小鼠巨噬细胞RAW264.7 的培养技巧及经验总结

RAW264.7细胞具有很强的黏附和吞噬抗原的能力,是研究微生物学、免疫学的常用细胞株.很多研究者发现这种细胞形态极不稳定,细胞状态的评价也很困难.本文作者结合RAW264.7培养经历及文献资料探讨RAW264.7细胞培养的经验教训和评价细胞状态的方法,旨在为培养该细胞的科研工作者提供一定的借鉴.     

MHC motif viewer

In vertebrates, the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) presents peptides to the immune system. In humans, MHCs are called human leukocyte antigens (HLAs), and some of the loci encoding them are the most polymorphic in the human genome. Different MHC molecules present different subsets of peptides, and knowledge of their binding specificities is important for understanding the differences in the immune response between individuals. Knowledge of motifs may be used to identify epitopes, to understand the MHC restriction of epitopes, and to compare the specificities of different MHC molecules. Algorithms that predict which peptides MHC molecules bind have recently been developed and cover many different alleles, but the utility of these algorithms is hampered by the lack of tools for browsing and comparing the specificity of these molecules. We have, therefore, developed a web server, MHC motif viewer, that allows the display of the likely binding motif for all human class I proteins of the loci HLA A, B, C, and E and for MHC class I molecules from chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes), rhesus monkey (Macaca mulatta), and mouse (Mus musculus). Furthermore, it covers all HLA-DR protein sequences. A special viewing feature, MHC fight, allows for display of the specificity of two different MHC molecules side by side. We show how the web server can be used to discover and display surprising similarities as well as differences between MHC molecules within and between different species. The MHC motif viewer is available at .     

我国分离的肠道病毒71型(SHZH03病毒株)全基因组核苷酸序列分析

对肠道病毒71型(enterovirus 71,EV71)中国(深圳)分离株SHZH03进行了全基因组(未包括多聚腺苷尾)7406个碱基的核苷酸序列测定.结果表明,SHZH03株与其它肠道病毒71型毒株相比,在编码区没有核苷酸的缺失和插入,其5′UTR和3′UTR区的长度和序列有一定的差异.核苷酸同源性比较结果表明,在P1区SHZH03株与SHZH98株、中国台湾流行株(TW2086、TW2272)的同源性较高(分别为92.5%,90.1%和87.9%),与新加坡流行株SIN5666、SIN5865及标准株MS、BrCr的同源性则在81%左右,而与Coxsackievirus A16(Cox.A16)的同源性最低(63.6%).氨基酸同源性比较结果表明,在P1区SHZH03株与Cox. A16的同源性最低,但在P2和P3区SHZH03株与Cox.A16的同源性最高.P1区的遗传进化分析表明,SHZH03株和中国台湾1998年流行的EV71毒株的亲缘关系较近,属于同一型(genogroup),而与标准株BrCr和MS的亲缘关系较远.上述结果有助于肠道病毒71型的基础研究和中国对于EV71所致疾病的预防.     

软件预测和MAST技术筛选mRNA反义核酸靶点的比较

基因mRNA的结构靶点筛选是反义核酸药物研发的一个难题 .兔 (Oryctolaguscuniculus) β珠蛋白基因mRNA的结构靶位点通过运用MAST技术筛选获得 ,和计算机软件RNAstructure3 71模拟分析的位点进行了比较 ,也和寡核苷酸微阵列杂交技术筛选获得的靶点结果 (M .Natalie ,1 997)进行了比较 ,显示 :据MAST技术获得的兔 β珠蛋白基因 2个反义核酸结合靶位点 ,和用RNAstructure3 71软件给出的模拟分析的 2个靶位点相同 ,且它们与寡核苷酸微阵列杂交技术的结果完全一致 .运用MAST技术筛选获得绿色荧光蛋白 (GFP)mRNA有 4个结构靶位点 ,体外分析表明这 4个靶位点均有效 ,其中有 3个与RNAstructure3 71软件分析的靶点相同 ,但计算机模拟推荐的结构靶位点较多 ,而且随着基因长度增加确认靶位点的难度增大 ,获得的靶位点还需要实验验证 ,计算机软件模拟分析对实验筛选靶点、设计反义核酸有辅助价值 .MAST方法能筛选各种长度基因mRNA的全部可及位点和准确给定核苷酸的起止位置以供设计反义核酸 ,具有简单快捷的优点 ,将能为反义核酸设计起重要作用 .     

Cathepsin E regulates the presentation of tetanus toxin C-fragment in PMA activated primary human B cells

Processing of antigens by proteases in the endocytic compartments of antigen presenting cells (APC) is essential to make them suitable for presentation as antigenic peptides to T lymphocytes. Several proteases of the cysteine, aspartyl and serine classes are involved in this process. It has been speculated, that the aspartyl protease cathepsin E (CatE) is involved in antigen processing in B cell line, monocyte-derived dendritic cells (DC) and murine DC. Here we show the expression of CatE in primary human B cells and DC, which was only elevated in B cells after induction with phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA), resulted in enhanced presentation of tetanus toxin C-fragment (TTC) to the respective T cells. Inhibition of aspartyl proteases using pepstatin-A-penetratin (PepA-P), a highly efficient, cell-permeable aspartyl protease inhibitor, reduced significantly T cell activation in PMA activated B cells but not in PMA activated myeloid DC (mDC). Thus we suggest that CatE is important in the processing of TTC in primary human B cells.     

人巨细胞病毒PP71基因序列分析与表达

人巨细胞病毒 (Ｈｕｍａｎｃｙｔｏｍｅｇａｌｏｖｉｒｕｓ)在人群中存在非常普遍 ,大多数呈临床不显性或潜伏感染 ,孕妇ＨＣＭＶ复发感染或新的感染均可引起新生儿宫内或围产期感染 ,导致胎儿畸形、智力低下和发育迟缓等。人是ＨＣＭＶ的唯一宿主 ,病毒可通过人与人间的直接或间接接触传播。近年来对ＨＣＭＶ的致病机理的研究已日趋深入 ,已有多项研究证实 ,ＨＣＭＶ ＰＰ71(ＵＬ82 )基因是病毒抗原之一。亦有研究证实 ,ＨＣＭＶ ＰＰ71是 (ＵＬ82 )基因产物 ,可促进病毒后期的基因表达 ,提高病毒的复制能力。本实验对ＰＰ71(ＵＬ82 )基因…     

The Development of Multi-epitope Vaccines: Epitope Identification, Vaccine Design and Clinical Evaluation

We have developed efficient methods for epitope identification and vaccine design. Our process for epitope selection based on the combined use of motif analyses, binding assays and immunogenicity evaluations is described. We also describe how the projected population coverage and vaccine design can be optimized. Finally, it is discussed how vaccine potency is evaluated by immunogenicity and antigenicity assays.     

Isometric and Eccentric Force Generation Assessment of Skeletal Muscles Isolated from Murine Models of Muscular Dystrophies

Critical to the evaluation of potential therapeutics for muscular disease are sensitive and reproducible physiological assessments of muscle function. Because many pre-clinical trials rely on mouse models for these diseases, isolated muscle function has become one of the standards for Go/NoGo decisions in moving drug candidates forward into patients. We will demonstrate the preparation of the extensor digitorum longus (EDL) and diaphragm muscles for functional testing, which are the predominant muscles utilized for these studies. The EDL muscle geometry is ideal for isolated muscle preparations, with two easily accessible tendons, and a small size that can be supported by superfusion in a bath. The diaphragm exhibits profound progressive pathology in dystrophic animals, and can serve as a platform for evaluating many potential therapies countering fibrosis, and promoting myofiber stability. Protocols for routine testing, including isometric and eccentric contractions, will be shown. Isometric force provides assessment of strength, and eccentric contractions help to evaluate sarcolemma stability, which is disrupted in many types of muscular dystrophies. Comparisons of the expected results between muscles from wildtype and dystrophic muscles will also be provided. These measures can complement morphological and biochemical measurements of tissue homeostasis, as well as whole animal assessments of muscle function.     

Peering into the Dynamics of Social Interactions: Measuring Play Fighting in Rats

Play fighting in the rat involves attack and defense of the nape of the neck, which if contacted, is gently nuzzled with the snout. Because the movements of one animal are countered by the actions of its partner, play fighting is a complex, dynamic interaction. This dynamic complexity raises methodological problems about what to score for experimental studies. We present a scoring schema that is sensitive to the correlated nature of the actions performed. The frequency of play fighting can be measured by counting the number of playful nape attacks occurring per unit time. However, playful defense, as it can only occur in response to attack, is necessarily a contingent measure that is best measured as a percentage (#attacks defended/total # attacks X 100%). How a particular attack is defended against can involve one of several tactics, and these are contingent on defense having taken place; consequently, the type of defense is also best expressed contingently as a percentage. Two experiments illustrate how these measurements can be used to detect the effect of brain damage on play fighting even when there is no effect on overall playfulness. That is, the schema presented here is designed to detect and evaluate changes in the content of play following an experimental treatment.