Secondary (iso)BAs cooperate with endogenous ligands to activate FXR under physiological and pathological conditions

IsoBAs, stereoisomers of primary and secondary BAs, are found in feces and plasma of human individuals. BA signaling via the nuclear receptor FXR is crucial for regulation of hepatic and intestinal physiology/pathophysiology. Aim: Investigate the ability of BA-stereoisomers to bind and modulate FXR under physiological/pathological conditions. Methods: Expression-profiling, luciferase-assays, fluorescence-based coactivator-association assays, administration of (iso)-BAs to WT and cholestatic mice. Results: Compared to CDCA/isoCDCA, administration of DCA/isoDCA, UDCA/isoUDCA only slightly increased mRNA expression of FXR target genes; the induction was more evident looking at pre-mRNAs. Notably, almost 50% of isoBAs were metabolized to 3-oxo-BAs within 4 h in cell-based assays, making it difficult to study their actions. FRET-based real-time monitoring of FXR activity revealed that isoCDCA>CDCA stimulated FXR, and isoDCA and isoUDCA allowed fully activated FXR to be re-stimulated by a second dose of GW4064. In vivo co-administration of a single dose of isoBAs followed by GW4064 cooperatively activated FXR, as did feeding of UDCA in a background of endogenous FXR ligands. However, in animals with biliary obstruction and concomitant loss of intestinal BAs, UDCA was unable to increase intestinal Fgf15. In contrast, mice with an impaired enterohepatic circulation of BAs (Asbt?/?, Ostα?/?), administration of UDCA was still able to induce ileal Fgf15 and repress hepatic BA-synthesis, arguing that UDCA is only effective in the presence of endogenous FXR ligands. Conclusion: Secondary (iso)BAs cooperatively activate FXR in the presence of endogenous BAs, which is important to consider in diseases linked to disturbances in BA enterohepatic cycling.     

A Plasmopara viticola RXLR effector targets a chloroplast protein PsbP to inhibit ROS production in grapevine

Pathogens secrete a large number of effectors that manipulate host processes to create an environment conducive to pathogen colonization. However, the underlying mechanisms by which Plasmopara viticola effectors manipulate host plant cells remain largely unclear. In this study, we reported that RXLR31154, a P. viticola RXLR effector, was highly expressed during the early stages of P. viticola infection. In our study, stable expression of RXLR31154 in grapevine (Vitis vinifera) and Nicotiana benthamiana promoted leaf colonization by P. viticola and Phytophthora capsici, respectively. By yeast two-hybrid screening, the 23-kDa oxygen-evolving enhancer 2 (VpOEE2 or VpPsbP), encoded by the PsbP gene, in Vitis piasezkii accession Liuba-8 was identified as a host target of RXLR31154. Overexpression of VpPsbP enhanced susceptibility to P. viticola in grapevine and P. capsici in N. benthamiana, and silencing of NbPsbPs, the homologs of PsbP in N. benthamiana, reduced P. capcisi colonization, indicating that PsbP is a susceptibility factor. RXLR31154 and VpPsbP protein were co-localized in the chloroplast. Moreover, VpPsbP reduced H₂O₂ accumulation and activated the ¹O₂ signaling pathway in grapevine. RXLR31154 could stabilize PsbP. Together, our data revealed that RXLR31154 reduces H₂O₂ accumulation and activates the ¹O₂ signaling pathway through stabilizing PsbP, thereby promoting disease.     

Revisiting the phosphotyrosine binding pocket of Fyn SH2 domain led to the identification of novel SH2 superbinders.

Protein engineering through directed evolution is an effective way to obtain proteins with novel functions with the potential applications as tools for diagnosis or therapeutics. Many natural proteins have undergone directed evolution in vitro in the test tubes in the laboratories worldwide, resulting in the numerous protein variants with novel or enhanced functions. we constructed here an SH2 variant library by randomizing 8 variable residues in its phosphotyrosine (pTyr) binding pocket. Selection of this library by a pTyr peptide led to the identification of SH2 variants with enhanced affinities measured by EC50. Fluorescent polarization was then applied to quantify the binding affinities of the newly identified SH2 variants. As a result, three SH2 variants, named V3, V13 and V24, have comparable binding affinities with the previously identified SH2 triple‐mutant superbinder. Biolayer Interferometry assay was employed to disclose the kinetics of the binding of these SH2 superbinders to the phosphotyrosine peptide. The results indicated that all the SH2 superbinders have two‐orders increase of the dissociation rate when binding the pTyr peptide while there was no significant change in their associate rates. Intriguingly, though binding the pTyr peptide with comparable affinity with other SH2 superbinders, the V3 does not bind to the sTyr peptide. However, variant V13 and V24 have cross‐reactivity with both pTyr and sTyr peptides. The newly identified superbinders could be utilized as tools for the identification of pTyr‐containing proteins from tissues under different physiological or pathophysiological conditions and may have the potential in the therapeutics.     

Association of myostatin deficiency with collagen related disease-umbilical hernia and tippy toe standing in pigs

Transgenic Research - Herein, we investigate the high incidence of umbilical hernia and tippy-toe standing and their underlying changes in gene expression and proliferation in myostatin knockout...     

自然保护地生态承载力时空分异研究——以大连金石滩为例

监测自然保护地生态承载力,对了解其时空分异规律及可持续发展有着重要意义。金石滩地质遗迹保护区是国家公园和风景名胜区的结合区域,是生态保护与地区发展间矛盾冲突所在之处,是多身份自然保护地的典型代表区域。以1998、2003、2007、2012、2015、2018年遥感影像和土地利用数据为基础,选取金石滩这个兼具保护与开发多种功能的自然保护地为研究区域,从弹性生态支撑系统、资源环境供容系统、社会经济协调系统3方面构建指标体系,运用模糊综合评价模型研究金石滩生态承载力的时空分异规律。结果表明：（1）在3个准则层中,弹性生态支撑力和资源环境供容力呈现出持续降低的剧烈下降趋势,社会经济协调力呈现先降后升、之后平稳发展的趋势。（2）金石滩生态承载力整体来看从强承载力演变为较弱承载力,1998-2018年自0.7572变为0.2940,近30年来承载力等级降低。（3）海陆生态承载力完全不同,陆地为强、较强承载力,海岸为弱、较弱承载力,自北部陆地向南部海岸逐渐减弱呈现极其不平衡的海陆空间分异。通过对金石滩1998-2018年生态承载力分析,能够反映区域的生态承载力变化情况,可为其他自然保护地的生态承载力评估和可持续发展提供参考。     

蛋白质自组装条件筛选形成的透明液滴中存在的自组装现象

微-纳尺度的蛋白质自组装体具有形貌多样性与良好的生物相容性,因而成为蛋白质自组装领域的研究热点。以蛋白质结晶条件的筛选手段高通量筛选不同类型蛋白质于不同尺度、不同形貌的自组装过程,是一种新兴的研究方法,具有重要研究意义。利用该方法进行蛋白质自组装条件筛选时,常会形成一些表观透明的液滴,其中是否有自组装现象的发生尚不明确。文中以β-乳球蛋白与蛋白质结晶试剂盒IndexTM C10相互作用为例进行探索,实验结果表明透明液滴中存在微-纳尺度的蛋白质自组装体。进一步通过扫描电镜观察不同初始浓度β-乳球蛋白与IndexTM C10混合形成的透明液滴中微-纳自组装体的形貌有所差别;通过激光共聚焦显微镜连续拍摄添加荧光标签的β-乳球蛋白形成自组装体的过程,可实时观察到液液相分离现象及最终形成的自组装体的形貌;通过原位X-射线衍射手段,可观察到自组装体内部结构随时间推移逐渐有序化的过程。以上研究表明,在以结晶条件筛选手段为基础的蛋白质自组装条件筛选实验中,透明液滴内的自组装现象具有深入探索的必要和价值。     

非洲猪瘟病毒p35蛋白作为诊断抗原的抗原性比较

为了筛选出酶联免疫吸附测定 (Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay,ELISA) 反应性最佳的非洲猪瘟病毒 (African swine fever virus,ASFV) 诊断抗原,通过建立ELISA方法,以杆状病毒昆虫细胞表达系统表达的ASFV p30蛋白诊断抗原为参照,首次探讨原核表达系统表达的ASFV p35蛋白作为诊断抗原的抗原性和潜力。免疫印迹和免疫荧光结果表明,获得了40 kDa的重组p35蛋白和30 kDa的p30蛋白,两种蛋白与ASFV阳性血清均具有较好的免疫反应原性。采用重组p30和p35蛋白作为诊断抗原分别建立ELISA方法,并验证其敏感性、稳定性以及与进口试剂盒的符合率。结果显示,尽管p35-ELISA方法的检测敏感性稍低于p30-ELISA方法,但其敏感性仍可达95.8%,且p35-ELISA方法和p30-ELISA方法的批内和批间变异系数均小于10%。p35-ELISA方法与进口试剂盒比较,符合率达97.2%。结果表明建立的p35-ELISA方法敏感性高且稳定性好,可应用于ASFV感染血清的检测。     

TMEM41B and VMP1 are scramblases and regulate the distribution of cholesterol and phosphatidylserine

TMEM41B and VMP1 are integral membrane proteins of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and regulate the formation of autophagosomes, lipid droplets (LDs), and lipoproteins. Recently, TMEM41B was identified as a crucial host factor for infection by all coronaviruses and flaviviruses. The molecular function of TMEM41B and VMP1, which belong to a large evolutionarily conserved family, remains elusive. Here, we show that TMEM41B and VMP1 are phospholipid scramblases whose deficiency impairs the normal cellular distribution of cholesterol and phosphatidylserine. Their mechanism of action on LD formation is likely to be different from that of seipin. Their role in maintaining cellular phosphatidylserine and cholesterol homeostasis may partially explain their requirement for viral infection. Our results suggest that the proper sorting and distribution of cellular lipids are essential for organelle biogenesis and viral infection.