一种1型单纯疱疹病毒载体系统的建立

1型单纯疱疹病毒(HSV-1)作为溶瘤病毒和病毒载体的研究已有很长的历史.本研究利用细菌人工染色体技术建立了一种HSV-1载体系统.首先,将HSV-1内部反向重复序列(internal inverted repeat sequences,IR)两侧的片段克隆入p KO5获得穿梭质粒p KO5/BN,其电转含p HSVBAC的大肠杆菌后筛选获得删除IR区重组DNA的p HSVΔIR-BAC.p HSVΔIR-BAC转染Vero细胞获得删除IR区的重组病毒HSVΔIR(MH1001).上述p KO5/BN和含p HSVΔIR-BAC的大肠杆菌构成了HSV-1载体系统.利用该系统获得了表达绿色荧光蛋白EGFP的重组病毒HSVΔIR/EGFP(MH1002).MH1001和MH1002在感染的Vero细胞中增殖水平略低于野生型HSV-1,但无显著差异;Western印迹检测表明,重组病毒早期蛋白质ICP0、ICP4、ICP8、ICP22、ICP27在感染细胞中的表达水平下降;免疫荧光及激光共聚焦检测表明,重组病毒与野生型病毒均存在于细胞质中.以上结果表明,删除IR区的重组HSV-1保留了复制能力,能够携载并表达外源基因,建立的HSV-1载体系统可用于构建携载外源基因的复制型重组HSV-1.     

传统DNA疫苗载体与Semliki森林病毒复制子对HIV-1 Pr55gag表达与体液免疫原性的比较性研究

为探索Semliki森林病毒(SFV)衍生的复制型DNA载体可否用于HIV疫苗的候选载体,对该载体与传统DNA疫苗载体对HIV-1Pr55gag的表达与体液免疫原性进行了系统比较研究.将野生型(wtgag)及密码子改造(syngag)的HIV-1 ⅢB gag基因分别克隆于SFV DNA载体及传统DNA疫苗载体[pCDNA3.1(+)],对其Pr55gag细胞内表达水平、Pr55gag病毒样颗粒释放、以及在BALB/c鼠的体液免疫原性进行了比较.在293T、H1299、C2C12和BHK细胞系中,SFV-wtgag可以Rev非依赖方式有效表达Pr55gag,而pC-wtgag转染的细胞不能有效表达Pr55gag,从而不能诱导小鼠产生免疫反应.虽然SFV质粒的细胞转化效率明显低于pCDNA载体,SFV-wtgag和SFV-syngag在细胞内Pr55gag的表达量与pC-syngag相似,而Pr55gag病毒样颗粒的释放明显低于pC-syngag.在肌内注射免疫的小鼠中,低剂量(0.1和1.0μg)的SFV及pCDNA gag表达质粒均未诱导出GAG特异性免疫反应.在高剂量(10,30,100μg)免疫组中,与SFV gag表达质粒相比,pC-syngag可诱导出较高水平的TH1型GAG特异性抗体.SFV-syngag较SFV-wtgag可诱导出高水平的体液免疫反应.结果提示,SFV衍生的复制子单独使用不能在小鼠诱导出优于传统DNA疫苗载体的HIV-1 GAG特异性体液免疫反应,其原因可能与病毒样颗粒的释放有关.密码子改造的gag基因的优势在SFV载体系统中得到了进一步证实.     

表达HIV-1 CRF01＿AE亚型结构基因小鼠模型的建立和鉴定

目的:构建并鉴定表达HIV-1 CRF01_AE亚型结构基因的小鼠模型。方法:使用哺乳动物密码子优化的HIV-1 CRF01_AE gp160基因,通过慢病毒包装系统构建重组慢病毒LV-GFP-AE gp160,将上述重组慢病毒感染小鼠肺上皮细胞TC-1,经嘌呤霉素抗性筛选获得稳定表达gp160基因的TC-1细胞。采用RT-PCR、流式细胞术检测gp160基因在细胞内的表达稳定性,将稳定表达Gp160蛋白的TC-1-HIV AE gp160细胞接种小鼠,用免疫组化方法检测小鼠体内细胞团块中HIV Gp160蛋白的表达。结果:菌落PCR、酶切鉴定和测序表明重组质粒pLVX-AE gp160构建正确,RT-PCR、GFP荧光及流式细胞术结果均显示gp160基因能在细胞TC-1中稳定表达,免疫组化结果也表明小鼠体内接种的细胞可以稳定表达HIV Gp160蛋白。结论:建立了稳定表达HIV-1 CRF01_AE亚型Gp160蛋白的TC-1细胞及小鼠模型,为HIV-1 CRF01_AE亚型HIV疫苗的临床前研究提供了可靠的体外、体内免疫原性评价工具,为该疫苗的进一步开发奠定了坚实的实验基础。     

人星状病毒非结构蛋白基因nsP1a/1真核表达载体构建及其在293T细胞中的表达

目的将人星状病毒非结构蛋白ns P1a/1基因连接到真核表达载体上,转染人胚肾上皮细胞48 h后检测其表达。方法设计特异性引物PCR扩增人星状病毒非结构蛋白ns P1a/1片段,分别插入真核表达载体pc DNA3.1(+)和p EGFP-N2载体,构建重组表达质粒pc DNA3.1(+)-ns P1a/1-His和p EGFP-N2-ns P1a/1。在转染试剂PEI的介导下将重组表达质粒分别转染293T细胞,转染48 h后分别在荧光显微镜下观察EGFP的表达以及通过Western blot检测ns P1a/1基因的表达。结果重组表达质粒pc DNA3.1(+)-ns P1a/1-His和p EGFP-N2-ns P1a/1构建成功;转染p EGFP-N2-ns P1a/1后48 h能够在荧光显微镜蓝色激发光下观察到较强的黄绿色荧光;转染pc DNA3.1(+)-ns P1a/1-His后48 h收集细胞进行Western blot检测,能够检测到ns P1a/1-His融合报告基因的表达。结论成功构建了人星状病毒非结构蛋白ns P1a/1基因真核表达质粒,并在人胚肾上皮细胞293T细胞获得表达,为进一步深入研究ns P1a/1在人星状病毒抵御宿主细胞抗病毒天然免疫中是否发挥作用奠定了基础。     

含HIV-1 gag、gagV3基因的重组腺病毒伴随病毒的构建及其免疫原性的研究

将HIV－1中国株42（B亚型）gag基因及gag与gp120 V3区的嵌合基因gag V3插入腺病毒伴随病毒（AAV）表达载体（pSNAV）质粒中,构建重组质粒pSNAV-gag及pSNAV-gagV3;采用脂质体转染的方法分别将重组质粒转入BHK细胞,G418筛选得到转入重组质粒并能表达外源基因的细胞系,命名为BHK－gag及BHK－gagV3。用具有重组腺病毒伴随病毒（rAAV）包装功能的一种重组单纯疱疹病毒（rHSV）分析感染这两株细胞系,纯化后得到rAAV,电镜观察可见到大量实心病毒颗粒,核酸杂交检测重组病毒滴度达到10^12病毒颗粒／ml,重组病毒感染293细胞,ELISA检测有gag及gagV3基因的表达。用重组病毒免疫Balb/C小鼠,检测抗体及细胞免疫水平,证明重组病毒可以在小鼠体内诱导产生细胞及体液免疫。     

HIV-1 B亚型gag基因密码子优化及其免疫原性的研究

从河南HIV-1流行区感染者中克隆HIV-1 B亚型gag基因,通过序列比对获得其一致性共有序列,对该共有序列按照哺乳动物优势密码子的使用原则进行优化,以Western blot方法比较优化前后gag基因体外表达量.发现对gag基因进行密码子优化可显著提高其表达水平.将优化后的mod.gag基因插入重组腺病毒载体,构建了重组病毒rAdV-mod.gag.在BALB/c小鼠体内分别以108PFIJ及108PFU rAdV-mod.gag疫苗单独免疫两次均可产生较高水平的gag特异性细胞免疫反应.由此得出结论,对gag基因的密码子优化是成功的;表达优化后gag基因的重组腺病毒疫苗,可以在小鼠体内诱导较强的gag基因特异性CTL应答.     

HIV-1 C亚型密码子优化gp120基因重组腺病毒载体的构建及表达

目的构建含有HIV-1C亚型gp120基因重组腺病毒载体,并在293细胞中表达gp120蛋白。方法PCR扩增,获得HIV-1C亚型gp120片段,定向克隆人腺病毒转移载体pTrack-CMV,线性化后转化至含有腺病毒骨架载体pAd-easy-1的大肠埃希菌BJ5183,获得重组子prAd—gp120,PacI酶切纯化后转染293细胞,包装成复制缺陷型重组腺病毒vAd—gp120。结果经PCR、酶切及DNA测序,插入片段大小、方向正确,获得了具有感染力的vAd—gp120重组腺病毒;通过Western印迹检测,重组腺病毒在293细胞中表达出分子量为120kD的蛋白。结论成功构建了含有HIV-1C亚型gp120基因重组腺病毒载体,并获得该基因的表达。     

HIV-1包膜蛋白gp41优势抗原的构建及可溶性表达

目的:筛选1型人免疫缺陷病毒(HIV-1)中国流行株中包膜蛋白gp41的优势抗原片段,构建具有区域流行代表性的HIV-1 gp41重组抗原,为改进现有HIV-1初筛试剂盒中使用的同类抗原奠定基础。方法:利用免疫斑点杂交和生物信息学方法,从收集自重庆、广州、上海的区域代表性150份HIV-1感染者血清标本中筛选gp41抗原性强的候选样本,利用RT-PCR及巢式PCR方法扩增包含重要抗原表位决定蔟的gp41基因片段,与原核表达载体pQE30连接,转化大肠杆菌M15构建gp41重组抗原表达菌株,表达后经亲和层析纯化、SDS-PAGE和Western印迹鉴定。结果:兔源HRP标记的gp41多抗能识别标本中gp41抗原性差异,得到候选样本,扩增包含gp41主要抗原表位片段;构建了包含gp41抗原表达簇的重组原核表达质粒,表达、纯化后经His标签抗体Western印迹鉴定为阳性。结论:高纯度的重组优势gp41抗原的构建和鉴定,为进一步改进现有HIV初筛诊断奠定了基础。     

应用ELISPOT方法筛选确定HIV-1B'/C亚型疫苗六种抗原的H-2d限制的T细胞表位

为了筛选和确定用于检测表达HIV-1 B’/C亚型病毒6种抗原(gp160、gag、polr、evt、at和nef)的艾滋病疫苗免疫小鼠后H-2d限制的特异性T细胞表位,本研究使用表达上述6种抗原的复制型DNA疫苗和非复制型重组痘苗病毒疫苗联合免疫BALB/c小鼠,通过矩阵设计将HIV-1 B(C)亚型6种相应抗原全序列肽库分别混合成肽池,使用肽池对免疫小鼠进行IFN-γELISPOT检测,根据检测结果确定肽库中特异反应的优势表位肽。结果显示:筛选到七条针对Gag的特异表位肽,其中有5条与文献报道相同,另2条为新表位肽;筛选到3条针对Pol蛋白特异表位肽,其中一条为新表位肽;筛选到2条针对gp160特异表位肽,其中一条为新表位肽;在Nef肽库中筛选到一条新的表位肽;从Tat肽库中筛选到3条表位肽,这三条肽在肽库中是连续的序列,都包含(或部分包含)网上公布的表位序列;在Rev肽库中没有筛选到能够产生阳性反应的特异性表位肽。本研究使用IFN-γELISPOT方法筛选和确定了可用于检测表达HIV-1 B’/C亚型病毒6种抗原(gp160、gag、pol、revt、at和nef)的艾滋病疫苗免疫小鼠后H-2d限制的特异性T细胞表位。     

5个HIV基因修饰可明显提高其在不同系统中的表达

目的:确定HIV-1疫苗中有效的交叉保护性细胞免疫抗原,提高各个基因在相应疫苗载体中的表达水平,为研究不同抗原在DNA载体和痘苗病毒载体中的免疫原性奠定实验基础。方法:选择HIV B′/C亚型5个以细胞免疫为主的抗原(Gag、Pol、Rev、Tat和Nef),进行基因序列优化及表达结构改造,并分别构建以质粒DNA和重组痘苗病毒为载体的两大类HIV-1疫苗。结果:优化前后5个目的基因均能够在这2种载体中有效表达;虽然采用相同的基因修饰策略,但与痘苗病毒载体相比,在DNA载体中各基因表达水平的提高均较为明显;含有抑制性序列(INS)的gag、pol基因经密码子优化后,Gag、Pol蛋白的表达均明显提高,其中Pol蛋白的提高更为明显,单独pol基因比gagpol天然结构表达水平要高,而gag基因却变化不大;对于rev、tat、nef基因而言,优化后的单独基因结构要略高于优化后的融合结构(hRTN),且二者均高于未优化的融合结构(RTN)。结论:为进一步确定HIV-1疫苗中有效的交叉保护性细胞免疫抗原、研究不同抗原在DNA载体和痘苗病毒载体中的免疫原性奠定了实验基础,为进一步研究DNA疫苗和重组痘苗病毒疫苗联合免疫提供了实验依据。     

细胞色素P450 1A1和1B1靶向抗肿瘤前药研究进展

细胞色素P450（CYP）能催化各种内源性及外源性化合物的代谢,与多种肿瘤发生有关。其中CYP1A1参与多种前致癌物和致突变物的代谢活化,CYP1B1被认为在许多人癌细胞中特异性表达,参与药物的氧化代谢和前药的活化。CYP1A1和181已成为靶向抗肿瘤前药研究的新靶点。相继有大量相关研究报道,本文就近年来文献报道的CYP1A1和1B1靶向抗肿瘤前药研究进展。     

Association of SULT1A1 and UGT1A1 polymorphisms with breast cancer risk and phenotypes in Russian women

Estrogens are critical for breast cancer initiation and development. Sulfotransferase 1A1 (SULT1A1) and UDP-glucuronosyltransferase 1A1 (UGT1A1) conjugate and inactivate both estrogens and their metabolites, thus preventing estrogen-mediated mitosis and mutagenesis. SULT1A1 and UGT1A1 are both polymorphic, and different alleles encode functionally different allozymes. We hypothesize that low-activity alleles SULT1A1*2 and UGT1A1*28 are associated with higher risk for breast cancer and more severe breast tumor phenotypes. We performed a case-control study, which included 119 women of Russian ancestry with breast cancer and 121 age-matched Russian female controls. We used PCR followed by pyrosequencing to determine the SULT1A1 and UGT1A1 genotypes. Allele UGT1A1*28 was present at a higher frequency than the wild-type UGT1A1*1 allele in breast cancer patients as compared to controls (P = 0.002, OR = 1.79, CI 1.23–2.63). Consistently, the frequency of genotypes that contain allele UGT1A1*28 in the homozygous or the heterozygous state was greater in breast cancer patients as compared with the frequency of the wild-type UGT1A1*1/*1 genotype (P = 0.003, OR = 4.00, CI 1.49–11.11 and P = 0.014, OR = 2.04, CI 1.14–3.57, respectively). Individuals carrying allele UGT1A1*28 in the homo-or heterozygous state had larger breast tumors (>2 cm) as compared to the group with high-activity genotypes (P = 0.011, IR = 3.44, CI 1.42–8.36). No association was observed between any of the SULT1A1 genotypes and breast cancer risk or phenotypes. Our data suggest that UGT1A1, but not SULT1A1, genotypes are important for breast cancer risk and phenotype in Russian women. Published in Russian in Molekulyarnaya Biologiya, 2006, Vol. 40, No. 2, pp. 263–270. The article was translated by the authors.     

Upregulation of MAPKAPK5-AS1, PXN-AS1 and URB1-AS1 lncRNAs in non-functioning pituitary adenoma

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been shown to be dysregulated in a variety of malignant and non-malignant lesions including non-functioning pituitary adenomas (NFPAs). In the current experimental study, we have selected six lncRNAs, namely MAPKAPK5-AS1, NUTM2B-AS1, ST7-AS1, LIFR-AS1, PXN-AS1 and URB1-AS1 to assess their expression in a cohort of Iranian patients with NFPA. MAPKAPK5-AS1, PXN-AS1 and URB1-AS1 were shown to be over-expressed in NFPA tissues compared with control samples (Expression ratios (95% CI) = 10 (3.94–25.36), 11.22 (4.3–28.8) and 9.33 (4.12–21.12); p values < 0.0001, respectively). The depicted ROC curves showed the AUC values of 0.73, 0.80 and 0.73 for MAPKAPK5-AS1, PXN-AS1 and URB1-AS1, respectively. Relative expression level of PXN-AS1 was associated with tumour subtype (p value = 0.49). Besides, relative expression levels of MAPKAPK5-AS1 and LIFR-AS1 were associated with gender of patients (p values = 0.043 and 0.01, respectively). Cumulatively, the current study indicates the possible role of MAPKAPK5-AS1, PXN-AS1 and URB1-AS1 lncRNAs in the pathogenesis of NFPAs.     

Bmi1 cooperates with Dnmt1-associated protein 1 in gene silencing

Polycomb group (PcG) proteins are involved in gene silencing through chromatin modifications. Among polycomb repressive complexes (PRCs), PRC1 exhibits H2A-K119 ubiquitin E3 ligase activity. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying PRC1-mediated gene silencing remain largely obscure. In this study, we found that Bmi1 directly interacts with Dnmt-associated protein 1 (Dmap1), which has been characterized to associate with the maintenance DNA methyltransferase, Dnmt1. Bmi1 was demonstrated to form a ternary complex with Dmap1 and Dnmt1 with Dmap1 in the central position. Chromatin immunoprecipitations confirmed the ternary complex formation within the context of the PRC1 at the Bmi1 target loci. Loss of Dmap1 binding to the Bmi1 target loci was tightly associated with derepressed gene expression in Bmi1-/- cells. Dmap1 knockdown exhibited the same impact as Bmi1 knockout did on the expression of Bmi1 targets, including Hox genes. Collectively, our findings suggest that Bmi1 incorporates Dmap1 in polycomb gene silencing.     

Acid-dependent Interleukin-1 (IL-1) Cleavage Limits Available Pro-IL-1β for Caspase-1 Cleavage

Noncommunicable diseases such as cardiovascular disease (stroke and heart attack), cancer, chronic respiratory disease, and diabetes are a leading cause of death and disability worldwide and are worsened by inflammation. IL-1 is a driver of inflammation and implicated in many noncommunicable diseases. Acidosis is also a key feature of the inflammatory microenvironment; therefore it is vital to explore IL-1 signaling under acidic conditions. A HEK-IL-1 reporter assay and brain endothelial cell line were used to explore activity of mature IL-1α and IL-1β at pH 7.4 and pH 6.2, an acidic pH that can be reached under inflammatory or ischemic conditions, alongside cathepsin D-cleaved 20-kDa IL-1β produced under acidic conditions. We report that mature IL-1 signaling at IL-1 receptor type 1 (IL-1R1) is maintained at pH 6.2, but the activity of the decoy receptor, IL-1R2, is reduced. Additionally, cathepsin D-cleaved 20-kDa IL-1β was minimally active at IL-1R1 and was not further cleaved to highly active 17-kDa IL-1β. Therefore formation of the 20-kDa form of IL-1β may prevent the generation of mature bioactive IL-1β and thus may limit inflammation.     

NPC1L1:固醇脂质吸收的关键蛋白质

NPC1L1是最近发现的一种与NPC1同源的蛋白质。在体内的分布有物种差异性,其亚细胞定位存在很大争议。近些年发现NPC1L1在固醇类脂质代谢途径中起着重要作用,是肠道吸收固醇类脂质尤其是胆固醇的关键蛋白质,这项新发现使得人们对固醇类脂质的吸收机制有了了解。高胆固醇血症是心血管系统疾病的一个高危因子,因此,对NPC1L1的研究具有重大的实际意义,正逐渐成为研究的热点。     

Isolation and Characterization of Ubiquitin-activating Enzyme E1-domain Containing 1, UBE1DC1

Ubiquitin and other ubiquitin-like proteins play important roles in post-translational modification. They are phylogenetically well-conserved in eukaryotes. Activated by other proteins, ubiquitin and ubiquitin-like proteins can covalently modify target proteins. The enzymes responsible for the activation of this modification have been known to include UBA1, SAE2, UBA3, SAE1 and ULA1. Here we report a new ubiquitin activating enzyme like cDNA, named ubiquitin activating enzyme E1-domain containing 1 (UBE1DC1), whose cDNA is 2654 base pairs in length and contains an open reading frame encoding 404 amino acids. The UBE1DC1 gene consists of 12 exons and is located at human chromosome 3q22. The result of RT-PCR showed that UBE1DC1 is expressed in most of human tissues. These two authors contributed equally to this paper. The nucleotide sequence reported in this paper has been submitted to GenBank under accession number AY253672.