圈卷产色链霉菌san7324和san7324L基因阻断对形态分化和尼可霉素产生的影响

【目的】圈卷产色链霉菌全局性调控基因wblA阻断突变后,尼可霉素不再产生。RNA-seq和转录分析表明san7324基因在野生型菌株中可以正常转录,而在wblA阻断突变株(ΔwblA)中不能转录,为此本文旨在揭示san7324与尼可霉素产生的关系。【方法】利用同源双交换策略对san7324进行基因阻断,而后通过基因遗传回补及对尼可霉素生物合成相关基因的转录分析等方法研究san7324的功能。【结果】在相同培养条件下,阻断突变株Δsan7324与野生型菌株相比失去了合成尼可霉素的能力。我们通过同源比对发现圈卷产色链霉菌中还存在一个与san7324同源的基因san7324L,该基因的阻断导致尼可霉素产量降低。当san7324和san7324L两个基因同时被阻断后,得到的突变株Δsan7324-san7324L生长稀疏而且不能正常发育分化形成灰色表型的孢子或孢子链,只能形成白色表型的气生菌丝,同时也丧失了合成尼可霉素的能力。当这两个基因(san7324-san7324L)回补双突变株后,则恢复了野生型的表型(能形成孢子链并恢复尼可霉素的产生)。进一步的研究初步表明san7324和san7324L的阻断主要影响了尼可霉素生物合成基因簇中途径特异性调控基因sanG的转录水平,从而影响圈卷产色链霉菌的发育分化和尼可霉素的产生。【结论】该结果为链霉菌形态分化与生理代谢关系的研究提供了更多的证据,同时为多效调控基因wblA作用机制的阐明奠定了基础。     

Fostriecin产生菌Streptomyces pulveraceus遗传转化体系的建立与优化

【目的】建立并优化链霉菌Fostriecin产生菌Streptomyces pulveraceus的遗传转化系统。【方法】以整合型质粒pSET152为出发质粒,通过供体菌E.coli ET12567/pUZ8002与受体菌Streptomyces pulveraceus进行接合转移。【结果】确定了链霉菌Streptomyces pulveraceus的最佳接合转移条件:培养基为终浓度含15%甘氨酸的MS培养基;孢子热激条件为50°C 10 min;阿伯拉霉素覆盖的时间为18 h,终浓度为20 mg/L。同时,把组成型启动子ermE+与绿色荧光蛋白基因(gfp)克隆到pSET152载体上,通过接合转移整合到该链霉菌中,gfp获得表达。【结论】建立Fostriecin产生菌的遗传转化系统,并发现甘氨酸能显著提高链霉菌的接合转移效率。     

吸水链霉菌谷氨酰胺转胺酶基因的阻断及其对细胞分化的影响

【目的】通过对吸水链霉菌(Streptomyces hygroscopicus)中谷氨酰胺转胺酶基因的阻断,以期深入了解谷氨酰胺转胺酶生理功能,并为谷氨酰胺转胺酶发酵优化提供新的研究思路。【方法】以温敏型质粒pKC1139为出发质粒,构建阻断吸水链霉菌谷氨酰胺转胺酶编码基因的重组质粒pKC1139-TG1,转化吸水链霉菌原生质体,通过抗性筛选和PCR验证,成功得到一株谷氨酰胺转胺酶阻断菌株,命名为S.h-△TG。【结果】以原始菌株为对照,重组子基内菌丝生长不受影响,但是由基内菌丝分化形成气生菌丝的过程受到影响,重组子基本不产气生菌丝。【结论】谷氨酰胺转胺酶对吸水链霉菌气生菌丝的形成有着重要的影响,参与链霉菌气生菌丝的形成。     

BldM对密旋链霉菌Act12形态发育及抗生素合成的调控

【目的】以多效生防菌株——密旋链霉菌(Streptomyces pactum) Act12为研究材料，探究转录因子BldM对生防链霉菌Act12形态发育及抗生素合成的调控作用。【方法】通过基因工程手段构建bldM基因缺失突变株△bldM及过表达突变株OE-bldM，利用扫描电镜观察、抑菌实验、高效液相色谱检测和实时荧光定量PCR探究缺失突变株△bldM及过表达突变株OE-bldM与野生型(wild) Act12在形态发育、生长速率、寡霉素产量及抗病原菌能力等方面的差异。【结果】经测序验证bldM基因缺失突变体△bldM及过表达突变体OE-bldM均构建成功，其中△bldM寡霉素D产量明显降低且无法形成气生菌丝，而过表达突变株OE-bldM的气生菌丝更加密集，产孢更为丰富。与野生型菌株相比，OE-bldM的寡霉素D产量增加了23%，编码寡霉素核心合成酶基因的转录水平上调了2-3倍，抑菌活性显著增强。【结论】全局性转录调控因子BldM不但能影响Act12气生菌丝及孢子形成，并且参与正调控Act12寡霉素的合成，本研究结果为转录因子BldM的调控功能进行了新的挖掘和补充，并为后续深入研究密旋...     

链霉菌CB02959中四霉素及四烯菌素的鉴定及培养基优化

【背景】四霉素(Tetramycin)和四烯菌素(Tetrin)是具有广谱抗真菌活性的四烯大环内酯类抗生素。链霉菌CB02959是一株雷纳霉素(Leinamycin)类化合物的潜在产生菌株,利用antiSMASH分析其基因组发现该菌株含有一个纳他霉素(Natamycin)类四烯大环内酯化合物的生物合成基因簇。【目的】对Streptomyces sp. CB02959中次级代谢产物进行研究,确定其是否可以产生四烯大环内酯化合物,对其发酵产物进行分离和结构鉴定,并进行初步的发酵优化以提高产量。【方法】基于生物信息学预测和高分辨质谱数据,推测CB02959中多烯化合物的结构;在不同发酵培养基中培养CB02959,确定适合大规模发酵的培养基;敲除tetrA基因以确定目标基因簇和四烯大环内酯化合物产生的相关性;分离和鉴定CB02959产生的主要代谢物的结构;通过改变培养基中葡萄糖、麦芽提取物和胰蛋白胨的含量,提高四烯大环内酯化合物的产量。【结果】通过对CB02959中纳他霉素类化合物生物合成基因簇的分析及16S rRNA基因序列的进化树分析,推测CB02959可能是一株新的四霉素和四烯菌素产生菌;在YEME发酵培养基中对CB02959进行大规模发酵,分离得到4个化合物,鉴定为四霉素A (1)、四霉素B (2)、四烯菌素A (3)、四烯菌素B (4);最后通过培养基的初步优化,将化合物1–4的产量分别提高至208.1、100.0、1 315.6、109.9 mg/L。【结论】通过基因组挖掘策略发现了一株新的四霉素和四烯菌素产生菌链霉菌CB02959,并通过培养基优化提升了其四烯大环内酯化合物的产量,此发现为这类抗真菌天然产物的后续开发奠定了基础。     

基于化学遗传学筛选产萘醌类化合物内生放线菌

【目的】为探究含具有抗肿瘤活性的美登素的滑桃(Trewia nudiflora)种子中内生放线菌的多样性,以及从内生放线菌中寻找萘醌类化合物产生菌。【方法】利用放线菌富集筛选培养基对经消毒处理的滑桃种子进行内生菌分离,根据菌落形态及16S rRNA基因序列分析进行菌种的分类鉴定。通过对所分离到的内生放线菌拮抗模式病原细菌(金黄色葡萄球菌、铜绿假单胞菌)、作物病原真菌(小麦赤霉菌、水稻纹枯病致病菌等)活性检测,以及萘醌类化合物合成关键基因为探针定向筛选萘醌类化合物产生菌。【结果】从分离到的100余株滑桃种子内生菌中鉴定出66株以链霉菌为主的放线菌,发现Streptomyces sp.HTZ27菌株含有目标基因,经固体发酵、化合物分离纯化、鉴定后,发现该菌发酵产物中有呋喃萘醌I,得率接近5 mg/L。【意义】本研究采用的化学遗传学方法可有效提高筛选目标化合物产生菌的效率,所筛选到FNQ I产生菌为深入研究呋喃萘醌类化合物生物合成与调控、抗肿瘤分子机理以及产业化应用等创建了有利条件。     

卡西霉素生物合成基因簇中调控基因calR1的功能

【背景】卡西霉素(calcimycin)是重要的离子载体抗生素,其生物合成基因簇已从教酒链霉菌NRRL3882的基因组DNA中成功克隆,但基因簇内的部分生物合成基因及调控基因的功能有待研究。【目的】研究卡西霉素产生菌教酒链霉菌NRRL3882中编码TylR家族同源转录调控蛋白的calR1基因的功能。【方法】通过PCR-targeting的方法,构建calR1基因敲除突变株及回补菌株,对突变菌株及回补菌株进行发酵,通过HPLC分析其代谢产物。利用荧光定量PCR检测ΔcalR1突变菌株和野生菌株的生物合成基因转录水平。【结果】calR1基因敲除突变株丧失产生卡西霉素的能力,但仍有中间产物噻唑霉素的积累,回补菌株中卡西霉素的产量有一定程度的恢复。RT-qPCR结果表明,卡西霉素合成相关的一些重要基因calC、calG、calU3等基因的表达量明显改变。【结论】TylR家族转录调控基因calR1是卡西霉素生物合成的调控基因。     

链霉菌ε-聚赖氨酸发酵过程中的氧化胁迫效应

【目的】探究ε-聚赖氨酸(ε-PL)产生菌对p H和ε-PL的耐受性、氧化胁迫与ε-PL合成之间的关系。【方法】选取3株ε-PL产生菌Streptomyces sp.AF3-44、Streptomyces sp.AS32和Streptomyces albulus F15,比较其在发酵性能、p H和ε-PL耐受性以及抗氧化胁迫能力上的差异,并对菌株发酵过程的活性氧成因进行分析。【结果】在3株菌中AF3-44具有最强的p H和ε-PL耐受性及抗氧化胁迫能力,因而在发酵后期能够保持良好的细胞活性和最高的ε-PL浓度;ε-PL引起的氧化胁迫主要发生在发酵前期,而发酵中后期氧化胁迫的产生主要由酸性p H导致。【结论】提高链霉菌ε-PL发酵过程中的抗氧化胁迫能力,可提升菌体活力和发酵水平。     

天蓝色链霉菌孢子形成的关键基因——whiG的诱导表达

与链霉菌分化有关的whiG结构基因已亚克隆到链霉菌表达载体pAK203的tipA启动子下游.该启动子能被硫链丝菌素诱导.whiG基因的诱导表达不仅可使天蓝色链霉菌孢子形成缺陷突变株C71恢复产生孢子的能力,而且也能使天蓝色链霉菌野生型菌株J1501和变铅青链霉菌TK54的孢子形成更为丰满.Western杂交也进一步证实了诱导表达后whiG基因产物——σ~(whiG)产量的增加.这为依赖于σ~(whiG)RNA多聚酶的发育调控启动子体外转录的研究提供了有利条件.     

基于基因组挖掘的农抗120活性成分制霉菌素和丰加霉素的发现和鉴定

【目的】分析刺孢吸水链霉菌北京变种(农抗120产生菌)基因组和次级代谢产物组分,研究并鉴定农抗120产生菌中未被发现的活性组分。【方法】利用antiSMASH在线分析农抗120产生菌Streptomyces hygrospinosusvar.beijingensis基因组信息,锁定可能的制霉菌素和丰加霉素生物合成基因簇。利用HPLC和LC-MS等分析方法对农抗120产生菌发酵产物进行分析,同时利用制霉菌素和丰加霉素标准品作为对照,以鉴定该菌株代谢组分中的次级代谢产物。此外,通过构建目标基因簇大片段缺失突变株,并对所得突变株发酵产物进行检测,以确定生物合成基因簇与目的代谢产物的对应关系。【结果】本研究综合利用基因组序列分析、基因缺失突变株构建以及代谢产物检测方法,鉴定了农抗120产生菌中制霉菌素和丰加霉素两种活性成分,并确定了负责这些化合物合成的基因簇。【结论】本研究所构建的多重基因簇失活突变株为挖掘刺孢吸水链霉菌北京变种更多的天然次级代谢产物奠定了基础。     

A Unique Protease Cleavage Site Predicted in the Spike Protein of the Novel Pneumonia Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) Potentially Related to Viral Transmissibility

正Dear Editor,In December 2019, a novel human coronavirus caused an epidemic of severe pneumonia(Coronavirus Disease 2019,COVID-19) in Wuhan, Hubei, China(Wu et al. 2020; Zhu et al. 2020). So far, this virus has spread to all areas of China and even to other countries. The epidemic has caused 67,102 confirmed infections with 1526 fatal cases     

Curcuminoids as inhibitors of thioredoxin reductase: A receptor based pharmacophore study with distance mapping of the active site

Curcumin is the yellow pigment of turmeric that interacts irreversibly forming an adduct with thioredoxin reductase (TrxR), an enzyme responsible for redox control of cell and defence against oxidative stress. Docking at both the active sites of TrxR was performed to compare the potency of three naturally occurring curcuminoids, namely curcumin, demethoxy curcumin and bis-demethoxy curcumin. Results show that active sites of TrxR occur at the junction of E and F chains. Volume and area of both cavities is predicted. It has been concluded by distance mapping of the most active conformations that Se atom of catalytic residue SeCYS498, is at a distance of 3.56 from C13 of demethoxy curcumin at the E chain active site, whereas C13 carbon atom forms adduct with Se atom of SeCys 498. We report that at least one methoxy group in curcuminoids is necessary for interation with catalytic residues of thioredoxin. Pharmacophore of both active sites of the TrxR receptor for curcumin and demethoxy curcumin molecules has been drawn and proposed for design and synthesis of most probable potent antiproliferative synthetic drugs.     

Comparative morphology of the carpel in the Liliaceae: Hewardieae, Petrosavieae, and Tricyrteae

The young pistils in the melanthioid tribes, Hewardieae, Petrosavieae and Tricyrteae, are uniformly tricarpellate and syncarpous. They lack raphide idioblasts. All are multiovulate, with bitegmic ovules. The Petrosavieae are marked by the presence of septal glands and incomplete syncarpy. Tepals and stamens adhere to the ovary in the Hewardieae and the Petrosavieae but not in the Tricyrteae. Two vascular bundles occur in the stamens of the Hewartlieae and Tricyrtis latifolia. Ventral bundles in the upper part of the ovary of the Hewardieae are continuous with compound septal bundles and placental bundles in the lower part. Putative ventral bundles occur in the alternate position in the Tricyrteae and putative placental bundles in the opposite. position in the Petrosavieae. The dichtomously branched stigma in each carpel of the Tricyrteae is supplied by a bifurcated dorsal bundle.     

Enterovirus 71 3C proteolytically processes the histone H3 N-terminal tail during infection

Highlights
1. The N-terminal tail of histone H3 is specifically cleaved during EV71 infection.
2. Viral protease 3C is identified as a protease responsible for proteolytically processing the N-terminal H3 tail.
3. Our finding reveals a new epigenetic regulatory mechanism for Enterovirus 71 in virus-host interactions.     

Detection of EBV and HHV6 in the Brain Tissue of Patients with Rasmussen’s Encephalitis

Rasmussen’s encephalitis (RE) is a rare pediatric neurological disorder, and the exact etiology is not clear. Viral infection may be involved in the pathogenesis of RE, but conflicting results have reported. In this study, we evaluated the expression of both Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and human herpes virus (HHV) 6 antigens in brain sections from 30 patients with RE and 16 control individuals by immunohistochemistry. In the RE group, EBV and HHV6 antigens were detected in 56.7% (17/30) and 50% (15/30) of individuals, respectively. In contrast, no detectable EBV and HHV6 antigen expression was found in brain tissues of the control group. The co-expression of EBV and HHV6 was detected in 20.0% (6/30) of individuals. In particular, a 4-year-old boy had a typical clinical course, including a medical history of viral encephalitis, intractable epilepsy, and hemispheric atrophy. The co-expression of EBV and HHV6 was detected in neurons and astrocytes in the brain tissue, accompanied by a high frequency of CD8⁺ T cells. Our results suggest that EBV and HHV6 infection and the activation of CD8⁺ T cells are involved in the pathogenesis of RE.     

Perinatal Vertical Transmission of Chikungunya Virus in Ruili,a Town on the Border between China and Myanmar

正Dear Editor,Chikungunya virus (CHIKV), an arbovirus in the family of Togaviridae, genus Alphavirus, is transmitted by the A.aegyptii or A. albopictus mosquito, and causes disease in humans characterized by fever, rash, and arthralgia (Silva and Dermody 2017; Suhrbier 2019). It was first reported in 1953 in Tanzania, and caused only a few outbreaks and sporadic cases in Africa and Asia in last century. However, in the epidemic in 2004, CHIKV acquired mutations that conferred enhanced transmission by the A. albopictus mosquito(Schuffenecker et al. 2006). Since then, it has successively caused outbreaks in Africa, the Indian Ocean, South East Asia, the South America, and Europe (Zeller et al. 2016).     

Development of a Novel Reverse Transcription Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification Method for Rapid Detection of SARS-CoV-2

In conclusion, the novel visual RT-LAMP assay is a simple, rapid, and sensitive approach for detection of SARS-CoV-2, and it is ready for application in primary care and community hospitals or health care centers, and even patients' own houses in response to the current SARS-CoV-2 epidemic because the assay does not require sophisticated equipment and skilled personnel. Furthermore, it is also ready to be used in fields for screening samples from wild animals and environments to facilitate the identification of potential intermediate hosts that mediate the cross-species transmission of SARS-CoV-2 from bats to humans.