The replication origin of the fully sequenced broad-host-range streptococcal plasmid pLS1 has been determined by the use of an in vitro replication system prepared from Escherichia coli, a host in which the plasmid can be established. Replicative intermediates were isolated from reaction mixtures that contained dideoxythymidine triphosphate, thus limiting the average extent of in vitro synthesi...

Pseudomonas strains with an atypical LOPAT profile (where LOPAT is a series of determinative tests: L, levan production; O, oxidase production; P, pectinolitic activity; A, arginine dihydrolase production; and T, tobacco hypersensibility) can be regarded as emergent pathogens in the Principality of Asturias (Spain), where they have been causing, since 1999, severe damage in at least three taxon...

Endemic areas of human T-lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) have been reported in Japan as well as tropical Africa, Central and South America and Melanesia. The existence of two subgroups, i.e., the transcontinental and Japanese subgroups, was reported in Japan. In the present study, we provide data on the ratio of the two subgroups in each endemic area and infection foci and examine the distri...

Nostoc is a diverse genus of filamentous cyanobacteria with tremendous potential for agricultural and industrial applications. Morphometric methods and routine 16S rDNA-based identification undermines the genetic diversity and impedes strain-level differentiation. A comparative study to deduce the discriminatory power of random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) and amplified ribosomal DNA restri...

The nucleotide sequence of a 1455-base pair TaqI-HinfI fragment of the rbs operon of Escherichia coli K12 has been determined. It includes the 3' terminus of rbsB (the gene for ribose-binding protein) and the entire rbsK gene, encoding ribokinase. Potential consensus promoter sequences and a stable stem-loop structure are present in the rbsB-rbsK intercistronic region. The regulatory significan...

Two rapid spectroscopic approaches for whole-organism fingerprinting of pyrolysis-mass spectrometry (PyMS) and Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) were used to analyze a group of 29 clinical and reference Candida isolates. These strains had been identified by conventional means as belonging to one of the three species Candida albicans, C. dubliniensis (previously reported as atypica...

A prospective study was conducted to compare the frequency of renin gene polymorphisms in normotensive and hypertensive subjects. Hypertensive (n = 102, blood pressure 168 +/- 17/103 +/- 9 mm Hg) and normotensive (n = 120, blood pressure 122 +/- 10/75 +/- 9 mm Hg) subjects were white, had similar age and sex distributions (hypertensive group, 45 +/- 10 years old and 52% female; normotensive gro...

The impact of hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) on the separation of ds-DNA by capillary electrophoresis in conjunction with laser-induced fluorescence (CE-LIF) detection using poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) solution is described. The use of CTAB for improved separation reproducibility and efficiency of DNA has not been demonstrated although it is widely used for controlling the magnitude a...

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to determine the clinicopathological features of gastric cancers with loss of imprinting (LOI) of LIT1. Insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF2) and H19 in Chinese patients. METHODS DNA and RNA from tumours were amplified and then digested with RsaI, ApaI and HinfI, and RsaI respectively to determine the LOI status. The demographic and clinicopathological chara...

In central China, Anopheles anthropophagus is considered the primary malaria vector andAnopheles sinensis is a secondary vector. IdentiÞcation of these twocryptic specieswould facilitate studies on malaria transmission and the application of control measures. At present, the only reliable morphological markers occur in the egg stage, making this approach impractical for any large scale Þeld stu...