Search results for "Tunicata"
showing 4 items of 4 documents
The identification and localization of two intermediate filament proteins in the tunic of Styela plicata (Tunicata, Styelidae).
2009
The intermediate filament (IF) proteins Styela C and Styela D from the tunicate Styela (Urochordata) are co-expressed in all epidermal cells and they are thought to behave as type I and type II keratins. These two IF proteins, Styela C and Styela D, were identified in immunoblots of proteins isolated from the tunic of Styela plicata. The occurrence and distribution of these proteins within the tunic of this ascidian was examined by means of immunofluorescence and immunoperoxidase techniques, using anti-Styela C and anti-Styela D antibodies. In addition, immuno-electron microscopy of the tunic showed that the two proteins are located in the cuticle layer and in the tunic matrix. These result…
Enhanced expression of a cloned and sequenced Ciona intestinalis TNFa-like (CiTNFa) gene during the LPS-induced inflammatory response.
2008
A tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFalpha)-like gene from Ciona intestinalis (CiTNF alpha-like) body wall challenged with bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) was cloned and sequenced 4 h after LPS inoculation. An open reading frame of 936 bp encoding a propeptide of 312 amino acids (35.4 kDa) displaying a transmembrane domain from positions 7 to 29, a TACE cleavage site, and a mature peptide domain of 185 amino acids (20.9 kDa), was determined with a predicted isoelectric point of 9.4. The phylogenetic tree based on deduced amino acid sequences of invertebrate TNF-like protein and vertebrate TNFs supported the divergence between the ascidian and vertebrate TNF families, whereas D. melanogaster…
Cloning and expression of a novel component of the CAP superfamily enhanced in the inflammatory response to LPS of the ascidian Ciona intestinalis.
2010
The CAP superfamily is a group of proteins that have been linked to several biological functions such as reproduction, cancer, and immune defense. A differential screening between lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-challenged and naive Ciona intestinalis has been performed to identify LPS-induced genes. This strategy has allowed the isolation of a full-length 1471-bp cDNA encoding for a 413-amino-acid protein (CiCAP). In silico analysis has shown that this polypeptide displays a modular structure with similarities to vertebrate CAP-superfamily proteins and to a collagen-binding adhesin of Streptococcus mutans. Domain organization analysis and alignment of CiCAP to other vertebrate CAP proteins have r…
Inducible lectins with galectin properties and human IL1alpha epitopes opsonize yeast during the inflammatory response of the ascidian Ciona intestin…
2007
Studies on inducible ascidian lectins may shed light on the evolutionary emergence of cytokine functions. Here, we show that the levels of opsonins, with IL1alpha-epitopes, increase in Ciona intestinalis hemolymph as a response to an inflammatory stimulus and, in particular, to intratunic injection of lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The inflammatory agent promptly (within 4 h) enhances Ca(2+)-independent serum hemagglutinating and opsonizing activities, which are both inhibited by D-galactose and D-galactosides (alpha-lactose, N-acetyl-D-lactosamine, thio-digalactoside), suggesting that anti-rabbit erythrocyte lectins with galectin properties are involved as opsonins. Inducible galectin molecules…