A5086960898- Protist diversity and phylogeny
- Marine and coastal plant biology
- Genomics and Phylogenetic Studies
- Microbial Community Ecology and Physiology
- Tryptophan and brain disorders
- Circadian rhythm and melatonin
- Legume Nitrogen Fixing Symbiosis
- RNA Research and Splicing
- Toxoplasma gondii Research Studies
- Genomics and Chromatin Dynamics
- RNA and protein synthesis mechanisms
- Traumatic Brain Injury Research
- Photosynthetic Processes and Mechanisms
- Algal biology and biofuel production
- Agriculture and Farm Safety
- Sleep and related disorders
- Soybean genetics and cultivation
- Neurological diseases and metabolism
- Plant Disease Resistance and Genetics
- Polar Research and Ecology
- Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Research
- Seaweed-derived Bioactive Compounds
- Effects of Environmental Stressors on Livestock
- Agronomic Practices and Intercropping Systems
- Mental Health Research Topics
St. Elizabeths Hospital
2007-2024
East Carolina University
2009-2023
University of Maryland, Baltimore
2008-2023
Maryland Higher Education Commission
2014-2023
Department of Behavioral Health
2014-2020
Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Centers
2020
St. Elizabeth's Hospital
2013-2020
George Washington University
1984-2018
University of British Columbia
2017
University of New Hampshire
2017
The origin of the red algae has remained an enigma. Historically Rhodophyta were classified first as plants and later most ancient eukaryotic organisms. Recent molecular studies have indicated similarities between green plastids, which suggest that there was a single endosymbiotic for these organelles in common ancestor rhodophytes plants. Previous efforts to confirm or reject this effort by analyses nuclear DNA been inconclusive; thus, additional markers are needed establish relationship...
Significance Fossil evidence shows that red algae (Rhodophyta) are one of the most ancient multicellular lineages. Their ecological, evolutionary, and commercial importance notwithstanding, few algal nuclear genomes have been sequenced. Our analyses Porphyra umbilicalis genome provide insights into how this macrophyte thrives in stressful intertidal zone basis for its nutritional value as human food. Many novel traits (e.g., cytoskeletal organization, calcium signaling pathways) we find...
Objective: Based on the reported association between cytokines with depression and suicide, evidence of increased markers inflammation in brain suicide victims, present study examined expression orbitofrontal cortex victims. Method: In a postmortem sample obtained from Brodman area 11 suicides ( n = 34) controls 17), real‐time RT‐PCR was used to compare mRNA species for tumor necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α), interleukin (IL)‐1β, 4, 5, 6, 13. Results: Increased IL‐4 found women victims IL‐13 men...
Chromist algae include diverse photosynthetic organisms of great ecological and social importance. Despite vigorous research efforts, a clear understanding how various chromists acquired organelles has been complicated by conflicting phylogenetic results, along with an undetermined number pattern endosymbioses, the horizontal movement genes that accompany them. We apply novel statistical approaches to assess impacts endosymbiotic gene transfer on three principal chromist groups at heart...
<h3>Background:</h3> Neuroinflammatory processes are increasingly believed to participate in the pathophysiology of a number major psychiatric diseases, including depression. Immune activation stimulates conversion amino acid tryptophan kynurenine, leading formation neuroactive metabolites, such as quinolinic and kynurenic acid. These compounds affect glutamatergic neurotransmission, which plays prominent role depressive pathology. Increased degradation along kynurenine pathway (KP) has been...
Phylogenetic analyses of ribosomal RNA genes have become widely accepted as a framework for understanding broad-scale eukaryotic evolution. Nevertheless, conflicts exist between the phylogenetic placement certain taxa in rDNA trees and their expected position based on fossils, cytology, or protein-encoding gene sequences. For example, pelobiont amoebae appear to be an ancient group cytologic features, but they are not among early brances analyses. In this report, derived pelobionts is shown...
A total of 28,432 unique contigs (25,371 in consensus and 3,061 as singletons) were assembled from all 268,786 cotton ESTs currently available. Several silico approaches [comparative genomics, Blast, Gene Ontology (GO) analysis, pathway enrichment by Kyoto Encyclopedia Genes Genomes (KEGG)] employed to investigate global functions the transcriptome. Cotton EST clustered into 5,461 groups with a maximum cluster size 196 members. 27,956 indel mutants 149,616 single nucleotide polymorphisms...
How photosynthetic organelles, or plastids, were acquired by diverse eukaryotes is among the most hotly debated topics in broad scale eukaryotic evolution. The history of plastid endosymbioses commonly interpreted under "chromalveolate" hypothesis, which requires numerous losses from certain heterotrophic groups that now are entirely aplastidic. In this context, discoveries putatively algal genes plastid-lacking protists have been cited as evidence gene transfer a endosymbiont subsequently...
In model eukaryotes, the C-terminal domain (CTD) of largest subunit DNA-dependent RNA polymerase II (RNAP II) is composed tandemly repeated heptads with consensus sequence YSPTSPS. The core motif and tandem structure generally are conserved across taxa, including animals, yeasts higher plants. Broader investigations revealed that CTDs many organisms deviate substantially from this canonical structure; however, limited sampling made it difficult to determine whether disordered sequences...
Various organisations and experts have published numerous statements recommendations regarding different aspects of sports-related concussion including definition, presentation, treatment, management return to play guidelines. 1-7 To date, there been no written consensus specific for combat sports combatants who suffered a or competition after concussion. In sports, head contact is an objective the sport itself. Accordingly, treatment in should, must, be more stringent than non-combat...
Cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) are a large family of proteins that function in variety key regulatory pathways eukaryotic cells, including control over the cell cycle and gene transcription. Among most important broadly studied these roles is reversible phosphorylation C-terminal domain (CTD) RNA polymerase II, part complex array CTD/protein interactions coordinate RNAP II transcription cycle. The CTD strongly conserved some groups eukaryotes, but highly degenerate or absent others; reasons...
In recent years a consensus has emerged from molecular phylogenetic investigations favoring common endosymbiotic ancestor for all chloroplasts. It is within this conceptual framework that most comparative analyses of eukaryotic biochemistry and genetics now are interpreted. One the first influential sources data leading to remarkable similarity in genome content among major plastid lineages. Here we report statistical two sequence sets, genes encoding ribosomal proteins transfer RNAs,...
In recent years a great deal of biochemical and genetic research has focused on the C-terminal domain (CTD) largest subunit (RPB1) DNA-dependent RNA polymerase II. This strongly conserved tandemly repeated heptapeptides been linked functionally to important steps in initiation processing mRNA transcripts both animals fungi. Although they are absolutely required for viability these organisms, tandem repeats do not occur RPB1 sequences from diverse eukaryotic taxa. Here we present phylogenetic...
Somatolactin (SL) is a pituitary hormone belonging to the growth hormone/prolactin superfamily, with recognizable homologues in all fish taxa examined date. Although sequences from most share reasonably high sequence identity, several more highly divergent SLs have been reported. Goldfish SL and second protein found rainbow trout (rtSLP) are remarkably different each other also dissimilar SLs. It has unclear whether rtSLP recent paralogue restricted trout, or reflects ancient duplication of...
ABSTRACT The small subunit ribosomal RNA (SSU rRNA) gene was amplified from 15 species of the red alga Porphyra and digested with restriction enzymes to generate data for identification. subset selected phylogenetic analysis P. cuneiforms (Setchell et Hus) Krishnamurthy, nereocystis anderson, schizophylla Hollenberg Abbott, thuretii Setchell Dawson 1674. Bangia sp. used as an out‐group. Restriction sites were mapped characters in parsimony maximum likelihood analysis. hypotheses generated...
Genomes from over 130 organisms have been either sequenced completely or are currently under investigation. These studies include a wide array of Bacteria, smaller number Archaea, model‐system eukaryotes, parasitic protists, and even several microalgae. However, no major effort is underway to acquire complete nuclear genome sequence single macroalga seaweed despite their crucial contribution the biodiversity energy economy oceans estuaries. Here we examine various macroalgae as potential...
ABSTRACT Unlike all other RNA polymerases, the largest subunit (RPB1) of eukaryotic DNA-dependent polymerase II (RNAP II) has a C-terminal domain (CTD) comprising tandemly repeated heptapeptides with consensus sequence Y-S-P-T-S-P-S. The tandem structure, heptad consensus, and most key functions CTD are conserved between yeast mammals. In fact, metazoans, fungi, green plants examined to date, as well nearest protistan relatives these multicellular groups, contain CTD. contrast, RNAP subunits...
With a simple tandem iterated sequence, the carboxyl terminal domain (CTD) of eukaryotic RNA polymerase II (RNAP II) serves as central coordinator mRNA synthesis by harmonizing diversity sequential interactions with transcription and processing factors. Despite intense research interest, many key questions regarding functional evolutionary constraints on CTD remain unanswered; for example, what selects canonical heptad its array across organismal diversity, constant length within given...
The red seaweed Porphyra (Bangiophyceae) and related Bangiales have global economic importance. Here, we report the analysis of a comprehensive transcriptome comprising ca. 4.7 million expressed sequence tag (EST) reads from P. umbilicalis (L.) J. Agardh purpurea (Roth) C. (ca. 980 Mbp data generated using 454 FLX pyrosequencing). These ESTs were isolated haploid gametophyte (blades both species) diploid conchocelis stage (from purpurea). In bioinformatic analysis, only 20% contigs found to...