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H Taboada

Publications and source records attributed to H Taboada.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Expression of thiamin biosynthetic genes (thiCOGE) and production of symbiotic terminal oxidase cbb3 in Rhizobium etli.

In this paper we report the cloning and sequence analysis of four genes, located on plasmid pb, which are involved in the synthesis of thiamin in Rhizobium etli (thiC, thiO, thiG, and thiE). Two precursors, 4-methyl-5-(beta-hydroxyethyl)thiazole monophosphate and 4-amino-5-hydroxymethylpyrimidine pyrophosphate, are coupled to form thiamin monophosphate, which is then phosphorylated to make thiamin pyrophosphate. The first open reading frame (ORF) product, of 610 residues, has significant homology (69% identity) with the product of thiC from Escherichia coli, which is involved in the synthesis of hydroxymethylpyrimidine. The second ORF product, of 327 residues, is the product of a novel gene denoted thiO. A protein motif involved in flavin adenine dinucleotide binding was found in the amino-terminal part of ThiO; also, residues involved in the catalytic site of D-amino acid oxidases are conserved in ThiO, suggesting that it catalyzes the oxidative deamination of some intermediate of thiamin biosynthesis. The third ORF product, of 323 residues, has significant homology (38% identity) with ThiG from E. coli, which is involved in the synthesis of the thiazole. The fourth ORF product, of 204 residues, has significant homology (47% identity) with the product of thiE from E. coli, which is involved in the condensation of hydroxymethylpyrimidine and thiazole. Strain CFN037 is an R. etli mutant induced by a single Tn5mob insertion in the promoter region of the thiCOGE gene cluster. The Tn5mob insertion in CFN037 occurred within a 39-bp region which is highly conserved in all of the thiC promoters analyzed and promotes constitutive expression of thiC. Primer extension analysis showed that thiC transcription in strain CFN037 originates within the Tn5 element. Analysis of c-type protein content and expression of the fixNOQP operon, which codes for the symbiotic terminal oxidase cbb3, revealed that CFN037 produces the cbb3 terminal oxidase. These data show a direct relationship between expression of thiC and production of the cbb3 terminal oxidase. This is consistent with the proposition that a purine-related metabolite, 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleotide, is a negative effector of the production of the symbiotic terminal oxidase cbb3 in R. etli.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

[Anemia associated with acute post streptococcal glomerulonephritis].

Thirty-three children with post-streptococcal acute glomerulonephritis, age mean: 8.3 years (range: 6 - 12) were studied prospectively. Mean initial hematocrit (Hct) was 31.6% with 90% showing Hct under the normal lower limit for this age group. Reticulocyte index (RI) was < 0.5 in half of the cases. Serum iron concentration, total iron binding capacity (TIBC) and percentage of transferrin saturation were normal for this age group although 75% of the children had increased serum ferritin levels. At the time of discharge, Hct increased to 35.1% but 44% still had anemia. Hct increased spontaneously for 105 days stabilizing at 38%. Based on Hct changes, 3 groups were defined: Group I (3 individuals): normal upon discharge; Group II (19): partial recovery at discharge, slow recovery stabilizing after 105 days; Group III (11): lower Hct, slower recovery but with RI significantly higher than group II (0.96 vs 0.45 p < 0.01). Our data suggest that although hemodilution is present in all, it may be considered the solely factor only in 3 cases (Group I). In group II, evidence of bone marrow depression was indicated by the low RI. On the other hand, the intense anemia that could not be justified only by hemodilution and marrow depression in group III, suggests other pathogenic factors.

Acute Disease↗

[Importance of iron for the recovery of malnourished infants].

Thirty one infants with moderate and severe protein-calorie malnutrition whose blood hemoglobin concentrations were higher than 10 g/dl were managed with diet supplements containing iron fortified cereals for three months. In addition, 17 of them were given an extra daily dose of elementary iron (3 mg/kg/day). Mean weight gain was similar in both subgroups but mean hemoglobin concentration raised by 1,2 g/dl among extra iron infants in contrast with no increase or even decreased hemoglobin levels at the end of follow up in controls, thus demonstrating the importance of adding supplementary iron to these children during the recovery period of under nutrition, even it the diet provides the usually recommended 8 to 10 mg/day of iron.

Body Weight↗

[Myelogram in systemic juvenile rheumatoid arthritis].

A retrospective study was done to evaluate bone marrow smears in seven children with systemic onset juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA). Eosinophilia and monocytosis were found in all the patients and in five there also were increased proportions of mononuclear basophils. Anemia is common in this disease and erythroid hypoplasia was present in six cases. Four patients had increased numbers of plasma cells and three had histiocytes with hemophagocytic activity. We did not find hemophagocytosis, as reported before, in bone marrow smears of JRA patients.

Adolescent↗