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Like Element (like + element)
Selected AbstractsGenomic organization and functional characterization of the alcohol dehydrogenase locus of Ceratitis capitata (Medfly)INSECT MOLECULAR BIOLOGY, Issue 3 2006Saverio Brogna Abstract Approximately 30 kb of genomic DNA enclosing the Adh locus from the medfly, Ceratitis capitata have been cloned and about 15 kb has been structurally and functionally characterized. The locus consists of two genes, Adh-1 and Adh-2, separated by an intergenic region, which is polymorphic in size ranging from , 6.4 kb to 8.1 kb. Both genes consist of three exons and two introns. The introns are below 200 bp in size, except the 1st intron of Adh-1, which is unexpectedly long, variable in size and contains a deleted mariner -like element (postdoc). The two genes are transcribed in different orientations. The Adh-2 gene shows the typical pattern of transcription seen in the homologous genes of Drosophilidae presenting high levels of expression in the fat body, gut and ovaries. The Adh-1 gene is only expressed in the body muscle tissues of embryos, larvae and adult flies, raising the question of what its biological function may be. A DNA fragment containing bases ,102 to ,1666 relative to the first base of the initiating ATG of Adh-1 is sufficient to drive the expression of a reporter gene in body muscles of Drosophila melanogaster embryos, larvae and adult flies. The study provides further insights into the evolution of the Adh genes of higher diptera. [source] Structure of Hermes integrations in the germline of the yellow fever mosquito, Aedes aegyptiINSECT MOLECULAR BIOLOGY, Issue 1 2000N. Jasinskiene Abstract The Hermes transposable element is derived from the house fly, Musca domestica, and can incorporate into the germline of the yellow fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti. Preliminary Southern analyses indicated that Hermes integrated along with the marker gene into the mosquito genomic DNA. Here we show that Hermes integrations are accompanied by the integration of the donor plasmid as well. In addition, breaks in the donor plasmid DNAs do not occur precisely, or at the end of the terminal inverted repeats, and are accompanied by small deletions in the plasmids. Furthermore, integrations do not cause the typical 8-bp duplications of the target site DNA. No integrations are observed in the absence of a source of Hermes transposase. The Hermes transposase clearly did not catalyse precise cut-and-paste transposition in these transformed lines. It may have integrated the transposon through general recombination or through a partial replicative transposition mechanism. The imprecision of Hermes integration may result from interactions of the transposase with an endogenous hAT -like element in the mosquito genome. [source] World-wide survey of an Accord insertion and its association with DDT resistance in Drosophila melanogasterMOLECULAR ECOLOGY, Issue 8 2004F. CATANIA Abstract Previous work showed that insecticide resistance in Drosophila melanogaster is correlated with the insertion of an Accord -like element into the 5, region of the cytochrome P450 gene, Cyp6g1. Here, we study the distribution of the Accord -like element in 673 recently collected D. melanogaster lines from 34 world-wide populations. We also examine the extent of microsatellite variability along a 180-kilobase (kb) genomic region of chromosome II encompassing the resistance gene. We confirm a 100% correlation of the Accord insertion with insecticide resistance and a significant reduction in variability extending at least 20 kb downstream of the Cyp6g1 gene. The frequency of the Accord insertion differs significantly between East African (32,55%) and nonAfrican (85,100%) populations. This pattern is consistent with a selective sweep driving the Accord insertion close to fixation in nonAfrican populations as a result of the insecticide resistance phenotype it confers. This study confirms that hitchhiking mapping can be used to identify beneficial mutations in natural populations. [source] High prevalence of carbapenem-hydrolysing oxacillinases in epidemiologically related and unrelated Acinetobacter baumannii clinical isolates in SpainCLINICAL MICROBIOLOGY AND INFECTION, Issue 12 2007M. Ruiz Abstract Carbapenem-hydrolysing oxacillinases are reported increasingly in Acinetobacter baumannii. This study investigated the role of these ,-lactamases in causing resistance to carbapenems in 83 epidemiologically related and unrelated imipenem-resistant A. baumannii clinical isolates. The isolates were also analysed for the presence of ISAba1 in the promoter region of the blaOXA-51 -like gene in order to investigate the role of ISAba1 in OXA-51 expression. All clinical isolates contained a blaOXA-51 -like gene, 20% contained a blaOXA-58 -like gene, and 42% contained a blaOXA-40 -like gene; blaOXA-23 -like, blaIMP and blaVIM genes were not detected in any of the isolates investigated. ISAba1 was found in 24 (82.7%) of 28 pulsetypes, and was located in the promoter region of the blaOXA-51 -like gene in five (20.8%) of these pulsetypes. Expression of blaOXA-51 was detected in the five isolates with ISAba1 located in the promoter region, but was not detected in an isogenic imipenem-susceptible A. baumannii isolate that did not have ISAba1 located in the promoter region. It was concluded that there is a high prevalence of oxacillinases with activity against carbapenems among genetically unrelated A. baumannii clinical isolates from Spain, and that concomitant expression of two carbapenemases (OXA-51-like and either OXA-40-like or OXA-58-like) may take place. Insertion of an ISAba1 -like element in the promoter of the blaOXA-51 -like gene promotes the expression of this gene, although this did not seem to play a major role in carbapenem resistance. [source] piggyBac- like elements in cotton bollworm, Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner)INSECT MOLECULAR BIOLOGY, Issue 1 2008Z. C. Sun Abstract Two piggyBac -like elements (PLEs) were identified in the cotton bollworm, Helicoverpa armigera, and were designated as HaPLE1 and HaPLE2. HaPLE1 is flanked by 16 bp inverted terminal repeats (ITRs) and the duplicated TTAA tetranucleotide, and contains an open reading frame (ORF) of 1794 bp with the presumed DDD domain, indicating that this element may be an active autonomously mobile element. HaPLE2 was found with the same ITRs, but lacks the majority of an ORF-encoding transposase. Thus, this element was thought to be a non-autonomous element. Transposable element displays and distribution of the two PLEs in individuals from three different H. armigera populations suggest that transmobilization of HaPLE2 by the transposase of HaPLE1 may be likely, and mobilization of HaPLE1 might occur not only within the same individual, but also among different individuals. In addition, horizontal transfer was probably involved in the evolution of PLEs between H. armigera and Trichoplusia ni. [source] Tobacco bZIP transcription factor TGA2.2 and related factor TGA2.1 have distinct roles in plant defense responses and plant developmentTHE PLANT JOURNAL, Issue 1 2005Corinna Thurow Summary Salicylic acid (SA) is a crucial internal signaling molecule needed for the induction of plant defense responses upon attack of a variety of pathogens. Basic leucine zipper transcription factors of the TGA family bind to activating sequence-1 (as-1) -like elements which are SA-responsive cis elements found in promoters of ,immediate early' and ,late' SA-inducible genes. TGA2.2 constitutes the main component of tobacco as -1 -binding factor-1 (ASF-1). TGA2.1, which differs from TGA2.2 by being able to activate transcription in yeast, constitutes a minor fraction of the complex. Both proteins interact with NPR1, a protein essential for SA inducibility of ,late' genes. Here we demonstrate using dsRNAi mediated gene silencing that reducing the amount of TGA2.2 and TGA2.1 correlates with a significant decrease in ASF-1 activity and with a decreased inducibility of both ,immediate early' and ,late' genes. In contrast, reducing the amount of TGA2.1 alone had no effect on the expression of these target genes suggesting that TGA2.1 is dispensable for SA-inducible gene expression from the as-1 element. Expression of a TGA2.2 mutant unable to form heterodimers with the endogenous pool of TGA factors led to reduced SA-inducibility of ,immediate early' gene Nt103, indicating that the native leucine zipper is important for the protein to act positively on transcription. Plants with reduced amounts of TGA2.1 developed petal like stamens indicating a regulatory role of TGA2.1 in defining organ identity in tobacco flowers. A model is suggested that unifies conflicting results on the function of tobacco TGA factors with respect to activation of the ,late'PR-1a promoter. [source] Molecular characterization of mariner -like elements in emerald ash borer, Agrilus planipennis (Coleoptera, Polyphaga)ARCHIVES OF INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND PHYSIOLOGY (ELECTRONIC), Issue 4 2010L. Rivera-Vega Abstract Emerald ash borer (EAB, Agrilus planipennis), an exotic invasive pest, has killed millions of ash trees (Fraxinus spp.) in North America and continues to threaten the very survival of the entire Fraxinus genus. Despite its high-impact status, to date very little knowledge exists for this devastating insect pest at the molecular level. Mariner-like elements (MLEs) are transposable elements, which are ubiquitous in occurrence in insects and other invertebrates. Because of their low specificity and broad host range, they can be used for epitope-tagging, gene mapping, and in vitro mutagenesis. The majority of the known MLEs are inactive due to in-frame shifts and stop codons within the open reading frame (ORF). We report on the cloning and characterization of two MLEs in A. planipennis genome (Apmar1 and Apmar2). Southern analysis indicated a very high copy number for Apmar1 and a moderate copy number for Apmar2. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that both elements belong to the irritans subfamily. Based on the high copy number for Apmar1, the full-length sequence was obtained using degenerate primers designed to the inverted terminal repeat (ITR) sequences of irritans MLEs. The recovered nucleotide sequence for Apmar1 consisted of 1,292 bases with perfect ITRs, and an ORF of 1,050 bases encoding a putative transposase of 349 amino acids. The deduced amino acid sequence of Apmar1 contained the conserved regions of mariner transposases including WVPHEL and YSPDLAP, and the D,D(34)D motif. Both Apmar1 and Apmar2 could represent useful genetic tools and provide insights on EAB adaptation. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] | ||||||||||