Isolation of Wuchereria bancrofti microfilariae from archived stained blood slides for use in genetic studies and amplification of parasite and endosymbiont genes.

Information on change in genetic diversity of Wuchereria bancrofti is important in view of the launching of the Global Lymphatic Filariasis Elimination Programme, as it may have important consequences on the control operations and on the potential resurgence after their withdrawal. Since attention was not paid to generate such information when the programme was launched, use of archived parasite material will provide an opportunity to derive this information in a prospective manner. In this paper a simple and effective technique is reported for isolation of microfilariae of W. bancrofti from dried and stained slides archived for several years and their utility in analysis of genetic structure and amplification of certain genes of the parasite is tested. The method was found to be efficient in purifying mf from the dried smears and the DNA of the parasite found to be useful in studying the genetic structure of Wuchereria bancrofti populations using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD)-PCR and for amplifying genes of the parasite and its endosymbiont, Wolbachia sp.

Cloning and characterization of a mitochondrial glyoxalase II from Brassica juncea that is upregulated by NaCl, Zn, and ABA.

A cDNA (1061 bp) Bj glyII was cloned from a mannitol induced library of Brassica juncea. It encoded a protein of 335 amino acids with a molecular weight of 36.52 kDa. The deduced amino acid sequence of the clone showed 92% and 56% identity with Pennisetum and rice glyoxalase II, respectively, and 30% identity was observed with the human glyoxalase II. Search for the identical residues revealed the presence of highly conserved THHHXDH domain which is involved in zinc binding. p-NN and pSORT analysis of this sequence revealed a N-terminal mitochondrial target peptide. The cDNA was cloned in pMAL and a fusion protein with MBP (78 kDa) was expressed in Escherichia coli. The recombinant protein was purified approximately sixfold by affinity purification on amylose column and showed its pH optima at 7.0. The K(m) was determined to be 120 microM using S-d-lactoylglutathione as substrate. The expression of Bj glyII under various abiotic stress conditions showed that it is upregulated by salinity, heavy metal stress, and ABA.