  13. Salivary Cystatins: Exploring New Post-Translational Modifications and Polymorphisms by Top-Down High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Manconi, Barbara; Liori, Barbara; Cabras, Tiziana; Vincenzoni, Federica; Iavarone, Federica; Castagnola, Massimo; Messana, Irene; Olianas, Alessandra

    2017-11-03

    Cystatins are a complex family of cysteine peptidase inhibitors. In the present study, various proteoforms of cystatin A, cystatin B, cystatin S, cystatin SN, and cystatin SA were detected in the acid-soluble fraction of human saliva and characterized by a top-down HPLC-ESI-MS approach. Proteoforms of cystatin D were also detected and characterized by an integrated top-down and bottom-up strategy. The proteoforms derive from coding sequence polymorphisms and post-translational modifications, in particular, phosphorylation, N-terminal processing, and oxidation. This study increases the current knowledge of salivary cystatin proteoforms and provides the basis to evaluate possible qualitative/quantitative variations of these proteoforms in different pathological states and reveal new potential salivary biomarkers of disease. Data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD007170.

  14. Volatiles produced by Staphylococcus xylosus and Staphylococcus carnosus during growth in sausage minces

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Stahnke, Marie Louise Heller

    1999-01-01

    of air. Volatiles produced by the cultures were collected during growth, identified and quantified. The data were analysed by partial least squares regression. The results showed that oxygen in general had more influence on the aroma producing capacity of Staphylococcus xylosus than of Staphylococcus...

  15. Role of post-translational modifications at the β-subunit ectodomain in complex association with a promiscuous plant P4-ATPase.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Costa, Sara R; Marek, Magdalena; Axelsen, Kristian B; Theorin, Lisa; Pomorski, Thomas G; López-Marqués, Rosa L

    2016-06-01

    P-type ATPases of subfamily IV (P4-ATPases) constitute a major group of phospholipid flippases that form heteromeric complexes with members of the Cdc50 (cell division control 50) protein family. Some P4-ATPases interact specifically with only one β-subunit isoform, whereas others are promiscuous and can interact with several isoforms. In the present study, we used a site-directed mutagenesis approach to assess the role of post-translational modifications at the plant ALIS5 β-subunit ectodomain in the functionality of the promiscuous plant P4-ATPase ALA2. We identified two N-glycosylated residues, Asn(181) and Asn(231) Whereas mutation of Asn(231) seems to have a small effect on P4-ATPase complex formation, mutation of evolutionarily conserved Asn(181) disrupts interaction between the two subunits. Of the four cysteine residues located in the ALIS5 ectodomain, mutation of Cys(86) and Cys(107) compromises complex association, but the mutant β-subunits still promote complex trafficking and activity to some extent. In contrast, disruption of a conserved disulfide bond between Cys(158) and Cys(172) has no effect on the P4-ATPase complex. Our results demonstrate that post-translational modifications in the β-subunit have different functional roles in different organisms, which may be related to the promiscuity of the P4-ATPase. © 2016 The Author(s). published by Portland Press Limited on behalf of the Biochemical Society.

  16. Dual RNA regulatory control of a Staphylococcus aureus virulence factor.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chabelskaya, Svetlana; Bordeau, Valérie; Felden, Brice

    2014-04-01

    In pathogens, the accurate programming of virulence gene expression is essential for infection. It is achieved by sophisticated arrays of regulatory proteins and ribonucleic acids (sRNAs), but in many cases their contributions and connections are not yet known. Based on genetic, biochemical and structural evidence, we report that the expression pattern of a Staphylococcus aureus host immune evasion protein is enabled by the collaborative actions of RNAIII and small pathogenicity island RNA D (SprD). Their combined expression profiles during bacterial growth permit early and transient synthesis of Sbi to avoid host immune responses. Together, these two sRNAs use antisense mechanisms to monitor Sbi expression at the translational level. Deletion analysis combined with structural analysis of RNAIII in complex with its novel messenger RNA (mRNA) target indicate that three distant RNAIII domains interact with distinct sites of the sbi mRNA and that two locations are deep in the sbi coding region. Through distinct domains, RNAIII lowers production of two proteins required for avoiding innate host immunity, staphylococcal protein A and Sbi. Toeprints and in vivo mutational analysis reveal a novel regulatory module within RNAIII essential for attenuation of Sbi translation. The sophisticated translational control of mRNA by two differentially expressed sRNAs ensures supervision of host immune escape by a major pathogen.

  17. Susceptibility of Staphylococcus species and subspecies to teicoplanin.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bannerman, T L; Wadiak, D L; Kloos, W E

    1991-01-01

    Twenty-four Staphylococcus species and their subspecies were examined for their susceptibilities to teicoplanin by disk diffusion (30-micrograms disk) and agar dilution for the determination of MICs. Moderately susceptible and resistant clinical strains were further tested for their susceptibilities to oxacillin and vancomycin. Teicoplanin resistance was not observed in the reference strains of the various Staphylococcus species isolated from healthy volunteers or animals. However, the novobiocin-resistant species Staphylococcus saprophyticus, Staphylococcus cohnii, Staphylococcus xylosus, Staphylococcus arlettae, Staphylococcus kloosii, and Staphylococcus gallinarum were less susceptible to teicoplanin (MIC, 2 to 8 micrograms/ml) than most of the novobiocin-susceptible species were (MIC, 0.5 to 4 micrograms/ml). Clinical isolates of coagulase-negative species were generally less susceptible to teicoplanin than were reference strains. Seven percent of the Staphylococcus epidermidis clinical strains were moderately susceptible (MIC, 16 micrograms/ml) to teicoplanin. Of these strains, 70% were oxacillin resistant. For Staphylococcus haemolyticus strains, 11% were resistant (MIC, greater than 16 micrograms/ml) and 21% were moderately susceptible to teicoplanin. Of these strains, 95% were oxacillin resistant, No strains of S. epidermidis or S. haemolyticus were intermediate or resistant to vancomycin. Teicoplanin appears to be less active in vitro against oxacillin-resistant S. haemolyticus. However, teicoplanin is an effective antimicrobial agent against many Staphylococcus species. PMID:1835340

  18. Cultural and semantic equivalence of the activity measure post-acute care (AM-PAC) after its translation into Mandarin Chinese.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Feng-Hang; Ni, Pengsheng; Chiou, Hung-Yi; Hou, Wen-Hsuan; Jette, Alan M

    2018-03-21

    The purpose of this study was to investigate the cultural and semantic equivalence of the Activity Measure Post-Acute Care (AM-PAC) outpatient short forms after they were translated from American English to Mandarin Chinese. This study was conducted with a composite sample of a group of 483 American adults (mean age 63.1 years, 42.4% males) and 553 Taiwanese adults (mean age 60.6 years, 47.2% males) who were undergoing home care or outpatient rehabilitation services. A confirmatory factor analysis tested the cultural equivalence of the AM-PAC dimensions between the US and Taiwanese samples. Semantic equivalence was tested through an item response theory-based differential item functioning (DFI) analysis. Results of the confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated good model-data fit of the AM-PAC in both the US and Taiwanese samples. Significant DFI was found for six Basic Mobility items, two Daily Activity items, and four Applied Cognition items. A DFI-adjusted conversion table was generated to transform the raw scores of the measure for comparisons between the two countries. This study provides evidence to support the conceptual equivalence of the AM-PAC when used in rehabilitation patients between American and Taiwanese cultural contexts. Some DFI items between the two groups were found, suggesting that some differences in semantic understanding of these items between cultures require cross-cultural adjustments. Implications for Rehabilitation Cultural equivalence needs to be tested before applying a clinical measure to another context. The findings of this study supported the three activity domains that the Activity Measure Post-Acute Care measures: Basic Mobility, Daily Activity, and Applied Cognition, which are all important rehabilitation outcomes that need to be assessed and monitored across rehabilitation settings. Differential item functioning was observed between the English and Chinese versions of the Activity Measure Post-Acute Care, indicating that

  19. A homology-based pipeline for global prediction of post-translational modification sites

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Xiang; Shi, Shao-Ping; Xu, Hao-Dong; Suo, Sheng-Bao; Qiu, Jian-Ding

    2016-05-01

    The pathways of protein post-translational modifications (PTMs) have been shown to play particularly important roles for almost any biological process. Identification of PTM substrates along with information on the exact sites is fundamental for fully understanding or controlling biological processes. Alternative computational strategies would help to annotate PTMs in a high-throughput manner. Traditional algorithms are suited for identifying the common organisms and tissues that have a complete PTM atlas or extensive experimental data. While annotation of rare PTMs in most organisms is a clear challenge. In this work, to this end we have developed a novel homology-based pipeline named PTMProber that allows identification of potential modification sites for most of the proteomes lacking PTMs data. Cross-promotion E-value (CPE) as stringent benchmark has been used in our pipeline to evaluate homology to known modification sites. Independent-validation tests show that PTMProber achieves over 58.8% recall with high precision by CPE benchmark. Comparisons with other machine-learning tools show that PTMProber pipeline performs better on general predictions. In addition, we developed a web-based tool to integrate this pipeline at http://bioinfo.ncu.edu.cn/PTMProber/index.aspx. In addition to pre-constructed prediction models of PTM, the website provides an extensional functionality to allow users to customize models.

  20. Staphylococcus pseudintermedius in the dog

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bannoehr, Jeanette; Guardabassi, Luca

    2012-01-01

    The dog is the natural host of Staphylococcus pseudintermedius. Many research efforts are currently being undertaken to expand our knowledge and understanding of this important canine commensal and opportunistic pathogen. The objective of this review is to summarize the current knowledge of the s......The dog is the natural host of Staphylococcus pseudintermedius. Many research efforts are currently being undertaken to expand our knowledge and understanding of this important canine commensal and opportunistic pathogen. The objective of this review is to summarize the current knowledge...... consequences for clinical practice. Staphylococcus pseudintermedius carriage in the dog is more frequent and genetically heterogeneous compared with that of Staphylococcus aureus in man. It appears that these staphylococcal species have evolved separately through adaptation to their respective natural hosts...

  1. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus; Hospital-acquired MRSA (HA-MRSA); Staph - MRSA; Staphylococcal - MRSA ... Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). www.cdc.gov/mrsa/index.html . Updated ...

  2. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus: Prevalence, incidence, risk factors, and effects on survival of patients in a specialist palliative care unit: A prospective observational study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gleeson, Aoife; Larkin, Philip; Walsh, Cathal; O'Sullivan, Niamh

    2016-04-01

    Little is known about the impact of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in palliative care settings. To date, the clinical impact of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in palliative care is unknown. To determine prevalence and incidence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonisation in a specialist palliative care setting, to identify risk factors for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonisation, to determine the eradication success rate and to determine the impact of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus on survival. Prospective cohort study. Data were collected for consecutive admissions to an inpatient palliative care service. Patients were screened for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonisation on admission and 1 week post admission. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus eradication was attempted in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus positive patients. Data were collected from 609 admissions for 466 individual patients. Admission screening data were available in 95.5%. Prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonisation was 11.59% (54 patients). One week incidence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonisation was 1.2%. Risk factors for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonisation were determined using Chi-Squared test and included high Waterlow score (p resistant Staphylococcus aureus status prior to admission (p resistant Staphylococcus aureus was eradicated in 8.1% of admissions, while 46 patients commenced on the protocol (62.2%) died before completing it. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus did not significantly impact survival but was significantly associated with having infection episodes and longer length of stay. This study identified risk factors for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonisation in palliative care patients. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus was eradicated in 8.1% of patients. Hence

  3. Wear-resistant and electromagnetic absorbing behaviors of oleic acid post-modified ferrite-filled epoxy resin composite coating

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Wenjie; Zang, Chongguang; Jiao, Qingjie

    2015-03-01

    The post-modified Mn-Zn ferrite was prepared by grafting oleic acid on the surface of Mn-Zn ferrite to inhibit magnetic nanoparticle aggregation. Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy was used to characterize the particle surfaces. The friction and electromagnetic absorbing properties of a thin coating fabricated by dispersing ferrite into epoxy resin (EP) were investigated. The roughness of the coating and water contact angle were measured using the VEECO and water contact angle meter. Friction tests were conducted using a stainless-steel bearing ball and a Rockwell diamond tip, respectively. The complex permittivity and complex permeability of the composite coating were studied in the low frequency (10 MHz-1.5 GHz). Surface modified ferrites are found to improve magnetic particles dispersion in EP resulting in significant compatibility between inorganic and organic materials. Results also indicate that modified ferrite/EP coatings have a lower roughness average value and higher water contact angle than original ferrite/EP coatings. The enhanced tribological properties of the modified ferrite/EP coatings can be seen from the increased coefficient value. The composite coatings with modified ferrite are observed to exhibit better reflection loss compared with the coatings with original ferrite.

  4. Disease-modifying effect of atipamezole in a model of post-traumatic epilepsy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nissinen, Jari; Andrade, Pedro; Natunen, Teemu; Hiltunen, Mikko; Malm, Tarja; Kanninen, Katja; Soares, Joana I; Shatillo, Olena; Sallinen, Jukka; Ndode-Ekane, Xavier Ekolle; Pitkänen, Asla

    2017-10-01

    Treatment of TBI remains a major unmet medical need, with 2.5 million new cases of traumatic brain injury (TBI) each year in Europe and 1.5 million in the USA. This single-center proof-of-concept preclinical study tested the hypothesis that pharmacologic neurostimulation with proconvulsants, either atipamezole, a selective α 2 -adrenoceptor antagonist, or the cannabinoid receptor 1 antagonist SR141716A, as monotherapy would improve functional recovery after TBI. A total of 404 adult Sprague-Dawley male rats were randomized into two groups: sham-injured or lateral fluid-percussion-induced TBI. The rats were treated with atipamezole (started at 30min or 7 d after TBI) or SR141716A (2min or 30min post-TBI) for up to 9 wk. Total follow-up time was 14 wk after treatment initiation. Outcome measures included motor (composite neuroscore, beam-walking) and cognitive performance (Morris water-maze), seizure susceptibility, spontaneous seizures, and cortical and hippocampal pathology. All injured rats exhibited similar impairment in the neuroscore and beam-walking tests at 2 d post-TBI. Atipamezole treatment initiated at either 30min or 7 d post-TBI and continued for 9 wk via subcutaneous osmotic minipumps improved performance in both the neuroscore and beam-walking tests, but not in the Morris water-maze spatial learning and memory test. Atipamezole treatment initiated at 7 d post-TBI also reduced seizure susceptibility in the pentylenetetrazol test 14 wk after treatment initiation, although it did not prevent the development of epilepsy. SR141716A administered as a single dose at 2min post-TBI or initiated at 30min post-TBI and continued for 9 wk had no recovery-enhancing or antiepileptogenic effects. Mechanistic studies to assess the α 2 -adrenoceptor subtype specificity of the disease-modifying effects of atipametzole revealed that genetic ablation of α 2A -noradrenergic receptor function in Adra2A mice carrying an N79P point mutation had antiepileptogenic effects

  5. Diversity and evolution of blaZ from Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococci

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Olsen, John E.; Christensen, Henrik; Aarestrup, Frank Møller

    2006-01-01

    and sequences retrieved from public databases were compared. A phylogenetic tree showed that blaZ exists in three evolutionary lines: one group was of plasmid origin, one group was of chromosomal origin and one intermediate group. Sixty-nine sequence types were demonstrated. They translated into 11 BlaZ protein...... types. The major types all contained strains of both human and bovine origin, and more than one Staphylococcus species, demonstrating a shared gene pool. In a comparison of S. aureus and CoNS obtained from five Danish cattle herds, the same type of blaZ was only detected in one case. Conclusions...

  6. [Finite element analysis of the maxillary central incisor with traditional and modified crown lengthening surgery and post-core restoration in management of crown-root fracture].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhen, M; Wei, Y P; Hu, W J; Rong, Q G; Zhang, H

    2016-06-01

    To construct three-dimensional finite element models with modified crown lengthening surgery and post-core restoration in management of various crown-root fracture types, to investigate the intensity and distribution of stressin models mentioned above, and to compare and analyze the indications of traditional and modified crown lengthening surgeries from the mechanic point of view. Nine three-dimensional finite element models with modified crown lengthening surgery and post-core restoration were established and analyzed by micro-CT scanning technique, dental impression scanner, Mimics 10.0, Geomagic studio 9.0 and ANSYS 14.0 software. The von Mises stress of dentin, periodontal ligament, alveolar bone, post and core, as well as the periodontal ligament area and threshold limit value were calculated and compared with the findings of traditional crown lengthening models which had been published earlierby our research group. The von Mises stress intensity of modified crown lengthening models were: dentin>post>core>alveolar bone>periodontal ligament. The maximum von Mises stress of dentin(44.37-80.58 MPa)distributed in lingual central shoulder. The periodontal ligament area of the modified crown lengthening surgery was reduced by 6% to 28%, under the same crown-root fracture conditions, the periodontal ligament area of modified crown lengthening models was larger than that of the traditional crown lengthening models. In modified crown lengthening surgery models, the von Mises stress of periodontal ligament of B3L1m, B3L2m, B3L3m models exceeded their limit values, however, the von Mises stress of periodontal ligament of the B2L2c, B2L3c, B3L1c, B3L2c, B3L3c models exceeded their limit values in traditional crown lengthening surgery models. The modified crown lengthening surgery conserves more periodontal supporting tissues, which facilitates the long-term survival of teeth. The indication of modified crown lengthening surgery is wider than traditional method. The

  7. Cause for concern? Attitudes towards translation crowdsourcing in professional translators’ blogs

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Flanagan, Marian

    2016-01-01

    This paper seeks to identify professional translators’ attitudes towards the practice of translation crowdsourcing. The data consist of 48 professional translator blogs. A thematic analysis of their blog posts highlights three main findings: translation crowdsourcing can enhance visibility...... do not openly discuss their motives for differentiating between the various non-profit initiatives, and while there is much discussion on translation crowdsourcing for humanitarian causes, little or no attention is paid to free and open source software projects....

  8. Antibiotic susceptibility pattern of staphylococcus aureus and methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus in a tertiary care hospital

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    CP Bhatt

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available Background: Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureushas emerged as one of the most important nosocomial pathogens. It invokes a tremendous financial burden and enhanced morbidity and mortality due to difficult to treat systemic infections.Aim of this study was to determine antibiotic susceptibility pattern of Staphylococcus aureus and Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Materials and Methods: Different clinical specimens were collected and processed for routine culture and antibiotic sensitivity test by standard microbiology techniques. Results: Out of 1173 samples received for microbiological examination, 100 were found to be S. aureus with 19% cases were Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA. Fourteen MRSA were found from inpatient and 5 were from outpatient. MRSA was found higher in female than male and maximum number (31.5% was found in age group 0-10 years. Staphylococcus aureus was 100% sensitive to Vancomycin followed by Amikacin (90%, Gentamycin (83%, and tetracycline (81%. On urine isolates Nitrofurantoin(91.6% was drug of choice. All the isolates were resistant to Penicillin G. In case of Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus showed 100% sensitive to Vancomycin followed by Amikacin (84.2%, Tetracycline (63.1%, Ciprofloxacin (42% and Gentamycin (36.8%. Among urine isolates Nitrofutantoin showed 87.5% sensitive followed by Norfloxacin (75%. Conclusion: Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus was found 19% of Staphylococcus aureus isolates. It was most common in females, hospitalized patients and young age group. Vancomycin seems to be drug of choice followed by Amikacin. It would be helpful to formulating and monitoring the antibiotic policy and ensure proper empiric treatment. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/jpn.v4i7.10297 Journal of Pathology of Nepal (2014 Vol. 4, 548-551   

  9. Neonatal Staphylococcus lugdunensis urinary tract infection.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hayakawa, Itaru; Hataya, Hiroshi; Yamanouchi, Hanako; Sakakibara, Hiroshi; Terakawa, Toshiro

    2015-08-01

    Staphylococcus lugdunensis is a known pathogen of infective endocarditis, but not of urinary tract infection. We report a previously healthy neonate without congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract who developed urinary tract infection due to Staphylococcus lugdunensis, illustrating that Staphylococcus lugdunensis can cause urinary tract infection even in those with no urinary tract complications. © 2015 Japan Pediatric Society.

  10. General-relativistic celestial mechanics. II. Translational equations of motion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Damour, T.; Soffel, M.; Xu, C.

    1992-01-01

    The translational laws of motion for gravitationally interacting systems of N arbitrarily composed and shaped, weakly self-gravitating, rotating, deformable bodies are obtained at the first post-Newtonian approximation of general relativity. The derivation uses our recently introduced multi-reference-system method and obtains the translational laws of motion by writing that, in the local center-of-mass frame of each body, relativistic inertial effects combine with post-Newtonian self- and externally generated gravitational forces to produce a global equilibrium (relativistic generalization of d'Alembert's principle). Within the first post-Newtonian approximation [i.e., neglecting terms of order (v/c) 4 in the equations of motion], our work is the first to obtain complete and explicit results, in the form of infinite series, for the laws of motion of arbitrarily composed and shaped bodies. We first obtain the laws of motion of each body as an infinite series exhibiting the coupling of all the (Blanchet-Damour) post-Newtonian multipole moments of this body to the post-Newtonian tidal moments (recently defined by us) felt by this body. We then give the explicit expression of these tidal moments in terms of post-Newtonian multipole moments of the other bodies

  11. Color Mixing Correction for Post-printed Patterns on Colored Background Using Modified Particle Density Model

    OpenAIRE

    Suwa , Misako; Fujimoto , Katsuhito

    2006-01-01

    http://www.suvisoft.com; Color mixing occurs between background and foreground colors when a pattern is post-printed on a colored area because ink is not completely opaque. This paper proposes a new method for the correction of color mixing in line pattern such as characters and stamps, by using a modified particle density model. Parameters of the color correction can be calculated from two sets of foreground and background colors. By employing this method, the colors of foreground patterns o...

  12. Modified ultrafast thermometer UFT-M and temperature measurements during Physics of Stratocumulus Top (POST

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    W. Kumala

    2013-08-01

    Full Text Available A modified UFT-M version of the ultrafast airborne thermometer UFT, aimed at in-cloud temperature measurements, was designed for the Physics of Stratocumulus Top (POST field campaign. Improvements in its construction resulted in the sensor's increased reliability, which provided valuable measurements in 15 of the 17 flights. Oversampling the data allowed for the effective correction of the artefacts resulting from the interference with electromagnetic transmissions from on-board avionic systems and the thermal noise resulting from the sensor construction. The UFT-M records, when averaged to the 1.4 and 55 m resolutions, compared to the similar records of a thermometer in a Rosemount housing, indicate that the housing distorts even low-resolution airborne temperature measurements. Data collected with the UFT-M during the course of POST characterise the thermal structure of stratocumulus and capping inversion with the maximum resolution of ~1 cm. In this paper, examples of UFT-M records are presented and discussed.

  13. miRNA-dependent translational repression in the Drosophila ovary.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    John Reich

    Full Text Available The Drosophila ovary is a tissue rich in post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression. Many of the regulatory factors are proteins identified via genetic screens. The more recent discovery of microRNAs, which in other animals and tissues appear to regulate translation of a large fraction of all mRNAs, raised the possibility that they too might act during oogenesis. However, there has been no direct demonstration of microRNA-dependent translational repression in the ovary.Here, quantitative analyses of transcript and protein levels of transgenes with or without synthetic miR-312 binding sites show that the binding sites do confer translational repression. This effect is dependent on the ability of the cells to produce microRNAs. By comparison with microRNA-dependent translational repression in other cell types, the regulated mRNAs and the protein factors that mediate repression were expected to be enriched in sponge bodies, subcellular structures with extensive similarities to the P bodies found in other cells. However, no such enrichment was observed.Our results reveal the variety of post-transcriptional regulatory mechanisms that operate in the Drosophila ovary, and have implications for the mechanisms of miRNA-dependent translational control used in the ovary.

  14. Top-down and Middle-down Protein Analysis Reveals that Intact and Clipped Human Histones Differ in Post-translational Modification Patterns

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tvardovskiy, Andrey; Wrzesinski, Krzysztof; Sidoli, Simone

    2015-01-01

    Post-translational modifications (PTMs) of histone proteins play a fundamental role in regulation of DNA-templated processes. There is also growing evidence that proteolytic cleavage of histone N-terminal tails, known as histone clipping, influences nucleosome dynamics and functional properties...... hepatocytes and the hepatocellular carcinoma cell line HepG2/C3A when grown in spheroid (3D) culture, but not in a flat (2D) culture. Using tandem mass spectrometry we localized four different clipping sites in H3 and one clipping site in H2B. We show that in spheroid culture clipped H3 proteoforms are mainly...

  15. Post-translational modifications are key players of the Legionella pneumophila infection strategy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Michard, Céline; Doublet, Patricia

    2015-01-01

    Post-translational modifications (PTMs) are widely used by eukaryotes to control the enzymatic activity, localization or stability of their proteins. Traditionally, it was believed that the broad biochemical diversity of the PTMs is restricted to eukaryotic cells, which exploit it in extensive networks to fine-tune various and complex cellular functions. During the last decade, the advanced detection methods of PTMs and functional studies of the host–pathogen relationships highlight that bacteria have also developed a large arsenal of PTMs, particularly to subvert host cell pathways to their benefit. Legionella pneumophila, the etiological agent of the severe pneumonia legionellosis, is the paradigm of highly adapted intravacuolar pathogens that have set up sophisticated biochemical strategies. Among them, L. pneumophila has evolved eukaryotic-like and rare/novel PTMs to hijack host cell processes. Here, we review recent progress about the diversity of PTMs catalyzed by Legionella: ubiquitination, prenylation, phosphorylation, glycosylation, methylation, AMPylation, and de-AMPylation, phosphocholination, and de-phosphocholination. We focus on the host cell pathways targeted by the bacteria catalyzed PTMs and we stress the importance of the PTMs in the Legionella infection strategy. Finally, we highlight that the discovery of these PTMs undoubtedly made significant breakthroughs on the molecular basis of Legionella pathogenesis but also lead the way in improving our knowledge of the eukaryotic PTMs and complex cellular processes that are associated to. PMID:25713573

  16. METHICILLIN-RESISTANT STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS (MRSA ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Nosocomial infections caused by methicillin-resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus often pose therapeutic dilemma to the clinicians because of the multi resistant nature of these strains of Staphylococcus aureus. Outbreaks of both nosocomial and community acquired infections are also frequent and difficult to control.

  17. Maintaining the clinical relevance of animal models in translational studies of post-traumatic stress disorder.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cohen, Hagit; Matar, Michael A; Zohar, Joseph

    2014-01-01

    The diagnosis of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is conditional on directly experiencing or witnessing a significantly threatening event and the presence of a certain minimal number of symptoms from each of four symptom clusters (re-experiencing, avoidance, negative cognition and mood, and hyperarousal) at least one month after the event (DSM 5) (American Psychiatric Association 2013). Only a proportion of the population exposed develops symptoms fulfilling the criteria. The individual heterogeneity in responses of stress-exposed animals suggested that adapting clearly defined and reliably reproducible "diagnostic", i.e. behavioral, criteria for animal responses would augment the clinical validity of the analysis of study data. We designed cut-off (inclusion/exclusion) behavioral criteria (CBC) which classify study subjects as being severely, minimally or partially affected by the stress paradigm, to be applied retrospectively in the analysis of behavioral data. Behavioral response classification enables the researcher to correlate (retrospectively) specific anatomic, bio-molecular and physiological parameters with the degree and pattern of the individual behavioral response, and also introduces "prevalence rates" as a valid study-parameter. The cumulative results of our studies indicate that, by classifying the data from individual subjects according to their response patterns, the animal study can more readily be translated into clinical "follow-up" studies and back again. This article will discuss the concept of the model and its background, and present a selection of studies employing and examining the model, alongside the underlying translational rationale of each. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Institute for Laboratory Animal Research. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  18. Bilateral Neck Pyomyositis Caused by Staphylococcus capitis and Staphylococcus saccharolyticus in a Diabetic Adult

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nicholas Young

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available We report a case of pyomyositis of the paraspinal neck muscles caused by two coagulase-negative staphylococci: Staphylococcus capitis and Staphylococcus saccharolyticus. Inflammation in the spermatic cords was an additional feature of this infection. Treatment with six weeks of first-generation cephalosporin therapy resulted in complete clinical and radiological resolution.

  19. Avaliação in vitro da eficácia de desinfetantes comerciais utilizados no pré e pós-dippingfrente amostras de Staphylococcus spp. isoladas de mastite bovina In vitro evaluation of the efficacy of commercial disinfectants used in pre and post-dipping against Staphylococcus spp. isolated from bovine mastitis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elizabeth Sampaio de Medeiros

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available Objetivou-se com este estudo avaliar a sensibilidade in vitro de Staphylococcus spp.frente a alguns desinfetantes comerciais utilizados no pré e pós-dipping em vacas leiteiras. Foram testados um total de 60 isolados de Staphylococcus spp. identificados como S. aureus (50 e Staphylococcus coagulase positiva (10 recuperados de glândulas mamárias de vacas com mastite subclínica procedentes das regiões Metropolitana do Recife, Agreste e Zona da Mata do Estado de Pernambuco. O estudo da eficácia dos desinfetantes utilizados no pré e pós-dipping foi realizado utilizando-se os seguintes princípios ativos: cloro (2,5%, iodo (0,57%, clorexidine (2,0%, amônia quaternária (4,0% e ácido lático (2,0% em quatro tempos distintos (15", 30", 60" e 300". Observou-se que 100% de S. aureus foram sensíveis ao iodo, 93,3% sensíveis a clorexidine, 80% sensíveis a amônia, 35,6% sensíveis ao ácido lático e 97,8% resistentes ao cloro no tempo de 60". Com relação a Staphylococcus coagulase positiva (SCP, 100% dos isolados foram sensíveis ao iodo, 81,8% sensíveis a amônia quaternária, 99,9% sensíveis ao ácido lático, 72,7% sensíveis a clorexidine e 100% resistentes ao cloro no tempo de 60". Conclui-se que a maior atividade desinfetante in vitro foi verificada para o iodo e clorexidine frente a S. aureus e do iodo e ácido lático frente aos SCP e que há necessidade de avaliação periódica dos desinfetantes utilizados nas propriedades leiteiras nas regiões estudadas, pois, existem variações no perfil de sensibilidade e resistência aos desinfetantes que podem comprometer os programas de controle da mastite bovina causada por Staphylococcus spp.The objective of this investigation was to evaluate the in vitro sensibility of Staphylococcus spp. to several commercially available disinfectants used for pre and post dipping. A total of 60 isolates of Staphylococcus spp., identified as Staphylococcus aureus (50 and Positive coagulase

  20. Translation of Syntactic Repetitions as Formal-Aesthetic Marker in Das Brot

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rosyidah

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available Translating repetition as a formal-aesthetic marker in a literary text is a hard task and challenge for translators. The topic of this study is translation of syntactic repetition as formal-aesthetic marker in literary text. The problems examined include: (1 the syntactic repetitions in the source text and (2 the strategies to translate these repetitions carried out by the students. This is a case study with a qualitative approach which is aimed to describe the syntactic repetitions as formal aesthetic markers in the German short story Das Brot written by Wolfgang Borchert and to explain the strategies used by Indonesian students to translate the syntactic repetitions. The research data are repetitive sentences gained from the German short story and from the translated versions done by 60 students. The analysis was carried out interactively and sociosemiotically. The results show that there were repetitions at the sentence level including sentence parts, sentences and content repetition in the source text. The strategies used by the students to translate the repetitions of sentence part and sentence were exact preservation and modified preservation with reduction, implicitation and addition of extra words, avoidance with deletion, explicitation, implicitation, nominalization, and synonymy. In the meantime, content repetitions were translated using the strategy of exact preservation and preservation with modification by adding extra words and using role-based terms of address. Thus, the results lead to two new variations of modified preservation, namely preservation by adding extra words and by changing addressing terms and one new variation of avoidance that is explicitation.

  1. Kemampuan Daya Hambat Bahan Aktif Beberapa Merek Dagang Hand sanitizer terhadap Pertumbuhan Staphylococcus aureus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Putri Srikartika

    2016-09-01

    Staphylococcus aureus. The research method used a completely randomized design in four kinds of hand sanitizer and three repetitions. Data processed manually and using analysis of variance (ANOVA and followed by Post-Hoc test with Tukey HSD and also Independent T-Test.The results showed that the ingredients of hand sanitizer can reduce the growth of Staphylococcus aureus significantly. The differences on the percentage reduction of colonies in 30 seconds ranged between 57,65%-72,45%, while the range in 1 minute was 67,88%-82,65%. The analysis was also showed a real difference to the experiment, the combination of the experiment and the time of the experiment with significance value of p <0.05. Based on the result, hand sanitizers can inhibit the growth of Staphylococcus aureus effectively at 1 minute instead of 30 seconds. Hand sanitizer containing alcohol 70% and triclosan 0.05% has the better ability to inhibit the growth of Staphylococcus aureus.Keywords: ingredients, hand sanitizer, Staphylococcus aureus

  2. Prediction, production and characterization of post-translationally modified antimicrobial peptides

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Heel, Auke Johan

    2016-01-01

    Pathogenic bacteria are rapidly becoming resistant to the currently used antibiotics therefore we need novel antibiotics, preferably with new mechanisms of action. One potential source are the so called antimicrobial peptides that are produced by many different organisms. To gain access to these

  3. Investigation and identification of functional post-translational modification sites associated with drug binding and protein-protein interactions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Su, Min-Gang; Weng, Julia Tzu-Ya; Hsu, Justin Bo-Kai; Huang, Kai-Yao; Chi, Yu-Hsiang; Lee, Tzong-Yi

    2017-12-21

    Protein post-translational modification (PTM) plays an essential role in various cellular processes that modulates the physical and chemical properties, folding, conformation, stability and activity of proteins, thereby modifying the functions of proteins. The improved throughput of mass spectrometry (MS) or MS/MS technology has not only brought about a surge in proteome-scale studies, but also contributed to a fruitful list of identified PTMs. However, with the increase in the number of identified PTMs, perhaps the more crucial question is what kind of biological mechanisms these PTMs are involved in. This is particularly important in light of the fact that most protein-based pharmaceuticals deliver their therapeutic effects through some form of PTM. Yet, our understanding is still limited with respect to the local effects and frequency of PTM sites near pharmaceutical binding sites and the interfaces of protein-protein interaction (PPI). Understanding PTM's function is critical to our ability to manipulate the biological mechanisms of protein. In this study, to understand the regulation of protein functions by PTMs, we mapped 25,835 PTM sites to proteins with available three-dimensional (3D) structural information in the Protein Data Bank (PDB), including 1785 modified PTM sites on the 3D structure. Based on the acquired structural PTM sites, we proposed to use five properties for the structural characterization of PTM substrate sites: the spatial composition of amino acids, residues and side-chain orientations surrounding the PTM substrate sites, as well as the secondary structure, division of acidity and alkaline residues, and solvent-accessible surface area. We further mapped the structural PTM sites to the structures of drug binding and PPI sites, identifying a total of 1917 PTM sites that may affect PPI and 3951 PTM sites associated with drug-target binding. An integrated analytical platform (CruxPTM), with a variety of methods and online molecular docking

  4. Volatiles produced by Staphylococcus xylosus and Staphylococcus carnosus during growth in sausage minces

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Stahnke, Marie Louise Heller

    1999-01-01

    Aseptic model minces were inoculated with commercial samples of either Staphylococcus xylosus or Staphylococcus carnosus. Volatiles produced by the cultures were collected during growth by diffusive sampling onto adsorbent traps, identified by thermal desorption-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry...... and quantified by thermal desorption-gas chromatography-flame ionisation. The data were analysed by principal component analysis. The study showed that both starter cultures produced a large number of volatiles in concentrations of sensory importance. Almost all of the major volatiles resulted from amino acid...... degradation, suggesting that the effect of Staphylococcus starter cultures on flavour quality is much related to their ability of catabolizing amino acids. With the exception of diacetyl, acetoin and 2-methyl-1-butanol, both cultures formed the same volatiles. Diacetyl and acetoin were not produced...

  5. Characterization of staphylococci in urban wastewater treatment plants in Spain, with detection of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus ST398

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gómez, Paula; Lozano, Carmen; Benito, Daniel; Estepa, Vanesa; Tenorio, Carmen; Zarazaga, Myriam; Torres, Carmen

    2016-01-01

    Staphylococcus spp. are normal contaminants of urban wastewater, including different lineages of S. aureus and a high diversity of coagulase-negative species. The presence of multiple resistance and virulence genes, including mecA, in staphylococci of wastewater can be a concern for the public health. - Highlights: • High prevalence of Staphylococcus spp. in pre- and post-treatment wastewater in UWTPs. • First report of MRSA-ST398 in urban wastewater, and of the spa types: t605, t878, and t3262. • High diversity of coagulase-negative Staphylococcus species, and high content in resistance genes. • Detection of enterotoxin genes in S. aureus and unusual antibiotic resistance genes in coagulase-negative Staphylococcus. • Wastewater can contribute to the dissemination of Staphylococcus and their resistance and virulence genes to the environment. - A high diversity of multidrug-resistant staphylococci with high content in virulence genes were detected in influent and effluent UWTP samples, including the emergent lineage MRSA-ST398.

  6. Translational research: a concept analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wendler, M Cecilia; Kirkbride, Geri; Wade, Kristen; Ferrell, Lynne

    2013-01-01

    BACKGROUND/CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK: Little is known about which approaches facilitate adoption and sustainment of evidence-based practice change in the highly complex care environments that constitute clinical practice today. The purpose of this article was to complete a concept analysis of translational research using a modified Walker and Avant approach. DESIGN/DATA COLLECTION: Using a rigorous and thorough review of the recent health care literature generated by a deep electronic search from 2004-2011, 85 appropriate documents were retrieved. Close reading of the articles by three coresearchers yielded an analysis of the emerging concept of translational research. Using the iterative process described by Walker and Avant, a tentative definition of the concept of translational research, along with antecedents and consequences were identified. Implications for health care professionals in education, practice, and research are offered. Further research is needed to determine the adequacy of the definition, to identify empirical referents, and to guide theory development. The study resulted in a theoretical definition of the concept of translational research, along with identification of antecedents and consequences and a description of an ideal or model case to illustrate the definition. Implications for practice and education include the importance of focusing on translational research approaches that may reduce the research-practice gap in health care, thereby improving patient care delivery. Research is needed to determine the usefulness of the definition in health care clinical practice.

  7. Analysis of the post-translational modifications of the individual amino acids in lens proteins which were induced by aging and irradiation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fujii, Noriko; Kim, Ingu; Saito, Takeshi; Takata, Takumi

    2017-01-01

    The eye lens is a transparent organ that functions to focus light and images on the retina. The transparency and high refraction of the lens are maintained by the function of α-, β- and γ-crystallins. These long-lived proteins are subject to various post-translational modifications, such as oxidation, deamidation, truncation and isomerization, which occur gradually during the aging process. Such modifications, which are generated by UV light and oxidative stress, decrease crystallin solubility and lens transparency, and ultimately lead to the development of age-related cataracts. Here, we irradiated young rat lenses with γ-rays (5-500 Gy) and extracted the water-soluble (WS) and insoluble (WI) protein fractions. The WS and WI lens proteins were digested with trypsin, and the resulting peptides were analyzed by one-shot LC-MS/MS to determine the specific sites of oxidation of methionine and tryptophan, deamidation of asparagine and glutamine, and isomerization of aspartyl in rat α- and β-crystallins in the WS and WI fractions. Oxidation and deamidation occurred in several crystallins after irradiation at more than, respectively, 50 Gy and 5 Gy; however, isomerization did not occur in any crystallin even after exposure to 500 Gy of irradiation. The number of oxidation and deamidation sites was much higher in the WI than in the WS fraction. Furthermore, the oxidation and deamidation sites in rat crystallins resemble those reported in crystallins from human age-related cataracts. Thus, this study on post-translational modifications of crystallins induced by ionizing irradiation may provide useful information relevant to the formation of human age-related cataracts. (author)

  8. Susceptibility of Staphylococcus species and subspecies to fleroxacin.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bannerman, T L; Wadiak, D L; Kloos, W E

    1991-01-01

    Twenty-four Staphylococcus species or subspecies were examined for their susceptibilities to the fluoroquinolone fleroxacin (Ro 23-6240) by disk diffusion (5-micrograms disk) and by agar dilution for the determination of MICs. Resistant strains were further tested for their susceptibilities to oxacillin and the fluoroquinolone ciprofloxacin. Reference strains of the novobiocin-resistant species (Staphylococcus saprophyticus, Staphylococcus cohnii, Staphylococcus xylosus, Staphylococcus arlettae, and Staphylococcus gallinarum) had an intrinsic intermediate susceptibility (MIC, 4 micrograms/ml) to fleroxacin. Fleroxacin resistance was not observed in the reference strains of the novobiocin-susceptible species (MIC, 0.5 to 2.0 micrograms/ml). Clinical isolates of coagulase-negative species were generally less susceptible to fleroxacin than were reference strains. Seven percent of the Staphylococcus epidermidis clinical strains were resistant (MIC, greater than or equal to 8 micrograms/ml) to fleroxacin. Of these strains, 77% were resistant to oxacillin and 50% were resistant to ciprofloxacin. Thirty-four percent of the Staphylococcus haemolyticus clinical strains were resistant to fleroxacin, and 9% had intermediate susceptibility. Of the resistant strains, 95% were resistant to oxacillin and 77% were resistant to ciprofloxacin, while 23% had intermediate susceptibility to ciprofloxacin. Fleroxacin is an effective antimicrobial agent against most staphylococci. PMID:1759838

  9. The Impact of Machine Translation and Computer-aided Translation on Translators

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peng, Hao

    2018-03-01

    Under the context of globalization, communications between countries and cultures are becoming increasingly frequent, which make it imperative to use some techniques to help translate. This paper is to explore the influence of computer-aided translation on translators, which is derived from the field of the computer-aided translation (CAT) and machine translation (MT). Followed by an introduction to the development of machine and computer-aided translation, it then depicts the technologies practicable to translators, which are trying to analyze the demand of designing the computer-aided translation so far in translation practice, and optimize the designation of computer-aided translation techniques, and analyze its operability in translation. The findings underline the advantages and disadvantages of MT and CAT tools, and the serviceability and future development of MT and CAT technologies. Finally, this thesis probes into the impact of these new technologies on translators in hope that more translators and translation researchers can learn to use such tools to improve their productivity.

  10. [Carriage of Staphylococcus aureus among food service workers].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Alarcón-Lavín, María Paula; Oyarzo, Carolina; Escudero, Carlos; Cerda-Leal, Fabiola; Valenzuela, Francisco J

    2017-12-01

    Background Staphylococcus aureus produces 11 serotypes of endotoxins that may cause food poisoning. Aim To determine the prevalence of type A enterotoxigenic Staphylococcus aureus carriage among food service workers in Chillan, Chile. Material and Methods Pharyngeal swabs were obtained from 100 food service workers and were cultured in Agar plates. After identifying the presence of Staphylococcus aureus, DNA was extracted to identify type A toxin by conventional PCR. Results Thirty eight percent of samples were colonized with Staphylococcus aureus. Among these, 26% were toxin A producers. Conclusions Half of the sampled workers carried Staphylococcus aureus and a quarter of these produced type A enterotoxin.

  11. Conversational Implicatures in English Plays and Their Persian Translations: A Norm-governed Study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zahra Hassani Laharomi

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available The present study attempted to describe in full detail the status of implicature translation in two 20-year time periods before and after Iran Islamic Revolution to provide a clear picture of the strategies applied by translators in the two eras and, as its main objective, to shed light on the translational norms of this linguistic element. To this end, it first sought to elaborate on the reasons and the ways they emerge in conversations. Accordingly, identifying the implicatures arose due to the violation of Grice’s (1975 four maxims of conversation, the researcher separately categorized the translations of the implicatures based on Desilla’s (2009 classification. As the last phase of the study, the strategies for implicature translation were thoroughly scrutinized with the hope to determine the dominant norms of implicature translation in light of Toury’s (1995 notion of initial norm. Based on the results obtained from both pre- and post-revolution data, preservation was revealed to be the most frequent strategy in both eras, attesting to the significance of the adequacy of implicature translation; modification and explicitation were the second and the third most frequent strategies respectively. However, the frequency of modification and explicitation increased in the post-revolution translations. It seems that the trend of the norm of implicature translation moves toward acceptability.

  12. Chapter 16: text mining for translational bioinformatics.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cohen, K Bretonnel; Hunter, Lawrence E

    2013-04-01

    Text mining for translational bioinformatics is a new field with tremendous research potential. It is a subfield of biomedical natural language processing that concerns itself directly with the problem of relating basic biomedical research to clinical practice, and vice versa. Applications of text mining fall both into the category of T1 translational research-translating basic science results into new interventions-and T2 translational research, or translational research for public health. Potential use cases include better phenotyping of research subjects, and pharmacogenomic research. A variety of methods for evaluating text mining applications exist, including corpora, structured test suites, and post hoc judging. Two basic principles of linguistic structure are relevant for building text mining applications. One is that linguistic structure consists of multiple levels. The other is that every level of linguistic structure is characterized by ambiguity. There are two basic approaches to text mining: rule-based, also known as knowledge-based; and machine-learning-based, also known as statistical. Many systems are hybrids of the two approaches. Shared tasks have had a strong effect on the direction of the field. Like all translational bioinformatics software, text mining software for translational bioinformatics can be considered health-critical and should be subject to the strictest standards of quality assurance and software testing.

  13. Identification of a Post-translational Modification with Ribitol-Phosphate and Its Defect in Muscular Dystrophy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Motoi Kanagawa

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available Glycosylation is an essential post-translational modification that underlies many biological processes and diseases. α-dystroglycan (α-DG is a receptor for matrix and synaptic proteins that causes muscular dystrophy and lissencephaly upon its abnormal glycosylation (α-dystroglycanopathies. Here we identify the glycan unit ribitol 5-phosphate (Rbo5P, a phosphoric ester of pentose alcohol, in α-DG. Rbo5P forms a tandem repeat and functions as a scaffold for the formation of the ligand-binding moiety. We show that enzyme activities of three major α-dystroglycanopathy-causing proteins are involved in the synthesis of tandem Rbo5P. Isoprenoid synthase domain-containing (ISPD is cytidine diphosphate ribitol (CDP-Rbo synthase. Fukutin and fukutin-related protein are sequentially acting Rbo5P transferases that use CDP-Rbo. Consequently, Rbo5P glycosylation is defective in α-dystroglycanopathy models. Supplementation of CDP-Rbo to ISPD-deficient cells restored α-DG glycosylation. These findings establish the molecular basis of mammalian Rbo5P glycosylation and provide insight into pathogenesis and therapeutic strategies in α-DG-associated diseases.

  14. Evaluation of an Immunochromatographic Assay for Rapid Detection of Penicillin-Binding Protein 2a in Human and Animal Staphylococcus intermedius Group, Staphylococcus lugdunensis, and Staphylococcus schleiferi Clinical Isolates.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arnold, A R; Burnham, C-A D; Ford, B A; Lawhon, S D; McAllister, S K; Lonsway, D; Albrecht, V; Jerris, R C; Rasheed, J K; Limbago, B; Burd, E M; Westblade, L F

    2016-03-01

    The performance of a rapid penicillin-binding protein 2a (PBP2a) detection assay, the Alere PBP2a culture colony test, was evaluated for identification of PBP2a-mediated beta-lactam resistance in human and animal clinical isolates of Staphylococcus intermedius group, Staphylococcus lugdunensis, and Staphylococcus schleiferi. The assay was sensitive and specific, with all PBP2a-negative and PBP2a-positive strains testing negative and positive, respectively. Copyright © 2016, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

  15. Hardness and posting of foot orthoses modify plantar contact area, plantar pressure, and perceived comfort when cycling.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bousie, Jaquelin A; Blanch, Peter; McPoil, Thomas G; Vicenzino, Bill

    2018-07-01

    To evaluate the effects of hardness and posting of orthoses on plantar profile and perceived comfort and support during cycling. A repeated measures study with randomised order of orthoses, hardness, and posting conditions. Twenty-three cyclists cycled at a cadence of 90rpm and a perceived exertion rating of twelve. Contoured soft and hard orthoses with or without a medial forefoot or lateral forefoot post were evaluated. Plantar contact area, mean pressure and peak pressure were measured for nine plantar regions using the pedar ® -X system and represented as a percentage of the total (CA%, MP%, and PP% respectively). Perceived comfort and support was rated on a visual analogue scale. The softer orthosis significantly increased CA% (p=0.014) across the midfoot and heel with a decrease in the toe region and forefoot. MP% (p=0.034) and PP% (p=0.012) were significantly increased at the mid and lateral forefoot with reductions in MP% at the midfoot and in PP% at the hallux and toes. Forefoot posting significantly increased CA% (p=0.018) at the toes and forefoot and decreased it at the heel. PP% was significantly altered (p=0.013) based on posting position. Lateral forefoot posting significantly decreased heel comfort (p=0.036). When cycling, a soft, contoured orthosis increased contact across the midfoot and heel, modulating forefoot and midfoot plantar pressures but not altering comfort or support. Forefoot postings significantly modified contact areas and plantar pressures and reduced comfort at the heel. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  16. : Translated Scales in French: Social Anxiety and Taijin Kyofusho

    OpenAIRE

    Lacroix , Franca; Zhou , Biru

    2015-01-01

    This document contains 6 in-house translated scales (in French) that are related to social anxiety and Taijin Kyofusho. These translated scales are: Self Construal Scale (30 items), Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale (12 items), Social Interaction Anxiety Scale (20 items), Social Anxiety - Causing Discomfort to Others (26 items), Taijin Kyofusho Scale (31 items), Modified version of Taijin Kyofusho Questionnaire (40 items).; Ce document contient la traduction en français de 6 échelles de...

  17. Translation Theory 'Translated'

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wæraas, Arild; Nielsen, Jeppe

    2016-01-01

    Translation theory has proved to be a versatile analytical lens used by scholars working from different traditions. On the basis of a systematic literature review, this study adds to our understanding of the ‘translations’ of translation theory by identifying the distinguishing features of the most...... common theoretical approaches to translation within the organization and management discipline: actor-network theory, knowledge-based theory, and Scandinavian institutionalism. Although each of these approaches already has borne much fruit in research, the literature is diverse and somewhat fragmented......, but also overlapping. We discuss the ways in which the three versions of translation theory may be combined and enrich each other so as to inform future research, thereby offering a more complete understanding of translation in and across organizational settings....

  18. Binary translation using peephole translation rules

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bansal, Sorav; Aiken, Alex

    2010-05-04

    An efficient binary translator uses peephole translation rules to directly translate executable code from one instruction set to another. In a preferred embodiment, the translation rules are generated using superoptimization techniques that enable the translator to automatically learn translation rules for translating code from the source to target instruction set architecture.

  19. Towards the concept of disease-modifier in post-stroke or vascular cognitive impairment: a consensus report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bordet, Régis; Ihl, Ralf; Korczyn, Amos D; Lanza, Giuseppe; Jansa, Jelka; Hoerr, Robert; Guekht, Alla

    2017-05-24

    Vascular cognitive impairment (VCI) is a complex spectrum encompassing post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI) and small vessel disease-related cognitive impairment. Despite the growing health, social, and economic burden of VCI, to date, no specific treatment is available, prompting the introduction of the concept of a disease modifier. Within this clinical spectrum, VCI and PSCI remain advancing conditions as neurodegenerative diseases with progression of both vascular and degenerative lesions accounting for cognitive decline. Disease-modifying strategies should integrate both pharmacological and non-pharmacological multimodal approaches, with pleiotropic effects targeting (1) endothelial and brain-blood barrier dysfunction; (2) neuronal death and axonal loss; (3) cerebral plasticity and compensatory mechanisms; and (4) degenerative-related protein misfolding. Moreover, pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatment in PSCI or VCI requires valid study designs clearly stating the definition of basic methodological issues, such as the instruments that should be used to measure eventual changes, the biomarker-based stratification of participants to be investigated, and statistical tests, as well as the inclusion and exclusion criteria that should be applied. A consensus emerged to propose the development of a disease-modifying strategy in VCI and PSCI based on pleiotropic pharmacological and non-pharmacological approaches.

  20. Translational approach for gene therapy in epilepsy

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ledri, Litsa Nikitidou; Melin, Esbjörn; Christiansen, Søren H.

    2016-01-01

    clinical trial for gene therapy of temporal lobe epilepsy was explored: We investigated (i) whether the post intrahippocampal kainate-induced status epilepticus (SE) model of chronic epilepsy in rats could be clinically relevant; and (ii) whether a translationally designed neuropeptide Y (NPY)/Y2 receptor...

  1. Protein Translation and Signaling in Human Eosinophils

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stephane Esnault

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available We have recently reported that, unlike IL-5 and GM-CSF, IL-3 induces increased translation of a subset of mRNAs. In addition, we have demonstrated that Pin1 controls the activity of mRNA binding proteins, leading to enhanced mRNA stability, GM-CSF protein production and prolonged eosinophil (EOS survival. In this review, discussion will include an overview of cap-dependent protein translation and its regulation by intracellular signaling pathways. We will address the more general process of mRNA post-transcriptional regulation, especially regarding mRNA binding proteins, which are critical effectors of protein translation. Furthermore, we will focus on (1 the roles of IL-3-driven sustained signaling on enhanced protein translation in EOS, (2 the mechanisms regulating mRNA binding proteins activity in EOS, and (3 the potential targeting of IL-3 signaling and the signaling leading to mRNA binding activity changes to identify therapeutic targets to treat EOS-associated diseases.

  2. Utility of the balloon-overtube-assisted modified over-the-wire stenting technique to treat post-sleeve gastrectomy complications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ponte, Ana; Pinho, Rolando; Proença, Luísa; Silva, Joana; Rodrigues, Jaime; Sousa, Mafalda; Silva, João Carlos; Carvalho, João

    2017-06-16

    To describe a modified technique of deployment of stents using the overtube developed for balloon-assisted enteroscopy in post-sleeve gastrectomy (SG) complications. Between January 2010 and December 2015, all patients submitted to an endoscopic stenting procedure to treat a post-SG stenosis or leakage were retrospectively collected. Procedures from patients in which the stent was deployed using the balloon-overtube-assisted modified over-the-wire (OTW) stenting technique were described. The technical success, corresponding to proper placement of the stent in the stomach resulting in exclusion of the SG leak or the stenosis, was evaluated. Complications related to stenting were also reported. Five procedures were included to treat 2 staple line leaks and 3 stenoses. Two types of stents were used, including a fully covered self-expandable metal stent designed for the SG anatomy (Hanarostent, ECBB-30-240-090; M.I. Tech, Co., Ltd, Seoul, South Korea) in 4 procedures and a biodegradable stent (BD stent 019-10A-25/20/25-080, SX-ELLA, Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic) in the remaining procedure. In all cases, an overtube was advanced with the endoscope through the SG to the duodenum. After placement of the guidewire and removal of the endoscope, the stent was easily advanced through the overtube. The overtube was pulled back and the stent was successfully deployed under fluoroscopic guidance. Technical success was achieved in all patients. The adoption of a modified technique of deployment of OTW stents using an overtube may represent an effective option in the approach of SG complications.

  3. Post-translational control of RIPK3 and MLKL mediated necroptotic cell death [version 1; referees: 4 approved

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    James M. Murphy

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available Several programmed lytic and necrotic-like cell death mechanisms have now been uncovered, including the recently described receptor interacting protein kinase-3 (RIPK3-mixed lineage kinase domain-like (MLKL-dependent necroptosis pathway. Genetic experiments have shown that programmed necrosis, including necroptosis, can play a pivotal role in regulating host-resistance against microbial infections. Alternatively, excess or unwarranted necroptosis may be pathological in autoimmune and autoinflammatory diseases. This review highlights the recent advances in our understanding of the post-translational control of RIPK3-MLKL necroptotic signaling. We discuss the critical function of phosphorylation in the execution of necroptosis, and highlight the emerging regulatory roles for several ubiquitin ligases and deubiquitinating enzymes. Finally, based on current evidence, we discuss the potential mechanisms by which the essential, and possibly terminal, necroptotic effector, MLKL, triggers the disruption of cellular membranes to cause cell lysis.

  4. DbPTM 3.0: an informative resource for investigating substrate site specificity and functional association of protein post-translational modifications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lu, Cheng-Tsung; Huang, Kai-Yao; Su, Min-Gang; Lee, Tzong-Yi; Bretaña, Neil Arvin; Chang, Wen-Chi; Chen, Yi-Ju; Chen, Yu-Ju; Huang, Hsien-Da

    2013-01-01

    Protein modification is an extremely important post-translational regulation that adjusts the physical and chemical properties, conformation, stability and activity of a protein; thus altering protein function. Due to the high throughput of mass spectrometry (MS)-based methods in identifying site-specific post-translational modifications (PTMs), dbPTM (http://dbPTM.mbc.nctu.edu.tw/) is updated to integrate experimental PTMs obtained from public resources as well as manually curated MS/MS peptides associated with PTMs from research articles. Version 3.0 of dbPTM aims to be an informative resource for investigating the substrate specificity of PTM sites and functional association of PTMs between substrates and their interacting proteins. In order to investigate the substrate specificity for modification sites, a newly developed statistical method has been applied to identify the significant substrate motifs for each type of PTMs containing sufficient experimental data. According to the data statistics in dbPTM, >60% of PTM sites are located in the functional domains of proteins. It is known that most PTMs can create binding sites for specific protein-interaction domains that work together for cellular function. Thus, this update integrates protein-protein interaction and domain-domain interaction to determine the functional association of PTM sites located in protein-interacting domains. Additionally, the information of structural topologies on transmembrane (TM) proteins is integrated in dbPTM in order to delineate the structural correlation between the reported PTM sites and TM topologies. To facilitate the investigation of PTMs on TM proteins, the PTM substrate sites and the structural topology are graphically represented. Also, literature information related to PTMs, orthologous conservations and substrate motifs of PTMs are also provided in the resource. Finally, this version features an improved web interface to facilitate convenient access to the resource.

  5. Extensive and systematic rewiring of histone post-translational modifications in cancer model systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Noberini, Roberta; Osti, Daniela; Miccolo, Claudia; Richichi, Cristina; Lupia, Michela; Corleone, Giacomo; Hong, Sung-Pil; Colombo, Piergiuseppe; Pollo, Bianca; Fornasari, Lorenzo; Pruneri, Giancarlo; Magnani, Luca; Cavallaro, Ugo; Chiocca, Susanna; Minucci, Saverio; Pelicci, Giuliana; Bonaldi, Tiziana

    2018-05-04

    Histone post-translational modifications (PTMs) generate a complex combinatorial code that regulates gene expression and nuclear functions, and whose deregulation has been documented in different types of cancers. Therefore, the availability of relevant culture models that can be manipulated and that retain the epigenetic features of the tissue of origin is absolutely crucial for studying the epigenetic mechanisms underlying cancer and testing epigenetic drugs. In this study, we took advantage of quantitative mass spectrometry to comprehensively profile histone PTMs in patient tumor tissues, primary cultures and cell lines from three representative tumor models, breast cancer, glioblastoma and ovarian cancer, revealing an extensive and systematic rewiring of histone marks in cell culture conditions, which includes a decrease of H3K27me2/me3, H3K79me1/me2 and H3K9ac/K14ac, and an increase of H3K36me1/me2. While some changes occur in short-term primary cultures, most of them are instead time-dependent and appear only in long-term cultures. Remarkably, such changes mostly revert in cell line- and primary cell-derived in vivo xenograft models. Taken together, these results support the use of xenografts as the most representative models of in vivo epigenetic processes, suggesting caution when using cultured cells, in particular cell lines and long-term primary cultures, for epigenetic investigations.

  6. Bug22 influences cilium morphology and the post-translational modification of ciliary microtubules

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Teresa Mendes Maia

    2014-01-01

    Cilia and flagella are organelles essential for motility and sensing of environmental stimuli. Depending on the cell type, cilia acquire a defined set of functions and, accordingly, are built with an appropriate length and molecular composition. Several ciliary proteins display a high degree of conservation throughout evolution and mutations in ciliary genes are associated with various diseases such as ciliopathies and infertility. Here, we describe the role of the highly conserved ciliary protein, Bug22, in Drosophila. Previous studies in unicellular organisms have shown that Bug22 is required for proper cilia function, but its exact role in ciliogenesis has not been investigated yet. Null Bug22 mutant flies display cilia-associated phenotypes and nervous system defects. Furthermore, sperm differentiation is blocked at the individualization stage, due to impaired migration of the individualization machinery. Tubulin post-translational modifications (PTMs such as polyglycylation, polyglutamylation or acetylation, are determinants of microtubule (MT functions and stability in centrioles, cilia and neurons. We found defects in the timely incorporation of polyglycylation in sperm axonemal MTs of Bug22 mutants. In addition, we found that depletion of human Bug22 in RPE1 cells resulted in the appearance of longer cilia and reduced axonemal polyglutamylation. Our work identifies Bug22 as a protein that plays a conserved role in the regulation of PTMs of the ciliary axoneme.

  7. Machine Translation and Other Translation Technologies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Melby, Alan

    1996-01-01

    Examines the application of linguistic theory to machine translation and translator tools, discusses the use of machine translation and translator tools in the real world of translation, and addresses the impact of translation technology on conceptions of language and other issues. Findings indicate that the human mind is flexible and linguistic…

  8. Staphylococcus lugdunensis: novel organism causing cochlear implant infection

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Samina Bhumbra

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available A majority of cochlear implant infections are caused by Staphylococcus aureus or Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Reported here is a pediatric patient with a cochlear implant infection caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus lugdunensis, a coagulase-negative Staphylococcus that has only recently been determined to be clinically relevant (1988. Unlike other coagulase-negative Staphylococcus, it is more aggressive, carrying a greater potential for tissue destruction. In pediatrics, the organism is uncommon, poorly described, and generally pan-susceptible. Described herein is the presentation and management of this unusual organism in a pediatric setting.

  9. One-pot synthesis and antiproliferative activity of novel double-modified derivatives of the polyether ionophore monensin A.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Klejborowska, Greta; Maj, Ewa; Wietrzyk, Joanna; Stefańska, Joanna; Huczyński, Adam

    2018-05-02

    Monensin A (MON) is a polyether ionophore antibiotic, which shows a wide spectrum of biological activity. New MON derivatives such as double-modified ester-carbonates and double-modified amide-carbonates were obtained by a new and efficient one-pot synthesis with triphosgene as the activating reagent and the respective alcohol or amine. All new derivatives were tested for their antiproliferative activity against two drug-sensitive (MES-SA, LoVo) and two drug-resistant (MES-SA/DX5, LoVo/DX) cancer cell lines, and were also studied for their antimicrobial activity against different Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis bacterial strains. For the first time, the activity of MON and its derivatives against MES-SA and MES-SA/DX5 were evaluated. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

  10. Microbiological and molecular characterization of human clinical isolates of Staphylococcus cohnii, Staphylococcus hominis, and Staphylococcus sciuri.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garza-González, Elvira; Morfin-Otero, Rayo; Martínez-Vázquez, Manuel A; Gonzalez-Diaz, Esteban; González-Santiago, Omar; Rodríguez-Noriega, Eduardo

    2011-12-01

    The incidence of coagulase-negative staphylococci reported as causative agents of nosocomial infections has risen in the last decade. The aim of this study was to characterize biofilm formation, antibiotic resistance, SCCmec type, and genetic relatedness in clinical isolates of Staphylococcus cohnii, Staphylococcus hominis, and Staphylococcus sciuri recovered from humans. Clinically relevant isolates of S. cohnii (n = 15), S. hominis (n = 9), and S. sciuri (n = 6), were collected from patients. Biofilm formation was evaluated using crystal violet staining, drug susceptibility was assessed using the broth microdilution method, and methicillin resistance was measured using the cefoxitin disk test. SCCmec was typed using 2 different methodologies, and genetic relatedness was determined by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). Sixty percent (9/15) of S. cohnii, 33% (3/9) of S. hominis, and 50% (3/6) of S. sciuri isolates were categorized as weak producers of biofilm. None of the isolates were resistant to vancomycin or linezolid. All 3 species showed a high resistance (> 66%) to ampicillin, levofloxacin, erythromycin, and ceftriaxone, and the majority of the isolates were methicillin-resistant. PFGE revealed that the S. cohnii isolates comprised 1 dominant clone. The S. cohnii, S. hominis, and S. sciuri isolates analyzed in this study showed a high methicillin resistance and resistance to other antimicrobials. The results of this study strongly suggest that coagulase-negative staphylococci harbour new SCCmec elements. We report the first case of a clone of S. cohnii associated with human disease.

  11. Phenotypic occurrence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    To assess the occurrence of MRSA among camels in Kano abattoir, a total of 300 nasal swabs were collected from camels at the lairage in Kano abattoir, Kano state, Nigeria to isolate and biochemically characterize Staphylococcus aureus and confirm methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus among isolates using ...

  12. Post-Translational Modifications of H2A Histone Variants and Their Role in Cancer

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    David Corujo

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available Histone variants are chromatin components that replace replication-coupled histones in a fraction of nucleosomes and confer particular characteristics to chromatin. H2A variants represent the most numerous and diverse group among histone protein families. In the nucleosomal structure, H2A-H2B dimers can be removed and exchanged more easily than the stable H3-H4 core. The unstructured N-terminal histone tails of all histones, but also the C-terminal tails of H2A histones protrude out of the compact structure of the nucleosome core. These accessible tails are the preferential target sites for a large number of post-translational modifications (PTMs. While some PTMs are shared between replication-coupled H2A and H2A variants, many modifications are limited to a specific histone variant. The present review focuses on the H2A variants H2A.Z, H2A.X, and macroH2A, and summarizes their functions in chromatin and how these are linked to cancer development and progression. H2A.Z primarily acts as an oncogene and macroH2A and H2A.X as tumour suppressors. We further focus on the regulation by PTMs, which helps to understand a degree of context dependency.

  13. In Silico Analysis of Correlations between Protein Disorder and Post-Translational Modifications in Algae.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kurotani, Atsushi; Sakurai, Tetsuya

    2015-08-20

    Recent proteome analyses have reported that intrinsically disordered regions (IDRs) of proteins play important roles in biological processes. In higher plants whose genomes have been sequenced, the correlation between IDRs and post-translational modifications (PTMs) has been reported. The genomes of various eukaryotic algae as common ancestors of plants have also been sequenced. However, no analysis of the relationship to protein properties such as structure and PTMs in algae has been reported. Here, we describe correlations between IDR content and the number of PTM sites for phosphorylation, glycosylation, and ubiquitination, and between IDR content and regions rich in proline, glutamic acid, serine, and threonine (PEST) and transmembrane helices in the sequences of 20 algae proteomes. Phosphorylation, O-glycosylation, ubiquitination, and PEST preferentially occurred in disordered regions. In contrast, transmembrane helices were favored in ordered regions. N-glycosylation tended to occur in ordered regions in most of the studied algae; however, it correlated positively with disordered protein content in diatoms. Additionally, we observed that disordered protein content and the number of PTM sites were significantly increased in the species-specific protein clusters compared to common protein clusters among the algae. Moreover, there were specific relationships between IDRs and PTMs among the algae from different groups.

  14. In Silico Analysis of Correlations between Protein Disorder and Post-Translational Modifications in Algae

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Atsushi Kurotani

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available Recent proteome analyses have reported that intrinsically disordered regions (IDRs of proteins play important roles in biological processes. In higher plants whose genomes have been sequenced, the correlation between IDRs and post-translational modifications (PTMs has been reported. The genomes of various eukaryotic algae as common ancestors of plants have also been sequenced. However, no analysis of the relationship to protein properties such as structure and PTMs in algae has been reported. Here, we describe correlations between IDR content and the number of PTM sites for phosphorylation, glycosylation, and ubiquitination, and between IDR content and regions rich in proline, glutamic acid, serine, and threonine (PEST and transmembrane helices in the sequences of 20 algae proteomes. Phosphorylation, O-glycosylation, ubiquitination, and PEST preferentially occurred in disordered regions. In contrast, transmembrane helices were favored in ordered regions. N-glycosylation tended to occur in ordered regions in most of the studied algae; however, it correlated positively with disordered protein content in diatoms. Additionally, we observed that disordered protein content and the number of PTM sites were significantly increased in the species-specific protein clusters compared to common protein clusters among the algae. Moreover, there were specific relationships between IDRs and PTMs among the algae from different groups.

  15. Can Translation Improve EFL Students' Grammatical Accuracy? [

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Carol Ebbert-Hübner

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available This report focuses on research results from a project completed at Trier University in December 2015 that provides insight into whether a monolingual group of learners can improve their grammatical accuracy and reduce interference mistakes in their English via contrastive analysis and translation instruction and activities. Contrastive analysis and translation (CAT instruction in this setting focusses on comparing grammatical differences between students’ dominant language (German and English, and practice activities where sentences or short texts are translated from German into English. The results of a pre- and post-test administered in the first and final week of a translation class were compared to two other class types: a grammar class which consisted of form-focused instruction but not translation, and a process-approach essay writing class where students received feedback on their written work throughout the semester. The results of our study indicate that with C1 level EAP students, more improvement in grammatical accuracy is seen through teaching with CAT than in explicit grammar instruction or through language feedback on written work alone. These results indicate that CAT does indeed have a place in modern language classes.

  16. Colonization of nursing professionals by Staphylococcus aureus La colonización de los profesionales de enfermería por Staphylococcus aureus A colonização dos profissionais de enfermagem por Staphylococcus aureus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Josely Pinto de Moura

    2011-04-01

    Full Text Available This cross-sectional study aimed to investigate the presence of Staphylococcus aureus in the saliva of the nursing team of a teaching hospital in the interior of São Paulo State. Three saliva samples were collected from 351 individuals with an interval of two months between each collection. All ethical aspects were considered. In 867 (82.3% cultures there was no identification of Staphylococcus aureus in the saliva, in 88 (17.7% cultures Staphylococcus aureus was isolated, 26 (2.5% of which were resistant to methicillin. The prevalence of professionals colonized by Staphylococcus aureus was 41.0% (144/351, of which 7.1% (25/351 were characterized as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Transient carriers represented 81.2% and persistent carriers 18.8%. Resistance to mupirocin was 73.1% of MRSA and 9.3% of MSSA. The results demonstrate that it is the nurse and nursing technician that are the professional categories most susceptible to MRSA. Broader discussion on the thematic and interventions are needed.Se trata de un estudio transversal que tuvo como objetivo investigar la presencia de Staphylococcus aureus en la saliva del equipo de enfermería de un hospital escuela del interior del estado de Sao Paulo. Fueron recolectadas tres muestras de saliva de 351 individuos con intervalo de dos meses. Todos los aspectos éticos fueron contemplados. En 867 (82,3% culturas no hubo identificación de Staphylococcus aureus en la saliva, en 88 (17,7% culturas fue aislado Staphylococcus aureus, siendo 26 (2,5% resistentes a la meticilina. La prevalencia de profesionales colonizados por Staphylococcus aureus fue de 41,0% (144/351, de los cuales 7,1% (25/351 fueron caracterizados como Staphylococcus aureus resistentes a la meticilina. Los portadores transitorios representaron 81,2% y los persistentes 18,8%. La resistencia a la mupirocina fue de 73,1% entre los resistentes a la meticilina y 9,3% en los sensibles a la meticilina. Los resultados

  17. Towards Liquid Chromatography Time-Scale Peptide Sequencing and Characterization of Post-Translational Modifications in the Negative-Ion Mode Using Electron Detachment Dissociation Tandem Mass Spectrometry

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kjeldsen, Frank; Hørning, Ole B; Jensen, Søren S

    2008-01-01

    Electron detachment dissociation (EDD) of peptide poly-anions is gentle towards post-translational modifications (PTMs) and produces predictable and interpretable fragment ion types (a., x ions). However, EDD is considered an inefficient fragmentation technique and has not yet been implemented...... coverage and extended PTM characterization the new regime of EDD in combination with other ion-electron fragmentation techniques in the positive-ion mode is a step towards a more comprehensive strategy of analysis in proteome research....

  18. Translational errors as an early event in prion conversion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hatin, I; Bidou, L; Cullin, C; Rousset, J P

    2001-01-01

    A prion is an infectious, altered form of a cellular protein which can self-propagate and affect normal phenotype. Prion conversion has been observed for mammalian and yeast proteins but molecular mechanisms that trigger this process remain unclear. Up to now, only post-translational models have been explored. In this work, we tested the hypothesis that co-translational events may be implicated in the conformation changes of the Ure2p protein of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This protein can adopt a prion conformation leading to an [URE3] phenotype which can be easily assessed and quantified. We analyzed the effect of two antibiotics, known to affect translation, on [URE3] conversion frequency. For cells treated with G418 we observed a parallel increase of translational errors rate and frequency of [URE3] conversion. By contrast, cycloheximide which was not found to affect translational fidelity, has no influence on the induction of [URE3] phenotype. These results raise the possibility that the mechanism of prion conversion might not only involve alternative structures of strictly identical molecules but also aberrant proteins resulting from translational errors.

  19. Modification, translation and adaptation of questionnaires: should copyright laws be observed?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Juniper, Elizabeth F

    2009-06-01

    This commentary is intended to start a discussion about whether people should be allowed to modify, translate, adapt or sell copyrighted questionnaires without the permission of the developer (copyright-holder).

  20. PATSTAGS - PATRAN-STAGSC-1 TRANSLATOR

    Science.gov (United States)

    Otte, N. E.

    1994-01-01

    PATSTAGS translates PATRAN finite model data into STAGS (Structural Analysis of General Shells) input records to be used for engineering analysis. The program reads data from a PATRAN neutral file and writes STAGS input records into a STAGS input file and a UPRESS data file. It is able to support translations of nodal constraints, nodal, element, force and pressure data. PATSTAGS uses three files: the PATRAN neutral file to be translated, a STAGS input file and a STAGS pressure data file. The user provides the names for the neutral file and the desired names of the STAGS files to be created. The pressure data file contains the element live pressure data used in the STAGS subroutine UPRESS. PATSTAGS is written in FORTRAN 77 for DEC VAX series computers running VMS. The main memory requirement for execution is approximately 790K of virtual memory. Output blocks can be modified to output the data in any format desired, allowing the program to be used to translate model data to analysis codes other than STAGSC-1 (HQN-10967). This program is available in DEC VAX BACKUP format on a 9-track magnetic tape or TK50 tape cartridge. Documentation is included in the price of the program. PATSTAGS was developed in 1990. DEC, VAX, TK50 and VMS are trademarks of Digital Equipment Corporation.

  1. The membrane-topogenic vectorial behaviour of Nrf1 controls its post-translational modification and transactivation activity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Yiguo; Hayes, John D

    2013-01-01

    The integral membrane-bound Nrf1 transcription factor fulfils important functions in maintaining cellular homeostasis and organ integrity, but how it is controlled vectorially is unknown. Herein, creative use of Gal4-based reporter assays with protease protection assays (GRAPPA), and double fluorescence protease protection (dFPP), reveals that the membrane-topogenic vectorial behaviour of Nrf1 dictates its post-translational modification and transactivation activity. Nrf1 is integrated within endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membranes through its NHB1-associated TM1 in cooperation with other semihydrophobic amphipathic regions. The transactivation domains (TADs) of Nrf1, including its Asn/Ser/Thr-rich (NST) glycodomain, are transiently translocated into the ER lumen, where it is glycosylated in the presence of glucose to become a 120-kDa isoform. Thereafter, the NST-adjoining TADs are partially repartitioned out of membranes into the cyto/nucleoplasmic side, where Nrf1 is subject to deglycosylation and/or proteolysis to generate 95-kDa and 85-kDa isoforms. Therefore, the vectorial process of Nrf1 controls its target gene expression.

  2. Staphylococcus aureus RNAIII binds to two distant regions of coa mRNA to arrest translation and promote mRNA degradation.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Clément Chevalier

    2010-03-01

    Full Text Available Staphylococcus aureus RNAIII is the intracellular effector of the quorum sensing system that temporally controls a large number of virulence factors including exoproteins and cell-wall-associated proteins. Staphylocoagulase is one major virulence factor, which promotes clotting of human plasma. Like the major cell surface protein A, the expression of staphylocoagulase is strongly repressed by the quorum sensing system at the post-exponential growth phase. Here we used a combination of approaches in vivo and in vitro to analyze the mechanism used by RNAIII to regulate the expression of staphylocoagulase. Our data show that RNAIII represses the synthesis of the protein through a direct binding with the mRNA. Structure mapping shows that two distant regions of RNAIII interact with coa mRNA and that the mRNA harbors a conserved signature as found in other RNAIII-target mRNAs. The resulting complex is composed of an imperfect duplex masking the Shine-Dalgarno sequence of coa mRNA and of a loop-loop interaction occurring downstream in the coding region. The imperfect duplex is sufficient to prevent the formation of the ribosomal initiation complex and to repress the expression of a reporter gene in vivo. In addition, the double-strand-specific endoribonuclease III cleaves the two regions of the mRNA bound to RNAIII that may contribute to the degradation of the repressed mRNA. This study validates another direct target of RNAIII that plays a role in virulence. It also illustrates the diversity of RNAIII-mRNA topologies and how these multiple RNAIII-mRNA interactions would mediate virulence regulation.

  3. Thioridazine potentiates the effect of a beta-lactam antibiotic against Staphylococcus aureus independently of mecA expression

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Poulsen, Marianne Østergaard; Jacobsen, Kirstine; Bonde, Mette

    2013-01-01

    The neuroleptic antipsychotic derivate thioridazine has been shown to increase the susceptibility of a methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) isolate towards dicloxacillin. The aim of this study was to investigate the combinatorial effect of the two drugs on a broad selection of staph......The neuroleptic antipsychotic derivate thioridazine has been shown to increase the susceptibility of a methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) isolate towards dicloxacillin. The aim of this study was to investigate the combinatorial effect of the two drugs on a broad selection...... of staphylococcal strains by analyzing a large collection of MRSA strains carrying different types of SCCmec, as well as MSSA strains. Transcription and translation of the resistance marker PBP2a encoded by mecA within the SCCmec cassette were analyzed by primer extension and western blotting. We observed increased...... susceptibility to dicloxacillin in the presence of thioridazine in all tested MRSA isolates. In contrast to previously published results, the synergistic effect was also applicable to methicillin-susceptible S. aureus (MSSA). We conclude that the combination of dicloxacillin and thioridazine potentiates...

  4. Antibiotic susceptibility of Staphylococcus aureus in suppurative ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    1299, p<0.05) and Methicillin resistance was confirmed by PCR. Conclusion: Staphylococcus aureus is highly prevalent and more resistant in inpatients. There is a higher risk of acquiring drug resistant staphylococcus aureus infection in ...

  5. Staphylococcus aureus detection in the mouth of housekeepers Detección de Staphylococcus aureus en la boca de trabajadores de la limpieza hospitalaria Detecção de Staphylococcus aureus na boca de trabalhadores da limpeza hospitalar

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elaine Drehmer de Almeida Cruz

    2011-02-01

    Full Text Available This study assessed the prevalence of colonization by Staphylococcus aureus in hospital housekeepers, and their knowledge and beliefs regarding this problem. Three saliva samples were collected and a questionnaire regarding knowledge and beliefs was applied. Of the 92 workers, 63 (68.5% participated in the study; 20 were not and 43 were colonized; 13 by methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus and 30 by methicillin sensitive Staphylococcus aureus. Persistent carrier status of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus was detected in 15.4% of cases. Low knowledge and perception of occupational risk were observed. The mouth was identified as an important reservoir of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Analyzing knowledge and beliefs, as well as the state of carrier, is an important strategy to be added to educational actions for the prevention of workers' colonization.Este estudio evaluó la prevalencia de la colonización por Staphylococcus aureus en trabajadores de limpieza hospitalaria, y su conocimiento y creencias acerca de la problemática. Fueron recolectadas tres muestras de saliva y aplicado un cuestionario referente al conocimiento y creencias. De 92 trabajadores, 63 (68,5% participaron del estudio; 20 se presentaron no colonizados y 43 colonizados; 13 para Staphylococcus aureus resistente a la meticilina y 30 para Staphylococcus aureus sensibles a la meticilina. El estado de portador persistente por Staphylococcus aureus resistente a la meticilina fue detectado en 15,4% de los casos. Bajo conocimiento y percepción del riesgo ocupacional fueron observados. La boca fue identificada como importante reservatorio de Staphylococcus aureus resistente a la meticilina. Analizar el conocimiento y creencias juntamente con la investigación del estado de portador es una importante estrategia a ser agregada a las acciones educativas para la prevención de la colonización de trabajadores.Este estudo avaliou a prevalência da coloniza

  6. Staphylococcus cohnii: Not so innocuous

    OpenAIRE

    Sunil Garg

    2017-01-01

    Staphylococcus cohnii is not known to causes meningitis. We present a case of mennigitis due to this organism. We are highlighting this case not only for its rarity but rapidity of worsening also. This report indicates that Staphylococcus cohnii are not as innocuous as once thought to be and these organisms should not be disregarded as possible skin contaminants. Before labelling them as contaminants their possible association with disease should be ruled out.

  7. Staphylococcus aureus and community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) in and around therapeutic whirlpools in college athletic training rooms.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kahanov, Leamor; Kim, Young Kyun; Eberman, Lindsey; Dannelly, Kathleen; Kaur, Haninder; Ramalinga, A

    2015-04-01

    Community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) has become a leading cause of skin and soft tissue infection in the nonhospitalized community. Care of the athletes in athletic training rooms is specifically designed with equipment tailored to the health care needs of the athletes, yet recent studies indicate that CA-MRSA is still prevalent in athletic facilities and that cleaning methods may not be optimal. To investigate the prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus and CA-MRSA in and around whirlpools in the athletic training room. Cross-sectional study. National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I university. Student-athletes (n = 109) consisting of 46 men (42%) and 63 women (58%) representing 6 sports. Presence of MRSA and Staphylococcus aureus in and around the whirlpool structures relative to sport and number of athletes using the whirlpools. We identified Staphylococcus aureus in 22% (n = 52/240) of the samples and MRSA in 0.8% (n = 2/240). A statistically significant difference existed between the number of athletes using the whirlpool and the presence of Staphylococcus aureus in and around the whirlpools (F(2,238) = 2.445, P = .007). However, Staphylococcus aureus was identified regardless of whether multiple athletes used a whirlpool or no athletes used a whirlpool. We did not identify a relationship between the number of athletes who used a whirlpool and Staphylococcus aureus or MRSA density (P = .134). Staphylococcus aureus and MRSA were identified in and around the whirlpools. Transmission of the bacteria can be reduced by following the cleaning and disinfecting protocols recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Athletic trainers should use disinfectants registered by the Environmental Protection Agency to sanitize all whirlpools between uses.

  8. Translational Functional Neuroimaging in the Explanation of Depression

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Drozdstoy Stoyanov1

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Translation as a notion and procedure is deeply embodied in medical science and education. Translation includes the possibility to translate data across disciplines to improve diagnosis and treatment procedures. The evidence accumulated using translation serves as a vehicle for reification of medical diagnoses. There are promising, established post hoc correlations between the different types of clinical tools (interviews and inventories and neuroscience. The various measures represent statistical correlations that must now be integrated into diagnostic standards and procedures but this, as a whole, is a step forward towards a better understanding of the mechanisms underlying psychopathology in general and depression in particular. Here, we focus on functional magnetic resonance imaging studies using a trans-disciplinary approach and attempt to establish bridges between the different fields. We will selectively highlight research areas such as imaging genetics, imaging immunology and multimodal imaging, as related to the diagnosis and management of depression

  9. Proteomic profiling and post-translational modifications in human keratinocytes treated with Mucuna pruriens leaf extract.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cortelazzo, Alessio; Lampariello, Raffaella L; Sticozzi, Claudia; Guerranti, Roberto; Mirasole, Cristiana; Zolla, Lello; Sacchetti, Gianni; Hajek, Joussef; Valacchi, Giuseppe

    2014-02-03

    Mucuna pruriens (Mp) is a plant belonging to the Fabaceae family, with several medicinal properties among which its potential to treat diseases where reactive oxygen species (ROS) play an important role in the pathogeneses. The aim was to investigate the effects of Mp leaf methanolic extract (MPME) on human keratinocytes protein expression and its role in preventing proteins oxidation after oxidative stress (OS) exposure. The effects of MPME on HaCaT cells protein expression were evaluated treating cells with different concentrations of MPME, with glucose oxidase (GO, source of OS) and with MPME subsequently treated with GO. The protein patterns of treated HaCaT cells are analyzed by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) and compared with that of untreated HaCaT. Immunoblotting was then used to evaluate the role of MPME in preventing the 4-hydroxynonenal protein adducts (4-HNE PAs) formation (marker of OS). Eighteen proteins, identified by mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-CID-MS/MS), were modulated distinctly by MPME in HaCaT. Overall, MPME counteract GO effect, reducing the GO-induced overexpression of several proteins involved in stress response (T-complex protein 1, Protein disulfide-isomerase A3, Protein DJ-1, and Stress-induced-phosphoprotein 1), in cell energy methabolism (Inorganic pyrophosphatase, Triosephosphate isomerase isoform 1, 2-phosphopyruvate-hydratase alpha-enolase, and Fructose-bisphosphate aldolase A isoform 1), in cytoskeletal organization (Cytokeratins 18, 9, 2, Cofilin-1, Annexin A2 and F-actin-capping protein subunit beta isoform 1) and in cell cycle progression (Eukaryotic translation initiation factor 5A-1 isoform B). In addition, MPME decreased the 4-HNE PAs levels, in particular on 2-phosphopyruvate-hydratase alpha-enolase and Cytokeratin 9. Our findings show that MPME might be helpful in the treatment of OS-related skin diseases by preventing protein post-translational modifications (4-HNE PAs). © 2013 Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

  10. Mapping Translation Technology Research in Translation Studies

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schjoldager, Anne; Christensen, Tina Paulsen; Flanagan, Marian

    2017-01-01

    section aims to improve this situation by presenting new and innovative research papers that reflect on recent technological advances and their impact on the translation profession and translators from a diversity of perspectives and using a variety of methods. In Section 2, we present translation......Due to the growing uptake of translation technology in the language industry and its documented impact on the translation profession, translation students and scholars need in-depth and empirically founded knowledge of the nature and influences of translation technology (e.g. Christensen....../Schjoldager 2010, 2011; Christensen 2011). Unfortunately, the increasing professional use of translation technology has not been mirrored within translation studies (TS) by a similar increase in research projects on translation technology (Munday 2009: 15; O’Hagan 2013; Doherty 2016: 952). The current thematic...

  11. [Investigation of biofilm formation properties of staphylococcus isolates].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Öcal, Duygu Nilüfer; Dolapçı, İştar; Karahan, Zeynep Ceren; Tekeli, Alper

    2017-01-01

    Biofilm production is an important virulence factor which allows staphylococci to adhere to medical devices. The principal component of biofilm is a "polysaccharide intercellular adhesin (PIA)" which is composed of a beta-1,6-N-acetylglucosamine polymer synthesized by an enzyme (N-acetylglucosamine transferase) encoded by the ica operon found on the bacterial chromosome. This operon is composed of four genes (A, B, C, and D), and a transposable element IS256. In this study, we aimed to determine the biofilm production characteristics of invasive/non-invasive staphylococcus isolates and different staphylococcus species. Biofilm production of 166 staphylococci was phenotypically investigated on Congo Red Agar (CRA); the presence of icaA, icaD and IS256 genes were investigated by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). 74 of the isolates (44.6%) were identified as methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), 25 (15.1%) as methicillin sensitive S.aureus (MSSA), 25 (37.3%) as Staphylococcus hominis, 20 (12%) as S.epidermidis, ten (15%) as Staphylococcus haemolyticus, nine (13.4%) as Staphylococcus capitis, two (3%) Staphylococcus saprophyticus and one (1.5%) as Staphylococcus warnerii. Of the MRSA strains, 52 were isolated from blood and 22 from nose; all MSSA strains were isolated from nose cultures. Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) strains were composed of invasive and non-invasive strains isolated from nose, catheter tip and blood cultures from patients with catheter. Production with CRA method was found to be statistically significant in invasive isolates (paureus isolates produced biofilm on CRA (paureus when compared with CoNS. Carriage of three genes and biofilm formation capacity of invasive isolates can cause refractory infections and the importance of carriage and hospital infections of these bacteria, it is important to prevent the spread of these isolates. A combination of phenotypic and genotypic tests is recommended for the investigation of biofilm

  12. Staphylococcus cohnii: Not so innocuous

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sunil Garg

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Staphylococcus cohnii is not known to causes meningitis. We present a case of mennigitis due to this organism. We are highlighting this case not only for its rarity but rapidity of worsening also. This report indicates that Staphylococcus cohnii are not as innocuous as once thought to be and these organisms should not be disregarded as possible skin contaminants. Before labelling them as contaminants their possible association with disease should be ruled out.

  13. Staphylococcus aureus and Community-Associated Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) in and Around Therapeutic Whirlpools in College Athletic Training Rooms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kahanov, Leamor; Kim, Young Kyun; Eberman, Lindsey; Dannelly, Kathleen; Kaur, Haninder; Ramalinga, A.

    2015-01-01

    Context: Community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) has become a leading cause of skin and soft tissue infection in the nonhospitalized community. Care of the athletes in athletic training rooms is specifically designed with equipment tailored to the health care needs of the athletes, yet recent studies indicate that CA-MRSA is still prevalent in athletic facilities and that cleaning methods may not be optimal. Objective: To investigate the prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus and CA-MRSA in and around whirlpools in the athletic training room. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I university. Patients or Other Participants: Student-athletes (n = 109) consisting of 46 men (42%) and 63 women (58%) representing 6 sports. Main Outcome Measure(s): Presence of MRSA and Staphylococcus aureus in and around the whirlpool structures relative to sport and number of athletes using the whirlpools. Results: We identified Staphylococcus aureus in 22% (n = 52/240) of the samples and MRSA in 0.8% (n = 2/240). A statistically significant difference existed between the number of athletes using the whirlpool and the presence of Staphylococcus aureus in and around the whirlpools (F2,238 = 2.445, P = .007). However, Staphylococcus aureus was identified regardless of whether multiple athletes used a whirlpool or no athletes used a whirlpool. We did not identify a relationship between the number of athletes who used a whirlpool and Staphylococcus aureus or MRSA density (P = .134). Conclusions: Staphylococcus aureus and MRSA were identified in and around the whirlpools. Transmission of the bacteria can be reduced by following the cleaning and disinfecting protocols recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Athletic trainers should use disinfectants registered by the Environmental Protection Agency to sanitize all whirlpools between uses. PMID:25710853

  14. Prevalence of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus among ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Purpose: To determine the prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in apparently healthy ... treatment failures is vital. Keywords: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, Nasal swabs, Multidrug resistance, Rational .... defined as resistance to three or more classes of antibiotics other than the ...

  15. Incidencia y fármaco-resistencia de cepas de Staphylococcus spp aisladas de exudados conjuntivales Incidence and drug-resistance of Staphylococcus spp strains isolated from conjunctival swabs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Andrés Noya Cabaña

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available OBJETIVO: Determinar la incidencia de cepas del género Staphylococcus aisladas de exudados conjuntivales y analizar su resistencia frente a diferentes antimicrobianos. MÉTODOS: Se realizó un estudio observacional descriptivo retrospectivo en el que se revisaron 3554 exudados conjuntivales a pacientes que acudieron en el período comprendido entre enero de 2002 a diciembre de 2003 y desde enero de 2005 hasta diciembre de 2007 al Instituto Cubano de Oftalmología «Ramón Pando Ferrer» por presentar un diagnóstico de infección ocular externa. RESULTADOS: Se aislaron 874 cepas de Staphylococcus aureus para un 47,5 % y 965 cepas de Staphylococcus spp. coagulasa negativa con prueba de patogenicidad positiva para un 52,4 %. En 69 de esos exudados los cultivos presentaron etiología mixta con dos bacterias diferentes, para el 3,7 %. Se determinaron los porcentajes de resistencia a las cepas aisladas pertenecientes al género Staphylococcus. CONCLUSIONES: Se encontró una alta incidencia de las especies del género Staphylococcus en las infecciones oculares, así como se pudo apreciar que la menor fármaco-resistencia para Staphylococcus aureus y Staphylococcus spp. coagulasa negativa correspondieron a los antimicrobianos ciprofloxacina y amikacina. La mayor fármaco-resistencia de las cepas de Staphylococcus aureus correspondió a eritromicina y tetraciclina y en Staphylococcus spp coagulasa negativa fue frente a la tetraciclina.OBJECTIVE: To determine the incidence of Staphylococcus strains isolated from conjunctival swaps and their resistance to several antimicrobial agents. METHODS: A retrospective, descriptive and observational study was performed to review 3554 conjunctival swabs from patients who went to "Ramón Pando Ferrer" Institute of Ophthalmology in the period from January 2002 to December 2009 due to a diagnosis of external ocular infection. RESULTS: From the total of conjunctival swabs, 874 Staphylococcus aureus strains (47.5 % and

  16. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in horses and horse personnel: An investigation of several outbreaks

    OpenAIRE

    Duijkeren, E. van; Moleman, M.; Sloet van Oldruitenborgh-Oosterbaan, M.M.; Multem, J.D.; Troelstra, A.; Fluit, A.C.; Wamel, W.J.B. van; Houwers, D.J.; Neeling, A.J. de; Wagenaar, J.A.

    2009-01-01

    At the Veterinary Microbiological Diagnostic Center, the Netherlands, the percentage of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) isolates found in equine clinical samples increased from 0% in 2002 to 37% in 2008. MRSA of spa-type t064, belonging to MLST ST8 and spa-types t011 and t2123, both belonging to the livestock-associated MLST ST398, predominated. During an outbreak of post-surgical MRSA infections in horses at a veterinary teaching hospital in2006/2007,MRSAisolates of spa-ty...

  17. Staphylococcus nepalensis sp. nov., isolated from goats of the Himalayan region.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spergser, Joachim; Wieser, Monika; Täubel, Martin; Rosselló-Mora, Ramon A; Rosengarten, Renate; Busse, Hans-Jürgen

    2003-11-01

    Four coagulase-negative, novobiocin-resistant cocci, designated CW1(T), PM34, MM3 and RW78, were isolated from the respiratory tract of goats kept in the Himalayan region. The four isolates were assigned to a single species on the basis of almost identical biochemical and physiological traits, protein profiles obtained after SDS-PAGE and identical genomic fingerprints generated after enterobacterial repetitive intergenic consensus (ERIC)-PCR. Strain CW1(T) showed highest 16S rDNA sequence similarities to Staphylococcus cohnii subsp. urealyticus ATCC 49330(T), Staphylococcus saprophyticus subsp. saprophyticus ATCC 15305(T), S. cohnii subsp. cohnii ATCC 29974(T), Staphylococcus arlettae ATCC 43957(T), Staphylococcus gallinarum ATCC 35539(T), Staphylococcus succinus ATCC 700337(T) and Staphylococcus xylosus ATCC 29971(T) (99.0, 98.8, 98.8, 98.4, 98.2, 98.1 and 98.1 %, respectively), indicating its classification within the genus Staphylococcus. The polar lipid composition, fatty acid profiles, quinone systems and diagnostic cell-wall diamino acid were in agreement with the characteristics of the genus Staphylococcus. DNA-DNA hybridization with closely related Staphylococcus species suggested that strain CW1(T) represents an as-yet unrecognized species. Based on these results, a novel species of the genus Staphylococcus is described, Staphylococcus nepalensis sp. nov. The type strain is CW1(T) (=DSM 15150(T)=CCM 7045(T)) and the most dissimilar strain is PM34 (=DSM 15151=CCM 7046).

  18. Modified PADSS (Post Anaesthetic Discharge Scoring System) for monitoring outpatients discharge.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Palumbo, Piergaspare; Tellan, Guglielmo; Perotti, Bruno; Pacilè, Maria Antonietta; Vietri, Francesco; Illuminati, Giulio

    2013-01-01

    The decision to discharge a patient undergoing day surgery is a major step in the hospitalization pathway, because it must be achieved without compromising the quality of care, thus ensuring the same assistance and wellbeing as for a long-term stay. Therefore, the use of an objective assessment for the management of a fair and safe discharge is essential. The authors propose the Post Anaesthetic Discharge Scoring System (PADSS), which considers six criteria: vital signs, ambulation, nausea/vomiting, pain, bleeding and voiding. Each criterion is given a score ranging from 0 to 2. Only patients who achieve a score of 9 or more are considered ready for discharge. Furthermore, PADSS has been modified to ensure a higher level of safety, thus the "vital signs" criteria must never score lower than 2, and none of the other five criteria must ever be equal to 0, even if the total score reaches 9. The effectiveness of PADSS was analyzed on 2432 patients, by recording the incidence of postoperative complications and the readmission to hospital. So far PADDS has proved to be an efficient system that guarantees safe discharge.

  19. Investigate Nasal Colonize Staphylococcus Species Biofilm Produced

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cemil Demir

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available Aim: 127 S.aureus and 65 CoNS strains were isolated from patients noses%u2019. To produce a biofilm ability was investigated using three different methods. Slime-positive and negative staphylococcies%u2019 resistance were evaluated against different antibiotics. Material and Method: Swap samples puted 7% blood agar. Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS isolates biofilm produced ability were investigated using Congo Red Agar (CRA, microplates (MP and Standard Tube (ST methods. In addition to that, presence of antibiotic resistance of the staphylococcal isolates are determined agar disc diffusion method. Results: The rate of biofilm producing Staphylococcus spp strains was found to be 72.4%, 67.7%, and 62.9%, respectively with CRA, MP, and ST tests. There was no significant relationship among the tests (p>0.05. In addition, antibiotic resistance of Staphylococcus spp. against various antibiotics was also determined by the agar disk diffusion method. Resistance rates of biofilm positive (BP Staphylococcus spp for penicilin G, ampicilin, amocycilin/clavulanic acid, tetracyclin, eritromycin, gentamycin, and enrofloxacin 71.7%, 69.7%, 6.2%, 20.7%, 21.4%, 1.4%, and 0.7%, respectively. Resistance rates of biofilm negative (BN spp for 42.6%, 23.4%, 4.3%, 14.9%, 19.1%, 0.0%, 0.0% respectively. All Staphylococcus isolates were found to be susceptible to vancomycin and teicaplonin. Although BP strains antibiotic resistance rates were observed higher than BN strains. But resistance rates were not found statistically significant (p>0.05. Discussion: CRA is the reliablity and specifity method to determine Staphylococcus spp. biofilm produce ability.

  20. Attenuation in the translation of bilingual journalistic texts

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Armando González Salinas

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available First approach to the identification of mitigation/intensification markers in translating journalistic articles from bilingual publication in English and its translation into Spanish. There are three articles from Newsweek Magazine, a useful tool to use with translation students. The objective is the Annotated Translation of finished articles and book chapters that, after a pre-screening analysis, foster the translation of the Spanish version from written English texts. The first journalistic article with a historical theme is: The Return of Ruthless Richard – El Regreso del despiadado Ricardo (Ricardo III, used to detect the mitigation/intensification markers in both versions. Steps: 1. Sentence by sentence analysis in English, to find mitigation characteristics. 2. Review selected sentences in English with the Spanish counterpart. 3. Comparison and contrast of both versions. 4. Discuss similarities/differences to notice if the transfer of markers signals mitigation/intensification in both versions. 5. Discuss findings and write comments of translation aspects whose changes are discussed: annotated translation. Although most mitigation studies are based on oral discourse (not excluding the written text, this research considers written texts as a means and an end, in the observation and description, since original versions are unchangeable; this opens the option to edit and modify, which is promoted, before the final version elaborated between students and researchers is reached. Some comments are included as the result of what is described above.

  1. Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus in Ethiopia: a meta-analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eshetie, Setegn; Tarekegn, Fentahun; Moges, Feleke; Amsalu, Anteneh; Birhan, Wubet; Huruy, Kahsay

    2016-11-21

    The burden of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus is a major public health concern worldwide; however the overall epidemiology of multidrug resistant strains is neither coordinated nor harmonized, particularly in developing countries including Ethiopia. Therefore, the aim of this meta-analysis was to assess the burden of methicillin resistant Staphylococcos aureus and its antibiotic resistance pattern in Ethiopia at large. PubMed, Google Scholar, and lancet databases were searched and a total of 20 studies have been selected for meta-analysis. Six authors have independently extracts data on the prevalence of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus among clinical isolates of Staphylococcus aureus. Statistical analysis was achieved by using Open meta-analyst (version 3.13) and Comprehensive meta-analysis (version 3.3) softwares. The overall prevalence of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus and its antibiotic resistance pattern were pooled by using the forest plot, table and figure with 95% CI. The pooled prevalence of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus was 32.5% (95% CI, 24.1 to 40.9%). Moreover, methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus strains were found to be highly resistant to penicillin, ampicillin, erythromycin, and amoxicillin, with a pooled resistance ratio of 99.1, 98.1, 97.2 and 97.1%, respectively. On the other hand, comparably low levels of resistance ratio were noted to vancomycin, 5.3%. The overall burden of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus is considerably high, besides these strains showed extreme resistance to penicillin, ampicillin, erythromycin and amoxicillin. In principle, appropriate use of antibiotics, applying safety precautions are the key to reduce the spread of multidrug resistant strains, methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus in particular.

  2. Reduction of Staphylococcus Spp. in jerked beef samples after irradiation with Co-60

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Silva, Marcio de Albuquerque, E-mail: marcioalbuquerquesilva@gmail.com [Instituto Oswaldo Cruz (FIOCRUZ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Laboratorio de Genomica Funcional e Bioinformatica; Costa, Maria Claudia V.Vicalvi; Junior, Carlos Eduardo de O.C.; Solidonio, Evelyne G.; Sena, Kesia Xisto F.R. de; Colaco, Waldeciro, E-mail: claudiavicalvi@hotmail.com, E-mail: oliveiracosta@msn.com, E-mail: evelyne_solidonio@yahoo.com.br, E-mail: wcolaco@ufpe.com.br, E-mail: k.xisto@gmail.com [Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE), Recife (Brazil)

    2015-07-01

    This work aimed to isolate and identify Staphylococcus genus microorganisms in jerked beef before and after radiation doses between 2, 4 and 6kGy. Jerked beef samples were obtained on a Recife-PE supermarket network and divided into three lots. Under sterile conditions, the meat was cut and weighed. Sub-samples were assigned to the control group and to the irradiation source of cobalt-60 on doses of 2, 4 and 6kGy. The sub-samples were added to an Erlenmeyer flask with 225 ml of sterile water and stirred for 15 minutes creating wash water, and another part was added to an Erlenmeyer flask with 225 ml of sterile distilled water that was at rest at room temperature for 14 hours there is the formation of a water desalting. 1μL aliquots of this water was removed and sown by depletion in sheep blood agar medium and incubated at 35 °C for 24 hours for analysis of bacterial growth. After Gram staining colonies classified as Gram positive arranged in bunches were subjected to biochemical tests for identification. Were isolated and identified 94 strains of the genus Staphylococcus being 72 (76%) of the control group and 22 (24%) after irradiation. Of the 22 isolates, after irradiation, with 2 kGy 7 species were identified as Staphylococcus succinus, Staphylococcus carnosus sub. carnosus, Staphylococcus fleurettii, Staphylococcus saprophyticus sub. saprophyticus, Staphylococcus simulans, Staphylococcus auricularis all coagulase negative and coagulase positive Staphylococcus aureus sub. anaerobius. At a dose of 4kGy were identified six species: Staphylococcus epidermidis, Staphylococcus xylosus, Staphylococcus intermedius, Staphylococcus warneri, Staphylococcus fleurettii, Staphylococcus aureus sub. anaerobius. Staphylococcus simulans, Staphylococcus saprophyticus sub. saprophyticus, and Staphylococcus lugdunensis were isolated and identified after a dose of 6 kGy. Was observed that irradiation significantly reduced microbial load, and increased dose decreased the number of

  3. Reduction of Staphylococcus Spp. in jerked beef samples after irradiation with Co-60

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Silva, Marcio de Albuquerque

    2015-01-01

    This work aimed to isolate and identify Staphylococcus genus microorganisms in jerked beef before and after radiation doses between 2, 4 and 6kGy. Jerked beef samples were obtained on a Recife-PE supermarket network and divided into three lots. Under sterile conditions, the meat was cut and weighed. Sub-samples were assigned to the control group and to the irradiation source of cobalt-60 on doses of 2, 4 and 6kGy. The sub-samples were added to an Erlenmeyer flask with 225 ml of sterile water and stirred for 15 minutes creating wash water, and another part was added to an Erlenmeyer flask with 225 ml of sterile distilled water that was at rest at room temperature for 14 hours there is the formation of a water desalting. 1μL aliquots of this water was removed and sown by depletion in sheep blood agar medium and incubated at 35 °C for 24 hours for analysis of bacterial growth. After Gram staining colonies classified as Gram positive arranged in bunches were subjected to biochemical tests for identification. Were isolated and identified 94 strains of the genus Staphylococcus being 72 (76%) of the control group and 22 (24%) after irradiation. Of the 22 isolates, after irradiation, with 2 kGy 7 species were identified as Staphylococcus succinus, Staphylococcus carnosus sub. carnosus, Staphylococcus fleurettii, Staphylococcus saprophyticus sub. saprophyticus, Staphylococcus simulans, Staphylococcus auricularis all coagulase negative and coagulase positive Staphylococcus aureus sub. anaerobius. At a dose of 4kGy were identified six species: Staphylococcus epidermidis, Staphylococcus xylosus, Staphylococcus intermedius, Staphylococcus warneri, Staphylococcus fleurettii, Staphylococcus aureus sub. anaerobius. Staphylococcus simulans, Staphylococcus saprophyticus sub. saprophyticus, and Staphylococcus lugdunensis were isolated and identified after a dose of 6 kGy. Was observed that irradiation significantly reduced microbial load, and increased dose decreased the number of

  4. Personalized translational epilepsy research - Novel approaches and future perspectives: Part II: Experimental and translational approaches.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bauer, Sebastian; van Alphen, Natascha; Becker, Albert; Chiocchetti, Andreas; Deichmann, Ralf; Deller, Thomas; Freiman, Thomas; Freitag, Christine M; Gehrig, Johannes; Hermsen, Anke M; Jedlicka, Peter; Kell, Christian; Klein, Karl Martin; Knake, Susanne; Kullmann, Dimitri M; Liebner, Stefan; Norwood, Braxton A; Omigie, Diana; Plate, Karlheinz; Reif, Andreas; Reif, Philipp S; Reiss, Yvonne; Roeper, Jochen; Ronellenfitsch, Michael W; Schorge, Stephanie; Schratt, Gerhard; Schwarzacher, Stephan W; Steinbach, Joachim P; Strzelczyk, Adam; Triesch, Jochen; Wagner, Marlies; Walker, Matthew C; von Wegner, Frederic; Rosenow, Felix

    2017-11-01

    Despite the availability of more than 15 new "antiepileptic drugs", the proportion of patients with pharmacoresistant epilepsy has remained constant at about 20-30%. Furthermore, no disease-modifying treatments shown to prevent the development of epilepsy following an initial precipitating brain injury or to reverse established epilepsy have been identified to date. This is likely in part due to the polyetiologic nature of epilepsy, which in turn requires personalized medicine approaches. Recent advances in imaging, pathology, genetics, and epigenetics have led to new pathophysiological concepts and the identification of monogenic causes of epilepsy. In the context of these advances, the First International Symposium on Personalized Translational Epilepsy Research (1st ISymPTER) was held in Frankfurt on September 8, 2016, to discuss novel approaches and future perspectives for personalized translational research. These included new developments and ideas in a range of experimental and clinical areas such as deep phenotyping, quantitative brain imaging, EEG/MEG-based analysis of network dysfunction, tissue-based translational studies, innate immunity mechanisms, microRNA as treatment targets, functional characterization of genetic variants in human cell models and rodent organotypic slice cultures, personalized treatment approaches for monogenic epilepsies, blood-brain barrier dysfunction, therapeutic focal tissue modification, computational modeling for target and biomarker identification, and cost analysis in (monogenic) disease and its treatment. This report on the meeting proceedings is aimed at stimulating much needed investments of time and resources in personalized translational epilepsy research. This Part II includes the experimental and translational approaches and a discussion of the future perspectives, while the diagnostic methods, EEG network analysis, biomarkers, and personalized treatment approaches were addressed in Part I [1]. Copyright © 2017

  5. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in palliative care: A prospective study of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus prevalence in a hospital-based palliative care unit.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schmalz, Oliver; Strapatsas, Tobias; Alefelder, Christof; Grebe, Scott Oliver

    2016-07-01

    Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus is a common organism in hospitals worldwide and is associated with morbidity and mortality. However, little is known about the prevalence in palliative care patients. Furthermore, there is no standardized screening protocol or treatment for patients for whom therapy concentrates on symptom control. Examining the prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in palliative care patients as well as the level of morbidity and mortality. We performed a prospective study where methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus screening was undertaken in 296 consecutive patients within 48 h after admission to our palliative care unit. Medical history was taken, clinical examination was performed, and the Karnofsky Performance Scale and Palliative Prognostic Score were determined. Prevalence of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus was compared to data of general hospital patients. In total, 281 patients were included in the study having a mean age of 69.7 years (standard deviation = 12.9 years) and an average Karnofsky Performance Scale between 30% and 40%. The mean length of stay was 9.7 days (standard deviation = 7.6 days). A total of 24 patients were methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus positive on the first swab. Median number of swabs was 2. All patients with a negative methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus swab upon admission remained Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus negative in all subsequent swabs. Our study suggests that the prevalence of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus among patients in an in-hospital palliative care unit is much higher than in other patient populations. © The Author(s) 2016.

  6. An Engineered Version of Human PON2 Opens the Way to Understand the Role of Its Post-Translational Modifications in Modulating Catalytic Activity.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Luigi Mandrich

    Full Text Available The human paraoxonase 2 (PON2 has been described as a highly specific lactonase hydrolysing the quorum sensing molecule N-(3-oxododecanoyl-L-homoserine lactone (3OC12-HSL and having secondary esterase but not phosphotriesterase activity, in contrast with the related enzymes PON1 and PON3. It has been suggested that PON2 enzyme activity is dependent on glycosylation and its N-terminal region has been recently demonstrated to be a transmembrane domain mediating association to membranes. In the present study we describe a mutated form of PON2, lacking the above N-terminal region, which has been further stabilized by the insertion of six amino acidic substitutions. The engineered version, hence forth called rPON2, has been over-expressed in E.coli, refolded from inclusion bodies and purified, yielding an enzyme with the same characteristics as the full length enzyme. Therefore the first conclusion of this work was that the catalytic activity is independent from the N-terminus and protein glycosylation. The kinetic characterization confirmed the primary activity on 3OC12-HSL; accordingly, in vitro experiments of inhibition of the biofilm formed by Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PAO1 have demonstrated that rPON2 is more effective than PON1. In addition, we observed small but significant activity against organophosphorothiotes pesticides, m-parathion, coumaphos and malathion.The availability of fair amount of active protein allowed to pinpoint, by mass-spectrometry, ubiquitination of Lys 168 induced in rPON2 by HeLa extract and to correlate such post-translational modification to the modulation of catalytic activity. A mutational analysis of the modified residue confirmed the result.

  7. Predicting Post-Translational Modifications from Local Sequence Fragments Using Machine Learning Algorithms: Overview and Best Practices.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tatjewski, Marcin; Kierczak, Marcin; Plewczynski, Dariusz

    2017-01-01

    Here, we present two perspectives on the task of predicting post translational modifications (PTMs) from local sequence fragments using machine learning algorithms. The first is the description of the fundamental steps required to construct a PTM predictor from the very beginning. These steps include data gathering, feature extraction, or machine-learning classifier selection. The second part of our work contains the detailed discussion of more advanced problems which are encountered in PTM prediction task. Probably the most challenging issues which we have covered here are: (1) how to address the training data class imbalance problem (we also present statistics describing the problem); (2) how to properly set up cross-validation folds with an approach which takes into account the homology of protein data records, to address this problem we present our folds-over-clusters algorithm; and (3) how to efficiently reach for new sources of learning features. Presented techniques and notes resulted from intense studies in the field, performed by our and other groups, and can be useful both for researchers beginning in the field of PTM prediction and for those who want to extend the repertoire of their research techniques.

  8. RPA-coated single-stranded DNA as a platform for post-translational modifications in the DNA damage response.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maréchal, Alexandre; Zou, Lee

    2015-01-01

    The Replication Protein A (RPA) complex is an essential regulator of eukaryotic DNA metabolism. RPA avidly binds to single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) through multiple oligonucleotide/oligosaccharide-binding folds and coordinates the recruitment and exchange of genome maintenance factors to regulate DNA replication, recombination and repair. The RPA-ssDNA platform also constitutes a key physiological signal which activates the master ATR kinase to protect and repair stalled or collapsed replication forks during replication stress. In recent years, the RPA complex has emerged as a key target and an important regulator of post-translational modifications in response to DNA damage, which is critical for its genome guardian functions. Phosphorylation and SUMOylation of the RPA complex, and more recently RPA-regulated ubiquitination, have all been shown to control specific aspects of DNA damage signaling and repair by modulating the interactions between RPA and its partners. Here, we review our current understanding of the critical functions of the RPA-ssDNA platform in the maintenance of genome stability and its regulation through an elaborate network of covalent modifications.

  9. Understanding Translation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schjoldager, Anne Gram; Gottlieb, Henrik; Klitgård, Ida

    Understanding Translation is designed as a textbook for courses on the theory and practice of translation in general and of particular types of translation - such as interpreting, screen translation and literary translation. The aim of the book is to help you gain an in-depth understanding...... of the phenomenon of translation and to provide you with a conceptual framework for the analysis of various aspects of professional translation. Intended readers are students of translation and languages, but the book will also be relevant for others who are interested in the theory and practice of translation...... - translators, language teachers, translation users and literary, TV and film critics, for instance. Discussions focus on translation between Danish and English....

  10. Rotational and translational diffusions of fluorescent probes during gelation process

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hattori, Yusuke; Panizza, Pascal; Letamendia, Louis; Ushiki, Hideharu

    2006-04-01

    Gelation process has been investigated by using light scattering techniques in recent years. We measured both of rotational and translational motions of fluorescent probes during gelation process. The measurements were performed after the temperature quenched at 30 °C. As the results, rotational diffusion coefficient of fluorescein was decreased after 6.0 × 10 4 s and energy transfer rate was reduced after 2.0 × 10 4 s. We sorted the gelation process into the following three parts, (I) pre-gelation, (II) reduction of translational diffusion (aging), and (III) reduction of rotational diffusion with saturating translational diffusion (post-gelation). The time scale of the process was completely different from the results of other methods.

  11. French translation and cross-cultural adaptation of The Myotonic Dystrophy Health Index.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gagnon, Cynthia; Tremblay, Marjolaine; CôTé, Isabelle; Heatwole, Chad

    2018-04-01

    Validation studies of disease-specific instruments for myotonic dystrophy type-1 (DM1) are required prior to their global use in clinical trials involving different cultures and countries. Here we translate and culturally adapt the Myotonic Dystrophy Health Index (MDHI), a disease-specific patient-reported outcome (PRO) measure, for a French DM1 population. Using the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research Task Force method for translation and adaptation of PRO questionnaires, we created a French translation of the MDHI. We subsequently tested this instrument in a cohort of French-speaking patients with DM1. The MDHI was forward and back translated and modified by consensus to create the most compatible translation. Cognitive interviews were conducted with 5 patients with DM1 to ensure the usability and understanding of the translation. The French version of the MDHI is an optimal translation of the original instrument that is acceptable to native patients and ready for clinical trial use. Muscle Nerve 57: 686-689, 2018. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  12. Implementing Professional Approach within a Translation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nagwa ElShafei

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available The recent and fast development in various spheres of information and communication technology, global trade, digital and social media have resulted in growth in excellent employment opportunities but also influenced the labor market. For instance, some jobs have become absolute, while others, related to information technology particularly, have become in higher demand. As such, there are many scenarios in which translators find themselves unable to communicate with their clients due to cultural and language barriers, especially in labor market environment. This clarifies the great need for translators to receive professional training which also takes into account the advancement in technology. Therefore, market demands should be taken into account when developing and planning university courses and curricula to meet the job market needs. Courses on translation and interpretation prepare professional translators as needed by the labor market. In other words, the role of academic professional and curriculum planners should be narrowing the gap between what the labor market needs from the modern translator and the courses offered by training institutions, universities and colleges. This research study introduces a Professional Approach to teacher to educate translators within the faculty of arts, in a manner that fits the requirements of the job market. As such, a unit was prepared and specified for the students, then taught by the researcher to the selected sample. The dependent t-test technique was employed to compare the means of the total scores of the experimental group on the proficiency pre-post administration of the tests. It was noted from the results that there is a notable difference between the mean scores of the two groups in favor of the experimental group.

  13. Highly stable aptamers selected from a 2'-fully modified fGmH RNA library for targeting biomaterials.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Friedman, Adam D; Kim, Dongwook; Liu, Rihe

    2015-01-01

    When developed as targeting ligands for the in vivo delivery of biomaterials to biological systems, RNA aptamers immediately face numerous obstacles, in particular nuclease degradation and post-selection 2' modification. This study aims to develop a novel class of highly stable, 2'-fully modified RNA aptamers that are ideal for the targeted delivery of biomaterials. We demonstrated the facile transcription of a fGmH (2'-F-dG, 2'-OMe-dA/dC/dU) RNA library with unexpected hydrophobicity, the direct selection of aptamers from a fGmH RNA library that bind Staphylococcus aureus Protein A (SpA) as a model target, and the superior nuclease and serum stability of these aptamers compared to 2'-partially modified RNA variants. Characterizations of fGmH RNA aptamers binding to purified SpA and to endogenous SpA present on the surface of S. aureus cells demonstrate fGmH RNA aptamer selectivity and stability. Significantly, fGmH RNA aptamers were able to functionalize, stabilize, and specifically deliver aggregation-prone silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) to S. aureus with SpA-dependent antimicrobial effects. This study describes a novel aptamer class with considerable potential to improve the in vivo applicability of nucleic acid-based affinity molecules to biomaterials.

  14. Fragile X mental retardation protein: A paradigm for translational control by RNA-binding proteins.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Eileen; Joseph, Simpson

    2015-07-01

    Translational control is a common mechanism used to regulate gene expression and occur in bacteria to mammals. Typically in translational control, an RNA-binding protein binds to a unique sequence in the mRNA to regulate protein synthesis by the ribosomes. Alternatively, a protein may bind to or modify a translation factor to globally regulate protein synthesis by the cell. Here, we review translational control by the fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP), the absence of which causes the neurological disease, fragile X syndrome (FXS). Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. and Société française de biochimie et biologie Moléculaire (SFBBM). All rights reserved.

  15. Deregulation of protein translation control, a potential game-changing hypothesis for Parkinson's disease pathogenesis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Taymans, Jean-Marc; Nkiliza, Aurore; Chartier-Harlin, Marie-Christine

    2015-08-01

    Protein translation is one of the most fundamental and exquisitely controlled processes in biology, and is energetically demanding. The deregulation of this process is deleterious to cells, as demonstrated by several diseases caused by mutations in protein translation machinery. Emerging evidence now points to a role for protein translation in the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD); a debilitating neurodegenerative movement disorder. In this paper, we propose a hypothesis that protein translation machinery, PD-associated proteins and PD pathology are connected in a functional network linking cell survival to protein translation control. This hypothesis is a potential game changer in the field of the molecular pathogenesis of PD, with implications for the development of PD diagnostics and disease-modifying therapies. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. Staphylococcus agnetis, a potential pathogen in broiler breeders

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Poulsen, Louise Ladefoged; Thøfner, Ida; Bisgaard, Magne

    2017-01-01

    In this study, four broiler parent flocks have been followed from the onset of the production period (week 20) until slaughter (week 60). Every week, approximately ten dead broiler breeders, randomly selected among birds dead on their own, were collected and subjected to a full post mortem analysis...... including bacteriological examination. In total 997 breeders were investigated and for the first time Staphylococcus agnetis was isolated in pure culture from cases of endocarditis and septicemia from 16 broiler breeders. In addition, the cloacal flora from newly hatched chickens originating from the same...... from both broiler breeders and broilers. Three isolates were whole genome sequenced to obtain knowledge on virulence genes. The isolates harbored a number of genes encoding different fibrinogen binding proteins and toxins which might be important for virulence. The present findings demonstrate that S...

  17. Case series of 17 modified Weil's osteotomies for Freiberg's and Köhler's II AVN, with AOFAS scoring pre- and post-operatively.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Edmondson, M C; Sherry, K R; Afolayan, J; Armitage, A R; Skyrme, A D

    2011-03-01

    Treatment for metatarsal head avascular necrosis is largely conservative. For severe or refractory cases there are various surgical options. We have performed a 'modified Weil's osteotomy' of the distal metatarsal in order to manage this problem. We present the largest case series, to our knowledge, with 17 such cases. The patients were scored pre- and post-operatively using the AOFAS Forefoot scoring system. We found that this procedure provided a mean score improvement of 36 points, with a complication rate of 5.9%. We would advocate this modified osteotomy as an effective, reliable and safe treatment option. Copyright © 2009 European Foot and Ankle Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. PROFESSIONAL TRANSLATOR’S ETHICS: TRANSLATION ANALYSIS OF THE EXAMPLE OF FRENCH WOMEN’S PROSE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lyudmila Diachuk

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available This article focuses on the ethical aspects of translation and the question of translators’ responsibility, which nowadays are major issues in Ukraine. The paper demonstrates and reviews numerous cases of copyright infringement. As our research has shown, the texts are sometimes translated into Ukrainian not from their source language, but from Russian translations, which leads to double manipulations with the text. To verify this claim, French women’s belles-lettres texts and their Ukrainian and Russian translations have been analysed and compared. The post-Soviet period of Ukraine’s development has showcased not only the translation-related issues, but also the moral and ethical attitude of translators and publishing houses towards translation as the sphere of copyright. This analysis of Ukrainian translations raises concerns that some book titles, and sometimes the entire belles-lettres works of French women’s prose, have been “copied” from Russian translations. The most significant, in this respect, is the Ukrainian translation of George Sand’s novel “Consuelo”, translated by Viktor Boyko and published in 2011 by the Kharkiv publishing house “Folio”.

  19. Diversity of staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec structures in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis and Staphylococcus haemolyticus strains among outpatients from four countries.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ruppé, Etienne; Barbier, François; Mesli, Yasmine; Maiga, Aminata; Cojocaru, Radu; Benkhalfat, Mokhtar; Benchouk, Samia; Hassaine, Hafida; Maiga, Ibrahim; Diallo, Amadou; Koumaré, Abdel Karim; Ouattara, Kalilou; Soumaré, Sambou; Dufourcq, Jean-Baptiste; Nareth, Chhor; Sarthou, Jean-Louis; Andremont, Antoine; Ruimy, Raymond

    2009-02-01

    In staphylococci, methicillin (meticillin) resistance (MR) is mediated by the acquisition of the mecA gene, which is carried on the size and composition variable staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec). MR has been extensively studied in Staphylococcus aureus, but little is known about MR coagulase-negative staphylococci (MR-CoNS). Here, we describe the diversity of SCCmec structures in MR-CoNS from outpatients living in countries with contrasting environments: Algeria, Mali, Moldova, and Cambodia. Their MR-CoNS nasal carriage rates were 29, 17, 11, and 31%, respectively. Ninety-six MR-CoNS strains, comprising 75 (78%) Staphylococcus epidermidis strains, 19 (20%) Staphylococcus haemolyticus strains, 1 (1%) Staphylococcus hominis strain, and 1 (1%) Staphylococcus cohnii strain, were analyzed. Eighteen different SCCmec types were observed, with 28 identified as type IV (29%), 25 as type V (26%), and 1 as type III (1%). Fifteen strains (44%) were untypeable for their SCCmec. Thirty-four percent of MR-CoNS strains contained multiple ccr copies. Type IV and V SCCmec were preferentially associated with S. epidermidis and S. haemolyticus, respectively. MR-CoNS constitute a widespread and highly diversified MR reservoir in the community.

  20. Isolation and identification of Staphylococcus sp. in powdered infant milk

    Science.gov (United States)

    Palilu, Prayolga Toban; Budiarso, Tri Yahya

    2017-05-01

    Staphylococcus sp. is one of the most dangerous bacteria that could cause food poisoning. It is a pathogenic bacterium which is able to produce enterotoxin in foods. Milk is an ideal growth medium for Staphylococcus sp., that may cause problem if it is to be consumed, especially by infant. It is the objective of this research to detect the presence of Staphylococcus sp. in powdered infant milk. As many as 14 samples obtained from market were used as samples for bacterial isolation. The isolation were done by employing enrichment step on BHI-broth, continued with Baird-Parker Agar which will produce a typical colony. It is then picked and grown on Mannitol Salt Agar, and gram staining, coagulase assay, and fermentation tests. The confirmation step was done by using API-Staph which gives the identification of Staphylococcus hemoliticus, Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis, with a percentage of identity ranging from 65.9-97.7%. Two isolates with the highest identification similarity values were then picked for molecular detection. A PCR primer pair targeting gene coding for enterotoxin A was used, and it gives positive result for the two isolates being tested. It is then concluded that the two isolates belong to Staphylococcus sp., and further research need to be done to correctly identify these isolates.

  1. Mapping Translation Technology Research in Translation Studies

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schjoldager, Anne; Christensen, Tina Paulsen; Flanagan, Marian

    2017-01-01

    /Schjoldager 2010, 2011; Christensen 2011). Unfortunately, the increasing professional use of translation technology has not been mirrored within translation studies (TS) by a similar increase in research projects on translation technology (Munday 2009: 15; O’Hagan 2013; Doherty 2016: 952). The current thematic...... section aims to improve this situation by presenting new and innovative research papers that reflect on recent technological advances and their impact on the translation profession and translators from a diversity of perspectives and using a variety of methods. In Section 2, we present translation...... technology research as a subdiscipline of TS, and we define and discuss some basic concepts and models of the field that we use in the rest of the paper. Based on a small-scale study of papers published in TS journals between 2006 and 2016, Section 3 attempts to map relevant developments of translation...

  2. MT Post-editing: A Text Repair Experience for the Foreign Language Class.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ana Niño

    2007-04-01

    Full Text Available Communication also means having to sort out the problems involved in learning a foreign language, especially with regards to production rather than reception. These learning strategies or skills can also be applied to translation teaching methodology, where students put in practice their risk taking, avoidance, reduction and/ or compensatory strategies in getting the message across. We acknowledge translation as a writing task constrained by the source text. In addition, the translation and the writing cycles have in common a generation stage and a revision stage where grammatical, lexical and stylistic correctness is assessed. Somewhere in the middle between translation and writing skills lies MT (Machine Translation post-editing that involves correcting the raw MT output with the aim of providing a quality text according to the intended purpose. Our research is intended to test the suitability of MT post-editing as an activity to promote error correction and, subsequently, to enhance written production in second and foreign language teaching.

  3. Translational control of Nrf2 within the open reading frame

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Perez-Leal, Oscar; Barrero, Carlos A.; Merali, Salim

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: •Identification of a novel Nrf2 translational repression mechanism. •The repressor is within the 3′ portion of the Nrf2 ORF. •The translation of Nrf2 or eGFP is reduced by the regulatory element. •The translational repression can be reversed with synonymous codon substitutions. •The molecular mechanism requires the mRNA sequence, but not the encoded amino acids. -- Abstract: Nuclear Factor Erythroid 2-Related Factor 2 (Nrf2) is a transcription factor that is essential for the regulation of an effective antioxidant and detoxifying response. The regulation of its activity can occur at transcription, translation and post-translational levels. Evidence suggests that under environmental stress conditions, new synthesis of Nrf2 is required – a process that is regulated by translational control and is not fully understood. Here we described the identification of a novel molecular process that under basal conditions strongly represses the translation of Nrf2 within the open reading frame (ORF). This mechanism is dependent on the mRNA sequence within the 3′ portion of the ORF of Nrf2 but not in the encoded amino acid sequence. The Nrf2 translational repression can be reversed with the use of synonymous codon substitutions. This discovery suggests an additional layer of control to explain the reason for the low Nrf2 concentration under quiescent state

  4. Staphylococcus cohnii spp urealyticus: relato de caso de um patógeno incomum Staphylococcus cohnii spp urealyticus: case report on an uncommon pathogen

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pedro Alves d'Azevedo

    2008-04-01

    Full Text Available Staphylococcus coagulase negativos tem surgido como importantes agentes em infecções de pacientes hospitalizados. Neste estudo, relatamos o caso de bacteremia associada a cateter venoso central devido a Staphylococcus cohnii spp urealyticus isolado em hemocultura de um paciente do sexo masculino, 53 anos, internado em hospital geral da cidade de São Paulo. Discutimos nesse relato a dificuldade em identificar rotineiramente esse microrganismo no Laboratório de Microbiologia Clínica. Staphylococcus cohnii spp urealyticus é um microrganismo encontrado na pele dos seres humanos como parte da microbiota normal, podendo em algumas situações causar sérias infecções em humanos.Coagulase-negative Staphylococcus has emerged as an important agent in nosocomial infections. In this study, we report a case of bacteremia associated with a central venous catheter, caused by Staphylococcus cohnii spp urealyticus that was isolated in blood cultures from a 53-year-old male patient who was admitted to a general hospital in the city of São Paulo. We discuss in this report the difficulty in routinely identifying this microorganism in the clinical microbiology laboratory. Staphylococcus cohnii spp urealyticus is a microorganism found in human skin as part of the normal microbiota, and it can cause serious infections in humans, in some situations.

  5. Staphylococcus aureus and hand eczema severity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Haslund, P; Bangsgaard, N; Jarløv, J O

    2009-01-01

    BACKGROUND: The role of bacterial infections in hand eczema (HE) remains to be assessed. OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus in patients with HE compared with controls, and to relate presence of S. aureus, subtypes and toxin production to severity of HE. METHODS......: Bacterial swabs were taken at three different visits from the hand and nose in 50 patients with HE and 50 controls. Staphylococcus aureus was subtyped by spa typing and assigned to clonal complexes (CCs), and isolates were tested for exotoxin-producing S. aureus strains. The Hand Eczema Severity Index...... and in the nose in all cases, and between visits in 90% of cases. Ten different CC types were identified, no association with severity was found, and toxin-producing strains were not found more frequently in patients with HE than in controls. CONCLUSIONS: Staphylococcus aureus was present on hands in almost half...

  6. Translation, Littérisation, and the Nobel Prize for Literature

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kelly Washbourne

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available This work is a cultural economics study of the problem of translation production and assessment in and leading up to the literary Nobel Prize deliberations. I argue that the constraints of assessing an unevenly and partially translated body of literary works, many of them from less common languages, present an unbreachable expertise gap. Translation as a sacralization, or consecration in Casanova’s (2004 term, of a writer’s work is considered in the context of the award. Ultimately the prize is shown to depend upon translations carried out in dissimilar circumstances for each candidate. The award of the Nobel is part of the founder’s call for works to be more widely circulated, not to reward fame; thus a Nobel is more an invitation to translate than a recognition of an author in translation, although evidence suggests that the post-Nobel translational impact may vary by writer and over time. This study sheds light on the degree to which the Prize is an authority-mediated phenomenon, and while critiquing the quixotic task of judging disparate forms and amounts of cultural capital side by side, and never from a point of neutrality, it also attempts to show how translation shapes this symbolic form of prestige in the struggle for existence. I posit that alternative prizes and prize-awarding in general as fraught with similar cross-language challenges. Possibilities for future research, qualitative analysis of the Nobel and translation demand, among other consequences, are briefly sketched.

  7. Prevalence and persistence of coagulase-negative Staphylococcus species in three dairy research herds.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gillespie, B E; Headrick, S I; Boonyayatra, S; Oliver, S P

    2009-02-16

    Coagulase-negative Staphylococcus species (CNS) were isolated from 11.3% (1407 of 12,412) of mammary quarter milk samples obtained from cows in three dairy research herds in 2005. Approximately 27% (383/1407) of CNS was identified to the species level. The species distribution among those CNS identified from all herds was Staphylococcus chromogenes (48%), Staphylococcus hyicus (26%), Staphylococcus epidermidis (10%), Staphylococcus simulans (7%), Staphylococcus warneri (2%), Staphylococcus hominis (2%), Staphylococcus saprophyticus (1%), Staphylococcus xylosus (1%), Staphylococcus haemolyticus (Staphylococcus sciuri (Staphylococcus intermedius (<1%). Staphylococcuschromogenes was the predominant CNS isolated from all three herds; however, differences were seen in the prevalence of other CNS species. A total of 158 CNS (S. chromogenesn=66, S. hyicusn=38, S. epidermidisn=37, S. simulans n=10, and S. warneri n=7) were analyzed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). The majority (33/41) of CNS isolated from the same mammary quarter on more than one occasion had the same PFGE pattern indicating persistence of the same infection over time. When all PFGE patterns for each CNS were analyzed, no common pulsotype was seen among the three herds indicating that CNS are quite diverse. Composite milk somatic cell count (SCC) data were obtained +/-14d of when CNS were isolated. Average milk SCC (5.32 log(10)/ml) for cows in which CNS was the only bacteria isolated was significantly higher than the average milk SCC (4.90 log(10)/ml) from cows with quarter milk samples that were bacteriologically negative.

  8. Testing the sensitivity of Staphylococcus aureus antibiotics

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marioara Nicoleta FILIMON

    2009-11-01

    Full Text Available This study has in view to establish and test the sensitivity of Staphylococcus aureus antibiotics. There are different injuries caused by superficial skin infections: from simple pimples to infections that endanger our lives, like an abscess, furuncle septicemia, meningitis, toxic food, urinary tract infection at sexually active young women. Samples have been taken from 30 people with staphylococcus infections. They were nineteen women and eleven men, between the age of 2 and 79. During this study some antibiograms have been made, based on pharyngeal exudates, acne secretion and urine culture. It has been established that the most efficient recommended antibiotics are: oxacilin, erythromycin, rifampicin and ciprofloxacin. The penicillin turned out to be less efficient to remove and destroy the Staphylococcus aureus species.

  9. Post-translational transformation of methionine to aspartate is catalyzed by heme iron and driven by peroxide: a novel subunit-specific mechanism in hemoglobin.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Strader, Michael Brad; Hicks, Wayne A; Kassa, Tigist; Singleton, Eileen; Soman, Jayashree; Olson, John S; Weiss, Mitchell J; Mollan, Todd L; Wilson, Michael T; Alayash, Abdu I

    2014-08-08

    A pathogenic V67M mutation occurs at the E11 helical position within the heme pockets of variant human fetal and adult hemoglobins (Hb). Subsequent post-translational modification of Met to Asp was reported in γ subunits of human fetal Hb Toms River (γ67(E11)Val → Met) and β subunits of adult Hb (HbA) Bristol-Alesha (β67(E11)Val → Met) that were associated with hemolytic anemia. Using kinetic, proteomic, and crystal structural analysis, we were able to show that the Met → Asp transformation involves heme cycling through its oxoferryl state in the recombinant versions of both proteins. The conversion to Met and Asp enhanced the spontaneous autoxidation of the mutants relative to wild-type HbA and human fetal Hb, and the levels of Asp were elevated with increasing levels of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). Using H2(18)O2, we verified incorporation of (18)O into the Asp carboxyl side chain confirming the role of H2O2 in the oxidation of the Met side chain. Under similar experimental conditions, there was no conversion to Asp at the αMet(E11) position in the corresponding HbA Evans (α62(E11)Val → Met). The crystal structures of the three recombinant Met(E11) mutants revealed similar thioether side chain orientations. However, as in the solution experiments, autoxidation of the Hb mutant crystals leads to electron density maps indicative of Asp(E11) formation in β subunits but not in α subunits. This novel post-translational modification highlights the nonequivalence of human Hb α, β, and γ subunits with respect to redox reactivity and may have direct implications to α/β hemoglobinopathies and design of oxidatively stable Hb-based oxygen therapeutics. © 2014 by The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

  10. Pseudouridylation of tRNA-Derived Fragments Steers Translational Control in Stem Cells

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Guzzi, Nicola; Cieśla, Maciej; Ngoc, Phuong Cao Thi

    2018-01-01

    early embryogenesis. Mechanistically, the Ψ "writer" PUS7 modifies and activates a novel network of tRNA-derived small fragments (tRFs) targeting the translation initiation complex. PUS7 inactivation in embryonic stem cells impairs tRF-mediated translation regulation, leading to increased protein...... biosynthesis and defective germ layer specification. Remarkably, dysregulation of this posttranscriptional regulatory circuitry impairs hematopoietic stem cell commitment and is common to aggressive subtypes of human myelodysplastic syndromes. Our findings unveil a critical function of Ψ in directing...

  11. Modified DNA extraction for rapid PCR detection of methicillin-resistant staphylococci

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Japoni, A.; Alborzi, A.; Rasouli, M.; Pourabbas, B.

    2004-01-01

    Nosocomial infection caused by methicillin-resistant staphylococci poses a serious problem in many countries. The aim of this study was to rapidly and reliably detect methicillin-resistant-staphylococci in order to suggest appropriate therapy. The presence or absence of the methicillin-resistance gene in 115 clinical isolates of staphylococcus aureus and 50 isolates of coagulase negative staphylococci was examined by normal PCR. DNA extraction for PCR performance was then modified by omission of achromopeptadiase and proteinase K digestion, phenol/chloroform extraction and ethanol precipitation. All isolates with Mic>8 μ g/ml showed positive PCR. No differences in PCR detection have been observed when normal and modified DNA extractions have been performed. Our modified DNA extraction can quickly detect methicillin-resistant staphylococci by PCR. The advantage of rapid DNA extraction extends to both reduction of time and cost of PCR performance. This modified DNA extraction is suitable for different PCR detection, when staphylococci are the subject of DNA analysis

  12. Osseointegration of biochemically modified implants in an osteoporosis rodent model

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    B Stadlinger

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available The present study examined the impact of implant surface modifications on osseointegration in an osteoporotic rodent model. Sandblasted, acid-etched titanium implants were either used directly (control or were further modified by surface conditioning with NaOH or by coating with one of the following active agents: collagen/chondroitin sulphate, simvastatin, or zoledronic acid. Control and modified implants were inserted into the proximal tibia of aged ovariectomised (OVX osteoporotic rats (n = 32/group. In addition, aged oestrogen competent animals received either control or NaOH conditioned implants. Animals were sacrificed 2 and 4 weeks post-implantation. The excised tibiae were utilised for biomechanical and morphometric readouts (n = 8/group/readout. Biomechanical testing revealed at both time points dramatically reduced osseointegration in the tibia of oestrogen deprived osteoporotic animals compared to intact controls irrespective of NaOH exposure. Consistently, histomorphometric and microCT analyses demonstrated diminished bone-implant contact (BIC, peri-implant bone area (BA, bone volume/tissue volume (BV/TV and bone-mineral density (BMD in OVX animals. Surface coating with collagen/chondroitin sulphate had no detectable impact on osseointegration. Interestingly, statin coating resulted in a transient increase in BIC 2 weeks post-implantation; which, however, did not correspond to improvement of biomechanical readouts. Local exposure to zoledronic acid increased BIC, BA, BV/TV and BMD at 4 weeks. Yet this translated only into a non-significant improvement of biomechanical properties. In conclusion, this study presents a rodent model mimicking severely osteoporotic bone. Contrary to the other bioactive agents, locally released zoledronic acid had a positive impact on osseointegration albeit to a lesser extent than reported in less challenging models.

  13. Determination of the Presence of crpgenes in Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Lactobacillus delbrueckii and Corynebacterium veraSuş

    OpenAIRE

    BELDÜZ, Ali Osman; DEMİRBAĞ, Zihni; DÜLGER, Sabriye

    2014-01-01

    Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was employed to detect the presence of cyclic AMP receptor protein (CPR) in a number of diverse organisms. In PCR, two primers specific to the crp gene of Escherichia coli were used. Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Lactobacillus delbrueckii and Corynebacterium veraSuş all showed the same size of PCR frağments (708 bp) and same restriction frağment length polymorphizm (RFLP).

  14. Ex-post assessment of genetically modified, low level presence in Canadian flax.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Booker, Helen M; Lamb, Eric G; Smyth, Stuart J

    2017-06-01

    Canada is the world's largest producer and exporter of flaxseed. In 2009, DNA from deregistered genetically modified (GM) CDC Triffid was detected in a shipment of Canadian flaxseed exported to Europe, causing a large decrease in the amount of flax planted in Canada and a major shift in export markets. The flax industry in Canada undertook major changes to ensure the removal of transgenic flax from the supply chain. To demonstrate compliance, Canada adopted a protocol involving testing grain samples (post-harvest) using an RT-PCR test for the construct found in CDC Triffid. Efforts to remove the presence of GM flax from the value chain included reconstituting major flax varieties from GM-free plants. The reconstituted varieties represented the majority of planting seed in 2014. This study re-evaluates GM flax presence in Canadian grain stocks for an updated dataset (2009-2015) using a previously described simulation model to estimate low-level GM presence. Additionally, losses to the Canadian economy resulting from the reduction in flax production and export opportunities, costs associated with reconstituting major flax varieties, and testing for the presence of GM flax along the flax value chain are estimated.

  15. The sensitivity status of community-acquired Staphylococcus aureus ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Community acquired Staphylococcus aureus was isolated from various infectious sites in two private laboratories in Kano-city, Nigeria. A total of 247 (11%) Staphylococcu aureus isolates were recovered from all infectious sites except cerebro-spinal fluid. The least Staphylococcus aureus isolates were found in urine ...

  16. Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia in children: a formidable foe ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Staphylococcus aureus remains one of the most common causes of bacteraemia in children. In order to evade and overcome the immune responses of its host and any antimicrobial therapies aimed at destroying it, this organism, through various mechanisms, continues to evolve. Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia is a ...

  17. Antibiotic sensitivity pattern of Staphylococcus aureus from clinical

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    raoul

    2011-01-26

    Jan 26, 2011 ... Key words: Staphylococcus aureus, antibiotic sensitivity, Nigeria, Kano ... infection have an increased colonization risks [8]. ... confirmed Staphylococcus aureus isolates was prepared in peptone water to ... 5 g methicillin discs (oxoid, USA) were aseptically placed on the surface of the inoculated plates and ...

  18. Ezh2 regulates transcriptional and post-translational expression of T-bet and promotes Th1 cell responses mediating aplastic anemia in mice1

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tong, Qing; He, Shan; Xie, Fang; Mochizuki, Kazuhiro; Liu, Yongnian; Mochizuki, Izumi; Meng, Lijun; Sun, Hongxing; Zhang, Yanyun; Guo, Yajun; Hexner, Elizabeth; Zhang, Yi

    2014-01-01

    Acquired aplastic anemia (AA) is a potentially fatal bone marrow (BM) failure syndrome. IFN-γ-producing T helper (Th)1 CD4+ T cells mediate the immune destruction of hematopoietic cells, and are central to the pathogenesis. However, the molecular events that control the development of BM-destructive Th1 cells remain largely unknown. Ezh2 is a chromatin-modifying enzyme that regulates multiple cellular processes primarily by silencing gene expression. We recently reported that Ezh2 is crucial for inflammatory T cell responses after allogeneic BM transplantation. To elucidate whether Ezh2 mediates pathogenic Th1 responses in AA and the mechanism of Ezh2 action in regulating Th1 cells, we studied the effects of Ezh2 inhibition in CD4+ T cells using a mouse model of human AA. Conditionally deleting Ezh2 in mature T cells dramatically reduced the production of BM-destructive Th1 cells in vivo, decreased BM-infiltrating Th1 cells, and rescued mice from BM failure. Ezh2 inhibition resulted in significant decrease in the expression of Tbx21 and Stat4 (which encode transcription factors T-bet and STAT4, respectively). Introduction of T-bet but not STAT4 into Ezh2-deficient T cells fully rescued their differentiation into Th1 cells mediating AA. Ezh2 bound to the Tbx21 promoter in Th1 cells, and directly activated Tbx21 transcription. Unexpectedly, Ezh2 was also required to prevent proteasome-mediated degradation of T-bet protein in Th1 cells. Our results identify T-bet as the transcriptional and post-translational Ezh2 target that acts together to generate BM-destructive Th1 cells, and highlight the therapeutic potential of Ezh2 inhibition in reducing AA and other autoimmune diseases. PMID:24760151

  19. Tradução e adaptação transcultural do "Harris Hip Score modificado por Byrd" Translation and transcultural adaptation of the modified Harris Hip Score

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rodrigo Pereira Guimarães

    2010-01-01

    Full Text Available OBJETIVO: As artroscopias do quadril têm sido utilizadas tanto para fins diagnósticos, como para fins terapêuticos, fazendo parte do arsenal rotineiro dos cirurgiões do quadril. Devido a necessidade de avaliação dos resultados artroscópicos, Byrd propôs a modificação do "Harris Hip Score", realizando a avaliação da dor e função. O objetivo deste estudo foi traduzir e adaptar transculturalmente o protocolo de avaliação do "Harris Hip Score" modificado por Byrd, utilizado nas artroscopias do quadril. MÉTODO: O método utilizado constituiu em: 1 tradução inicial, 2 retrotradução, 3 pré - teste e 4 teste definitivo. RESULTADOS: A versão em português foi aplicada em 30 pacientes com afecções do quadril para verificar o nível de compreensão do protocolo. Foram realizadas mudanças e substituições de termos e expressões que não foram entendidas pelos pacientes durante o pré-teste e realizada a versão final em consenso. Novamente a versão final do questionário foi aplicada com 100% de entendimento pelos pacientes. CONCLUSÃO: disponibiliza-se assim a versão final em português do questionário "Harris Hip Score" modificado por Byrd. A validação desta versão já está em desenvolvimento.OBJECTIVE: Hip arthroscopy has been used for diagnostic as well as therapeutic purposes, and it is part of the daily arsenal of hip surgeons. Due to the need for arthroscopic evaluation of the results, Byrd proposed a modification of the Harris Hip Score by assessing pain and function. This study aimed to translate and cross-culturally adapt the evaluation protocol of the modified Harris Hip Score used in hip arthroscopies. METHOD: The method used consisted of: 1 an initial translation, 2 a back translation, 3 a pre-test and 4 a final test. RESULTS: The Portuguese version was used with 30 patients with hip disorders to determine the level of comprehension of the protocol. Expressions which were not understood by patients during the

  20. Determination of phagocytosis of 32P-labeled Staphylococcus aureus by bovine polymorphonuclear leukocytes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dulin, A.M.; Paape, M.J.; Weinland, B.T.

    1984-01-01

    A procedure for the measurement of phagocytosis by bovine polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN) of 32 P-labeled Staphylococcus aureus was modified so that a larger number of samples could be compared in a single run, and smaller volumes of sample, PMN, and 32 P-labeled S aureus could be used. Results were highly reproducible, with a coefficient of variation between duplicate determinations of less than or equal to 2%. Lysostaphin was prepared from the supernatant of S staphylolyticus and was compared with a commercially available preparation. Effects of lysostaphin on PMN and influence of incubation media on release of 32 P from 32 P-labeled S aureus by lysostaphin were examined

  1. Biosynthetic Tailoring of Microcin E492m: Post-Translational Modification Affords an Antibacterial Siderophore-Peptide Conjugate

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nolan, Elizabeth M.; Fischbach, Michael A.; Koglin, Alexander; Walsh, Christopher T.

    2008-01-01

    The present work reveals that four proteins, MceCDIJ, encoded by the MccE492 gene cluster are responsible for the remarkable post-translational tailoring of Microcin E492 (MccE492), an 84-residue protein toxin secreted by Klebsiella pneumonaie RYC492 that targets neighboring gram-negative species. This modification results in attachment of a linearized and monoglycosylated derivative of enterobactin, a nonribosomal peptide and iron scavenger (siderophore), to the MccE492m C-terminus. MceC and MceD derivatize enterobactin by C-glycosylation at the C5 position of a N-(2,3-dihydroxybenzoyl) serine (DHB-Ser) moiety and regiospecific hydrolysis of an ester linkage in the trilactone scaffold, respectively. MceI and MceJ form a protein complex that attaches C-glycosylated enterobactins to the C-terminal serine residue of both aC10 model peptide and full-length MccE492. In the enzymatic product, the terminal serine residue is covalently attached to the C4′ oxygen of the glucose moiety. Non-enzymatic and base-catalyzed migration of the peptide to the C6′ position affords the C6′ glycosyl ester linkage observed in the mature toxin, MccE492m, isolated from bacterial cultures. PMID:17973380

  2. Staphylococcus massiliensis sp. nov., isolated from a human brain abscess.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Al Masalma, Mouhamad; Raoult, Didier; Roux, Véronique

    2010-05-01

    Gram-positive, catalase-positive, coagulase-negative, non-motile, non-fermentative and novobiocin-susceptible cocci were isolated from a human brain abscess sample (strain 5402776(T)). This novel strain was analysed by a polyphasic taxonomic approach. The respiratory quinones detected were MK-7 (93 %) and MK-6 (7 %) and the major fatty acids were C(15 : 0) iso (60.5 %), C(17 : 0) iso (8.96 %) C(15 : 0) anteiso (7.93 %) and C(19 : 0) iso (6.78 %). The peptidoglycan type was A3alpha l-Lys-Gly(2-3)-l-Ser-Gly. Based on cellular morphology and biochemical criteria, the new isolate was assigned to the genus Staphylococcus, although it did not correspond to any recognized species. The G+C content of the DNA was 36.6 mol%. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequence comparisons showed that the new isolate was most closely related to Staphylococcus piscifermentans, Staphylococcus condimenti, Staphylococcus carnosus subsp. carnosus, S. carnosus subsp. utilis and Staphylococcus simulans (97.7 %, 97.6 %, 97.6 %, 97.6 % and 96.5 % sequence similarity, respectively). Comparison of tuf, hsp60, rpoB, dnaJ and sodA gene sequences was also performed. In phylogenetic analysis inferred from tuf, dnaJ and rpoB gene sequence comparisons, strain 5402776(T) clustered with Staphylococcus pettenkoferi (93.7 %, 82.5 % and 89 % sequence similarity, respectively) and on phylogenetic analysis inferred from sodA gene sequence comparisons, it clustered with Staphylococcus chromogenes (82.8 %). On the basis of phenotypic and genotypic data, this isolate represents a novel species for which the name Staphylococcus massiliensis sp. nov. is proposed (type strain 5402776(T)=CCUG 55927(T)=CSUR P23(T)).

  3. Translational Creativity

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, Sandro

    2010-01-01

    A long-established approach to legal translation focuses on terminological equivalence making translators strictly follow the words of source texts. Recent research suggests that there is room for some creativity allowing translators to deviate from the source texts. However, little attention...... is given to genre conventions in source texts and the ways in which they can best be translated. I propose that translators of statutes with an informative function in expert-to-expert communication may be allowed limited translational creativity when translating specific types of genre convention....... This creativity is a result of translators adopting either a source-language or a target-language oriented strategy and is limited by the pragmatic principle of co-operation. Examples of translation options are provided illustrating the different results in target texts. The use of a target-language oriented...

  4. Prevalence and risk factors for Staphylococcus aureus and ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Prevalence and risk factors for Staphylococcus aureus and methicillin‑resistant Staphylococcus aureus nasal carriage inpatients in a tertiary care hospital's chest clinic in Turkey. ... of the participants and risk factors for carriage. Fisher's exact test, univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis were used. A P < 0.05 ...

  5. Occurrence and characterization of Staphylococcus bacteria isolated from poultry in Western Poland.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marek, Agnieszka; Stepień-Pyśniak, Dagmara; Pyzik, Ewelina; Adaszek, Łukasz; Wilczyński, Jarosław; Winiarczyk, Stanisław

    2016-01-01

    In the pathology of poultry, infections caused by Staphylococcus spp. are taking on increasing significance. Although the Staphylococcus species most frequently isolated from these animals is Staphylococcus aureus, the literature data indicate that other species, both coagulase-positive and coagulase-negative, can also cause infections in birds. The aim of the study was to assess the frequency of occurrence of Staphylococcus infections in various poultry species in Western Poland and to test the susceptibility of isolated strains to selected antibiotics. The results obtained showed a relatively high rate of Staphylococcus infection in the poultry. From 2805 samples tested 302 strains (10.8%) of Staphylococcus were isolated. As many as 25 Staphylococcus species were distinguished among the strains isolated. S. cohnii (23.50%), S. aureus (15.89%) and S. lentus (13.90%) accounted for the highest percentages. Over half of the isolated staphylococci exhibited resistance to five of the antibiotics applied, with the highest percentage of resistant strains, 65%, noted for enrofloxacin.

  6. Translationally controlled tumor protein supplemented chitosan modified glass ionomer cement promotes osteoblast proliferation and function

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sangsuwan, Jiraporn [Department of Molecular Biology and Bioinformatics, Center for Genomics and Bioinformatics Research, Faculty of Science, Prince of Songkla University, Hat Yai, Songkhla 90112 (Thailand); Department of Oral Biology and Occlusion, Faculty of Dentistry, Prince of Songkla University, Hat Yai, Songkhla 90112 (Thailand); Wanichpakorn, Supreya; Kedjarune-Leggat, Ureporn [Department of Oral Biology and Occlusion, Faculty of Dentistry, Prince of Songkla University, Hat Yai, Songkhla 90112 (Thailand)

    2015-09-01

    The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of translationally controlled tumor protein (TCTP) supplemented in a novel glass ionomer cement (BIO-GIC) on normal human osteoblasts (NHost cells). BIO-GIC was a glass ionomer cement (GIC) modified by adding chitosan and albumin to promote the release of TCTP. NHost cells were seeded on specimens of GIC, GIC + TCTP, BIO-GIC and BIO-GIC + TCTP. Cell proliferation was determined by BrdU assay. It was found that BIO-GIC + TCTP had significantly higher proliferation of cells than other specimens. Bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) and osteopontin (OPN) gene expressions assessed by quantitative real time PCR and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity were used to determine cell differentiation. Bone cell function was investigated by calcium deposition using alizarin assay. Both BMP-2 and OPN gene expressions of cells cultured on specimens with added TCTP increased gradually up-regulation after day 1 and reached the highest on day 3 then down-regulation on day 7. The ALP activity of cells cultured on BIO-GIC + TCTP for 7 days and calcium content after 14 days were significantly higher than other groups. BIO-GIC + TCTP can promote osteoblast cells proliferation, differentiation and function. - Highlights: • Developed a new GIC by supplementing TCTP in BIO-GIC (GIC with chitosan and albumin) • BIO-GIC + TCTP released a higher amount of TCTP than GIC + TCTP. • BIO-GIC + TCTP promoted cell proliferation higher than other specimens and control. • BIO-GIC + TCTP promoted osteoblasts differentiation and function.

  7. Translationally controlled tumor protein supplemented chitosan modified glass ionomer cement promotes osteoblast proliferation and function

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sangsuwan, Jiraporn; Wanichpakorn, Supreya; Kedjarune-Leggat, Ureporn

    2015-01-01

    The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of translationally controlled tumor protein (TCTP) supplemented in a novel glass ionomer cement (BIO-GIC) on normal human osteoblasts (NHost cells). BIO-GIC was a glass ionomer cement (GIC) modified by adding chitosan and albumin to promote the release of TCTP. NHost cells were seeded on specimens of GIC, GIC + TCTP, BIO-GIC and BIO-GIC + TCTP. Cell proliferation was determined by BrdU assay. It was found that BIO-GIC + TCTP had significantly higher proliferation of cells than other specimens. Bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) and osteopontin (OPN) gene expressions assessed by quantitative real time PCR and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity were used to determine cell differentiation. Bone cell function was investigated by calcium deposition using alizarin assay. Both BMP-2 and OPN gene expressions of cells cultured on specimens with added TCTP increased gradually up-regulation after day 1 and reached the highest on day 3 then down-regulation on day 7. The ALP activity of cells cultured on BIO-GIC + TCTP for 7 days and calcium content after 14 days were significantly higher than other groups. BIO-GIC + TCTP can promote osteoblast cells proliferation, differentiation and function. - Highlights: • Developed a new GIC by supplementing TCTP in BIO-GIC (GIC with chitosan and albumin) • BIO-GIC + TCTP released a higher amount of TCTP than GIC + TCTP. • BIO-GIC + TCTP promoted cell proliferation higher than other specimens and control. • BIO-GIC + TCTP promoted osteoblasts differentiation and function

  8. Topical Review: Translating Translational Research in Behavioral Science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hommel, Kevin A; Modi, Avani C; Piazza-Waggoner, Carrie; Myers, James D

    2015-01-01

    To present a model of translational research for behavioral science that communicates the role of behavioral research at each phase of translation. A task force identified gaps in knowledge regarding behavioral translational research processes and made recommendations regarding advancement of knowledge. A comprehensive model of translational behavioral research was developed. This model represents T1, T2, and T3 research activities, as well as Phase 1, 2, 3, and 4 clinical trials. Clinical illustrations of translational processes are also offered as support for the model. Behavioral science has struggled with defining a translational research model that effectively articulates each stage of translation and complements biomedical research. Our model defines key activities at each phase of translation from basic discovery to dissemination/implementation. This should be a starting point for communicating the role of behavioral science in translational research and a catalyst for better integration of biomedical and behavioral research. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Pediatric Psychology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  9. Finite translation surfaces with maximal number of translations

    OpenAIRE

    Schlage-Puchta, Jan-Christoph; Weitze-Schmithuesen, Gabriela

    2013-01-01

    The natural automorphism group of a translation surface is its group of translations. For finite translation surfaces of genus g > 1 the order of this group is naturally bounded in terms of g due to a Riemann-Hurwitz formula argument. In analogy with classical Hurwitz surfaces, we call surfaces which achieve the maximal bound Hurwitz translation surfaces. We study for which g there exist Hurwitz translation surfaces of genus g.

  10. Standing in the gap: ref lections on translating the Jung-Neumann correspondence.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McCartney, Heather

    2016-04-01

    This paper considers the experience of translating the correspondence between C.G. Jung and Erich Neumann as part of the Philemon series. The translator explores the similarities between analytical work and the task of translation by means of the concepts of the dialectical third and the interactional field. The history and politics of the translation of analytic writing and their consequences for the lingua franca of analysis are discussed. Key themes within the correspondence are outlined, including Jung and Neumann's pre-war exploration of Judaism and the unconscious, the post-war difficulties around the publication of Neumann's Depth Psychology and a New Ethic set against the early years of the C.G. Jung Institute in Zurich, and the development of the correspondents' relationship over time. © 2016, The Society of Analytical Psychology.

  11. Machine Translation Tools - Tools of The Translator's Trade

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kastberg, Peter

    2012-01-01

    In this article three of the more common types of translation tools are presented, discussed and critically evaluated. The types of translation tools dealt with in this article are: Fully Automated Machine Translation (or FAMT), Human Aided Machine Translation (or HAMT) and Machine Aided Human...... Translation (or MAHT). The strengths and weaknesses of the different types of tools are discussed and evaluated by means of a number of examples. The article aims at two things: at presenting a sort of state of the art of what is commonly referred to as “machine translation” as well as at providing the reader...... with a sound basis for considering what translation tool (if any) is the most appropriate in order to meet his or her specific translation needs....

  12. Epidemiology of drug resistance: The case of Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococci infections Epidemiología de la resistencia bacteriana: el caso de Staphylococcus aureus y las infecciones Staphylococcus coagulasa negativas

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ernesto Calderón-Jaimes

    2002-04-01

    Full Text Available Objective. To study the activity of several antibiotics against Staphylococcus spp. Material and Methods. The study included 1209 strains of Staphylococcus spp. from two institutions; Instituto Nacional de Pediatría (National Institute of Pediatrics and Hospital Infantil de México Federico Gómez (Mexico City Children's Hospital. Minimum Inhibitory Concentrations of all antibiotics were determined by the agar macrodilution technique and standard methods from the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards. Results. Resistance of S. aureus was 14.2% and that of coagulase-negative staphylococci was 53.4%. The activity of different antibiotics is presented in detail. Conclusions. Surveillance of strains resistant to methicillin is necessary.Objetivo. Determinar la frecuencia de la resistencia a la meticilina y la actividad de varios antibióticos. Material y métodos. Se incluyeron 1 209 cepas de Staphylococcus spp. procedentes de pacientes del Instituto Nacional de Pediatría y del Hospital Infantil de México Federico Gómez. Se utilizó la técnica de dilución en placas con agar. El procedimiento e interpretación fueron acordes con lo establecido por el National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards. Resultados. La frecuencia de la resistencia de S. aureus fue de 14.2% y de 53.4% en los Staphylococcus coagulasa negativa. La actividad de otros antimicrobianos se presenta en el texto. Conclusiones. Es necesario vigilar continuamente la progresión de la resistencia de Staphylococcus spp. a la meticilina.

  13. Depfix, a Tool for Automatic Rule-based Post-editing of SMT

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rudolf Rosa

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available We present Depfix, an open-source system for automatic post-editing of phrase-based machine translation outputs. Depfix employs a range of natural language processing tools to obtain analyses of the input sentences, and uses a set of rules to correct common or serious errors in machine translation outputs. Depfix is currently implemented only for English-to-Czech translation direction, but extending it to other languages is planned.

  14. BRIDGING THE REAL WORLD ENGLISHES IN THE RURAL ESL CLASSROOM THROUGH TRANSLATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nik Zaitun Mohamed

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available Translation can play a role in the development of communicative abilities since speakers are often engaged in the work of sharing and negotiating meaning. It fosters speculation and discussion, apart from developing abilities considered fundamental for communication, such as interpretation, negotiation, and expression of meaning. However, there are views against translation in the ESL classrooms even though the method has been applied in the pedagogical process. As a result, ESL students who are weak in English are not given the opportunity to excel in the second language from their own bilingual strength. This paper attempts to study and disclose in what ways pedagogogical translation in rural ESL classrooms in Sabah is reflected into practice, thereby assessing whether the gap between pedagogical translation and translation pedagogy has beeen been bridged. In this case study, five primary teachers were selected and their knowledge and practice of translation were assessed through qualitative content analysis in pre- teaching, while teaching and post-teaching activities. A translation framework has been designed and used in assessing the teachers’ performances in using translation. This pilot study reveals that teachers have translated from the first language (L1 into the second language (L2 as a means to help students to understand the content of the English lesson. They did not have adequate knowedge on translation strategies. Thus, the designed translation framework may be used by teachers as a guide in using translation in the ESL context.

  15. An Investigation into EFL Learners’ Translations of Metaphors from Cognitive and Cultural Perspectives

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yi-chen Chen

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available The study investigates how EFL learner-translators deal with metaphors and how cognitive factors and cultural background influence their choices. An English-to-Chinese translation task consisting of 20 English sentences was given to 70 Taiwanese university students; each sentence contains a figurative expression that falls into the categories in the cognitive cultural models (Kövecses, 2005. The students’ performances on the task were rated; quantitative analyses show that the students performed significantly better on translating metaphors whose conceptual metaphors exist in both languages than on metaphors whose conceptual metaphors are exclusive to English. Additionally, twenty students were selected for post-task interviews; qualitative analyses indicate that sentence context, concerns over style and register, and translators’ personal preferences affected their choices while translating. Communicative strategies, like providing neutral meanings to avoid uncertain translation, were adopted. The results contribute to the literature on and pedagogical applications for EFL learner translators from both cognitive and cultural aspects.

  16. Translation Techniques

    OpenAIRE

    Marcia Pinheiro

    2015-01-01

    In this paper, we discuss three translation techniques: literal, cultural, and artistic. Literal translation is a well-known technique, which means that it is quite easy to find sources on the topic. Cultural and artistic translation may be new terms. Whilst cultural translation focuses on matching contexts, artistic translation focuses on matching reactions. Because literal translation matches only words, it is not hard to find situations in which we should not use this technique.  Because a...

  17. An integrative analysis of post-translational histone modifications in the marine diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum

    KAUST Repository

    Veluchamy, Alaguraj

    2015-05-20

    Background: Nucleosomes are the building blocks of chromatin where gene regulation takes place. Chromatin landscapes have been profiled for several species, providing insights into the fundamental mechanisms of chromatin-mediated transcriptional regulation of gene expression. However, knowledge is missing for several major and deep-branching eukaryotic groups, such as the Stramenopiles, which include the diatoms. Diatoms are highly diverse and ubiquitous species of phytoplankton that play a key role in global biogeochemical cycles. Dissecting chromatin-mediated regulation of genes in diatoms will help understand the ecological success of these organisms in contemporary oceans. Results: Here, we use high resolution mass spectrometry to identify a full repertoire of post-translational modifications on histones of the marine diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum, including eight novel modifications. We map five histone marks coupled with expression data and show that P. tricornutum displays both unique and broadly conserved chromatin features, reflecting the chimeric nature of its genome. Combinatorial analysis of histone marks and DNA methylation demonstrates the presence of an epigenetic code defining activating or repressive chromatin states. We further profile three specific histone marks under conditions of nitrate depletion and show that the histone code is dynamic and targets specific sets of genes. Conclusions: This study is the first genome-wide characterization of the histone code from a stramenopile and a marine phytoplankton. The work represents an important initial step for understanding the evolutionary history of chromatin and how epigenetic modifications affect gene expression in response to environmental cues in marine environments. © 2015 Veluchamy et al.

  18. Post-editing through Speech Recognition

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mesa-Lao, Bartolomé

    (i.e. typing, handwriting and speaking) to improve the efficiency and accuracy of the translation process. However, further studies need to be conducted to build up new knowledge about the way in which state-of-the-art speech recognition software can be applied to the post-editing process...

  19. Ambiguous Tilt and Translation Motion Cues in Astronauts after Space Flight

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clement, G.; Harm, D. L.; Rupert, A. H.; Beaton, K. H.; Wood, S. J.

    2008-01-01

    Adaptive changes during space flight in how the brain integrates vestibular cues with visual, proprioceptive, and somatosensory information can lead to impaired movement coordination, vertigo, spatial disorientation, and perceptual illusions following transitions between gravity levels. This joint ESA-NASA pre- and post-flight experiment is designed to examine both the physiological basis and operational implications for disorientation and tilt-translation disturbances in astronauts following short-duration space flights. The first specific aim is to examine the effects of stimulus frequency on adaptive changes in eye movements and motion perception during independent tilt and translation motion profiles. Roll motion is provided by a variable radius centrifuge. Pitch motion is provided by NASA's Tilt-Translation Sled in which the resultant gravitoinertial vector remains aligned with the body longitudinal axis during tilt motion (referred to as the Z-axis gravitoinertial or ZAG paradigm). We hypothesize that the adaptation of otolith-mediated responses to these stimuli will have specific frequency characteristics, being greatest in the mid-frequency range where there is a crossover of tilt and translation. The second specific aim is to employ a closed-loop nulling task in which subjects are tasked to use a joystick to null-out tilt motion disturbances on these two devices. The stimuli consist of random steps or sum-of-sinusoids stimuli, including the ZAG profiles on the Tilt-Translation Sled. We hypothesize that the ability to control tilt orientation will be compromised following space flight, with increased control errors corresponding to changes in self-motion perception. The third specific aim is to evaluate how sensory substitution aids can be used to improve manual control performance. During the closed-loop nulling task on both devices, small tactors placed around the torso vibrate according to the actual body tilt angle relative to gravity. We hypothesize

  20. Staphylococcus species and their Methicillin-Resistance in 7424 Blood Cultures for Suspected Bloodstream Infections

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ariana ALMAŞ

    2011-06-01

    Full Text Available Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the distribution of Staphylococcus species in bloodstream infections and to assess their susceptibility to methicillin. Material and Methods: Between January 1st 2008 - December 31st 2010, 7424 blood culture sets were submitted to the Laboratory Department of the Hospital for Clinical Infectious Diseases in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. The blood cultures were performed using BacT/Alert until January 2010 and BacT/Alert 3D automated system (bioMérieux after that date. The blood culture bottles were incubated at 37°C in a continuously monitoring system for up to 7 days. The strain identifications were performed by conventional methods, ApiStaph galleries and Vitek 2 Compact system. Susceptibility to methicillin was determined by disk diffusion method with cefoxitin disk and by using Vitek 2 Compact system. Results: From the total number of performed blood cultures, 568 were positive with Staphylococcus species. From 168 bacteriemic episodes 103 were with Staphylococcus aureus. Among 65 coagulase-negative staphylococci isolates, Staphylococcus epidermidis was the most frequently isolated species (34, followed by Staphylococcus hominis (15, Staphylococcus haemolyticus (8, Staphylococcus saprophyticus (3, Staphylococcus cohnii (1, Staphylococcus auricularis (1, and 3 strains that were not identified at species level. Methicillin resistance was encountered in 53.40% of Staphylococcus aureus strains and in 80% of coagulase-negative staphylococci. Conclusions: An important percentage of blood cultures were contaminated with Staphylococcus species. The main species identified in true bacteriemia cases were Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis. The percentage of methicillin-resistance, proved to be high not only for coagulase-negative staphylococci but also for Staphylococcus aureus.

  1. Translation Ambiguity but Not Word Class Predicts Translation Performance

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prior, Anat; Kroll, Judith F.; Macwhinney, Brian

    2013-01-01

    We investigated the influence of word class and translation ambiguity on cross-linguistic representation and processing. Bilingual speakers of English and Spanish performed translation production and translation recognition tasks on nouns and verbs in both languages. Words either had a single translation or more than one translation. Translation…

  2. Examining English-German Translation Ambiguity Using Primed Translation Recognition

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eddington, Chelsea M.; Tokowicz, Natasha

    2013-01-01

    Many words have more than one translation across languages. Such "translation-ambiguous" words are translated more slowly and less accurately than their unambiguous counterparts. We examine the extent to which word context and translation dominance influence the processing of translation-ambiguous words. We further examine how these factors…

  3. A GRAMMATICAL ADJUSTMENT ANALYSIS OF STATISTICAL MACHINE TRANSLATION METHOD USED BY GOOGLE TRANSLATE COMPARED TO HUMAN TRANSLATION IN TRANSLATING ENGLISH TEXT TO INDONESIAN

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eko Pujianto

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available Google translate is a program which provides fast, free and effortless translating service. This service uses a unique method to translate. The system is called ―Statistical Machine Translation‖, the newest method in automatic translation. Machine translation (MT is an area of many kinds of different subjects of study and technique from linguistics, computers science, artificial intelligent (AI, translation theory, and statistics. SMT works by using statistical methods and mathematics to process the training data. The training data is corpus-based. It is a compilation of sentences and words of the languages (SL and TL from translation done by human. By using this method, Google let their machine discovers the rules for themselves. They do this by analyzing millions of documents that have already been translated by human translators and then generate the result based on the corpus/training data. However, questions arise when the results of the automatic translation prove to be unreliable in some extent. This paper questions the dependability of Google translate in comparison with grammatical adjustment that naturally characterizes human translators' specific advantage. The attempt is manifested through the analysis of the TL of some texts translated by the SMT. It is expected that by using the sample of TL produced by SMT we can learn the potential flaws of the translation. If such exists, the partial of more substantial undependability of SMT may open more windows to the debates of whether this service may suffice the users‘ need.

  4. Rapid lysostaphin test to differentiate Staphylococcus and Micrococcus species.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Geary, C; Stevens, M

    1986-01-01

    A rapid, simple lysostaphin lysis susceptibility test to differentiate the genera Staphylococcus and Micrococcus was evaluated. Of 181 strains from culture collections, 95 of 95 Staphylococcus strains were lysed, and 79 of 79 Micrococcus strains were not lysed. The seven Planococcus strains were resistant. Clinical isolates (890) were tested with lysostaphin and for the ability to produce acid from glycerol in the presence of erythromycin. Overall agreement between the methods was 99.2%. All clinical Micrococcus strains (43) were resistant to lysostaphin, and all clinical Staphylococcus strains (847) were susceptible. Seven of the Staphylococcus strains did not produce acid from glycerol in the presence of erythromycin. This lysostaphin test provides results in 2 h. It is easier to perform than previously described lysostaphin lysis methods. It is also more rapid and accurate than the glycerol-erythromycin test. PMID:3519667

  5. Identification of pathogenic factors potentially involved in Staphylococcus aureus keratitis using proteomics.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khan, Shamila; Cole, Nerida; Hume, Emma B H; Garthwaite, Linda L; Nguyen-Khuong, Terry; Walsh, Bradley J; Willcox, Mark D P

    2016-10-01

    Staphylococcus is a leading cause of microbial keratitis, characterized by destruction of the cornea by bacterial exoproteins and host-associated factors. The aim of this study was to compare extracellular and cell-associated proteins produced by two different isolates of S. aureus, a virulent clinical isolate (Staph 38) and a laboratory strain (Staphylococcus aureus 8325-4) of weaker virulence in the mouse keratitis model. Proteins were analyzed using 2D polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and identified by subsequent mass spectrometry. Activity of staphylococcal adhesins was assessed by allowing strains to bind to various proteins adsorbed onto polymethylmethacrylate squares. Thirteen proteins in the extracellular fraction and eight proteins in the cell-associated fractions after bacterial growth were produced in increased amounts in the clinical isolate Staph 38. Four of these proteins were S. aureus virulence factor adhesins, fibronectin binding protein A, staphopain, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase 2 and extracellular adherence protein. The clinical isolate Staph 38 adhered to a greater extent to all mammalian proteins tested, indicating the potential of the adhesins to be active on its surface. Other proteins with increased expression in Staph 38 included potential moonlighting proteins and proteins involved in transcription or translation. This is the first demonstration of the proteome of S. aureus isolates from keratitis. These results indicate that the virulent clinical isolate produces more potentially important virulence factors compared to the less virulent laboratory strain and these may be associated with the ability of a S. aureus strain to cause more severe keratitis. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. dbEM: A database of epigenetic modifiers curated from cancerous and normal genomes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Singh Nanda, Jagpreet; Kumar, Rahul; Raghava, Gajendra P. S.

    2016-01-01

    We have developed a database called dbEM (database of Epigenetic Modifiers) to maintain the genomic information of about 167 epigenetic modifiers/proteins, which are considered as potential cancer targets. In dbEM, modifiers are classified on functional basis and comprise of 48 histone methyl transferases, 33 chromatin remodelers and 31 histone demethylases. dbEM maintains the genomic information like mutations, copy number variation and gene expression in thousands of tumor samples, cancer cell lines and healthy samples. This information is obtained from public resources viz. COSMIC, CCLE and 1000-genome project. Gene essentiality data retrieved from COLT database further highlights the importance of various epigenetic proteins for cancer survival. We have also reported the sequence profiles, tertiary structures and post-translational modifications of these epigenetic proteins in cancer. It also contains information of 54 drug molecules against different epigenetic proteins. A wide range of tools have been integrated in dbEM e.g. Search, BLAST, Alignment and Profile based prediction. In our analysis, we found that epigenetic proteins DNMT3A, HDAC2, KDM6A, and TET2 are highly mutated in variety of cancers. We are confident that dbEM will be very useful in cancer research particularly in the field of epigenetic proteins based cancer therapeutics. This database is available for public at URL: http://crdd.osdd.net/raghava/dbem.

  7. Multimodal assessment of SERS nanoparticle biodistribution post ingestion reveals new potential for clinical translation of Raman imaging.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Campbell, Jos L; SoRelle, Elliott D; Ilovich, Ohad; Liba, Orly; James, Michelle L; Qiu, Zhen; Perez, Valerie; Chan, Carmel T; de la Zerda, Adam; Zavaleta, Cristina

    2017-08-01

    Despite extensive research and development, new nano-based diagnostic contrast agents have faced major barriers in gaining regulatory approval due to their potential systemic toxicity and prolonged retention in vital organs. Here we use five independent biodistribution techniques to demonstrate that oral ingestion of one such agent, gold-silica Raman nanoparticles, results in complete clearance with no systemic toxicity in living mice. The oral delivery mimics topical administration to the oral cavity and gastrointestinal (GI) tract as an alternative to intravenous injection. Biodistribution and clearance profiles of orally (OR) vs. intravenously (IV) administered Raman nanoparticles were assayed over the course of 48 h. Mice given either an IV or oral dose of Raman nanoparticles radiolabeled with approximately 100 μCi (3.7MBq) of 64 Cu were imaged with dynamic microPET immediately post nanoparticle administration. Static microPET images were also acquired at 2 h, 5 h, 24 h and 48 h. Mice were sacrificed post imaging and various analyses were performed on the excised organs to determine nanoparticle localization. The results from microPET imaging, gamma counting, Raman imaging, ICP-MS, and hyperspectral imaging of tissue sections all correlated to reveal no evidence of systemic distribution of Raman nanoparticles after oral administration and complete clearance from the GI tract within 24 h. Paired with the unique signals and multiplexing potential of Raman nanoparticles, this approach holds great promise for realizing targeted imaging of tumors and dysplastic tissues within the oral cavity and GI-tract. Moreover, these results suggest a viable path for the first translation of high-sensitivity Raman contrast imaging into clinical practice. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  8. Functional anthology of intrinsic disorder. 3. Ligands, post-translational modifications, and diseases associated with intrinsically disordered proteins.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xie, Hongbo; Vucetic, Slobodan; Iakoucheva, Lilia M; Oldfield, Christopher J; Dunker, A Keith; Obradovic, Zoran; Uversky, Vladimir N

    2007-05-01

    devoted to the presentation of 87 Swiss-Prot keywords attributed to the cellular components, domains, technical terms, developmental processes, and coding sequence diversities possessing strong positive and negative correlation with long disordered regions (Vucetic, S.; Xie, H.; Iakoucheva, L. M.; Oldfield, C. J.; Dunker, A. K.; Obradovic, Z.; Uversky, V. N. Functional anthology of intrinsic disorder. 2. Cellular components, domains, technical terms, developmental processes, and coding sequence diversities correlated with long disordered regions. J. Proteome Res. 2007, 5, 1899-1916). Protein structure and functionality can be modulated by various post-translational modifications or/and as a result of binding of specific ligands. Numerous human diseases are associated with protein misfolding/misassembly/misfunctioning. This work concludes the series of papers dedicated to the functional anthology of intrinsic disorder and describes approximately 80 Swiss-Prot functional keywords that are related to ligands, post-translational modifications, and diseases possessing strong positive or negative correlation with the predicted long disordered regions in proteins.

  9. Translation-coupling systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pfleger, Brian; Mendez-Perez, Daniel

    2013-11-05

    Disclosed are systems and methods for coupling translation of a target gene to a detectable response gene. A version of the invention includes a translation-coupling cassette. The translation-coupling cassette includes a target gene, a response gene, a response-gene translation control element, and a secondary structure-forming sequence that reversibly forms a secondary structure masking the response-gene translation control element. Masking of the response-gene translation control element inhibits translation of the response gene. Full translation of the target gene results in unfolding of the secondary structure and consequent translation of the response gene. Translation of the target gene is determined by detecting presence of the response-gene protein product. The invention further includes RNA transcripts of the translation-coupling cassettes, vectors comprising the translation-coupling cassettes, hosts comprising the translation-coupling cassettes, methods of using the translation-coupling cassettes, and gene products produced with the translation-coupling cassettes.

  10. The Role of Semantics in Translation Recognition: Effects of Number of Translations, Dominance of Translations and Semantic Relatedness of Multiple Translations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Laxen, Jannika; Lavaur, Jean-Marc

    2010-01-01

    This study aims to examine the influence of multiple translations of a word on bilingual processing in three translation recognition experiments during which French-English bilinguals had to decide whether two words were translations of each other or not. In the first experiment, words with only one translation were recognized as translations…

  11. A Comparative Study Between Modified Starch and Xanthan Gum Thickeners in Post-Stroke Oropharyngeal Dysphagia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vilardell, N; Rofes, L; Arreola, V; Speyer, R; Clavé, P

    2016-04-01

    Thickeners are used in post-stroke oropharyngeal dysphagia (OD) as a compensatory therapeutic strategy against aspirations. To compare the therapeutic effects of modified starch (MS) and xanthan gum (XG) thickeners on swallow safety and efficacy in chronic post-stroke OD patients using clinical and videofluoroscopic (VFS) assessment. Patients were studied by clinical assessment (volume-viscosity swallow test, V-VST) and VFS using 3 volumes (5, 10, 20 mL) and 3 viscosities (liquid, nectar and spoon thick), comparing MS and XG. We studied 122 patients (46MS, 76XG). (A) V-VST showed that both thickeners similarly improved safety of swallow. Prevalence of safe swallowing significantly increased with enhanced viscosity (P < 0.001 vs liquid), MS: 47.83 % at liquid, 84.93 % at nectar and 92.96 % at spoon thick; XG: 55.31 % at liquid, 77.78 % at nectar and 97.84 % at spoon thick. Patients on MS reported higher prevalence of pharyngeal residue at spoon-thick viscosities. (B) VFS: increasing bolus viscosity with either thickener increased prevalence of safe swallows (P < 0.001 vs liquid), MS: 30.25 % liquid, 61.07 % nectar and 92.64 % spoon thick; XG: 29.12 % liquid, 71.30 % nectar and 89.91 % spoon thick. Penetration-aspiration scale score was significantly reduced with increased viscosity with both thickeners. MS increased oral and pharyngeal residues at nectar and spoon-thick viscosities but XG did not. Timing of airway protection mechanisms and bolus velocity were not affected by either thickener. Increasing bolus viscosity with MS and XG thickeners strongly and similarly improved safety of swallow in chronic post-stroke OD by a compensatory mechanism; in contrast only MS thickeners increased oropharyngeal residue.

  12. Rapid differentiation of Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis and other coagulase-negative staphylococci and meticillin susceptibility testing directly from growth-positive blood cultures by multiplex real-time PCR.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jukes, Leanne; Mikhail, Jane; Bome-Mannathoko, Naledi; Hadfield, Stephen J; Harris, Llinos G; El-Bouri, Khalid; Davies, Angharad P; Mack, Dietrich

    2010-12-01

    This study evaluated a multiplex real-time PCR method specific for the mecA, femA-SA and femA-SE genes for rapid identification of Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis and non-S. epidermidis coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS), and meticillin susceptibility testing directly in positive blood cultures that grew Gram-positive cocci in clusters. A total of 100 positive blood cultures produced: 39 S. aureus [12 meticillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), 31% of all the S. aureus]; 30 S. epidermidis (56.6% of the CoNS), 8 Staphylococcus capitis (15.1%), 3 Staphylococcus saprophyticus (5.7%), 4 Staphylococcus hominis (7.5%), 3 Staphylococcus haemolyticus (5.7%), 2 Staphylococcus warneri (3.8%), 1 Staphylococcus cohnii (1.9%) and 2 unidentified Staphylococcus spp. (3.8%); and 1 Micrococcus luteus in pure culture. Two blood cultures had no growth on subculture and five blood cultures grew mixed CoNS. For the 95 blood cultures with pure growth or no growth on subculture, there was very good agreement between real-time PCR and the BD Phoenix identification system for staphylococcal species categorization in S. aureus, S. epidermidis and non-S. epidermidis CoNS and meticillin-resistance determination (Cohen's unweighted kappa coefficient κ=0.882). All MRSA and meticillin-susceptible S. aureus were correctly identified by mecA amplification. PCR amplification of mecA was more sensitive for direct detection of meticillin-resistant CoNS in positive blood cultures than testing with the BD Phoenix system. There were no major errors when identifying staphylococcal isolates and their meticillin susceptibility within 2.5 h. Further studies are needed to evaluate the clinical benefit of using such a rapid test on the consumption of glycopeptide antibiotics and the alteration of empiric therapy in the situation of positive blood cultures growing staphylococci, and the respective clinical outcomes.

  13. Crossing Linguistic Borders : Translating Democracy in the 2012 Egyptian Constitution

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Barbara Quaranta

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available The transfer of political concepts into different places and cultures happens first and foremost through translation. Far from being a simple transposition of meaning into a different language to facilitate border crossing, it also entails a process of adjustment to a different cultural context and a change in what is perceived to be the original meaning of the concept. Translation should also include the analysis of the social contexts that cause a political concept to be modified. Through Baker's social narrative theory, all these aspects can be integrated to analyse how the concept of democracy moves from place to place and from language to language leading to more complex understandings of it. I will examine the meaning of the concept of democracy in the 2012 Egyptian Constitution to outline the main features of an intercultural translational process of the concept of democracy.

  14. PERSONALITY TYPE AND TRANSLATION PERFORMANCE OF PERSIAN TRANSLATOR TRAINEES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Reza Shaki

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available The study investigated the relationship between the personality typology of a sample of Iranian translation students and their translation quality in terms of expressive, appellative, and informative text types. The study also attempted to identify the personality types that can perform better in English to Persian translation of the three text types. For that purpose, the personality type and the translation quality of the participants was assessed using Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI personality test and translation quality assessment (TQA, respectively. The analysis of the data revealed that the personality type of the participants seemed relevant to the translation quality of all the text types. The translation quality of the participants with intuitive and thinking types was significantly better than the sensing type counterparts in translating expressive texts. The participants with intuitive and feeling types also performed better than their counterparts with sensing type in translation of the informative text. Moreover, the participants with intuitive, feeling, and thinking personality types performed more successfully than the participants with sensing type in translation of the appellative text. The findings of the study are discussed in light of the existing research literature.

  15. Androgen signaling promotes translation of TMEFF2 in prostate cancer cells via phosphorylation of the α subunit of the translation initiation factor 2.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ryan F Overcash

    Full Text Available The type I transmembrane protein with epidermal growth factor and two follistatin motifs 2 (TMEFF2, is expressed mainly in brain and prostate. Expression of TMEFF2 is deregulated in prostate cancer, suggesting a role in this disease, but the molecular mechanism(s involved in this effect are not clear. Although androgens promote tmeff2 transcription, androgen delivery to castrated animals carrying CWR22 xenografts increases TMEFF2 protein levels in the absence of mRNA changes, suggesting that TMEFF2 may also be post-transcriptionally regulated. Here we show that translation of TMEFF2 is regulated by androgens. Addition of physiological concentrations of dihydrotestosterone (DHT to prostate cancer cell lines increases translation of endogenous TMEFF2 or transfected TMEFF2-Luciferase fusions, and this effect requires the presence of upstream open reading frames (uORFs in the 5'-untranslated region (5'-UTR of TMEFF2. Using chemical and siRNA inhibition of the androgen receptor (AR, we show that the androgen effect on TMEFF2 translation is mediated by the AR. Importantly, DHT also promotes phosphorylation of the α subunit of the translation initiation factor 2 (eIF2α in an AR-dependent manner, paralleling the effect on TMEFF2 translation. Moreover, endoplasmic reticulum (ER stress conditions, which promote eIF2α phosphorylation, also stimulate TMEFF2 translation. These results indicate that androgen signaling promotes eIF2α phosphorylation and subsequent translation of TMEFF2 via a mechanism that requires uORFs in the 5'-UTR of TMEFF2.

  16. Profile of sensitivity and resistance to antibiotics of Staphylococcus ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Staphylococcus aureus is a bacterial specie that opposed more resistance again many antibiotics. This study aimed to determine the resistance profile of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from biological patient's liquids. A total of 303 samples including urine and vaginal pus samples from human were collected.

  17. Internal ribosomal entry site-mediated translation is important for rhythmic PERIOD1 expression.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kyung-Ha Lee

    Full Text Available The mouse PERIOD1 (mPER1 plays an important role in the maintenance of circadian rhythm. Translation of mPer1 is directed by both a cap-dependent process and cap-independent translation mediated by an internal ribosomal entry site (IRES in the 5' untranslated region (UTR. Here, we compared mPer1 IRES activity with other cellular IRESs. We also found critical region in mPer1 5'UTR for heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein Q (HNRNPQ binding. Deletion of HNRNPQ binding region markedly decreased IRES activity and disrupted rhythmicity. A mathematical model also suggests that rhythmic IRES-dependent translation is a key process in mPER1 oscillation. The IRES-mediated translation of mPer1 will help define the post-transcriptional regulation of the core clock genes.

  18. Problems in Translating Musical Elements in African American Poetry after 1950

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kristina Kočan

    2009-06-01

    Full Text Available In most cases, African American poetry eschews traditional literary norms. Contemporary African American poets tend to ignore grammatical rules, use unusual typography on many occasions, include much of their cultural heritage in their poetry, and interweave musical elements into literary genres. The influence of such musical genres as jazz, blues, soul, and gospel, together with the dilemmas that occur for the translator, will be shown to great extent, since music, like black speech, is a major part of African American culture and literature. The translator will have to maintain the specific African American rhythm, blues adaptations and the improvisational language under the jazz impact. The paper presents the problems in translating post-1950 African American poetry into Slovene, and asks to what extent can one successfully transfer the musical elements within this poetry for the target culture? Inevitably, it will identify a share of elements that are lost in translation.

  19. Characterisation of nasal Staphylococcus delphini and Staphylococcus pseudintermedius isolates from healthy donkeys in Tunisia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gharsa, H; Slama, K Ben; Gómez-Sanz, E; Gómez, P; Klibi, N; Zarazaga, M; Boudabous, A; Torres, C

    2015-07-01

    Staphylococcus intermedius group (SIG) bacteria can colonise the nares of some animals but are also emerging pathogens in humans and animals. To analyse SIG nasal carriage in healthy donkeys destined for food consumption in Tunisia and to characterise recovered isolates. Nasal swabs from 100 healthy donkeys were tested for SIG recovery, and isolates were identified by biochemical and molecular methods. Antimicrobial susceptibility of isolates was tested and detection of antimicrobial resistance and virulence genes was performed. Isolates were typed at the clonal level by multilocus sequence typing and SmaI pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. Staphylococcus delphini and Staphylococcus pseudintermedius (included in SIG) were obtained in 19% and 2% of the tested samples, respectively, and one isolate per sample was characterised. All isolates were meticillin susceptible and mecA negative. Most S. delphini and S. pseudintermedius isolates showed susceptibility to all antimicrobials tested, with the exception of 2 isolates resistant to tetracycline (tet(M) gene) or fusidic acid. The following toxin genes were identified (percentage of isolates): lukS-I (100%), lukF-I (9.5%), siet (100%), se-int (90%), seccanine (19%) and expA (9.5%). Thirteen different pulsed-field gel electrophoresis profiles were identified among the 21 SIG isolates. Additionally, the following 9 different sequence types (STs) were detected by multilocus sequence typing, 6 of them new: ST219 (6 isolates), ST12 (5 isolates), ST220 (3 isolates), ST13, ST50, ST193, ST196, ST218 and ST221 (one isolate each). Staphylococcus delphini and S. pseudintermedius are common nasal colonisers of donkeys, generally susceptible to the antimicrobials tested; nevertheless, these SIG isolates contain virulence genes, including the recently described exfoliative gene (expA) and several enterotoxin genes, with potential implications for public health. This is the first description of S. delphini in Tunisia. The

  20. Contemporary Research on Parenting: Conceptual, Methodological, and Translational Issues

    OpenAIRE

    Power, Thomas G.; Sleddens, Ester F. C.; Berge, Jerica; Connell, Lauren; Govig, Bert; Hennessy, Erin; Liggett, Leanne; Mallan, Kimberley; Santa Maria, Diane; Odoms-Young, Angela; St. George, Sara M.

    2013-01-01

    Researchers over the last decade have documented the association between general parenting style and numerous factors related to childhood obesity (e.g., children's eating behaviors, physical activity, and weight status). Many recent childhood obesity prevention programs are family focused and designed to modify parenting behaviors thought to contribute to childhood obesity risk. This article presents a brief consideration of conceptual, methodological, and translational issues that can infor...

  1. Brief report: biomarkers of aortic vascular prosthetic graft infection in a porcine model with Staphylococcus aureus

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Langerhuus, S. N.; Tønnesen, E. K.; Jensen, K. H.

    2010-01-01

    Aortic vascular prosthetic graft infection (AVPGI) with Staphylococcus aureus is a feared post-operative complication. This study was conducted to evaluate the clinical signs and potential biomarkers of infection in a porcine AVPGI model. The biomarkers evaluated were: C-reactive protein (CRP......), fibrinogen, white blood cells (WBC), major histocompatibility complex II (MHC II) density, lymphocyte CD4:CD8 ratio and tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) in vitro responsiveness. Sixteen pigs were included in the study, and randomly assigned into four groups (n = 4): “SHAM” pigs had their infra...

  2. Chemical rescue of the post-translationally carboxylated lysine mutant of allantoinase and dihydroorotase by metal ions and short-chain carboxylic acids.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ho, Ya-Yeh; Huang, Yen-Hua; Huang, Cheng-Yang

    2013-04-01

    Bacterial allantoinase (ALLase) and dihydroorotase (DHOase) are members of the cyclic amidohydrolase family. ALLase and DHOase possess similar binuclear metal centers in the active site in which two metals are bridged by a post-translationally carboxylated lysine. In this study, we determined the effects of carboxylated lysine and metal binding on the activities of ALLase and DHOase. Although DHOase is a metalloenzyme, purified DHOase showed high activity without additional metal supplementation in a reaction mixture or bacterial culture. However, unlike DHOase, ALLase had no activity unless some specific metal ions were added to the reaction mixture or culture. Substituting the metal binding sites H59, H61, K146, H186, H242, or D315 with alanine completely abolished the activity of ALLase. However, the K146C, K146D and K146E mutants of ALLase were still active with about 1-6% activity of the wild-type enzyme. These ALLase K146 mutants were found to have 1.4-1.7 mol metal per mole enzyme subunit, which may indicate that they still contained the binuclear metal center in the active site. The activity of the K146A mutant of the ALLase and the K103A mutant of DHOase can be chemically rescued by short-chain carboxylic acids, such as acetic, propionic, and butyric acids, but not by ethanol, propan-1-ol, and imidazole, in the presence of Co2+ or Mn2+ ions. However, the activity was still ~10-fold less than that of wild-type ALLase. Overall, these results indicated that the 20 natural basic amino acid residues were not sufficiently able to play the role of lysine. Accordingly, we proposed that during evolution, the post-translational modification of carboxylated lysine in the cyclic amidohydrolase family was selected for promoting binuclear metal center self-assembly and increasing the nucleophilicity of the hydroxide at the active site for enzyme catalysis. This kind of chemical rescue combined with site-directed mutagenesis may also be used to identify a binuclear metal

  3. Programming Post-Translational Control over the Metabolic Labeling of Cellular Proteins with a Noncanonical Amino Acid.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thomas, Emily E; Pandey, Naresh; Knudsen, Sarah; Ball, Zachary T; Silberg, Jonathan J

    2017-08-18

    Transcriptional control can be used to program cells to label proteins with noncanonical amino acids by regulating the expression of orthogonal aminoacyl tRNA synthetases (aaRSs). However, we cannot yet program cells to control labeling in response to aaRS and ligand binding. To identify aaRSs whose activities can be regulated by interactions with ligands, we used a combinatorial approach to discover fragmented variants of Escherichia coli methionyl tRNA synthetase (MetRS) that require fusion to associating proteins for maximal activity. We found that these split proteins could be leveraged to create ligand-dependent MetRS using two approaches. When a pair of MetRS fragments was fused to FKBP12 and the FKBP-rapamycin binding domain (FRB) of mTOR and mutations were introduced that direct substrate specificity toward azidonorleucine (Anl), Anl metabolic labeling was significantly enhanced in growth medium containing rapamycin, which stabilizes the FKBP12-FRB complex. In addition, fusion of MetRS fragments to the termini of the ligand-binding domain of the estrogen receptor yielded proteins whose Anl metabolic labeling was significantly enhanced when 4-hydroxytamoxifen (4-HT) was added to the growth medium. These findings suggest that split MetRS can be fused to a range of ligand-binding proteins to create aaRSs whose metabolic labeling activities depend upon post-translational interactions with ligands.

  4. Peptidomics of Peptic Digest of Selected Potato Tuber Proteins: Post-Translational Modifications and Limited Cleavage Specificity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    C K Rajendran, Subin R; Mason, Beth; Udenigwe, Chibuike C

    2016-03-23

    Bioinformatic tools are useful in predicting bioactive peptides from food proteins. This study was focused on using bioinformatics and peptidomics to evaluate the specificity of peptide release and post-translational modifications (PTMs) in a peptic digest of potato protein isolate. Peptides in the protein hydrolysate were identified by LC-MS/MS and subsequently aligned to their parent potato tuber proteins. Five major proteins were selected for further analysis, namely, lipoxygenase, α-1,4-glucan phosphorylase, annexin, patatin, and polyubiquitin, based on protein coverage, abundance, confidence levels, and function. Comparison of the in silico peptide profile generated with ExPASy PeptideCutter and experimental peptidomics data revealed several differences. The experimental peptic cleavage sites were found to vary in number and specificity from PeptideCutter predictions. Average peptide chain length was also found to be higher than predicted with hexapeptides as the smallest detected peptides. Moreover, PTMs, particularly Met oxidation and Glu/Asp deamidation, were observed in some peptides, and these were unaccounted for during in silico analysis. PTMs can be formed during aging of potato tubers, or as a result of processing conditions during protein isolation and hydrolysis. The findings provide insights on the limitations of current bioinformatics tools for predicting bioactive peptide release from proteins, and on the existence of structural modifications that can alter the peptide bioactivity and functionality.

  5. The first translations of Harlem renaissance poetry in Slovenia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jerneja Petrič

    2008-12-01

    Full Text Available From the present-day perspective Harlem Renaissance poetry represents an epoch-making contribution by America's black authors to the mainstream literature. However, in the post World War 1 era black authors struggled for recognition in their homeland. The publication of a German anthology Afrika singt in the late 1920s agitated Europe as well as the German-speaking authors in Slovenia. Mile Klopčič, a representative of the poetry of Social Realism, translated a handful of Har­ lem Renaissance poems into Slovene using, except in two cases, the German anthology as a source text. His translations are formally accomplished but fail to reproduce the cultural significance of the Harlem Renaissance poetry.

  6. A Brazilian Portuguese cross-cultural adaptation of the modified JOA scale for myelopathy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pratali, Raphael R; Smith, Justin S; Motta, Rodrigo L N; Martins, Samuel M; Motta, Marcel M; Rocha, Ricardo D; Herrero, Carlos Fernando P S

    2017-02-01

    To develop a version of the modified Japanese Orthopaedic Association (mJOA) scale that had been translated into Portuguese and cross-culturally adapted for the Brazilian population. The well-established process of forward-backward translation was employed along with cross-cultural adaptation. Three bilingual translators (English and native Portuguese) performed the forward translation of the mJOA scale from English to Portuguese based on iterative discussions used to reach a consensus translation. The translated version of the mJOA scale was then back-translated into English by a native English-speaking translator unaware of the concepts involved with the mJOA scale. The original mJOA scale and the back-translated version were compared by a native North American neurosurgeon, and as they were considered equivalent, the final version of the mJOA scale that had been translated into Portuguese and cross-culturally adapted was defined. To facilitate global and cross-cultural comparisons of the severity of cervical myelopathy, this study presents a version of the mJOA scale that was translated into Portuguese and cross-culturally adapted for the Brazilian population.

  7. Resistência à mupirocina entre isolados de Staphylococcus aureus de profissionais de enfermagem Resistencia al mupirocin en cepas aisladas de Staphylococcus aureus de profesionales de enfermería Mupirocin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in samples belonging to professional nurses

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Josely Pinto de Moura

    2010-06-01

    Full Text Available OBJETIVOS: Avaliar a colonização por Staphylococcus aureus sensíveis e resistentes à meticilina na saliva de profissionais de enfermagem e o perfil de resistência à mupirocina. MÉTODOS: Foram coletadas três amostras da saliva de 356 (94,2% profissionais participantes da pesquisa, totalizando 1.068 amostras processadas. Todos os aspectos éticos foram contemplados. A análise microbiológica compreendeu a identificação fenotípica, segundo normas do Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute. RESULTADOS: Foram obtidos 73 indivíduos colonizados por Staphylococcus aureus na primeira coleta, 48 na segunda e 37 na terceira, somando 158 isolados de Staphylococcus aureus. Desses, 24 (15,2% eram resistentes à oxacilina e 30 resistentes à mupirocina (18,9%. A resistência à mupirocina foi observada de forma pronunciada nos Staphylococcus aureus metacilina resistente (MRSA; dos 24 MRSA, 17 (70,8% apresentaram-se resistentes a este antimicrobiano. CONCLUSÃO: Os resultados indicaram que a resistência à mupirocina é um importante problema, pois esse antibiótico é um excelente aliado nas medidas de controle das infecções de serviços de saúde.OBJETIVOS: Evaluar la colonización por Staphylococcus aureus sensibles y resistentes al meticilín en la saliva de profesionales de enfermería y, reconocer el perfil de resistencia a la mupirocina. MÉTODOS: Fueron recolectadas tres muestras de saliva de 356 (94,2% profesionales participantes de la investigación, totalizando 1.068 muestras procesadas. Todos los aspectos éticos fueron contemplados. El análisis microbiológico comprendió la identificación fenotípica, según normas del Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute. RESULTADOS: Fueron obtenidos 73 individuos colonizados por Staphylococcus aureus en la primera recolección, 48 en la segunda y 37 en la tercera, sumando 158 muestras aisladas de Staphylococcus aureus. De esas, 24 (15,2% eran resistentes a la oxacilina y 30

  8. The ICNP-BaT--a multilingual web-based tool to support the collaborative translation of the International Classification for Nursing Practice (ICNP).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schrader, Ulrich; Tackenberg, Peter; Widmer, Rudolf; Portenier, Lucien; König, Peter

    2007-01-01

    To ease and speed up the translation of the ICNP version 1 into the German language a web service was developed to support the collaborative work of all Austrian, Swiss, and German translators and subsequently of the evaluators of the resultant translation. The web service does help to support a modified Delphi technique. Since the web service is multilingual by design it can facilitate the translation of the ICNP into other languages as well. The process chosen can be adopted by other projects involved in translating terminologies.

  9. Staphylococcus aureus Transcriptome Architecture

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Mäder, Ulrike; Nicolas, Pierre; Depke, Maren

    2016-01-01

    Staphylococcus aureus is a major pathogen that colonizes about 20% of the human population. Intriguingly, this Gram-positive bacterium can survive and thrive under a wide range of different conditions, both inside and outside the human body. Here, we investigated the transcriptional adaptation of...

  10. 9.4 T small animal MRI using clinical components for direct translational studies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Felder, Jörg; Celik, A Avdo; Choi, Chang-Hoon; Schwan, Stefan; Shah, N Jon

    2017-12-28

    Magnetic resonance is a major preclinical and clinical imaging modality ideally suited for longitudinal studies, e.g. in pharmacological developments. The lack of a proven platform that maintains an identical imaging protocol between preclinical and clinical platforms is solved with the construction of an animal scanner based on clinical hard- and software. A small animal magnet and gradient system were connected to a clinical MR system. Several hardware components were either modified or built in-house to achieve compatibility. The clinical software was modified to account for the different field-of-view of a preclinical MR system. The established scanner was evaluated using clinical QA protocols, and platform compatibility for translational research was verified against clinical scanners of different field strength. The constructed animal scanner operates with the majority of clinical imaging sequences. Translational research is greatly facilitated as protocols can be shared between preclinical and clinical platforms. Hence, when maintaining sequences parameters, maximum similarity between pulses played out on a human or an animal system is maintained. Coupling of a small animal magnet with a clinical MR system is a flexible, easy to use way to establish and advance translational imaging capability. It provides cost and labor efficient translational capability as no tedious sequence reprogramming between moieties is required and cross-platform compatibility of sequences facilitates multi-center studies.

  11. The measurement of reversible redox dependent post-translational modifications and their regulation of mitochondrial and skeletal muscle function

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Philip A Kramer

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available Mitochondrial oxidative stress is a common feature of skeletal myopathies across multiple conditions; however, the mechanism by which it contributes to skeletal muscle dysfunction remains controversial. Oxidative damage to proteins, lipids, and DNA has received the most attention, yet an important role for reversible redox post-translational modifications (PTMs in pathophysiology is emerging. The possibility that these PTMs can exert dynamic control of muscle function implicates them as a mechanism contributing to skeletal muscle dysfunction in chronic disease. Herein, we discuss the significance of thiol-based redox dependent modifications to mitochondrial, myofibrillar and excitation-contraction (EC coupling proteins with an emphasis on how these changes could alter skeletal muscle performance under chronically stressed conditions. A major barrier to a better mechanistic understanding of the role of reversible redox PTMs in muscle function is the technical challenges associated with accurately measuring the changes of site-specific redox PTMs. Here we will critically review current approaches with an emphasis on sample preparation artifacts, quantitation, and specificity. Despite these challenges, the ability to accurately quantify reversible redox PTMs is critical to understanding the mechanisms by which mitochondrial oxidative stress contributes to skeletal muscle dysfunction in chronic diseases.

  12. The Measurement of Reversible Redox Dependent Post-translational Modifications and Their Regulation of Mitochondrial and Skeletal Muscle Function

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kramer, Philip A.; Duan, Jicheng; Qian, Wei-Jun; Marcinek, David J.

    2015-11-25

    Mitochondrial oxidative stress is a common feature of skeletal myopathies across multiple conditions; however, the mechanism by which it contributes to skeletal muscle dysfunction remains controversial. Oxidative damage to proteins, lipids, and DNA has received the most attention, yet an important role for reversible redox post-translational modifications (PTMs) in pathophysiology is emerging. The possibility that these PTMs can exert dynamic control of muscle function implicates them as a mechanism contributing to skeletal muscle dysfunction in chronic disease. Herein, we discuss the significance of thiol-based redox dependent modifications to mitochondrial, myofibrillar and excitation-contraction (EC) coupling proteins with an emphasis on how these changes could alter skeletal muscle performance under chronically stressed conditions. A major barrier to a better mechanistic understanding of the role of reversible redox PTMs in muscle function is the technical challenges associated with accurately measuring the changes of site-specific redox PTMs. Here we will critically review current approaches with an emphasis on sample preparation artifacts, quantitation, and specificity. Despite these challenges, the ability to accurately quantify reversible redox PTMs is critical to understanding the mechanisms by which mitochondrial oxidative stress contributes to skeletal muscle dysfunction in chronic diseases.

  13. Pauses by Student and Professional Translators in Translation Process

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rusdi Noor Rosa

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Translation as a process of meaning making activity requires a cognitive process one of which is realized in a pause, a temporary stop or a break indicating doing other than typing activities in a certain period of translation process. Scholars agree that pauses are an indicator of cognitive process without which there will never be any translation practices. Despite such agreement, pauses are debatable as well, either in terms of their length or in terms of the activities managed by a translator while taking pauses. This study, in particular, aims at finding out how student translators and professional translators managed the pauses in a translation process. This was a descriptive research taking two student translators and two professional translators as the participants who were asked to translate a text from English into bahasa Indonesia. The source text (ST was a historical recount text entitled ‘Early History of Yellowstone National Park’ downloaded from http://www.nezperce.com/yelpark9.html composed of 230-word long from English into bahasa Indonesia. The data were collected using Translog protocols, think aloud protocols (TAPs and screen recording. Based on the data analysis, it was found that student translators took the longest pauses in the drafting phase spent to solve the problems related to finding out the right equivalent for the ST words or terms and to solve the difficulties encountered in encoding their ST understanding in the TL; meanwhile, professional translators took the longest pauses in the pos-drafting phase spent to ensure whether their TT had been natural and whether their TT had corresponded to the prevailing grammatical rules of the TL.

  14. Development of An Impedimetric Aptasensor for the Detection of Staphylococcus aureus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reich, Peggy; Stoltenburg, Regina; Strehlitz, Beate; Frense, Dieter; Beckmann, Dieter

    2017-11-21

    In combination with electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, aptamer-based biosensors are a powerful tool for fast analytical devices. Herein, we present an impedimetric aptasensor for the detection of the human pathogen Staphylococcus aureus . The used aptamer targets protein A, a surface bound virulence factor of S. aureus . The thiol-modified protein A-binding aptamer was co-immobilized with 6-mercapto-1-hexanol onto gold electrodes by self-assembly. Optimization of the ratio of aptamer to 6-mercapto-1-hexanol resulted in an average density of 1.01 ± 0.44 × 10 13 aptamer molecules per cm². As shown with quartz crystal microbalance experiments, the immobilized aptamer retained its functionality to bind recombinant protein A. Our impedimetric biosensor is based on the principle that binding of target molecules to the immobilized aptamer decreases the electron transfer between electrode and ferri-/ferrocyanide in solution, which is measured as an increase of impedance. Microscale thermophoresis measurements showed that addition of the redox probe ferri-/ferrocyanide has no influence on the binding of aptamer and its target. We demonstrated that upon incubation with various concentrations of S. aureus , the charge-transfer resistance increased proportionally. The developed biosensor showed a limit of detection of 10 CFU·mL -1 and results were available within 10 minutes. The biosensor is highly selective, distinguishing non-target bacteria such as Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus epidermidis . This work highlights the immense potential of impedimetric aptasensors for future biosensing applications.

  15. Development of An Impedimetric Aptasensor for the Detection of Staphylococcus aureus

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peggy Reich

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available In combination with electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, aptamer-based biosensors are a powerful tool for fast analytical devices. Herein, we present an impedimetric aptasensor for the detection of the human pathogen Staphylococcus aureus. The used aptamer targets protein A, a surface bound virulence factor of S. aureus. The thiol-modified protein A-binding aptamer was co-immobilized with 6-mercapto-1-hexanol onto gold electrodes by self-assembly. Optimization of the ratio of aptamer to 6-mercapto-1-hexanol resulted in an average density of 1.01 ± 0.44 × 1013 aptamer molecules per cm2. As shown with quartz crystal microbalance experiments, the immobilized aptamer retained its functionality to bind recombinant protein A. Our impedimetric biosensor is based on the principle that binding of target molecules to the immobilized aptamer decreases the electron transfer between electrode and ferri-/ferrocyanide in solution, which is measured as an increase of impedance. Microscale thermophoresis measurements showed that addition of the redox probe ferri-/ferrocyanide has no influence on the binding of aptamer and its target. We demonstrated that upon incubation with various concentrations of S. aureus, the charge-transfer resistance increased proportionally. The developed biosensor showed a limit of detection of 10 CFU·mL−1 and results were available within 10 minutes. The biosensor is highly selective, distinguishing non-target bacteria such as Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus epidermidis. This work highlights the immense potential of impedimetric aptasensors for future biosensing applications.

  16. Machine translation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nagao, M

    1982-04-01

    Each language has its own structure. In translating one language into another one, language attributes and grammatical interpretation must be defined in an unambiguous form. In order to parse a sentence, it is necessary to recognize its structure. A so-called context-free grammar can help in this respect for machine translation and machine-aided translation. Problems to be solved in studying machine translation are taken up in the paper, which discusses subjects for semantics and for syntactic analysis and translation software. 14 references.

  17. Conserved Residues Lys57 and Lys401 of Protein Disulfide Isomerase Maintain an Active Site Conformation for Optimal Activity: Implications for Post-Translational Regulation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cody Caba

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available Despite its study since the 1960's, very little is known about the post-translational regulation of the multiple catalytic activities performed by protein disulfide isomerase (PDI, the primary protein folding catalyst of the cell. This work identifies a functional role for the highly conserved CxxC-flanking residues Lys57 and Lys401 of human PDI in vitro. Mutagenesis studies have revealed these residues as modulating the oxidoreductase activity of PDI in a pH-dependent manner. Non-conservative amino acid substitutions resulted in enzyme variants upwards of 7-fold less efficient. This attenuated activity was found to translate into a 2-fold reduction of the rate of electron shuttling between PDI and the intraluminal endoplasmic reticulum oxidase, ERO1α, suggesting a functional significance to oxidative protein folding. In light of this, the possibility of lysine acetylation at residues Lys57 and Lys401 was assessed by in vitro treatment using acetylsalicylic acid (aspirin. A total of 28 acetyllysine residues were identified, including acLys57 and acLys401. The kinetic behavior of the acetylated protein form nearly mimicked that obtained with a K57/401Q double substitution variant providing an indication that acetylation of the active site-flanking lysine residues can act to reversibly modulate PDI activity.

  18. Conserved Residues Lys57 and Lys401 of Protein Disulfide Isomerase Maintain an Active Site Conformation for Optimal Activity: Implications for Post-Translational Regulation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Caba, Cody; Ali Khan, Hyder; Auld, Janeen; Ushioda, Ryo; Araki, Kazutaka; Nagata, Kazuhiro; Mutus, Bulent

    2018-01-01

    Despite its study since the 1960's, very little is known about the post-translational regulation of the multiple catalytic activities performed by protein disulfide isomerase (PDI), the primary protein folding catalyst of the cell. This work identifies a functional role for the highly conserved CxxC-flanking residues Lys 57 and Lys 401 of human PDI in vitro . Mutagenesis studies have revealed these residues as modulating the oxidoreductase activity of PDI in a pH-dependent manner. Non-conservative amino acid substitutions resulted in enzyme variants upwards of 7-fold less efficient. This attenuated activity was found to translate into a 2-fold reduction of the rate of electron shuttling between PDI and the intraluminal endoplasmic reticulum oxidase, ERO1α, suggesting a functional significance to oxidative protein folding. In light of this, the possibility of lysine acetylation at residues Lys 57 and Lys 401 was assessed by in vitro treatment using acetylsalicylic acid (aspirin). A total of 28 acetyllysine residues were identified, including acLys 57 and acLys 401 . The kinetic behavior of the acetylated protein form nearly mimicked that obtained with a K57/401Q double substitution variant providing an indication that acetylation of the active site-flanking lysine residues can act to reversibly modulate PDI activity.

  19. Highly Stable Aptamers Selected from a 2′-Fully Modified fGmH RNA Library for Targeting Biomaterials

    Science.gov (United States)

    Friedman, Adam D.; Kim, Dongwook; Liu, Rihe

    2014-01-01

    When developed as targeting ligands for the in vivo delivery of biomaterials to biological systems, RNA aptamers immediately face numerous obstacles, in particular nuclease degradation and post-selection 2′ modification. This study aims to develop a novel class of highly stable, 2′-fully modified RNA aptamers that are ideal for the targeted delivery of biomaterials. We demonstrated the facile transcription of a fGmH (2′-F-dG, 2′-OMe-dA/dC/dU) RNA library with unexpected hydrophobicity, the direct selection of aptamers from a fGmH RNA library that bind Staphylococcus aureus Protein A (SpA) as a model target, and the superior nuclease and serum stability of these aptamers compared to 2′-partially modified RNA variants. Characterizations of fGmH RNA aptamers binding to purified SpA and to endogenous SpA present on the surface of S. aureus cells demonstrate fGmH RNA aptamer selectivity and stability. Significantly, fGmH RNA aptamers were able to functionalize, stabilize, and further deliver aggregation-prone silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) to S. aureus with SpA-dependent antimicrobial effects. This study describes a novel aptamer class with considerable potential to improve the in vivo applicability of nucleic acid-based affinity molecules to biomaterials. PMID:25443790

  20. On using ethical principles of community-engaged research in translational science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khodyakov, Dmitry; Mikesell, Lisa; Schraiber, Ron; Booth, Marika; Bromley, Elizabeth

    2016-05-01

    The transfer of new discoveries into both clinical practice and the wider community calls for reliance on interdisciplinary translational teams that include researchers with different areas of expertise, representatives of health care systems and community organizations, and patients. Engaging new stakeholders in research, however, calls for a reconsideration or expansion of the meaning of ethics in translational research. We explored expert opinion on the applicability of ethical principles commonly practiced in community-engaged research (CEnR) to translational research. To do so, we conducted 2 online, modified-Delphi panels with 63 expert stakeholders who iteratively rated and discussed 9 ethical principles commonly used in CEnR in terms of their importance and feasibility for use in translational research. The RAND/UCLA appropriateness method was used to analyze the data and determine agreement and disagreement among participating experts. Both panels agreed that ethical translational research should be "grounded in trust." Although the academic panel endorsed "culturally appropriate" and "forthcoming with community about study risks and benefits," the mixed academic-community panel endorsed "scientifically valid" and "ready to involve community in interpretation and dissemination" as important and feasible principles of ethical translational research. These findings suggest that in addition to protecting human subjects, contemporary translational science models need to account for the interests of, and owe ethical obligations to, members of the investigative team and the community at large. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  1. Post-transcriptional trafficking and regulation of neuronal gene expression.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goldie, Belinda J; Cairns, Murray J

    2012-02-01

    Intracellular messenger RNA (mRNA) traffic and translation must be highly regulated, both temporally and spatially, within eukaryotic cells to support the complex functional partitioning. This capacity is essential in neurons because it provides a mechanism for rapid input-restricted activity-dependent protein synthesis in individual dendritic spines. While this feature is thought to be important for synaptic plasticity, the structures and mechanisms that support this capability are largely unknown. Certainly specialized RNA binding proteins and binding elements in the 3' untranslated region (UTR) of translationally regulated mRNA are important, but the subtlety and complexity of this system suggests that an intermediate "specificity" component is also involved. Small non-coding microRNA (miRNA) are essential for CNS development and may fulfill this role by acting as the guide strand for mediating complex patterns of post-transcriptional regulation. In this review we examine post-synaptic gene regulation, mRNA trafficking and the emerging role of post-transcriptional gene silencing in synaptic plasticity.

  2. Prevalence of nasal portal of Staphylococcus aureus in disabled children.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Clotilde Molin

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available Introduction: Colonization of the nasal mucosa by Staphylococcus aureus set a carrier state. Which is recognized as a potential source of infection and a high risk factor for subsequent invasive infections. The prevalence of nasal carriage of this germ in disabled children in Paraguay is not known, thus contributing to the knowledge of their frequency and evaluate the profile of sensitivity to common antimicrobials was conducted this study, from May to July 2015.  Objective: to determine the prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus nasal carriage and profile of antimicrobial resistance in disabled children. Materials and Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study in which 80 nasal swabs of children, who attended the service laboratory of SENADIS (Secretaria Nacional por los Derechos Humanos de las Personas con Discapacidad. The identification and sensitivity of germ was accomplished by conventional testing.  Results: 80 pediatric patients, 46 boys and 34 girls. 18 isolates of Staphylococcus aureus were obtained, corresponding to a prevalence of 22,5%. Susceptibility testing indicated that 14 strains were MSSA (Methicillin – Sensitive Staphylococcus aureus and 4 RMSA ( Methicillin- resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Conclusion: The prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus in a population with its own characteristics provides valuable data for the epidemiology, reflecting the need for continued vigilance and take steps to reduce associated infections. The detection of RMAR evidences their progress; it is important to evaluate the empirical treatment to primary care.

  3. Streptococcus pneumoniae eradicates preformed Staphylococcus aureus biofilms through a mechanism requiring physical contact

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Faidad Khan

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Staphylococcus aureus (Sau strains are a main cause of disease, including nosocomial infections which have been linked to the production of biofilms and the propagation of antibiotic resistance strains such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA. A previous study found that Streptococcus pneumoniae (Spn strains kill planktonic cultures of Sau strains. In this work, we have further evaluated in detail the eradication of Sau biofilms and investigated ultrastructural interactions of the biofilmicidal effect. Spn strain D39, which produces the competence stimulating peptide 1 (CSP1, reduced Sau biofilms within 8 h of inoculation, while TIGR4, producing CSP2, eradicated Sau biofilms and planktonic cells within 4 h. Differences were not attributed to pherotypes as other Spn strains producing different pheromones eradicated Sau within 4 h. Experiments using Transwell devices, which physically separated both species growing in the same well, demonstrated that direct contact between Spn and Sau was required to efficiently eradicate Sau biofilms and biofilm-released planktonic cells. Physical contact-mediated killing of Sau was not related to production of hydrogen peroxide as an isogenic TIGR4spxB mutant eradicated Sau bacteria within 4 h. Confocal micrographs confirmed eradication of Sau biofilms by TIGR4 and allowed us to visualize ultrastructural point of contacts between Sau and Spn. A time-course study further demonstrated spatial colocalization of Spn chains and Sau tetrads as early as 30 min post-inoculation (Pearson’s coefficient >0.72. Finally, precolonized biofilms produced by Sau strain Newman, or MRSA strain USA300, were eradicated by mid-log phase cultures of washed TIGR4 bacteria within 2 h post-inoculation. In conclusion, Spn strains rapidly eradicate pre-colonized Sau aureus biofilms, including those formed by MRSA strains, by a mechanism(s requiring bacterium-bacterium contact, but independent from the production of

  4. UJI ZONA HAMBAT EKSTRAK DAUN PUTRI MALU (Mimosa pudica TERHADAP BAKTERI Staphylococcus aureus DAN Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA SECARA IN VITRO

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nyoman Ririn Chandrika Sari

    2015-04-01

    Full Text Available Resistensi Staphylococcus aureus dan MRSA terhadap antibiotika spektrum luas mendorong berbagai penelitian untuk menemukan senyawa aktif yang sensitif dan efektif dalam menghambat pertumbuhan bakteri.Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui efek penghambatan ekstrak daun putri malu (Mimosa pudica terhadap pertumbuhan bakteri Staphylococcus aureus dan MRSA.Penelitian terhadap aktivitas antimikrobial ekstrak daun putri malu dilakukan dengan metode agar difusi cakram dengan menggunakan metode Kirby-Bauer.Suspensi bakteri disesuaikan dengan standar kekeruhan Mc Farland 0.5. Biakan bakteri dalam cawan petri masing-masing diberikan 6 perlakuan, yaitu kontrol positif (amoxicillin atau vancomycin, kontrol negatif (alkohol, serta ekstrak daun putri malu dengan konsentrasi 25 mcg/ml, 50 mcg/ml, 75 mcg/ml dan 100 mcg/ml. Pertumbuhan Staphylococcus aureus dihambat secara signifikan oleh ekstrak daun putri malu, dengan efek inhibisi pada semua konsentrasi secara signifikan lebih baik dibandingkan dengan kontrol positif (p<0.05. Zona inhibisi Staphylococcus aureus pada konsentrasi 25 mcg/ml adalah 28.86 mm dan telah memenuhi kriteria sebagai antimikrobial sensitif berdasarkan Clinical and Laboratory Standard Institute (CLSI. Inhibisi pertumbuhan MRSA secara signifikan terjadi pada semua konsentrasi ekstrak daun putri malu dibandingkan dengan kontrol negatif (p=0.00. Zona inhibisi terbesar ditemukan pada konsentrasi 100 mcg/ml dengan diameter sebesar 14.16 mm dan memiliki efek antimikrobial sebanding dengan vancomycin dalam menghambat pertumbuhan MRSA (p=0.186. Hasil uji agar difusi cakram menunjukkan bahwa senyawa aktif dalam ekstrak daun putri malu memiliki aktivitas antimikrobial yang tinggi terhadap Staphylococcus aureus dan MRSA secara in vitro.

  5. Cultural adaptation in translational research: field experiences.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dévieux, Jessy G; Malow, Robert M; Rosenberg, Rhonda; Jean-Gilles, Michèle; Samuels, Deanne; Ergon-Pérez, Emma; Jacobs, Robin

    2005-06-01

    The increase in the incidence of HIV/AIDS among minorities in the United States and in certain developing nations has prompted new intervention priorities, stressing the adaptation of efficacious interventions for diverse and marginalized groups. The experiences of Florida International University's AIDS Prevention Program in translating HIV primary and secondary prevention interventions among these multicultural populations provide insight into the process of cultural adaptations and address the new scientific emphasis on ecological validity. An iterative process involving forward and backward translation, a cultural linguistic committee, focus group discussions, documentation of project procedures, and consultations with other researchers in the field was used to modify interventions. This article presents strategies used to ensure fidelity in implementing the efficacious core components of evidence-based interventions for reducing HIV transmission and drug use behaviors and the challenges posed by making cultural adaptation for participants with low literacy. This experience demonstrates the importance of integrating culturally relevant material in the translation process with intense focus on language and nuance. The process must ensure that the level of intervention is appropriate for the educational level of participants. Furthermore, the rights of participants must be protected during consenting procedures by instituting policies that recognize the socioeconomic, educational, and systemic pressures to participate in research.

  6. Novel nonsense mutation in the katA gene of a catalase-negative Staphylococcus aureus strain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lagos, Jaime; Alarcón, Pedro; Benadof, Dona; Ulloa, Soledad; Fasce, Rodrigo; Tognarelli, Javier; Aguayo, Carolina; Araya, Pamela; Parra, Bárbara; Olivares, Berta; Hormazábal, Juan Carlos; Fernández, Jorge

    2016-01-01

    We report the first description of a rare catalase-negative strain of Staphylococcus aureus in Chile. This new variant was isolated from blood and synovial tissue samples of a pediatric patient. Sequencing analysis revealed that this catalase-negative strain is related to ST10 strain, which has earlier been described in relation to S. aureus carriers. Interestingly, sequence analysis of the catalase gene katA revealed presence of a novel nonsense mutation that causes premature translational truncation of the C-terminus of the enzyme leading to a loss of 222 amino acids. Our study suggests that loss of catalase activity in this rare catalase-negative Chilean strain is due to this novel nonsense mutation in the katA gene, which truncates the enzyme to just 283 amino acids. Copyright © 2015 Sociedade Brasileira de Microbiologia. Published by Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

  7. Translating Inclusion

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Fallov, Mia Arp; Birk, Rasmus

    2018-01-01

    The purpose of this paper is to explore how practices of translation shape particular paths of inclusion for people living in marginalized residential areas in Denmark. Inclusion, we argue, is not an end-state, but rather something which must be constantly performed. Active citizenship, today......, is not merely a question of participation, but of learning to become active in all spheres of life. The paper draws on empirical examples from a multi-sited field work in 6 different sites of local community work in Denmark, to demonstrate how different dimensions of translation are involved in shaping active...... citizenship. We propose the following different dimensions of translation: translating authority, translating language, translating social problems. The paper takes its theoretical point of departure from assemblage urbanism, arguing that cities are heterogeneous assemblages of socio-material interactions...

  8. Localizing potentially active post-transcriptional regulations in the Ewing's sarcoma gene regulatory network

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Delyon Bernard

    2010-11-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background A wide range of techniques is now available for analyzing regulatory networks. Nonetheless, most of these techniques fail to interpret large-scale transcriptional data at the post-translational level. Results We address the question of using large-scale transcriptomic observation of a system perturbation to analyze a regulatory network which contained several types of interactions - transcriptional and post-translational. Our method consisted of post-processing the outputs of an open-source tool named BioQuali - an automatic constraint-based analysis mimicking biologist's local reasoning on a large scale. The post-processing relied on differences in the behavior of the transcriptional and post-translational levels in the network. As a case study, we analyzed a network representation of the genes and proteins controlled by an oncogene in the context of Ewing's sarcoma. The analysis allowed us to pinpoint active interactions specific to this cancer. We also identified the parts of the network which were incomplete and should be submitted for further investigation. Conclusions The proposed approach is effective for the qualitative analysis of cancer networks. It allows the integrative use of experimental data of various types in order to identify the specific information that should be considered a priority in the initial - and possibly very large - experimental dataset. Iteratively, new dataset can be introduced into the analysis to improve the network representation and make it more specific.

  9. An update on post-translational modifications of hydroxyproline-rich glycoproteins: Towards a model highlighting their contribution to plant cell wall architecture

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    May eHijazi

    2014-08-01

    Full Text Available Plant cell walls are composite structures mainly composed of polysaccharides, also containing a large set of proteins involved in diverse functions such as growth, environmental sensing, signaling, and defense. Research on cell wall proteins (CWPs is a challenging field since present knowledge of their role into the structure and function of cell walls is very incomplete. Among CWPs, hydroxyproline (Hyp-rich O-glycoproteins (HRGPs were classified into three categories: (i moderately glycosylated extensins (EXTs able to form covalent scaffolds; (ii hyperglycosylated arabinogalactan proteins (AGPs; and (iii Hyp/proline (Pro-Rich proteins (H/PRPs that may be non-, weakly- or highly-glycosylated. In this review, we provide a description of the main features of their post-translational modifications (PTMs, biosynthesis, structure and function. We propose a new model integrating HRGPs and their partners in cell walls. Altogether, they could form a continuous glyco-network with non-cellulosic polysaccharides via covalent bonds or non-covalent interactions, thus strongly contributing to cell wall architecture.

  10. A Brazilian Portuguese cross-cultural adaptation of the modified JOA scale for myelopathy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Raphael R. Pratali

    Full Text Available OBJECTIVES: To develop a version of the modified Japanese Orthopaedic Association (mJOA scale that had been translated into Portuguese and cross-culturally adapted for the Brazilian population. METHODS: The well-established process of forward-backward translation was employed along with cross-cultural adaptation. RESULTS: Three bilingual translators (English and native Portuguese performed the forward translation of the mJOA scale from English to Portuguese based on iterative discussions used to reach a consensus translation. The translated version of the mJOA scale was then back-translated into English by a native English-speaking translator unaware of the concepts involved with the mJOA scale. The original mJOA scale and the back-translated version were compared by a native North American neurosurgeon, and as they were considered equivalent, the final version of the mJOA scale that had been translated into Portuguese and cross-culturally adapted was defined. CONCLUSION: To facilitate global and cross-cultural comparisons of the severity of cervical myelopathy, this study presents a version of the mJOA scale that was translated into Portuguese and cross-culturally adapted for the Brazilian population.

  11. Measuring disease-specific quality of life in rare populations: a practical approach to cross-cultural translation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Riedlinger Arne

    2009-10-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Disease-specific quality of life (QoL measures have enhanced the capacity of outcome measures to evaluate subtle changes and differences between groups. However, when the specific disease is rare, the cohort of patients is small and international collaboration is often necessary to accomplish meaningful research. As many of the QoL measures have been developed in North American English, they require translation to ensure their usefulness in a multi-cultural and/or international society. Published guidelines provide formal methods to achieve cross-culturally comparable versions of a QoL tool. However, these guidelines describe a rigorous process that is not always feasible, particularly in rare disease groups. The objective of this manuscript is to describe the process that was developed to achieve accurate cross-cultural translations of a disease-specific QoL measure, to overcome the challenges of a small sample size, i.e. children with a rare disorder. Procedure A measurement study was conducted in the United Kingdom (UK, France, Germany and Uruguay, during which the validated measure was translated into the languages of the respective countries. Results This is a report of a modified, child-centric, cross-cultural translation and adaptation process in which culturally appropriate and methodologically valid translations of a disease-specific QoL measure, the Kids' ITP Tools (KIT, were performed in children with immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP. The KIT was translated from North American English into UK English, French, German, and Spanish. Conclusion This study was a successful international collaboration. The modified process through which culturally appropriate and methodologically valid translations of QoL measures may be achieved in a pediatric population with a relatively rare disorder is reported.

  12. A laboratory study of susceptibility of methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bukhari, M.H.; Iqbal, N.; Naeem, S.; Qureshi, G.R.; Naveed, I.A.; Iqbal, A.; Khatoon, N.

    2004-01-01

    Objective: To study the mode of infection, incidence of methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and their susceptibility against glycopeptides and fucidic acid, so that awareness may be created for consultants against such notorious rapidly spreading bacteria and recommendation can be made for their prevention and control. Methods: The specimens from various infections suspected on clinical ground were processed by standard methods and antibiotic susceptibility testing of all the 350 S. aureus and 135 MRSA isolates was done by using modified Kirby Bauer Disc diffusion technique. Results: Of 350 positive S.aureus cultures, 135 were found to be Methicillin resistant (38.5%) which showed susceptibility 96%, 94% and 86% to Vancomycin, Teicoplanin and Fucidic acid respectively. Conclusion: This study showed a high incidence of MRSA at Mayo Hospital Lahore, Glycopeptides and Fucidic acid were found to be valuable antibiotics against MRSA. (author)

  13. Staphylococcus aureus detection in blood samples by silica nanoparticle-oligonucleotides conjugates.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Borsa, Baris A; Tuna, Bilge G; Hernandez, Frank J; Hernandez, Luiza I; Bayramoglu, Gulay; Arica, M Yakup; Ozalp, V Cengiz

    2016-12-15

    A fast, specific and sensitive homogeneous assay for Staphylococcus aureus detection was developed by measuring the activity of secreted nuclease from the bacteria via a modified DNA oligonucleotide. As biosensor format, an effective system, Nanokeepers as previously reported, were used for triggered release of confined fluorophores, and hence specific detection of S. aureus on nuclease activity was obtained. The interference from blood components for fluorescent quantification was eliminated by a pre-purification by aptamer-functionalized silica magnetic nanoparticles. The reported assay system was exclusively formed by nucleic acid oligos and magnetic or mesoporous silica nanoparticles, that can be used on blood samples in a stepwise manner. The assay was successfully used as a sensing platform for the specific detection of S. aureus cells as low as 682 CFU in whole blood. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  14. Translation and Culture:Translation as a Cross-cultural Mediation

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    叶谋锦

    2013-01-01

    Translation is a complex activity which involves language competence as well as proficiency in multiculturalism. From the perspective of multiculturalism, translation resembles recreation of source text by grasping essential meanings to produce a sub-tle target text which can be clearly perceived by target readers. Ignoring cultural issues can present serious mistranslations in the field of advertising translation. This paper aims to explore the significance of connotation confined by the framework of culture and point out that verbal translation is a dangerous inclination by illustrating three business examples. This paper argues that cross-cultural mediation plays an important role in translation.

  15. Modulation of the norfloxacin resistance in Staphylococcus aureus by Cordia verbenaceae DC.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Matias, Edinardo F F; Santos, Karla K A; Falcão-Silva, Vivyanne S; Siqueira-Junior, Jose P; Costa, Jose G M; Coutinho, Henrique D M

    2013-01-01

    Several chemical compounds isolated from natural sources have antibacterial activity and some enhance the antibacterial activity of antibiotics reversing the natural resistance of bacteria to certain antibiotics. In this study, the hexane and methanol extract of Cordia verbenaceae were assessed for antibacterial activity alone and combinated with norfloxacin against the Staphylococcus aureus strain SA1199B. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of extracts was assayed using microdilution assay and the modulatory activity was evaluated using plate diffusion assay. The MIC observed varied between 256 to >1024 μg/ml. However, the antibiotic activity of norfloxacin was enhanced in the presence of subinhibitory concentrations of hexane extract of C. verbenaceae (HECV). INTERPRETATIONS & CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that Cordia verbenaceae DC. can be a source of plant derived products with antibiotic modifying activity.

  16. Cemaran Staphylococcus aureus dan Pseudomonas aerogenosa Pada Stetoskop dirumah Sakit

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    leka lutpiatina

    2017-10-01

    The result of the research was found contamination of Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aerogenosa on steteskop. The site home condition of the research data was 66.7% cleaned daily, the storage method was placed on the table 70% and the duration of using the set home more than 1 year as much as 70%. The conclusion of stethoscope at Banjarbaru Hospital was contaminated with Staphylococcus aureus by 70% and Pseudomonas aerogenosa by 17%. The suggestion of research can be continued by knowing the existence of Staphylococcus aureus resistant antibiotic and Pseudomonas aerogenous antibiotic resistant at steteskop at Hospital.

  17. The Effect of Translators' Emotional Intelligence on Their Translation Quality

    Science.gov (United States)

    Varzande, Mohsen; Jadidi, Esmaeil

    2015-01-01

    Translators differ from each other in many ways in terms of their knowledge, professional and psychological conditions that may directly influence their translation. The present study aimed at investigating the impact of translators' Emotional Intelligence on their translation quality. Following a "causal-comparative study," a sample of…

  18. Beta-lactamase detection in Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative Staphylococcus isolated from bovine mastitis

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bruno F. Robles

    2014-04-01

    Full Text Available The objectives of the study were to evaluate the presence/production of beta-lactamases by both phenotypic and genotypic methods, verify whether results are dependent of bacteria type (Staphylococcus aureus versus coagulase-negative Staphylococcus - CNS and verify the agreement between tests. A total of 200 bacteria samples from 21 different herds were enrolled, being 100 CNS and 100 S. aureus. Beta-lactamase presence/detection was performed by different tests (PCR, clover leaf test - CLT, Nitrocefin disk, and in vitro resistance to penicillin. Results of all tests were not dependent of bacteria type (CNS or S. aureus. Several S. aureus beta-lactamase producing isolates were from the same herd. Phenotypic tests excluding in vitro resistance to penicillin showed a strong association measured by the kappa coefficient for both bacteria species. Nitrocefin and CLT are more reliable tests for detecting beta-lactamase production in staphylococci.

  19. Proteomic analysis reveals APC-dependent post-translational modifications and identifies a novel regulator of β-catenin.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blundon, Malachi A; Schlesinger, Danielle R; Parthasarathy, Amritha; Smith, Samantha L; Kolev, Hannah M; Vinson, David A; Kunttas-Tatli, Ezgi; McCartney, Brooke M; Minden, Jonathan S

    2016-07-15

    Wnt signaling generates patterns in all embryos, from flies to humans, and controls cell fate, proliferation and metabolic homeostasis. Inappropriate Wnt pathway activation results in diseases, including colorectal cancer. The adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) tumor suppressor gene encodes a multifunctional protein that is an essential regulator of Wnt signaling and cytoskeletal organization. Although progress has been made in defining the role of APC in a normal cellular context, there are still significant gaps in our understanding of APC-dependent cellular function and dysfunction. We expanded the APC-associated protein network using a combination of genetics and a proteomic technique called two-dimensional difference gel electrophoresis (2D-DIGE). We show that loss of Drosophila Apc2 causes protein isoform changes reflecting misregulation of post-translational modifications (PTMs), which are not dependent on β-catenin transcriptional activity. Mass spectrometry revealed that proteins involved in metabolic and biosynthetic pathways, protein synthesis and degradation, and cell signaling are affected by Apc2 loss. We demonstrate that changes in phosphorylation partially account for the altered PTMs in APC mutants, suggesting that APC mutants affect other types of PTM. Finally, through this approach Aminopeptidase P was identified as a new regulator of β-catenin abundance in Drosophila embryos. This study provides new perspectives on the cellular effects of APC that might lead to a deeper understanding of its role in development. © 2016. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

  20. Heterogeneous Ribosomes Preferentially Translate Distinct Subpools of mRNAs Genome-wide.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shi, Zhen; Fujii, Kotaro; Kovary, Kyle M; Genuth, Naomi R; Röst, Hannes L; Teruel, Mary N; Barna, Maria

    2017-07-06

    Emerging studies have linked the ribosome to more selective control of gene regulation. However, an outstanding question is whether ribosome heterogeneity at the level of core ribosomal proteins (RPs) exists and enables ribosomes to preferentially translate specific mRNAs genome-wide. Here, we measured the absolute abundance of RPs in translating ribosomes and profiled transcripts that are enriched or depleted from select subsets of ribosomes within embryonic stem cells. We find that heterogeneity in RP composition endows ribosomes with differential selectivity for translating subpools of transcripts, including those controlling metabolism, cell cycle, and development. As an example, mRNAs enriched in binding to RPL10A/uL1-containing ribosomes are shown to require RPL10A/uL1 for their efficient translation. Within several of these transcripts, this level of regulation is mediated, at least in part, by internal ribosome entry sites. Together, these results reveal a critical functional link between ribosome heterogeneity and the post-transcriptional circuitry of gene expression. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  1. Neural correlates of the modified Stroop effect in post-traumatic stress disorder: an event-related potential study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Xiaoyi; Wei, Dongtao; Dupuis-Roy, Nicolas; Du, Xue; Qiu, Jiang; Zhang, Qinglin

    2012-12-19

    Previous studies have provided electrophysiological evidence for attentional abnormalities in patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The present study examined the electrophysiological activity of trauma-exposed patients with or without a PTSD during a modified Stroop task. The PTSD group showed a reduced P2 and P3 amplitude relative to the non-PTSD group under both the earthquake-related and earthquake-unrelated words conditions. Importantly, the earthquake-related words elicited a greater P3 amplitude (350-450 ms after stimulus) than did unrelated words in the non-PTSD group, whereas no significant difference was found in the PTSD group. This indicates that PTSD patients had some attention deficits compared with non-PTSD individuals, and that these attention deficits were not just limited to earthquake-related words.

  2. Cultural Adaptation and Translation of Outreach Materials on Autism Spectrum Disorder

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grinker, Roy R.; Kang-Yi, Christina D.; Ahmann, Chloe; Beidas, Rinad S.; Lagman, Adrienne; Mandell, David S.

    2015-01-01

    In order to connect with families and influence treatment trajectories, outreach materials should address cultural perceptions of the condition, its causes, and post-diagnostic care. This paper describes the cultural adaptation and translation of the Autism Speaks First 100 Days Kit into Korean for the purpose of improving autism spectrum disorder…

  3. Translating India

    CERN Document Server

    Kothari, Rita

    2014-01-01

    The cultural universe of urban, English-speaking middle class in India shows signs of growing inclusiveness as far as English is concerned. This phenomenon manifests itself in increasing forms of bilingualism (combination of English and one Indian language) in everyday forms of speech - advertisement jingles, bilingual movies, signboards, and of course conversations. It is also evident in the startling prominence of Indian Writing in English and somewhat less visibly, but steadily rising, activity of English translation from Indian languages. Since the eighties this has led to a frenetic activity around English translation in India's academic and literary circles. Kothari makes this very current phenomenon her chief concern in Translating India.   The study covers aspects such as the production, reception and marketability of English translation. Through an unusually multi-disciplinary approach, this study situates English translation in India amidst local and global debates on translation, representation an...

  4. The Impact of Translators' Academic Experience on Their Translation Quality

    Science.gov (United States)

    Varzande, Mohsen; Jadidi, Esmaeil

    2015-01-01

    Translators differ from each other in many ways in terms of their knowledge and professional conditions that may directly influence their translation. The present study aimed at investigating the impact of translators' academic experience on their translation quality. Following a "causal-comparative study", a sample of 100 male and…

  5. Brain infection following experimental Staphylococcus aureus sepsis in pigs

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Astrup, Lærke Boye; Iburg, Tine Moesgaard; Nielsen, Ole Lerberg

    2010-01-01

    Introduction: Sepsis is a major problem in humans and both the incidence and mortality is increasing. Multiple microabcesses can be found in the brain of septic patients. Staphylococcus aureus is one of the most common causes of sepsis and brain abscesses. S. aureus is also a frequent cause...... of spontaneous porcine pyemia including endocarditis and associated brain lesions. We present a porcine model of haematogenous S. aureus induced brain infection. Materials and Methods: Twelve pigs received an intravenous injection of S. aureus of 108 CFU/kg body weight once at 0h or twice at 0h and 12h. Four...... pigs were kept as controls. The pigs were euthanized in groups of four at either 6, 12, 24 or 48 h post infection. The brain was collected from all the animals and examined histologically. Results: All the inoculated pigs developed sepsis and 7 out of 12 animals had microabscesses in the prosencephalon...

  6. Do post-translational beta cell protein modifications trigger type 1 diabetes?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Størling, Joachim; Overgaard, Anne Julie; Brorsson, Caroline Anna

    2013-01-01

    beta cell-specific neo-epitopes. We suggest that the current paradigm of type 1 diabetes as a classical autoimmune disease should be reconsidered since the immune response may not be directed against native beta cell proteins. A modified model for the pathogenetic events taking place in islets leading...... diabetes exists in the published literature. Furthermore, we report that cytokines change the expression levels of several genes encoding proteins involved in PTM processes in human islets, and that there are type 1 diabetes-associated polymorphisms in a number of these. In conclusion, data from...... the literature and presented experimental data support the notion that PTM of beta cell proteins may be involved in triggering beta cell destruction in type 1 diabetes. If the beta cell antigens recognised by the immune system foremost come from modified proteins rather than native ones, the concept of type 1...

  7. Translating Legal Collocations in Contract Agreements by Iraqi EFL Students-Translators

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Muntaha A. Abdulwahid

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Legal translation of contract agreements is a challenge to translators as it involves combining the literary translation with the technical terminological precision. In translating legal contract agreements, a legal translator must utilize the lexical or syntactic precision and, more importantly, the pragmatic awareness of the context. This will guarantee an overall communicative process and avoid inconsistency in legal translation. However, the inability of the translator to meet these two functions in translating the contract item not only affects the contractors’ comprehension of the contract item but also affects the parties’ contractual obligations. In light of this, the purpose of this study was to find out how legal collocations used in contract agreements are translated from Arabic into English by student-translators in terms of (1 purely technical, (2 semi-technical, and (3 everyday vocabulary collocations. For the data collection, a multiple-choice collocation test was used to be answered by 35 EFL Iraqi undergraduate translator-students to decide on the aspects of weaknesses and strengths of their translation, thus decide on the aspects of correction. The findings showed that these students had serious problems in translating legal collocations as they lack the linguistic knowledge and pragmatic awareness needed to achieve the legal meaning and effect. They were also unable to make a difference among the three categories of legal collocations, purely technical, semi-technical, and everyday vocabulary collocations. These students should be exposed to more legal translation practices to obtain the required experience needed for their future career.

  8. Translational coregulation of 5′TOP mRNAs by TIA-1 and TIAR

    Science.gov (United States)

    Damgaard, Christian Kroun; Lykke-Andersen, Jens

    2011-01-01

    The response of cells to changes in their environment often requires coregulation of gene networks, but little is known about how this can occur at the post-transcriptional level. An important example of post-transcriptional coregulation is the selective translational regulation in response to growth conditions of mammalian mRNAs that encode protein biosynthesis factors and contain hallmark 5′-terminal oligopyrimidine tracts (5′TOP). However, the responsible trans-factors and the mechanism by which they coregulate 5′TOP mRNAs have remained elusive. Here we identify stress granule-associated TIA-1 and TIAR proteins as key factors in human 5′TOP mRNA regulation, which upon amino acid starvation assemble onto the 5′ end of 5′TOP mRNAs and arrest translation at the initiation step, as evidenced by TIA-1/TIAR-dependent 5′TOP mRNA translation repression, polysome release, and accumulation in stress granules. This requires starvation-mediated activation of the GCN2 (general control nonderepressible 2) kinase and inactivation of the mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin) signaling pathway. Our findings provide a mechanistic explanation to the long-standing question of how the network of 5′TOP mRNAs are coregulated according to amino acid availability, thereby allowing redirection of limited resources to mount a nutrient deprivation response. This presents a fundamental example of how a group of mRNAs can be translationally coregulated in response to changes in the cellular environment. PMID:21979918

  9. Relationship between the Modified Modified Ashworth Scale and the Biomechanical Measure in Assessing Knee Extensor Muscle Spasticity in Patients with Post-Stroke Hemiparesia:A Pilot Study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    N. Nakhostin Ansari

    2014-07-01

    Full Text Available Introduction & Objective: The Modified Modified Ashworth Scale (MMAS is a clinical meas-ure that has been recently developed for the assessment of muscle spasticity. There is a dearth of research on the validity of the MMAS. The aim of the present study was to investi-gate the relationship between the MMAS and the biomechanical measure of work-velocity slope in assessing knee extensor muscle spasticity in patients with hemiparesia. Materials & Methods: Fourteen patients with post-stroke hemiparesia were included in this cross sectional study. Knee extensor spasticity was assessed with MMAS. An isokinetic dy-namometer was used to impose knee passive flexion with the angular velocity of 10, 30, 60, and 90 °/Sec to measure Torque-angle data. Work (Joule was calculated at each velocity to determine the slope of the work-velocity curves as the biomechanical measure of muscle spasticity. Results: The mean work decreased as the velocity increased but was not statistically signifi-cant (P = 0.07. The mean slope was – 0.35 [J /(°/Sec]. There was no significant correlation between the MMAS and the work-velocity slope (r =0.31, P = 0.28. Conclusion: There was no significant relationship between the MMAS and the biomechanical measure of work-velocity slope. Further studies with larger sample size are suggested. (Sci J Hamadan Univ Med Sci 2014; 21 (2: 131-136

  10. Quality control of direct molecular diagnostics for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Belkum, Alex; Niesters, Hubert G M; MacKay, William G; van Leeuwen, Willem B

    Ten samples containing various amounts of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), methicillin-susceptible S. aureus, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis (MRSE), and combinations thereof were distributed to 51 laboratories for molecular diagnostics testing. Samples containing

  11. An ion-current mutant of Paramecium tetraurelia with defects in the primary structure and post-translational N-methylation of calmodulin

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wallen-Friedman, M.A.

    1988-01-01

    My work on pantophobiac A 2 (pntA 2 ), a behavioral mutant of Paramecium tetraurelia, suggest that the Ca ++ -binding protein calmodulin (CaM), and post-translation N-methylation of CaM, are important for Ca ++ -related ion-current function. Calmodulin from wild-type Paramecium has two sites of lysine-N-methylation. Both of these sites are almost fully methylated in vivo; thus wild-type calmodulin is a poor substrate for N-methylation in vitro. In contrast, pntA/ 2 CaM can be heavily N-methylated in vitro, suggesting that the mutant calmodulin is under-methylated in vivo. Amino-acid composition analysis showed that CaM lysine 115 is undermethylated in pntA 2 . Once pntA 2 CaM is N-methylated, the [methyl- 3 H] group does not turn over in either wild-type or pntA 2 cytoplasmic fractions. The methylating enzymes in pntA 2 high-speed supernatant fractions are active, but may be less robust than those of the wild type, suggesting a possible control of these enzymes by CaM

  12. Long-term mortality after Staphylococcus aureus spondylodiscitis

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Aagaard, Theis; Roed, Casper; Larsen, Anders R

    2014-01-01

    Patients diagnosed with Staphylococcus aureus spondylodiscitis have increased long-term mortality compared with the background population mainly due to infectious, endocrine, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal and alcohol and drug abuse-related diseases.......Patients diagnosed with Staphylococcus aureus spondylodiscitis have increased long-term mortality compared with the background population mainly due to infectious, endocrine, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal and alcohol and drug abuse-related diseases....

  13. Community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus causing chronic pneumonia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Enayet, Iram; Nazeri, Ali; Johnson, Leonard B; Riederer, Kathleen; Pawlak, Joan; Saravolatz, Louis D

    2006-04-01

    A young woman presented with pneumonia of a 3-month duration with predominantly nodular pulmonary infiltrates. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus was identified in multiple cultures of sputum specimens. According to findings of pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, the isolate was identical to USA 300 and carried a type IV Staphylococcus cassette chromosome mec type IV gene and the genes for Panton-Valentine leukocidin.

  14. Translation Analysis on Civil Engineering Text Produced by Machine Translator

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sutopo Anam

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Translation is extremely needed in communication since people have serious problem in the language used. Translation activity is done by the person in charge for translating the material. Translation activity is also able to be done by machine. It is called machine translation, reflected in the programs developed by programmer. One of them is Transtool. Many people used Transtool for helping them in solving the problem related with translation activities. This paper wants to deliver how important is the Transtool program, how effective is Transtool program and how is the function of Transtool for human business. This study applies qualitative research. The sources of data were document and informant. This study used documentation and in dept-interviewing as the techniques for collecting data. The collected data were analyzed by using interactive analysis. The results of the study show that, first; Transtool program is helpful for people in translating the civil engineering text and it functions as the aid or helper, second; the working of Transtool software program is effective enough and third; the result of translation produced by Transtool is good for short and simple sentences and not readable, not understandable and not accurate for long sentences (compound, complex and compound complex thought the result is informative. The translated material must be edited by the professional translator.

  15. Translation Analysis on Civil Engineering Text Produced by Machine Translator

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sutopo, Anam

    2018-02-01

    Translation is extremely needed in communication since people have serious problem in the language used. Translation activity is done by the person in charge for translating the material. Translation activity is also able to be done by machine. It is called machine translation, reflected in the programs developed by programmer. One of them is Transtool. Many people used Transtool for helping them in solving the problem related with translation activities. This paper wants to deliver how important is the Transtool program, how effective is Transtool program and how is the function of Transtool for human business. This study applies qualitative research. The sources of data were document and informant. This study used documentation and in dept-interviewing as the techniques for collecting data. The collected data were analyzed by using interactive analysis. The results of the study show that, first; Transtool program is helpful for people in translating the civil engineering text and it functions as the aid or helper, second; the working of Transtool software program is effective enough and third; the result of translation produced by Transtool is good for short and simple sentences and not readable, not understandable and not accurate for long sentences (compound, complex and compound complex) thought the result is informative. The translated material must be edited by the professional translator.

  16. Motion perception during tilt and translation after space flight

    Science.gov (United States)

    Clément, Gilles; Wood, Scott J.

    2013-11-01

    Preliminary results of an ongoing study examining the effects of space flight on astronauts' motion perception induced by independent tilt and translation motions are presented. This experiment used a sled and a variable radius centrifuge that translated the subjects forward-backward or laterally, and simultaneously tilted them in pitch or roll, respectively. Tests were performed on the ground prior to and immediately after landing. The astronauts were asked to report about their perceived motion in response to different combinations of body tilt and translation in darkness. Their ability to manually control their own orientation was also evaluated using a joystick with which they nulled out the perceived tilt while the sled and centrifuge were in motion. Preliminary results confirm that the magnitude of perceived tilt increased during static tilt in roll after space flight. A deterioration in the crewmember to control tilt using non-visual inertial cues was also observed post-flight. However, the use of a tactile prosthesis indicating the direction of down on the subject's trunk improved manual control performance both before and after space flight.

  17. Differentiation between Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis strains using Raman spectroscopy

    Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

    Rebrošová, K.; Šiler, Martin; Samek, Ota; Růžička, F.; Bernatová, Silvie; Ježek, Jan; Zemánek, Pavel; Holá, V.

    2017-01-01

    Roč. 12, č. 10 (2017), s. 881-890 ISSN 1746-0913 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA15-20645S; GA MŠk(CZ) LO1212; GA MŠk ED0017/01/01 Institutional support: RVO:68081731 Keywords : Raman spectroscopy * rapid diagnostics * Staphylococcus epidermidis * Staphyococcus aureus Subject RIV: BH - Optics, Masers, Lasers OBOR OECD: Optics (including laser optics and quantum optics) Impact factor: 3.374, year: 2016

  18. Translation and cultural validation of clinical observational scales - the Fugl-Meyer assessment for post stroke sensorimotor function in Colombian Spanish.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barbosa, Nubia E; Forero, Sandra M; Galeano, Claudia P; Hernández, Edgar D; Landinez, Nancy S; Sunnerhagen, Katharina S; Alt Murphy, Margit

    2018-04-24

    Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA) is the most widely used and recommended clinical scale for evaluation of sensorimotor impairment post stroke, but an official Spanish version is not available today. This study aimed to establish methodological structure for translation and cultural adaptation process and perform a transcultural validation of the upper and lower extremity FMA to Colombian Spanish. Procedures included forward and backward translation, step-wise reviewing by bilingual and professional experts to ensure conceptual and semantic equivalence. Validation included a pilot evaluation of item-level agreement on 10 individuals with stroke at the Central Military Hospital of Colombia. Comprehensive step-wise procedure for transcultural validation was established. Low agreement (less than 70%) was detected for items assessing arm movements within synergies and for coordination/speed subscale. All points of disagreement were systematically reviewed and agreed upon when drafting the final version of the Spanish FMA. Use of FMA will allow unified description of stroke severity and motor recovery in Spanish speaking countries. This will open up possibility to compare stroke and rehabilitation outcomes with other countries and regions world-wide. Comprehensive methodological procedures provided can facilitate introduction of well-established clinical scales in other languages. Implications for Rehabilitation The Fugl-Meyer Assessment (FMA) of upper and lower extremity is the most used and recommended clinical scale for evaluation of sensorimotor impairment after stroke. The Spanish version of FMA, validated in this study, is now first time available for use in research and clinical practice. Use of FMA will allow unified description of stroke severity and motor recovery in Spanish speaking countries, which in turn opens up possibility to compare stroke and rehabilitation outcomes with other countries and regions world-wide.

  19. Letting Go of Control to the Learners: The Role of the Internet in Promoting a More Autonomous View of Learning in an Academic Translation Course.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yumuk, Ayse

    2002-01-01

    English-speaking Turkish translation students (n=90) were taught to apply Internet searches to translation tasks. Pre/post program data indicate that student learned to reflect critically on their learning and to shift from teacher-dependent to autonomous approaches. They recognized that translation required more personal responsibility from the…

  20. Translation: between what can be translated and what must be translated

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Magda Jeanrenaud

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available Starting from a disconcerting interpretation of Jacques Derrida, our analysis aims at investigating and also tries to explain the blockage which appears in the English, French and Romanian translations (signed by Maurice de Gandillac, Antoine Berman, Laurent Lamy, Alexis Nouss, Harry Zohn, Steven Rendall, Martine Broda, Catrinel Pleșu etc. of a well-known text of Walter Benjamin, Die Aufgabe des Übersetzers, when translators transpose in their target languages the two quotations given by Benjamin: one of Mallarmé, left untranslated in the source text, and another, signed by Pannwitz. The fact is that both quotations have something in common: a discoursive form which results from an unusual syntax, as if they were already, in a certain sense, „translations”. As if the translators feared—a feature of the translator’s psychology?—not to render their text sufficiently accessible, even when the source text is not intended to be accessible. Hence the painful dilemma of the intentional fallacy (not only of the text to be translated.

  1. Occurrence of pseudomonas aeruginosa in post-operative wound infection

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Oguntibeju, O.O.; Nwobu, R.A.U.

    2004-01-01

    Objective: To determine the prevalence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in post-operative wound infection. Results: Out of the 60 bacterial isolates found in post-operative wound infection, 20 (33.3%) were Pseudomonas aeruginosa, followed by Staphylococcus aureus 13(21.7%), Klebsiella species 10(16.7%), Escherichia coli 7(11.7%), Atypical coliform 4(6.7%), Proteus species 4(6.7%), Streptococcus pyogenes 1(1.7%) and Enterococcus faecalis 1(1.7%) in the order. Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections was higher in female than male, ratio 3:2 and was found more among young and elderly debilitated patients. The in vitro sensitivity pattern of 20 isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa showed colistin (100%), gentamicin (75%), streptomycin (30%), and tetracycline (10%). Conclusion: The role of Pseudomonas aeruginosa as an agent of nosocomial infection is re-emphasised. (author)

  2. Sub-inhibitory stress with essential oil affects enterotoxins production and essential oil susceptibility in Staphylococcus aureus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Turchi, Barbara; Mancini, Simone; Pistelli, Luisa; Najar, Basma; Cerri, Domenico; Fratini, Filippo

    2018-03-01

    Fourteen wild strains of Staphylococcus aureus positive for gene sea were tested for enterotoxins production and the minimum inhibitory concentration of Leptospermum scoparium, Origanum majorana, Origanum vulgare, Satureja montana and Thymus vulgaris essential oils (EOs) were determined. After this trial, bacteria stressed with sub-inhibitory concentration of each EO were tested for enterotoxins production by an immunoenzymatic assay and resistance to the same EO. Oregano oil exhibited the highest antibacterial activity followed by manuka and thyme oils. After the exposure to a sub-inhibitory concentration of EOs, strains displayed an increased sensitivity in more than 95% of the cases. After treatment with oregano and marjoram EOs, few strains showed a modified enterotoxins production, while 43% of the strains were no longer able to produce enterotoxins after treatment with manuka EO. The results obtained in this study highlight that exposure to sub-inhibitory concentration of EO modifies strains enterotoxins production and EOs susceptibility profile.

  3. Integrating Automatic Speech Recognition and Machine Translation for Better Translation Outputs

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Liyanapathirana, Jeevanthi

    translations, combining machine translation with computer assisted translation has drawn attention in current research. This combines two prospects: the opportunity of ensuring high quality translation along with a significant performance gain. Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) is another important area......, which caters important functionalities in language processing and natural language understanding tasks. In this work we integrate automatic speech recognition and machine translation in parallel. We aim to avoid manual typing of possible translations as dictating the translation would take less time...... to the n-best list rescoring, we also use word graphs with the expectation of arriving at a tighter integration of ASR and MT models. Integration methods include constraining ASR models using language and translation models of MT, and vice versa. We currently develop and experiment different methods...

  4. (Con)figuring gender in Bible translation: Cultural, translational and ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The gendered intersection of cultural studies and Bible translation is under acknowledged. Accounting for gender criticism in translation work requires, besides responsible theory and practice of translation, also attention to interwoven gender critical aspects. After a brief investigation of the intersections between biblical, ...

  5. Translation and identity: Translation of the Freedom Charter into ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    A comparative analysis of the Afrikaans translations reveals how the respective translators struggled sporadically through certain ideological constraints in order to provide a satisfactory narrative. Their inability to internalise the principles contained in the Freedom Charter resulted in them presenting a 'framed' translation ...

  6. Antimicrobial resistant coagulase positive Staphylococcus aureus ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    ADEYEYE

    S. aureus is associated with many clinical syndromes including tenosynovitis, omphalitis, femoral head necrosis, .... Markey, 2008) where occurrence of multidrug ... Staphylococcus aureus isolates from bovine mastitis in. Denmark. Veterinary.

  7. Up in the cloud: reflections on teaching translation technology using a cloud-based platform

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Flanagan, Marian

    to teaching TT in the classroom. The approach was inspired by Pym (2006) and Doherty and Moorkens (2013), and it takes advantage of using cloud-based software. The aim was to evaluate the students’ experience in the TT workshops. Moreover, I wanted to investigate particular aspects of teaching that were...... with teaching translation technology in the classroom (e.g. Doherty et al. 2012, Kenny and Way 2001, O’Brien and Kenny 2001,2006), several unanswered questions still remain. Up until recently, the translation software often restricted the teaching approach. This paper reports on a new approach I took...... data via online questionnaires: pre-workshop (43 responses) and post-workshop (30 responses). The questionnaires consisted mainly of closed questions but both provided the students with the opportunity to discuss their expectations (pre-workshop) and reflections (post-workshop). Following...

  8. [Staphylococcus cohnii spp urealyticus: case report on an uncommon pathogen].

    Science.gov (United States)

    d'Azevedo, Pedro Alves; Antunes, Ana Lúcia Sousa; Martino, Marinês Dalla Valle; Pignatari, Antonio Carlos Campos

    2008-01-01

    Coagulase-negative Staphylococcus has emerged as an important agent in nosocomial infections. In this study, we report a case of bacteremia associated with a central venous catheter, caused by Staphylococcus cohnii spp urealyticus that was isolated in blood cultures from a 53-year-old male patient who was admitted to a general hospital in the city of São Paulo. We discuss in this report the difficulty in routinely identifying this microorganism in the clinical microbiology laboratory. Staphylococcus cohnii spp urealyticus is a microorganism found in human skin as part of the normal microbiota, and it can cause serious infections in humans, in some situations.

  9. Some coagulase-negative Staphylococcus species affect udder health more than others.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Supré, K; Haesebrouck, F; Zadoks, R N; Vaneechoutte, M; Piepers, S; De Vliegher, S

    2011-05-01

    A longitudinal study in 3 dairy herds was conducted to profile the distribution of coagulase-negative Staphylococcus (CNS) species causing bovine intramammary infection (IMI) using molecular identification and to gain more insight in the pathogenic potential of CNS as a group and of the most prevalent species causing IMI. Monthly milk samples from 25 cows in each herd as well as samples from clinical mastitis were collected over a 13-mo period. Coagulase-negative staphylococci were identified to the species level using transfer-RNA intergenic spacer PCR. The distribution of CNS causing IMI was highly herd-dependent, but overall, Staphylococcus chromogenes, Staphylococcus xylosus, Staphylococcus cohnii, and Staphylococcus simulans were the most prevalent. No CNS species were found to cause clinical mastitis. The effect of the most prevalent species on the quarter milk somatic cell count (SCC) was analyzed using a linear mixed model, showing that Staph. chromogenes, Staph. simulans, and Staph. xylosus induced an increase in the SCC that is comparable with that of Staphylococcus aureus. Almost all CNS species were able to cause persistent IMI, with Staph. chromogenes causing the most persistent infections. In conclusion, accurate species identification cannot be ignored when studying the effect of CNS on udder health, as the effect on SCC differs between species and species distribution is herd-specific. Staphylococcus chromogenes, Staph. simulans, and Staph. xylosus seem to be the more important species and deserve special attention in further studies. Reasons for herd dependency and possible cow- and quarter-level risk factors should be examined in detail for the different species, eventually leading to cost-benefit analyses for management changes and, if needed, treatment recommendations. Copyright © 2011 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  10. AutoCAD-To-GIFTS Translator Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jones, Andrew

    1989-01-01

    AutoCAD-to-GIFTS translator program, ACTOG, developed to facilitate quick generation of small finite-element models using CASA/GIFTS finite-element modeling program. Reads geometric data of drawing from Data Exchange File (DXF) used in AutoCAD and other PC-based drafting programs. Geometric entities recognized by ACTOG include points, lines, arcs, solids, three-dimensional lines, and three-dimensional faces. From this information, ACTOG creates GIFTS SRC file, which then reads into GIFTS preprocessor BULKM or modified and reads into EDITM to create finite-element model. SRC file used as is or edited for any number of uses. Written in Microsoft Quick-Basic (Version 2.0).

  11. Promoting evidence informed policy making for maternal and child health in Nigeria: lessons from a knowledge translation workshop

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chigozie Jesse Uneke

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Background: Knowledge translation (KT is a process that ensures that research evidence gets translated into policy and practice. In Nigeria, reports indicate that research evidence rarely gets into policy making process. A major factor responsible for this is lack of KT capacity enhancement mechanisms. The objective of this study was to improve KT competence of an implementation research team (IRT, policymakers and stakeholders in maternal and child health to enhance evidence-informed policy making. Methods: This study employed a "before and after" design, modified as an intervention study. The study was conducted in Bauchi, north-eastern Nigeria. A three-day KT training workshop was organized and 15 modules were covered including integrated and end-of-grant KT; KT models,measures, tools and strategies; priority setting; managing political interference; advocacy and consensus building/negotiations; inter-sectoral collaboration; policy analysis, contextualization and legislation. A 4-point Likert scale pre-/post-workshop questionnaires were administered to evaluate the impact of the training, it was designed in terms of extent of adequacy; with "grossly inadequate" representing 1 point, and "very adequate" representing 4 points.Results: A total of 45 participants attended the workshop. There was a noteworthy improvement in the participants’ understanding of KT processes and strategies. The range of the praiseworthiness of participants knowledge of modules taught was from 2.04-2.94, the range for the post workshop mean was from 3.10–3.70 on the 4-point Likert scale. The range of percentage increase in mean for participants’ knowledge at the end of the workshop was from 13.3%–55.2%.Conclusion: The outcome of this study suggests that using a KT capacity building programme e.g., workshop, health researchers, policymakers and other stakeholders can acquire capacity and skill that will facilitate evidence-to-policy link.

  12. Staphylococcus epidermidis adhesion and biofilm formation onto biomaterials

    OpenAIRE

    Sousa, Cláudia

    2009-01-01

    Tese de doutoramento em Engenharia Química e Biológica Staphylococcus epidermidis is a coagulase-negative Staphylococcus (CNS) that often colonizes the skin and mucous membranes of the human body, as part of its normal microflora. However, when a rupture of the cutaneous surface occurs, by any type of trauma or insertion of a medical device, staphylococci can enter the host and become pathogenic. Therefore, S. epidermidis has emerged in recent years as a major nosocomial pathogen associate...

  13. Word translation entropy in translation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Schaeffer, Moritz; Dragsted, Barbara; Hvelplund, Kristian Tangsgaard

    2016-01-01

    This study reports on an investigation into the relationship between the number of translation alternatives for a single word and eye movements on the source text. In addition, the effect of word order differences between source and target text on eye movements on the source text is studied....... In particular, the current study investigates the effect of these variables on early and late eye movement measures. Early eye movement measures are indicative of processes that are more automatic while late measures are more indicative of conscious processing. Most studies that found evidence of target...... language activation during source text reading in translation, i.e. co-activation of the two linguistic systems, employed late eye movement measures or reaction times. The current study therefore aims to investigate if and to what extent earlier eye movement measures in reading for translation show...

  14. Antimicrobial susceptibility profiles of Staphylococcus spp. from domestic and wild animals

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Isabela de Godoy

    Full Text Available ABSTRACT: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and diversity of veterinary clinical isolates of Staphylococcus and analyze their antimicrobial susceptibility. One hundred Staphylococcus spp. clinical isolates from domestic and wild animals were subjected to partial sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene to species determination. Antimicrobial susceptibility was obtained by a disk diffusion test against six antibiotics: amoxicillin (AMX, cephalexin (LEX, ciprofloxacin (CIP, erythromycin (ERY, gentamicin (GEN and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (SXT. The most common specie was S. pseudintermedius (61%, 61/100 and resistance to ERY (57%, 57/100, SXT (50%, 50/100 and AMX (46%, 46/100 was detected most frequently. In total, 40% (40/100 of Staphylococcus spp. exhibited a multidrug-resistant (MDR phenotype. Results of this study emphasize that animals are reservoir of MDR Staphylococcus spp.

  15. Dutch translation and cross-cultural validation of the Adult Social Care Outcomes Toolkit (ASCOT).

    Science.gov (United States)

    van Leeuwen, Karen M; Bosmans, Judith E; Jansen, Aaltje Pd; Rand, Stacey E; Towers, Ann-Marie; Smith, Nick; Razik, Kamilla; Trukeschitz, Birgit; van Tulder, Maurits W; van der Horst, Henriette E; Ostelo, Raymond W

    2015-05-13

    The Adult Social Care Outcomes Toolkit was developed to measure outcomes of social care in England. In this study, we translated the four level self-completion version (SCT-4) of the ASCOT for use in the Netherlands and performed a cross-cultural validation. The ASCOT SCT-4 was translated into Dutch following international guidelines, including two forward and back translations. The resulting version was pilot tested among frail older adults using think-aloud interviews. Furthermore, using a subsample of the Dutch ACT-study, we investigated test-retest reliability and construct validity and compared response distributions with data from a comparable English study. The pilot tests showed that translated items were in general understood as intended, that most items were reliable, and that the response distributions of the Dutch translation and associations with other measures were comparable to the original English version. Based on the results of the pilot tests, some small modifications and a revision of the Dignity items were proposed for the final translation, which were approved by the ASCOT development team. The complete original English version and the final Dutch translation can be obtained after registration on the ASCOT website ( http://www.pssru.ac.uk/ascot ). This study provides preliminary evidence that the Dutch translation of the ASCOT is valid, reliable and comparable to the original English version. We recommend further research to confirm the validity of the modified Dutch ASCOT translation.

  16. Translational co-regulation of a ligand and inhibitor by a conserved RNA element

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zaucker, Andreas; Nagorska, Agnieszka; Kumari, Pooja

    2018-01-01

    In many organisms, transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulation of components of pathways or processes has been reported. However, to date, there are few reports of translational co-regulation of multiple components of a developmental signaling pathway. Here, we show that an RNA element wh...

  17. (Configuring gender in Bible translation: Cultural, translational and gender critical intersections

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jeremy Punt

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available The gendered intersection of cultural studies and Bible translation is under acknowledged. Accounting for gender criticism in translation work requires, besides responsible theory and practice of translation, also attention to interwoven gender critical aspects. After a brief investigation of the intersections between biblical, translation and gender studies, translation in a few Pauline texts with bearing on gender and sexuality are investigated.

  18. 'Inhabiting' the Translator's Habitus – Antjie Krog as Translator ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Drawing on the Bourdieusian concept of habitus and its applicability in the field of translation, this article discusses Antjie Krog's profile in the practice of translation in. South Africa. Bourdieu's conceptualisation of the relationship between the initiating activities of translators and the structures which constrain and enable ...

  19. Quantification of dynamic posterior translation in modified bilateral Alexander views and correlation with clinical and radiological parameters in patients with acute acromioclavicular joint instability.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Minkus, Marvin; Hann, Carmen; Scheibel, Markus; Kraus, Natascha

    2017-06-01

    Classification of AC-joint instability is based on radiologic evaluation of anteroposterior (a.p.) stress views of both shoulders, neglecting the horizontal component of instability. Recent studies have proposed an association of dynamic posterior translation (DPT) and inferior clinical results. The purpose of this study was to quantify DPT in modified Alexander views and correlate it with other radiological and clinical data. Thirty-two patients (4 f, 28 m, mean age 34.1) with acute AC-joint dislocation (16 = RW III, 16 = RW V) underwent radiological examination including bilateral a.p. stress views with measurement of the coracoclavicular distance (CCD) and bilateral modified Alexander views with different approaches to quantify DPT (overlapping area OA AC , overlapping length OL AC ). In addition, the Constant Score, Subjective Shoulder Value, Taft Score (TF), and the Acromioclavicular Joint Instability Score (ACJI) were obtained. In Rockwood (RW) type III injuries, a mean CCD of 15.8 (9.8-22.8) mm, OA AC of 50.9 (0-216.6) mm 2 , and OL AC of 6.5 (-4.7-17.9) mm were found. RW V patients showed a CCD of 23.1 (13.7-32.0) mm; OA AC 7.0 (0-92.3) mm 2 ; and OL AC -4.8 (-19.6-9.8) mm. Particularly in RW III the CCD, OA AC and OL AC revealed significant correlation with the ACJI (r = -0.64/r = 0.72/r = 0.68, p  0.05 and OL AC with TF: r = -0.45, p > 0.05). Measuring the OL AC is a convenient way for quantifying DPT in modified Alexander views. It showed significant correlation with clinical scores, indicating the relevance of DPT in patients with AC-joint injury.

  20. Literal Translation using Google Translate in Translating the Text from French to English in Digital Tourism Brochure “Bienvenue À Paris”

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rila Hilma

    2011-05-01

    Full Text Available Translation is basically change of form. The form from which the translation is made will be called the source language and the form into which it is to be changed will be called the receptor language. Translation consists of transferring the meaning of the source language into the receptor language. Translating is not an easy job to do because many things to be considered to do this activity because translation means determining the meaning of a text, then reconstructing this same meaning using the appropriate structure and form in the receptor language. Translation is basically divided by two types of translation, one is literal and the other is idiomatic. Literal translation is really strict to the structure and form then often can not well express the true meaning of source language. Idiomatic translation makes every effort to communicate the meaning of the source language text in the natural forms of the receptor language. Then the most popular translation machine, Google Translate, in this study shows the results of translation which remain odd, unnatural, and nonsensical because the unsuccessful of message delivery, which is notably the typically error of literal translation.

  1. Silver-embedded modified hyperbranched epoxy/clay nanocomposites as antibacterial materials.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roy, Buddhadeb; Bharali, Pranjal; Konwar, B K; Karak, Niranjan

    2013-01-01

    Silver-embedded modified hyperbranched epoxy/clay nanocomposites were prepared at different wt.% of octadecyl amine-modified montmorillonite at a constant silver concentration (1 wt.%). UV-visible, XRD and TEM studies confirmed the formation of silver nanoparticles. Compared to the system without silver and clay, the gloss from 70° to 94°, scratch hardness from 4 to 5.8 kg, impact strength from 60 to 90 cm, tensile strength from 8.5 to 15.5 MPa, adhesive strength from 5 to 7.1 × 10(9)N/m, flexibility from >6 to nanocomposites showed antibacterial activity in well diffusion assays against Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC11632), Bacillus subtilis (ATCC11774), Escherichia coli (MTCC40), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MTCC7814) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (ATCC10031). The results showed that these nanocomposites have potential to be used as antimicrobial materials. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. The ICNP BaT - from translation tool to translation web service.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schrader, Ulrich

    2009-01-01

    The ICNP BaT has been developed as a web application to support the collaborative translation of different versions of the ICNP into different languages. A prototype of a web service is described that could reuse the translations in the database of the ICNP BaT to provide automatic translations of nursing content based on the ICNP terminology globally. The translation web service is based on a service-oriented architecture making it easy to interoperate with different applications. Such a global translation server would free individual institutions from the maintenance costs of realizing their own translation services.

  3. Extraction and Characterization of Extracellular Proteins and Their Post-Translational Modifications from Arabidopsis thaliana Suspension Cell Cultures and Seedlings: A Critical Review

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mina Ghahremani

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Proteins secreted by plant cells into the extracellular space, consisting of the cell wall, apoplastic fluid, and rhizosphere, play crucial roles during development, nutrient acquisition, and stress acclimation. However, isolating the full range of secreted proteins has proven difficult, and new strategies are constantly evolving to increase the number of proteins that can be detected and identified. In addition, the dynamic nature of the extracellular proteome presents the further challenge of identifying and characterizing the post-translational modifications (PTMs of secreted proteins, particularly glycosylation and phosphorylation. Such PTMs are common and important regulatory modifications of proteins, playing a key role in many biological processes. This review explores the most recent methods in isolating and characterizing the plant extracellular proteome with a focus on the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, highlighting the current challenges yet to be overcome. Moreover, the crucial role of protein PTMs in cell wall signalling, development, and plant responses to biotic and abiotic stress is discussed.

  4. On Various Negative Translations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gilda Ferreira

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available Several proof translations of classical mathematics into intuitionistic mathematics have been proposed in the literature over the past century. These are normally referred to as negative translations or double-negation translations. Among those, the most commonly cited are translations due to Kolmogorov, Godel, Gentzen, Kuroda and Krivine (in chronological order. In this paper we propose a framework for explaining how these different translations are related to each other. More precisely, we define a notion of a (modular simplification starting from Kolmogorov translation, which leads to a partial order between different negative translations. In this derived ordering, Kuroda and Krivine are minimal elements. Two new minimal translations are introduced, with Godel and Gentzen translations sitting in between Kolmogorov and one of these new translations.

  5. Translation Effects in Fluorine Doped Tin Oxide Thin Film Properties by Atmospheric Pressure Chemical Vapour Deposition

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammad Afzaal

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available In this work, the impact of translation rates in fluorine doped tin oxide (FTO thin films using atmospheric pressure chemical vapour deposition (APCVD were studied. We demonstrated that by adjusting the translation speeds of the susceptor, the growth rates of the FTO films varied and hence many of the film properties were modified. X-ray powder diffraction showed an increased preferred orientation along the (200 plane at higher translation rates, although with no actual change in the particle sizes. A reduction in dopant level resulted in decreased particle sizes and a much greater degree of (200 preferred orientation. For low dopant concentration levels, atomic force microscope (AFM studies showed a reduction in roughness (and lower optical haze with increased translation rate and decreased growth rates. Electrical measurements concluded that the resistivity, carrier concentration, and mobility of films were dependent on the level of fluorine dopant, the translation rate and hence the growth rates of the deposited films.

  6. Concurrent infectious mononucleosis and community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Li Jun; Du, Xiao Qin; Nyirimigabo, Eric; Shou, Song Tao

    2014-04-01

    It is rare to see a concurrent infection with infectious mononucleosis and community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in Tianjin, China. Until now, there is still no any single recorded case of concurrent infectious mononucleosis and community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia.

  7. [Change in drug resistance of Staphylococcus aureus].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lin, Yan; Liu, Yan; Luo, Yan-Ping; Liu, Chang-Ting

    2013-11-01

    To analyze the change in drug resistance of Staphylococcus aureus (SAU) in the PLA general hospital from January 2008 to December 2012, and to provide solid evidence to support the rational use of antibiotics for clinical applications. The SAU strains isolated from clinical samples in the hospital were collected and subjected to the Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion test. The results were assessed based on the 2002 American National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards (NCCLS) guidelines. SAU strains were mainly isolated from sputum, urine, blood and wound excreta and distributed in penology, neurology wards, orthopedics and surgery ICU wards. Except for glycopeptide drugs, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) had a higher drug resistance rate than those of the other drugs and had significantly more resistance than methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) (P resistance, we discovered a gradual increase in drug resistance to fourteen test drugs during the last five years. Drug resistance rate of SAU stayed at a higher level over the last five years; moreover, the detection ratio of MRSA keeps rising year by year. It is crucial for physicians to use antibiotics rationally and monitor the change in drug resistance in a dynamic way.

  8. Lost in translation?

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Granas, Anne Gerd; Nørgaard, Lotte Stig; Sporrong, Sofia Kälvemark

    2014-01-01

    OBJECTIVE: The "Beliefs about Medicines Questionnaire" (BMQ) assess balance of necessity and concern of medicines. The BMQ has been translated from English to many languages. However, the original meaning of statements, such as "My medicine is a mystery to me", may be lost in translation. The aim...... of this study is to compare three Scandinavian translations of the BMQ. (1) How reliable are the translations? (2) Are they still valid after translation? METHODS: Translated Norwegian, Swedish and Danish versions of the BMQ were scrutinized by three native Scandinavian researchers. Linguistic differences...... and ambiguities in the 5-point Likert scale and the BMQ statements were compared. RESULTS: In the Scandinavian translations, the Likert scale expanded beyond the original version at one endpoint (Swedish) or both endpoints (Danish). In the BMQ statements, discrepancies ranged from smaller inaccuracies toward...

  9. Antibiotic resistance patterns of coagulase-negative staphylococcus strains isolated from blood cultures of septicemic patients in Turkey.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koksal, F; Yasar, H; Samasti, M

    2009-01-01

    The aim of this study is to determine antibiotic resistance patterns and slime production characteristics of coagulase-negative Staphylococci (CoNS) caused nosocomial bacteremia. A total of 200 CoNS strains were isolated from blood samples of patients with true bacteremia who were hospitalized in intensive care units and in other departments of Istanbul University Cerrahpasa Medical Hospital between 1999 and 2006. Among 200 CoNS isolates, Staphylococcus epidermidis was the most prevalent species (87) followed by Staphylococcus haemolyticus (23), Staphylococcus hominis (19), Staphylococcus lugdunensis (18), Staphylococcus capitis (15), Staphylococcus xylosus (10), Staphylococcus warneri (8), Staphylococcus saprophyticus (5), Staphylococcus lentus (5), Staphylococcus simulans (4), Staphylococcus chromogenes (3), Staphylococcus cohnii (1), Staphylococcus schleiferi (1), and Staphylococcus auricularis (1). Resistance to methicillin was detected in 67.5% of CoNS isolates. Methicillin-resistant CoNS strains were determined to be more resistant to antibiotics than methicillin-susceptible CoNS strains. Resistance rates of methicillin-resistant and methicillin-susceptible CoNS strains to the antibacterial agents, respectively, were as follows: gentamicin 90% and 17%, erythromycin 80% and 37%, clindamycin 72% and 18%, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole 68% and 38%, ciprofloxacin 67% and 23%, tetracycline 60% and 45%, chloramphenicol 56% and 13% and fusidic acid 25% and 15%. None of the strains were resistant to vancomycin and teicoplanin. Slime production was detected in 86 of 200 CoNS strains. Resistance to methicillin was found in 81% of slime-positive and in 57% of slime-negative strains. Our results indicated that there is a high level of resistance to widely used agents in causative methicillin-resistant CoNS strains. However fusidic acid has the smallest resistance ratio, with the exception of glycopeptides. Additionally, most S. epidermidis strains were slime

  10. An Evergreen Challenge for Translators – The Translation of Idioms

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kovács Gabriella

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Translating idioms has always been a challenging decision-making process for translators mainly because not all idioms have direct equivalents in the target language. Translators usually and ideally have a solid knowledge of the target language and its cultural aspects, but even so they cannot match the ability of a native speaker in deciding when – i.e. in what context and text type – an idiom would or would not be appropriate. This study aims to explore the main characteristics of idioms and the difficulties which might occur when translating them. A needs analysis will also be presented, where the various solutions which a group of translator trainees chose while translating certain idioms from the novel “A Game of Thrones” by George R. R. Martin into Hungarian are examined. Their strategies and the appropriateness of their choices are analysed and compared with the options of the experienced literary translator (Tamás Pétersz. We consider this an important endeavour because, based on our experience, we believe that the topic of the translation of idioms should be included into the curriculum and appropriate materials and tasks should be designed to develop the translator trainees’ knowledge and skills in this domain. Therefore, the aim of this analysis is to obtain a clearer view of the difficulties they are dealing with and bear them in mind when designing teaching materials for them.

  11. Translation in Language Teaching: Insights from Professional Translator Training

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carreres, Angeles; Noriega-Sanchez, Maria

    2011-01-01

    The past three decades have seen vast changes in attitudes towards translation, both as an academic discipline and as a profession. The insights we have gained in recent years, in particular in the area of professional translator training, call for a reassessment of the role of translation in language teaching. Drawing on research and practices in…

  12. Lost in translation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hedegaard, Steffen; Simonsen, Jakob Grue

    2011-01-01

    of translated texts. Our results suggest (i) that frame-based classifiers are usable for author attribution of both translated and untranslated texts; (ii) that framebased classifiers generally perform worse than the baseline classifiers for untranslated texts, but (iii) perform as well as, or superior...... to the baseline classifiers on translated texts; (iv) that—contrary to current belief—naïve classifiers based on lexical markers may perform tolerably on translated texts if the combination of author and translator is present in the training set of a classifier....

  13. Phage typing of Staphylococcus saprophyticus.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Torres Pereira, A.; Melo Cristino, J. A.

    1991-01-01

    This study included 502 staphylococcus strains; Staphylococcus saprophyticus (297 strains) S. cohnii (47), S. xylosus (10), S. epidermidis (67) and S. aureus (81). Mitomycin C induction was performed on 100 isolates of S. saprophyticus and all induced strains were reacted with each other. Twenty-six strains proved to be lysogenic. Phages were propagated and titrated. With 12 of the phages there were three frequent associations, named lytic groups A, B and C, which included 75% of all typable strains. Typability of the system was 45% and reproducibility was between 94.2% and 100%. Phages did not lyse S. aureus and S. epidermidis strains, but they lysed S. saprophyticus and only rare strains of other novobiocin resistant species. Effective S. saprophyticus typing serves ecological purposes and tracing the origin of urinary strains from the skin or mucous membranes. Phage typing in association with plasmid profiling previously described, are anticipated as complementary methods with strong discriminatory power for differentiating among S. saprophyticus strains. PMID:1752305

  14. Translational Entanglement of Dipole-Dipole Interacting Atoms in Optical Lattices

    OpenAIRE

    Opatrny, T.; Deb, B.; Kurizki, G.

    2003-01-01

    We propose and investigate a realization of the position- and momentum-correlated Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen (EPR) states [Phys. Rev. 47, 777 (1935)] that have hitherto eluded detection. The realization involves atom pairs that are confined to adjacent sites of two mutually shifted optical lattices and are entangled via laser-induced dipole-dipole interactions. The EPR "paradox" with translational variables is then modified by lattice-diffraction effects, and can be verified to a high degree of ...

  15. Writing Through: Practising Translation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Joel Scott

    2010-05-01

    Full Text Available This essay exists as a segment in a line of study and writing practice that moves between a critical theory analysis of translation studies conceptions of language, and the practical questions of what those ideas might mean for contemporary translation and writing practice. Although the underlying preoccupation of this essay, and my more general line of inquiry, is translation studies and practice, in many ways translation is merely a way into a discussion on language. For this essay, translation is the threshold of language. But the two trails of the discussion never manage to elude each other, and these concatenations have informed two experimental translation methods, referred to here as Live Translations and Series Translations. Following the essay are a number of poems in translation, all of which come from Blanco Nuclear by the contemporary Spanish poet, Esteban Pujals Gesalí. The first group, the Live Translations consist of transcriptions I made from audio recordings read in a public setting, in which the texts were translated in situ, either off the page of original Spanish-language poems, or through a process very much like that carried out by simultaneous translators, for which readings of the poems were played back to me through headphones at varying speeds to be translated before the audience. The translations collected are imperfect renderings, attesting to a moment in language practice rather than language objects. The second method involves an iterative translation process, by which three versions of any one poem are rendered, with varying levels of fluency, fidelity and servility. All three translations are presented one after the other as a series, with no version asserting itself as the primary translation. These examples, as well as the translation methods themselves, are intended as preliminary experiments within an endlessly divergent continuum of potential methods and translations, and not as a complete representation of

  16. Genetically encoded lipid-polypeptide hybrid biomaterials that exhibit temperature-triggered hierarchical self-assembly

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mozhdehi, Davoud; Luginbuhl, Kelli M.; Simon, Joseph R.; Dzuricky, Michael; Berger, Rüdiger; Varol, H. Samet; Huang, Fred C.; Buehne, Kristen L.; Mayne, Nicholas R.; Weitzhandler, Isaac; Bonn, Mischa; Parekh, Sapun H.; Chilkoti, Ashutosh

    2018-05-01

    Post-translational modification of proteins is a strategy widely used in biological systems. It expands the diversity of the proteome and allows for tailoring of both the function and localization of proteins within cells as well as the material properties of structural proteins and matrices. Despite their ubiquity in biology, with a few exceptions, the potential of post-translational modifications in biomaterials synthesis has remained largely untapped. As a proof of concept to demonstrate the feasibility of creating a genetically encoded biohybrid material through post-translational modification, we report here the generation of a family of three stimulus-responsive hybrid materials—fatty-acid-modified elastin-like polypeptides—using a one-pot recombinant expression and post-translational lipidation methodology. These hybrid biomaterials contain an amphiphilic domain, composed of a β-sheet-forming peptide that is post-translationally functionalized with a C14 alkyl chain, fused to a thermally responsive elastin-like polypeptide. They exhibit temperature-triggered hierarchical self-assembly across multiple length scales with varied structure and material properties that can be controlled at the sequence level.

  17. In vitro activities of two novel oxazolidinones (U100592 and U100766), a new fluoroquinolone (trovafloxacin), and dalfopristin-quinupristin against Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis.

    OpenAIRE

    Mulazimoglu, L; Drenning, S D; Yu, V L

    1996-01-01

    Two oxazolidinones (U100592 and U100766), trovafloxacin, and a streptogramin combination (dalfopristin-quinupristin) were highly active in vitro against Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis, including methicillin-resistant strains. Trovafloxacin was more active than ciprofloxacin. Time-kill synergy studies demonstrated indifference for the oxazolidinones combined with vancomycin and rifampin against methicillin-resistant staphylococci. Spontaneous resistance was observed with ...

  18. Evolution of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus towards increasing resistance

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Strommenger, Birgit; Bartels, Mette Damkjær; Kurt, Kevin

    2014-01-01

    To elucidate the evolutionary history of Staphylococcus aureus clonal complex (CC) 8, which encompasses several globally distributed epidemic lineages, including hospital-associated methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) and the highly prevalent community-associated MRSA clone USA300.......To elucidate the evolutionary history of Staphylococcus aureus clonal complex (CC) 8, which encompasses several globally distributed epidemic lineages, including hospital-associated methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) and the highly prevalent community-associated MRSA clone USA300....

  19. Retrospective Study on the Prevalence and Antibiotic Resistance Pattern of Staphylococcus Aureus and Staphylococcus Epidermidis Among Patients Suspicious of Bacteremia During 2006 - 2011

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammad Ali Mohaghegh

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available Background: Staphylococci bacteria cause different diseases, varies from mild skin infections to serious bacteremia. Also they are a major cause of nosocomial and community-acquired infections globally. Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis are the two important opportunistic pathogens of the staphylococci that both can cause bacteremia. Objectives: The aim of the present study was to investigate the prevalence and antibiotic resistance pattern of S. aureus and S. epidermidis among blood culture of patients of Ghaem Educational, Research and Treatment Center, Mashhad, Iran, during 6 years (2006 - 2011. Patients and Methods: In this retrospective study, hospital medical records of 28000 patients referred to Ghaem Educational, Research and Treatment Center, Mashhad, Iran, who were suspicious of blood infections during 6 years (2005-2011, were extracted. The patient’s blood culture with staphylococcal growth and their antibiogram results during 2006 - 2011 were collected and studied. Results: Staphylococcus spp. were isolated from 600 (2.14% out of 28000 blood cultures. Furthermore, 420 (70%, 170 (28.3% and 10 (1.7% out of 600 bacterial isolates identified as S. epidermidis, S. aureus and other Staphylococcus spp., respectively. Ampicillin, amoxicillin, cefixime, ceftazidime, penicillin, oxacillin, nalidixic acid and cephepime were the most antibiotics that the isolates were resistant against. Also vancommycin and chloramphenicol were the most effective antibiotics against S. epidermidis and S. aureus, respectively. Conclusions: Prevalence of Staphylococcal bacteremia caused by S. epidermidis is fairly high comparing to S. aureus among patients referred to Ghaem Educational, Research and Treatment Center, Mashhad, Iran. Also the resistance rate of Staphylococcus spp. isolated from blood against commonly used antibiotic is high, but there are some highly sensitive antibiotic against the infection.

  20. Speaking your Translation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dragsted, Barbara; Mees, Inger M.; Gorm Hansen, Inge

    2011-01-01

    In this article we discuss the translation processes and products of 14 MA students who produced translations from Danish (L1) into English (L2) under different working conditions: (1) written translation, (2) sight translation, and (3) sight translation with a speech recognition (SR) tool. Audio......, since students were dictating in their L2, we looked into the number and types of error that occurred when using the SR software. Items that were misrecognised by the program could be divided into three categories: homophones, hesitations, and incorrectly pronounced words. Well over fifty per cent...

  1. Plane wave scattering by bow-tie posts

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lech, Rafal; Mazur, Jerzy

    2004-04-01

    The theory of scattering in free space by a novel structure of a two-dimensional dielectric-metallic post is developed with the use of a combination of a modified iterative scattering procedure and an orthogonal expansion method. The far scattered field patterns for open structures are derived. The rotation of the post affects its scattered field characteristic, which permits to make adjustments in characteristic of the posts arrays.

  2. Struggling with Translations

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Obed Madsen, Søren

    This paper shows empirical how actors have difficulties with translating strategy texts. The paper uses four cases as different examples of what happens, and what might be difficult, when actors translate organizational texts. In order to explore this, it draws on a translation training method from...... translation theory. The study shows that for those who have produced the text, it is difficult to translate a strategy where they have to change the words so others who don’t understand the language in the text can understand it. It also shows that for those who haven’t been a part of the production, it very...... challenge the notion that actors understand all texts and that managers per se can translate a text....

  3. Bacteria Isolated from Post-Partum Infections

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nahid Arianpour

    2009-06-01

    Full Text Available Objective: This study was undertaken with an aim to determine bacterial species involved in post partum infections and also their abundance in patients admitted to at Khanevadeh hospital. In this study out of three different kinds of postpartum infections (i.e. genital, breast and urinary tract, only genital infection is considered.Materials and Methods: Post partum infection among 6077 patients (inpatients and re-admitted patients of Khanevadeh hospital from 2003 till 2008 was studied in this descriptive study. Samples were collected from patients for laboratory diagnosis to find out the causative organisms.Results: Follow up of mothers after delivery revealed 7.59% (461 patients had post partum infection, out of which 1.03% (63 patients were re-hospitalized. Infection was more often among younger mothers. Bacteria isolated and identified were both aerobic and anaerobic cocci and bacilli, majority of which were normal flora of the site of infection. Though, some pathogenic bacteria like Staphylococcus aureus, Neisseria gonorrhea, Chlamydia trachomatis,were also the causative agents. The commonest infection was infection at the site of episiotomy. Conclusion: Puerperal infection was detected in of 7.59% mothers. Bacteria isolated were both aerobic and anaerobic cocci and bacilli, majority of which were normal flora. However; some pathogenic bacteria were isolated.

  4. Detecting Staphylococcus aureus in milk from dairy cows using sniffer dogs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fischer-Tenhagen, C; Theby, V; Krömker, V; Heuwieser, W

    2018-05-01

    Fast and accurate identification of disease-causing pathogens is essential for specific antimicrobial therapy in human and veterinary medicine. In these experiments, dogs were trained to identify Staphylococcus aureus and differentiate it from other common mastitis-causing pathogens by smell. Headspaces from agar plates, inoculated raw milk samples, or field samples collected from cows with Staphylococcus aureus and other mastitis-causing pathogens were used for training and testing. The ability to learn the specific odor of Staphylococcus aureus in milk depended on the concentration of the pathogens in the training samples. Sensitivity and specificity for identifying Staphylococcus aureus were 91.3 and 97.9%, respectively, for pathogens grown on agar plates; 83.8 and 98.0% for pathogens inoculated in raw milk; and 59.0 and 93.2% for milk samples from mastitic cows. The results of these experiments underline the potential of odor detection as a diagnostic tool for pathogen diagnosis. Copyright © 2018 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  5. Use of Carabids for the Post-Market Environmental Monitoring of Genetically Modified Crops

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Oxana Skoková Habuštová

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available Post-market environmental monitoring (PMEM of genetically modified (GM crops is required by EU legislation and has been a subject of debate for many years; however, no consensus on the methodology to be used has been reached. We explored the suitability of carabid beetles as surrogates for the detection of unintended effects of GM crops in general PMEM surveillance. Our study combines data on carabid communities from five maize field trials in Central Europe. Altogether, 86 species and 58,304 individuals were collected. Modeling based on the gradual elimination of the least abundant species, or of the fewest categories of functional traits, showed that a trait-based analysis of the most common species may be suitable for PMEM. Species represented by fewer than 230 individuals (all localities combined should be excluded and species with an abundance higher than 600 should be preserved for statistical analyses. Sixteen species, representing 15 categories of functional traits fulfill these criteria, are typical dominant inhabitants of agroecocoenoses in Central Europe, are easy to determine, and their functional classification is well known. The effect of sampling year is negligible when at least four samples are collected during maize development beginning from 1 April. The recommended methodology fulfills PMEM requirements, including applicability to large-scale use. However, suggested thresholds of carabid comparability should be verified before definitive conclusions are drawn.

  6. Effectiveness of Alpha-toxin Fab Monoclonal Antibody Therapy in Limiting the Pathology of Staphylococcus aureus Keratitis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Caballero, Armando R; Foletti, Davide L; Bierdeman, Michael A; Tang, Aihua; Arana, Angela M; Hasa-Moreno, Adela; Sangalang, Emma Ruth B; O'Callaghan, Richard J

    2015-08-01

    To investigate the effectiveness of a high-affinity human monoclonal antibody Fab fragment to Staphylococcus aureus alpha-toxin (LTM14 Fab) as therapy for S. aureus keratitis. A single topical drop of the LTM14 Fab antibody to alpha-toxin alone, or in 0.006% benzalkonium chloride (BAK), was applied every 30 min to S. aureus-infected rabbit corneas from 9 to 14 hours post-infection. Erosions and pathology were measured at 15 h post-infection. LTM14 Fab with BAK limited corneal erosions better than LTM14 Fab alone (p = 0.036), and both limited erosions compared to untreated eyes (p ≤ 0.0001). Overall pathology was similar in all groups (p ≥ 0.070), but iritis and chemosis were reduced by treatment (p ≤ 0.036). The high-affinity human monoclonal Fab fragment antibody (LTM14 Fab) to S. aureus alpha-toxin was effective in reducing corneal damage during S. aureus keratitis.

  7. A Comparative Study of "Google Translate" Translations: An Error Analysis of English-to-Persian and Persian-to-English Translations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ghasemi, Hadis; Hashemian, Mahmood

    2016-01-01

    Both lack of time and the need to translate texts for numerous reasons brought about an increase in studying machine translation with a history spanning over 65 years. During the last decades, Google Translate, as a statistical machine translation (SMT), was in the center of attention for supporting 90 languages. Although there are many studies on…

  8. Antimicrobial resistant coagulase positive Staphylococcus aureus ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    ADEYEYE

    Staphylococcus aureus is an Important agent of food poisoning. In many countries, it ... humans and animals (Casey et al., 2007). ... of widespread use of antibiotics in animals for ... Laboratory Standards Institute methods (CLSI, 2010). Briefly ...

  9. Jumlah bakteri Staphylococcus aureus dan skor California Mastitis Test (CMT pada susu kambing Peranakan Etawa akibat dipping ekstrak daun Babadotan (Ageratum conyzoides L.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dwi Priono

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this research is to determine the effect of teat dipping of Ettawa crossbred goat using babadotan leaves (Ageratum conyzoides Linn. extract on the number of Staphylococcus aureusin milk. The udder inflammation degree also was determined using California Mastitis Test (CMT. The treatments were post milking teat dipping using antiseptic solutions containing 1%, 3%, and 5% of babadotan leaves extract (T1, T2 and T3, respectively. Milk samples were collected at before treatment (H0 and on the day 3, 6 and 9 day of the treatments (H3, H6 and H9, respectively. Commercially antiseptic povidone iodine was used as positive control (K+. Experimental research design was completely randomized design (CRD split plot types, with the different extract concentration as the main plot and the day of treatment as subplot. CMT scores was analyzed using Kruskal-Wallis test. The results showed that babadotan leaves extract 5% had the same effectiveness (p>0,05 with povidone iodine to reduce the number of Staphylococcus aureusin milk. All extract concentrations (1%, 3% and 5% had the same effectiveness (H>c0,05(3 to decrease the CMT scores by postmilking teat dip treatments for 9 days. Keywords:Teat dipping, Ageratum conyzoides (L., Staphylococcus aureus, CMT score

  10. Translational Eschatology, Death, and the Absence of God in Rajiv Joseph’s Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Stefano Muneroni

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available This essay considers Rajiv Joseph’s play Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo and investigates how it features the complex processes of translation by portraying a translator working in war-torn Iraq during the American occupation of the country. Through an analysis of Jacques Derrida’s theories of mourning and translation, it illustrates how the playwright connects translation both to eschatological thinking and to the capacity to speak to/for the dead; the play emphasizes death and translation as in-between states where characters explore aspects of their lives they could not access when alive, and develop skills that allow them to ‘translate’ themselves in different linguistic and cultural contexts. Through an analysis of the translator as cultural hero and ‘stand-in’ for God, this essay equates translation with post-secular theological inquiry, and looks at linguistic and cultural translations as acts of faith in which the emergence of the new text is both always in the process of manifesting itself and always predicated on the ashes of the original.

  11. Modified sol-gel coatings for biotechnological applications

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Beganskiene, A [Department of General and Inorganic Chemistry, Vilnius University, Vilnius LT-03225 (Lithuania); Raudonis, R [Department of General and Inorganic Chemistry, Vilnius University, Vilnius LT-03225 (Lithuania); Jokhadar, S Zemljic [Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Biophysics, Lipiceva 2, Ljubljana SI-1000 (Slovenia); Batista, U [Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Biophysics, Lipiceva 2, Ljubljana SI-1000 (Slovenia); Kareiva, A [Department of General and Inorganic Chemistry, Vilnius University, Vilnius LT-03225 (Lithuania)

    2007-12-15

    The modified sol-gel derived silica coatings were prepared and characterized. The amino and methyl groups were introduced onto the colloidal silica. The silica coatings with different wettability properties: coloidal silica (water contact angle 17 deg.), polysiloxane (61 deg.), methyl-modified (158 deg. and 46 deg.) coatings samples were tested for CaCo-2 cells proliferation. Methyl-modified coating (46 deg.) proved to be the best substrate for cell proliferation. CaCo-2 cell proliferation two days post seeding was significantly faster on almost laminine, fibronectin and collagen-1 coated samples compared to corresponding controls.

  12. Exploring barriers and facilitators to the clinical use of virtual reality for post-stroke unilateral spatial neglect assessment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ogourtsova, Tatiana; Archambault, Philippe S; Lamontagne, Anouk

    2017-11-07

    Hemineglect, defined as a failure to attend to the contralesional side of space, is a prevalent and disabling post-stroke deficit. Conventional hemineglect assessments lack sensitivity as they contain mainly non-functional tasks performed in near-extrapersonal space, using static, two-dimensional methods. This is of concern given that hemineglect is a strong predictor for functional deterioration, limited post-stroke recovery, and difficulty in community reintegration. With the emerging field of virtual reality, several virtual tools have been proposed and have reported better sensitivity in neglect-related deficits detection than conventional methods. However, these and future virtual reality-based tools are yet to be implemented in clinical practice. The present study aimed to explore the barriers/facilitators perceived by clinicians in the use of virtual reality for hemineglect assessment; and to identify features of an optimal virtual assessment. A qualitative descriptive process, in the form of focus groups, self-administered questionnaire and individual interviews was used. Two focus groups (n = 11 clinicians) were conducted and experts in the field (n = 3) were individually interviewed. Several barriers and facilitators, including personal, institutional, client suitability, and equipment factors, were identified. Clinicians and experts in the field reported numerous features for the virtual tool optimization. Factors identified through this study lay the foundation for the development of a knowledge translation initiative towards an implementation of a virtual assessment for hemineglect. Addressing the identified barriers/facilitators during implementation and incorporating the optimal features in the design of the virtual assessment could assist and promote its eventual adoption in clinical settings. Implications for rehabilitation A multimodal and active knowledge translation intervention built on the presently identified modifiable factors is

  13. Predicting the minimal translation apparatus: lessons from the reductive evolution of mollicutes.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Henri Grosjean

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available Mollicutes is a class of parasitic bacteria that have evolved from a common Firmicutes ancestor mostly by massive genome reduction. With genomes under 1 Mbp in size, most Mollicutes species retain the capacity to replicate and grow autonomously. The major goal of this work was to identify the minimal set of proteins that can sustain ribosome biogenesis and translation of the genetic code in these bacteria. Using the experimentally validated genes from the model bacteria Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis as input, genes encoding proteins of the core translation machinery were predicted in 39 distinct Mollicutes species, 33 of which are culturable. The set of 260 input genes encodes proteins involved in ribosome biogenesis, tRNA maturation and aminoacylation, as well as proteins cofactors required for mRNA translation and RNA decay. A core set of 104 of these proteins is found in all species analyzed. Genes encoding proteins involved in post-translational modifications of ribosomal proteins and translation cofactors, post-transcriptional modifications of t+rRNA, in ribosome assembly and RNA degradation are the most frequently lost. As expected, genes coding for aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases, ribosomal proteins and initiation, elongation and termination factors are the most persistent (i.e. conserved in a majority of genomes. Enzymes introducing nucleotides modifications in the anticodon loop of tRNA, in helix 44 of 16S rRNA and in helices 69 and 80 of 23S rRNA, all essential for decoding and facilitating peptidyl transfer, are maintained in all species. Reconstruction of genome evolution in Mollicutes revealed that, beside many gene losses, occasional gains by horizontal gene transfer also occurred. This analysis not only showed that slightly different solutions for preserving a functional, albeit minimal, protein synthetizing machinery have emerged in these successive rounds of reductive evolution but also has broad implications in guiding the

  14. Bean Soup Translation: Flexible, Linguistically-Motivated Syntax for Machine Translation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mehay, Dennis Nolan

    2012-01-01

    Machine translation (MT) systems attempt to translate texts from one language into another by translating words from a "source language" and rearranging them into fluent utterances in a "target language." When the two languages organize concepts in very different ways, knowledge of their general sentence structure, or…

  15. Modified french osteotomy for cubitus varus deformity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ahmad, I.; Idrees, M.

    2007-01-01

    To evaluate the outcome of Modified French Osteotomy for correction of cubitus varus deformity. All children, aged 3-12 years, with cubitus varus deformity were included in the study. Pre-operative clinical as well as radiological assessment of upper extremities were done in all cases. Modified French osteotomy was done to correct the deformity. All patients were followed for seven months. Physical examination for the range of motion, scar and post-operative complications were assessed. Antero-posterior and lateral radiographs of the elbow were obtained, and the carrying angles and lateral condylar prominence index were measured and recorded. Out of the total 30 patients, 26 were male and four female. Left side was involved in 24 cases and the right side in six. The average age at the time of osteotomy was seven years (range 3.5-12 years). The average pre-operative carrying angle was 25.2 degree (range 18-30 degree) and the post-operative angle 8.7 degree (range 5-13 degree valgus). The average pre- operative range of motion was 122.6 degree (range 105-135 degree) and the post-operative range 123.86 degree (range 90-135 degree). The average pre-operative lateral condylar prominence index (LCPI) was 175.56 (range 128-232) and the post-operative lateral condylar prominence 156 (range 100-240). Based on Bellmore criteria, 25 patients showed excellent, three good and two a poor result. Modified French technique of supracondylar osteotomy has excellent results in the management of cubitus varus in terms of cosmesis, radiological findings and fewer complications. (author)

  16. Direct Profiling the Post-Translational Modification Codes of a Single Protein Immobilized on a Surface Using Cu-free Click Chemistry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Kyung Lock; Park, Kyeng Min; Murray, James; Kim, Kimoon; Ryu, Sung Ho

    2018-05-23

    Combinatorial post-translational modifications (PTMs), which can serve as dynamic "molecular barcodes", have been proposed to regulate distinct protein functions. However, studies of combinatorial PTMs on single protein molecules have been hindered by a lack of suitable analytical methods. Here, we describe erasable single-molecule blotting (eSiMBlot) for combinatorial PTM profiling. This assay is performed in a highly multiplexed manner and leverages the benefits of covalent protein immobilization, cyclic probing with different antibodies, and single molecule fluorescence imaging. Especially, facile and efficient covalent immobilization on a surface using Cu-free click chemistry permits multiple rounds (>10) of antibody erasing/reprobing without loss of antigenicity. Moreover, cumulative detection of coregistered multiple data sets for immobilized single-epitope molecules, such as HA peptide, can be used to increase the antibody detection rate. Finally, eSiMBlot enables direct visualization and quantitative profiling of combinatorial PTM codes at the single-molecule level, as we demonstrate by revealing the novel phospho-codes of ligand-induced epidermal growth factor receptor. Thus, eSiMBlot provides an unprecedentedly simple, rapid, and versatile platform for analyzing the vast number of combinatorial PTMs in biological pathways.

  17. Harnessing Reconsolidation to Weaken Fear and Appetitive Memories: A Meta-Analysis of Post-Retrieval Extinction Effects

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kredlow, M. Alexandra; Unger, Leslie D.; Otto, Michael W.

    2015-01-01

    A new understanding of the mechanisms of memory retrieval and reconsolidation holds the potential for improving exposure-based treatments. Basic research indicates that following fear extinction, safety and fear memories may compete, raising the possibility of return of fear. One possible solution is to modify original fear memories through reconsolidation interference, reducing the likelihood of return of fear. Post-retrieval extinction is a behavioral method of reconsolidation interference that has been explored in the context of conditioned fear and appetitive memory paradigms. This meta-analysis examines the magnitude of post-retrieval extinction effects and potential moderators of these effects. A PubMed and PsycINFO search was conducted through June 2014. Sixty-three comparisons examining post-retrieval extinction for preventing the return of fear or appetitive responses in animals or humans met inclusion criteria. Post-retrieval extinction demonstrated a significant, small-to-moderate effect (g = .40) for further reducing the return of fear in humans and a significant, large effect (g = 0.89) for preventing the return of appetitive responses in animals relative to standard extinction. For fear outcomes in animals, effects were small (g = 0.21) and non-significant, but moderated by the number of animals housed together and the duration of time between post-retrieval extinction/extinction and test. Across paradigms, these findings support the efficacy of this pre-clinical strategy for preventing the return of conditioned fear and appetitive responses. Overall, findings to date support the continued translation of post-retrieval extinction research to human and clinical applications, with particular application to the treatment of anxiety, traumatic stress, and substance use disorders. PMID:26689086

  18. Dengue virus-induced regulation of the host cell translational machinery

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    C.S.A. Villas-Bôas

    2009-11-01

    Full Text Available Dengue virus (DV-induced changes in the host cell protein synthesis machinery are not well understood. We investigated the transcriptional changes related to initiation of protein synthesis. The human hepatoma cell line, HepG2, was infected with DV serotype 2 for 1 h at a multiplicity of infection of one. RNA was extracted after 6, 24 and 48 h. Microarray results showed that 36.5% of the translation factors related to initiation of protein synthesis had significant differential expression (Z-score ≥ ±2.0. Confirmation was obtained by quantitative real-time reverse transcription-PCR. Of the genes involved in the activation of mRNA for cap-dependent translation (eIF4 factors, eIF4A, eIF4G1 and eIF4B were up-regulated while the negative regulator of translation eIF4E-BP3 was down-regulated. This activation was transient since at 24 h post-infection levels were not significantly different from control cells. However, at 48 h post-infection, eIF4A, eIF4E, eIF4G1, eIF4G3, eIF4B, and eIF4E-BP3 were down-regulated, suggesting that cap-dependent translation could be inhibited during the progression of infection. To test this hypothesis, phosphorylation of p70S6K and 4E-BP1, which induce cap-dependent protein synthesis, was assayed. Both proteins remained phosphorylated when assayed at 6 h after infection, while infection induced dephosphorylation of p70S6K and 4E-BP1 at 24 and 48 h of infection, respectively. Taken together, these results provide biological evidence suggesting that in HepG2 cells DV sustains activation of the cap-dependent machinery at early stages of infection, but progression of infection switches protein synthesis to a cap-independent process.

  19. Understanding context in knowledge translation: a concept analysis study protocol.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Squires, Janet E; Graham, Ian D; Hutchinson, Alison M; Linklater, Stefanie; Brehaut, Jamie C; Curran, Janet; Ivers, Noah; Lavis, John N; Michie, Susan; Sales, Anne E; Fiander, Michelle; Fenton, Shannon; Noseworthy, Thomas; Vine, Jocelyn; Grimshaw, Jeremy M

    2015-05-01

    To conduct a concept analysis of clinical practice contexts (work environments) that facilitate or militate against the uptake of research evidence by healthcare professionals in clinical practice. This will involve developing a clear definition of context by describing its features, domains and defining characteristics. The context where clinical care is delivered influences that care. While research shows that context is important to knowledge translation (implementation), we lack conceptual clarity on what is context, which contextual factors probably modify the effect of knowledge translation interventions (and hence should be considered when designing interventions) and which contextual factors themselves could be targeted as part of a knowledge translation intervention (context modification). Concept analysis. The Walker and Avant concept analysis method, comprised of eight systematic steps, will be used: (1) concept selection; (2) determination of aims; (3) identification of uses of context; (4) determination of defining attributes of context; (5) identification/construction of a model case of context; (6) identification/construction of additional cases of context; (7) identification/construction of antecedents and consequences of context; and (8) definition of empirical referents of context. This study is funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (January 2014). This study will result in a much needed framework of context for knowledge translation, which identifies specific elements that, if assessed and used to tailor knowledge translation activities, will result in increased research use by nurses and other healthcare professionals in clinical practice, ultimately leading to better patient care. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  20. Preliminary study of community-acquired Staphylococcus aureus infection in Manaus Hospital, Amazonia Region, Brazil Estudo preliminar das infeccões por Staphylococcus aureus na comunidade de um Hospital em Manaus, Região do Amazonas, Brasil

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jesus M. Egido

    2003-12-01

    Full Text Available Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus is considered a public health problem with a strong potential for dissemination and high rates of morbidity and mortality. In this study we describe bacteriological and epidemiological characteristics of Staphylococcus aureus in Manaus (Amazon region. During the one-year study period (2000-2001, sixteen cases of acute pyogenic multiple abscess were evaluated. Community-acquired S. aureus was identified as causative agent in 10 (62.5% patients. The strains tested with antimicrobials by discs diffusion method, exhibited a high rate of sensitivity to cephalexin (100%, erythromycin (90%. Oxacillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus was 90%. No isolate was resistant to Vancomycin. To our knowledge, no series of community-acquired Staphylococcus aureus in Manaus hospital has been published. Our partial results showed a high rate of antimicrobial sensitivity among community-acquired Staphylococcus aureus in the hospital of Tropical Medicine Institute of Manaus, Amazon Region.O Staphylococcus aureus resistente a meticilina é considerado como um problema na saúde publica por seu grande potencial de disseminação e altas porcentagens de morbidade e mortalidade. No estudo descrevemos as características bacteriológicas e epidemiológicas do Staphylococcus aureus na cidade de Manaus. No período de um ano (2000-2001 avaliou-se dezesseis casos de abscessos piogênicos múltiplos. Em 10 (62,5% doentes o agente causal foi identificado como Staphylococcus aureus adquirido na comunidade O estudo das bacterias isoladas frente aos diferentes antimicrobianos, seguindo o método de difusão em disco, mostrou boa sensibilidade a cefalexina (100% e eritromicina (90%. Noventa porcento dos Staphylococcus aureus isolados foram sensíveis ao oxacilina. Nenhum dos isolados mostrou ser resistente a Vancomicina. Não temos informações sobre publicações dos Staphylococcus aureus adquiridos na comunidade em hospitais de Manaus

  1. Potassium permanganate effects on the quality and post-harvest conservation of sapodilla (Manilkara zapota (L. P.Royen fruits under modified atmosphere

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wallace Edelky de Souza Freitas

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Sapodilla (Manilkara zapota (L. P. Royen is a climacteric fruit, very perishable, with high metabolic activity, rapid ripening and reduced storage time at room temperature, thus making difficult its commercialization. However, this research aimed to evaluate the effect of potassium permanganate (KMnO4 on the quality and post-harvest conservation of sapodilla fruit under modified atmosphere at room temperature. The sapodilla fruits were harvested when they reached physiological maturity and then accommodated in Styrofoam trays with PVC film coating. Within each package, KMnO4 were placed at different concentrations (0, 0.250, 0.375, and 0.500 g of KMnO4 per kg of fruit, respectively, impregnated in vermiculite. In addition, were kept in storage at room temperature (25 ± 1 °C and 54 ± 5% RU for fifteen days, with fruit quality analysis every five days. The potassium permanganate doses influenced the sapodilla fruit quality, wherein the concentration of 0.375 g of KMnO4 per kg of fruit was the most efficient, retarding the loss of firmness and vitamin C degradation of sapodilla fruits throughout five days storage under modified atmosphere at room temperature. The sapodilla fruit postharvest life stored under modified atmosphere with potassium permanganate 25 ± 1 °C and 54 ± 5% RU, is ten days.

  2. Antibacterial Activities of Aqueous and Alcoholic Extracts of 34 Indian Medicinal Plants against some Staphylococcus species

    OpenAIRE

    PAREKH, Jigna; CHANDA, Sumitra V.

    2008-01-01

    Thirty-four Indian medicinal plants belonging to 28 different families were screened for potential antibacterial activity against 3 Staphylococcus species, namely Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, and Staphylococcus subflava. Antibacterial activity of aqueous and alcoholic extracts was performed by agar disc diffusion method and agar well diffusion method. The alcoholic extracts were more active than aqueous extracts for all the plants studied. The most susceptible bacterium ...

  3. Antibacterial Activities of Aqueous and Alcoholic Extracts of 34 Indian Medicinal Plants against some Staphylococcus species

    OpenAIRE

    PAREKH, Jigna; CHANDA, Sumitra V.

    2014-01-01

    Thirty-four Indian medicinal plants belonging to 28 different families were screened for potential antibacterial activity against 3 Staphylococcus species, namely Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, and Staphylococcus subflava. Antibacterial activity of aqueous and alcoholic extracts was performed by agar disc diffusion method and agar well diffusion method. The alcoholic extracts were more active than aqueous extracts for all the plants studied. The most susceptible bacterium ...

  4. Promised Land No More: Dynamic Shifts in Slovene Translation Market and Translator Education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nike K. Pokorn

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The article outlines the changes of the translation market, the development of Higher Education (HE translator training and of the profession of translator in Slovenia. First, three HE translator-training programmes in Slovenia are briefly described. Second, through an analysis of the public database containing information on all business entities in Slovenia, a description of the translation market in 2014 is made and the findings are compared to those of a similar study carried out in 2007. Then two surveys of translation graduates of University of Ljubljana are presented, focusing in particular on graduate employment statistics and average earnings of junior translators. The results show that despite the fact that the Slovene translation market is thriving, this growth is not reflected in the average earnings of individual translators. Finally, in view of the fact that translation rates are constantly falling, it is argued that the role of professional associations becomes vital.

  5. Translation in ESL Classes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nagy Imola Katalin

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available The problem of translation in foreign language classes cannot be dealt with unless we attempt to make an overview of what translation meant for language teaching in different periods of language pedagogy. From the translation-oriented grammar-translation method through the complete ban on translation and mother tongue during the times of the audio-lingual approaches, we have come today to reconsider the role and status of translation in ESL classes. This article attempts to advocate for translation as a useful ESL class activity, which can completely fulfil the requirements of communicativeness. We also attempt to identify some activities and games, which rely on translation in some books published in the 1990s and the 2000s.

  6. Adaptation of the Activity Measure Post-Acute Care (AM-PAC) from English to Mandarin using the dual-panel translation approach

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Chang, Feng-Hang; Liou, Tsan-Hon; Brodersen, John

    2017-01-01

    translated using the dual-panel method. The translated AM-PAC was tested in 550 Chinese-speaking rehabilitation outpatients. Floor and ceiling effects were evaluated and internal consistency was assessed using Cronbach's alpha. Spearman correlation was used to assess the concurrent validity of the AM...

  7. Radiolabeling of Ceftriaxone with 99mTc as a Targeting Radiopharmaceutical for Staphylococcus Aureus Detection in Mouse Model

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fazli, A.; Saluti, M.; Ahmadi, Gh.; Mirshojaei, F.; Mazidi, M.; Heydari, Z.

    2012-01-01

    Bacterial infection is one of the major causes of morbidity and mortality especially in developing countries. Nuclear medicine has an important role in helping the diagnosis of deep-seated infections by developing more specific radiopharmaceuticals. The aim of this study was to evaluate 99mTc-labeling ceftriaxone as a new radiopharmaceutical for Staphylococcus aureus infection imaging in nuclear medicine. Radiolabeling of ceftriaxone was carried out by adding 370 MBq of 99mTc to 10 mg of ceftriaxone in the presence of 50 μg of SnCl 2 .2H 2 O at pH=5. The radiochemical purity and stability tests at room temperature and human blood serum were evaluated with ITLC. Intramuscular infection was induced by injection of Staphylococcus aureus into the left thigh muscle of the mice. The biodistribution of 99mTc-ceftriaxone was studied in normal and infected mice at various times post-injection. Radiochemical purity of the product was 94.5±5.4% with a good stability at room temperature and human serum, 80.6% and 71.2% after 24 h, respectively. The biodistribution studies showed the localization of 99mTc-ceftriaxone at the site of infection with high sensitivity without any significant accumulation in vital organs. Due to the ease of 99mTc-ceftriaxone conjugation method, high labeling efficiency, and high uptake in the infected muscle, it may provide a promising candidate as a targeting radiopharmaceutical for imaging infectious foci due to Staphylococcus aureus in nuclear medicine.

  8. Exact solutions to some modified sine-Gordon equations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Saermark, K.

    1983-01-01

    Exact, translational solutions to a number of modified sine-Gordon equations are presented. In deriving the equations and the solutions use is made of results from the theory of ordinary differential equations without moving critical points as given by Ince. It is found that kink-like solutions exist also in cases where the coefficients of the trigonometric terms are space- and time-dependent. (Auth.)

  9. Mastitis Bovina: Resistencia a antibióticos de cepas de Staphylococcus aureus asiladas de leche (Bovine Mastitis: Antimicrobial resistance of Staphylococcus aureus strains isolated from milk)

    OpenAIRE

    Pellegrino, MS; Frola, ID; Odierno, LM; Bogni, CI

    2011-01-01

    ResumenLa mastitis bovina es considerada la enfermedad infecciosa del ganado lechero de mayor impacto económico mundial, siendo Staphylococcus aureus el principal agente patógeno en muchos países.SummaryBovine mastitis is a frequent cause of economic loss in worldwide dairy herds, being Staphylococcus aureus the main etiological agent in many countries.

  10. A Writer's Thoughts on Translation and Always Living in Translation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Agosin, Marjorie; Jones, Robin

    2000-01-01

    Discusses how it feels to be a poet who writes in Spanish and has her work translated, examining the author's immigration experiences and noting the translator's contributions in making her work accessible across languages, borders, and cultures. Explains that writing in Spanish is a gesture of survival, and translation allows her memories to…

  11. Novel application for the prevention and treatment of Staphylococcus aureus biofilm formation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Traba, Christian

    Formation of bacterial biofilms at solid-liquid interfaces creates numerous problems in both industrial and biomedical sciences. In this dissertation, the application of plasma from two very different facets was studied. In part one, the susceptibility of pre-formed Staphylococcus aureus biofilms on biomaterials to different plasmas was investigated. It was found that the distinct chemical/physical properties of plasmas generated from oxygen, nitrogen, and argon all demonstrated very potent but very different anti-biofilm mechanisms of action. An in depth analysis of these results show: 1) different reactive species produced in each plasma demonstrate specific activity, and 2) the commonly associated etching effect could be manipulated and even controlled, depending on experimental conditions and the discharge gas. These studies provide insights into the anti-biofilm mechanisms of plasma as well as the effects of different reactive species on biofilm inactivation. Under experimental parameters, bacterial cells in Staphylococcus aureus biofilms were killed (>99.9%) by plasmas within minutes of exposure and no bacteria nor biofilm re-growth from discharge gas treated biofilms was observed throughout the life-span of the re-growth experiment. The decontamination ability of plasmas for the treatment of biofilm related infections on biomedical materials was confirmed and novel applications involving the use of low power argon and oxygen for the treatment of biofilm contaminated biomaterials and indwelling devices is proposed. The second facet of this dissertation explores the interaction between biofilm forming Staphylococcus aureus bacteria on different antibacterial/anti-biofilm surfaces. The antibiotic-free anti-fouling surfaces constructed in this study were generated from the plasma-assisted graft polymerization technique. These sophisticated surfaces were stable, biocompatible and capable of preventing biofilm formation on biomaterials and medical devices. Under

  12. Investigation of the antibiofilm capacity of peptide-modified stainless steel.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cao, Pan; Li, Wen-Wu; Morris, Andrew R; Horrocks, Paul D; Yuan, Cheng-Qing; Yang, Ying

    2018-03-01

    Biofilm formation on surfaces is an important research topic in ship tribology and medical implants. In this study, dopamine and two types of synthetic peptides were designed and attached to 304 stainless steel surfaces, aiming to inhibit the formation of biofilms. A combinatory surface modification procedure was applied in which dopamine was used as a coupling agent, allowing a strong binding ability with the two peptides. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), elemental analysis, contact angle measurement and surface roughness test were used to evaluate the efficiency of the peptide modification. An antibiofilm assay against Staphylococcus aureus was conducted to validate the antibiofilm capacity of the peptide-modified stainless steel samples. XPS analysis confirmed that the optimal dopamine concentration was 40 µg ml -1 in the coupling reaction. Element analysis showed that dopamine and the peptides had bound to the steel surfaces. The robustness assay of the modified surface demonstrated that most peptide molecules had bound on the surface of the stainless steel firmly. The contact angle of the modified surfaces was significantly changed. Modified steel samples exhibited improved antibiofilm properties in comparison to untreated and dopamine-only counterpart, with the peptide 1 modification displaying the best antibiofilm effect. The modified surfaces showed antibacterial capacity. The antibiofilm capacity of the modified surfaces was also surface topography sensitive. The steel sample surfaces polished with 600# sandpaper exhibited stronger antibiofilm capacity than those polished with other types of sandpapers after peptide modification. These findings present valuable information for future antifouling material research.

  13. Lost in translation?: Comparing three Scandinavian translations of the Beliefs about Medicines Questionnaire.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Granas, Anne Gerd; Nørgaard, Lotte Stig; Sporrong, Sofia Kälvemark

    2014-08-01

    The "Beliefs about Medicines Questionnaire" (BMQ) assess balance of necessity and concern of medicines. The BMQ has been translated from English to many languages. However, the original meaning of statements, such as "My medicine is a mystery to me", may be lost in translation. The aim of this study is to compare three Scandinavian translations of the BMQ. (1) How reliable are the translations? (2) Are they still valid after translation? Translated Norwegian, Swedish and Danish versions of the BMQ were scrutinized by three native Scandinavian researchers. Linguistic differences and ambiguities in the 5-point Likert scale and the BMQ statements were compared. In the Scandinavian translations, the Likert scale expanded beyond the original version at one endpoint (Swedish) or both endpoints (Danish). In the BMQ statements, discrepancies ranged from smaller inaccuracies toward completely different meaning. Some dissimilarities reflect different cultural beliefs about medicines. When translating questionnaires, bilingual researchers should scrutinize translations across similar languages to address content validity across different countries and languages. Our findings are of relevance to other BMQ translations in non-English countries, as direct comparisons between different translations might not be reliable or valid. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  14. Modeling the kinetics of survival of Staphylococcus aureus in regional yogurt from goat's milk.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bednarko-Młynarczyk, E; Szteyn, J; Białobrzewski, I; Wiszniewska-Łaszczych, A; Liedtke, K

    2015-01-01

    The aim of this study was to determine the kinetics of the survival of the test strain of Staphylococcus aureus in the product investigated. Yogurt samples were contaminated with S. aure to an initial level of 10(3)-10(4) cfu/g. The samples were then stored at four temperatures: 4, 6, 20, 22°C. During storage, the number of S. aureus forming colonies in a gram of yogurt was determined every two hours. Based on the results of the analysis culture the curves of survival were plotted. Three primary models were selected to describe the kinetics of changes in the count of bacteria: Cole's model, a modified model of Gompertz and the model of Baranyi and Roberts. Analysis of the model fit carried out based on the average values of Pearson's correlation coefficient, between the modeled and measured values, showed that the Cole's model had the worst fit. The modified Gompertz model showed the count of S. aureus as a negative value. These drawbacks were not observed in the model of Baranyi and Roberts. For this reason, this model best reflects the kinetics of changes in the number of staphylococci in yogurt.

  15. Diversity and enterotoxigenicity of Staphylococcus spp. associated with domiati cheese.

    Science.gov (United States)

    El-Sharoud, Walid M; Spano, Giuseppe

    2008-12-01

    A total of 87 samples of fresh and stored Domiati cheese (an Egyptian soft cheese) were examined for the presence of Staphylococcus spp. Fifteen Staphylococcus isolates identified as S. aureus (2 isolates), S. xylosus (4), S. caprae (4), and S. chromogenes (5) were recovered from 15 cheese samples. The S. aureus isolates were resistant to penicillin G and ampicillin, and one isolate was also resistant to tetracycline. S. aureus isolates harbored classical staphylococcal enterotoxin (SE) genes (sea and seb) and recently characterized SE-like genes (selg, seli, selm, and selo). One S. aureus isolate contained a single SE gene (sea), whereas another isolate contained five SE genes (seb, selg, seli, selm, and selo). These results suggest that Domiati cheese is a source for various Staphylococcus species, including S. aureus strains that could be enterotoxigenic.

  16. Translation and Validation of the Thai Version of a Modified Brief Pain Inventory: A Concise Instrument for Pain Assessment in Postoperative Cardiac Surgery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Keawnantawat, Pakamas; Thanasilp, Sureeporn; Preechawong, Sunida

    2017-07-01

    Acute pain after cardiac surgery can be assessed using validated instruments such as the modified interference subscale of the Brief Pain Inventory (mod-BPI). Despite the available knowledge, the Thai version of a mod-BPI has not yet been presented. To translate a mod-BPI into the Thai language (BPI-T) and to validate it in acute pain after cardiac surgery. This multisetting, cross-sectional study was done from 4 cardiac centers. With a convenience sampling technique, 132 cardiac surgery patients were enrolled during the first 72 postoperative hours. A BPI-T composed of 4 items on the intensity subscale and 6 items on the interference subscale was translated following Brislin's model. Convergent validity against the numeric rating scale (NRS), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and internal consistency reliability were examined. Of the total sample, 70% experienced moderate to severe pain (cutoff points of worst pain ≥ 4/10), and 65% had moderate to severe interference with deep breathing and coughing, 53% with general activity, and 49% with walking. The CFA confirmed the 2-factor structure of intensity and interference subscales consistent with the original version (root-mean-square error of approximation = 0.08, comparative fit index = 0.95, χ 2 = 39.00, df = 27, χ 2 /df = 1.44, P = 0.06). The physical and mental subdimensions under the interference subscale were determined (standardized factor loading = 0.70 and 0.42, respectively). The BPI-T also has good internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha coefficients 0.76 and 0.85). Pearson's correlation coefficients at 0.35 to 0.70 supported the convergent validity to the NRS. The BPI-T is a concise instrument for pain assessment in postoperative cardiac surgery. © 2016 World Institute of Pain.

  17. Prevalence of Methicillin and Vancomycin resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonization in nasopharynx; Amir-Alam hospital, 2005

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hasibi M

    2007-07-01

    Full Text Available Background: Staphylococcus aureus is one of the most common causes of nosocomial infections with high morbidity and mortality rate. Traditionally, methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus has been considered a major nosocomial pathogen in healthcare facilities, but in the past decade, it has been observed emerging in the community as well. Informations regarding hospital microbial colonization could be an important step for prevention of nosocomial infections. Our objective was clarifying the prevalence of methicillin resistant and vancomycin resistant staphylococcus aureus colonization in nasopharynx. Methods: A descriptive cross sectional study was carried on 106 patients and nursing staff of surgery and hemodialysis wards in Amir-Alam hospital from April 2005 to July 2005. The samples were collected from nasal region of cases using cotton swab by two experienced technician and were sent to laboratory for culture and antibiogram. Results: Twenty six (29.5% out of 106 cases were nasopharyngeal carriers of staphylococcus aureus. Eight cases (7.5% had methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus. The most frequent colonization rate was seen in hemodialysis nursing staff and in all of them methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus was reported. Carrier rates in hemodialysis patients were twice compared to surgery ward patients. The interesting point was that no sample of vancomycin resistant staphylococcus aureus was isolated. Conclusion: Prevalence of methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus colonization seems to be increased; therefore proper management for controlling this problem is mandatory. The results of the present study suggest that the prevalence of methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus infections is higher than was expected in Iran and vigorous preventive strategies should therefore be taken to stop the growth of this major health problem.

  18. Effect of disinfecting teats post-milking or pre- and post-milking on intramammary infection and somatic cell count.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Williamson, J H; Lacy-Hulbert, S J

    2013-09-01

    To determine the effects of (a) post-milking teat disinfection compared with no disinfection and (b) pre- and post-milking teat disinfection compared with post-milking disinfection alone, on the incidence of new intramammary infection (IMI), somatic cell count (SCC) and teat skin abnormalities in dairy cows. In Experiment 1, dairy cows in five dairy herds were randomly allocated to a post-milking teat disinfection group (n=230), that was sprayed with an iodine-based disinfectant (TeatguardPlus) for a complete lactation, or to a non-disinfected group (n=239). In Experiment 2, cows were randomly allocated to post-milking teat disinfection (n=239) or both pre- and post-milking teat disinfection (n=235), using a chloramine-T-based disinfectant (Teatsweet) for both treatments, from calving to 118-127 days in milk. The incidence of new IMI was determined by aseptic sampling of all quarters at calving, during lactation, and at trial end or at drying-off, with clinical mastitis cases sampled on detection. SCC and teat skin abnormalities were measured at 2-monthly intervals during lactation. In both experiments, disinfectant was applied by spray application. Cows that received post-milking teat disinfection had a lower incidence of new IMI caused by Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus uberis, Corynebacterium spp and coagulase negative staphylococci, had lower bulk milk SCC during lactation, and had fewer teat skin abnormalities compared with the non-disinfected cows (p disinfection, in addition to post-milking teat disinfection, did not reduce the incidence of new IMI for any pathogens and did not reduce SCC (p> 0.05). Post-milking teat disinfection applied as a spray is a key component in mastitis control in New Zealand. There was no benefit from the addition of pre-milking disinfection. This study confirms previous findings of the effectiveness of post-milking teat disinfection in reducing the incidence of IMI caused by the common mastitis-causing pathogens in New

  19. The applicability of animal health surveillance systems for post-market monitoring of potential adverse effects of genetically modified (GM) feed.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vince, L; Kleter, G A; Kostov, K; Pfeiffer, D U; Guitian, J

    2018-04-20

    A facultative post market monitoring of potential health impacts of genetically modified (GM) feedstuffs on livestock consuming these feeds after pre-market risk assessment is under ongoing consideration. Within the IPAFEED database, scientific studies on health effects beyond performance in livestock and the results of a systematic search for evidence of outcome effects due to GM feed are consolidated. These outcomes were reviewed and checked for consistency in order to identify plausible syndromes suitable for conducting surveillance. The 24 selected studies showed no consistent changes in any health parameter. There were no repeated studies in any species by GM crop type and animal species. As such, there is insufficient evidence to inform the design of surveillance systems for detecting known adverse effects. Animal health surveillance systems have been proposed for the post market monitoring of potential adverse effects in animals. Such systems were evaluated for their applicability to the detection of hypothetical adverse effects and their strengths and weaknesses to detect syndromes of concern are presented. For known adverse effects, applied controlled post-market studies may yield conclusive and high-quality evidence. For detecting unknown adverse effects, the use of existing surveillance systems may still be of interest. A simulation tool developed within the project can be adapted and applied to existing surveillance systems to explore their applicability to the detection of potential adverse effects of GM feed. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

  20. Staphylococcus aureus and healthcare-associated infections

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ekkelenkamp, M.B.

    2011-01-01

    Many medical procedures breach or suppress patients’ natural defences, leaving them vulnerable to infections which would not occur in healthy humans: “healthcare-associated infections”. Healthcare-associated infections caused by the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) are probably the most