Vol 2, No 3 (2010)

Alexander Potapov, laureate of the State Prize of the Russian Federation in Science and Technology for 2009, doctor of medical sciences, academician, Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, and deputy director of the N.N. Burdenko Scientific Research Institute of Neurosurgery of RAMS, talks to Acta Naturae about the achievements in modern neurosurgery, the latest developments in the field, and the close convergence between basic biology and clinical practice.

The results of the second round of the Universities and Business Cooperation Contests have been announced. Deputy Minister of Education and Science Sergey Mazurenko discussed the successes and difficulties related to state support based on Government Resolutions N218 and 21 at a briefing on October 6, 2010.

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are major components of the innate immune system that recognize the conserved molecular structures of pathogens (pathogen-associated molecular patterns; PAMPs). TLRs are found omega seamaster midsize replica in many different cell types, ranging from epithelial to immunocompetent cells. TLR binding triggers the expression of several adapter proteins and downstream kinases, leading to the induction of key pro-inflammatory mediators. This results in the activation of both the innate immune response (elevated expression of antiapoptotic proteins, proinflammatory cytokines, and antibacterial proteins), as well as the adaptive immune response (maturation of the dendritic cells, antigen presentation, etc.). In consequence of their ability to enhance the specific and nonspecific immune reactions of an organism, TLR agonists are widely used in the therapy of infectious diseases and, as adjuvants, in the therapy of malignant neoplasia. However, to date, rolex imitation jewellery TLRs have had the opposite effects on tumor progression. On the one hand, TLR ligands can suppress tumor growth. On the other hand, TLR agonists can promote the survival of malignant cells and increase their resistance to chemotherapy. The purpose of this review is to summarize the available data on the effects of TLRs and their agonists on tumor progression, as well as the mechanisms underlying the differences in the effects of best replica watches sites 2020TLRs on tumor growth.

Penicillin acylases (PA) are widely used for the production of semi-synthetic β-lactam antibiotics and chiral compounds. In this review, the latest achievements in the production of recombinant enzymes are discussed, as well as the results of PA type G protein engineering.

Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) belongs to a group of autoimmune diseases affecting the axial skeleton. Beside the hla-b*27 allele, several other human genes that control the variety processes of immune homeostasis are considered to be associated with AS manifestation in different human populations. Among strong associated non-MHC genes erap 1 encoding the endoplasmic reticulum aminopeptidase 1 isoform was recently identified by single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) meta analysis. In our study we inspected the genetic association of five non-synonymous coding SNPs from erapl with AS in Caucasians. We implemented the SSP-PCR system for precise genotyping of 87 hla-b*27 positive AS patients and 77 hla-b*27 healthy donors from the Russian population. Considerable differences in allele’s frequencies within patients vs control cohort were shown for 3 of 5 SNPs under investigation. Using the EM-algorhitm we reconstructed 3-marker haplotypes that distinguish with high probability two cohorts due to differences in the haplotypes frequencies. In such a way both the sensitive, CCT, haplotype and the protective, TTC, one were predicted. To verify the calculation we determined genuine frequencies of 5-marker haplotypes in AS cohort by haplotyping of individual cDNA samples using improved SSP-PCR primer set. We demonstrated that the frequencies of in silica reconstucted haplotypes and the frequencies of experimentally detected haplotypes are in a good agreement. Frequency of the risk haplotype CCT (rs17482078/10050860/2287987) detected within AS cohort reaches 88%, as well as the frequency calculated by EM-algorhitm.

This paper discusses the selection of mini-antibody (nanoantibody, nanobody® or single domain antibody) sequences of desired specificity by phage display-based method using a generated library of antigen-binding domains of special heavy-chain only antibodies (single-stranded antibodies) of immunized camel. A comprehensive comparison of the efficiency of parallel selection procedures was performed by using the traditional (M13KO7) and modified (with N-terminal deletion in the surface gIII protein) helper phages. These two methods are partly complementary, and by using them in parallel one can significantly improve the selection efficiency. Parallel restriction analysis (finger-printing) of PCR-amplified cloned sequences coding for mini-antibodies (HMR-analysis) is proposed for identifying individual clones, as a replacement to sequencing (to a certain extent). Using this method, unique data were collected on the selection of mini-antibody variants with the required specificity at various stages of a multi-stage selection procedure. It has been shown that different sequences coding for mini-antibodies are selected in different ways, and that, if this feature is not taken into account, some mini-antibody variants may be lost.

This work is a report on the development of a method of hybridization analysis on DNA microarrays for the simultaneous identification and typing of carbapenemase-encoding genes. These enzymes are produced by the microorganisms that are responsible for causing infectious diseases. The method involves several steps, including DNA extraction from clinical samples and amplification of carbapenemase genes by multiplex PCR with simultaneous labelling by biotin. Following that, hybridization of the labeled PCR products with oligonucleotide probes immobilized on the surface of a nitrocellulose-based DNA microarray occurs. The biotin molecules attached to the DNA duplexes are detected by using conjugates of streptavidin-horseradish peroxidase, which is then quantified by colorimetric detection of the enzyme. We have designed the required oligonucleotide probes and optimized the conditions of the membrane microarray-based hybridization analysis. Our method allows to identify 7 types of carbapenemase genes belonging to the molecular classes A, B, and D, and it also allows additional typing into genetic subgroups. The microarrays have been tested with the control strains producing the carbapenemase genes which have been characterized by sequencing. The developed method of hybridization analysis was employed to investigate clinical strains of Pseudomonas spp. and Acinetobacter spp., which produce carbapenemases of different classes based on phenotypic testing. All strains of Acinetobacter baumanii resistant to carbapenems were producers of two carbapenemase OXA-type genes (OXA-51, in combination with OXA-23 (1 strain), OXA-40 (5 strains), or OXA-58 (4 strains)). The metallo-β-lactamase VIM-2 type gene was detected in all Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains resistant to carbapenems. Testing of carbapenem-sensitive strains did not detect any carbapenemase genes. The microarray method for the identification of carbapenemase genes is very accurate and highly productive. It can be employed in clinical microbiological laboratories for the identification and study of carbapenemase epidemiology.

A somatic cell genome was recently resequenced for a patient with renal cancer. The data were submitted to the NCBI Sequence Read Archive under the accession number SRA012240. Here, we have performed SNP calling for the genome and compared it with several published genomes. We have found 2, 921, 724 SNPs, including 1, 472, 679 newly described ones. Among them, 63, 462 SNPs have been mapped to the Y chromosome and, based on 18 markers, the genome has been ascribed to the R1a1a haplogroup predominant in Russian males. The mitochondrial haplogroup has been determined as U5a, which is also common in the European part of Russia. Short reads unmapped to the human genome were used for the de novo assembly of DNA sequences. This resulted in genome-specific contigs (more than 100 bp in length) with an overall length of 154 kbp (for GAII) and 4.7 kbp (for SOLiD).