Electrical impedance of white spruce shoots in relation to pressure-volume analysis and free sugar content

Electrical impedance measurements made on white spruce, Picea glauca (Moench) Voss, stems were related to shoot free sugar contents and to osmotic, turgor and water potential. During seasonal dormancy induction, there were commensurate increases in free sugar contents, osmotic potential at full turgor and impedance which resulted in linear relationships among these variables. When measured over the course of laboratory drying, impedance increased curvilinearly with decreasing relative water content. There was a linear increase in impedance with decreasing water potential, with a break point coincident with the turgor loss point, possibly attributed to disruption to current flow through broken plasmodesmatal connections between adjacent cells. This technique offers a non-destructive method to measure tissue free sugar content, and therefore, short- and long-term shifts in parameters historically derived from pressure-volume analysis.     

Critical role of mitochondrial dysfunction and impaired mitophagy in diabetic nephropathy

Mitochondrial dynamics play a critical role in deciding the fate of a cell under normal and diseased condition. Recent surge of studies indicate their regulatory role in meeting energy demands in renal cells making them critical entities in the progression of diabetic nephropathy. Diabetes is remarkably associated with abnormal fuel metabolism, a basis for free radical generation, which if left unchecked may devastate the mitochondria structurally and functionally. Impaired mitochondrial function and their aberrant accumulation have been known to be involved in the manifestation of diabetic nephropathy, indicating perturbed balance of mitochondrial dynamics, and mitochondrial turnover. Mitochondrial dynamics emphasize the critical role of mitochondrial fission proteins such as mitochondrial fission 1, dynamin-related protein 1 and mitochondrial fission factor and fusion proteins including mitofusin-1, mitofusin-2 and optic atrophy 1. Clearance of dysfunctional mitochondria is aided by translocation of autophagy machinery to the impaired mitochondria and subsequent activation of mitophagy regulating proteins PTEN-induced putative kinase 1 and Parkin, for which mitochondrial fission is a prior event. In this review, we discuss recent progression in our understanding of the molecular mechanisms targeting reactive oxygen species mediated alterations in mitochondrial energetics, mitophagy related disorders, impaired glucose transport, tubular atrophy, and renal cell death. The molecular cross talks linking autophagy and renoprotection through an intervention of 5′-AMP-activated protein kinase, mammalian target of rapamycin, and SIRT1 factors are also highlighted here, as in-depth exploration of these pathways may help in deriving therapeutic strategies for managing diabetes provoked end-stage renal disease.     

Flower bud opening and senescence in roses (Rosa hybrida L.)

The flower is the most significant and beautiful part of plants. Flowers are very useful organs in plant developmental phenomenon. During flower bud opening, various events takes place in a well defined sequence, representing all aspects of plant development, such as cell division, cellular differentiation, cell elongation or expansion and a wide spectrum of gene expression. The complexity of flower bud opening illustrates that various biological mechanisms are involved at different stages. Senescence represents the ultimate stage of floral development and results in wilting or abscission of whole flower or flower parts. Senescence is an active process and governed by a well defined cell death program. Once a flower bud opens, the programmed senescence of petal allows the removal of a metabolically active tissue. In leaves, this process can be reversed, but in floral tissue it cannot, indicating that a highly controlled genetic program for cell death is operating. The termination of a flower involves at least two, sometimes overlapping, mechanisms. In one, the perianth abscises before the majority of its cells initiate a cell death program. Abscission may occur before or during the mobilization of food reserves to other parts of the plant. Alternatively, the petals may be more persistent, so that cell deterioration and food remobilization occur while the petals are still part of the flower. The overall pattern of floral opening varies widely between plant genera, therefore, a number of senescence parameters have been used to group plants into somewhat arbitrary categories. Opening and senescence of rose flower is still an unsolved jigsaw in the world of floriculture industry and the mechanism behind the onset of the very early events in the sequence still remains to be elucidated. Hence, for advancing the knowledge on the pertinent aspect of bud opening and senescence the literature has been cited under this review.     

Production of G protein‐coupled receptors in an insect‐based cell‐free system

The biochemical analysis of human cell membrane proteins remains a challenging task due to the difficulties in producing sufficient quantities of functional protein. G protein‐coupled receptors (GPCRs) represent a main class of membrane proteins and drug targets, which are responsible for a huge number of signaling processes regulating various physiological functions in living cells. To circumvent the current bottlenecks in GPCR studies, we propose the synthesis of GPCRs in eukaryotic cell‐free systems based on extracts generated from insect (Sf21) cells. Insect cell lysates harbor the fully active translational and translocational machinery allowing posttranslational modifications, such as glycosylation and phosphorylation of de novo synthesized proteins. Here, we demonstrate the production of several GPCRs in a eukaryotic cell‐free system, performed within a short time and in a cost‐effective manner. We were able to synthesize a variety of GPCRs ranging from 40 to 133 kDa in an insect‐based cell‐free system. Moreover, we have chosen the μ opioid receptor (MOR) as a model protein to analyze the ligand binding affinities of cell‐free synthesized MOR in comparison to MOR expressed in a human cell line by “one‐point” radioligand binding experiments. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2017;114: 2328–2338. © 2017 The Authors. Biotechnology and Bioengineering Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

How to deal with oxygen radicals stemming from mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation

Oxygen radical formation in mitochondria is an incompletely understood attribute of eukaryotic cells. Recently, a kinetic model was proposed, in which the ratio between electrons entering the respiratory chain via FADH₂ or NADH determines radical formation. During glucose breakdown, the ratio is low; during fatty acid breakdown, the ratio is high (the ratio increasing—asymptotically—with fatty acid length to 0.5, when compared with 0.2 for glucose). Thus, fatty acid oxidation would generate higher levels of radical formation. As a result, breakdown of fatty acids, performed without generation of extra FADH₂ in mitochondria, could be beneficial for the cell, especially in the case of long and very long chained ones. This possibly has been a major factor in the evolution of peroxisomes. Increased radical formation, as proposed by the model, can also shed light on the lack of neuronal fatty acid oxidation and tells us about hurdles during early eukaryotic evolution. We specifically focus on extending and discussing the model in light of recent publications and findings.     

不同剂量右美托嘧啶对胸腔镜下食管癌根治术患者心肌氧供及血流动力学的影响

目的:探讨不同剂量右美托嘧啶(DEX)对胸腔镜下食管癌根治术患者心肌氧供及血流动力学的影响。方法:选取66例我院拟行腔镜下食管癌根治术患者,随机分为三组,每组各22例:低剂量右美托嘧啶组(L组)(0.5μg/kg)、高剂量右美托嘧啶组(H组)(1.0μg/kg)、对照组(N组)(与L组和H组同等速率输注生理盐水),而后H组和L组均以0.5μg/kg/h维持输注DEX。记录各组输注前(T1)、输注后5 min(T2)、输注后10 min(T3)、输注后15 min(T4)、输注后30 min(T5)各组血流动力学指标:心率(HR)、收缩压(SBP)、平均动脉压(MAP)、每搏输出量(SV)、中心静脉压(CVP)、心排量(CO),计算HR与SBP的乘积RPP,抽取挠动脉和肺动脉血进行动脉血气分析,采用反向FICK法计算氧供(DO2)和氧耗(VO2)。结果:HR:H组和L组患者HR随时间的推移呈下降趋势,H组T3、T4、T5时间点HR较T1时间点显著降低(P0.05);与N组相比,H组和L组T3、T4、T5时间点HR显著降低(P0.05)。MAP:H组T3、T4、T5时间点MAP显著低于L组(P0.05);H组T3、T4时间点MAP显著低于N组(P0.05);H组T5时间点MAP显著低于同组T1、T2时间点(P0.05)。SBP:H组T3、T4、T5时间点SBP与L组和N组比较显著降低(P0.05);H组T5时间点SBP较同组T1、T2时间点显著降低(P0.05)。RPP:H组T3、T4、T5时间点RPP与同组T1、T2时间点和N组比较显著降低(P0.05)。DO2:H组T5时间点DO2与L组和N组比较显著降低(P0.05)。VO2:L组患者VO2T3、T4、T5时间点与组内T1、T2时间点和N组相比显著降低(P0.05);H组VO2T3、T4、T5时间点与组内T1、T2时间点和N组相比显著降低(P0.05)。结论:小剂量(0.5μg/kg)输注DEX能降低胸腔镜下食管癌患者心肌氧耗,维持血流动力学稳定,高剂量(1.0μg/kg)输注DEX降低心肌氧耗的同时会降低心肌氧供,存在一定风险,对于患有冠心病以及心肺功能低下的老年患者,建议给予小剂量输注DEX,并监测血流动力学指标,及时调整DEX用量。     

Nitrate induced iron deficiency chlorosis in Juncus acutiflorus

Chlorosis caused by iron deficiency is commonly associated with high bicarbonate levels in the soil. However, in rare cases such chlorosis has been observed in soils with high nitrate levels. In a dutch rich-fen, chlorosis has been noted in stands of Juncus acutiflorus at locations where groundwater containing high levels of nitrate reached the surface. Experiments revealed that the chlorosis could be attributed to iron deficiency although iron levels in the shoots were well above the known physiological threshold values for iron deficiency. It is postulated that increased nitrate assimilation leads to an increased apoplastic pH and to a concomitant immobilisation of iron and/or lower iron (III) reduction. Moreover free amino acid levels were markedly higher in the iron deficient plants in the field. It was found, however, that the percentage of nitrogen present as free amino acids was not influenced directly by low iron levels but mainly by the C/N ratios in the shoots. Nowadays, nitrate concentrations in ground water as high 1000 µM are no longer an exception in the Netherlands. We propose that strongly increased nitrate inputs may cause iron stress in natural vegetations, especially in wet habitats.     

酿酒葡萄皮渣中白藜芦醇的抗氧化活性研究

本文利用甲醇溶剂对酿酒葡萄皮渣进行浸提,得到白藜芦醇粗提物.粗提物通过硅胶柱层析进行纯化.然后,研究了白藜芦醇的氧自由基、超氧阴离子自由基、羟自由基、DPPH自由基的清除能力.结果显示:白藜芦醇具有很强的自由基清除能力和抗氧化能力,并且随着浓度的增加,抗氧化能力增强.