Purification and characterization of insecticidal toxins from venom glands of the parasitic wasp, Bracon hebetor

The potency of venom from Bracon hebetor against lepidopterous larvae has been known for over 40 years, but previous attempts to purify and characterize individual protein toxins have been largely unsuccessful. Three protein toxins were purified from venom of this small parasitic wasp and the amino acid sequences of 22–31 consecutive residues at the amino-terminus were determined. These relatively large toxins (apparent molecular mass 73 kDa) were labile under many isolation techniques, but anion-exchange chromatography allowed purification with retention of biological activity. Two purified toxins were quite insecticidal (LD₅₀ < 0.3μg/g) when injected into six species of lepidopterous larvae. On a molar basis, one toxin (Brh-I) has the highest known biocidal activity against Heliothis virescens (LD₅₀ = 2 pmol/g).     

转译优化对EPO基因在COS7细胞中表达的影响

利用ＣＯＳ７细胞暂时表达系统,研究转译起始序列对ＥＰＯ－ｃＤＮＡ表达的影响。通过ＤＮＡ重组技术,构建了原ＥＰＯ－ｃＤＮＡ表达载体ｐＣＳＶ－ＥＰＯ（１）,其转译起始序列为５＇ＡＡＴＴＣＡＴＧＧ３＇。同时通过定点突变技术,将起始序列改变成５＇ＣＣＡＣＣＡＴＧＧ３＇,而构建了另一表达载体ＰＣＳＶ－ＥＰＯ（２）。后经序列分析证明无误后和前均通过ＤＥＡＥ－ｄｅｘｔｒａｎ法转染ＣＯＳ７细胞上清,测定结果为     

Y418C: a novel mutation in exon 9 of the glucocerebrosidase gene of a patient with Gaucher disease creates a new Bgl I site

We report a novel mutation in exon 9 of the glucocerebrosidase gene of a patient with Gaucher disease and of Sardinian origin.     

The use of PCR to monitor the population abundance of six human intestinal bacterial species in an in vitro semicontinuous culture system

Abstract Six PCR primer sets complementary to the 16S rDNAs (rRNA genes) were developed and shown to be specific for the following anaerobic bacteria: Clostridium clostridiiforme, C. perfringens, C. leptum, Bacteroides vulgatus, B. distasonis , and B. thetaiotaomicron , respectively. These primers were used for PCR to detect and monitor the bacteria in a semicontinuous culture system designed to mimic intestinal microflora in the human gastrointestinal tract. Except for C. perfringens , the five species of Bacteroides and Clostridia present in the in vitro culture system were detected by the PCR, and the titers varied from 10⁻² to 10⁻⁶ dilutions. The role of azo dye reduction by these bacterial species in the system was examined and discussed.     

Construction of Mutant Genes for a Non-Toxic Verotoxin 2 Variant (VT2vp1) of Escherichia coli and Characterization of Purified Mutant Toxins

The gene encoding a Verotoxin 2 variant, VTvp1, was mutated by oligonucleotide-directed site-specific mutagenesis. Among 6 mutant toxins encoded by the mutated genes, E167Q-R170L (glutamic acid at position 167 and arginine at position 170 from N-terminus of the A subunit were replaced by glutamine and leucine, respectively) was found to have markedly decreased activities; inhibition of protein synthesis, Vero cell cytotoxicity and mouse lethality of the purified E167Q-R170L were 1/1,900, 1/125,000 and 1/2,000, respectively, of those of the purified wild-type VT2vp1. Since the antigenic property of the E167Q-R170L was demonstrated to be similar to that of the wild-type VT2vp1 by Ouchterlony double gel diffusion test and by neutralization test of Vero cell cytotoxicity of the VT2vp1, a possibility to use the mutant VT2vp1, E167Q-R170L, as a toxoid is discussed.     

三褶脉紫菀中的新二萜甙

三褶脉紫菀（ＡｓｔｅｒａｇｅｒａｔｏｉｄｅｓＴｕｒｃｚ．）系菊科多年生草本植物,遍布全国,是民间常用的中药,有清热解毒、祛痰镇咳的功效［１,２］。化学工作者们曾从其同属植物紫菀（ＡｓｔｅｒｔａｒａｒｉｃｕｓＬ．ｆ．）中分离到紫菀酮（ｓｈｉｏｎｏｎｅ）、槲皮素（ｑｕｅｒｃｅｔｉｎ）、无羁萜（ｆｒｉｅｄｅｌｉｎ）、表无羁萜（ｅｐｉｆｒｉｅｄｅｌｉｎｅｌ）、毛叶醇（ｌａｃｈｎｏｐｈｙｌｌｏｌ）、乙酸毛叶酯（ｌａｃｈｎｏｐｈｙｌｌｏｌａｃｅｔａｔｅ）、茴香醚（ａｎｅｔｈｏｌｅ）以及紫菀三萜皂甙［２—４］…     

葡萄属营养器官的比较解剖学及其系统学意义

本文对国产葡萄属24个种、6个变种和4个美洲种进行了比较解剖学研究。比较观察了茎、节、 叶柄、叶片的维管系统、厚角组织、厚壁组织、毛状体、后含物、叶表皮角质等解剖学特征。并讨论了它们在系统学上的意义。     

Phylogenetic place of guinea pigs: no support of the rodent-polyphyly hypothesis from maximum-likelihood analyses of multiple protein sequences

Graur et al.'s (1991) hypothesis that the guinea pig-like rodents have an evolutionary origin within mammals that is separate from that of other rodents (the rodent-polyphyly hypothesis) was reexamined by the maximum-likelihood method for protein phylogeny, as well as by the maximum-parsimony and neighbor-joining methods. The overall evidence does not support Graur et al.'s hypothesis, which radically contradicts the traditional view of rodent monophyly. This work demonstrates that we must be careful in choosing a proper method for phylogenetic inference and that an argument based on a small data set (with respect to the length of the sequence and especially the number of species) may be unstable.      

葡萄试管苗热处理结合茎尖培养脱病毒效果的研究

对７个生食葡萄品种的试管苗热处理结合茎尖剥离培养脱除病毒的方法做了研究,结果表明,从热处理试管苗剥离的茎尖培养成活率为６１．２％,其中有１８．１％的成苗。各品种热处理试管苗剥离的茎尖分化再生能力不同：先形成愈伤组织的成苗率较低,而先分化芽的茎尖成苗率较高。这一方法对扇叶病毒和卷叶病毒的脱除率达９２％以上。     

Metabolite effectors for short-term nitrogen-dependent enhancement of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase activity and decrease of net sucrose synthesis in wheat leaves

It has been demonstrated previously that field pea (Pisum sativum L. cv. Express) grown in hydroponic culture on a complete nutrient solution with low NH₄⁺ concentrations (<0.5 mM) will produce a larger than normal proliferation of nodules. Peas grown in the absence of mineral N in hydroponic culture have been shown to rapidly autoregulate nodulation, forming a static nodule number by 14 to 21 days after planting. The present study further characterizes the effect of NH₄⁺ concentration in hydroponic culture on nodulation and nodule growth. Peas were grown continually for 4 weeks at NH₄⁺ concentrations that were autoregulatory (0.0 mM), stimulatory (0.2 mM) or inhibitory (1.0 mM), or peas were transferred between autoregulatory or NH₄⁺ inhibited and stimulatory solutions after 2 weeks. The peas nodulated as expected when grown under constant autoregulatory, stimulatory or inhibitory concentrations of NH₄⁺. When peas were transferred from the inhibitory (1.0 mM) to the stimulatory solution (0.2 mM) a massive proliferation of nodule primordia over the entire root system was observed within 3 days of the transfer. When they were transferred from the autoregulatory (0.0 mM) to the stimulatory (0.2 mM) solution a 10-day delay occurred before a proliferation in nodule primordia occurred at distal regions of the root system. These findings support our hypothesis that low concentrations (<1.0 mM) of NH₄⁺ in hydroponic culture cause a suppression of autoregulation in pea. In addition, the temporal and spatial differences in nodule proliferation between transfer treatments demonstrate at a whole plant level that autoregulation and NH₄⁺ inhibition suppress early nodule development via different mechanisms.