应用凝集素芯片检测肝癌细胞膜表面糖链变化

利用凝集素糖链特异亲和原理构建对细胞膜表面糖链进行即时检测的凝集素芯片体系,检测肝癌发生过程中细胞膜糖链的变化.从H22细胞系、正常小鼠和肝癌模型鼠肝组织中提取细胞进行荧光标记,激光扫描仪检测凝集素位点捕获的细胞,根据凝集素特异亲和性确定细胞膜表面糖表达谱,显微镜下观察捕获细胞的形态.对凝集素芯片捕获细胞的最佳条件进行探讨,用甘露糖抑制试验、流式细胞仪和不同血型红细胞验证了凝集素捕获细胞的特异性.结果显示:正常和肝癌小鼠肝细胞膜表面糖链存在较大差异,正常组只有PSA、DSL、STL、NPL凝集素位点捕获到细胞,实验组只有LTL和DBA位点没有捕获到细胞,提示小鼠肝癌组织细胞膜表面糖链显著增加,细胞膜上唾液酸、乙酰葡萄糖、乙酰半乳糖、甘露糖和半乳糖糖链表达增加,这些糖链及其相关糖蛋白可能在肝癌的发生和发展中起一定作用.该凝集素芯片有较好的稳定性和特异性,可以对细胞膜表面糖链进行动态、即时、通量的检测,为研究细胞膜表面聚糖在细胞发育和癌变等过程中的变化提供了一个技术平台.     

应用凝集素芯片分析癌细胞膜表面糖链表达

细胞膜表面糖复合物的糖链结构与肿瘤细胞增殖、侵染、转移等发展过程密切相关.凝集素芯片技术的出现实现了对癌症的糖组进行快速、高通量的检测.通过模式细胞系PANC-1证明了构建的凝集素芯片体系的准确性、重复性、特异性,应用这一芯片体系初步检测了几种癌细胞系(HT-29、SGC-7901、BEL-7402、H460)的膜表面糖链表达.这几种癌细胞系表面都有唾液酸、乙酰葡萄糖/葡萄糖、乙酰半乳糖/半乳糖、甘露糖等糖链.根据实验结果,推测它们的细胞膜表面α1-6岩藻糖链表达水平可能较高,而α1-3岩藻糖链表达水平较低;这些聚糖可能是癌症潜在的标志物.凝集素芯片有助于推动癌细胞膜表面糖链的快速分析和筛选出癌症相关的糖链标志物.     

CK8寡糖链结构及翻译水平改变与人肝癌细胞转移相关性研究

糖组学方法筛查人肝癌细胞转移过程中发挥重要作用的核心岩藻糖基化蛋白质分子,解析比较筛出的差异蛋白——细胞角蛋白8(CK8)翻译及糖基化修饰改变与人肝癌细胞转移潜能的关系.应用双向电泳(2-DE)、凝集素亲和印迹、凝集素亲和沉淀联合质谱分析技术,筛查并验证与肝癌转移相关的核心岩藻糖基化蛋白;应用细胞免疫荧光和蛋白质免疫印迹检测CK8的蛋白质表达情况;应用免疫沉淀结合多种凝集素亲和印迹,推测其与肝癌转移相关的寡糖链结构改变.研究发现,3种不同转移潜能人肝癌细胞Hep3B、MHCC97-L和MHCC97-H的扁豆凝集素(LCA)亲和印迹表达谱中,分子质量55～60ku、等电点4～6区域处有核心岩藻糖基化蛋白呈差异表达,质谱鉴定为CK8.LCA亲和沉淀及蛋白质印迹进一步验证CK8异常核心岩藻糖基化与肝癌转移相关;研究发现,CK8分布于细胞浆内,在MHCC97-L和MHCC97-H细胞中蛋白质表达水平较Hep3B高,在MHCC97-H中与LCA和蓖麻凝集素(RCA-1)的亲和力较Hep3B强.以上结果提示,2-DE和凝集素印迹技术联合MALDI-TOF-MS/MS分析可用于筛查疾病过程相关的异常糖基化蛋白质分子,CK8蛋白水平、核心岩藻糖基化及β-1,4末端半乳糖基化的增加均与肝癌细胞转移潜能相关.     

小鼠肝癌及肝正常组织B4GalT糖基转移酶家族mRNA表达差异及其对细胞膜相关糖链的影响

探讨肝癌模型鼠与正常小鼠肝组织B4GalT(β-1,4-半乳糖转移酶)家族mRNA表达差异以及对细胞膜相关糖链的影响.采用RT-PCR方法检测肝癌模型鼠和正常对照小鼠肝癌组织中B4GalT家族7个成员以及唾液酸α-2,3转移酶ST3GalⅢ、ST3GalⅣ、ST3GalⅥ、α-1,6-岩藻糖转移酶FUT8 mRNA表达差异,应用凝集素芯片检测细胞膜表面半乳糖、岩藻糖、唾液酸表达情况.结果显示:与正常对照组相比,肝癌模型鼠肝组织中B4GalT-1和B4GalT-3、ST3GalⅣ和ST3GalⅥ、FUT8呈现高表达,肝癌细胞膜半乳糖、岩藻糖、唾液酸类型糖链增加,提示B4GalT-1和B4GalT-3与肝癌细胞膜半乳糖链增加相关.由于细胞Galβ-1,4-GlcNAc糖表位在ST3GalⅢ、ST3GalⅣ或ST3GalⅥ催化下与唾液酸α-2,3连接生成s-lewis x抗原前体,本实验中B4GalT-1和B4GalT-3与ST3GalⅣ、ST3GalⅤ、FUT8 mRNA表达具有相关性,提示B4GalT-1和B4GalT-3可能与ST3GalⅣ、ST3GalⅥ以及FUT4协同作用,导致肝癌细胞膜半乳糖、岩藻糖、唾液酸类型糖链增加.     

H7N2禽流感病毒HA的分离纯化及其糖链谱研究

血凝素(HA)是位于流感病毒囊膜表面的一种Ⅰ型跨膜糖蛋白,是流感病毒结合宿主细胞表面受体,介导病毒入胞的关键分子,也是中和抗体以及疫苗研制的重要靶标.HA表面糖基化与病毒毒力、感染宿主范围等密切相关,且其表面糖链变化会影响其结构与功能.然而目前关于流感病毒HA糖基化的研究主要集中在其糖基化位点上,而对于HA上详细的糖链结构知之甚少.本文应用禽流感病毒特异识别的唾液酸糖链(SAα2-3Gal)受体,制备特异的糖链磁性微粒复合物,进而从H7N2禽流感病毒中分离纯化HA,并采用SDS-PAGE及质谱技术进行鉴定.确定提取物系HA后,进一步利用凝集素芯片联合质谱技术研究禽流感病毒H7N2的HA表面糖型,结果显示H7N2禽流感病毒HA表面主要含有岩藻糖、半乳糖、N-乙酰半乳糖胺、甘露糖、N-乙酰葡糖胺等糖链结构,共获得16个糖链结构较为准确的寡糖,这些糖链可能与HA生物学功能相关.本研究有助于揭示禽流感病毒感染宿主的糖链作用机制,有助于设计制备针对HA相关的糖链疫苗.     

凝集素芯片对体液细胞进行检测方法的建立和初步应用

建立对体液细胞进行自动捕获的凝集素芯片体系,利用凝集素对糖链的特异亲和作用捕获细胞,提取白血病患者外周血、肺癌胸水和肝腹水中细胞进行荧光标记,凝集素芯片捕获,激光扫描仪检测捕获细胞的荧光信号,常规HE染色后光学显微镜下观察细胞的形态并进行免疫化学反应,流式细胞仪验证凝集素芯片的特异性．结果表明：凝集素芯片可以对体液中的癌细胞进行自动捕获,对癌细胞膜表面糖链进行识别．芯片检测的细胞浓度最少可达每mL10^4个左右．芯片有较好的重复性和特异性．这种凝集素芯片可用于临床体液中癌细胞的检测分析,对癌细胞膜表面凝集素亲和位点进行即时、高通量的检测,为了解细胞膜表面聚糖在癌变过程中的变化提供了一个技术平台．     

天花粉凝集素的糖结合专一性

本文对天花粉凝集素的糖结合特性,进行了初步研究。观察到除了半乳糖外,高浓度的葡萄糖也可将天花粉凝集素从酸处理交联琼脂糖亲和吸附柱上洗脱下来。N-乙酰氨基半乳糖对标记天花粉凝集素和酸处理交联琼脂糖的结合的抑制能力和半乳糖相同,甘露糖、葡萄糖、N-乙酰氨基葡萄糖仅在高浓度下才有较强的抑制能力。     

天花粉凝集素的糖结合专一性

本文对天花粉凝集素的糖结合特性,进行了初步研究。观察到除了半乳糖外,高浓度的葡萄糖也可将天花粉凝集素从酸处理交联琼脂糖亲和吸附柱上洗脱下来。N-乙酰氨基半乳糖对标记天花粉凝集素和酸处理交联琼脂糖的结合的抑制能力和半乳糖相同,甘露糖、葡萄糖、N-乙酰氨基葡萄糖仅在高浓度下才有较强的抑制能力。     

麦胚凝集素的结构及与专一性糖的相互作用

麦胚凝集素(WGA)分子由两个相同原体组成。WGAⅡ的原体为一条171个氨基酸残基的多肽链,肽链可分成四段,各段氨基酸顺序呈明显同系现象,折叠成形态相似的结构域。WGA的高级结构有明显对称性。二原体交界处有两对糖结合部位,能借氢键和疏水相互作用特异地结合N-乙酰葡糖胺和N-乙酰神经氨酸及其衍生物和寡聚糖。WGA与某些细胞上依赖糖的受体作用引起生物效应,其特殊的空间结构是重要的。     

岩藻糖链与肝癌细胞发生和转移的相关性研究

研究观察了大鼠诱发肝癌过程中,与UEA、LCA凝集素相结合的含岩藻糖糖蛋白尤其是80 ku蛋白的动态变化．在肝癌病人标本中,也观察到了高转移性肝癌细胞比低转移性肝癌细胞表达更多的UEA、LCA相结合的岩藻糖蛋白．岩藻糖寡糖可以构成一些非常重要的黏附分子的结构,如Lewis抗原．继而进一步观察了不同转移潜能的肝癌细胞中Lewis抗原的表达差异,发现高转移性肝癌细胞 (HMCC97H) 比低转移性肝癌细胞(HMCC97L)表达更高的Lewis x 和 b．在肝癌转移动物模型中,转移灶组织中的Lewis抗原合成关键酶α1,3/1,2以及 α1,6 岩藻糖转移酶活性远比对照组高．当肝癌细胞在维甲酸作用以后,细胞表面的Lewis x 或 b 的水平显著下降,α1,3/1,2岩藻糖转移酶活性也显著下降．同时我们观察到Lewis x可以存在于表皮细胞生长因子受体(EGFR)分子上,在维甲酸作用以后,EGFR上的Lewis x抗原和磷酸化水平都显著性下降．上述结果提示岩藻糖化的糖链如Lewis x在肝癌细胞的发生和转移过程中起重要的作用．     

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.