Japanese apricot (Prunus mume) is an important fruit tree in East Asia. ‘Nanko’, the primary cultivar of apricots, usually suffers from scab, a disease caused by Venturia carpophila. However, there have been few reports on phenotypic variation scab resistance/susceptibility and underlying genetic factors. In this study, we investigated severity naturally occurring scabs based lesions 108 access...

A scaffoldin gene cluster was identified in the mesophilic cellulolytic anaerobe Acetivibrio cellulolyticus. The previously described scaffoldin gene, cipV, encodes an N-terminal family 9 glycoside hydrolase, a family 3b cellulose-binding domain, seven cohesin domains, and a C-terminal dockerin. The gene immediately downstream of cipV was sequenced and designated scaB. The protein encoded by th...

Sheep scab, caused by Psoroptes ovis mites, represents a significant threat to sheep health and welfare. Infestations are diagnosed parasite identification in skin scrapings, more recently with commercial ELISA against serum antibodies the Pso o 2 mite allergen. However, little is known about performance of non-UK populations. In this study, six Swifter were experimentally infested P. ovis. Les...

Infestation of ovine skin with the ectoparasitic mite Psoroptes ovis results in the development of a rapid cutaneous inflammatory response, leading to the crusted skin lesions characteristic of sheep scab. To facilitate the identification of novel diagnostic and therapeutic targets, a better understanding of the host-parasite relationship in sheep scab is essential. Although our knowledge of th...

The DNA sequence coding for putative cellulosomal scaffolding protein ScaA from the rumen cellulolytic anaerobe Ruminococcus flavefaciens 17 was completed. The mature protein exhibits a calculated molecular mass of 90,198 Da and comprises three cohesin domains, a C-terminal dockerin, and a unique N-terminal X domain of unknown function. A novel feature of ScaA is the absence of an identifiable ...

An investigation was conducted in a six year old lemon (Citrus limon) garden during March to September 2007 to find out the effect of foliar spray with seven fungicides and a botanical on the severity of citrus scab (Elsinoe fawcettii) and dieback (Colletotrichum gloeosporioides) of the crop. The tested fungicides were Dinthane M 45 (0.30%), Rovral 50 WP (0.10%), Bavistin 50 WP (0.10%), Champio...

Apple quality was investigated in the scab-resistant 'Liberty', 'Santana', and 'Topaz' cultivars and the scab-susceptible 'Golden Delicious' cultivar. Trees subjected to the same crop load were cultivated using either an organic (ORG) or an integrated production (IP) system. Physicochemical properties, phenolic content, and sensorial quality of fruit from both systems were compared. There were ...

Overproduction of genetically engineered antibodies, such as single-chain antibodies (scAbs) in Escherichia coli often results in insoluble and inactive products known as inclusion bodies. We now report that fusion or co-expression of FkpA, the E. coli periplasmic peptidyl-prolyl-isomerase with chaperone activity, substantially improves soluble and functional expression of scAbs. Anti-human bla...

A spectrum of in vivo-expressed Staphylococcus epidermidis antigens was identified by probing a bacteriophage lambda library of S. epidermidis genomic DNA with human serum from infected and uninfected individuals. This analysis resulted in identification of 53 antigen-encoding loci. Six antigenic polypeptides were expressed from these loci and purified. These polypeptides were the propeptide, m...

This study investigated the impact of constitutively expressed Trichoderma atroviride genes encoding exochitinase nag70 or endochitinase ech42 in transgenic lines of the apple cultivar Pinova on the symbiosis with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). We compared the exo- and endochitinase activities of leaves and roots from non-transgenic Pinova and the transgenic lines T386 and T389. Local and ...