The neuropeptide Phe-Met-Arg-Phe-NH2 (FMRFamide) is a potent cardioactive neuropeptide in Lymnaea stagnalis. Isolation and sequencing of 2 cDNAs and a genomic clone shows that a single gene encodes a precursor protein which contains 9 copies of the FMRFamide peptide, 2 copies of the related peptide Phe-Leu-Arg-Phe-NH2 (FLRFamide), and single copies of the putative pentapeptides Gln-Phe-Tyr-Arg-...

BACKGROUND Hospital preparedness is critical for the early detection and management of public health emergency (PHE). Understanding the current status of PHE preparedness is the first step in planning to enhance hospitals' capacities for emergency response. The objective of this study is to understand the current status of hospital PHE preparedness in China. METHODS Four hundred hospitals in ...

BACKGROUND For the production of L-phenylalanine (L-Phe), two molecules of phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP) and one molecule erythrose-4-phosphate (E4P) are necessary. PEP stems from glycolysis whereas E4P is formed in the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP). Glucose, commonly used for L-Phe production with recombinant E. coli, is taken up via the PEP-dependent phosphotransferase system which delivers glu...

The mobility of phenanthrene (PHE) in soils depends on its sorption and is influenced by either the existing soil humus or exogenous humic substances. Exogenous humic acids (HAs) were added to soil to enhance the amount of soil organic carbon (SOC) by 2.5, 5.0, and 10.0 g kg(-1). PHE desorption of the treated soils was determined at two pH levels (3.0 and 6.0) and temperatures (15 and 25 degree...

Chorismate mutase (CM) and 3-deoxy-D-arabino-heptulosonate 7-phosphate (DAHP) synthase (DS) are key regulatory enzymes in L-Phe and L-Tyr biosynthesis in Amycolatopsis methanolica. At least two CM proteins, CMIa and CMIb, are required for the single chorismate mutase activity in the wild type. Component CMIa (a homodimeric protein with 16-kDa subunits) was purified to homogeneity (2,717-fold) a...

AIMS Polymorphisms in CYP2C9 and VKORC1 influence patients' phenprocoumon (PHE) and acenocoumarol (ACE) dose requirements. To provide physicians with tools to estimate the patient's individual dose, we aimed to develop algorithms for PHE and ACE. METHODS AND RESULTS In two Dutch anticoagulation clinics, data on age, sex, height, weight, co-medication, coumarin derivative doses, and internatio...

It has been proposed that the decreased potency of Ca2+ channel blockers to produce relaxation in vascular tissues contracted at high alpha 1-adrenoceptor occupancy may be caused by activation of spare receptors. Results from the present study using isolated strips of rabbit renal arteries contracted with the alpha 1-adrenoceptor agonist phenylephrine (PhE) support this hypothesis and provide a...

Endophytes are ubiquitous in plants, and they may have a natural capacity to biodegrade polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). In our study, a phenanthrene-degrading endophytic Paenibacillus sp. PHE-3 was isolated from P. asiatica L. grown in a PAH-contaminated site. The effects of environmental variables on phenanthrene biodegradation by strain PHE-3 were studied, and the ability of strain P...

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), like all retroviruses, requires a cellular tRNA as a primer for initiation of reverse transcription. In a previous study, we demonstrated that an HIV-1 with a primer binding site complementary to yeast tRNA(Phe) (psHIV-Phe) was not infectious unless yeast tRNA(Phe) was supplied in trans. This unique in vivo complementation system has now been used to define t...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE There is only limited knowledge on the time course of perihemorrhagic edema (PHE) after intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). We aimed to investigate the chronological PHE course and its relation to in-hospital mortality in a large retrospective ICH cohort. METHODS Patients with supratentorial ICH treated at our institution between 2006 and 2009, who had received at least 3 C...