Complete genome sequence of the model actinomycete Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2)

Streptomyces coelicolor is a representative of the group of soil-dwelling, filamentous bacteria responsible for producing most natural antibiotics used in human and veterinary medicine. Here we report the 8,667,507 base pair linear chromosome of this organism, containing the largest number of genes so far discovered in a bacterium. The 7,825 predicted genes include more than 20 clusters coding for known or predicted secondary metabolites. The genome contains an unprecedented proportion of regulatory genes, predominantly those likely to be involved in responses to external stimuli and stresses, and many duplicated gene sets that may represent 'tissue-specific' isoforms operating in different phases of colonial development, a unique situation for a bacterium. An ancient synteny was revealed between the central 'core' of the chromosome and the whole chromosome of pathogens Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Corynebacterium diphtheriae. The genome sequence will greatly increase our understanding of microbial life in the soil as well as aiding the generation of new drug candidates by genetic engineering.

Putative protein serine/threonine kinase genes are located in several positions on the chromosome of Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2)

Seven DNA fragments containing putative protein serine/threonine kinase genes were cloned from Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2) by hybridization with a 165-bp amplified polymerase chain reaction product of pkaB containing kinase subdomains VI, VII and VIII. Among them, the nucleotide sequences of three fragments containing subdomains VI, VII and VIII were identical, while those of one fragment were identical with that of afsK, another protein serine/threonine kinase gene. However, these kinase-like genes with very similar nucleotide sequences were distributed on the chromosome of S. coelicolor A3(2).

[The influence of feeding on clinical-chemical parameters in the serum of rats (author's transl)]

In the serum of 40 male and 40 female rats the following parameters were determined: Sodium, potassium, creatinine, chloride, calcium, inorganic phosphorus, glucose, urea, protein, cholesterol, bilirubin, lipids, alanine amino-transferase, alkaline phosphatase and leucine arylamidase. The analyses were carried out in the same rats both after continuous feeding, and after a 24-hour fasting periods spaced at intervals of 3- to 4-weeks. The concentration of glucose and the activities of alanine aminotransferase and alkaline phosphatase were higher after feeding than after fasting, and in most cases these differences were statistically significant. The concentration of lipids tended towards increased values. The other parameters examined were slightly or not influenced by the time of the foregoing feeding.