An algebraic classification of second order symmetric tensors in 5-dimensional Kaluza-Klein-type Lorentzian spaces is presented by using Jordan matrices. We show that the possible Segre types are [1, 1111], [2111], [311], [z z̄ 111], and the degeneracies thereof. A set of canonical forms for each Segre type is found. The possible continuous groups of symmetry for each canonical form are also stu...

Vertebrate gap junctions are aggregates of transmembrane channels which are composed of connexin (Cx) proteins encoded by at least fourteen distinct genes in mammals. Since the same Cx type can be expressed in different tissues and more than one Cx type can be expressed by the same cell, the thorough identification of which connexin is in which cell type and how connexin expression changes afte...

Hepatitis Delta virus (HDV) is a degenerate RNA virus or virusoid and a satellite of Hepatitis B virus (HBV). Three distinct genotypes are described for HDV; genotype I is distributed worldwide but other genotypes appear to be more restricted geographically. In the present study, an RT-nested PCR method was set up to detect delta infection from serum samples. Moreover, the target amplified sequ...

Degenerate primers were designed based on all possible sequences of the N-terminal and C-terminal regions of Delonix regia trypsin inhibitor (DrTI). Five hundred sixty-one bp of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) product was amplified using the above degenerate primers and genomic DNA and cDNA of Delonix regia as a template. The amplified PCR products were cloned and sequenced. DNA sequence analys...

A gene of the soluble fumarate reductase (FRDS) that binds FAD non-covalently was cloned by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using degenerate oligonucleotides designed from partial amino acid sequences of highly purified enzyme. The nucleotide sequence of a 0.99-kb amplified product was found to be nearly identical to a partial sequence of an open reading frame (ORF) previously reported (EMBL da...

The final steps in butyrate synthesis by anaerobic bacteria can occur via butyrate kinase and phosphotransbutyrylase or via butyryl-coenzyme A (CoA):acetate CoA-transferase. Degenerate PCR and enzymatic assays were used to assess the presence of butyrate kinase among 38 anaerobic butyrate-producing bacterial isolates from human feces that represent three different clostridial clusters (IV, XIVa...

The taxonomic composition of a microbial community can be deduced by analyzing its rRNA gene content by, e.g., high-throughput DNA sequencing or DNA chips. Such methods typically are based on PCR amplification of rRNA gene sequences using broad-taxonomic-range PCR primers. In these analyses, the use of optimal primers is crucial for achieving an unbiased representation of community composition....

Most known plant disease-resistance genes (R genes) include in their encoded products domains such as a nucleotide-binding site (NBS) or leucine-rich repeats (LRRs). Sequences with unknown function, but encoding these conserved domains, have been defined as resistance gene analogues (RGAs). The conserved motifs within plant NBS domains make it possible to use degenerate primers and PCR to isola...

Calculations of the number of curves on a Calabi-Yau manifold via an instanton expansion do not always agree with what one would expect naively. It is explained how to account for continuous families of instantons via deformation theory and excess intersection theory. The essential role played by degenerate instantons is also explained.