Professor Sir George Lindor Brown (1903-1971) is known for his pioneering research into cholinergic neuromuscular transmission. However, during World War II he worked in hyperbaric physiology, and his research into underwater physiology greatly improved the safety of divers. It is perhaps fitting, therefore, that this review, which accompanies the Physiological Society's G. L. Brown Prize Lectu...

Coping with oxidative stress originating from oxidizing compounds or reactive oxygen species (ROS), associated with the exposure to agents that cause environmental stresses, is one of the prerequisites for an aerobic lifestyle of Bacillus spp. such as B. subtilis, B. cereus and B. anthracis. This minireview highlights novel insights in the primary oxidative stress response caused by oxidizing c...

Mycobacterium avium is an environmental organism and opportunistic pathogen with inherent resistance to drugs, environmental stresses, and the host immune response. To adapt to these disparate conditions, M. avium must control its transcriptional response to environmental cues. M. avium forms biofilms in various environmental settings, including drinking water pipes and potable water reservoirs...

*Correspondence: Dan Cheng and Qingfang He, Department of Applied Science, University of Arkansas at Little Rock, 2801 South University Avenue, Little Rock, AR 72204, USA e-mail: [email protected]; [email protected] Microalgal biofuels are currently considered to be the most promising alternative to future renewable energy source. Microalgae have great potential to produce various biofuels, includin...

The spore is a dormant cell that is resistant to various environmental stresses. As compared with the vegetative cell wall, the spore wall has a more extensive structure that confers resistance on spores. In the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe, the polysaccharides glucan and chitosan are major components of the spore wall; however, the structure of the spore surface remains unknown. We ...

The sphingomyelin pathway is a ubiquitous, evolutionarily conserved signaling system initiated by hydrolysis of the plasma membrane phospholipid sphingomyelin to generate the second messenger ceramide. Sphingomyelin degradation is catalyzed by acid and neutral sphingomyelinase (SMase) isoforms. Most, if not all mammalian cells, appear capable of signaling though the sphingomyelin pathway. Diver...