The amino acid sequences of sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) and castor (Ricinus communis L.) cytochrome c were determined by using 1.5mumol of protein from each species. Both molecules consist of a single chain of 111 amino acid residues and are homologous with other mitochondrial cytochrome c molecules. Both have an N-acetylated ;tail' of eight amino acids and two in-N-trimethyl-lysine residues, a...

A substantial portion of the ribulose 1,5-diphosphate carboxylase activity in the endosperm of germinating castor beans (Ricinus communis var. Hale) is recovered in the proplastid fraction. The partially purified enzyme shows homology with the enzyme from spinach (Spinacia oleracea) leaves, as evidenced by its reaction against antibodies to the native spinach enzyme and to its catalytic subunit...

Gender identification of sexually monomorphic mammals can be difficult. We used analysis of zinc-finger protein (Zfx and Zfy) DNA regions to determine gender of 96 beavers (Castor canadensis) from 3 areas and used these results to verify gender determined in the field. Gender was correctly determined for 86 (89.6%) beavers. Incorrect assignments were not attributed to errors in any one age or s...

Castor bean (Ricinus communis L.) is one of the most important non-edible oilseed crops. Characterization of seed development and lipid accumulation from female flowers pollinated to mature seeds has been carried out. The temporal expression patterns of 65 lipid genes involved in fatty acid and triacylglycerol biosynthesis using the semi-quantitative RT-PCR technique were also investigated. The...

Seeds of the castor plant Ricinus communis are of forensic interest because they are the source of the poison ricin. We tested whether stable isotope ratios of castor seeds and ricin preparations can be used as a forensic signature. We collected over 300 castor seed samples worldwide and measured the C, N, O, and H isotope ratios of the whole seeds and oil. We prepared ricin by three different ...

Polyethylene glycols (PEGs) are products of condensed ethylene oxide and water that can have various derivatives and functions. Since many PEG types are hydrophilic, they are favorably used as penetration enhancers, especially in topical dermatological preparations. PEGs, together with their typically nonionic derivatives, are broadly utilized in cosmetic products as surfactants, emulsifiers, c...

Motivation Biodiversity databases now comprise hundreds of thousands of sequences and trait records. For example, the Open Tree of Life includes over 1 491 000 metazoan and over 300 000 bacterial taxa. These data provide unique opportunities for analysis of phylogenetic trait distribution and reconstruction of ancestral biodiversity. However, existing tools for comparative phylogenetics scale p...

Castor (Ricinus communis L.) is a fast growing plant of marginal and moderately saline land widely spread throughout tropical regions. It is cultivated at arid coastal sandy belt and inland waste land of Pakistan for obtaining oil from its seeds, which being of medicinal importance is an economical commodity. Facing a great shortage of mineral diesel, scientists are nowadays actively working fo...

Ribulose 1,5-diphosphate carboxylase was detected in extracts of germinating castor bean (Ricinus communis var. Hale) endosperms. This is the first report of this enzyme in a nonphotosynthetic (no chlorophyll) plant tissue. Radioactive 3-phosphoglyceric acid has been identified as the principle product resulting from the enzymatic condensation of (14)C-bicarbonate and ribulose-1,5-diP in endosp...

Tacrolimus and cyclosporine have been used in various formulations, but their hypersensitivity reactions are rare in practice. Castor oil derivatives are nonionic surfactants used in aqueous preparations of hydrophobic active pharmaceutical ingredients. Castor oil derivatives that can be used as additives to tacrolimus and cyclosporine may play a role in the development of hypersensitivity reac...