蓝斑核调制电刺激包钦格复合体引起的吸气抑制效应

实验选用成年健康家兔,用乌拉坦麻醉,以膈神经放电为指标,观察了电刺激和化学刺激脑桥蓝斑核对延髓包钦格复合体吸气抑制效应的影响。结果观察到:(1)长串电刺激蓝斑核后,在一定时间之内电刺激包钦格复合体所导致的膈神经放电抑制效应明显减弱,与对照组(仅刺激包钦格复合体)相比,抑制程度减弱(28.78 ±19.49)%。(2)蓝斑核内微量注射谷氨酸钠后,电刺激包钦格复合体导致的膈神经放电抑制效应明显减弱,与对照组相比,抑制程度减弱(19.18 ±8.06)%,与长串电刺激蓝斑核的效应一致。这些结果提示,蓝斑核对包钦格复合体吸气抑制效应具有调制作用。     

Reaction kinetics in intracellular environments with macromolecular crowding: simulations and rate laws

We review recent evidence illustrating the fundamental difference between cytoplasmic and test tube biochemical kinetics and thermodynamics, and showing the breakdown of the law of mass action and power-law approximation in in vivo conditions. Simulations of biochemical reactions in non-homogeneous media show that as a result of anomalous diffusion and mixing of the biochemical species, reactions follow a fractal-like kinetics. Consequently, the conventional equations for biochemical pathways fail to describe the reactions in in vivo conditions. We present a modification to fractal-like kinetics following the Zipf–Mandelbrot distribution which will enable the modelling and analysis of biochemical reactions occurring in crowded intracellular environments.     

Light-enhanced dark respiration in leaves and mesophyll protoplasts of pea in relation to photorespiration,respiration and some metabolites content

The respiration rate of leaves and mesophyll protoplasts of pea (Pisum sativum L.), from plants which were previously kept in darkness for 24 h was doubled following a period of photosynthesis at ambient level of O₂ (21 %), whereas the low level of O₂ (1 % and 4 % for leaves and protoplasts, respectively) reduced this light-enhanced dark respiration (LEDR) to the rate as noted before the illumination. Similarly to respiration rate, the oxygen at used concentrations had no effect on the ATP/ADP ratio in the dark-treated leaves. However, the ATP/ADP ratio in leaves photosynthesizing at 21 % O₂ was higher (up to 40 %, dependence on CO₂ concentration in the range 40–1600 1 dm⁻³) than in those photosynthesizing at 1 % O₂ or darkened at air (21 % O₂). Also, at 1 % O₂ the accumulation of malate was suppressed (by about 40 %), to a value noted for leaves darkened at 21 % O₂. The dark-treatment of leaves reduced the ability of isolated mitochondria to oxidize glycine (by about twofold) and succinate, but not malate. Mitochondria from both the light- and dark-treated leaves did not differ in qualitative composition of free amino acids, however, there were significant quantitative differences especially with respect to aspartate, alanine, glutamate and major intermediates of the photorespiratory pathway (glycine, serine). Our results suggest that accumulation of photorespiratory and respiratory metabolites in pea leaves during photosynthesis at 1 % O₂ is reduced, hence the suppression of postillumination respiration rate.     

Fe Resupply to Fe-deficient Sugar Beet Plants Leads to Rapid Changes in the Violaxanthin Cycle and other Photosynthetic Characteristics without Significant de novo Chlorophyll Synthesis

The effects of Fe resupply to Fe-deficient plants have been investigated in hydroponically-grown sugar beet. In the short-term (24 h) after Fe resupply, major changes were observed, although de novo chlorophyll (Chl) synthesis had not begun yet. Approximately 50% of the zeaxanthin was converted into violaxanthin, whereas the actual Photosystem II (PS II) efficiency increased by 69% and non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) and the amount of thermally dissipated energy decreased markedly (by 47% and 40%, respectively). At the same time, photosynthetic rate increased approximately by 50%. From one to two days after Fe resupply, there was a gradual increase in the leaf concentrations of Chl and other photosynthetic pigments, accompanied by a further conversion of zeaxanthin into violaxanthin, increases in actual PS II efficiency and photosynthetic rates and decreases in NPQ and the amount of thermally dissipated energy. At 72-96 h after Fe resupply, leaf pigment concentrations, photosynthetic rates and actual PS II efficiency had increased further, although both photosynthetic rate and leaf pigment concentrations were still lower than those found in Fe-sufficient leaves. Good correlations were observed between the amount of light thermally dissipated by the PS II antenna, NPQ and the antheraxanthin + zeaxanthin concentration after Fe resupply, confirming the photoprotective role of the xanthophyll cycle in Fe-deficient sugar beet leaves. Similar correlations were observed for lutein, suggesting a possible role of this pigment in photoprotection.     

The Cytochrome bc 1 Complex and its Homologue the b 6 f Complex: Similarities and Differences

The ubihydroquinone:cytochrome c oxidoreductase (also called complex III, or bc (1) complex), is a multi subunit enzyme encountered in a very broad variety of organisms including uni- and multi-cellular eukaryotes, plants (in their mitochondria) and bacteria. Most bacteria and mitochondria harbor various forms of the bc (1) complex, while plant and algal chloroplasts as well as cyanobacteria contain a homologous protein complex called plastohydroquinone:plastocyanin oxidoreductase or b (6) f complex. Together, these enzyme complexes constitute the superfamily of the bc complexes. Depending on the physiology of the organisms, they often play critical roles in respiratory and photosynthetic electron transfer events, and always contribute to the generation of the proton motive force subsequently used by the ATP synthase. Primarily, this review is focused on comparing the 'mitochondrial-type' bc (1) complex and the 'chloroplast-type' b (6) f complex both in terms of structure and function. Specifically, subunit composition, cofactor content and assembly, inhibitor sensitivity, proton pumping, concerted electron transfer and Fe-S subunit large-scale domain movement of these complexes are discussed. This is a timely undertaking in light of the structural information that is emerging for the b (6) f complex.     

Moisture Effects on Temperature Sensitivity of CO<Subscript>2</Subscript> Exchange in a Subarctic Heath Ecosystem

Carbon fluxes between natural ecosystems and the atmosphere have received increased attention in recent years due to the impact they have on climate. In order to investigate independently how soil moisture and temperature control carbon fluxes into and out of a dry subarctic dwarf shrub dominated heath, monoliths containing soil and plants were incubated at three different moisture levels and subjected to four different temperature levels between 7 and 20 °C. Ecosystem CO₂ exchange was monitored continuously day and night during the 16 to 18 days that each of three experiments lasted. Additionally, the carbon allocation pattern of the plants was investigated by labelling monoliths with ¹⁴CO₂ followed by harvest of above and below ground plant parts. The results revealed that the three different soil moisture levels caused distinctly differing levels of CO₂ fluxes. Also, both carbon fixation calculated as gross ecosystem production (GEP) and carbon release measured as ecosystem respiration (ER) increased with increasing temperatures, with ER increasing faster than GEP. Hence, short term carbon loss from the ecosystem accelerated with raised temperatures. Temperature sensitivity of the ecosystem was dependent on the soil moisture level, shown by differing Q10 values of both GEP and ER at different soil moisture levels. It is therefore highly important to take soil moisture levels into consideration when evaluating responses of ecosystem carbon balance to changes in temperature. The greatest C fixation took place via the two most dominant species of the ecosystem, Vaccinium uliginosum and Empetrum hermaphroditum, with the former being responsible for the different size of C fixation at the three moisture levels.     

Sex differences in metabolic rates in field crickets and their dipteran parasitoids

Sex differences in metabolic rate (MR) can result from dimorphism in the performance of energetically demanding activities. Male crickets (Teleogryllus oceanicus) engage in costly calling and aggressive activity not performed by females. Consistent with this difference, we found higher maximal MR, factorial scope, and fat content in males than females. T. oceanicus song is also costly because it attracts the parasitoid fly Ormia ochracea. Parasitized crickets had reduced maximal MR consistent with a metabolic cost to harboring larvae. This cost was greater for females, either because females invest more heavily into reproduction at the expense of metabolic capacity, or because males are under stronger selection to respond to infection. Little is known about O. ochracea outside of its auditory system and parasitic lifestyle. We observed greater resting MR in male flies, possibly reflecting a sex difference in the requirement for metabolic power output, because male flies perform potentially costly mating behavior not seen in females. We found a positive relationship between larval density within a cricket and pupal resting MR, suggesting that crickets in good condition are able to both harbor more larvae and produce larvae with higher resting MR. These results reveal a complex interplay between the metabolism of crickets and their fly parasitoids.Communicated by G. Heldmaier     

Analysis of human chorionic gonadotropin-monoclonal antibody interaction in BIAcore

Kinetic studies of macromolecular ligand-ligate interaction have generated ample interest since the advent of plasmon resonance based instruments like BIAcore. Most of the studies reported in literature assume a simple 1 : 1 Langmuir binding and complete reversibility of the system. However we observed that in a high affinity antigen-antibody system [human chorionic gonadotropin-monoclonal antibody (hCG-mAb)] dissociation is insignificant and the sensogram data cannot be used to measure the equilibrium and kinetic parameters. At low concentrations of mAb the complete sensogram could be fitted to a single exponential. Interestingly we found that at higher mAb concentrations, the binding data did not conform to a simple bimolecular model. Instead, the data fitted a two-step model, which may be because of surface heterogeneity of affinity sites. In this paper, we report on the global fit of the sensograms. We have developed a method by which a single two-minute sensogram can be used in high affinity systems to measure the association rate constant of the reaction and the functional capacity of the ligand (hCG) immobilized on the chip. We provide a rational explanation for the discrepancies generally observed in most of the BIAcore sensograms     

Modelling the effect of temperature and water activity on growth of Aspergillus niger strains and applications for food spoilage moulds

AIMS: To develop a model for the combined effect of water activity (a(w)) and temperature on growth of strains of Aspergillus niger, and comparison with data on food spoilage moulds in the literature. METHODS AND RESULTS: An extended combined model describing the growth of two strains of A. niger, as a function of temperature (25-30 degrees C) and a(w) (0.90-0.99) was developed. The growth rate (micro) was expressed as the increase in colony radial growth per unit of time. This extends the previous square root model showing the relationship between temperature and bacterial growth rate developed by Ratkowsky et al. (1983) and the parabolic relationship between the logarithm of the growth rate and a(w) developed by Gibson et al. (1994). A good correlation between the experimental data and the model predictions was obtained, with regression coefficients (r(2)) > 0.99. In addition, the use of this model allowed predictions of the cardinal a(w) levels: a(w(min)), and a(w(opt)). The estimation of the minimum a(w) levels (a(w(min))) was in accordance with data in the literature for similar and a range of other Aspergillus and related species, regardless of the solutes used for a(w) modification. The estimation of the optimal a(w) (a(w(opt))) and the optimal growth rate (micro(opt)) were in good agreement with the experimental results and data from the literature. CONCLUSIONS: This approach enables accurate prediction of the combined effects of environmental factors on growth of spoilage fungi for rapid prediction of cardinal limits using surface response curves. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: This approach is a rapid method for predicting optimal and marginal conditions for growth of a wide range of spoilage micro-organisms in relation to interacting environmental conditions and will have applications for improving shelf-life of intermediate moisture foods.     

Capacity of Lemna gibba L. (duckweed) for uranium and arsenic phytoremediation in mine tailing waters

The potential of Lemna gibba L. to clean uranium and arsenic contamination from mine surface waters was investigated in wetlands of two former uranium mines in eastern Germany and in laboratory hydroponic culture. Water and plants were sampled and L gibba growth and yield were monitored in tailing ponds from the field study sites. Contaminant accumulation, growth and yield experiments were conducted in the laboratory using synthetic tailing water. Mean background concentrations of the surface waters were 186.0+/-81.2 microg l(-1) uranium and 47.0+/-21.3 microg l(-1) arsenic in Site one and 293.7+/-121.3 microg l(-1) uranium and 41.37+/-24.7 microg l(-1) arsenic in Site two. The initial concentration of both uranium and arsenic in the culture solutions was 100 microg l(-1). The plant samples were either not leached, leached with deionized H2O or ethylenediaminetetracetic (EDTA). The results revealed high bioaccumulation coefficients for both uranium and arsenic. Uranium and arsenic content of L gibba dry biomass of the field samples were as follows: nonleached samples > deionized H2O leached (insignificant ANOVA p = 0.05) > EDTA leached. The difference in both arsenic and uranium enrichment were significantly high between the nonleached and the other two lead samples tested at ANOVA p > 0.001. Estimated mean L gibba density in surface water was 85,344.8+/-1843.4 fronds m(-2) (approximately 1319.7 g m(-2)). The maximum specific growth rate was 0.47+/-0.2 d(-1), which exceeded reported specific growth rates for L gibba in the literature. Average yield was estimated at 20.2+/-6.7 g m(-2) d(-1), giving approximately 73.6+/-21.4 t ha(-1) y(-1) as the annual yield. The highest accumulations observed were 896.9+/-203.8 mg kg(-1) uranium and 1021.7+/-250.8 mg kg(-1) arsenic dry biomass for a 21-d test period in the laboratory steady-state experiments. The potential extractions from surface waters with L gibba L. were estimated to be 662.7 kg uranium ha(-1) yr(-1) and 751.9 kg arsenic ha(-1) yr(-1) under the above conditions.