Isolation and characterization of 16 microsatellite loci in an endangered fish Ussuri cisco, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Coregonus usssruensis</Emphasis>

Sixteen polymorphic microsatellite loci were isolated from an enriched genomic library of Ussuri cisco, Coregonus usssruensi. The polymorphism of these loci was tested on a population of 30 individuals captured from Heilongjiang River. The number of observed alleles per locus ranged from 3 to 18. The expected and observed heterozygosity values ranged from 0.126 to 0.919 and 0.133 to 0.833, respectively. Five loci significantly deviated from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium after Bonferroni correction. No significant linkage disequilibrium was detected. These polymorphic markers will be used to assess population structure in Ussuri cisco.     

Propionic acid fermentation by Propionibacterium freudenreichii CCTCC M207015 in a multi-point fibrous-bed bioreactor

Propionic acid was produced in a multi-point fibrous-bed (MFB) bioreactor by Propionibacterium freudenreichii CCTCC M207015. The MFB bioreactor, comprising spiral cotton fiber packed in a modified 7.5-l bioreactor, was effective for cell-immobilized propionic acid production compared with conventional free cell fermentation. Batch fermentations at various glucose concentrations were investigated in the MFB bioreactor. Based on analysis of the time course of production, a fed-batch strategy was applied for propionic acid production. The maximum propionic acid concentration was 67.05 g l⁻¹ after 496 h of fermentation, and the proportion of propionic acid to total organic acids was approximately 78.28% (w/w). The MFB bioreactor exhibited excellent production stability during batch fermentation and the propionic acid productivity remained high after 78 days of fermentation.     

Protein subunit interfaces: a statistical analysis of hot spots in Sm proteins

The distinguishing property of Sm protein associations is very high stability. In order to understand this property, we analyzed the interfaces and compared the properties of Sm protein interfaces with those of a test set, the Binding Interface Database (BID). The comparison revealed that the main differences between the interfaces of Sm proteins and those of the BID set are the content of charged residues, the coordination numbers of the residues, knowledge-based pair potentials, and the conservation scores of hot spots. In Sm proteins, the interfaces have more hydrophobic and fewer charged residues than the surfaces, which is also the case for the BID test set and other proteins. However, in the interfaces, the content of charged residues in Sm proteins (26%) is substantially larger than that in the BID set (22%). Hot spots are residues that make up a small fraction of the interfaces, but they contribute most of the binding energy. These residues are critical to protein–protein interactions. Analyses of knowledge-based pair potentials of hot spot and non-hot spot residues in Sm proteins show that they are significantly different; their mean values are 31.5 and 11.3, respectively. In the BID set, this difference is smaller; in this case, the mean values for hot spot and non-hot spot residues are 20.7 and 12.4, respectively. Hence, the pair potentials of hot spots differ significantly for the Sm and BID data sets. In the interfaces of Sm proteins, the amino acids are tightly packed, and the coordination numbers are larger in Sm proteins than in the BID set for both hot spots and non-hot spots. At the same time, the coordination numbers are higher for hot spots; the average coordination number of the hot spot residues in Sm proteins is 7.7, while it is 6.1 for the non-hot spot residues. The difference in the calculated average conservation score for hot spots and non-hot spots in Sm proteins is significantly larger than it is in the BID set. In Sm proteins, the average conservation score for the hot spots is 7.4. Hot spots are surrounded by residues that are moderately conserved (5.9). The average conservation score for the other interface residues is 5.6. The conservation scores in the BID set do not show a significant distinction between hot and non-hot spots: the mean values for hot and non-hot spot residues are 5.5 and 5.2, respectively. These data show that structurally conserved residues and hot spots are significantly correlated in Sm proteins.     

Quantitative proteomics study of breast cancer cell lines isolated from a single patient: Discovery of TIMM17A as a marker for breast cancer

The proteins involved in breast cancer initiation and progression are still largely elusive. To gain insights into these processes, we conducted quantitative proteomic analyses with 21T series of breast cell lines, which include a normal, primary tumor and a metastatic tumor that were isolated from a single patient. Stable isotope labeling of amino acid in cell culture followed by LC‐MS/MS analysis was performed and deregulated proteins were identified using statistical analysis. Gene ontology analysis revealed that proteins involved in metabolic processes were the most deregulated in both tumorigenesis and metastasis. Interaction network analysis indicated that ERBB2 signaling played a critical role in tumorigenesis. In addition to known markers such as ERBB2 and E‐cadherin, novel markers, including BRP44L, MTHFD2 and TIMM17A, were found to be overexpressed in 21T breast cancer cells and verified in additional breast cell lines. mRNA expression analysis as well as immunohistochemistry analysis in breast cancer tissues indicated that expression level of TIMM17A was directly correlated with tumor progression, and survival analysis suggested that TIMM17A was a powerful prognosis factor in breast cancer. More interestingly, overexpression and siRNA knockdown experiments indicated an oncogenic activity of TIMM17A in breast cancer. Our study provides a list of potential novel markers for breast cancer tumorigenesis and metastasis using a unique cell model. Further studies on TIMM17A as well as other markers on the list may reveal mechanisms that result in more effective therapeutics for cancer treatment.     

K_2CO_3/γ-Al_2O_3催化棕榈油和甲醇酯交换反应制备生物柴油

采用浸渍法制备K2CO3/γ-Al2O3负载型固体碱催化剂,用X线衍射(XRD)和热质量分析法(DSC-TGA)表征催化剂的物化性质,考察催化剂在棕榈油和甲醇酯交换制备生物柴油中的反应性能。结果表明:活性组分已成功负载到载体γ-Al2O3上,且在高温焙烧过程中K2CO3和γ-Al2O3之间产生了相互作用;在K2CO3负载量22.6%、醇油摩尔比12∶1、反应时间3h、催化剂质量分数3%、反应温度65℃的条件下,甲酯产率最高可达91.6%。     

金匮肾气丸和男宝胶囊对肾阳虚证雄性大鼠生殖能力影响的干预研究

目的:研究金匮肾气丸和男宝胶囊对肾阳虚证雄性大鼠生殖能力的影响及作用机理.方法:用成年雄性SD大鼠80只随机分成4组:空白对照组(正常组)、金匮肾气丸组、男宝胶囊组、模型组.除正常组外,其他组大鼠用氢化可的松注射液制造肾阳虚模型.正常组和模型组用等体积蒸馏水灌胃,治疗组用相应剂量的药物灌胃,持续给药30d.检测各组大鼠左侧睾丸、脾脏、胸腺质量,测血清睾丸酮(T)、促黄体生成激素(LH)、促卵泡生成激素(FSH)水平,精子密度、精子活率改变情况.结果:模型组左侧睾丸、脾脏、胸腺质量低于正常组、金匮肾气丸组和男宝胶囊组(P.∞.05 o模型组血清T、LH、FSH水平低于正常组、金匮肾气丸组和男宝胶囊组(P＜0.05).模型组精子密度、精子活率低于正常组、金匮肾气丸组和男宝胶囊组(P＜0.05).结论:金匮肾气丸和男宝胶囊对肾阳虚证雄性大鼠生殖能力有较好的治疗作用.     

促凋亡基因Bax在胰腺癌中的研究进展

胰腺癌的恶性程度高、转移早、浸润性强,这与胰腺癌的细胞凋亡异常有密切的关系。Bax是目前研究最深入的促凋亡基因之一。多数研究认为,Bax在胰腺癌中存在高表达,其表达率从53%到100%不等。有研究认为Bax的表达预示着胰腺癌的良性预后,也有研究发现胰腺癌中Bax的表达与胰腺癌的分级分化等有关。Bax在胰腺癌中的表达受p53、PERIOD1、P13K/AKT等的调控。Bax表达异常及其突变可能与胰腺癌的发生有关。研究发现Bax表达可增强胰腺癌对吉西他滨和5-FU等化疗药物以及放射治疗的敏感性,而Bax/Bcl-2的比值可能与胰腺癌放化疗敏感性更相关。提高Bax基因表达、上调Bax活性等针对Bax的靶向治疗已显示出促进胰腺癌细胞凋亡、增强药物抗癌效应的作用。同时,作为最重要的促凋亡蛋白之一,Bax成为评价各种抗胰腺癌药物的疗效、探讨其作用机制的重要指标之一。对胰腺癌中Bax的深入研究,有利于了解其与胰腺癌的预后和耐药性的关系,为胰腺癌的靶向治疗提供新的方向。     

Thirty allele-level haplotypes centered around KIR2DL5 define the diversity in an African American population

KIR2DL5 alleles were physically linked to alleles at adjacent KIR loci to define this region of KIR haplotypes in 55 gene-positive random African Americans. The majority carried KIR2DL5B. Three KIR2DL5A and six KIR2DL5B alleles that have been previously described and 11 novel KIR2DL5 alleles were identified by DNA sequencing. Novel alleles included variation that may impact promoter activity; two alleles carried nonsynonymous coding region variation. Based on linkage with KIR2DS1, KIR2DS3, KIR2DS5, KIR2DL2, KIR2DL3, and KIR3DS1 alleles, seven haplotypes of KIR2DL5A and 23 haplotypes of KIR2DL5B were observed. The phylogenetic relationships among the KIR2DL5 alleles predicted their association with either KIR2DS3 (six alleles) or KIR2DS5 (seven alleles). All of the KIR2DL5A alleles were linked either to KIR3DS1*01301 or KIR3DS1*049N. The majority of the KIR2DL5B alleles were linked to seven KIR2DL2 alleles; two were linked to a novel allele of KIR2DL3. These findings underscore the diversity of KIR haplotypes present in this population.     

Sialic Acid-Containing Lipopolysaccharides of Salmonella O48 Strains—Potential Role in Camouflage and Susceptibility to the Bactericidal Effect of Normal Human Serum

Sialic acid (N-acetylneuraminic acid, NeuAc) plays an essential role in protecting gram-negative bacteria against the bactericidal activity of serum and may contribute to the pathogenicity of bacteria by mimicking epitopes that resemble host tissue components (molecular mimicry). The role of sialic acid (NeuAc)-containing lipopolysaccharides (LPS) of Salmonella O48 strains in the complement activation of normal human serum (NHS) was investigated. NeuAc-containing lipooligosaccharides cause a downregulation of complement activation and may serve to camouflage the bacterial surface from the immunological response of the host. Serotype O48 Salmonella strains have the O-antigen structure containing NeuAc while its serovars differ in outer membrane protein composition. In this study, the mechanisms of complement activation responsible for killing Salmonella O48 serum-sensitive rods by NHS were established. Four of such mechanisms involving pathways, which are important in the bactericidal mechanism of complement activation, were distinguished: only the classical/lectin pathways, independent activation of the classical/lectin or alternative pathway, parallel activation of the classical/lectin and alternative pathways, and only the alternative pathway important in the bactericidal action of human serum. To further study the role of NeuAc, its content in bacterial cells was determined by gas-liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry in relation to 3-deoxy-D-manno-2-octulosonic acid (Kdo), an inherent constituent of LPS. The results indicate that neither the presence of sialic acid in LPS nor the length of the O-specific part of LPS containing NeuAc plays a decisive role in determining bacterial resistance to the bactericidal activity of complement and that the presence of sialic acid in the structure of LPS is not sufficient to block the activation of the alternative pathway of complement. We observed that for three strains with a very high NeuAc/Kdo ratio the alternative pathways were decisive in the bactericidal action of human serum. The results indicated that those strains are not capable of inhibiting the alternative pathway very effectively. As the pathogenicity of most Salmonella serotypes remains undefined, research into the interactions between these bacterial cells and host organisms is indispensable.     

Wide distribution among halophilic archaea of a novel polyhydroxyalkanoate synthase subtype with homology to bacterial type III synthases

Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) are accumulated as intracellular carbon and energy storage polymers by various bacteria and a few haloarchaea. In this study, 28 strains belonging to 15 genera in the family Halobacteriaceae were investigated with respect to their ability to synthesize PHAs and the types of their PHA synthases. Fermentation results showed that 18 strains from 12 genera could synthesize polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) or poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV). For most of these haloarchaea, selected regions of the phaE and phaC genes encoding PHA synthases (type III) were cloned via PCR with consensus-degenerate hybrid oligonucleotide primers (CODEHOPs) and were sequenced. The PHA synthases were also examined by Western blotting using haloarchaeal Haloarcula marismortui PhaC (PhaC(Hm)) antisera. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the type III PHA synthases from species of the Halobacteriaceae and the Bacteria domain clustered separately. Comparison of their amino acid sequences revealed that haloarchaeal PHA synthases differed greatly in both molecular weight and certain conserved motifs. The longer C terminus of haloarchaeal PhaC was found to be indispensable for its enzymatic activity, and two additional amino acid residues (C143 and C190) of PhaC(Hm) were proved to be important for its in vivo function. Thus, we conclude that a novel subtype (IIIA) of type III PHA synthase with unique features that distinguish it from the bacterial subtype (IIIB) is widely distributed in haloarchaea and appears to be involved in PHA biosynthesis.