The enterobacterium Klebsiella oxytoca uses a variety of inorganic and organic nitrogen sources, including purines, nitrogen-rich compounds that are widespread in the biosphere. We have identified a 23-gene cluster that encodes the enzymes for utilizing purines as the sole nitrogen source. Growth and complementation tests with insertion mutants, combined with sequence comparisons, reveal functi...

Caloric restriction (CR), a reduction in calorie intake without malnutrition, retards aging in several animal models from worms to mammals. Developing CR mimetics, compounds that reproduce the longevity benefits of CR without its side effects, is of widespread interest. Here, we employed the Connectivity Map to identify drugs with overlapping gene expression profiles with CR. Eleven statistical...

Allantoate amidohydrolases (AAHs) hydrolize the ureide allantoate to ureidoglycolate, CO(2), and two molecules of ammonium. Allantoate degradation is required to recycle purine-ring nitrogen in all plants. Tropical legumes additionally transport fixed nitrogen via allantoin and allantoate into the shoot, where it serves as a general nitrogen source. AAHs from Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana; ...

AIM Symphytum officinale (comfrey) is a medicinal plant commonly used in decoction and to treat ailments. It protects the skin against ultraviolet (UV)-irradiation. UV irradiation may induce variable effects on the constituents of herbal extracts and thereby may limit or improve the advantages of using these extracts as medicinal supplements. This study aimed to assess the effect of UV radiatio...

The dermatological disease Molluscum contagiosum (MC) presents as lesions restricted solely to the skin. The poxvirus Molluscum contagiosum virus (MCV) is responsible for this skin disease. There are four subtypes of MCV: MCV-1; MCV-2; MCV-3; and MCV-4. MCV-1 is the most commonly reported subtype found. The MCV MC159 protein belong to a family of proteins known as FLICE; FADD-like interleukin-1...

Twenty-four multiparous dairy cows (eight with ruminal cannulae) were blocked by days in milk and assigned to six balanced 4 x 4 Latin squares with 21-d periods. The four diets, formulated from alfalfa silage plus a concentrate mix based on ground high moisture ear corn, contained (dry matter basis): 1) 20% concentrate, 80% alfalfa silage (24% nonfiber carbohydrate; NFC), 2) 35% concentrate, 65...

An experiment was carried out to determine net microbial protein supply to ruminants from 15 tropical feeds. The study was done at Lyamungo research institute, on the slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro, Tanzania in 1993. Twenty Bos Taurus Bos Indicus bulls were used in three periods in a completely randomised design. The initial 19 days of each period were for adaptation by the bulls to their new enviro...