Elevated plasma α1-antichymotrypsin is a biomarker candidate for malaria patients.

Advancements in the field of proteomics have provided opportunities to develop diagnostic and therapeutic strategies against various diseases. About half of the world's population remains at risk of malaria. Caused by protozoan parasites of the genus Plasmodium, malaria is one of the oldest and largest risk factors responsible for the global burden of infectious diseases with an estimated 3.2 billion persons at risk of infection. For epidemiological surveillance and appropriate treatment of individuals infected with Plasmodium spp., timely detection is critical. In this study, we used combinations of depletion of abundant plasma proteins, 2-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE), image analysis, LC-MS/MS and western blot analysis on the plasma of healthy donors (100 individuals) and vivax and falciparum malaria patients (100 vivax malaria patients and 8 falciparum malaria patients). These analyses revealed that α1-antichymotrypsin (AACT) protein levels were elevated in vivax malaria patient plasma samples (mean fold-change ± standard error: 2.83 ± 0.11, based on band intensities), but not in plasma from patients with other mosquito-borne infectious diseases. The results of AACT immunoblot analyses showed that AACT protein was significantly elevated in vivax and falciparum malaria patient plasma samples (≥ 2-fold) compared to healthy control donor plasma samples, which has not been previously reported. [BMB Reports 2022; 55(11): 571-576].

The complete chloroplast genome sequence of the Alstroemeria hybrid variety 'Hanhera'.

Alstroemeria, a member of the Alstroemeriaceae family, is a species from South America. The chloroplast genome of Alstroemeria spp. was completed by de novo assembly using a small amount of whole genome sequencing data. The chloroplast genome of Alstroemeria spp. was 155,672 bp in length consisting of 84,379 bp of large single copy, 17,815 bp of small single copy, and 26,739 bp of a pair of inverted repeat regions. A total of 157 genes were annotated including 103 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 46 tRNA genes, and eight rRNA genes. Maximum likelihood phylogenetic analysis with seven species belonging to the Alstroemeriaceae or Liliaceae family revealed that Alstroemeria spp. is grouped with the species in the Alstroemeriaceae family.

Chloroplast genome sequence of the hybrid variety 'Gagsi', one of the colored calla lilies (Zantedeschia spp.).

The complete chloroplast genome of Zantedeschia spp. in the family Araceae was constituted by de novo assembly using a small amount of whole genome sequencing data. The chloroplast genome of Zantedeschia spp. was the circular DNA molecule with a length of 175,448 bp and consisted of 90,244 bp of large single copy, 8334 bp of small single copy, and 38,435 bp of a pair of inverted repeat regions. A total of 163 genes were annotated including 109 protein-coding genes, 46 tRNA genes and eight rRNA genes. Maximum likelihood phylogenetic analysis with 16 Araceae species revealed that Zantedeschia spp. is expectedly grouped with other Zantedeschia species.

Clonorchis sinensis, an oriental liver fluke, as a human biological agent of cholangiocarcinoma: a brief review.

Parasitic diseases remain an unarguable public health problem worldwide. Liver fluke Clonorchis sinensis is a high risk pathogenic parasitic helminth which is endemic predominantly in Asian countries, including Korea, China, Taiwan, Vietnam, and the far eastern parts of Russia, and is still actively transmitted. According to the earlier 8th National Survey on the Prevalence of Intestinal Parasitic Infections in 2012, C. sinensis was revealed as the parasite with highest prevalence of 1.86% in general population among all parasite species surveyed in Korea. This fluke is now classified under one of the definite Group 1 human biological agents (carcinogens) by International Agency of Research on Cancer (IARC) along with two other parasites, Opisthorchis viverrini and Schistosoma haematobium. C. sinensis infestation is mainly linked to liver and biliary disorders, especially cholangiocarcinoma (CCA). For the purposes of this mini-review, we will only focus on C. sinensis and review pathogenesis and carcinogenesis of clonorchiasis, disease condition by C. sinensis infestation, and association between C. sinensis infestation and CCA. In this presentation, we briefly consider the current scientific status for progression of CCA by heavy C. sinensis infestation from the food-borne trematode and development of CCA. [BMB Reports 2016; 49(11): 590-597].

Genetic positioning of centromeres using half-tetrad analysis in a 4x-2x cross population of potato.

From biological and genetic standpoints, centromeres play an important role in the delivery of the chromosome complement to the daughter cells at cell division. The positions of the centromeres of potato were determined by half-tetrad analysis in a 4x-2x population where the male parent produced 2n pollen by first-division restitution (FDR). The genetic linkage groups and locations of 95 male parent-derived amplified fragment length polymorphism markers could be determined by comparing their position on a 2x-2x highly saturated linkage map of potato. Ten centromere positions were identified by 100% heterozygosity transmitted from the 2n heterozygous gametes of the paternal parent into the tetraploid offspring. The position of these centromeric marker loci was in accordance with those predicted by the saturated 2x-2x map using the level of marker clustering as a criterion. Two remaining centromere positions could be determined by extrapolation. The frequent observation of transmission of 100% heterozygosity proves that the meiotic restitution mechanism is exclusively based on FDR. Additional investigations on the position of recombination events of three chromosomes with sufficient numbers of markers showed that only one crossover occurred per chromosome arm, proving strong interference of recombination between centromere and telomere.