黄粉虫不同抗冻蛋白基因家族成员的低温应激表达

黄粉虫Tenebrio molitor L.抗冻蛋白基因家族有多个成员,其氨基酸数量和蛋白结构存在差异。尽管有报道发现冷驯化后这些抗冻蛋白的表达量会升高,但不同家族成员是否存在功能分化尚不清楚。本研究中,检测了冷驯化对低温死亡率的效应和对不同类型的抗冻蛋白家族成员基因表达量的影响。结果表明,冷驯化可以显著降低黄粉虫幼虫的低温死亡率和提高不同类型抗冻蛋白基因的表达量。其中,长的抗冻蛋白和低温死亡率的相关关系最为明显。说明不同的抗冻蛋白家族成员的功能有明显的分化,为进一步理解抗冻蛋白的活性和利用抗冻蛋白提供了新的认识。     

Gene expression of different antifreeze proteins of Tenebrio molitor in response to cold acclimation

黄粉虫Tenebrio molitorL.抗冻蛋白基因家族有多个成员,其氨基酸数量和蛋白结构存在差异.尽管有报道发现冷驯化后这些抗冻蛋白的表达量会升高,但不同家族成员是否存在功能分化尚不清楚.本研究中,检测了冷驯化对低温死亡率的效应和对不同类型的抗冻蛋白家族成员基因表达量的影响.结果表明,冷驯化可以显著降低黄粉虫幼虫的低温死亡率和提高不同类型抗冻蛋白基因的表达量.其中,长的抗冻蛋白和低温死亡率的相关关系最为明显.说明不同的抗冻蛋白家族成员的功能有明显的分化,为进一步理解抗冻蛋白的活性和利用抗冻蛋白提供了新的认识.     

抗冻蛋白的研究进展

本文概述了抗冻蛋白的种类、生成和性质,总结了抗冻蛋白基因及基因转化方面的研究情况。     

昆虫抗冻蛋白基因的克隆与表达研究进展

产生抗冻蛋白(antifreeze protein,AFP)是许多昆虫抵御寒冷的一种重要机制。昆虫抗冻蛋白基因的克隆和表达是研究抗冻蛋白活性和功能的主要途径。文章归纳GenBank所登录的昆虫抗冻蛋白基因及其特点,总结昆虫抗冻蛋白基因的天然表达和基因工程表达方面尚未明确或需要克服的一些问题。目前在GenBank注册的昆虫抗冻蛋白基因约100个,集中于9种昆虫隶属鞘翅目3个科和鳞翅目1个科。昆虫抗冻蛋白基因具有多拷贝和多同种型(isoforms)的特点。昆虫抗冻蛋白的天然表达具有物种间和同种型间的多样性。基因工程表达昆虫抗冻蛋白需要克服表达量低活性不高的问题。对昆虫抗冻蛋白表达规律的研究有助于全面认识其功能。     

抗冻蛋白结构基因片段的克隆

为了研究和开发利用抗冻蛋白或多肽,木文通过聚合酶链式反应（ＰＣＲ）合成了抗冻蛋白１１０ｂｐ的结构基因片段,然后将该基因片段克隆到大肠杆菌质粒载体Ｐ（Ｂｌｕｅｓｃｒｉｐｔ）Ⅱｋｓ＋／－上,获得了重组质粒,经酶切证明,获得的重组质粒中含有抗冻蛋白结构基因片段,以供该基因在大肠杆菌或酵母中表达抗冻蛋白。     

昆虫抗冻蛋白的研究

抗冻蛋白是具有热滞活性,能结合并抑制冰晶生长和抑制冰的重结晶的一类蛋白质。近几年来,昆虫抗冻蛋白的研究取得了较快的发展,本文通过分析昆虫抗冻蛋白的结构特点、抗冻活性、作用机制,并讨论了抗冻蛋白在食品工业、医学、基因工程方面的应用。结果表明,昆虫抗冻蛋白虽然结构呈多样性,但有很多关键的残基具有保守性,对维持抗冻蛋白结构和功能的完整性发挥着重要的作用;抗冻蛋白是由多基因家簇编码的。其作用机制主要是吸附一抑制机制,抗冻蛋白依靠氢键吸附到冰晶格,抑制冰晶生长;昆虫抗冻蛋白的应用具有很广阔的前景。     

荒漠甲虫光滑鳖甲和小胸鳖甲抗冻蛋白基因及其3'-UTR的序列分析

拟步甲科昆虫光滑鳖甲Anatolica polita Kaszab和小胸鳖甲Microdera punctipennis Kaszab分别是新疆准噶尔盆地荒漠地区的广布种和特有种。它们的生活习性有很大差异,光滑鳖甲白天活动,且活动范围广,而小胸鳖甲喜阴避光夜晚活动,活动范围小,但在两者体内都发现有多拷贝的抗冻蛋白基因,并且抗冻蛋白基因在夏季也有表达。为了比较这两种昆虫的抗冻蛋白序列以及不同时期表达的抗冻蛋白序列的差异情况,本研究分别以光滑鳖甲和小胸鳖甲的过冬和夏季成虫为材料,根据已克隆的抗冻蛋白基因序列设计通用引物,扩增新的抗冻蛋白基因及其3'-非翻译区(3'-UTR)。序列分析结果表明,无论是冬季还是夏季表达的抗冻蛋白在两种昆虫中都具有拟步甲科昆虫抗冻蛋白的特点,即含有不同数量的"TCTXSXXCXXAX"12个氨基酸的重复序列;光滑鳖甲抗冻蛋白基因的变异性大于小胸鳖甲,并且在重复基序的保守位点都有突变现象。小胸鳖甲抗冻蛋白在C末端有较大变异。光滑鳖甲抗冻蛋白基因的3'-UTR区变异较大,而小胸鳖甲抗冻蛋白基因的3'-UTR区几乎没有变异。推测两种昆虫抗冻蛋白及抗冻蛋白基因3'-UTR的变异性可能与抗冻蛋白的表达调控以及昆虫对微环境的适应性有关。     

用美洲拟鲽抗冻蛋白基因转化植物的问题

评估了我们用美洲拟鲽抗冻蛋白基因转化烟草和国内有人用同一基因转化蕃茄的研究,提出植物耐寒性状的提高与转基因植物中抗冻蛋白含量呈正相关是转基因植物成功的关键性指标。同时,美洲拟鲽抗冻蛋白的空间结构与冷诱导蛋白相似而且都保护细胞膜免受冻害,因而提出了用冷诱导蛋白调节元的顺式作用元件和反式作用因子的调控序列来控制抗冻蛋白基因在植物中冷诱导表达的思路。     

用美洲拟鲽抗冻蛋白基因转化植物的问题

评估了我们用美洲拟鲽抗冻蛋白基因转化烟草和国内有人用同一基因转化蕃茄的研究 ,提出植物耐寒性状的提高与转基因植物中抗冻蛋白含量呈正相关是转基因植物成功的关键性指标。同时 ,美洲拟鲽抗冻蛋白的空间结构与冷诱导蛋白相似而且都保护细胞膜免受冻害 ,因而提出了用冷诱导蛋白调节元的顺式作用元件和反式作用因子的调控序列来控制抗冻蛋白基因在植物中冷诱导表达的思路。     

植物抗冻蛋白及抗冻性分子改良

概述了植物抗冻蛋白及其相关基因的研究现状,主要包括植物低温诱导蛋白、具有热滞活性的植物抗冻蛋白及其相关基因的分离、鉴定与表达调控,以及植物抗冻性基因工程研究动态.在此基础上,讨论了该领域研究中的主要问题、发展趋势及近期研究热点.     

The mechanism by which fish antifreeze proteins cause thermal hysteresis

Antifreeze proteins are characterised by their ability to prevent ice from growing upon cooling below the bulk melting point. This displacement of the freezing temperature of ice is limited and at a sufficiently low temperature a rapid ice growth takes place. The separation of the melting and freezing temperature is usually referred to as thermal hysteresis, and the temperature of ice growth is referred to as the hysteresis freezing point. The hysteresis is supposed to be the result of an adsorption of antifreeze proteins to the crystal surface. This causes the ice to grow as convex surface regions between adjacent adsorbed antifreeze proteins, thus lowering the temperature at which the crystal can visibly expand. The model requires that the antifreeze proteins are irreversibly adsorbed onto the ice surface within the hysteresis gap. This presupposition is apparently in conflict with several characteristic features of the phenomenon; the absence of superheating of ice in the presence of antifreeze proteins, the dependence of the hysteresis activity on the concentration of antifreeze proteins and the different capacities of different types of antifreeze proteins to cause thermal hysteresis at equimolar concentrations. In addition, there are structural obstacles that apparently would preclude irreversible adsorption of the antifreeze proteins to the ice surface; the bond strength necessary for irreversible adsorption and the absence of a clearly defined surface to which the antifreeze proteins may adsorb. This article deals with these apparent conflicts between the prevailing theory and the empirical observations. We first review the mechanism of thermal hysteresis with some modifications: we explain the hysteresis as a result of vapour pressure equilibrium between the ice surface and the ambient fluid fraction within the hysteresis gap due to a pressure build-up within the convex growth zones, and the ice growth as the result of an ice surface nucleation event at the hysteresis freezing point. We then go on to summarise the empirical data to show that the dependence of the hysteresis on the concentration of antifreeze proteins arises from an equilibrium exchange of antifreeze proteins between ice and solution at the melting point. This reversible association between antifreeze proteins and the ice is followed by an irreversible adsorption of the antifreeze proteins onto a newly formed crystal plane when the temperature is lowered below the melting point. The formation of the crystal plane is due to a solidification of the interfacial region, and the necessary bond strength is provided by the protein "freezing" to the surface. In essence: the antifreeze proteins are "melted off" the ice at the bulk melting point and "freeze" to the ice as the temperature is reduced to subfreezing temperatures. We explain the different hysteresis activities caused by different types of antifreeze proteins at equimolar concentrations as a consequence of their solubility features during the phase of reversible association between the proteins and the ice, i.e., at the melting point; a low water solubility results in a large fraction of the proteins being associated with the ice at the melting point. This leads to a greater density of irreversibly adsorbed antifreeze proteins at the ice surface when the temperature drops, and thus to a greater hysteresis activity. Reference is also made to observations on insect antifreeze proteins to emphasise the general validity of this approach.     

Salt-induced enhancement of antifreeze protein activity: a salting-out effect

Antifreeze proteins are a structurally diverse group of proteins characterized by their unique ability to cause a separation of the melting- and growth-temperatures of ice. These proteins have evolved independently in different kinds of cold-adapted ectothermic animals, including insects and fish, where they protect against lethal freezing of the body fluids. There is a great variability in the capacity of different kinds of antifreeze proteins to evoke the antifreeze effect, but the basis of these differences is not well understood. This study reports on salt-induced enhancement of the antifreeze activity of an antifreeze protein from the longhorn beetle Rhagium inquisitor (L.). The results imply that antifreeze activity is predetermined by a steady-state distribution of the antifreeze protein between the solution and the ice surface region. The observed salt-induced enhancement of the antifreeze activity compares qualitatively and quantitatively with salt-induced lowering of protein solubility. Thus, salts apparently enhance antifreeze activity by evoking a solubility-induced shift in the distribution pattern of the antifreeze proteins in favour of the ice. These results indicate that the solubility of antifreeze proteins in the solution surrounding the ice crystal is a fundamental physiochemical property in relation to their antifreeze potency.     

动物抗冷性的基因表达机制

简要综述了包括抗冻蛋白作用机理在内的动物抗冷性的基因表达调节机制。通过在寒冷逆境下转录抗冻蛋白、纤维蛋白原等耐冻性相关蛋白基因,形成mRNA,然后在各种转录翻译调节因子的调节下表达形成蛋白质和酶,从而形成冰农耐性或冰冻避性或毁损修复反应。其中,转录后调节和上调节是动物常用的抗冷基因表达机制。小分子有机物质在提高动物的耐冻性中有非常的增效作用。     

植物耐寒机理与耐寒植物新品种培育

低温灾害是普遍存在的对植物造成严重伤害的自然灾害,研究植物耐寒的分子机理并积极培育耐寒植物新品种对农业等生产活动具有重要意义.主要介绍植物抵御低温时的生理生化变化和关键基因,以及抗冻蛋白在耐寒植物新品种培育中的应用,并探讨植物耐寒育种的发展趋势.     

植物抗冻基因研究进展

低温是作物生长一大限制因素,许多作物不能在低温下生长或者容易受到冻害,所以通过基因工程的方法,转入抗冻基因,是扩大作物生长区域,稳定作物产量的有效办法。目前通过对植物抗冻基因在抗冻机理、研究技术、应用等方面的研究,已经取得了一定的成果。综述抗冻基因的来源、抗冻机理、研究技术,并做适度的展望。     

Targeted expression of redesigned and codon optimised synthetic gene leads to recrystallisation inhibition and reduced electrolyte leakage in spring wheat at sub-zero temperatures

Antifreeze proteins (AFPs) adsorb to ice crystals and inhibit their growth, leading to non-colligative freezing point depression. Crops like spring wheat, that are highly susceptible to frost damage, can potentially be made frost tolerant by expressing AFPs in the cytoplasm and apoplast where ice recrystallisation leads to cellular damage. The protein sequence for HPLC-6 α-helical antifreeze protein from winter flounder was rationally redesigned after removing the prosequences in the native protein. Wheat nuclear gene preferred amino acid codons were used to synthesize a recombinant antifreeze gene, rAFPI. Antifreeze protein was targeted to the apoplast using a Murine leader peptide sequence from the mAb24 light chain or retained in the endoplasmic reticulum using C-terminus KDEL sequence. The coding sequences were placed downstream of the rice Actin promoter and Actin-1 intron and upstream of the nopaline synthase terminator in the plant expression vectors. Transgenic wheat lines were generated through micro projectile bombardment of immature embryos of spring wheat cultivar Seri 82. Levels of antifreeze protein in the transgenic lines without any targeting peptide were low (0.06–0.07%). The apoplast-targeted protein reached a level of 1.61% of total soluble protein, 90% of which was present in the apoplast. ER-retained protein accumulated in the cells at levels up to 0.65% of total soluble proteins. Transgenic wheat line T-8 with apoplast-targeted antifreeze protein exhibited the highest levels of antifreeze activity and provided significant freezing protection even at temperatures as low as −7°C.     

甲虫抗冻蛋白热滞活性的二维吸附结合模型

甲虫抗冻蛋白是一种具有规则结构的昆虫抗冻蛋白。在相同浓度条件下,甲虫抗冻蛋白比鱼类抗冻蛋白有更高的热滞活性,目前已成为人们重点研究的一类抗冻蛋白。根据甲虫抗冻蛋白的结构特点及其在冰晶表面的吸附模式,应用二维吸附结合模型计算分析了具有6￣11个β-螺旋(β-helix)结构片段的甲虫抗冻蛋白变体分子,得到了它们的热滞活性随溶液浓度变化的规律,特别是热滞活性与甲虫抗冻蛋白的β-螺旋结构片段数的关系。结果显示,抗冻蛋白在冰晶表面的覆盖度是一个影响其热滞活性的重要因素。     

昆虫抗冻蛋白的研究进展

抗冻蛋白是一类与冰晶有亲合力,能够与冰晶结合并抑制冰晶生长的蛋白或糖蛋白。自20世纪60年代以来,研究人员已经分别从鱼类、昆虫、植物、真菌和细菌中发现多种抗冻蛋白。其中已知鱼类抗冻蛋白有5种,也是研究最详细的。但是,近几年来发现昆虫抗冻蛋白活性普遍比较高,因此受到研究人员重视,研究取得了较快的发展。主要讨论昆虫抗冻蛋白的结构特点、抗冻活性、作用机制和应用,并分析目前的研究现状提出一些待解决的问题,以期望对昆虫抗冻蛋白的研究进行比较系统化的整理。     

鱼类抗冻蛋白的研究——Ⅱ.黄盖鲽抗冻蛋白基因cDNA的克隆及其在大肠杆菌中的表达

产于我国黄海的黄盖鲽(Pseudopleuronectes yokohamae)体内含有能阻止血液冰冻的抗冻肽(Antifreeze peptide AFP)。在对该蛋白进行纯化及对其特性的一系列研究的基础上,我们合成了一段抗冻肽基因的寡核苷酸片段。以此为引物,与黄盖鲽的mRNA进行杂交,从而特异性地反转录出抗冻肽基因cDNA片段。该片段经EcoRI Linker连接法克隆至大肠杆菌(E.coli)质粒载体pUC19上。抗冻肽cDNA插入片段经杂交证实后,对其进行了酶谱分析,核酸序列测定。重组克隆还在大肠杆菌JM83中得到了表达。