Genotype-by-Environment Interactions for Seedling Establishment Across Native and Degraded-Forest Habitats in a Long-Lived Cycad

Habitat differences might promote adaptive differentiation among populations that can be evidenced by genotype-by-environment interactions (GxE). I examined GxE in seed germination and seedling survival in demes of a rainforest cycad across their native and degraded-forest habitats, and explored the role of maternal effects and resource availability on the observed GxE. A reciprocal-transplant experiment showed a home-site advantage in terms of establishmen of the demes. Germination in a manipulative greenhouse experiment mirrored the patterns in natural environments, with GxE in response to light and water availability. Overall germination was lower in the degraded-forest habitat and under high-light and low-water conditions in the greenhouse. Several analysis suggested that maternal effects related to size on germination are weak, but maternal effects are suggested by better survival of larger seedlings in the degraded-forest habitat. With weak maternal effects, GxE in establishment of individuals suggest some adaptive differentiation across demes in this cycad, which could have implications for population persistence in its habitats.     

基因枪法转化基因在小麦条锈菌中的瞬时表达

以小麦条锈菌(Puccinia striiformis f.sp.tritici)野生毒性菌株为转化受体,以含有gus报告基因的质粒(pGUS6L20)和潮霉素抗性基因的质粒(pKLHyg14)为载体,应用基因枪法研究了小麦条锈菌夏孢子遗传转化的瞬时表达特征。结果表明,在金粉直径为0.6μm、射程6cm、载体DNA5μL、可裂膜压力为900Psi或1100Psi时,gus基因和潮霉素抗性基因的瞬时表达率相对较高。     

Genotype-by-Environment Interactions for Female Mate Choice of Male Cuticular Hydrocarbons in Drosophila simulans

Recent research has highlighted the potential importance of environmental and genotype-by-environment (G×E) variation in sexual selection, but most studies have focussed on the expression of male sexual traits. Consequently, our understanding of genetic variation for plasticity in female mate choice is extremely poor. In this study we examine the genetics of female mate choice in Drosophila simulans using isolines reared across two post-eclosion temperatures. There was evidence for G×Es in female choosiness and preference, which suggests that the evolution of female mate choice behaviour could differ across environments. However, the ranked order of preferred males was consistent across females and environments, so the same males are favoured by mate choice in spite of G×Es. Our study highlights the importance of taking cross-environment perspectives in order to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the operation of sexual selection.     

利用瞬间表达技术分析小麦抗病相关基因的功能

采用瞬间表达技术分析了TaTBL、TaPK1和TaTST等3个抗病相关基因的功能。首先将这3个小麦抗病相关基因构建入高效表达载体,然后使用基因枪将目标基因和GUS基因载体同时导入到感白粉病小麦品种离体叶片表皮细胞中,用GUS基因标记阳性转化细胞。转化后接种白粉菌孢子,48h后观察转化阳性表皮细胞,研究抗病相关基因表达对白粉菌入侵及吸器形成产生的影响。结果表明,这3个基因在感病小麦品种叶片表皮细胞中的瞬间表达,对白粉菌侵入和吸器形成均有部分抑制作用,在一定程度上增强了表达细胞对白粉菌的抗性。     

大鼠部分肝切除前后热激处理对过氧化物酶基因表达的影响

用过氧化物酶原位复性电泳（SDS－POD－PAGE）技术分析了部分肝切除（partial hepatectomy,PH)、部分肝切除后再热激（partial hepatectomy following heat shock,PH-HS)和先热激再部分肝切除（heat shock following partial hepatectomy,HS-PH)后肝再生期间过氧化物酶（POD）基因表达差异,结果表明,PH中表达的POD基因种类（7个）＞PH－HS（5个）＞HS－PH（3个）;三个模型的POD总活性为：HS－PH＞PH－HS。根据实验结果推测,POD在肝再生和肝损伤恢复中起一定作用。     

大鼠部分肝切除前后热激处理对过氧化物酶基因表达的影响

用过氧化物酶原位复性电泳(SDS-POD-PAGE)技术分析了部分肝切除(partial hepatectomy,PH)、部分肝切除后再热激(partial hepatectomyfollowing heat shock,PH-HS)和先热激再部分肝切除(heat shock follow ing partial hepatectomy,HS-PH)后肝再生期间过氧化物酶(POD)基因表达差异,结果表明,PH中表达的POD基因种类(7个)>PH-HS(5个)>HS-PH(3个);三个模型的POD总活性为:HS-PH>PH>PH-HS.根据实验结果推测,POD在肝再生和肝损伤恢复中起一定作用。 Abstract:Expression difference of the peroxidase(POD)genes during liver regeneration after partial hepatectomy(PH),partial hepatectomy following heat shock(PH-HS)and heat shock following partial hepatectomy(HS-PH)was analyzed by POD renatured electrophoresis(SDS-POD-PAGE).The results showed that the expressed POD gene kinds in PH,PH-HS and HS-PH were 7,5 and 3 respectively,and that the total activities of POD in the three models were HS-PH>PH>PH-HS.The results suggested that POD play some roles during liver regeneration and in recovery after liver damage.     

外源GUS基因在PEG介导的花椰菜原生质体中的瞬间表达

为了将外源基因导入花椰菜原生质体获得转基因植株,本文研究了ＰＥＧ介导的外源基因在花椰菜下胚轴原生质体中的瞬间表达。（１）２０％ＰＥＧ将质粒ｐＢＩ２２１导入原生质体后ＧＵＳ表达比１３％ＰＥＧ导入的高,但易造成原生质体损伤。（２）热激处理增强表达,但在随后的培养过程中易造成原生质体降解。（３）原生质体状况对表达有重要影响,５ｄ龄下胚轴原生质体比８ｄ龄的表达强。（４）不同质粒及启动子表达强度不同。质粒ｐＫＩＷＩ１０１比ｐＢＩ２２１表达强３倍左右。     

Transient Expression of Exogenous DNA in Intact, Viable Wheat Embryos Following Particle Bombardment

Expression of foreign DNA has been detected in intact, germinatingwheat embryos (Triticum aestivum L.) following bombardment withtungsten particles complexed with a reporter gene encoding thebacterial enzyme ß-glucuronidase (‘GUS’:E.C.3.2.1.31). Expression was detected in situ in individualcells and groups of cells, by supplying the germinating embryoswith the chromogenic substrate of the GUS enzyme, ‘X-gluc’.Expression was dependent on the presence of a constitutive plantpromoter, the Cauliflower Mosaic Virus ‘35S’ promoter,fused to the GUS structural coding sequence. The relative simplicityof this technique recommends its future use for the assay ofregulatory elements which control the spatial and temporal specificityof genes expressed during embryo development. Key words: Transient expression, particle bombardment, wheat embryo, Triticum aestivum L.     

Successful Transient Expression of Cas9 and Single Guide RNA Genes in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

The clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat (CRISPR)/Cas9 system has become a powerful and precise tool for targeted gene modification (e.g., gene knockout and gene replacement) in numerous eukaryotic organisms. Initial attempts to apply this technology to a model, the single-cell alga, Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, failed to yield cells containing edited genes. To determine if the Cas9 and single guide RNA (sgRNA) genes were functional in C. reinhardtii, we tested the ability of a codon-optimized Cas9 gene along with one of four different sgRNAs to cause targeted gene disruption during a 24-h period immediately following transformation. All three exogenously supplied gene targets as well as the endogenous FKB12 (rapamycin sensitivity) gene of C. reinhardtii displayed distinct Cas9/sgRNA-mediated target site modifications as determined by DNA sequencing of cloned PCR amplicons of the target site region. Success in transient expression of Cas9 and sgRNA genes contrasted with the recovery of only a single rapamycin-resistant colony bearing an appropriately modified FKB12 target site in 16 independent transformation experiments involving >10⁹ cells. Failure to recover transformants with intact or expressed Cas9 genes following transformation with the Cas9 gene alone (or even with a gene encoding a Cas9 lacking nuclease activity) provided strong suggestive evidence for Cas9 toxicity when Cas9 is produced constitutively in C. reinhardtii. The present results provide compelling evidence that Cas9 and sgRNA genes function properly in C. reinhardtii to cause targeted gene modifications and point to the need for a focus on development of methods to properly stem Cas9 production and/or activity following gene editing.     

Osmotic Shock Induction of the Expression of Vibrio fischeri lux Genes in Escherichia coli Cells

The effect of osmotic shock on the expression of genes in the lux regulon of marine bacteria Vibrio fischeri was studied in cells ofEscherichia coli. Bioluminescence of cells was shown to drastically increase, when cells were exposed to osmotic shock at the early logarithmic growth phase, at far lower optic densities as compared to the critical optic density characteristic. The expression of lux genes induced by osmotic shock is determined by the two-component regulatory system RcsC–RcsB. A nucleotide sequence in the regulatory region of the luxR gene homologous to the RcsB-box consensus of E. coli is assumed to be a primary site for this system.     

Trastuzumab Alters the Expression of Genes Essential for Cardiac Function and Induces Ultrastructural Changes of Cardiomyocytes in Mice

Treatment with trastuzumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody directed against the extracellular domain of Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2 (HER2), very successfully improves outcomes for women with HER2-positive breast cancer. However, trastuzumab treatment was recently linked to potentially irreversible serious cardiotoxicity, the mechanisms of which are largely elusive. This study reports that trastuzumab significantly alters the expression of myocardial genes essential for DNA repair, cardiac and mitochondrial functions, which is associated with impaired left ventricular performance in mice coupled with significant ultrastructural alterations in cardiomyocytes revealed by electron microscopy. Furthermore, trastuzumab treatment also promotes oxidative stress and apoptosis in myocardium of mice, and elevates serum levels of cardiac troponin-I (cTnI) and cardiac myosin light chain-1 (cMLC1). The elevated serum levels of cMLC1 in mice treated with trastuzumab highlights the potential that cMLC1 could be a useful biomarker for trastuzumab-induced cardiotoxicity.