Categorical perception occurs in newly learned faces, other-race faces, and inverted faces.

On the basis of findings that categorical perception (CP) is possible in complex visual stimuli such as faces, the present study tested for CP on continua between unfamiliar face pairs. Results indicate that CP can be observed for unfamiliar faces, in both familiar (same-race) and unfamiliar (other-race) groups. In addition, significant CP effects were observed in inverted faces. Finally, half-continua were tested where midpoint stimuli became endpoints. This was done to ensure that stimulus artifacts did not account for the observed CP effects. Consistent with the perceptual rescaling associated with CP, half-continua showed a rescaled CP effect. We argue that these CP effects are based on the rapid acquisition of perceptual equivalence classes.

Nonprotein amino acids from Cycas revoluta.

Two nonprotein amino acids, cycasindene and cycasthioamide, along with eight known nonprotein amino acids, were isolated from the seeds of Cycas revoluta Thunb. The structures of cycasindene and cycasthioamide were elucidated as 3-[3'-amino-indenyl-2]-alanine (1) and N-[glycinyl-alaninyl-11-thio]-5-one-pipecolic acid (2) by chemical and spectral methods.

Carbohydrate fluxes into alginate biosynthesis in Azotobacter vinelandii NCIB 8789: NMR investigations of the triose pools.

The metabolite flux of carbohydrates through primary catabolism and into hexose resynthesis has been investigated for alginic acid biosynthesis in Azotobacter vinelandii. To do these studies, we fed the microorganism a variety of 13C-labeled glucose precursors, including [U-13C6]glucose. The incorporations of the precursors were determined by 1D 13C-NMR, 2D 13C-DQF-COSY, and inverse triple-quantum correlation experiments. The results clearly show that the entire catabolism of hexose is through the Entner-Doudoroff (E-D) pathway and that the triose pools are in equilibrium. Reentry into gluconeogenesis prior to alginate synthesis occurs totally from the glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate generated by the E-D pathway. The obligatory intermediacy of triose intermediates in alginate biosynthesis was proved. The experiments and results presented in this paper constitute a new method for distinguishing the E-D pathway from glycolysis in bacteria.

Categorical effects in the perception of faces.

These studies suggest categorical perception effects may be much more general than has commonly been believed and can occur in apparently similar ways at dramatically different levels of processing. To test the nature of individual face representations, a linear continuum of "morphed" faces was generated between individual exemplars of familiar faces. In separate categorization, discrimination and "better-likeness" tasks, subjects viewed pairs of faces from these continua. Subjects discriminate most accurately when face-pairs straddle apparent category boundaries; thus individual faces are perceived categorically. A high correlation is found between the familiarity of a face-pair and the magnitude of the categorization effect. Categorical perception therefore is not limited to low-level perceptual continua, but can occur at higher levels and may be acquired through experience as well.

Bacillomycin Lc, a new antibiotic of the iturin group: isolations, structures, and antifungal activities of the congeners.

Bacillomycin Lc, a new antifungal antibiotic of the iturin class, was isolated from a strain of Bacillus subtilis as a set of five congeners. The structure as determined by chemical and spectrometric analyses has been shown to differ from that of bacillomycin L by sequence changes from aspartate-1 to asparagine-1 and from glutamine-5 to glutamate-5. The five congeners differ from each other only in the structure of the aliphatic side chain of the constituent beta-amino acid. The hydrophobicity of the beta-amino acid affects the antifungal activity of the congener, as activity increased in the order of increased congener retention on a reversed-phase HPLC column.

Structural determination of alginic acid and the effects of calcium binding as determined by high-field n.m.r.

The nature of the solution conformations of the alginic acid components D-mannuronan (poly-ManA) and L-guluronan (poly-GulA) from Azotobacter vinelandii were investigated by both one- and two-dimensional n.m.r. methods. Unequivocal proton assignments for both polymers as well as their constituent monomer units were made based on chemical-shift theory, coupling constant analysis, and nuclear Overhauser enhancement measurements. These data were used to investigate the interactions of poly-GulA and poly-ManA with Ca2+ ion in aqueous medium. Based on relative crosspeak integrals measured in two-dimensional phase-sensitive NOESY spectra of free and calcium-bound polymer, a model for calcium binding is proposed.

Dual fate of subplate neurons in a rodent.

While subplate neurons are lost in the development of the cerebral cortex of other mammalian species that have so far been investigated, in rodents the subplate (alternately termed layer VIb or VII) persists to adulthood, at least in part. We traced the developmental course of the subplate in the golden hamster, using two methods. We first used tritiated thymidine labeling to trace relative changes in the numbers of identified cohorts of cells in the subplate, layer VI, and the LGN. We also estimated the total number of cells in the subplate versus layer VI of the cortex from early in development to adulthood. These methods showed a high rate of cell loss in the subplate, between 50% and 80%, but with the clear retention of a substantial fraction of this early-generated population as a recognizable layer in adulthood. Species variations in the timing of cortical neurogenesis and the relative amount of cell loss in the subplate can be used to better describe the developmental function of this region.

Structure of the (+)-CC-1065-DNA adduct: critical role of ordered water molecules and implications for involvement of phosphate catalysis in the covalent reaction.

(+)-CC-1065 is an extremely potent antitumor agent produced by Streptomyces zelensis. The potent effects of (+)-CC-1065 and its alkylating analogues are thought to be due to the formation of a covalent adduct through N3 of adenine in DNA. It has been previously postulated, on the basis of modeling studies, that a phosphate may be involved in stabilization of the adduct and in acid catalysis of this reaction. In this study, using 1H NMR in combination with 17O-labeled water and phosphate, we demonstrate the involvement of a bridging water molecule between a phenolic proton on the alkylating subunit of (+)-CC-1065 and an anionic oxygen in the phosphate on the noncovalently modified strand of DNA. In addition, a second ordered water molecule associated with one of the protons on N6 of the covalently modified adenine is also identified. This structure has important implications for catalytic activation of the covalent reaction between (+)-CC-1065 and DNA and, consequently, the molecular basis for sequence-selective recognition of DNA by the alkylating subunit of (+)-CC-1065. On the basis of the example described here, the use of 1H NMR in 17O-labeled water may be a powerful probe to examine other structures and catalytic processes for water-mediated hydrogen-bonded bridges that occur between small molecules and DNA or enzymes.

Biosynthesis of anthraquinones by interspecies cloning of actinorhodin biosynthesis genes in streptomycetes: clarification of actinorhodin gene functions.

Streptomyces galilaeus ATCC 31133 and ATCC 31671, producers of the anthracyclines aclacinomycin A and 2-hydroxyaklavinone, respectively, formed an anthraquinone, aloesaponarin II, when they were transformed with DNA from Streptomyces coelicolor containing four genetic loci, actI, actIII, actIV, and actVII, encoding early reactions in the actinorhodin biosynthesis pathway. Subcloning experiments indicated that a 2.8-kilobase-pair XhoI fragment containing only the actI and actVII loci was necessary for aloesaponarin II biosynthesis by S. galilaeus ATCC 31133. Aloesaponarin II was synthesized via the condensation of 8 acetyl coenzyme A equivalents, followed by a decarboxylation reaction as demonstrated by [1,2-13C2]acetate feeding experiments. S. coelicolor B22 and B159, actVI blocked mutants, also formed aloesaponarin II as an apparent shunt product. Mutants of S. coelicolor blocked in several other steps in actinorhodin biosynthesis did not synthesize aloesaponarin II or other detectable anthraquinones. When S. galilaeus ATCC 31671 was transformed with the DNA carrying the actI, actIII, and actVII loci, the recombinant strain produced both aloesaponarin II and aklavinone, suggesting that the actinorhodin biosynthesis DNA encoded a function able to deoxygenate 2-hydroxyaklavinone to aklavinone. When S. galilaeus ATCC 31671 was transformed with a plasmid carrying only the intact actIII gene (pANT45), aklavinone was formed exclusively. These experiments indicate a function for the actIII gene, which is the reduction of the keto group at C-9 from the carboxy terminus of the assembled polyketide to the corresponding secondary alcohol. In the presence of the actIII gene, anthraquinones or anthracyclines formed as a result of dehydration and aromatization lack an oxygen function on the carbon on which the keto reductase operated. When S. galilaeus ATCC 31671 was transformed with the DNA carrying the actI, actVII, and actIV loci, the recombinant strain produced two novel anthraquinones, desoxyerythrolaccin, the 3-hydroxy analog of aloesaponarin II, and 1-O-methyldesoxyerythrolaccin. The results obtained in these experiments together with earlier data suggest a pathway for the biosynthesis of actinorhodin and related compounds by S. coelicolor.

Landomycins, new angucycline antibiotics from Streptomyces sp. I. Structural studies on landomycins A-D.

The chemical structure of the new angucycline antibiotic landomycin A has been elucidated via chemical and spectroscopic methods, in particular by 2D NMR correlation spectroscopy, e.g., 1H, 1H-COSY, 13C, 1H-COSY, correlation spectroscopy via long-range-couplings and heteronuclear multiple bond connectivity spectroscopy sequences. The spectroscopic investigations were carried out principally with the octaacetyl derivative of landomycin A, which is more soluble in organic solvents than landomycin A itself. The structure consists of a new, unusual angucyclinone, landomycinone A, and of six deoxy sugars, four D-olivoses and two L-rhodinoses, which are all assembled in one chain thus forming the sequence (olivose-4----1-olivose-3----1-rhodinose)2. This long sugar chain is bonded as a phenolic glycoside to the aglycone moiety, a unique structural feature among quinone glycoside antibiotics. By comparison with the main component landomycin A, the structures of three minor congeners, namely landomycins B, C and D, could be proposed.

1H and 13C NMR assignments of the thiopeptide antibiotic nosiheptide.

The 1H and 13C NMR spectra of nosiheptide have been assigned by use of 2D NMR techniques on unlabeled samples and biosynthetically multiple-labeled samples from stable isotope feeding experiments.

Reexamination of the 1H and 13C NMR spectral assignments of thiostrepton.

The use of 2D NMR techniques on unlabeled and biosynthetically multiple 13C-labeled samples enabled us to refine the 1H and 13C NMR spectral assignments for thiostrepton.

Urdamycins, new angucycline antibiotics from Streptomyces fradiae. IV. Biosynthetic studies of urdamycins A-D.

The biogenetic origin of the angucycline antibiotics urdamycins A-D was studied by feeding experiments with isotope labeled precursors and by NMR analysis. Feeding experiments with [1-13C]acetate and [1,2-13C2]acetate show that the chromophores of urdamycins A and B and the angucycline 4-ring skeleton of the urdamycins C and D chromophores are formed from a single decapolyketide chain. The chromophores of the urdamycins C and D contain additional structural elements which derived from the amino acids tyrosine and tryptophan, respectively. The latter was shown by feeding deuterium-labeled tyrosine and 13C-labeled tryptophan derivatives. Feeding of [1-13C]glucose and of [U-13C3]glycerol proved that the C-glycosidic moiety and the three sugars (2 x L-rhodinose, 1 x D-olivose each) of the urdamycins arise from glucose. Experiments with 14C-labeled urdamycin A, obtained by biosynthesis from [14C]acetate, showed this compound to be a late precursor of the urdamycins C and D.

Metabolic products of microorganisms. 245. Colabomycins, new antibiotics of the manumycin group from Streptomyces griseoflavus. II. Structure of colabomycin A.

The structure of colabomycin A (1) was elucidated by a detailed spectroscopic analysis. Two-dimensional NMR spectroscopy experiments provided assignments of the proton and carbon resonances of the tetraene carboxamide chains occurring in 1. The configurations of eight out of nine double bonds were determined by analysis of their coupling constants. The absolute configurations of C-4 (4S), C-5 (5R) and C-6 (6S) were established from the CD spectra of the parent compound and of 2-(6-oxo-2,4-hexadienoylamino)-5,6-epoxy-1,4-benzoquinone (2), which was obtained from 1 by mild chromic acid oxidation.

Microbial hydroxylation of 1,4-cineole.

Microorganisms were examined for their potential to hydroxylate the oxygenated monoterpene 1,4-cineole. Using gas chromatography and thin-layer chromatography, screening experiments revealed that hydroxylation at position 2 was the most commonly observed microbial transformation reaction. In most microorganisms, the predominant alcohol metabolite was the 2-endo-alcohol isomer. Preparative-scale incubations were conducted in order to isolate and characterize microbial transformation products by comparison of proton nuclear magnetic resonance, mass spectrometry, and chromatography profiles with those of cineole standards. Streptomyces griseus yielded 8-hydroxy-1,4-cineole as the major hydroxylation product together with 2-exo- and 2-endo-hydroxy-1,4-cineoles.

Studies on the biosynthesis of the alpha-glucosidase inhibitor acarbose: valienamine, a m-C7N unit not derived from the shikimate pathway.

Feeding experiments with Actinoplanes sp. SN223/29 showed that 3-amino-5-hydroxy-[7-13C]benzoic acid is not incorporated into acarbose (I). The valienamine moiety of I is thus not derived in the same way, from the shikimate pathway, as the m-C7N units in the ansamycin, mitomycin and ansamitocin antibiotics. Feeding experiments with [U-13C3]-glycerol followed by analysis of I by multiple quantum NMR spectroscopy support this conclusion and point to formation of the valienamine moiety by cyclization of a heptulose phosphate which arises from a triose phosphate via successive transfer of two 2-carbon fragments by transketolase, as proposed by Pape and co-workers.

Microbial hydroxylation of quadrone to 8a-hydroxyquadrone.

Microbial transformation of quadrone and its 4-ethylene ketal with Cunninghamella echinulata afforded the 8a-hydroxyquadrone and its 4-ethylene ketal, respectively.

Studies on the biosynthesis of antibiotics.

In the framework of studies on the biosynthesis of several antibiotics, specifically asukamycin, acarbose, reductiomycin, actinorhodin, and granaticin, a variety of different approaches to biosynthetic problems are illustrated. These include multiple labeling with stable isotopes in conjunction with modern methods of nmr analysis, as illustrated by the development of a new triple-quantum 2D-INADEQUATE experiment for biosynthetic studies, the use of stereochemical probes, as illustrated by the synthesis and stereochemical analysis of chiral [13C, 2H]malonate, and combinations of genetic and chemical approaches, as illustrated by examples of the production of new hybrid antibiotics by genetic engineering.

Studies on the biosynthesis of terrecyclic acid A, an antitumor antibiotic from Aspergillus terreus.

The biosynthesis of terrecyclic acid A was investigated using 13C-labeled acetates and mevalonate. 13C NMR spectral analysis of isolated labeled terrecyclic acid demonstrated that the structure is assembled via an isoprene pathway.