We report an electrochemical method for the sequence-specific detection of unpurified amplification products of the gyrB gene of Salmonella typhimurium. Using an asymmetric PCR and the electrochemical E-DNA detection scheme, single-stranded amplicons were produced from as few as 90 gene copies and, without subsequent purification, rapidly identified. The detection is specific; the sensor does n...

The discovery that synthetic short chain nucleic acids are capable of selective binding to biological targets has made them to be widely used as molecular recognition elements. These nucleic acids, called aptamers, are comprised of two types, DNA and RNA aptamers, where the DNA aptamer is preferred over the latter due to its stability, making it widely used in a number of applications. However,...

A new study shows that SPEECHLESS determines cell fate in the stomatal lineage but is inherited equally by daughter cells following an asymmetric cell division. The polarity determinant BASL acts as a MAPK scaffold, targeting SPEECHLESS for degradation in the larger daughter cell.

We read with interest the article by Maron et al.1 We would like to commend them for utilizing the term, “hypertrophic cardiomyopathy,” in this report, instead of the term, “asymmetric septal hypertrophy,” which has now proven rather nonspecific. We were also pleased to note that Maron et al1 now recognize that asymmetric septal hypertrophy is not pathognomonic of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. N...

Microproblematica are microfossils whose suprageneric taxonomic status is unknown. Many microproblematica display an encrusting way of life and can therefore be included in the group of “micro-encrusters” that during the Upper Jurassic were conspicuous components of microbial carbonate crusts (e.g. LEINFELDER et al., 1993; SCHMID, 1996; DUPRAZ & STRASSER, 1999, 2002). These forms are widespread...

the improved estimator of the variance in the general linear model is presented under an asymmetric linex loss function.

The question what specific functions the production of emotional tears fulfills has received only limited attention of behavioral scientists. We report the results of two studies on the social impact of emotional tears. In Study 1 (96 Dutch females), perceived helplessness and felt connectedness predicted the willingness to help a person depicted as crying tearfully, while perceived friendlines...

Although little is known about how asymmetric cell division in plants is regulated, recent discoveries provide a starting point for exploring the mechanisms underlying this process. These studies reveal parallels with asymmetric division in yeast and animals, but also point to regulated cell expansion as a new mechanism of asymmetric division in plants.