Determination of diterpenoid triepoxides in Tripterygium wilfordii by micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatography

A micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatographic (MEKC) method has been established for the identification and determination of diterpenoid triepoxides in the Chinese herb Tripterygium wilfordii Hook F. and its preparations. Studies of the influence of boric acid and borax buffer concentration and pH, and of sodium dodecylsulphate (SDS) concentration have been carried out, and the optimum separation for the triepoxides was achieved using 20 mM boric acid and 10 mM borax with 20 mM SDS as the running buffer. MEKC was found to exhibit good accuracy, precision and repeatability. The sensitivity of the assay was sufficient to monitor the three active components in T. wilfordii and its preparations.     

雷公藤解毒持效双向发酵工艺的建立

采用双向发酵的原理,运用"发酵过程动态比较法"研究了灵芝接种于雷公藤药性基质上发酵不同时间所得菌质的化学成分、急性毒性和免疫功能的变化,以其确定雷公藤解毒持效双向发酵的最佳发酵终点。研究结果表明:发酵第30天所得的菌质(G30)总二萜的含量最低,为0.57%;与雷公藤生药比较,G30的LD50最高,且发酵第30天所得菌质的体液免疫和细胞免疫抑制作用最强。综合对成分含量、毒性及药效的动态数据联系比较、分析,确定了雷公藤解毒持效双向发酵的发酵终点与适宜的发酵周期是菌丝长满瓶后的第30天。     

雷公藤多甙对小鼠生精功能相关基因Herc4、Ipo11和Mrto4表达的影响

文章从影响生精功能相关基因的角度探讨雷公藤多甙抑制小鼠生殖功能的机理,将小鼠随机分为对照组、雷公藤多甙组,应用雷公藤多甙灌胃造成雄性小鼠生殖功能障碍,通过与雌鼠(1:2)合笼观察怀孕率和睾丸组织变化,并采用基因芯片技术观察小鼠睾丸组织的基因表达.结果发现雷公藤多甙组小鼠较对照组怀孕率明显下降,尤其是在8周后怀孕率为0.睾丸曲细精管管壁上生精细胞数量减少,曲细精管内生精细胞部分或全部脱落,阻塞于管腔内,并发现有1932条基因表达出现异常,与生殖相关基因354条,上调112条,下调242条.其中有已经公认的与生殖密切相关的基因Herc4、Ipoll和Mrto4等的表达异常.提示雷公藤多甙引起的小鼠生殖功能障碍与其致生精相关基因的表达异常有关.     

Determination of tripdiolide in root extracts of Tripterygium wilfordii by solid-phase extraction and reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography

Extracts of Tripterygium wilfordii Hook F. have been widely used in China to treat a variety of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. The diterpenoids triptolide and tripdiolide are two major active components in the T. wilfordii ethyl acetate extract. An efficient solid-phase extraction and high-performance liquid chromatography (SPE-HPLC) method to measure triptolide content in the extract has been previously reported. However, a suitable means of tripdiolide quantification is not available because of interfering compounds in the extract that co-elute with tripdiolide. Therefore, this paper describes a method wherein tripdiolide content can be measured from a small amount of the extract. The extract solution (600 microL) was applied into an aminopropyl SPE tube. Triptolide was eluted with dichloromethane:methanol (1 mL, 49:1 v/v), followed by tripdiolide elution with dichloromethane:methanol (3 mL, 17:3 v/v). The tripdiolide eluate was analysed by HPLC using an isocratic solvent system and was quantified by measuring the peak area at 219 nm. The contents of triptolide and tripdiolide in the extract were determined to be 807.32 +/- 51.94 and 366.13 +/- 17.21 microg/g of extract, respectively. Since tripdiolide is biologically active and makes up a considerable portion of the extract, for extract quality control and standardisation purposes, it should be measured along with triptolide using the proposed SPE-HPLC method.     

Preparation of 3'-C-branched uridine analogues, suitable for conversion into functionalised 3'-C-methylene derivatives

A novel method for preparation of 1-[2-O-(tert-butyldimethylsilyl)-3- deoxy-3-C-hydroxymethyl-5-O-monomethoxytrityl-beta-D-ribo- pentofuranosyl]uracil by hydroboration of corresponding 3'-deoxy-3'-C-methyleneuridine derivative has been developed. Further conversion of the hydroxyl function into different leaving groups was carried out to afford derivatives suitable for conversion into various 3'-C-branched uridine analogues through substitution.     

Growth and immobilization of tripterygium wilfordii cultured cells

The plant Tripterygium wilfordii produces di- and triterpenes of interest for male contraception and treatment of arthritis and skin disorders. Cell line TRP4a obtained form this plant in 1981 was reported to produce these valuable compounds at yields ( approximately 0.04% of the biomass dry weight) higher than found in the plant (0.001%). In order to improve this production, studies were carried out to determine the feasibility of eliminating the troublesome component of coconut milk originally used to culture this cell line. A defined formulation suitable for growth ad maintenance has been developed. This medium consisted of Gamborg's PRL4 or B5 medium supplemented with 2 mg L(-1) 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid and 20 g L(-1) sucrose. Furthermore, monitoring of carbohydrate uptake revealed that T. wilfordii cells, contrary to many plant cell species, did not hydrolyze sucrose extra-cellularly before uptake. Replacement of this disaccharide by glucose or fructose increased specific growth rate from 0.15 to 0.25 day(-1). As tripdiolide is reported to be present in broth extract in significant amounts, plant cell immobilization technology offers a promising alternative to suspension cultures, especially in view to on line harvesting of the product. Surface immobilized T. wilfordii cell cultures were successfully carried out in 2-L bioreactors. Their biomass production and carbohydrate uptake were comparable to those observed for shake flask grown suspension cultures. Higher nitrate and ammonium uptake were found in immobilized cultures.     

Structural Study of 12-epitriptriolide Isolated from Tripterygium wilfordii

A new diterpene bisepoxide, 12-epitriptriolide (L1) was isolated from the leaves and roots of Tripterygium wilfordii Hook f. and from the marketed drug "Total Glycoside of Tripterygium wilfordii". This compound was crystallized from CHC13 as colorless needles,mp 267.5-269.5 C. Its molecular formula is C20H26O7. The structure was identified on the basis of spectral data (IR, MS, UV,1H-NMR,13C NMR, 2D-NMR,13C-NOE, NOE difference spectroscopy and selective long-range DEPT NMR) analyses. 12-epitriptriolide was shown to have a potent anti-inflammatory action. Its effective dose was 40 mg/kg with the murine model of ear swelling induced by croton oil while that of triptriolide was 70 mg/kg . The results showed that the action of the structure in connection with 12-αOH was about 2 times stronger than that of 12-βOH. 12-epitriptriolide showed no immunosuppressive and antifertility (male) actions in mice and had low toxicity (LD50>250 mg/kg ) in experimental animals. The preliminary assay for the structure-activity relationship revealed that the epoxide group on C12.13 of diterpene from T. wilfordii was one of the key positions associated with immunosuppressive and antifertility actions and toxicioty.     

Simultaneous determination of four sesquiterpene alkaloids in Tripterygium wilfordii Hook. F. extracts by high-performance liquid chromatography

Wilfortrine, wilfordine, wilforgine and wilforine are four major bioactive sesquiterpene alkaloids in Tripterygium wilfordii Hook. F. The first analytical determination of the four major bioactive alkaloids is described. The four alkaloids are well-resolved within 15 min using the developed HPLC method. The identity of the analytes was confirmed by an HPLC-MS experiment, with all compounds being clearly assignable by atmospheric pressure chemical ionization (APCI) positive mode analysis. The method was validated for limit of qualification, linearity and inter-day variation of precision and accuracy. Seven T. wilfordii samples (extracts and commercial product) were successfully analysed.     

Rapid,nonradioactive, and quantitative method to analyze zona pellucida modifications in single mouse eggs

A rapid, nonradioactive method to monitor the ZP2 to ZP2_f conversion in the zona pellucida of single mouse eggs has been developed. This assay is based on the chemiluminescent detection of biotinylated ZP2 and ZP2_f following electrophoresis under reducing conditions and electrophoretic transfer to Immobilon P. This method is about 10 times faster and detects similar extents of ZP2 to ZP2_f conversion following A23187-induced egg activation, when compared to the commonly used radioiodination procedures. © 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

A receptor-based switch that regulates anthrax toxin pore formation

Cellular receptors can act as molecular switches, regulating the sensitivity of microbial proteins to conformational changes that promote cellular entry. The activities of these receptor-based switches are only partially understood. In this paper, we sought to understand the mechanism that underlies the activity of the ANTXR2 anthrax toxin receptor-based switch that binds to domains 2 and 4 of the protective antigen (PA) toxin subunit. Receptor-binding restricts structural changes within the heptameric PA prepore that are required for pore conversion to an acidic endosomal compartment. The transfer cross-saturation (TCS) NMR approach was used to monitor changes in the heptameric PA-receptor contacts at different steps during prepore-to-pore conversion. These studies demonstrated that receptor contact with PA domain 2 is weakened prior to pore conversion, defining a novel intermediate in this pathway. Importantly, ANTXR2 remained bound to PA domain 4 following pore conversion, suggesting that the bound receptor might influence the structure and/or function of the newly formed pore. These studies provide new insights into the function of a receptor-based molecular switch that controls anthrax toxin entry into cells.     

Cyclin-dependent Kinase 5 Phosphorylation of Familial Prion Protein Mutants Exacerbates Conversion into Amyloid Structure

Familial prion protein (PrP) mutants undergo conversion from soluble and protease-sensitive to insoluble and partially protease-resistant proteins. Cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (Cdk5) phosphorylation of wild type PrP (pPrP) at serine 43 induces a conversion of PrP into aggregates and fibrils. Here, we investigated whether familial PrP mutants are predisposed to Cdk5 phosphorylation and whether phosphorylation of familial PrP mutants increases conversion. PrP mutants representing three major familial PrP diseases and different PrP structural domains were studied. We developed a novel in vitro kinase reaction coupled with Thioflavin T binding to amyloid structure assay to monitor phosphorylation-dependent amyloid conversion. Although non-phosphorylated full-length wild type or PrP mutants did not convert into amyloid, Cdk5 phosphorylation rapidly converted these into Thioflavin T-positive structures following first order kinetics. Dephosphorylation partially reversed conversion. Phosphorylation-dependent conversion of PrP from α-helical structures into β-sheet structures was confirmed by circular dichroism. Relative to wild type pPrP, most PrP mutants showed increased rate constants of conversion. In contrast, non-phosphorylated truncated PrP Y145X (where X represents a stop codon) and Q160X mutants converted spontaneously into Thioflavin T-positive fibrils after a lag phase of over 20 h, indicating nucleation-dependent polymerization. Phosphorylation reduced the lag phase by over 50% and thus accelerated the formation of the nucleating event. Consistently, phosphorylated Y145X and phosphorylated Q160X exacerbated conversion in a homologous seeding reaction, whereas WT pPrP could not seed WT PrP. These results demonstrate an influence of both the N terminus and the C terminus of PrP on conversion. We conclude that post-translational modifications of the flexible N terminus of PrP can cause or exacerbate PrP mutant conversion.     

Bioluminescence technology for imaging cell proliferation

As continuous cell proliferation caused by genetic alterations leads to cancer, monitoring abnormal cell proliferation in sporadic tumor models is important in the context of tumor generation, development and response to therapy. Bioluminescence imaging technology, which visualizes the conversion of chemical energy into visible light by luciferase enzymes, is an established method to measure cell numbers in grafted tumors in vivo, but has not been used to monitor cell proliferation per se. To measure cell proliferation noninvasively, transgenic mice have been developed that express the luciferase gene under the control of the E2F1 promoter. When these reporter mice are crossed with genetically defined mouse models of human cancer, the proliferative activity of the tumor cells can be monitored with proportional light production. These technologies support more detailed preclinical trials and could enable other biological pathways to be monitored in living cells.     

The origin of the absorption band induced through the interaction between apotransketolase and thiamin diphosphate

It has long been known that formation of a catalytically active holotransketolase from the apoenzyme and coenzyme (thiamin diphosphate) is accompanied by the appearance of a new band, in both the absorption and CD spectra. Binding and subsequent conversion of the substrates bring about changes in this band's intensity. The observation of these changes allows the investigator to monitor the coenzyme-to-apoenzyme binding and the conversion of substrates during the transketolase reaction and thus to kinetically characterize its individual steps. The origin of the thiamin diphosphate induced absorption band has been postulated to be resulted from formation of a charge transfer complex or alternatively from an induced conformational transition of the enzyme. The latter brings aromatic amino acid residues into close proximity and generates the absorption. However, X-ray crystallographic and enzyme point mutation experiments cast doubts on both of these hypotheses. Here we show that the binding of thiamin diphosphate to the apotransketolase leads to the conversion of the 4'-amino tautomeric form of its aminopyrimidine ring into the N(1')H-imino tautomeric form. This imino form emerges as a result of the coenzyme's aminopyrymidine ring incorporation into the hydrophobic pocket of the transketolase active center and is stabilized through the interactions with Glu418 and Phe445 residues. The N(1')H-imino tautomeric form of thiamin diphosphate is thought to be the origin of the holotransketolase absorption band induced through the coenzyme binding.     

“COSY”谱用于昆明山海棠生物碱的鉴定

昆明山海棠(Tripterygium hypoglaucum)的生物碱可从甲醇中结晶析出,是多元混合物。高压液相色谱分析出现5个峰,用制备性烷化硅胶RP-18薄层层析板分离纯化,5个生物碱逐一分开。用化学和光谱法证明为:雷公藤次碱、雷公藤碱乙、雷公藤碱丁、雷公藤碱及卫矛碱(1—5)。高压液相色谱分析指出,前二者为其中的主要成分。用高分辨核磁共振谱及COSY谱指定了它们的质子及其在分子中的取向,说明了它们之间结构和构型的关系。     

雷公藤次生代谢产物雷公藤红素含量与环境因子相关性分析

采用多元逐步回归分析对分布于浙江、福建、湖南、湖北和贵州5个省内6类不同居群药用植物雷公藤(Tripterygium wi lfordi i)的160株个体进行了雷公藤红素含量和环境因子的相关性分析。结果表明, 在空间分布上, 各居群间的雷公藤红素含量差异较大, 其中湖南黄岩居群雷公藤红素含量最高, 为1.058 5×10-2g.g-1, 贵州雷山和福建泰宁居群最低,分别为4.988 9×10-3g.g-1和4.988 7×10-3g.g-1; 而在居群内的雷公藤红素含量相对一致, 基本呈正态分布。实验结果表明, 雷公藤中雷公藤红素的积累在很大程度上受环境因子的影响。进一步利用SPSS软件对各个环境因子作逐步回归分析, 表明年均日照时长(X1)、年均降雨量(X2)和土壤含氮量(X5)是影响雷公藤中雷公藤红素含量(Y)的主导因子, 且各因素均与雷公藤红素含量呈负相关。经检验, 回归方程为Y=19.308-0.01 X1-0.02 X2-0.062 X5, R值达到0.917, F检验回归方程的线性关系显著。研究结果表明,环境因子, 特别是日照、水分和土壤含氮量能够影响雷公藤中雷公藤红素的含量。该文还对提高雷公藤中药用成分雷公藤红 素含量的研究策略进行了讨论。     

Mechanistic and stereochemical studies on the glycine reductase of Clostridium sticklandii.

Clostridial glycine reductase multienzyme complex which catalyses the reaction: Glycine + ADP + Pi + 2H leads to Acetate + ATP + NH3 was solubilised and fractionated essentially according to the method of Stadtman [T.C. Stadtman (1970) Methods Enzymol. 17A, 956--966] into two components: protein A and 'glycine reductase' fraction. A reconstituted system obtained by combining the two components in the presence of dithiothreitol catalysed the conversion of glycine into acetate concomitant with the phosphorylation of ADP to ATP. Using the reconstituted system, in which the unwanted enzyme activity catalyzing an exchange of the alpha hydrogen atoms of glycine with the protons of the medium had been greatly reduced, it was found that the conversion of (2RS)-[2-14C, 2-3H1]glycine (3H/14C = 7.16) into acetate (3H/14C = 7.03) was attended by the retention of both the C-2 hydrogen atoms of glycine. Conversion of (2S)-[2-2H1, 2-3H1]glycine and (2R)-[2-2H1, 2-3H1]glycine by the reconstituted system gave (2S)-acetate and (2R)-acetate respectively showing that the reductive deamination of glycine occurs through an inversion of configuration. The cumulative information available on the glycine reductase reaction is embodied in a hypothetical mechanism of action for the enzyme.     

Lipid bodies and lipid body formation in an oleaginous fungus, Mortierella ramanniana var. angulispora.

Mortierella ramanniana var. angulispora accumulates triacylglycerol (TG) in lipid bodies. Studies on lipid transport into lipid bodies are essential for elucidating mechanisms of lipid body formation. We used fluorescent dyes and fluorescent lipid analogs to visualize lipid body formation with a confocal laser scanning microscope. Different sizes of lipid bodies were stained by Nile red, a lipid body marker - one with a diameter of about 1 micrometer and the other with a diameter of about 2-3 micrometers. Lipid bodies matured into larger ones with culture. To metabolically monitor lipid bodies, we used 1-palmitoyl, 2-[5-(5,7-dimethyl boron dipyrromethene difluoride)-1-pentanoyl]-phosphatidic acid (C5-DMB-PA), and C5-DMB-phosphatidylcholine (C5-DMB-PC). These were taken up into fungal cells and incorporated into intracellular organelles at 30 degrees C. C5-DMB-PA was quickly incorporated into lipid bodies while C5-DMB-PC was initially incorporated into internal membranes, presumably endoplasmic reticulum membranes, and fluorescence was then gradually transported into lipid bodies. The transport of fluorescent lipids accompanied their metabolism into diacylglycerol (DG) and TG, which, taken together with the fluorescence distribution, suggested that conversion to TG was not necessary for transport into lipid bodies. It is likely that the synthesized DG was mainly located in lipid bodies and the conversion to TG took place in lipid bodies. C5-DMB-PA and C5-DMB-PC were converted to DG and TG in the membrane and lipid body fractions of this fungus, which agreed with in vivo metabolism of these fluorescent lipids and in vitro enzyme activity related to PA and PC metabolism. These results indicate that transport and metabolism of C5-DMB-PA and C5-DMB-PC represent two different routes for lipid body formation in this fungus.     

The measurement of toluene dioxygenase activity in biofilm culture of Pseudomonas putida F1

Toluene dioxygenase (Tod) enzyme activity can be measured by the conversion of indole to indigo. Indigo is measured spectrophotometrically at 600 nm. However, this method is inadequate to measure the whole-cell enzyme activity when interference by suspended biomass is present. Indoxyl is a highly fluorescent intermediate in the conversion of indole to indigo by Tod. A fluorescence-based assay was developed and applied to monitor Tod activity in whole cells of Pseudomonas putida F1 biofilm from a continuously operated biofilter. Suspended growth studies with pure cultures indicated that indoxyl, as measured by fluorescence, correlated with indigo production (r(2)=0.89) as measured by spectrophotometry. Whole-cell enzyme activity was followed during growth on a minimal medium containing toluene. The maximum normalized whole cell enzyme activity of 19+/-1.5x10(-4) mg indigo (mg protein)(-1) min(-1) was reached during early stationary phase. P. putida F1 cells from a biofilm grown on vapor phase toluene had a normalized whole-cell enzyme activity of 5.0+/-0.2x10(-4) mg indigo (mg protein)(-1) min(-1). The half-life of whole-cell enzyme activity was estimated to be between 5.5 and 8 h in both suspended and biofilm growth conditions.     

Construction of a long hairpin RNA expression library using Cre recombinase

A large number of genome-wide screens using RNA interference (RNAi) libraries have been utilized to determine the function of individual gene products involved in a variety of biological processes. In this study, we describe a new method to enzymatically generate a long hairpin RNA (lhRNA) expression library from a cDNA plasmid library using a nicking endonuclease, BcaBEST DNA polymerase, and Cre recombinase without excising the inserted DNA fragment from the plasmid vector. This method involves 5 steps: (1) conversion of an inserted DNA fragment in a plasmid into a direct repeat (DR); (2) purification of the plasmid containing the DR; (3) subcloning a lox71 cassette into the plasmid; (4) conversion of the DR in the plasmid into an inverted repeat (IR) using Cre recombinase; and (5) purification of the plasmid containing the IR. We also established an efficient method for inserting DNase I-digested DNA fragments into expression plasmids to enable construction of a cDNA plasmid library suitable as source materials to construct the lhRNA expression library. We confirmed that each of the lhRNA expression plasmids constructed using this method induced strong RNAi in a silkworm cell line, NIAS-Bm-oyanagi2.     

雷公藤总生物碱对粘虫幼虫神经系统酶活性及神经递质含量的影响

【目的】明确雷公藤Tripterygium wilfordii Hook. f.生物碱对粘虫Mythimna separata (Walker)神经系统的影响,为阐明其杀虫作用机制提供依据。【方法】采用载毒叶片法测定粘虫5龄幼虫经雷公藤总生物碱处理后体内乙酰胆碱酯酶（AChE）、Na⁺, K⁺-ATPase、Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺-ATPase、谷丙转氨酶（GPT）和谷氨酸脱羧酶（GAD）等重要神经系统酶活性及乙酰胆碱（ACh）、谷氨酸（Glu）和γ-氨基丁酸（GABA）等神经递质的含量。【结果】雷公藤总生物碱处理对粘虫5龄幼虫AChE无明显影响,麻醉期处理粘虫幼虫体内ACh相对含量与同期对照无显著差异。处理粘虫幼虫在轻度麻醉期、深度麻醉期和复苏期体内GABA和Glu含量显著升高,GABA含量分别升高了89.86%, 49.28%和20.29%,Glu含量分别升高了24.55%, 23.33%和8.13%。处理粘虫幼虫GPT活性明显受到抑制,而GAD活性无明显变化。处理明显抑制粘虫幼虫头部Na⁺, K⁺-ATPase和Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺-ATPase活性,但对中肠两种ATPase活性影响不大。【结论】研究结果有助于了解雷公藤生物碱对昆虫神经系统的影响,也为进一步阐明其作用靶标奠定了基础。