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Displaying publications 4261 - 4280 of 8213 in total

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CHEK2*1100delC does not contribute to risk to breast cancer among Malay, Chinese and Indians in Malaysia

Thirthagiri E, Cheong LS, Yip CH, Teo SH

Fam Cancer, 2009;8(4):355-8.
PMID: 19399639 DOI: 10.1007/s10689-009-9244-x

A truncating mutation (1100delC) in the cell cycle checkpoint kinase-2 gene, CHEK2, has been identified as a risk factor for familial and sporadic breast cancer in some Northern and Western European populations. However, the prevalence of CHEK2*1100delC in breast cancer appears to be population dependent. We analysed the prevalence of CHEK2*1100delC in 668 breast cancer cases, of which 542 were invasive breast cancers, from a hospital-based cohort of breast cancer patients from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The variant was not found in any patients in this cohort, suggesting that CHEK2*1100delC is rare in our population, and unlikely to contribute significantly to risk to breast cancer among the Malay, Chinese and Indian ethnic groups in Malaysia. This suggests that screening for this allele should not be routinely conducted in Malaysia.

Matched MeSH terms: Breast Neoplasms/genetics*; Protein-Serine-Threonine Kinases/genetics*
The 27-bp VNTR polymorphism in intron 4 of the human eNOS gene in healthy Singaporean Chinese, Indians, and Malays

Gan YY, Chen CF

Biochem Genet, 2012 Feb;50(1-2):52-62.
PMID: 21927815 DOI: 10.1007/s10528-011-9458-0

Human endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) is one isoform of the nitric oxide synthases that are responsible for nitric oxide synthesis from L-arginine. The gene encoding eNOS contains a 27-bp VNTR polymorphism in intron 4. We report here for the first time the presence of a novel allele 3, which was absent in all other populations studied to date, in 1.7% each of Singaporean Indians and Malays. We also detected the presence of a novel genotype 3/5 in 3.4% each of Singaporean Indians and Malays. Allele 6, which was absent in Han Chinese from northern China and Taiwan and was also absent in Indians from the Indian subcontinent, was found in 2.1% of Singaporean Chinese and in 0.3% of Singaporean Indians.

Matched MeSH terms: Asian Continental Ancestry Group/genetics; Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III/genetics*
In Vitro Functional Characterisation of Cytochrome P450 (CYP) 2C19 Allelic Variants CYP2C19*23 and CYP2C19*24

Lau PS, Leong KV, Ong CE, Dong AN, Pan Y

Biochem Genet, 2017 Feb;55(1):48-62.
PMID: 27578295 DOI: 10.1007/s10528-016-9771-8

Cytochrome P450 (CYP) 2C19 is essential for the metabolism of clinically used drugs including omeprazole, proguanil, and S-mephenytoin. This hepatic enzyme exhibits genetic polymorphism with inter-individual variability in catalytic activity. This study aimed to characterise the functional consequences of CYP2C19*23 (271 G>C, 991 A>G) and CYP2C19*24 (991 A>G, 1004 G>A) in vitro. Mutations in CYP2C19 cDNA were introduced by site-directed mutagenesis, and the CYP2C19 wild type (WT) as well as variants proteins were subsequently expressed using Escherichia coli cells. Catalytic activities of CYP2C19 WT and those of variants were determined by high performance liquid chromatography-based essay employing S-mephenytoin and omeprazole as probe substrates. Results showed that the level of S-mephenytoin 4'-hydroxylation activity of CYP2C19*23 (V max 111.5 ± 16.0 pmol/min/mg, K m 158.3 ± 88.0 μM) protein relative to CYP2C19 WT (V max 101.6 + 12.4 pmol/min/mg, K m 123.0 ± 19.2 μM) protein had no significant difference. In contrast, the K m of CYP2C19*24 (270.1 ± 57.2 μM) increased significantly as compared to CYP2C19 WT (123.0 ± 19.2 μM) and V max of CYP2C19*24 (23.6 ± 2.6 pmol/min/mg) protein was significantly lower than that of the WT protein (101.6 ± 12.4 pmol/min/mg). In vitro intrinsic clearance (CLint = V max/K m) for CYP2C19*23 protein was 85.4 % of that of CYP2C19 WT protein. The corresponding CLint value for CYP2C19*24 protein reduced to 11.0 % of that of WT protein. These findings suggested that catalytic activity of CYP2C19 was not affected by the corresponding amino acid substitutions in CYP2C19*23 protein; and the reverse was true for CYP2C19*24 protein. When omeprazole was employed as the substrate, K m of CYP2C19*23 (1911 ± 244.73 μM) was at least 100 times higher than that of CYP2C19 WT (18.37 ± 1.64 μM) and V max of CYP2C19*23 (3.87 ± 0.74 pmol/min/mg) dropped to 13.4 % of the CYP2C19 WT (28.84 ± 0.61 pmol/min/mg) level. Derived from V max/K m, the CLint value of CYP2C19 WT was 785 folds of CYP2C19*23. K m and V max values could not be determined for CYP2C19*24 due to its low catalytic activity towards omeprazole 5'-hydroxylation. Therefore, both CYP2C19*23 and CYP2C19*24 showed marked reduced activities of metabolising omeprazole to 5-hydroxyomeprazole. Hence, carriers of CYP2C19*23 and CYP2C19*24 allele are potentially poor metabolisers of CYP2C19-mediated substrates.

Matched MeSH terms: Escherichia coli/genetics; Cytochrome P-450 CYP2C19/genetics*
The genetic structure of Oreochromis spp. (Tilapia) populations in Malaysia as revealed by microsatellite DNA analysis

Bhassu S, Yusoff K, Panandam JM, Embong WK, Oyyan S, Tan SG

Biochem Genet, 2004 Aug;42(7-8):217-29.
PMID: 15487586

The genetic make-up of five populations of Oreochromis spp. was examined by microsatellite analysis. Eleven polymorphic microsatellite loci showed significant departures from the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. The mean heterozygosity ranged from 0.6280 to 0.7040 for each population. The genetic distance values showed a clear separation between O. niloticus and O. mossambicus. The differentiation of the O. niloticus populations was then tested with various genetic measures, which are based on both the Infinite Allele and the Stepwise Mutation models. All these measures grouped the populations similarly.

Matched MeSH terms: DNA/genetics; Cichlids/genetics*
M2/ANXA5 haplotype as a predisposition factor in Malay women and couples experiencing recurrent spontaneous abortion: a pilot study

Thean Hock T, Bogdanova N, Kai Cheen A, Kathirgamanathan S, Bin Abdullah R, Mohd Yusoff N, et al.

Reprod Biomed Online, 2015 Apr;30(4):434-9.
PMID: 25682309 DOI: 10.1016/j.rbmo.2014.12.014

Recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA) is a prevalent condition among the Malay population of Malaysia, where carriage risk of conventional hereditary thrombophilia factors has been generally ruled out. The contribution of M2/ANXA5, a common haplotype in the annexin A5 gene promoter, was evalauted for RSA in Malay. Seventy-seven women who had experienced two or more unexplained RSA and 41 available male partners were selected for study, with 360 population controls recruited from healthy Malay individuals. Incidence of M2 carriage and odds ratios were calculated between control and patient groups, and clinically defined subgroups and RSA risk was evaluated. M2/ANXA5, found in 42.2% of the general Malay population, was associated with greater risks for women with primary and secondary RSA with early (gestational week 5-15) losses. The risk was somewhat higher in Malay couples when both partners were carriers and a trend of higher prevalence was seen for the male partners patients who had experienced RSA. M2 carriage seems to be a risk factor with unusually high incidence in Malay women and couples with primary and secondary RSA with 'early' spontaneous abortions. The associated male partner risk confirms the proposed role of M2/ANXA5 as a genetic trait impeding embryonic anticoagulation.

Matched MeSH terms: Abortion, Habitual/genetics*; Annexin A5/genetics*
Fulltext The Sequence-specific Peptide-binding Activity of the Protein Sulfide Isomerase AGR2 Directs Its Stable Binding to the Oncogenic Receptor EpCAM

Mohtar MA, Hernychova L, O'Neill JR, Lawrence ML, Murray E, Vojtesek B, et al.

Mol Cell Proteomics, 2018 04;17(4):737-763.
PMID: 29339412 DOI: 10.1074/mcp.RA118.000573

AGR2 is an oncogenic endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-resident protein disulfide isomerase. AGR2 protein has a relatively unique property for a chaperone in that it can bind sequence-specifically to a specific peptide motif (TTIYY). A synthetic TTIYY-containing peptide column was used to affinity-purify AGR2 from crude lysates highlighting peptide selectivity in complex mixtures. Hydrogen-deuterium exchange mass spectrometry localized the dominant region in AGR2 that interacts with the TTIYY peptide to within a structural loop from amino acids 131-135 (VDPSL). A peptide binding site consensus of Tx[IL][YF][YF] was developed for AGR2 by measuring its activity against a mutant peptide library. Screening the human proteome for proteins harboring this motif revealed an enrichment in transmembrane proteins and we focused on validating EpCAM as a potential AGR2-interacting protein. AGR2 and EpCAM proteins formed a dose-dependent protein-protein interaction in vitro Proximity ligation assays demonstrated that endogenous AGR2 and EpCAM protein associate in cells. Introducing a single alanine mutation in EpCAM at Tyr251 attenuated its binding to AGR2 in vitro and in cells. Hydrogen-deuterium exchange mass spectrometry was used to identify a stable binding site for AGR2 on EpCAM, adjacent to the TLIYY motif and surrounding EpCAM's detergent binding site. These data define a dominant site on AGR2 that mediates its specific peptide-binding function. EpCAM forms a model client protein for AGR2 to study how an ER-resident chaperone can dock specifically to a peptide motif and regulate the trafficking a protein destined for the secretory pathway.

Matched MeSH terms: Proteins/genetics; Epithelial Cell Adhesion Molecule/genetics
Characterization of clarithromycin resistance in Malaysian isolates of Helicobacter pylori

Ahmad N, Zakaria WR, Abdullah SA, Mohamed R

World J Gastroenterol, 2009 Jul 07;15(25):3161-5.
PMID: 19575497

AIM: To characterize the types of mutations present in the 23S rRNA genes of Malaysian isolates of clarithromycin-resistant Helicobacter pylori (H pylori).
METHODS: Clarithromycin susceptibility of H pylori isolates was determined by E test. Analyses for point mutations in the domain V of 23S rRNA genes in clarithromycin-resistant and -sensitive strains were performed by sequence analysis of amplified polymerase chain reaction products. Restriction fragment length polymorphism was performed using BsaI and MboII enzymes to detect restriction sites that correspond to the mutations in the clarithromycin-resistant strains.
RESULTS: Of 187 isolates from 120 patients, four were resistant to clarithromycin, while 183 were sensitive. The MIC of the resistant strains ranged from 1.5 to 24 microg/mL. Two isolates had an A2142G mutation and another two had A2143G mutations. A T2182C mutation was detected in two out of four clarithromycin-resistant isolates and in 13 of 14 clarithromycin-sensitive isolates. Restriction enzyme analyses with BsaI and MboII were able to detect the mutations.
CONCLUSION: Clarithromycin resistance is an uncommon occurrence among Malaysian isolates of H pylori strains and the mutations A2142G and A2143G detected were associated with low-level resistance.

Matched MeSH terms: RNA, Ribosomal, 23S/genetics*; Drug Resistance, Bacterial/genetics*
Fulltext A study of HER2 expression in endometrial carcinoma: a single centre experience

Hashim M, Tizen NMS, Alfian N, Hashim H, Nawi AM, Pauzi SHM

Pan Afr Med J, 2021;38:200.
PMID: 33995806 DOI: 10.11604/pamj.2021.38.200.19978

Introduction: endometrial carcinoma (EC) is the seventh most common cancer in females in Malaysia, of which the majority is composed of lower grade type I EC. Although less prevalent, type II EC which is of higher grade has poorer outcome and prognosis. Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) is one of the possible prognostic molecular markers which can be a target for immunotherapy. This study aimed to assess the expression of HER2 in common type of EC in the local population and to determine its correlation with the clinicopathological features.
Methods: a total of 53 cases of endometrioid type of EC were selected within a six-year period comprising of 22 cases of grade 1, 25 cases of grade 2 and six cases of grade 3 carcinoma. The selected whole tumour tissue sections were immune-stained with HER2 antibody. The scoring was semi-quantitatively analyzed based on 2013 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO)/College of American Pathologists (CAPs) guidelines for the scoring of HER2 in breast cancer.
Results: all cases regardless of grades of endometrioid carcinoma showed negative expression of HER2 (score 0).
Conclusion: there was no significant HER2 expression in endometrioid carcinoma. However, a follow-up study with a larger number of samples from different type of endometrial carcinoma is needed. Testing of several tumour tissue blocks to assess possible tumour heterogeneity, as well as correlation with HER2 gene amplification status by in-situ-hybridisation, are also recommended.

Matched MeSH terms: Endometrial Neoplasms/genetics*; Receptor, ErbB-2/genetics*
Fulltext The indonesian variants of CRF33_01B: Near-full length sequence analysis

SahBandar IN, Takahashi K, Motomura K, Djoerban Z, Firmansyah I, Kitamura K, et al.

AIDS Res Hum Retroviruses, 2011 Jan;27(1):97-102.
PMID: 20958201 DOI: 10.1089/aid.2010.0163

Cocirculation of subtype B and CRF01_AE in Southeast Asia has led to the establishment of new recombinant forms. In our previous study, we found five samples suspected of being recombinants between subtype B and CRF01_AE, and here, we analyzed near full-length sequences of two samples and compared them to known CRFs_01B, subtype B, and CRF01_AE. Five overlapped segments were amplified with nested PCR from PBMC DNA, sequenced, and analyzed for genome mosaicism. The two Indonesian samples, 07IDJKT189 and 07IDJKT194, showed genome-mosaic patterns similar to CRF33_01B references from Malaysia, with one short segment in the 3' end of the p31 integrase-coding region, which was rather more similar to subtype B than CRF01_AE, consisting of unclassified sequences. These results suggest gene-specific continuous diversification and spread of the CRF33_01B genomes in Southeast Asia.

Matched MeSH terms: RNA, Viral/genetics*; HIV-1/genetics*
Protein engineering of GH11 xylanase from Aspergillus fumigatus RT-1 for catalytic efficiency improvement on kenaf biomass hydrolysis

Damis SIR, Murad AMA, Diba Abu Bakar F, Rashid SA, Jaafar NR, Illias RM

Enzyme Microb Technol, 2019 Dec;131:109383.
PMID: 31615675 DOI: 10.1016/j.enzmictec.2019.109383

Enzyme hydrolysis faces a bottleneck due to the recalcitrance of the lignocellulose biomass. The protein engineering of GH11 xylanase from Aspergillus fumigatus RT-1 was performed near the active site and at the N-terminal region to improve its catalytic efficiency towards pretreated kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus) hydrolysis. Five mutants were constructed by combined approaches of error-prone PCR, site-saturation and site-directed mutagenesis. The double mutant c168 t/Q192H showed the most effective hydrolysis reaction with a 13.9-fold increase in catalytic efficiency, followed by mutants Y7L and c168 t/Q192 H/Y7L with a 1.6-fold increase, respectively. The enhanced catalytic efficiency evoked an increase in sugar yield of up to 28% from pretreated kenaf. In addition, mutant c168 t/Q192 H/Y7L improved the thermostability at higher temperature and acid stability. This finding shows that mutations at distances less than 15 Å from the active site and at putative secondary binding sites affect xylanase catalytic efficiency towards insoluble substrates hydrolysis.

Matched MeSH terms: Xylosidases/genetics*; Mutant Proteins/genetics
Whole-genome analysis of an extensively drug-resistant clinical isolate of Acinetobacter baumannii AC12: insights into the mechanisms of resistance of an ST195 clone from Malaysia

Lean SS, Yeo CC, Suhaili Z, Thong KL

Int J Antimicrob Agents, 2015 Feb;45(2):178-82.
PMID: 25481460 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijantimicag.2014.10.015

Acinetobacter baumannii has emerged as an important nosocomial pathogen owing to its increasing resistance to most, if not all, antibiotics in clinical use. We recently reported the occurrence of extensively drug-resistant (XDR) A. baumannii isolates in a Malaysian tertiary hospital. The genome of one of these XDR isolates (A. baumannii AC12) was completely sequenced and comparative genome analyses were performed to elucidate the genetic basis of its antimicrobial resistance. The A. baumannii AC12 genome consists of a 3.8 Mbp circular chromosome and an 8731 bp cryptic plasmid, pAC12. It belongs to the ST195 lineage and is most closely related to A. baumannii BJAB0715 as well as other strains of the international clone III (IC-III) group. Two antibiotic resistance islands (RIs), designated AC12-RI1 and AC12-RI2, were found in the AC12 chromosome along with a 7 kb Tn1548::armA island conferring resistance to aminoglycosides and macrolides. The 22.8 kb AC12-RI1 interrupts the comM gene and harbours the carbapenem resistance gene blaOXA-23 flanked by ISAba1 within a Tn2006-like structure. AC12-RI1 also harbours resistance determinants for aminoglycosides, tetracyclines and sulphonamides. The 10.3 kb IS26-flanked AC12-RI2 is a derivative of AbGRI2-1, containing aphA1b and blaTEM genes (conferring aminoglycoside and β-lactam resistance, respectively). The presence of numerous genes mediating resistance to various antibiotics in novel RI structures as well as other genes encoding drug transporters and efflux pumps in A. baumannii AC12 most likely contributed to its XDR characteristics.

Matched MeSH terms: Drug Resistance, Bacterial/genetics*; Acinetobacter baumannii/genetics*
Comparative Transcriptome Analysis Provides Insights into Differentially Expressed Genes and Long Non-Coding RNAs between Ovary and Testis of the Mud Crab (Scylla paramamosain)

Yang X, Ikhwanuddin M, Li X, Lin F, Wu Q, Zhang Y, et al.

Mar Biotechnol (NY), 2018 Feb;20(1):20-34.
PMID: 29152671 DOI: 10.1007/s10126-017-9784-2

The molecular mechanism underlying sex determination and gonadal differentiation of the mud crab (Scylla paramamosain) has received considerable attention, due to the remarkably biological and economic differences between sexes. However, sex-biased genes, especially non-coding genes, which account for these differences, remain elusive in this crustacean species. In this study, the first de novo gonad transcriptome sequencing was performed to identify both differentially expressed genes and long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) between male and female S. paramamosain by using Illumina Hiseq2500. A total of 79,282,758 and 79,854,234 reads were generated from ovarian and testicular cDNA libraries, respectively. After filtrating and de novo assembly, 262,688 unigenes were produced from both libraries. Of these unigenes, 41,125 were annotated with known protein sequences in public databases. Homologous genes involved in sex determination and gonadal development pathways (Sxl-Tra/Tra-2-Dsx/Fru, Wnt4, thyroid hormone synthesis pathway, etc.) were identified. Three hundred and sixteen differentially expressed unigenes were further identified between both transcriptomes. Meanwhile, a total of 233,078 putative lncRNAs were predicted. Of these lncRNAs, 147 were differentially expressed between sexes. qRT-PCR results showed that nine lncRNAs negatively regulated the expression of eight genes, suggesting a potential role in sex differentiation. These findings will provide fundamental resources for further investigation on sex differentiation and regulatory mechanism in crustaceans.

Matched MeSH terms: Brachyura/genetics*; RNA, Long Noncoding/genetics*
Profiling the transcriptome of Gracilaria changii (Rhodophyta) in response to light deprivation

Ho CL, Teoh S, Teo SS, Rahim RA, Phang SM

Mar Biotechnol (NY), 2009 Jul-Aug;11(4):513-9.
PMID: 19043658 DOI: 10.1007/s10126-008-9166-x

Light regulates photosynthesis, growth and reproduction, yield and properties of phycocolloids, and starch contents in seaweeds. Despite its importance as an environmental cue that regulates many developmental, physiological, and biochemical processes, the network of genes involved during light deprivation are obscure. In this study, we profiled the transcriptome of Gracilaria changii at two different irradiance levels using a cDNA microarray containing more than 3,000 cDNA probes. Microarray analysis revealed that 93 and 105 genes were up- and down-regulated more than 3-fold under light deprivation, respectively. However, only 50% of the transcripts have significant matches to the nonredundant peptide sequences in the database. The transcripts that accumulated under light deprivation include vanadium chloroperoxidase, thioredoxin, ferredoxin component, and reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide dehydrogenase. Among the genes that were down-regulated under light deprivation were genes encoding light harvesting protein, light harvesting complex I, phycobilisome 7.8 kDa linker polypeptide, low molecular weight early light-inducible protein, and vanadium bromoperoxidase. Our findings also provided important clues to the functions of many unknown sequences that could not be annotated using sequence comparison.

Matched MeSH terms: Photosynthesis/genetics; Gracilaria/genetics*
Fulltext Pre-extinction Demographic Stability and Genomic Signatures of Adaptation in the Woolly Rhinoceros

Lord E, Dussex N, Kierczak M, Díez-Del-Molino D, Ryder OA, Stanton DWG, et al.

Curr Biol, 2020 10 05;30(19):3871-3879.e7.
PMID: 32795436 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.07.046

Ancient DNA has significantly improved our understanding of the evolution and population history of extinct megafauna. However, few studies have used complete ancient genomes to examine species responses to climate change prior to extinction. The woolly rhinoceros (Coelodonta antiquitatis) was a cold-adapted megaherbivore widely distributed across northern Eurasia during the Late Pleistocene and became extinct approximately 14 thousand years before present (ka BP). While humans and climate change have been proposed as potential causes of extinction [1-3], knowledge is limited on how the woolly rhinoceros was impacted by human arrival and climatic fluctuations [2]. Here, we use one complete nuclear genome and 14 mitogenomes to investigate the demographic history of woolly rhinoceros leading up to its extinction. Unlike other northern megafauna, the effective population size of woolly rhinoceros likely increased at 29.7 ka BP and subsequently remained stable until close to the species' extinction. Analysis of the nuclear genome from a ∼18.5-ka-old specimen did not indicate any increased inbreeding or reduced genetic diversity, suggesting that the population size remained steady for more than 13 ka following the arrival of humans [4]. The population contraction leading to extinction of the woolly rhinoceros may have thus been sudden and mostly driven by rapid warming in the Bølling-Allerød interstadial. Furthermore, we identify woolly rhinoceros-specific adaptations to arctic climate, similar to those of the woolly mammoth. This study highlights how species respond differently to climatic fluctuations and further illustrates the potential of palaeogenomics to study the evolutionary history of extinct species.

Matched MeSH terms: Perissodactyla/genetics*; Genome/genetics
Rosline Hassan: building the future of haemato-pathology in Malaysia

Burki TK

Lancet Haematol, 2021 Aug;8(8):e551.
PMID: 34329575 DOI: 10.1016/S2352-3026(21)00215-5
Matched MeSH terms: Hematologic Diseases/genetics; Leukemia/genetics
Gonadal transcriptomic analysis of the mud crab Scylla olivacea infected with rhizocephalan parasite Sacculina beauforti

Waiho K, Fazhan H, Zhang Y, Afiqah-Aleng N, Moh JHZ, Ikhwanuddin M, et al.

Genomics, 2020 09;112(5):2959-2969.
PMID: 32437851 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2020.05.007

Infection by the rhizocephalan parasite Sacculina beauforti can have detrimental effects on mud crab Scylla olivacea. However, the molecular changes that occur during rhizocephalan infection are poorly understood. Due to the disruption in the reproductive system after infection, the gonadal transcriptomic profiles of non-infected and infected Scylla olivacea were compared. A total of 686 and 843 unigenes were differentially expressed between non-infected and infected males, and females, respectively. The number of DEGs increased after infection. By comparing shared DEGs of non-infected and infected individuals, potential immune- and reproduction-related of host, and immune- and metabolism-related genes of parasite are highlighted. The only shared KEGG pathway between non-infected and infected individuals was the ribosome pathway. In summary, findings in this study provide new insights into the host-parasite relationship of rhizocephalan parasites and their crustacean hosts.

Matched MeSH terms: Brachyura/genetics*; Ribosomal Proteins/genetics
Bacterial leaf blight resistance in rice: a review of conventional breeding to molecular approach

Chukwu SC, Rafii MY, Ramlee SI, Ismail SI, Hasan MM, Oladosu YA, et al.

Mol Biol Rep, 2019 Feb;46(1):1519-1532.
PMID: 30628024 DOI: 10.1007/s11033-019-04584-2

Breeding for disease resistant varieties remains very effective and economical in controlling the bacterial leaf blight (BLB) of rice. Breeders have played a major role in developing resistant rice varieties against the BLB infection which has been adjudged to be a major disease causing significant yield reduction in rice. It would be difficult to select rice crops with multiple genes of resistance using the conventional approach alone. This is due to masking effect of genes including epistasis. In addition, conventional breeding takes a lot of time before a gene of interest can be introgressed. Linkage drag is also a major challenge in conventional approach. Molecular breeding involving markers has facilitated the characterization and introgression of BLB disease resistance genes. Biotechnology has brought another innovation in form of genetic engineering (transgenesis) of rice. Although, molecular breeding cannot be taken as a substitute for conventional breeding, molecular approach for combating BLB disease in rice is worthwhile given the demand for increased production of rice in a fast growing population of our society. This present article highlights the recent progress from conventional to molecular approach in breeding for BLB disease resistant rice varieties.

Matched MeSH terms: Oryza/genetics; Xanthomonas/genetics
Fulltext The multifarious roles of heterogeneous ribonucleoprotein A1 in viral infections

Kaur R, Lal SK

Rev Med Virol, 2020 03;30(2):e2097.
PMID: 31989716 DOI: 10.1002/rmv.2097

Viruses are obligate parasites known to interact with a wide variety of host proteins at different stages of infection. Current antiviral treatments target viral proteins and may be compromised due to the emergence of drug resistant viral strains. Targeting viral-host interactions is now gaining recognition as an alternative approach against viral infections. Recent research has revealed that heterogeneous ribonucleoprotein A1, an RNA-binding protein, plays an essential functional and regulatory role in the life cycle of many viruses. In this review, we summarize the interactions between heterogeneous ribonucleoprotein A1 (hnRNPA1) and multiple viral proteins during the life cycle of RNA and DNA viruses. hnRNPA1 protein levels are modulated differently, in different viruses, which further dictates its stability, function, and intracellular localization. Multiple reports have emphasized that in Sindbis virus, enteroviruses, porcine endemic diarrhea virus, and rhinovirus infection, hnRNPA1 enhances viral replication and survival. However, in others like hepatitis C virus and human T-cell lymphotropic virus, it exerts a protective response. The involvement of hnRNPA1 in viral infections highlights its importance as a central regulator of host and viral gene expression. Understanding the nature of these interactions will increase our understanding of specific viral infections and pathogenesis and eventually aid in the development of novel and robust antiviral intervention strategies.

Matched MeSH terms: Virus Diseases/genetics; RNA-Binding Proteins/genetics
Identification of a novel HLA-A*01 variant, HLA-A*01:211, in a Singaporean Malay bone marrow donor

Kaur A, Cho L, Cereb N, Lin PY, Yang KL

HLA, 2020 09;96(3):329-330.
PMID: 32227684 DOI: 10.1111/tan.13884

One nucleotide substitution in codon 73 of HLA-A*01:01:01:01 results in a novel allele, HLA-A*01:211.

Matched MeSH terms: Exons/genetics; HLA-A Antigens/genetics
Sexually anomalous individuals of the black fly Simulium trangense (Diptera: Simuliidae) infected with mermithid parasites (Nematoda: Mermithidae)

Ya'cob Z, Low VL, Tan TK, Noor-Izwan A, Lourdes EY, Ramli R, et al.

Parasitol Res, 2021 May;120(5):1555-1561.
PMID: 33655351 DOI: 10.1007/s00436-021-07087-x

Sexually anomalous individuals, typically intersexes or gynandromorphs, bear a mixture of male and female traits. Twelve sexually anomalous individuals of the black fly Simulium (Gomphostilbia) trangense Jitklang, Kuvangkadilok, Baimai, Takaoka & Adler were discovered among 49 adults reared from pupae. All 12 sexually anomalous adults were parasitized by mermithid nematodes, although five additional parasitized adults had no overt external anomalies. Sequence analysis of the 18S rRNA gene revealed that the mermithids, possibly representing a new species, are related to Mesomermis spp., with genetic distances of 5.09-6.87%. All 12 anomalous individuals had female phenotypical traits on the head, thorax, forelegs, midlegs, and claws, but male features on the left and right hind basitarsi. One individual had mixed male and female genitalia. The findings are in accord with the trend that mermithid infections are associated with sexually anomalous adult black flies.

Matched MeSH terms: Mermithoidea/genetics; RNA, Ribosomal, 18S/genetics

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