RS did the statistical analysis and made illustrations

and graphs. SZ did histological analysis of tumor and tissue samples. MS helped with cell culture, western blot and mice studies. HK designed the study, carried out the experiments, wrote the manuscript and provided selleck compound guidance at every step of the study. All authors have read and approved the final manuscript.”
“Background Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is a gram positive, facultative aerobic and spore-forming bacteria. It produces parasporal inclusions containing various insecticidal delta-endotoxins during its sporulative phase and has been used in agricultural fields as an insecticide for decades [1, 2]. Recently, it has been found that parasporal proteins of Bt exhibit cytotoxic effect on human cancer cells [3–5]. In

2000, the word parasporin was first introduced by Mizuki et al. to describe bacterial parasporal proteins capable of discriminatively killing cancer cells [6]. To date, four classes of parasporins have been selleck kinase inhibitor identified, namely parasporin 1 (PS1), parasporin 2 (PS2), parasporin 3 (PS3) and parasporin 4 (PS4) [7]. Though many studies have been carried out to characterise these parasporins and to investigate their mechanism of action on human cancer cell lines, little is known about the cancer cell-killing mechanism and the receptors to which these proteins bind on cancer selleck chemical cells. This is especially true for PS3 and PS4 [7]. Previously we demonstrated that purified Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) 18 toxin, from Bt 18, a Malaysian isolate, was selectively cytotoxic against CEM-SS but not human T lymphocytes and was non-haemolytic [8]. We hypothesised Immune system that the toxin binds to a specific receptor on CEM-SS and that it

competes with commercially available anticancer drugs for the receptor. This study was therefore conducted to further investigate the binding affinity of the toxin for CEM-SS, its interaction with other Bt toxins and commercially available anticancer drugs for binding sites on CEM-SS and to localise where the toxin binds to the cells. Since leukaemia is a common and deadly disease, there is an urgency to develop new and more efficient treatment methods to deal with the problem. Purified Bt 18 toxin used in this study represents a good potential therapeutic agent as it is selectively cytotoxic to CEM-SS, non-cytotoxic to human T lymphocytes and non-haemolytic. These properties of purified Bt 18 toxin may allow it to be used as part of a combination therapy on top of current anticancer drugs, thus lowering the dose required for these drugs. This study shows that purified Bt 18 toxin binds on the cell surface of CEM-SS and its mechanism of cell death may differ from that of Btj toxin, Bt 22 toxin and the selected anticancer drugs since it did not significantly compete with these compounds for the same binding site. Methods Bacillus thuringiensis culture, activation and purification Bacillus thuringiensis was grown to induce sporulation in conditions described by Nadarajah et al.

2010): (i) a single domestication event in the southwestern Amazon, as suggested by phylogenetic studies (Ferreira 1999) and RAPD marker-based studies (Rodrigues et al. 2004); (ii) a single domestication event in the Colombian inter-Andean valleys and adjacent Pacific lowlands, as suggested by archeological evidence (Morcote-Rios and Bernal 2001); and (iii) multiple independent centers of domestication (Mora-Urpí 1999; Hernández-Ugalde et al. 2011). Diversity Peach palm is a predominantly outcrossing species, though self-fertilization GDC0449 has also been observed (Mora-Urpí et al. 1997). Pollination is carried out mainly by insects,

particularly small curculionid beetles over distances between 100 and 500 m; wind and gravity can also function as pollen vectors (Mora-Urpí et al. 1997; Clement et al. 2009). Since peach palm is a long-lived perennial and a predominantly outcrossing species, one can expect its populations and landraces to contain high levels of genetic diversity (Hamrick and Godt 1996; Mora-Urpí et al. 1997). In addition, extensive human dispersal up to a distance of 600 km has further stimulated gene flow and low differentiation (Cole et al. 2007). A review of studies on genetic variation within and between populations, using different types of markers and considering allelic richness (A), expected heterozigosity (He) and genetic differentiation VX-689 in vivo (Gst), supports those observations (Table 1). Even so, the studies reveal no

clear areas of high nearly diversity, and their use of different sampling methods, molecular marker techniques, markers and genetic parameters

makes comparison difficult. The use of standardized sets of molecular markers and genetic parameters would greatly improve our understanding of patterns of genetic variation across areas of peach palm distribution and the center(s) of its domestication (Clement et al. 2010). Table 1 Use of molecular markers to study genetic variation between peach palm populations Author Markers Number of loci Number of populations Mean number individuals per populations Covered countries Mean A per locus per population BIBF 1120 purchase Highest mean A per locus Mean Hes per locus per population Highest Hes Gst Alves-Pereira et al. (2012) SSR 11 5 38.4 Peru, Brazil 10.02 Pampa Hermosa, Peru (13.10) 0.81 Paranapura, Peru (0.83) 0.005 Hernández-Ugalde et al. (2011) SSR 5 12 19.58 Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Panama, Peru, Venezuela 6.36 Azuero, Panama (8.8) – – – Reis (2009) SSR 17 11 15.7 Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Peru, Venezuela 6.86 Putumayo, Brazil/Peru (10.82) 0.78 Putumayo, Brazil/Peru; Pampa Hermosa, Peru; Alto Madeira, Brazil (0.83) 0.13 Hernández-Ugalde et al. (2008) SSR 4 13 38.77 Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Panama, Peru, Venezuela 6.58 Azuero, Panama (8.75) 0.75 Azuero, Panama (0.84) 0.15 Cole et al. (2007) SSR 3 4 55.25 Peru 11 San Carlos (12) 0.83 Nuevo San Juan (0.85) 0.001 SSR 3 4 41.25 Peru 11.58 Pucaurquillo, Peru (15) 0.79 Puerto Isango (0.83) 0.

westlingii and related species predominate. This is also reflected in the maximum and optimal growth temperature: P. citrinum grows up to 37°C, while P. westlingii and related species have a maximum growth temperature of 30°C. Besides commonly occurring in soil, P. citrinum is also reported to be an endophyte of various plants. It was the most frequently isolated species in the stem and roots of coffee plants (Posada et al. 2007), roots of Ixeris repenes (Khan et al. 2008), find more and from leaves of qat (Catha edulis) (Mahmoud 2000). Endophytic fungi form

mutualistic interactions with their host, the relationship therefore being beneficial for both partners (Tejesvi et al. 2007; Hyde and Soytong 2008; Giordano et al. 2009). The beneficial interaction for the plant could be the production of gibberellins, which enhances stem growth, and which are claimed to be produced by P. citrinum (Khan et al. 2008). But also other plant growth regulators, citrinolactones A and sclerotinin C, were isolated from P. citrinum (Kuramata et al. 2007) and it is reported that citrinin induces swarming motility of Paenibacillus polymyxa, a growth promoting rhizobacterium (Park et al. 2008). The production of these metabolites

by P. citrinum in culture and/or in plants remains largely unknown and the role of this species may deserve further investigations. Acknowledgements The authors are extremely grateful for the technical assistance of Martin selleck chemicals Meijer and Ellen Kirstine Lyhne. selleck compound Mr. Dae-Hoo Kim is thanked for the preparation of the SEM photos and prof. Uwe Braun is acknowledged for providing the Latin diagnoses. Open Access This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Noncommercial License which permits any noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s)

and source are credited. Avapritinib cell line References Abe S (1956) Studies on the classification of the Penicillia. J Gen Appl Microbiol 2:1–193CrossRef Abe M, Imai T, Ishii N, Usui M, Okuda T, Oki T (2005) Quinolactacide, a new quinoline insecticide from Penicillium citrinum Thom F 1539. Biosci Biotechnol Biochem 69:1202–1205CrossRefPubMed Amagata T, Amagata A, Tennney K, Valeriote FA, Lobkovsky E, Clardy J, Crews P (2003) Unusual C25 steroids produced by a sponge-derived Penicillium citrinum. Org Lett 5:4393–4396CrossRefPubMed Ambrose AM, Deeds F (1945) Acute and subacute toxicity of pure citrinin. Proc Soc Exp Biol Med 59:289–291 Baghdadi VC (1968) De speciebus novis Penicilli Fr. Et Aspergilli Fr. E terries Syriae isolatis notula. Nov Syst Niz Rast 7:96–114 Chen C-H, Shaw C-Y, Chen C-C, Tsai Y-C (2002) 2, 3, 4-trimethyl-5, 7-dihydroxybenzofuran, a novel antioxidant, from Penicillium citrinum F5. J Nat Prod 65:740–741CrossRefPubMed Clark BR, Capon RJ, Lacey E, Tennant S, Gill JH (2006) Citrinin revisited: from monomers and beyond.

For example, among the putative species of the Africa/Middle East/Asia Minor clade which contains the most invasive species the Ms, Q and ASL groups Arsenophonus appears well established, whereas the invasive B group has been shown to be uninfected, despite extensive symbiont screening

[28, 34, 39]. The prevalence varies considerably within and among GDC-973 populations and genetic groups infected by Arsenophonus. For example, Q is composed of three COI-differentiated groups, Q1, Q2 and Q3 [28]. To date, these three cytotypes have not shown the same geographical distribution and show different endosymbiotic bacterial community compositions [28, 40]. The subgroup Q1, found in Europe, is not infected by Arsenophonus but harbors three other bacteria [28]. In contrast, Q2 observed in the Middle East and Q3 reported only in Africa show high prevalence of Arsenophonus in co-infection with Rickettsia [28, 34, 41]. Ms individuals are highly infected by Arsenophonus with a high level of co-infection by Cardinium [37]. All of these groups (B, Q, ASL, Ms and AnSL) show quite different geographical ranges. Ms has been detected on the islands in the southwestern part of the Indian Ocean, Tanzania and Uganda, living in sympatry with B [42]. ASL and AnSL have been reported only in Africa [28, 35, 43–46]. In contrast, the invasive B and Q groups are spread all over the world. Q has been found in Africa,

America, Europe, Asia and the PI3K inhibitor review Middle East [28, 34, 47, 48]. However, this situation is constantly in flux, because commercial trade is responsible for recurrent introduction/invasion processes of B. tabaci giving rise to new sympatric situations. Moreover, potential horizontal CHIR-99021 datasheet transfers of symbionts and interbreeding can generate new nucleo-cytoplasmic HSP90 combinations and thus rapid evolution of symbiont diversity. Patterns of Arsenophonus infection in B. tabaci within the high-level Africa/Middle East/Asia Minor groups make this clade a good candidate to study,

on fine taxonomic and time scales, the spread of this bacterium, its ability to be horizontally transferred and finally, its evolutionary history, including genetic diversity generated by recombination events. In the present paper, we explore the prevalence and diversity of Arsenophonus strains in this clade using an MLST approach to avoid the disadvantages of the rRNA approach. In parallel we also studied, as an outgroup, the Sub-Saharan AnSL species (S biotype), considered the basal group of this species complex, and two other whitefly species found at the sampling sites, Trialeurodes vaporariorum and Bemisia afer. Methods Insect sampling Individuals from different species of Bemisia tabaci and two other Aleyrodidae species were collected from 2001 to 2010 from various locations and host plants in Africa and Europe and stored in 96% ethanol (Table 1, Figure 1). Table 1 Sampling locations of Aleyrodidae used in this study, B.

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Chang SP, McBride JS, Siddiqui WA:Plasmodium falciparum : gp195 tripeptide repeat-specific monoclonal antibody inhibits parasite growth in vitro. Exp Parasitol 1996, 84:74–83.CrossRefPubMed 23. Polley SD, Tetteh KK, Cavanagh DR, Pearce RJ, Lloyd JM, Bojang KA, Okenu DM, Greenwood BM, McBride JS, Conway DJ: Repeat sequences in block 2 of Plasmodium falciparum merozoite surface protein 1 are targets of antibodies associated with protection from malaria. Infect Immun 2003, 71:1833–1842.CrossRefPubMed Fludarabine 24. Cavanagh DR, Dodoo D, Hviid L, Kurtzhals JA, Theander TG, Akanmori BD, Polley S, Conway DJ, Koram K, McBride JS: Antibodies to the N-terminal block 2 of Plasmodium falciparum merozoite surface protein 1 are associated with protection against clinical malaria. Infect Immun 2004, 72:6492–6502.CrossRefPubMed 25. Cavanagh DR, Elhassan IM, Roper C, Robinson VJ, Giha H, Holder AA, Hviid L, Theander TG, Arnot DE, McBride JS: A longitudinal study of type-specific antibody responses to Plasmodium falciparum merozoite surface protein-1 in an area of unstable malaria in Sudan. J Immunol 1998, 161:347–359.PubMed 26. Jouin H, Garraud O, Longacre S, Baleux F, Mercereau-Puijalon O, Milon G: Human antibodies to the polymorphic block 2 domain of the Plasmodium falciparum merozoite surface protein 1 (MSP-1) exhibit a highly skewed, peptide-specific light chain distribution.