Fusion Sites (fusion + site)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Natural bone collagen scaffold combined with OP-1 for bone formation induction in vivo

JOURNAL OF BIOMEDICAL MATERIALS RESEARCH, Issue 2 2009
Yu Qian
Abstract The scaffold is a key element to osteogenic tissue engineering as it provides a microenvironment for bone formation. Natural bone collagen scaffold (NBCS) is a novel biomaterial scaffold acid-extracted from organic human bone. The objective of this study was to characterize NBCS and evaluate the osteoconductivity of the scaffold, in combination with osteogenic protein-1 (OP-1), using a rabbit posteolateral lumbar fusion model. Thirty two rabbits were divided into 4 experimental groups, autograft, NBCS alone, OP-1 alone or NBCS combined with OP-1. Bone formation was evaluated by micro-CT, quantitative histological analysis, immunohistochemistry and semi-quantitative RT-PCR at 6 weeks postoperatively. By scanning electronic microscope, we showed that NBCS maintains a porous, interconnecting microarchitecture. Micro-CT analysis demonstrated that NBCS combined with OP-1 significantly induced (p < 0.01) bone formation at the fusion site as compared to control groups. This was confirmed by quantitative histological analysis which demonstrated that the NBCS combined with OP-1 significantly enhanced bone matrix area (17.7 mm2) (p < 0.05) and bone marrow cavity size (71.3 mm2) (p < 0.05) as compared to the controls. Immunohistochemical assessment and RT-PCR also demonstrated that NBCS combined with OP-1 enhanced type I collagen and osteonectin expression. Together, these results suggest that NBCS is an effective scaffold for osteogenesis, and combined with growth factors such as OP-1, possesses both osteoconductive and osteoinductive properties that are sufficient for bone regeneration. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 2009 [source]


Behavior of flagella and flagellar root systems in the planozygotes and settled zygotes of the green alga Bryopsis maxima Okamura (Ulvophyceae, Chlorophyta) with reference to spatial arrangement of eyespot and cell fusion site

PHYCOLOGICAL RESEARCH, Issue 4 2010
Shinichi Miyamura
SUMMARY Behaviors of male and female gametes, planozygotes and their microtubular cytoskeletons of a marine green alga Bryopsis maxima Okamura were studied using field emission scanning electron microscopy, high-speed video microscopy, and anti-tubulin immunofluorescence microscopy. After fusion of the biflagellate male and female gametes, two sets of basal bodies lay side by side in the planozygote. Four long female microtubular roots extended from the basal bodies to the cell posterior. Four short male roots extended to nearly half the distance to the posterior end. Two flagella, one each from the male and female gametes, become a pair. Specifically, the no. 2 flagellum of the female gamete and one male flagellum point to the right side of the eyespot of the female gamete, which is located at the cell posterior and which is associated with 2s and 2d roots of the female gamete. This spatial relationship of the flagella, microtubular roots, and the eyespot in the planozygote is retained until settlement. During forward swimming, the planozygote swings the flagella backward and moves by flagellar beating. The male and female flagella in the pair usually beat synchronously. The cell withdraws the flagella and becomes round when the planozygote settles to the substratum 20 min after mixing. The axoneme and microtubular roots depolymerize, except for the proximal part and the basal bodies. Subsequently, distinct arrays of cortical microtubules develop in zygotes until 30 min after mixing. These results are discussed with respect to the functional significance of the spatial relationships of flagellar apparatus-eyespot-cell fusion sites in the mating gametes and planozygote of green algae. [source]


The RecJ DNase strongly suppresses genomic integration of short but not long foreign DNA fragments by homology-facilitated illegitimate recombination during transformation of Acinetobacter baylyi

MOLECULAR MICROBIOLOGY, Issue 3 2007
Klaus Harms
Summary Homology-facilitated illegitimate recombination (HFIR) promotes genomic integration of foreign DNA with a single segment homologous to the recipient genome by homologous recombination in the segment accompanied by illegitimate fusion of the heterologous sequence. During natural transformation of Acinetobacter baylyi HFIR occurs at about 0.01% of the frequency of fully homologous recombination. The role of the 5, single-strand-specific exonuclease RecJ in HFIR was investigated. Deletion of recJ increased HFIR frequency about 20-fold compared with wild type while homologous recombination was not affected. Illegitimate fusion sites were predominantly located within 360 nucleotides away from the homology whereas in wild type most fusion sites were distal (500,2500 nucleotides away). RecJ overproduction reduced the HFIR frequency to half compared with wild type, and transformants with short foreign DNA segments were diminished, leading to on average 866 foreign nucleotides integrated per event (682 in wild type, 115 in recJ). In recJ always the 3, ends of donor DNA were integrated at the homology whereas in wild type these were 3, or 5,. RecJ apparently suppresses HFIR by degrading 5, non-homologous DNA tails at the post-synaptic stage. We propose that the RecJ activity level controls the HFIR frequency during transformation and the amount of foreign DNA integrated per event. [source]


Mechanisms of homology-facilitated illegitimate recombination for foreign DNA acquisition in transformable Pseudomonas stutzeri

MOLECULAR MICROBIOLOGY, Issue 4 2003
Petra Meier
Summary Intra- and interspecific natural transformation has been observed in many prokaryotic species and is considered a fundamental mechanism for the generation of genetic variation. Recently, it has been described in detail how, in transformable Acinetobacter BD413 and Streptococcus pneumoniae, long stretches of nucleotides lacking homology were integrated into recipient genomes when they were linked on one side to a small piece of DNA with homology to resident DNA serving as a recA -dependent recombination anchor. Now, such homology-facilitated illegitimate recombination (HFIR) has also been detected in transformable Pseudomonas stutzeri. However, analysis of the recombinants revealed qualitative and quantitative differences in their generation compared with that in Acinetobacter BD413. In P. stutzeri, foreign DNA with an anchor sequence was integrated 105 - to 106 -fold less frequently than fully homologous DNA, but still at least 200-fold more frequently than without the anchor. The anchor sequence could be as small as 311 bp. Remarkably, in 98% of the events, the 3, end was integrated within the homologous anchor, whereas the 5, end underwent illegitimate fusion. Moreover, about one-third of the illegitimate fusion sites shared no or only a single identical basepair in foreign and resident DNA. The other fusions occurred within microhomologies of up to 6 bp with a higher GC content on average than the interacting nucleotide sequences. Foreign DNA of 69,1903 bp was integrated, and resident DNA of 22,2345 bp was lost. In a recA mutant, HFIR was not detectable. The findings suggest that genomic acquisition of foreign DNA by HFIR during transformation occurs widely in prokaryotes, but that details of the required recombination and strand fusion mechanisms may differ between organisms from different genera. [source]


Behavior of flagella and flagellar root systems in the planozygotes and settled zygotes of the green alga Bryopsis maxima Okamura (Ulvophyceae, Chlorophyta) with reference to spatial arrangement of eyespot and cell fusion site

PHYCOLOGICAL RESEARCH, Issue 4 2010
Shinichi Miyamura
SUMMARY Behaviors of male and female gametes, planozygotes and their microtubular cytoskeletons of a marine green alga Bryopsis maxima Okamura were studied using field emission scanning electron microscopy, high-speed video microscopy, and anti-tubulin immunofluorescence microscopy. After fusion of the biflagellate male and female gametes, two sets of basal bodies lay side by side in the planozygote. Four long female microtubular roots extended from the basal bodies to the cell posterior. Four short male roots extended to nearly half the distance to the posterior end. Two flagella, one each from the male and female gametes, become a pair. Specifically, the no. 2 flagellum of the female gamete and one male flagellum point to the right side of the eyespot of the female gamete, which is located at the cell posterior and which is associated with 2s and 2d roots of the female gamete. This spatial relationship of the flagella, microtubular roots, and the eyespot in the planozygote is retained until settlement. During forward swimming, the planozygote swings the flagella backward and moves by flagellar beating. The male and female flagella in the pair usually beat synchronously. The cell withdraws the flagella and becomes round when the planozygote settles to the substratum 20 min after mixing. The axoneme and microtubular roots depolymerize, except for the proximal part and the basal bodies. Subsequently, distinct arrays of cortical microtubules develop in zygotes until 30 min after mixing. These results are discussed with respect to the functional significance of the spatial relationships of flagellar apparatus-eyespot-cell fusion sites in the mating gametes and planozygote of green algae. [source]