PREMISE OF THE STUDY A method for rapid in vivo functional analysis of engineered proteins was developed using Physcomitrella patens. METHODS AND RESULTS A complementation assay was designed for testing structure/function relationships in cellulose synthase (CESA) proteins. The components of the assay include (1) construction of test vectors that drive expression of epitope-tagged PpCESA5 car...

in the present report, diagnosis and treatment of a case with follicular ovarian cysts in a 5-year-old persian queen cat is described. in response to palpation of spines, the queen cat presented herself in lordosis and danced up and down with her rear legs. trans-abdominal ultrasonography examination showed 2 cysts  in the left ovary of the queen. serum estrogen assay indicated elevated level o...

c i’ inhibitor (Ci-INH) and a2-macroglobulin (a2M) account for over 90% of the inactivation of purified plasma kallikrein by normal human plasma. The rate of kallikrein inactivation is also dependent on the presence of high molecular weight kininogen (HMWK). which forms a reversible complex with kallikrein protecting the active site of the enzyme against inhibitors. By selectively mactivating a...

Background & Aims: Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have the capability to undergo unlimited selfrenewal and differentiation into all cell types in the body. These cells are artificially derived from a nonpluripotent cell, typically human dermal fibroblasts (HDFs). The study of cytogenetic stability of these cells, in order to use iPS cells and apply studies in therapeutic applications, i...

Spleen cells educated in vitro with sheep red blood cells (SRBC) suppressed the plaque-forming cell response of Mishell-Dutton assay cultures challenged with optimal doses of SRBC. Changing conditions in the assay cultures changed the effect educated cells had on the assay culture responses. For example, educated cells helped rather than suppressed assay cultures of suboptimal numbers of spleen...

We describe a functional assay for protein C in human plasma samples based on the ability of activated protein C to prolong the kaolin-cephalin activated partial thromboplastin time of normal plasma. Protein C is separated from its inhibitor by elution of a barium citrate precipitate, and activated by incubation with human alpha-thrombin for one hour. Thrombin is then inhibited by antithrombin ...

We have developed a multiplex reporter system to monitor multiple biological variables in real-time. The secreted Gaussia luciferase was fused to ten different epitope tags (Gluc(tag)), each expressed in different tumor cells. By immunobinding of the tags followed by Gluc(tag) detection, this system allowed the independent and real-time monitoring of mixed cell cultures in vitro and of mixed su...

Transcription factors (TFs) have been difficult to identify by bioinformatics, due to the heterogenous nature of the domains they are composed of. Therefore, we have developed a simple and generally applicable screening system for the identification of transcriptional activators, based on the presence of a functional transactivation domain (TAD). The system utilizes a retroviral vector to expre...