Search results for "repeats"
showing 10 items of 209 documents
Microsatellite-based genotyping of Candida parapsilosis sensu stricto isolates reveals dominance and persistence of a particular epidemiological clon…
2012
In this study, using multilocus microsatellite analysis, we report the genetic characterization of 27 Candida parapsilosis isolates recovered in two different periods of time (2007-2009 and 2011-2012) from infants hospitalized in the neonatal intensive care unit of a hospital in Messina, Italy. The results revealed the persistence and dominance of a particular infectious genotype among NICU patients and highlight the power of the used microsatellite markers in clarifying epidemiologic associations, detect micro-evolutionary variations and facilitating the recognition of outbreaks. © 2012 Elsevier B.V.
Hybridization of mouse lemurs: different patterns under different ecological conditions
2011
Abstract Background Several mechanistic models aim to explain the diversification of the multitude of endemic species on Madagascar. The island's biogeographic history probably offered numerous opportunities for secondary contact and subsequent hybridization. Existing diversification models do not consider a possible role of these processes. One key question for a better understanding of their potential importance is how they are influenced by different environmental settings. Here, we characterized a contact zone between two species of mouse lemurs, Microcebus griseorufus and M. murinus, in dry spiny bush and mesic gallery forest that border each other sharply without intermediate habitats…
Tracing the first steps of American sturgeon pioneers in Europe
2008
Abstract Background A Baltic population of Atlantic sturgeon was founded ~1,200 years ago by migrants from North America, but after centuries of persistence, the population was extirpated in the 1960s, mainly as a result of over-harvest and habitat alterations. As there are four genetically distinct groups of Atlantic sturgeon inhabiting North American rivers today, we investigated the genetic provenance of the historic Baltic population by ancient DNA analyses using mitochondrial and nuclear markers. Results The phylogeographic signal obtained from multilocus microsatellite DNA genotypes and mitochondrial DNA control region haplotypes, when compared to existing baseline datasets from extan…
Mitochondrial simple sequenze repeats and 12s – rRNA gene reveal two distinct lineages of Crocidura russula (Mammalia, Sorcidae)
2004
A short segment (135 bp) of the control region and a partial sequence (394 bp) of the 12S-rRNA gene in the mitochondrial DNA of Crocidura russula were analyzed in order to test a previous hypothesis regarding the presence of a gene flow disruption in northern Africa. This breakpoint would have separated northeast-African C. russula populations from the European (plus the northwest-African) populations. The analysis was carried out on specimens from Tunisia (C. r. cf agilis), Sardinia (C. r. ichnusae), and Pantelleria (C. r. cossyrensis), and on C. r. russula from Spain and Belgium. Two C. russula lineages were identified; they both shared R2 tandem repeated motifs of the same length (12 bp)…
Gain-of-function mutations in IFIH1 cause a spectrum of human disease phenotypes associated with upregulated type I interferon signaling.
2014
The type I interferon system is integral to human antiviral immunity. However, inappropriate stimulation or defective negative regulation of this system can lead to inflammatory disease. We sought to determine the molecular basis of genetically uncharacterized cases of the type I interferonopathy Aicardi-Goutières syndrome, and of other patients with undefined neurological and immunological phenotypes also demonstrating an upregulated type I interferon response. We found that heterozygous mutations in the cytosolic double-stranded RNA receptor gene IFIH1 (MDA5) cause a spectrum of neuro-immunological features consistently associated with an enhanced interferon state. Cellular and biochemica…
Differential Greek and northern African migrations to Sicily are supported by genetic evidence from the Y chromosome
2009
The presence or absence of genetic heterogeneity in Sicily has long been debated. Through the analysis of the variation of Y-chromosome lineages, using the combination of haplogroups and short tandem repeats from several areas of Sicily, we show that traces of genetic flows occurred in the island, due to ancient Greek colonization and to northern African contributions, are still visible on the basis of the distribution of some lineages. The genetic contribution of Greek chromosomes to the Sicilian gene pool is estimated to be about 37% whereas the contribution of North African populations is estimated to be around 6%. In particular, the presence of a modal haplotype coming from the southern…
Molecular Characterization of the Leucine Plasmid from Buchnera aphidicola , Primary Endosymbiont of the Aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum
2000
The complete sequence of the leucine plasmid of Buchnera aphidicola from the aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum (pLeu-BAp) is reported. Its gene organization was concordant with those of other leucine plasmids of Buchnera from aphids of the Aphidini and Macrosiphini tribes. Three inverted repeats are present in pLeu-BAp. Two of them are also present in pLeu from the family Aphididae: (i) SIR1, located downstream the leucine operon, resembles a rho-independent terminator of transcription, and (ii) LIR1, located upstream of the leucine operon, is suggested to be involved in transcription termination or messenger stability. The third, located near the putative ATGC repeats involved in the origin of rep…
Genetic diversity within the R408W phenylketonuria mutation lineages in Europe
2003
The R408W phenylketonuria mutation in Europe has arisen by recurrent mutation in the human phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) locus and is associated with two major PAH haplotypes. R408W-2.3 exhibits a west-to-east cline of relative frequency reaching its maximum in the Balto–Slavic region, while R408W-1.8 exhibits an east-to-west cline peaking in Connacht, the most westerly province of Ireland. Spatial autocorrelation analysis has demonstrated that the R408W-2.3 cline, like that of R408W-1.8, is consistent with a pattern likely to have been established by human dispersal. Genetic diversity within wild-type and R408W chromosomes in Europe was assessed through variable number tandem repeat (VNT…
The transcriptome of Spodoptera exigua larvae exposed to different types of microbes.
2012
We have obtained and characterized the transcriptome of Spodoptera exigua larvae with special emphasis on pathogen-induced genes. In order to obtain a highly representative transcriptome, we have pooled RNA from diverse insect colonies, conditions and tissues. Sequenced cDNA included samples from 3 geographically different colonies. Enrichment of RNA from pathogen-related genes was accomplished by exposing larvae to different pathogenic and non-pathogenic microbial agents such as the bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis, Micrococcus luteus, and Escherichia coli, the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and the S. exigua nucleopolyhedrovirus (SeMNPV). In addition, to avoid the loss of tissue-specific …
The Role of Low Complexity Regions in Protein Interaction Modes: An Illustration in Huntingtin
2021
Low complexity regions (LCRs) are very frequent in protein sequences, generally having a lower propensity to form structured domains and tending to be much less evolutionarily conserved than globular domains. Their higher abundance in eukaryotes and in species with more cellular types agrees with a growing number of reports on their function in protein interactions regulated by post-translational modifications. LCRs facilitate the increase of regulatory and network complexity required with the emergence of organisms with more complex tissue distribution and development. Although the low conservation and structural flexibility of LCRs complicate their study, evolutionary studies of proteins …