Fluorescence and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopic studies on the role of disulfide bond in the calcium binding in the 33 kDa protein of Photosystem II

The 33 kDa protein of Photosystem II has one intrachain disulfide bond. Fluorescence spectroscopy shows that the major groups in the protein that bind to Ca²⁺ should be the carboxylic side groups of glutamic acid and/or aspartic acid. Fluorescence and Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopic studies indicate that the conformation of the 33 kDa protein is altered upon reduction, while the reduced protein still retains the secondary structure. FTIR spectroscopy also shows that the metal ions induce a relative decrease of unordered structure and -sheet, and a substantial increase of -helix in both the intact and the reduced 33 kDa protein. This indicates that the addition of cations results in a much more compact structure and that both the intact and the reduced 33 kDa proteins have the ability to bind calcium. The above results may suggest that the disulfide bridge is not essential for calcium binding.Abbreviations CD circular dichroism - FTIR Fourier transform infrared - La lanthanum - PS photosystem - Tb terbium     

生物复苏——大绝灭后生物演化历史的第一幕

生命史是一部生物界短期,快速剧变与长期,慢速稳定相互交替的历史。大绝灭（即集群绝灭）事件反映了全球环境的大突变,点断了地质历史中的生命记录及其发展历程,预示着生物界的演化出现了最有意义的飞跃,近年来尝试研究大绝灭后全球生物界的残存－复苏及其基本型式,并探索复苏的控制因素,标志着地质科学中一个重心的转移（即从大绝灭转向其后的生物残存与复苏的研究）。生物复苏揭示了大绝灭后生物演化历史的第一幕,其研究的     

Genomic Analysis of a New Mammalian Distal-less Gene: Dlx7

We have cloned a new Dlx gene (Dlx7) from human and mouse that may represent the mammalian orthologue of the newt geneNvHBox-5.The homeodomains of these genes are highly similar to all other vertebrate Dlx genes, and regions of similarity also exist between mammalian Dlx7 and a subset of vertebrate Dlx genes downstream of the homeodomain. The sequence divergence between human and mouse Dlx7 in these regions is greater than that predicted from comparisons of other vertebrate Dlx genes, however, and there is little sequence similarity upstream of the homeodomain both between these two genes and with other Dlx genes. We present evidence for alternative splicing of mouseDlx7upstream of the homeodomain that may account for some of this divergence. We have mapped humanDLX7distal to the 5′ end of the HOXB cluster at an estimated distance of between 1 and 2 Mb by FISH. Both the human and the mouse Dlx7 are shown to be closely linked to Dlx3 in a convergently transcribed orientation. These mapping results support the possibility that vertebrate distal-less genes have been duplicated in concert with the Hox clusters.     

An Integrated Map with Cosmid/PAC Contigs of a 4-Mb Down Syndrome Critical Region

The major phenotypic features of Down syndrome have been correlated with partial trisomies of chromosome 21, allowing us to define the candidate gene region to a 4-Mb segment on the 21q22.2 band. We present here a high-resolution physical map with megabase-sized cosmid/PAC contigs. This ordered clone library has provided unique material for the integration of a variety of mappable objects, including exons, cDNAs, restriction sites, etc. Furthermore, our results have exemplified a strategy for the completion of the chromosome 21 map to sequencing.     

人分裂细胞核抗原基因片段的筛选、测序及对启动子的分析

经６．６×１０５个克隆筛选,从装在λ噬菌体载体Ｃｈａｒｏｎ３０中的人基因库中筛选到了一个含人分裂细胞核抗原（ＰＣＮＡ）基因的克隆。经Ｓｏｕｔｈｅｒｎ杂交分析插入基因长约１４ｋｂ,有较长的５＇上游区,但３＇端缺少一部分。经亚克隆和测序已确定从５＇上游１２６３ｂｐ到３＇端与λ载体接点共４９６９ｂｐＰＣＮＡ基因片段的核苷酸序列。将ＰＣＮＡ基因启动子核苷酸序列与ＤＮＡ聚合酶α,拓扑异构酶Ⅱα,胸苷酸激酶基因的启动子进行比较有３０％以上同源性,具有“看家基因”特征。在转录起始点的５＇上游几百ｂｐ的范围内都有与ＣＡＴ,ＳＰ１,Ｅ２Ｆ,ＮＦＨＢ,Ｏｃｔ１和ＡＴＦ等转录因子的结合位点相似的核苷酸序列。     

大豆籽粒蓝脐性状及其分离规律

控制大豆白花亲本籽粒脐色的基因有带Ｒ与ｒ之分,带Ｒ基因的白花产本与紫花亲本杂交,Ｆ１代籽料出现蓝脐性状,其基因型为Ｉ－Ｒ－Ｗ１－ｔｔ。当控制脐色的基因有两对相差时（Ｒ、ｒ;Ｗ１、ｗ１）Ｆ２代籽粒脐色分离蓝脐与无色脐之比为９∶７。     

Visualization of Golgia apparatus as an intracellular calcium store by laser scanning confocal microscope

Using laser scanning confocal microscopy,we have found that the in cells loaded with fluo-3/AM,highest intracellular Ca^2 in the perinuclear region is associated with the Golgi apparatus.The spatiotemporal subcellular distribution of Ca^2 in living human fibroblasts exposing to calcium-free medium in response to agonists has been investigated.PDGF,which releases Ca^2 from intracellular stores by inositol(1,4,5)-trisphosphate pathway ,produced a biphasic transient rise in intracellular calcium.The initial rise was resulted from a direct release of calcium from the golgi apparatus.Calcium could be also released from and reaccumulated into the Golgi apparatus by the stimulation of thapsigargin,an inhibitor of the Ca^2 transport ATPase of intracellular calcium store,Permeablizing the plasma membrane by 10μM digitonin resulted in the calcium release from the Golgi apparatus and depletion of the internal calcium store.These results suggest that the Golgi apparatus plays a role in Ca^2 regulation in signal transduction.     

肿瘤坏死因子－α（TNF－α）对常见呼吸道病毒的抑制作用

用人重组肿瘤坏死因子－α（Ｔｕｍｏｒｎｅｃｒｏｓｉｓｆａｃｔｏｒ－α,ＴＮＦ－α）和人天然α干扰素（Ｉｎｔｅｒｆｅｒｏｎ－α－,ＩＦＮ－α）在人胚胎肺纤维母细胞（ＨＥＦ）和Ｈｅｐ－２细胞系上对常见呼吸道病毒所致细胞病变抑制进行比较观察。病毒包括不同型别的腺病毒５株,单疱病毒Ⅰ型（ＨＳＶ－Ｉ）１株,鼻病毒１株,仙台病毒１株,ＶＳＶ１株。结果提示ＴＮＦ－α和ＩＦＮ－α均具有广谱抗病毒活性。ＴＮＦ－α的抑毒作用能被ＴＮＦ－α申抗和ＩＦＮ－β单抗完全去除,被ＩＦＮ－α单抗部分去除ＴＮＦ－α的抗病毒效应。ＴＮＦ－－α中和试验的结果提示：ＴＮＦ抗病毒活性仍为ＩＦＮ－β诱生所介导。     

Retinoic Acid Treatment Induces Cell Death and the Protein Expression of Retinoic Acid Receptor β in the Mesenchymal Cells of Mouse Facial Primordia in Vitro

We isolated mesenchymal cells from individual facial primordia of mouse embryos on 11 days post coitum and examined the effects of retinoic acid (RA) on chondrogenesis, induction of cell death, and the protein expression of retinoic acid receptor (RAR) β and γ in micromass culture. Under the control condition, cells of both medial and lateral nasal prominences (MNP and LNP) displayed high chondrogenic potential, while those of maxillary and mandibular prominences (Mx and Md) had constant growth activity and low chondrogenic potential. Though none of the cells expressed detectable levels of the RAR β protein, RAR γ was expressed in the cells of all the facial primordia. One μM RA inhibited the chondrogenesis, and induced cell death accompanied with the induction of the RAR β protein in LNP, MX and Md cells within 6 hr. On the contrary, both cell death and RAR β protein induction were detected in the MNP cells treated with RA for 24 hr. These results suggest that the RAR β is involved in the process of the cell death induced by the RA treatment in the mesenchymal cells of the mouse facial primordia.