Co-culture of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and yeast induces specific responses that are not observed in pure culture. Gene expression profiles of Lactobacillus paracasei ATCC 334 co-cultured with Saccharomyces cerevisiae IFO 0216 were analyzed by DNA microarray, and the responses induced by direct contact with the yeast cells were investigated. Coating the LAB cells with recombinant DnaK, which ...

The aim of the work was the early detection of Candida spp. in clinical samples of patients with carcinoma ovariorum undergoing chemotherapy by comparing three indicators of candidiasis: presence of mannan and yeast DNA in the bloodstream and colonization of mucosal membranes by Candida species as a prognostic marker of deep candidiasis. Thirty-one women with carcinoma ovariorum, during chemoth...

Cellulase enzymes contribute a major fraction of the total cost for biological conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to fuels and chemicals. Although a several fold reduction in cellulase production costs and enhancement of cellulase activity and stability have been reported in recent years, sugar yields are still lower at low enzyme doses than desired commercially. We recently reported that he...

A binding protein from liver which binds reversibly to yeast mannan depending on the presence or absence of calcium has been purified to near homogeneity by affinity chromatography. The binding of the isolated protein to Y-mannan is proportional to protein concentration and is apparently an unsaturable process. The Scatchard plot of the binding is a curvilinear, indicating the presence of a hig...

In Alzheimer's disease (AD) the accumulation of pathological forms of the beta-amyloid (Abeta) peptide are believed to be causal factors in the neurodegeneration that results in the loss of cognitive function in patients. Anti-Abeta antibodies have been shown to reduce Abeta levels in transgenic mouse models of AD and in AN-1792 clinical trial on AD patients; however, the clinical trial was hal...

Mannan synthetase activity in spheroplast lysates prepared from Saccharomyces cerevisiae was measured by following the incorporation of [14C]mannose from guanosine 5'-diphosphate-[14C]mannose into material precipitable with cold 0.3 M perchloric acid. When enzyme activity was assayed at high concentrations of spheroplast lysate protein (10 mg/ml) in the presence of 7.5 mM MnCl2, a severe inhibi...

The Saccharomyces cerevisiae cell surface is endowed with some relevant technological properties, notably antimicrobial and biosorption activities. For these purposes, yeasts are usually processed and packaged in an 'autolysed/dried' formula, which may have some impacts on cell surface properties. In this report, we showed using a combination of biochemical, biophysical and molecular methods th...

A particulate preparation obtained by lysing yeast protoplasts was found to catalyze the incorporation of radioactivity from guanosine diphosphate 14C-mannose into a mannose polysaccharide. The k, for guanosine diphosphate mannose is 0.5 mu, and the optimum pH is between 5.5 and 7.2. There is an almost absolute requirement of Mnff for activity, which cannot be substituted by Mg++. The reaction ...