Grammatical analysis is needed here

Question

0 (Note: It doesn't matter that you don't know much of the knowledge of gene engineering. I just need your grammatical analysis for the sentence. Thanks.)02br02br00 According to the context below, I think:02br02br00 1) the gene = 00 0065-kDa protein 02br02br00  and02br02br00 0065-kDa protein = RPE6502br02br00 So it is the gene (the 65-kDa protein) that takes charge of 00encoding retinal pigment epithelium.02br02br00   Am I on the right track?02br02br02br02br02br02br00Context:02br02br01b00Early-onset, severe retinal dystrophy caused by mutations in01sup00 02sup00the gene encoding retinal pigment epithelium–specific01sup00 02sup0065-kDa protein (01i00RPE6502i00)02b00 is associated with poor vision at birth01sup00 02sup00and complete loss of vision in early adulthood. We administered01sup00 02sup00to three young adult patients subretinal injections of recombinant01sup00 02sup00adeno-associated virus vector 2/2 expressing 01i00RPE6502i00 complementary01sup00 02sup00DNA (cDNA) under the control of a human 01i00RPE6502i00 promoter. There01sup00 02sup00were no serious adverse events. There was no clinically significant01sup00 02sup00change in visual acuity or in peripheral visual fields on Goldmann01sup00 02sup00perimetry in any of the three patients. We detected no change01sup00 02sup00in retinal responses on electroretinography. One patient had01sup00 02sup00significant improvement in visual function on microperimetry01sup00 02sup00and on dark-adapted perimetry. This patient also showed improvement01sup00 02sup00in a subjective test of visual mobility. These findings provide01sup00 02sup00support for further clinical studies of this experimental approach01sup00 02sup00in other patients with mutant 01i00RPE6502i00. 0-

Clive · Accepted Answer

0Hi,02br
02br
00This seems to talk about the gene01b00 01i00which encodes02i02b00 . . . a particular kind of 65-kDa protein. And that kind of 65-kDa protein is RPE65.02br
02br
00Best wishes, Clive0-

NL888 · Answer

0 Hi Clive,02br
02br
00 Did you mean "the retinal pigment epithelium refers to the specific 65-kDa protein?" That is, you meant "retinal pigment epithelium = specific 65-kDa protein"? 02br
02br
00 BTW, how can I put the mark "?" properly in the sentences above? Inside "" or outside?0-

Clive · Answer

0Hi,02br
02br
01font01b00Early-onset, severe retinal dystrophy caused by mutations in01sup^{00 02sup}00the gene encoding retinal pigment epithelium–specific01sup^{00 02sup}0065-kDa protein (01i00RPE6502i00)02b00 is associated with poor vision at birth01sup^{00 02sup}00and complete loss of vision in early adulthood. 02font02br
02br
01font01u01i00Did you mean "the retinal pigment epithelium refers to the specific 65-kDa protein?" That is, you meant "retinal pigment epithelium = specific 65-kDa protein"? 02i02u02font02br
02br
00I think you may be reading the hyphen before 'specific' as a dash to indicate a pause. I don't read it that way. I read it a hyphen to make a compound adjective 01font01b00epithelium–specific.02b00 00In other words, it is saying that the protein is00 01b00epithelium–specific.02b02font02br
02br
01font00I00 know you want to just look at the grammar and ignore the actual meaning, but that does not seem like a good approach to me. You can easily end up with a totally incorrect interpretation. In addition, many scientists who write this way are more concerned with correct science than they are with correct grammar or clear writing.02font01sup^{00 02sup}02br
02br
01sup^{00Best wishes, Clive02sup}0-

CalifJim · Answer

0 01blockquote

01cite10NL88812cite101) the gene = 10 1065-kDa protein 12br
12br
10 and12br
12br
1065-kDa protein = RPE6512br
12br
10 So it is the gene (the 65-kDa protein) that takes charge of 10encoding retinal pigment epithelium.12br
12br
10 Am I on the right track?12br
12blockquote

10 No, no no! Genes are made of DNA -- not protein. Genes contain the encoded information necessary to make protein. They are not themselves made of protein.02br
00The gene = 01i00RPE6502i00. (Note the capitalization and italics -- a typical notation for a human gene. Genes of other organisms are usually in small letters in italics.) This gene encodes for the protein known as 01b00"retinal pigment epithelium–specific01sup^{00 02sup}0065-kDa protein". 01b00 02b02b00That is, the cell "reads" the gene 01i00RPE6502i00 and follows its "instructions" to produce the protein, which is something different from the gene. (65-kDa means 65 kilodaltons, a measure of the weight of the protein. The main point is that this protein is one of the retinal pigment proteins, and it's specific to the epithelium, i.e., does not occur elsewhere. There may be other such proteins with different weights, and the difference in weight is most likely one of the factors used to distinguish one such protein from another.) 02br
00If there is a mutation in 01i00RPE6502i00, that is, if the DNA codes aren't quite the same as in normal people, then that gene cannot correctly produce the normal retinal pigment protein. Not having the normal protein is what causes the vision problems.02br
00Does that help?02br
00CJ 0-

Clive · Answer

0Hi,02br
02br
00So much for01i01u00 I just need your grammatical analysis for the sentence.02u02i02br
02br
00LOL.05002br
02br
00Best wishes, Clive010id2

NL888 · Answer

0Thank you Clive and CJ. You both have helped a lot in the analysis (of course not just grammatically 05000)010id2

NL888 · Answer

0 Hi CJ,02br
02br
00 It seems you are quite familiar with the knowledge of gene engineering. You can figure out what is 65kDa. I wonder if you can figure out what 2/2 is in the context. I ain't testing you, because I don't know what 2/2 means.02br
02br
00We administered01sup^{00 02sup}00to three young adult patients subretinal injections of recombinant01sup^{00 02sup}00adeno-associated virus vector 01b002/202b00 expressing 01i00RPE6502i00 complementary01sup^{00 02sup}00DNA (cDNA) under the control of a human 01i00RPE6502i00 promoter.0-

Pter · Answer

0 01blockquote

01cite10Clive12cite10So much for11i11u10 I just need your grammatical analysis for the sentence.12u12i12br
12br
10LOL.15012br
12br
10Best wishes, Clive12br
12blockquote

10 Hi, NL888,02br
00I think intrepretation of that really requires knowledge of the subject more than just grammatical analysis. While waiting for Jim to reply, let me try. I think the number "2" represents the allele type and the slash is used to indicate a pair. It is talking about a specific subtype of a virus. The virus is used as a vector (a tool, a carrier) to express (enable the production of the protein according to the DNA) 01i00RPE6502i00 complementary01sup^{00 02sup}00DNA. That virus is a recombinant (modified in vitro) virus similar to the adenovirus (a family of virus that accounts for 5-10% of upper respiratory infection in children). 030srchttp://www.EnglishForward.com/emoticons/emotion-2.gif

NL888 · Answer

0 Thank you Pter.02br
02br
00 But the question is that the authers used 2/2 again in the same article (see context below).02br
00 I wonder if "adeno-associated 01u00virus 2/2 vector02u00 " is "adeno-associated 01u00virus vector 2/202u00 "...02br
02br
00 And, we all the vector is a carrier carring a working copy of RPE65. Why did the authors want to say "recombinant adeno-associated virus vector 2/2 01b00expressing02b00 RPE65 complementary DNA ," but not to say "recombinant adeno-associated virus vector 2/2 01b00carrying02b00 RPE65 complementary DNA ?"02br
02br
00Context:02br
00 Discussion02br
02br
00Recombinant 01b00adeno-associated virus 2/2 vector02b00 efficiently transduces retinal pigment epithelial cells after subretinal delivery in animal models. We investigated the feasibility of subretinal vector injection in patients with advanced retinal degeneration and found that we could achieve this outcome predictably and without immediate adverse events, using a transvitreal, transretinal approach after pars plana vitrectomy. A relatively degenerate vitreous facilitated detachment and removal of the posterior vitreous cortex, which otherwise might have resisted passage of the fine cannula. We found that we could deliver through a single retinotomy up to 1 ml of vector subretinally without causing tears in thinned, degenerate retina. 02br
02br
00 The full context, click:02br
01a05000 02a0230hrefhttp://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/NEJMoa0802268

Pter · Answer

0"Expressing" means gene expression. A process in which the information encoded in DNA is used to make the product. In a technical or scientific document like this, you cannot randomly change the technical jargons. If I understand correctly, the whole phrase should be "01b00expressing02b00 RPE65 complementary DNA (cDNA) 01b00under the control of02b00 a human RPE65 promoter". The expression of RPE65 cDNA requires the human RPE65 promoter, which acts as something like a switch to start the process.02br
00The writer seems to put the word vector sometimes before 2/2 and sometimes after 2/2. They are the same thing. The virus is adeno-associated virus 2/2 and it is used as a vector. The word "vector" is also used in the term "infection vector" to refer to the pathogens in infectious diseases. 0-

Grammatical analysis is needed here

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