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To the Editor: Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) experience sleep-related hypoventilation (1, 2). However, there is controversy as to whether this occurs due to an increase in upper airway resistance or a reduction in neural respiratory drive. Elevated neural respiratory drive in wakefulness is well documented in COPD (3). O’Donoghue and coworkers (4) reported in patients with COPD that a sleep-related hypoventilation was due to increased upper airway resistance, and Ballard and coworkers (5) reported an increase in upper airway resistance moving from wakefulness to sleep, although upper airway resistance was not consistently greater during sleep (see Figure 3 of their article [5]). Moreover, in healthy young adults, a poor correlation was observed between changes in ventilation and upper airway resistance (6). Morrell and coworkers (7) addressed the question directly in tracheotomized subjects, confirming hypoventilation during sleep, thus excluding an obligate contribution from upper airway resistance. To further address the question, we performed diaphragm electromyography (EMGdi) using a multipair esophageal electrode as an index of neural respiratory drive (8–11). Some of the data have been previously reported in abstract form (12). A total of 17 stable patients with moderate to very severe COPD and 14 age-matched normal subjects participated. All subjects were free from obstructive sleep apnea (OSA; apnea–hypopnea index < 5.0 events/h) and snoring confirmed by prior overnight polysomnography, and were free from clinically significant coexisting diseases, including neuromuscular disorders. The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Chinese State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, and all patients gave their informed consent to participate. A multipair esophageal electrode catheter (Yinghui Medical Technology Co., Ltd, Guangzhou, China) was used as previously described (8) to record the EMGdi during overnight polysomnography (9–11). Airflow was recorded with a pneumotachograph connected to a full facemask. Maximal EMGdi was recorded from maximal voluntary inspiratory maneuvers. Polysomnography was manually analyzed based on standard criteria (13). The root mean square (RMS) of the EMGdi (RMSEMGdi) was calculated by computer with a time constant of 100 milliseconds. Efficacy of neural respiratory drive was defined as the ratio of minute ventilation to peak RMSEMGdi of each breath. Data were selected during stable breathing without respiratory events. Data collected for 10 minutes before sleep and for at least 15 minutes during non–rapid eye movement (NREM) and REM in the supine position were selected for analysis. Two-way ANOVA was used to test differences between wakefulness, NREM, and REM sleep; data are presented as means (±SD), and statistical significance was determined as a P value of less than 0.05. Some subjects could not tolerate the full facemask, and satisfactory measurements were therefore obtained in 10 male patients with COPD (age, 59.3 ± 11.5 yr; body mass index, 20.8 ± 3.1 kg/m2; FEV1, 34.2 ± 15.8% predicted; FEV1/FVC, 37.8 ± 11.6%; oxygen saturation

Cold-adaptive methanogens contribute significantly to methane emission from the cold area, while the cold-adaptive mechanisms used by Archaea remain elusive. Methanolobus psychrophilus R15, a cold-adaptive methanogen isolated from a Tibetan plateau wetland, grows at 0-25 °C and optimally at 18 °C when isolated; however, it grows optimally at 30 °C after culturing at 18 °C for several years. Aiming to gain insights into the protein profiles that are involved in optimal growth and cold adaptation of this methanogen, here, we performed a comparative proteomic study using 2D DIGE on the cultures grown at 30, 18 and 4 °C. 1439 protein spots (3167 ORFs annotated in the R15 genome) were detected, and 202 of 322 differentially expressed protein spots were identified by MALDI-TOF/TOF. The protein abundance of most enzymes involved in methanogenesis, energy conservation and central metabolism were increased at 30 °C, while most ribosome proteins were decreased at 30 °C. Proteasome and ROS scavengers increased expressions at 4 °C, suggesting more aberrant proteins and ROS formed at lower temperatures. Different from the cold-adaptive Methanococcoides burtonii, some chaperones were increased at 4 °C, implying that protein folding was impaired at cold in this psychrophilic archaeon. This study indicates that diverse cold-adaptive mechanisms can be used by different methanogenic Archaea.

This paper describes a simple and reusable microfluidic device combining solution IEF (sIEF) with MALDI-TOF MS for rapid proteomic and metabolic analysis of microliter samples. The device contains two glass plates with nanoliter microwell arrays, which can be assembled to form a fluidic path for sIEF separation, and reconfigured for dividing separated bands. One microliter samples can be loaded and separated by sIEF into static bands in 10∼30 min. After a slipping operation, the static IEF bands can be divided into nanoliter droplets in microwells without mobilization, and the device can be opened for in situ MALDI-TOF MS detection without loss of separation resolution. The performance of the device is characterized by separating and identifying intact proteins. The applicability in metabolic analysis is demonstrated by preliminary experiments on profiling small molecular metabolites in cerebrospinal fluid microdialysates from rat brain.

A novel strategy for design of haptens that were used to produce catalytic antibodies was developed and three monoclonal antibodies, 3G5, 2F3, and 5C9, were generated using this strategy. These monoclonal antibodies were converted into selenium-containing abzymes by chemically modifying the hydroxyl group of serines followed by sodium hydrogen selenide displacement. These selenium-containing abzymes exhibited remarkable glutathione peroxidase activity, which surpasses the activity of some native glutathione peroxidases. The activities of the selenium-containing abzymes Se-3G5, Se-2F3, and Se-5C9 which catalyzed reduction of hydroperoxides by glutathione were 2.23, 4.20, and 3.79 times that of rabbit liver glutathione peroxidase, respectively. Detailed steady-state kinetics study on Se-2F3 was carried out and the value of k(cat)/K(m) (H(2)O(2)) was found to be 2.11 x 10(7) M(-1) min(-1) which was supposed to be one of the highest among the known catalytic antibodies. The data of association constants and glutathione peroxidase activities of these catalytic antibodies and the steady-state kinetics of Se-2F3 showed that the method might be a remarkably efficient one for generating catalytic antibodies with glutathione peroxidase activity.

Introduction Transcutaneous electrical stimulation (TES) provides neuromuscular tone to the pharyngeal dilator muscles of the upper airway (UA) while asleep, but feasibility of this method to treat obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) throughout the whole night has not been tested. Patients and methods We conducted a phase two double-blind, sham-controlled, randomised controlled trial using TES of the UA muscles in 36 patients with confirmed OSA to assess patients’ device acceptance and the side effect profile. Patients were studied using polysomnography during randomly assigned nights of sham-stimulation and active treatment following titration of the current while awake. Assessment of patients’ device acceptance and experience of side effects was measured using a visual analogue scale (0–10 points) where high scores indicated better outcomes. Results We included 36 patients (age mean 50.8 (SD 11.2) years, male/female 30/6, body mass index median 29.6 (IQR 26.9–34.9) kg/m2, Epworth Sleepiness Scale 10.5 (4.6) points, oxygen desaturation index median 25.7 (16.0–49.1)/hour, apnoea-hypopnoea index median 28.1 (19.0–57.0)/hour). None of the patients reported skin discomfort, unpleasant tongue sensations or morning headache. There was no difference in patients’ perceived sleep quality. There was a 59% reduction in mouth dryness after active treatment compared to sham-stimulation. There were no severe adverse events (Table). Conclusion TES of the UA dilator muscles in OSA can be delivered throughout the night with few side effects and does not lead to arousal from sleep, if appropriately titrated.

© Copyright 2013 Associated Professional Sleep Societies, Published by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Published version of the paper reproduced here with permission from the publisher., Study Objectives: To determine the clinical variables that best predict long- term continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) adherence among patients with cardiovascular disease who have obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). Design: 12-mo prospective within-trial observational study. Setting: Centers in China, Australia, and New Zealand participating in the Sleep Apnea cardioVascular Endpoints (SAVE) study. Patients: There were 275 patients age 45-70 y with cardiovascular disease (i.e., previously documented transient ischemic attack, stroke, or coronary artery disease) and OSA (4% oxygen desaturation index (ODI) > 12) who were randomized into the CPAP arm of the SAVE trial prior to July 1, 2010. Methods: Age, sex, country of residence, type of cardiovascular disease, baseline ODI, severity of sleepiness, and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) scores plus CPAP side effects and adherence at 1 mo were entered in univariate analyses in an attempt to identify factors predictive of CPAP adherence at 12 mo. Variables with P < 0.2 were then included in a multivariate analysis using a linear mixed model with sites as a random effect and 12-mo CPAP use as the dependent outcome variable. Measurements and Results: CPAP adherence at 1, 6, and 12 mo was (mean ± standard deviation) 4.4 ± 2.0, 3.8 ± 2.3, and 3.3 ± 2.4 h/night, respectively. CPAP use at 1 mo (effect estimate ± standard error, 0.65 ± 0.07 per h increase, P < 0.001) and side effects at 1 mo (-0.24 ± 0.092 per additional side effect, P = 0.009) were the only independent predictors of 12- mo CPAP adherence. Conclusion: Continuous positive airway pressure use in patients with coexisting cardiovascular disease and moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea decreases significantly over 12 months. This decline can be predicted by early patient experiences with continuous positive airway pressure (i.e., adherence and side effects at 1 month), raising the possibility that intensive early interventions could improve long-term continuous positive airway pressure compliance in this patient population. Clinical Trials Register: Clinical Trials, http://www.clinicaltrials.gov, NCT00738179.

A novel artificial glutathione peroxidase mimic consisting of a selenocystine-di-beta-cyclodextrin conjugate (selenium-bridged-6, 6'-amino-selenocystine-6,6'-deoxy-di-beta-cyclodextrin), in which selenocystine is bound to the primary side of beta-cyclodextrin through the two amino nitrogen groups of selenocystine, was synthesized. The glutathione peroxidase activities of the mimic-catalyzed reduction of H(2)O(2), tert-butylhydroperoxide, and cumene hydroperoxide by glutathione are 4.1, 2.11, and 5.82 units/micromol, respectively. The first activity was 82 and 4.2 times as much as that of selenocysteine and ebselen, respectively. Studies on the effect of substrate binding on the glutathione peroxidase activity suggest that it is important to consider substrate binding in designing glutathione peroxidase mimics. The detailed steady-state kinetic studies showed that the mimic-catalyzed reduction of H(2)O(2) by glutathione followed a ping-pong mechanism, which was similar to that of the native glutathione peroxidase.

The purpose of the study was to compare electrical stimulation (ES) and cervical magnetic stimulation (CMS) of the phrenic nerves for the measurement of the diaphragm compound muscle action potential (CMAP) and phrenic nerve conduction time. A specially designed esophageal catheter with three pairs of electrodes was used, with control of electrode positioning in 10 normal subjects. Pair A and pair B were close to the diaphragm ( pair A lower than pair B); pair C was positioned 10 cm above the diaphragm to detect the electromyogram from extradiaphragmatic muscles. Electromyograms were also recorded from upper and lower chest wall surface electrodes. The shape of the CMAP measured with CMS (CMS-CMAP) usually differed from that of the CMAP measured with ES (ES-CMAP). Moreover, the latency of the CMS-CMAP from pair B (5.3 ± 0.4 ms) was significantly shorter than that from pair A (7.1 ± 0.7 ms). The amplitude of the CMS-CMAP (1.00 ± 0.15 mV) was much higher than that of ES-CMAP (0.26 ± 0.15 mV) when recorded from pair C. Good-quality CMS-CMAPs could be recorded in some subjects from an electrode positioned very low in the esophagus. The differences between ES-CMAP and CMS-CMAP recorded either from esophageal or chest wall electrodes make CMS unreliable for the measurement of phrenic nerve conduction time.

Morphology of ascomatal hairs was traditionally used as a primary character in the classification of the fungal genus Chaetomium. However, the taxonomic value of ascomatal hair morphology is questioned in modern taxonomy of Chaetomium. Chaetomium indicum and C. funicola are two species proposed only by their differences in ascomatal hairs. The aim of this study is to understand the difference between these two species and their variability in the morphology of ascomatal hairs at the level of protein expression patterns, as well as to ressess the taxonomic value of the ascomatal hairs.We performed microscopic examination to obtain the morphological characters of the typical and variable strains in both C. indicum and C. funicola. Then we used two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2DE) to compare the protein expression patterns of the two species, including their typical and variable strains.The comparison of the obtained 2DE maps indicated that C. indicum and C. funicola exhibited species-specific protein expression patterns. The phylogenetic tree derived from the distance matrix of expression patterns with Neighbor-joining algorithm also revealed that the tested strains of C. indicum and C. funicola fell into two distinct clades, among which the variant strains were grouped together with the typical strains of the same species.The consistency of species delimitation between C. indicum and C. funicola based on morphological characters of ascomatal hairs and species-specific protein expression patterns demonstrates that ascomatal hairs can be still used as potential morphological parameters in taxonomy of Chaetomium.

It is unknown whether respiratory motor output is constrained during exhaustive exercise in healthy adults. We hypothesised that neural inhibition did occur; to test this hypothesis we measured diaphragm EMG from a maximal inspiratory capacity maneuver (EMGdi-IC) at rest and during exercise. EMGdi-IC was measured before and after the amplitude of the diaphragm EMG entered a plateau phase in eleven healthy adults undertaking exercise at 60% and 80% of maximal workload achieved from incremental exercise. The mean EMGdi-IC at rest was 65 ± 16% of the maximum that could be obtained from a battery of inspiratory tasks. Before and after the plateau phase of diaphragm EMG, EMGdi-IC was 68 ± 13% and 72 ± 12% (p > 0.05) during 60% of the maximum workload, and was 70 ± 13% and 78 ± 13% (p > 0.05) during 80% of the maximum workload achieved on an incremental test. A further sub-study in which 5 participants exercised at 90% of the maximum workload also showed that EMGdi-IC was not diminished during exercise. Our data show that exercise condition does not reduce the magnitude of EMGdi-IC. This argues against neural inhibition as feature of submaximal exercise in healthy adults.

Identification of secreted proteins of lung cancer could provide new candidates of serum biomarkers for cancer diagnosis or targets for therapeutic intervention. In this study, we developed a novel strategy that combined functional monoclonal antibody library screening technique and mass spectrometry to identify functional secreted proteins. BALB/c mice were immunized with cancer cells isolated from fresh human lung cancer tissues. The monoclonal antibody library containing 1160 mAbs was established with the mouse spleen cells, whose serum had most anti-proliferative effect on lung cancer cells. Monoclonal antibodies were subjected to an immunoreactive and functional screen and monoclonal antibodies that reacted strongly with secreted proteins in condition medium and lung cancer tissues with high inhibotion of cell proliferation were selected. Antigens that recognized by antibodies were obtained by immunoprecipitation and then identified by mass spectrometry. Mac-2-binding protein (Mac-2BP), the antigen of 13H3 antibody, was identified using this approach. Functional studies demonstrated that the 13H3 antibody suppressed lung cancer cell lines ANIP-973 and A549 proliferation in vitro and inhibit ANIP973 xenograft tumors growth in vivo by inducing cell-cycle arrest at G1 phase, with up-regulation of p27 and down-regulation of cyclin D1. Moreover, the serum level of Mac-2BP was significantly higher in lung cancer patients than healthy controls. At a cutoff value of 6 μg/ml, Mac-2BP might be a diagnostic biomarker of lung cancer, especially for SCLC. Mac-2BP concentrations of 6 μg/ml or higher was associated with poor overall survival in univariate analysis, and was an independent predictor in the multivariate COX analysis. Together, these results firstly demonstrated that Mac-2BP can be used as a therapeutic target and potential biomarker for lung cancer. Our strategy is feasible, which may facilitate the identification of novel secreted biomarkers of lung cancer.

Patients with COPD may develop hypoxia and hypercapnia during sleep, in particular in REM stage although normal ventilation is usually sustained during daytime. Reduction of neural respiratory drive during sleep was hypothesized to be an important mechanism underling hypoxia and hypercapnia. However healthy subjects do not develop hypoxia during sleep. To determine whether change of neural respiratory drive in patients with COPD differed from that in normal subjects, we studied nine patients with COPD (age 58.6±11.8 years; FEV1%pred 49±18) and six normal subjects (Age 58.9±10.1 years; FEV 1 %pred 98.0%±10.5%). We recorded the diaphragm EMG from a multipair esophageal electrode during overnight full polysomnography including recording of airflow which was measured by pneumotachograph. Sleep efficiency in both groups was low mainly because of interference of face mask and pneumotachograph. Sleep efficiency in COPD group was worse than that in normal group (52.8 ±16.1 vs 69.5±13.7). Tidal volume (ml/kg) in patients with COPD decreased by 32.2%±21.3% in NREM stages and further decreased by 45.6%±16.6% in REM stage compared with wakefulness. The decrease of tidal volume from wakefulness to sleep in COPD was significantly larger than that in normal subjects. Diaphragm EMG decreased by 30.0%±21.4% and 37.1%±20.0% from wakefulness to NREM and REM respectively in patients with COPD. However, diaphragm EMG in normal subjects remained the same or only slightly decreased during sleep when compared with wakefulness. We conclude that reduction in neural drive during sleep in patients with COPD is greater than that normal subjects and may be responsible for hypoxia in patients with COPD.

To identify the role of rmlB in synthesizing L-rhamnose in the pathogenic Escherichia coli 44277 (O2:K1:H4).The rmlB gene was expressed and the activity of the recombinant protein was assayed by measuring the quantity of reaction product. The rmlB gene was deleted by homologous recombination, then phenotypic changes of the delta rmlB mutant was analyzed by Electron Microscope, Tricine SDS-PAGE and immunological methods. Further, various methods including MALDI-TOF-MS/MS, GC-MS and NMR was used to investigate the O antigen structure of the delta rmlB mutant.RmlB was confirmed to be a protein harboring the activity of dTDP-D-glucose 4,6-dehydratase through enzyme assay. The delta rmlB mutant was successfully constructed and no phenotypic change was observed after compared with the wild type strain. L-rhamnose still existed in the delta rmlB mutant, indicating that there may be isoenzyme of RmlB presenting in the mutant or there was a novel way synthesizing L-rhamnose in the mutant.RmlB has the activity of dTDP-D-glucose 4,6-dehydratase but it is not essential for the synthesis of L-rhamnose.

The therapeutic value of transcutaneous electrical stimulation of the genioglossus muscle in patients with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) to reduce sleep-disordered breathing is unclear.Contraction of the genioglossus muscles during transcutaneous stimulation was investigated using ultrasonography in 11 healthy subjects (seven men, mean [SD] age 30 [6] years; BMI, 24.2 [3.5] kg/m(2)). Esophageal and gastric pressures were measured with balloon catheters, and transesophageal diaphragm electromyogram (EMGdi) was recorded during polysomnography in 11 patients with OSA (eight men, aged 51 [16] years; BMI, 42.0 [9.7] kg/m(2)) while transcutaneous electrical stimulation of the genioglossus was applied in non-rapid eye movement sleep (stage N2).Ultrasonography measurements showed a significant increase in tongue diameter during stimulation (sagittal: 10.0% [2.8%]; coronal: 9.4 % [3.7%]). The measurements were reproducible and repeatable. In patients with OSA, snoring decreased during stimulation (P.001) and oxygenation improved (P = .001); the respiratory disturbance index (RDI) fell from 28.1 (26.3) to 10.2 (10.2) events per hour during stimulation (P = .002), returning to 26.6 (26.0) events per hour after stimulation was stopped. Transdiaphragmatic pressure swing decreased from 24.1 (13.5) cm H(2)O to 19.7 (7.1) cm H(2)O (P = .022), increasing to 24.2 (10.8) cm H(2)O afterward, and EMGdi fell from 23.8% max (12.6% max) to 15.7% max (6.4% max) (P.001), rising to 22.6% max (10.4% max) post stimulation.Continuous transcutaneous electrical stimulation of the genioglossus contracts the genioglossus muscle and reduces ventilatory load and neural respiratory drive in patients with OSA.

Two new cyclic pentapeptides (1 and 2) and the known blazein (3), ganodesterone (4), ergosterin (5), cerevisterol (6), 24-methylcholesta-4,6,8(14),22-tetraen-3-one (7), 5,8-epidioxyergosta-6,22-dien-3-ol (8), 16-α-d-mannopyranosyloxyisopimar-7-en-19-oic acid (9), and 16-hydroxy isopimar-7-en-19-oic acid (10) have been isolated from the crude extract of an endolichenic Xylaria sp. The structures of 1 and 2 were elucidated primarily by NMR and MS methods. The absolute configurations of 1 and 2 were assigned using Marfey's method on their acid hydrolysate. Compounds 1-10 were evaluated for activity against fungi and for synergistic antifungal activity. Compound 1 showed synergistic antifungal activity against Candida albicans SC5314 with 0.004 μg/mL ketoconazole.

Background It is unknown whether efficiency of neural drive as expressed by a ratio of ventilation to the diaphragm electromyogram (EMGdi) in patients with COPD differs from that of healthy subjects during exercise and whether maximal neural drive is exhibited at the point of exercise termination. Methods We studied 12 male patients with COPD (mean ± SD age, 62.8 ± 10.3 years; FEV 1 , 28.1 ± 10.2% predicted) and 12 age- and sex-matched healthy subjects (age, 61.1 ± 7.2 years, FEV 1 , 101.5 ± 11.9% predicted). EMGdi was recorded from a multipair esophageal electrode during a constant work (80% of maximal oxygen consumption derived from a previous incremental exercise test) treadmill exercise. Minute ventilation and oxygen consumption were also measured. Results Root mean square (RMS) of the EMGdi increased initially and reached a plateau at submaximal drive during constant load exercise in both patients with COPD and healthy subjects. The ratio of ventilation to EMGdi remained stable during exercise in healthy subjects from beginning to the end (100% ± 70% at the beginning and 100% ± 39% at the end, P > .05), whereas the ratio decreased gradually during exercise in patients with COPD (from 85% ± 66% to 42% ± 13%, P Conclusions Efficiency of neural drive decreases in patients with COPD during treadmill exercise. Neural respiratory drive reached a submaximal plateau during constant load exercise in both healthy subjects and patients with COPD, indicating that it may not be the only factor determining exercise capacity.

The solventogenic bacterium Clostridium acetobutylicum is an important species of the Clostridium community. To develop a fundamental tool that is useful for biological studies of C. acetobutylicum, we established a high resolution proteome reference map for this species. We identified 1206 spots representing 564 different proteins by mass spectrometry, covering approximately 50% of major metabolic pathways. To better understand the relationship between butanol tolerance and butanol yield, we performed a comparative proteomic analysis between the wild type strain DSM 1731 and the mutant Rh8, which has higher butanol tolerance and higher butanol yield. Comparative proteomic analysis of two strains at acidogenic and solventogenic phases revealed 102 differentially expressed proteins that are mainly involved in protein folding, solvent formation, amino acid metabolism, protein synthesis, nucleotide metabolism, transport, and others. Hierarchical clustering analysis revealed that over 70% of the 102 differentially expressed proteins in mutant Rh8 were either upregulated (e.g., chaperones and solvent formation related) or downregulated (e.g., amino acid metabolism and protein synthesis related) in both acidogenic and solventogenic phase, which, respectively, are only upregulated or downregulated in solventogenic phase in the wild type strain. This suggests that Rh8 cells have evolved a mechanism to prepare themselves for butanol challenge before butanol is produced, leading to an increased butanol yield. This is the first report on the comparative proteome analysis of a mutant strain and a base strain of C. acetobutylicum. The fundamental proteomic data and analyses will be useful for further elucidating the biological mechanism of butanol tolerance and/or enhanced butanol production.

Cellulosilyticum ruminicola H1 is a newly described bacterium isolated from yak ( Bos grunniens ) rumen and is characterized by its ability to grow on a variety of hemicelluloses and degrade cellulosic materials. In this study, we performed the whole-genome sequencing of C. ruminicola H1 and observed a comprehensive set of genes encoding the enzymes essential for hydrolyzing plant cell wall. The corresponding enzymatic activities were also determined in strain H1; these included endoglucanases, cellobiohydrolases, xylanases, mannanase, pectinases, and feruloyl esterases and acetyl esterases to break the interbridge cross-link, as well as the enzymes that degrade the glycosidic bonds. This bacterium appears to produce polymer hydrolases that act on both soluble and crystal celluloses. Approximately half of the cellulytic activities, including cellobiohydrolase (50%), feruloyl esterase (45%), and one third of xylanase (31%) and endoglucanase (36%) activities were bound to cellulosic fibers. However, only a minority of mannase (6.78%) and pectinase (1.76%) activities were fiber associated. Strain H1 seems to degrade the plant-derived polysaccharides by producing individual fibrolytic enzymes, whereas the majority of polysaccharide hydrolases contain carbohydrate-binding module. Cellulosome or cellulosomelike protein complex was never isolated from this bacterium. Thus, the fibrolytic enzyme production of strain H1 may represent a different strategy in cellulase organization used by most of other ruminal microbes, but it applies the fungal mode of cellulose production.

We attempted to identify membrane proteins associated with the glycoconjugates and cell wall biosynthesis in the total membrane preparations of Aspergillus fumigatus. The total membrane preparations were first run on 1D gels, and then the stained gels were cut and submitted to in-gel digestion followed by 2D LC-MS/MS and database search. A total of 530 proteins were identified with at least two peptides detected with MS/MS spectra. Seventeen integral membrane proteins were involved in N-, O-glycosylation or GPI anchor biosynthesis. Nine membrane proteins were involved in cell wall biosynthesis. Eight proteins were identified as enzymes involved in sphingolipid synthesis. In addition, the proteins involved in cell wall and ergosterol biosynthesis can potentially be used as antifungal drug targets. Our method, for the first time, clearly provided a global view of the membrane proteins associated with glycoconjugates and cell wall biosynthesis in the total membrane proteome of A. fumigatus.

To observe the in vitro effect of leptin, alone or in combination with tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) on inducible nitric oxide(NO)and on inducible matrix metalloproteinase-13 (MMP-13) in rabbit articular chondrocytes.The chondrocytes from the articular cartilage of 2-month-old rabbits were cultivated and identified, and the second filial generation chondrocytes were cocultured on plates with different concentrations of leptin alone or in combination with TNF-alpha for 48 h or 96 h after 12 h starvation. The concentration of NO and MMP-13 was measured in the chondrocytes culture supernatant fluid. The results were statistically analyzed.There was no significant difference in the concentrations of NO between the different concentrations of leptin alone groups and the blank control group (P0.05). In combination with the same concentration of TNF-alpha (10 ng/mL), leptin could dose-dependently increase the concentration of NO in the chondrocytes culture supernatant fluid in vitro. There was significant value in average concentration of MMP-13 on the main effect of both time and dose (P0.05). No MMP-13 was detected in the blank control group.Leptin can induce MMP-13 and have synergistic induction effect on NO with TNF-alpha in rabbit articular chondrocytes in vitro.

The 20S core particle (CP) is composed of 28 subunits arranged in four stacked heptameric rings (alpha7beta7beta7alpha7) forming a symmetrical barrel-shaped structure. Typically, in previous reports, the purification of CP mainly relied on the antibody, liquid chromatography and affinity tag-based strategies. In this study, we report a relatively simple and economical protocol for proteomic analyses of CP, which combines differential centrifugations with native-PAGE. Furthermore, it is compatible with both scaled-up purification from erythrocytes and scaled-down purification from low to around 3.0 x 10(7) pancreatic cancer cells, SW1990. In addition, a direct three-dimensional gel electrophoresis approach that omits the interval procedure between native-PAGE and IEF/SDS-PAGE is introduced. The results obtained in this study show that this protocol has a valuable potential for the studies of CP and other protein complexes.

α-Glucosidase I regulates trimming of the terminal α-1,2-glucose residue in the N-glycan processing pathway, which plays an important role in quality control systems in mammalian cells. Previously, we identified the gene encoding α-glucosidase I in the opportunistic human fungal pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus, namely Afcwh41. Deletion of the Afcwh41 gene results in a severe reduction of conidia formation, a temperature-sensitive deficiency of cell wall integrity, and abnormalities of polar growth and septation. An upregulation of the genes encoding Rho-type GTPases was also observed, which suggests activation of the cell wall integrity pathway in the mutant. Using 2D gel analysis, we revealed that the proteins involved in protein assembly, ubiquitin-mediated degradation and actin organization are altered in the ΔAfcwh41 mutant. Evidence was obtained for a defect in the polarized localization of the actin cytoskeleton in the mutant. Our results suggest that blocking of the glucose trimming in A. fumigatus might induce accumulation of misfolded proteins in the endoplasmic reticulum; these misfolded proteins are probably required for cell wall synthesis and thus activate the cell wall integrity pathway, which then causes the abnormal polarity associated with the ΔAfcwh41 mutant.

Four extracellular keratinases (designated KI, KII, KIII, and KIV) were produced during submerged aerobic cultivation in a medium containing native human foot skin (NHFS) for enzyme synthesis. The molecular weights, determined by SDS-PAGE, were 25, 50, 34, and 19 kDa, respectively. Gel filtration of the four purified enzymes in native conditions indicated that active keratinase KI is a novel homo-octamer, KII a homo-dimer, and KIII and KIV monomers. All four keratinases exhibited high activities at pH 8.0-10.0 with an optimal pH of 9.0. The optimal temperature for keratinolytic activity of KI, KII, and KIII was approximately 50, and 60 degrees C for KIV. One millimolar of PMSF completely inhibited the keratinolytic activities of the four enzymes. The N-terminal sequences of KI, KII, and KIII showed that they were different from previously described enzymes, whereas KIV shared an identical N-terminal sequence with two other peptidases from Streptomyces.

Immobilized-metal-ion affinity chromatography (IMAC) is used extensively for phosphopeptide enrichment in phosphoproteomics. However, the effect of nucleic acids in protein samples on phosphopeptide enrichment by IMAC has not yet been well clarified. In this study, we demonstrate that IMAC beads possess a strong adsorption of nucleic acids, especially single-stranded or single-stranded-region-containing nucleic acids, leading to approximately 50% loss of phosphopeptides during the process of IMAC enrichment. Therefore, nucleic acids must be removed from protein samples prior to IMAC. Acetonitrile (ACN) precipitation, a simple and efficient procedure, was established to remove nucleic acids from the protein samples. We showed that ACN precipitation approximately doubled the phosphopeptide number identified by IMAC and mass spectrometry, indicating that nucleic acid removal significantly improves the identification of phosphopeptides.

Archaea contain a variety of chromatin proteins consistent with the evolution of different genome packaging mechanisms. Among the two main kingdoms in the Archaea, Euryarchaeota synthesize histone homologs, whereas Crenarchaeota have not been shown to possess a chromatin protein conserved at the kingdom level. We report the identification of Cren7, a novel family of chromatin proteins highly conserved in the Crenarchaeota. A small, basic, methylated and abundant protein, Cren7 displays a higher affinity for double-stranded DNA than for single-stranded DNA, constrains negative DNA supercoils and is associated with genomic DNA in vivo. The solution structure and DNA-binding surface of Cren7 from the hyperthermophilic crenarchaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus were determined by NMR. The protein adopts an SH3-like fold. It interacts with duplex DNA through a beta-sheet and a long flexible loop, presumably resulting in DNA distortions through intercalation of conserved hydrophobic residues into the DNA structure. These data suggest that the crenarchaeal kingdom in the Archaea shares a common strategy in chromatin organization.

In yeast, glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) is essential for viability and plays an important role in biosynthesis and organization of cell wall. Initiation of the GPI anchor biosynthesis is catalysed by the GPI-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase complex (GPI-GnT). The GPI3 (SPT14) gene is thought to encode the catalytic subunit of GPI-GnT complex. In contrast to Saccharomyces cerevisiae, little is known about the GPI biosynthesis in filamentous fungi. In this study, the afpig-a gene was identified as the homologue of the GPI3/pig-A gene in Aspergillus fumigatus, an opportunistic fungal pathogen. By replacement of the afpig-a gene with a pyrG gene, we obtained the null mutants. Although the Deltaafpig-a mutant exhibited a significant increased cell lysis instead of temperature-sensitive or conditional lethal phenotype associated to the GPI3 mutant of yeast, they could survive at temperatures from 30 degrees C to 50 degrees C. The analysis of the mutants showed that a completely blocking of the GPI anchor synthesis in A. fumigatus led to cell wall defect, abnormal hyphal growth, rapid conidial germination and aberrant conidiation. In vivo assays revealed that the mutant exhibited a reduced virulence in immunocompromised mice. The GPI anchor was not essential for viability, but required for the cell wall integrity, morphogenesis and virulence in A. fumigatus.

Background Breathlessness is an important cause of exercise limitation and reduced quality of life for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). One of the challenges of breathlessness management in COPD is the lack of physiological markers that reliably correlate with patients' symptoms. The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that neural respiratory drive (NRD), measured with diaphragm electromyogram (EMGdi) activity, is closely related to breathlessness in COPD. We also investigated whether neuroventilatory uncoupling, which is the dissociation of ventilation from NRD as a consequence of abnormal pulmonary mechanics, contributes to breathlessness intensity over an awareness of levels of NRD alone. Methods EMGdi and ventilation were measured continuously during exhaustive incremental cycle and treadmill exercise in 12 patients with COPD (mean FEV 1 38·7% predicted [SD 14·5]). EMGdi was expressed as a percentage of maximum (EMGdi%max), and relative to tidal volume expressed as a percentage of predicted vital capacity (EMGdi%max/VT%VCpred) to measure neuroventilatory uncoupling. Breathlessness (modified Borg scale) was recorded at baseline, at the end of each minute of exercise, and at completion of exercise. Linear regression analysis was used to determine the associations between breathlessness, EMGdi%max, neuroventilatory uncoupling, and ventilation. Findings EMGdi%max was closely related to breathlessness in both cycle ( r =0·98, p=0·0001) and treadmill exercise ( r =0·94, p=0·005), this association being at least as strong as that between neuroventilatory uncoupling and breathlessness (cycle r =0·94, p=0·005; treadmill r =0·91, p=0·01). The association between breathlessness and ventilation was poor when expansion of tidal volume became restricted, whereas the association between EMGdi%max and breathlessness remained close. Interpretation EMGdi%max is closely related to the intensity of exertional breathlessness in COPD. These data suggest that breathlessness in COPD can be largely explained by an awareness of levels of NRD, rather than the association between NRD and achieved ventilation. EMGdi%max could provide a useful physiological biomarker for breathlessness, with advantages over mechanical and ventilatory indices in COPD and the many other diseases in which neuroventilatory uncoupling occurs. Funding UK Medical Research Council, British Council.

Functional magnetic stimulation (FMS) of the thoracic nerve roots to simulate cough has been suggested as a treatment approach in patients unable to voluntarily activate the abdominal muscles. However, factors that could influence the efficacy of FMS in clinical use have not been evaluated. In the present investigation we studied train length, posture, and frequency to determine the optimal stimulation protocol. We also evaluated the use of a valve at the mouth to enhance glottic function and investigated whether lung volume at the time of stimulation would influence the tension generated by the abdominal muscles. Studies were performed using a Magstim rapid stimulator augmented by four booster packs in nine healthy subjects; we measured the change in gastric (DeltaPga(FMS)), esophageal (DeltaPes(FMS)), and mouth pressure and expiratory flow. With our apparatus pressure generation was maximized by having a train length of at least 300 ms and a frequency of 25 Hz. Posture and valve use were not important determinants of DeltaPga(FMS) or DeltaPes(FMS). Lung volume exerted only a minor influence on DeltaPga(FMS), but the ratio DeltaPes(FMS):DeltaPga(FMS) was increased at TLC compared with FRC. Expiratory flow was increased by adopting a seated posture and using an occlusion valve with an opening threshold close to the maximum DeltaPes(FMS) generated by the stimulus train; however, expiratory flow was susceptible to interference from glottic incoordination. Representative results (with train length 600 ms, 25 Hz, and 100% power, seated) were mean DeltaPga(FMS), 166 cm H(2)O; mean DeltaPes(FMS), 108 cm H(2)O; and mean expiratory flow, 311 L/min. We confirm that FMS of the abdominal muscles can generate a substantial positive intra-abdominal and intrathoracic pressure and, consequently, expiratory flow in normal subjects.

The solventogenic bacterium Clostridium acetobutylicum is the most important species of Clostridium used in the fermentation industry. However, the intolerance to butanol hampers the efficient production of solvents. Butanol toxicity has been attributed to the chaotropic effect on the cell membrane, but the knowledge on the effect of butanol on membrane associated proteins is quite limited. Using 2-DE combined with MALDI-TOF MS/MS and 1-DE integrated with LC-MS/MS, 341 proteins in the membrane fractions of cell lysate were identified, thus establishing the first comprehensive membrane proteome of C. acetobutylicum. The identified proteins are mainly involved in transport, cellular membrane/wall machinery, formation of surface coat and flagella, and energy metabolism. Comparative analysis on the membrane proteomes of the wild type strain DSM 1731 and its butanol-tolerant mutant Rh8 revealed 73 differentially expressed proteins. Hierarchical clustering analysis suggested that mutant Rh8 may have evolved a more stabilized membrane structure, and have developed a cost-efficient energy metabolism strategy, to cope with the butanol challenge. This comparative membrane proteomics study, together with our previous published work on comparative cytoplasmic proteomics, allows us to obtain a systemic understanding of the effect of butanol on cellular physiology of C. acetobutylicum.

The autonomy, cooperativity, intelligence and mobility of mobile agents make them overcome the weakness of the traditional distributed computation mode of C/S and B/S, and bring new innovative solutions to the collaborative teaching, collaborative learning and collaborative management in virtual universities. However, nowadays most of the research in mobile agent technology in terms of the Virtual University is mostly focused on a certain application for some particular users. As a result, these researches do not provide an effective control mechanism for the universal management of multiapplication agents that work for the multiusers with multicharacters. This has prevented the implementation and promulgation of agent technology in virtual universities. As far as such insufficiency is concerned, this paper demonstrates its own solution. In this paper, a Virtual University-Oriented cooperative Mobile Agent Middleware (VUMAM) and a Virtual University framework based on VUMAM are designed. In addition, the paper discusses the assignment of agent characters and function, agent naming, the control mechanism of cooperative agents and the extendability of VUMAM.

Background: Clostridium thermocellum is a Gram-positive thermophilic anaerobic bacterium with the unusual capacity to convert cellulosic biomass into ethanol and hydrogen. Identification and characterization of protein complexes in C. thermocellum are important toward understanding its metabolism and physiology. Results: A two dimensional blue native/SDS-PAGE procedure was developed to separate membrane protein complexes of C. thermocellum. Proteins spots were identified by MALDI-TOF/TOF Mass spectrometry. 24 proteins were identified representing 13 distinct protein complexes, including several putative intact complexes. Interestingly, subunits of both the F1-F0-ATP synthase and the V1-V0-ATP synthase were detected in the membrane sample, indicating C. thermocellum may use alternative mechanisms for ATP generation. Conclusion: Two dimensional blue native/SDS-PAGE was used to detect membrane protein complexes in C. thermocellum. More than a dozen putative protein complexes were identified, revealing the simultaneous expression of two sets of ATP synthase. The protocol developed in this work paves the way for further functional characterization of these protein complexes. Background Clostridium thermocellum is a Gram-positive thermophilic anaerobe capable of degrading cellulose and producing ethanol and hydrogen. These qualities render C. thermocellum potentially useful for the production of biofuel from biomass. The cellulytic activities of this organism were well studied, the corresponding enzymes were found to organize into a cell surfaced bound multienzyme complex, termed cellulosome [1]. The arrangement of the enzymatic subunits in the cellulosome complex, made possible by a scaffoldin subunit, promotes enhanced substrate binding and degradation. However, other parts of its cellular functions are not well understood. Recently, a genome scale metabolic model was constructed [2], which provides a good basis for the overall understanding of its metabolism. Since membrane is where many important physiological functions, such as energy generation, protein trafficking, and small molecule transport [3], take place, we focused on membrane protein complexes as a start point to identify unique features of C. thermocellum. Identification of protein complexes in C. thermocellum is an important step toward understanding cellular behavior at an integrative level.