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- Richards, Stephen, et al.
(author)
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The genome of the model beetle and pest Tribolium castaneum.
- 2008
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In: Nature. - 1476-4687. ; 452:7190, s. 949-55
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Tribolium castaneum is a representative of earth’s most numerous eukaryotic order, a powerful model organism for the study of generalized insect development, and also an important pest of stored agricultural products. We describe its genome sequence here. This omnivorous beetle has evolved an ability to interact with a diverse chemical environment as evidenced by large expansions in odorant and gustatory receptors, as well as p450 and other detoxification enzymes. Developmental patterns in Tribolium are more representative of other arthropods than those found in Drosophila, a fact represented in gene content and function. For one, Tribolium has retained more ancestral genes involved in cell-cell communication than Drosophila, and some are expressed in the growth zone crucial for axial elongation in short germ development. Systemic RNAi in T. castaneum appears to use mechanisms distinct from those found in C. elegans, but nevertheless offers similar power for the elucidation of gene function and identification of targets for selective insect control.
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2. |
- Cicortas Gunnarsson, Lavinia, et al.
(author)
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Novel xylan-binding properties of an engineered family 4 carbohydrate-binding module
- 2007
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In: Biochemical Journal. - : Portland Press. - 0264-6021 .- 1470-8728. ; 406, s. 209-214
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Molecular engineering of ligand-binding proteins is commonly used for identification of variants that display novel specificities. Using this approach to introduce novel specificities into CBMs (carbohydrate-binding modules) has not been extensively explored. Here, we report the engineering of a CBM, CBM42 from the Rhodothermits marinus xylanase Xyn10A, and the identification of the X-2 variant. As compared with the wildtype protein, this engineered module displays higher specificity for the polysaccharide xylan, and a lower preference for binding xylo-oligomers rather than binding the natural decorated polysaccharide. The mode of binding of X-2 differs from other xylan-specific CBMs in that it only has one aromatic residue in the binding site that can make hydrophobic interactions with the sugar rings of the ligand. The evolution of CBM4-2 has thus generated a xylan-binding module with different binding properties to those displayed by CBMs available in Nature.
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3. |
- Sott, Richard, 1974, et al.
(author)
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Kinetic and NMR spectroscopic studies of chiral mixed sodium/lithium amides used for the deprotonation of cyclohexene oxide.
- 2005
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In: Chemistry (Weinheim an der Bergstrasse, Germany). - : Wiley. - 0947-6539. ; 11:16, s. 4785-92
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The mixed-metal complex formed from n-butylsodium, n-butyllithium, and a chiral amino ether has been studied by NMR spectroscopy. Three different mixed-metal amides were used as chiral bases for the deprotonation of cyclohexene oxide. The selectivity and initial rate of reaction were compared for sodium-amido ethers, lithium-amido ethers, and mixtures of sodium and lithiumamido ethers in diethyl ether and tetrahydrofuran, respectively. The mixed sodium/lithium amides are more reactive than the single sodium and lithium amides, whereas the stereoselectivities are higher when lithium amides are used. The alkali-metal/gamma-amido ethers exhibit both higher initial reaction rates and stereoselectivities than their beta-amido ether analogues. NMR spectroscopic studies of mixtures of n-butylsodium (nBuNa), n-butyllithium (nBuLi), and the gamma-amino ethers in diethyl ether show the exclusive formation of dimeric mixed-metal amides. In diethyl ether, the lithium atom of the mixed-metal amide is internally coordinated and the sodium atom is exposed to solvent; however, in tetrahydrofuran, both metals are internally coordinated.
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