Complex aquatic systems of karst harbour a rich but little-investigated biodiversity. In Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina karst, temporal springs are inhibited by a group of minnow-like fishes that retreat to the associated ground water during dry seasons and spend several months underground. The most abundant species in this group is Delminichthys adspersus (Heckel 1843), which also has the most fragmented distribution range. To determine the population composition and dispersal patterns, and to detect potential underground migration, a large genetic data set comprising 544 specimens of D. adspersus covering most of its distribution area was analysed. Analysis of mitochondrial cytochrome b sequence (-1000 bp) and eight microsatellite loci showed that D. adspersus comprises at least three subpopulations with gene flow occuring among them. Coalescent-based analysis revealed a complex migration pattern, with several unidirectional dispersal paths, including between temporal springs that share no surface connection. The results of this study suggest the existence of recurrent underground migration of fish in a karst environment and demonstrate the complexity of its hydrological network. The findings are relevant to conservation strategies for endemic karst organisms and karst ecosystems as a whole.
COBISS.SI-ID: 3018120
Goat mammary gland epithelial cells have been used to establish primary and permanent cell lines but to date there is no data on mammary stem cells in this species. The detection and characterization of goat mammary stem cells (gMaSCs) is an important task for a better understanding of the cyclic character of the mammary gland development which will also offer a potential for manipulation of lactation yield and persistency. The objective of the present study was to demonstrate that a subpopulation of MaSCs resides in the goat mammary gland. Mammary tissue from lactating Saanen goats (Capra hircus) was dissociated and processed to a single cell suspension. Using an in vitro colony-forming assay we demonstrated that distinct colony types, which expressed specific lineage markers, arose from unipotent progenitors. Using two different growth media we showed that the frequencies of caprine clonogenic progenitors differed according to growth conditions. Goat epithelial cells were transplanted under the kidney capsule of non-obese diabetic/severe combined immunodeficient (NOD/SCID) mice where they formed organized bilayered structures. Our results indicate the presence of MaSCs in the caprine mammary gland. These data represent the first description of the tissue hierarchy of the goat mammary gland and demonstrate the regenerative potential of goat adult mammary stem cells.
COBISS.SI-ID: 3095176
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of non-coding RNA that plays an important role in posttransriptional regulation of mRNA. Evidence has shown that miRNA gene variability might interfere with its function resulting in phenotypic variation and disease susceptibility. A major role in miRNA target recognition is ascribed to complementarity with the miRNA sees region that can be affected by polymorphisms. In the present study, we devloped an online tool for the detection of miRNA polymorphisms (miRNA SNiPer) in vertebrates (http://www.integratomics-time.com/miRNA-SNiPer) and generated a catalog of miRNA seed region polymorphisms (miR-seed-SNPs) consisting of 149 SNPs in six species. Although a majority of detected polymorhisms were due to point mutations, two consecutive nucleotide substitutions (double nucleotide polymorphisms, DNPs) were also identified in nine miRNAs. We determined that miR-SNPs are frequently located within the quantitative trait loci (QTL), chromosome fragile sites, and cancer susceptibility loci, indicating their potential role in the genetic control of various complex traits. To test this further, we performed an association abnalysis between the mmu-miR-717 seed SNP rs30372501, which is polymorphic in a large number of standard inbreed strains, and all phenotypic traits in these strains deposited in the Mouse Phenome Database. Analysis showed a significant association between the mmu-miR-717 seed SNP and a diverse array of traits including behavior, blood-clinical chemistry, body weight size and growth, and immune system suggesting that seed SNps can indeed have major pleiotropic effects. The bioinformatics analyses, data and tools developed in the present study can serve researchers as a starting point in testing more targeted hypotheses and designing experiments using optimal species or strains for further mechanistic studies.
COBISS.SI-ID: 3003528
Neuraminidases are virulence factors in many pathogenic microarganisms. They are present also in some Mycoplasma species that cause disease in birds, dogs and alligators. Thirty-seven Mycoplasma species have been examined previously for neuraminidase (sialidase) activity, whereas many of the species causing disease in man, ruminants, pigs, rodent and other animals have not. In this study neuraminidase enzymatic activity (NEAC) was examined in 45 previously untested Mycoplasma species, including those causing diseases in man, farm animals and laboratory animals. The only species in which NEAC was found was Mycoplasma neurolyticum, specifically, its type strain (Type A[up]T) which is capable of inducing neurologic signs in inoculated young mice and rats. The NEAC of washed cells was relatively weak, but it differed even more than 10-fold among cells of cultures derived from individual colonies of M. neurolyticum. A weak NEAC was also detected in the supernatant of the M. neurolyticum broth culture. Canine Mycoplasma spp. with high sialidase activity reported previously, Mycoplasma canis, Mycoplasma cynos and Mycoplasma molare had 100-fold more NEAC than M. neurolyticum, but apparent differences in NEAC levels existed among strains of M. canis and of M. cynos. Zymograms using neuraminidase-specific chromogenic substrate were used to show proteins havingNEAC. In M. canis (a field isolate Larissa and the type strain PG14[up]), M. cynos (isolate 896) and M. molare (type strain H542[up]) proteins with NEAC had molecular mases of - 130 kDA, 105 kDa and 110 kDa, respectively. Identification of these neraminidases could provide the basis for their molecular characterization.
COBISS.SI-ID: 2958984
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs) and posttranscriptional gene regulators shown to be involved in pathogenesis of all types of human cancers. Their aberrant expression as tumor suppressors can lead to cancerogenesis by inhibiting malignant potential, or when acting as oncogenes, by activating malignant potential. Differential expression of miRNA genes in tumorous tissues can occur owing to several factors including positional effects when mapping to cancer-associated genomic regions, epigenetic mechanisms, and malfunctioning of the miRNA processing machinery, all of which can contribute to a complex miRNA-mediated gene network misregulation. They may increase or decrease expression of protein-coding genes, can target 3'-UTR or other genic regions (5'-UTR, promoter, coding sequences), and can function in various subcellular compartments, developmental, and metabolic processes. Because expanding research on miRNA-cancer associations has already produced large amounts of data, our mainobjective here was to summarize main findings and critically examine the intricate network connecting the miRNAs and coding genes in regulatory mechanisms and their function and phenotypic consequences for cancer. By examing such interactions, we aimed to gain insights for the development of new diagnostic markers as well as identification of potential venues for more selective tumor therapy. To enable efficient examination of the main past and current miRNA discoveries, we developed a Web-based miRNA timeline tool that will be regularly updated (http://www.integratomics-time.com/miRNA_timeline). Further development of this tool will be directed at providing additional analyses to clarify complex network interations between miRNAs, other classes of ncRNAs, and protein-coding genes and their involvement in development of diseases including cancer. This tool therefore provides curated relevant information about the miRNA basic research and therapeutic application all at hand on one site to help researchers and clinicians in making informed decision about their their miRNA cancer-related research or clinical practice.
COBISS.SI-ID: 3058824