riparius endosymbionts (target organism) were obtained from homog

riparius endosymbionts (target organism) were obtained from homogenized internal genitalia of

female P. riparius. Probe specificities were evaluated with such cell suspensions of the Pseudomonas-like endosymbiont and the closely related P. aeruginosa (nontarget organism). A minimum of 300 DAPI-positive cells of randomly chosen areas on microscopic slides were evaluated. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) studies of P. riparius eggs were carried out with a Philips FEI XL 30 ESEM. Subsequent to dehydration in ethanol (10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 90%, 100%, 30 min each), specimens were coated with gold (Edwards S150B). DNA was extracted using Qiagen DNA extraction kits (Qiagen, Hilden, Germany) according to the manufacturer’s protocol. A 157-base pair fragment of pks-gene encoding a ketosynthase involved in pederin biosynthesis was amplified with primers KS1F (5′-TGGCATCGT GGGGAAAGGCTG-3′) and KS1R (5′-GGCGCAGGTGCTGACACGC-3′) ITF2357 in vitro (pks-PCR; Piel, 2002). Primers were purchased from MWG-Eurofins (Ebersberg, Germany). PCR was performed in a total volume of 50 μL containing 24.8 μL PCR-H2O, 10.0 μL 5 × Q-Solution, 5.0 μL 10 × PCR buffer, 5.0 μL ddNTP Mix (2 mM), 2.5 μL of each primer (10 pmol μL−1), 0.2 μL Taq (5 U) (Qiagen). Thermal cycling was at 96 °C for buy FK506 5 min followed by 35 cycles of denaturation at 96 °C for 30 s, annealing at 57 °C for 30 s and extension at 72 °C for 1 min. Several potential

target sequences

for 16S rRNA gene-directed oligonucleotide probes were identified on the 16S rRNA gene sequence of the Pseudomonas-like bacterial endosymbiont of P. riparius (accession number: AJ316018; Kellner, 2002a). On the basis of different probe Carnitine palmitoyltransferase II parameters (e.g. length of probe, hybridization temperature, GC content, Escherichia. coli position, etc.), the probe with target site 444–461 (E. coli numbering according to Brosius et al., 1981) was selected (Table 1) and checked with the probe match-tool (the arb project: http://www.arb-home.de) for specificity. The probe (PAE444) was complementary to the target sequence of the Paederus endosymbiont and displayed high probe accessibility within its target region according to a 16S rRNA gene secondary structure model of E. coli (Fuchs et al., 1998; Behrens et al., 2003). PAE444 exhibited only two mismatches to the closest related nontarget sequence (P. aeruginosa). Thus, a competitor (cPAE444) complementary to the P. aeruginosa sequence was designed in order to achieve full mismatch discrimination (Table 1; Manz et al., 1992). PAE444 coverage alone was experimentally analysed by whole cell hybridization with cell suspensions of endosymbionts (extracted from P. riparius tissue, see Materials and methods) and pure cultures of P. aeruginosa. Probe dissociation curves were recorded to determine stringent hybridization and washing conditions. The nonhybridizing probe NON338 (Manz et al.

To assess a potential difference between randomized and nonrandom

To assess a potential difference between randomized and nonrandomized untreated patients, Alpelisib research buy we compared their baseline

characteristics using χ2 tests or Kruskal–Wallis tests, if appropriate, and their HRQL at baseline and at each follow-up visit using Student t-tests. Additionally, we repeated the mixed linear models including only those patients who were enrolled in the RCT. Analyses were according to intent-to-treat, regardless of treatment changes or discontinuation. Two-sided P-values <0.05 were considered statistically significant. Data were analysed using spss version 16.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, Illinois, USA). Of the 168 participants enrolled in the Primo-SHM RCT, 100 (60%) were included in the present study: 16 in the no-treatment group, 45 in the group

receiving 24 weeks of early cART and 39 in the group receiving 60 weeks of early cART. For 25 of the 168 participants (15%), no baseline HRQL questionnaire was available, and they were therefore excluded from further this website analyses. The reasons for excluding the other 43 participants (26%) were that the patient had insufficient language skills or did not want to complete the HRQL questionnaires, or that the specific study site did not participate in this substudy. Twelve of the 16 eligible nonrandomized untreated patients in the Primo-SHM cohort completed HRQL questionnaires and were included in the present analysis. A total of 631 questionnaires were completed, with a median of 5 [interquartile range (IQR) 4–8] per patient. Most patients (85%) were men who have sex with men (MSM), 71% had a negative or indeterminate western blot (Fiebig stage I–IV) and 80% were symptomatic during PHI. Patient characteristics are summarized in Table S1 (supporting online Ponatinib information). At baseline, patients receiving no treatment had significantly lower mental health

scores (P = 0.02), lower energy/fatigue scores (P = 0.03) and lower MHS scores (P = 0.04) than patients receiving 60 weeks of cART. Model results were adjusted for these baseline differences. We found a significant difference among the three groups in five of the 10 MOS-HIV subscales and in the PHS score over the follow-up period of 96 weeks. Patients receiving 24 or 60 weeks of early cART showed better cognitive functioning than patients receiving no treatment (P = 0.005; Fig. 1a). Participants receiving 60 weeks of early cART experienced less pain (P = 0.004), showed better role (P = 0.001) and physical functioning (P = 0.02) and had a better PHS score (P = 0.006) than patients receiving no treatment or 24 weeks of early cART (Fig. 1b–e). Patients receiving 24 weeks of early cART showed better mental health than patients receiving no treatment or 60 weeks of early cART (P = 0.02; Fig. 1f). Social functioning, health distress, overall quality of life, energy/fatigue and the MHS score improved significantly from baseline to 96 weeks of follow-up irrespective of the treatment group (data not shown).

The aim of this review was to comprehensively examine the publish

The aim of this review was to comprehensively examine the published literature to chart the participation and beliefs of pharmacy professionals in GB in relation to CPD in a decade (2000–2010) that had seen a formal transition from CE to CPD requirements. Three specific questions guided our review: What has been the range of views expressed by pharmacy

this website professionals in relation to CPD? What has been the uptake of CPD in pharmacy? In what way could the potential barriers to CPD uptake jeopardise the use of CPD in revalidation? A comprehensive search of the published literature was conducted to identify all studies that had examined the uptake of, or attitudes towards, the CPD process across the different sectors of the pharmacy profession in GB from 2000 to 2010, to cover the decade during which CPD was formally introduced and integrated into pharmacy in GB. During September to December 2009 (with additional searches in August 2010 and February 2011) the following academic databases were searched for articles published between 2000 and 2010: Medline, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) and International Bibliography of the Social Sciences, Zetoc, British Education Index (BEI), Educational Resources Information Centre (ERIC), Australian check details Education

Index (AUEI) and the Cochrane Library. An extensive search of the pharmacy

specific literature was also conducted by searching the journals Pharmacy Practice, the Pharmaceutical Journal (PJ) and Pharmacy Education, to include where possible conference proceedings from Health Service Research and Pharmacy Practice (HSRPP), British Pharmaceutical Conference (BPC) and International Social Pharmacy Workshop (ISPW). In addition, the search engine GoogleScholar™ as well as the database of the National Electronic Library for Medicine (NELM) were used in an attempt to capture studies published online which were not at first identified by the more traditional means. The reference lists of all the important articles were scanned to check for other important studies that may have been missed via the database searches. A variety IMP dehydrogenase of search terms was constructed for use within the databases including pharmacy, pharmacist, education professional retraining, continuing pharmacy education, professional development, learning, reflect, continuing education, CPD, continuing professional development, professional portfolio pharmacy, work based learning and continuous professional development. These terms were combined suitably according to the database used. The details of the search strategies are outlined and attached as an Addendum to this article.

The M tuberculosis DAP biosynthesis genes have been demonstrated

The M. tuberculosis DAP biosynthesis genes have been demonstrated to be essential for in vitro growth and are Maraviroc in vitro therefore attractive targets for the development of novel antitubercular drugs. “
“Environmental contamination

with pesticides is an undesired consequence of agricultural activities. Biopurification systems (BPS) comprise a novel strategy to degrade pesticides from contaminated wastewaters, consisting of a highly active biological mixture confined in a container or excavation. The design of BPS promotes microbial activity, in particular by white rot fungi (WRF). Due to their physiological features, specifically the production of highly unspecific ligninolytic enzymes and some intracellular enzymatic complexes, WRF show the ability to transform a wide range of organic pollutants. This minireview summarizes selleck chemicals llc the potential participation of WRF in BPS. The first part presents the potential use of WRF in biodegradation of pollutants, particularly pesticides, and includes a brief description of the enzymatic systems involved in their oxidation. The second part presents an outline of BPS, focusing on the elements that influence

the participation of WRF in their operation, and includes a summary of the studies regarding the fungal-mediated degradation of pesticides in BPS biomixtures and other solid-phase systems that mimic BPS. “
“The fish pathogenic oomycete Saprolegnia parasitica causes the disease Saprolegniosis in salmonids and other freshwater fish, resulting in considerable economic losses in aquaculture. Very little MG 132 is known about the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying the infection process of fish pathogenic oomycetes. In order to investigate the interaction in detail, an in vitro infection assay using an Oncorhynchus mykiss

(rainbow trout) cell line (RTG-2) was developed. In a zoospore/cyst cDNA library, we identified the ORF SpHtp1, which encodes a secreted protein containing an RxLR motif. Detailed expression analysis indicated that SpHtp1 is highly expressed in zoospores/cysts from S. parasitica and in the very early stages of infection on RTG-2 cells, when compared with in vitro-grown mycelium. Moreover, the protein, SpHtp1, was found to translocate into the RTG-2 trout cells, during the interaction with S. parasitica, and also when the RTG-2 cells were treated with recombinant SpHtp1 fused to a C-terminal His-tag. These findings suggest that protein translocation could play an important role in Saprolegniosis. Oomycetes contain some of the most devastating pathogens of animals and plants, causing major economic and environmental damage in natural and cultured ecosystems (Kamoun, 2003; van West, 2006; Phillips et al., 2008). One destructive oomycete pathogen of fish is Saprolegnia parasitica.

25-fold per subsequent year The prevalence of non-B subtypes in

25-fold per subsequent year. The prevalence of non-B subtypes in Italy was first estimated in a 2001 study which reported an overall prevalence of 5.4% among drug-naïve patients, with an increasing trend over time [7]. Two later studies reported higher prevalences of 12.6 and 10.7% in regions Wnt inhibitor review with

low/medium and high incidences of infection, respectively [25,26]. Both these figures, although showing an increase in non-B prevalence over time, are lower than those reported in this work, as well as in surveillance studies carried out in other European countries such as France, Belgium and the United Kingdom [8,9,11]. According to several studies, the spread of non-B subtypes is highly dependent upon several

variables that define the demographics of local HIV-1 epidemics and their evolution over time. The proportions of patients of non-Caucasian ethnicity and those infected via the heterosexual route increased in our case file throughout the study period. However, we also detected a higher prevalence of non-B variants in European individuals after 1992, with a 5-fold increase being found in the proportion of patients with non-B variants compared with the earlier period. As expected, the regression analysis indicated a strong association between the African ethnicity and the carriage of non-B strains. ITF2357 cost However, Thymidylate synthase 50% of individuals infected with strains other than B were Caucasian, suggesting that these strains have been onward-transmitted to Europeans at a considerable rate. Overall, an increase in the prevalence of non-B strains was seen in all risk categories; however, the most relevant increase was found in heterosexuals. The multivariable analysis performed on the patient subset with CD showed that the heterosexual route of infection was a strong independent predictor of HIV-1 infection with non-B clades, a 9.5-fold higher risk of carriage of non-B infection being

found for heterosexuals. Probably because of the local characteristics of the HIV-1 epidemic, such as the high proportion of women among IDUs, the male to female ratio was comparable between the period before 1993 and the period from 1993 onwards (2.25 vs. 2.32, respectively), and female gender was not an independent predictor of non-B infection. Nevertheless, women with non-B variants represented a sizeable proportion (almost one-third) of the total number of women diagnosed after 1992. Finally, the evaluation of time of HIV-1 diagnosis clearly indicated that the risk of acquiring non-B infection was 4-fold higher for those diagnosed after 1993 as compared with previous years. High heterogeneity in group M non-B clades was detected in our study, indicating that the sources of non-B infection were dispersed world-wide.

Patients were asked to provide a stool sample for microbiological

Patients were asked to provide a stool sample for microbiological evaluation. For each questionnaire and corresponding stool sample, the same anonymous identification number was issued in order to match laboratory results. In addition, a case-crossover study was conducted to identify determinants of diarrhea during

the military deployment. This design is Y-27632 manufacturer equivalent to a case–control study in which patients serve as their own controls with data used from different points of time.6 The case-crossover method controls all confounding factors such as sex, age, or susceptibility to diarrhea, thus making it possible to consider only changes in behaviors. The case-crossover design was performed under the assumption that the incubation period of most of the pathogens was rarely higher than 3 days.7 The high-risk period for exposure was thus the 3 days immediately preceding the onset of diarrhea symptoms. The control period was the same 3 days of the previous week (Figure 1). This design led us to exclude from the case-crossover analysis any diarrheal episodes occurring before the completion of

at least 10 consecutive days of stay in N’Djamena or in the 10 days following a previous diarrheic episode. The behaviors assessed were places to eat (official mess in the French military camp in N’Djamena, local restaurants, temporary encampments, and field kitchens), ice in drinks, hand washing before eating, eating unpeeled fruit or vegetables, and close contact with other patients with diarrhea. The first step of laboratory diagnosis Microtubule Associated inhibitor was performed in high throughput screening compounds the military camp in the field laboratory facility and consisted of direct microscopic examination of fresh fecal smears for parasites and bacterial analyses. Stool samples were also cultured using standard procedures for Salmonella spp and Shigella spp (Salmonella–Shigella agar). Then, stool samples were aliquoted and stored at −80°C before complementary microbial investigations in the Laboratory of the Val de Grâce Hospital, Paris, France. Here, samples were cultured for Salmonella, Shigella, Campylobacter, Escherichia

coli, and Staphylococcus aureus. For Campylobacter, direct antigenic immunoenzymatic assay was also performed (Ridascreen Campylobacter Elisa, R-Biopharm AG, Darmstadt, Germany). Calicivirus (norovirus) and Astrovirus were both detected by two methods: ELISA immune-enzymatic techniques, (Ridascreen Norovirus, R-Biopharm AG; IDEIA Astrovirus, Oxoid, Ely, UK), and molecular tools using RT–PCR (Calici/Astrovirus Consensus, Argene-Biosoft, Varilhes, France). Finally, stool samples were examined for rotavirus (Ridascreen Rotavirus, R-Biopharm AG) and adenovirus 40–41 (IDEIA Adenovirus, Oxoid). The mean number of soldiers based in N’Djamena during the study period (exposed population) was used as denominator for the global incidence rate calculation (n = 1,024 for 5 months).

The aim of the research was to undertake a literature review of t

The aim of the research was to undertake a literature review of the evidence on the disproportionate treatment of BME pharmacists in; (i) recruitment, (ii) progression (iii) retention and (iv) regulation. The evidence from pharmacy is equivocal; while a Selleck ICG-001 small number of studies suggest possible evidence of discrimination further research is required to understand whether BME pharmacy professionals are discriminated

against, particularly in areas such as regulation. In the past 10–15 years the ethnic make-up of the pharmacy profession has changed significantly. Pharmacists from black and minority ethnic (BME) backgrounds represent a significant proportion of the profession.1 While there AUY-922 concentration is evidence that BME doctors may be discriminated against in employment practices, little is known about the treatment of BME pharmacists. The aim of the research was to review the literature for evidence of disproportionate treatment in relation to; (i) recruitment, (ii) progression (iii) retention and (iv) regulation in the United Kingdom. Ethics approval was not required. A literature search was undertaken in a number of databases (including PubMed, Scopus, International Pharmaceutical Abstracts, SIGLE, Embase) to

identify literature published between 1993 and 2013 and relating to ethnicity and employment and regulatory practices in the United Kingdom. Search terms included ‘discrimination’, ‘disproportionality’, ‘disparity’ and ‘racism’. Items retrieved during searches were initially assessed by the research team on the basis of abstract content or full paper if necessary, with contentious items discussed by the team until an agreement was reached. Initial searches identified 78 possible items but only 12 items (six peer-reviewed journal articles, three published reports, two conference papers and one PhD thesis) were identified as being

relevant to the review. With regards to (i) recruitment, one article and one report suggested that BME pharmacists were more likely to report finding it difficult to secure their first post. In terms of (ii) progression, four articles showed evidence of BME pharmacists in community being under-represented in management positions and over-represented Rucaparib nmr among pharmacy owners. There is also some evidence (one article, one report and one PhD thesis) indicating that some BME pharmacists perceived their opportunities were limited by ethnicity. In relation to (iii) retention, there is evidence (one report and one conference abstract) that BME pharmacists were less satisfied with their careers and more likely to be intending to leave the profession than white peers. Regarding (iv) regulation, three studies (one conference paper and two articles) explored the representation of BME pharmacists in disciplinary proceedings conducted by the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain.

, 2008) However, no international clone III isolates were identi

, 2008). However, no international clone III isolates were identified in this study. Since bacterial motility is a known virulence factor in numerous bacterial species (Han et al., 2008; Alarcon et al., 2009; Proft & Baker, 2009), the motility potential of our 52 clinical isolates was examined. The motility phenotypes in this study were determined using the general classifications for both swarming and twitching (Semmler et al.,

1999; Kaiser, 2007). Our data revealed that all international clone I isolates showed significant twitching. A number of other twitching isolates, not part of this clonal lineage, had the ability to form well developed biofilms compared to the international clone I isolates (see below), Selleck PLX3397 with the exception of A. baumannii strain D1279779. This relatively poor biofilm former (OD595 nm<1) also showed a small twitching zone (approximately 12 mm). Swarming motility was Fluorouracil observed in three noninternational clone isolates, including A. baumannii ATCC 17978, a fully sequenced reference strain. Studies using MH and LB media showed that twitching and swarming phenotypes are largely medium dependent. Furthermore, twitching and swarming

were demonstrated to be distinct characteristics, as many twitchers did not swarm, and A. baumannii strain ATCC 17978 swarmed, but did not twitch. PilA showed a high degree of amino acid sequence conservation within twitching isolates, indicating that type IV pili may play a role in motility in this species. Examination of biofilm formation showed that there was a significant difference between international clone

I and II isolates, correlating with previously published data (de Breij et al., 2010). We also found a significant difference (P < 0.05) between international clone I and noninternational clone isolates, indicating that in general international clone I isolates are limited in their ability to form biofilms. We determined the adherence of selected A. baumannii isolates to eukaryotic cells of nasopharyngeal (Detroit 562) and alveolar (A549) origin. Not only were significant differences observed between strains, two Glutamate dehydrogenase isolates, D1279779 and ATCC 17978, showed significantly lower adherence to nasopharyngeal cells compared to lung epithelial cells. Comparison of the ability to form biofilms and eukaryotic cell adherence revealed no relationship between these two phenotypes in the strains tested. This suggests that the mechanism of adherence to either abiotic or biotic surfaces appears to be different and draws a parallel with the results from other studies (Lee et al., 2008; de Breij et al., 2010). Moreover, previous studies have shown that adherence to abiotic surfaces is in part mediated by the csu type I pili cluster in strain ATCC 19606 (Tomaras et al., 2003), however, in a subsequent study using the same csu knockout strain, no difference was observed in the ability to bind bronchial cells (de Breij et al., 2009).

36; 95% confidence interval (CI) 208, 542] Greater than 95% ad

36; 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.08, 5.42]. Greater than 95% adherence to ART (AOR 1.80; 95% CI 1.14–2.84) and having a baseline CD4 count >200 cells/μL (AOR 2.18; 95% CI 1.29–3.68) were also associated Lenvatinib supplier with having the maximum number of possible combinations. This study found that a high proportion of resistance mutations among individuals who initiated ART with NNRTI-based regimens had the potential to markedly reduce the number of future options for second-line drug regimens. This was demonstrated by the median GSS after use of NNRTI-based first-line regimens,

which was 9.8 as compared with 11.0 after boosted PI-based first-line regimens. The odds of having all available active combinations was more than three times higher in

participants who initiated treatment on boosted PIs. The study also showed that the proportion of individuals with more ART combinations for those who initiated boosted PI-based ART was almost twice that for those who initiated ART with NNRTIs. As HIV-positive individuals are now living longer, the availability of alternative drug options in the face of drug resistance becomes an important issue to consider. The clinical significance of this reduced GSS among ART-naïve patients starting with NNRTI-based regimens is that these patients may run out of drug DAPT price options among the readily available drugs in RLSs more rapidly. This problem is made worse by the higher cost of newer antiretroviral drugs. This also may contribute to the many factors leading to unbalanced benefits from ART between developed and the resource-limited settings. Although the absolute difference in GSS was small in terms of the median number of active drugs available in each group (9.8 vs. 11), the distribution

find more of these limitations for the NNRTI group was significant, such that over 40% of these patients had fewer than five drug combinations available to them after only 3 years of treatment. A recent cost-effectiveness analysis found that the use of boosted PI (lopinavir/ritonavir) as first-line therapy was very cost effective, especially in individuals with prior exposure to NNRTIs and those with unknown drug resistance profiles (cost-effectiveness ratio $1520/year of life saved versus first-line nevirapine) [23]. Given that in 2008 45% of HIV-infected women in RLSs had received some form of antiretroviral drugs (mainly nevirapine and/or zidovudine) for the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV [24], and widespread resistance testing is not available in the region, consideration should be given to recommending boosted PIs as first-line therapy. This study confirmed that participants on NNRTI-based first-line regimens are more prone to develop antiretroviral drug resistance mutations as compared with those on boosted PI first-line regimens.

loti chromosome (Fig 1, bottom) The numbering of the genes is f

loti chromosome (Fig. 1, bottom). The numbering of the genes is fixed in the RhizoBase (genome database for Rhizobia, http://bacteria.kazusa.or.jp/rhizobase/). The first enzyme, pyridoxine 4-oxidase, is encoded by the mll6785 gene (Yuan et al., 2004); the second, pyridoxal 4-dehydrogenase, by mlr6807 (Yokochi et al., 2006); the third, 4-pyridoxolactonase, by mlr6805 (Funami et al., 2005); the fourth, 4-pyridoxic acid dehydrogenase, by mlr6792 (Ge et al., 2008); the fifth, 5-formyl-3-hydroxy-2-methylpyridine-4-carboxylic

acid (FHMPC) dehydrogenase, by mlr6793 (Yokochi et al., 2009); the sixth, 3-hydroxy-2-methylpyridine-4,5-dicarboxylic acid (HMPC) decarboxylase, by mlr6791 (Mukherjee et al., 2007); the seventh, 3-hydroxy-2-methylpyridine-5-carboxylic acid (HMPC) oxygenase, by mlr6788 (Yuan learn more et al., 2006; McCulloch buy PI3K Inhibitor Library et al., 2009); and the eighth, AAMS amidohydrolase, by mlr6787 (Mukherjee et al., 2008; Yuan et al., 2008). Pyridoxamine is converted into pyridoxal by pyridoxamine-pyruvate aminotransferase

encoded by mlr6806 (Yoshikane et al., 2006). Thus, the genes form a cluster, from mll6785 to mlr6807, including several genes of unknown function. The expression of genes involved in bacterial catabolic pathways is often regulated by one or several transcriptional regulators (Tropel & Van der Meer, 2004). The GntR family proteins are well known transcription factors and comprise more than 8500 members in the Pfam database (Hoskisson & Rigali, 2009). They are distributed throughout the bacterial world. The GntR regulators are subdivided into the AraR, DevA, FadR, HutC, MocR, PlmA, and YtrA subfamilies based on the sequence FER similarity of their C-terminal effector-binding oligomerization domains. The FadR subfamily is the most representative GntR subfamily and can be divided into FadR and VanR subgroups based on the number of α-helices (10 and 9, respectively) in their secondary structures (Rigali et al., 2002). In the cluster of genes involved in the degradation of pyridoxine (Fig. 1b) there is one gene (mll6786) that encodes a probable transcriptional regulator protein. The primary structure and deduced secondary structure suggested that mll6786

encodes a regulator protein that belongs to the VanR subgroup. As far as we know, no study has been done on the regulation mechanism for the degradation pathway for pyridoxine. Here, we identified the protein PyrR encoded by mll6786 as a transcriptional repressor protein. The recombinant repressor protein was over-expressed and characterized as the first step of elucidation of the regulatory mechanism for the pyridoxine-degradation pathway in M. loti cells. Escherichia coli strains BL21(DE3) and JM109 were purchased from Novagen (San Diego, CA) and Takara (Tokyo, Japan), respectively. Escherichia coli S17-1 was obtained from the National Bioresource Project (Mishima, Japan). Mesorhizobium loti MAFF303099 was obtained from the MAFF GenBank (Tsukuba, Japan).