人肝刺激因子对大鼠实验性慢性肝损伤的保护作用

从健康孕妇水囊引产４─６个月龄的胎儿取肝,采用ＬａＢｒｅｃｑｕｅ方法提取人肝刺激因子（ｈＨＳＳ）。经３Ｈ－胸腺嘧啶核苷参入肝ＤＮＡ法测定其生物活性。表明此ｈＨＳＳ可刺激肝细胞ＤＮＡ合成。采用皮下注射ＣＣｌ４和饮用１０％乙醇来制备慢性肝损伤动物模型,观察了ｈＨＳＳ的保护肝脏作用。结果表明：ｈＨＳＳ可使ＣＣｌ４－乙醇所致慢性肝损伤大鼠的死亡率、血清谷丙转氨酶水平、肝组织中羟脯氨酸含量的升高以及肝组织中丙二醛的含量降低。肝组织切片表明：ｈＨＳＳ能减轻肝组织的损伤程度,促进肝细胞再生,并能明显防止肝纤维化的形成和发展。可见,ｈＨＳＳ对ＣＣｌ４－乙醇所致的慢性肝损伤大鼠有明显的保护作用,其机制可能与促进肝细胞再生及抑制肝细胞膜的脂质过氧化有关。     

四氯化碳损伤成年大鼠肝细胞后原癌基因（c－fos／c－jun）表达的观察

用四氯化碳（ＣＣｌ４）损伤正常大鼠后,采用Ｗｅｓｔｅｒｎ印迹法和免疫组化法观察肝细胞原癌基因（ｃ－ｆｏｓ／ｃ－ｊｕｎ）的表达。Ｗｅｓｔｅｒｎ印迹法表明,当成年大鼠的静息期肝细胞受到ＣＣｌ４损伤性刺激后,ｃ－ｆｏｓ／ｃ－ｊｕｎ产物（Ｆｏｓ和Ｊｕｎ）水平升高,在ＣＣｌ４处理后３０ｍｉｎ开始升高,在４ｈ时消失。８ｈ后Ｆｏｓ／Ｊｕｎ再度出现,并持续２４ｈ以上。ＩＣＣ法表明,Ｊｕｎ阳性细胞为靠近肝中央静脉区的肝实质细胞。根据上述资料推测,肝受ＣＣｌ４损伤后肝细胞的原癌基因ｃ－ｆｏｓ／ｃ－ｊｕｎ出现即时的与滞后的两次表达,这与肝细胞进入细胞周期有关,这种基因表达也许可作为肝再生过程中识别特殊体液因子的标志。     

喀喇昆仑、昆仑山地区植物元素含量的区域分异和数量分析

对喀喇昆仑、昆仑山地区87种植物21个元素含量及区域分异的研究表明,Ca、Cr、Cd、Fe、V含量比高等植物含量偏高,Ph、P的含量偏低。同种植物在不同地点元素含量有差异。盐柴荒漠植物中Na、K、Mg、P含量较高;高山草甸、冰缘植被植物Ba、Ca、Fe、V、Ti含量较高。各植被类型植物元素含量Na/K差异最大,Ca/Mg较小,Fe/Al差异最小。其变异系数分别为153.5、20.5和15.9.%     

酿酒酵母产苹果酸的还原TCA路径构建及发酵调控

苹果酸广泛应用于食品、化工行业。文中通过在酿酒酵母内敲除丙酮酸脱羧酶PDC1,并通过构建胞质内还原TCA的路径,即超表达丙酮酸羧化酶和苹果酸脱氢酶,成功地实现了苹果酸的生产。在野生型菌株中基本检测不到苹果酸的生成,而在工程菌株,苹果酸发酵浓度达到了45 mmol /L,同时副产物乙醇的产量也降低了18%。进一步通过发酵调控提高第二信使Ca2+的浓度使苹果酸的产量提高了7 %,在此基础上提高丙酮酸羧化酶的辅酶生物素浓度,使苹果酸的产量达到52.5 mmol /L,较原始菌株提高了16%。     

Altered Gut Microbiota Composition Associated with Eczema in Infants

Eczema is frequently the first manifestation of an atopic diathesis and alteration in the diversity of gut microbiota has been reported in infants with eczema. To identify specific bacterial communities associated with eczema, we conducted a case-control study of 50 infants with eczema (cases) and 51 healthy infants (controls). We performed high-throughput sequencing for V3–V4 hypervariable regions of the 16S rRNA genes from the gut fecal material. A total of 12,386 OTUs (operational taxonomic units) at a 97% similarity level were obtained from the two groups, and we observed a difference in taxa abundance, but not the taxonomic composition, of gut microbiota between the two groups. We identified four genera enriched in healthy infants: Bifidobacterium, Megasphaera, Haemophilus and Streptococcus; and five genera enriched in infants with eczema: Escherichia/Shigella, Veillonella, Faecalibacterium, Lachnospiraceae incertae sedis and Clostridium XlVa. Several species, such as Faecalibacterium prausnitzii and Ruminococcus gnavus, that are known to be associated with atopy or inflammation, were found to be significantly enriched in infants with eczema. Higher abundance of Akkermansia muciniphila in eczematous infants might reduce the integrity of intestinal barrier function and therefore increase the risk of developing eczema. On the other hand, Bacteroides fragilis and Streptococcus salivarius, which are known for their anti-inflammatory properties, were less abundant in infants with eczema. The observed differences in genera and species between cases and controls in this study may provide insight into the link between the microbiome and eczema risk.     

Cloning and sequence analysis of 2 different acetylcholinesterase genes in Rhopalosiphum padi and Sitobion avenae.

Two genes encoding different acetylcholinesterases (AChE) were successfully cloned from 2 species of aphid, Rhopalosiphum padi (L.) and Sitobion avenae (F.). They were named Rp.AChE1 (GenBank accession No. AY707318), Rp.AChE2 (AY667435), Sa.AChE1 (AY707319), and Sa.AChE2 (AY819704), and were 2133, 2363, 2131, and 2362 bp in length and encoded 664, 676, 664, and 676 amino acids, respectively. All of them shared the characteristics of the AChE family: catalytic tiads, 3 intra-chain disulfide bridges, an acyl pocket, and the conservative aromatic residues for the active site of the gorge. Sequence analysis revealed that Rp.AChE1 and Sa.AChE1 showed higher identity to the reported orthologous genes of Drosophila AChE, and Rp.AChE2 and Sa.AChE2 to paralogous genes. However, in each of the aphids, the 2 genes from the same species shared only 29% identity between one another. It was therefore concluded that each of the aphids has 2 different AChE genes, which are either orthologous or paralogous to Drosophila AChE. The high conservation of AChE1 and AChE2 indicated that 2 acetylcholinesterases exist popularly and that both might function in aphids.     

Light-sensitive coupling of rhodopsin and melanopsin to G(i/o) and G(q) signal transduction in Caenorhabditis elegans

Activation of G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) initiates signal transduction cascades that affect many physiological responses. The worm Caenorhabditis elegans expresses >1000 of these receptors along with their cognate heterotrimeric G proteins. Here, we report properties of 9-cis-retinal regenerated bovine opsin [(b)isoRho] and human melanopsin [(h)Mo], two light-activated, heterologously expressed GPCRs in the nervous system of C. elegans with various genetically engineered alterations. Profound transient photoactivation of G(i/o) signaling by (b)isoRho led to a sudden and transient loss of worm motility dependent on cyclic adenosine monophosphate, whereas transient photoactivation of G(q) signaling by (h)Mo enhanced worm locomotion dependent on phospholipase Cβ. These transgenic C. elegans models provide a unique way to study the consequences of G(i/o) and G(q) signaling in vivo with temporal and spatial precision and, by analogy, their relationship to human neuromotor function.     

The Critical Role of Astragalus Polysaccharides for the Improvement of PPRA��-Mediated Lipotoxicity in Diabetic Cardiomyopathy

Background

Obesity-related diabetes mellitus leads to increased myocardial uptake and oxidation of fatty acids, resulting in a form of cardiac dysfunction referred to as lipotoxic cardiomyopathy. We have shown previously that Astragalus polysaccharides (APS) administration was sufficient to improve the systemic metabolic disorder and cardiac dysfunction in diabetic models.

Methodology/Principal Findings

To investigate the precise role of APS therapy in the pathogenesis of myocardial lipotoxity in diabetes, db/db diabetic mice and myosin heavy chain (MHC)- peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) α mice were characterized and administrated with or without APS with C57 wide- type mice as normal control. APS treatment strikingly improved the myocyte triacylglyceride accumulation and cardiac dysfunction in both db/db mice and MHC-PPARα mice, with the normalization of energy metabolic derangements in both db/db diabetic hearts and MHC-PPARα hearts. Consistently, the activation of PPARα target genes involved in myocardial fatty acid uptake and oxidation in both db/db diabetic hearts and MHC-PPARα hearts was reciprocally repressed by APS administration, while PPARα-mediated suppression of genes involved in glucose utilization of both diabetic hearts and MHC-PPARα hearts was reversed by treatment with APS.

Conclusions

We conclude that APS therapy could prevent the development of diabetic cardiomyopathy through a mechanism mainly dependent on the cardiac PPARα-mediated regulatory pathways.