Purine composition of the crystalline cytoplasmic inclusions of Paramecium tetraurelia

Crystalline cytoplasmic inclusions were isolated by differential centrifugation from mass cultures of Paramecium tetraurelia feeding on Klebsiella pneumonia. Physical and chemical measurements of intact and solubilized crystals determined that they consist primarily of guanine and hypoxanthine with traces of xanthine. Crystals from the mutant sombre consist primarily of xanthine, suggesting there is a disorder of purine metabolism in this mutant.     

Purine metabolism in Echinococcus multilocularis

The activities of the enzymes in Echinococcus multilocularis metacestodes involved in purine salvage were studied by HPLC. As in most parasites, this cestode relies entirely on salvage of preformed bases and nucleosides for its purine requirement. Therefore, these enzymes may be targets for drugs in the chemotherapeutic treatment of diseases caused by this parasite. The animals used in this study were gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus). Enzyme activities from sera and hepatic tissue in control and infected animals were similar with the exception of adenine phosphoribosyltransferase which showed an activity 4-fold greater in the serum from control than in serum from infected animals. In the parasite, adenine and hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferases and adenosine deaminase had the highest activities. Therefore, in E. multilocularis metacestodes, this pathway seems to be important for the parasite’s metabolism.     

苏云金芽胞杆菌rocE基因的转录调控

【目的】rocE基因编码精氨酸降解途径中的精氨酸通透酶,通过分析苏云金芽胞杆菌(Bacillus thuringiensis,Bt) rocE基因的转录活性,明确rocE基因的转录调控机制。【方法】通过RT-PCR确定rocE基因所在基因簇的转录单元;β-半乳糖苷酶活性测定分析rocE基因启动子(ProcE)的转录活性;采用同源重组技术敲除BtHD73菌株的rocE基因;通过融合His标签的方法在大肠杆菌中表达纯化RocR蛋白的HTH结构域;通过凝胶阻滞实验明确RocR与rocE基因启动子的结合作用。【结果】在M9培养基中,精氨酸可诱导ProcE的转录活性;在SSM培养基和精氨酸诱导培养基中,与出发菌株HD73相比,ProcE在sigL (编码Sigma54因子)突变体和rocR突变体中的转录活性显著下降。RocR-HTH蛋白与ProcE有结合作用。rocE基因的缺失对菌体生长和Cry1Ac蛋白产量无显著影响。rocE缺失突变体的芽胞形成率为65.5%,HD73出发菌株为85.7%,显著性分析结果表明差异显著(P0.05)。【结论】rocE基因的转录活性受Sigma54的控制,并受RocR正调控。rocE基因的缺失影响菌株的芽胞形成率。     

敲除aceE基因对猪链球菌丙酮酸代谢的影响

【目的】探究缺失编码丙酮酸脱氢酶蛋白的aceE基因对猪链球菌生长特性、三羧酸循环和丙酮酸代谢的影响。【方法】通过测量菌液的OD600值,绘制野生型菌株与aceE基因缺失突变株的生长曲线;利用试剂盒测定三羧酸循环和丙酮酸代谢旁路中乙酰CoA、琥珀酸CoA、延胡索酸、草酰乙酸、丙酮酸、乳酸和ATP的含量,通过荧光定量qRT-PCR确定柠檬酸合酶基因、苹果酸脱氢酶基因、琥珀酸脱氢酶基因、异柠檬酸脱氢酶基因、丙酮酸脱羧酶基因、乳酸脱氢酶基因、乙醇脱氢酶基因和乙醛脱氢酶基因的表达水平。【结果】与野生株相比,菌株ΔaceE在平台期OD600值下降;添加1g/L乙酸盐能够显著提升菌株ΔaceE平台期OD600值。菌株ΔaceE的丙酮酸含量上升,ATP含量下降;三羧酸循环代谢中乙酰CoA、琥珀酸CoA、延胡索酸含量降低;柠檬酸合酶基因和苹果酸脱氢酶基因表达水平上升,琥珀酸脱氢酶基因和异柠檬酸脱氢酶基因表达水平下调;在丙酮酸代谢旁路中丙酮酸脱羧酶基因、乳酸脱氢酶基因、乙醇脱氢酶基因和乙醛脱氢酶基因表达水平上升。【结论】结果显示,菌株ΔaceE三羧酸循环活性降低,虽然能够通过PDH旁路将部分丙酮酸分解为乙...     

过表达腺苷生物合成正相关基因GlPNP提高灵芝腺苷的含量

【背景】灵芝被纳入我国“药食同源”试点名单,腺苷作为其主要活性物质之一,在免疫调节、抗炎、抗癌等方面发挥着重要作用。【目的】调控腺苷生物合成关键酶基因的表达来提高灵芝腺苷产量。【方法】将不同培养时间阶段腺苷合成酶基因(包括5-氨基咪唑-4-甲酰胺核糖核苷酸甲酰转移酶GlATIC、嘌呤核苷磷酸化酶GlPNP、腺苷激酶GlADK)的表达量与腺苷含量相关联,筛选出与灵芝腺苷含量呈正相关的关键酶基因。克隆关键酶基因并在灵芝中过表达,探究关键酶基因过表达对灵芝腺苷积累的影响。【结果】GlPNP的表达与灵芝腺苷含量呈正相关。GlPNP的cDNA全长为969 bp,预测GlPNP蛋白的相对分子量为34.6 kDa,呈三聚体的四元结构。研究结果表明,过表达菌株中GlPNP的表达量在第4天比野生型菌株(WT)上调了2.9-3.9倍,与含空载体的菌株(CK)相比,腺苷含量分别提高了78%和63%。【结论】过表达嘌呤核苷磷酸化酶是提高灵芝腺苷产量的一种有效手段。     

“Candidatus Paraholospora nucleivisitans”, an intracellular bacterium in Paramecium sexaurelia shuttles between the cytoplasm and the nucleus of its host

An intracellular bacterium was discovered in two isolates of Paramecium sexaurelia from an aquarium with tropical fish in Münster (Germany) and from a pond in the Wilhelma zoological–botanical garden, Stuttgart (Germany). The bacteria were regularly observed in the cytoplasm of the host, but on some occasions they were found in the macronucleus of the host cell. In these cases, only a few, if any, bacteria were observed remaining in the cytoplasm. The bacterium was not infectious to P. sexaurelia or other species of Paramecium and appeared to be an obligate intracellular bacterium, while bacteria-free host cells were completely viable. The fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH) and comparative 16SrDNA sequence analyses showed that the bacterium belonged to a new genus, and was most closely, yet quite distantly, related to Holospora obtusa. In spite of this relationship, the new bacteria differed from Holospora by at least two biological features. Whereas all Holospora species reside exclusively in the nuclei of various species of Paramecium and show a life cycle with a morphologically distinct infectious form, for the new bacterium no infectious form and no life cycle have been observed. For the new bacterium, the name Candidatus Paraholospora nucleivisitans is suggested. The host P. sexaurelia is usually known from tropical and subtropical areas and is not a species typically found in Germany and central Europe. Possibly, it had been taken to Germany with fish or plants from tropical or subtropical waters. Candidatus Paraholospora nucleivisitans may therefore be regarded as an intracellular neobacterium for Germany.     

The phylogenetic placement of the Leucogastrales, including Mycolevis siccigleba (Cribbeaceae), in the Albatrellaceae using morphological and molecular data

The morphology of many hypogeous fungi converges on a homogeneous reduced form, suggesting that disparate lineages are subject to a uniform selection pressure. The primary goal of this study was to evaluate the morphology and infer the phylogeny of the Leucogastrales with Mycolevis siccigleba using a Bayesian methodology. A comprehensive morphological assessment was used for an a priori phylogenetic inference to guide the sequencing effort. All structures except spore ornamentation pointed to the Albatrellaceae as the most likely sister taxon. Polyporoletus sublividus, a close relative of Albatrellus, produces ornamented basidiospores with a similar structure to M. siccigleba basidiospores. The ITS from 30 taxa was used for the molecular phylogenetic analysis. P. sublividus was found sister to Mycolevis. Leucophleps spinispora and L. magnata formed a group sister to the Polyporoletus/Mycolevis group, whereas Leucogaster was polyphyletic with respect to the core of the Leucogastrales and sister to A. caeruleoporus. This relationship was expected as previously undescribed chlamydospores produced by members of Albatrellus had a similar morphology to the basidiospores of L. rubescens.     

Elimination of the germ nuclei of Paramecium tetraurelia by laser microbeam irradiation

The germ nuclei (micronuclei) of Paramecium tetraurelia can be eliminated successfully by irradiating the micronucleus with an argon-ion laser microbeam after sensitization with the dye acridine orange. No immediate cytological damage of the irradiated micronuclei is visible, but they are lost before they enter the next division. This method produces cell lines lacking micronuclei (i.e., amicronucleates). These amicronucleates provide favorable materials for the study of micronuclear functions as well as intra-and inter-specific nucleocytoplasmic interactions. Some preliminary observations show that the micronucleus is not required for macronuclear fragmentation and macronuclear regeneration during sexual reproduction, but suggest that the micronucleus might participate in some asexual cellular function in addition to their gametic role.     

Induction of autogamy by transfer of macronuclear karyoplasm in Paramecium tetraurelia

Macronuclear karyoplasm was transplanted from pre-autogamous donor cells (clonal age, 22 fissions) into the macronucleus of young recipient cells (2 fissions after autogamy occurred) by means of microinjection. A reciprocal experiment was carried out by injecting karyoplasm from young clonal age donors into pre-autogamous recipients. In the case of karyoplasm transfer from pre-autogamous donors to young recipients, autogamy occurred early in 67% of injected cells, whereas reciprocal injections had no influence on the onset of autogamy, and all of the injected cells underwent autogamy. Such results indicate a distinct role of pre-autogamous cells of macronucleus in the induction of autogamy.     

A polysaccharide from Lichina pygmaea and L. confinis supports the recognition of Lichinomycetes

The lichen-forming order Lichinales, generally characterized by prototunicate asci and the development of thalli with cyanobacteria, has recently been recognized as a separate class of ascomycetes, Lichinomycetes, as a result of molecular phylogenetic studies. As alkali and water-soluble (F1SS) polysaccharides reflect phylogeny in other ascomycetes, a polysaccharide from Lichina pygmaea and L. confinis was purified and characterized to investigate whether these F1SS compounds in the Lichinomycetes were distinctive. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and chemical analyses revealed this as a galactomannan comprising a repeating unit consisting of an α-(1→6)-mannan backbone, mainly substituted by single α-galactofuranose residues at the O-2- or the O-2,4- positions linked to a small mannan core. With the exception of the trisubstituted mannopyranose residues previously described in polysaccharides from other lichens belonging to orders now placed in Lecanoromycetes, the structure of this galactomannan most closely resembles those found in several members of the Onygenales in Eurotiomycetes. Our polysaccharide data support molecular studies showing that Lichina species are remote from Lecanoromycetes as the galactofuranose residues are in the α-configuration. That the Lichinomycetes were part of an ancestral lichenized group can not be established from the present data because the extracted polysaccharide does not have the galactofuranose residue in the β configuration; however, the data does suggest that an ancestor of the Lichinomycetes contained a mannan and was part of an early radiation in the ascomycetes.     

Phylogeographic patterns in Leccinum sect. Scabra and the status of the arctic-alpine species L. rotundifoliae

We investigated inter- and intraspecific phylogenetic relationships in the ectomycorrhizal fungal genus Leccinum section Scabra. Species of this section are exclusively associated with Betula and occur throughout the Northern Hemisphere. We compared the phylogenetic relationships of arctic, alpine, boreal and temperate accessions of section Scabra based on DNA sequences of the single-copy nuclear gene Gapdh and the multiple-copy nuclear region 5.8S-ITS2. Exclusively arctic lineages were not detected in species that occur both in arctic-alpine or boreal regions, except in L. rotundifoliae that was restricted to cold climates. L. scabrum and L. holopus showed an intercontinental phylogeographic pattern, and L. variicolor showed a pattern unrelated to geographical distribution. Molecular clock estimates indicated that L. rotundifoliae is as old as other species in section Scabra. Individual gene trees suggest that interspecific hybridisation occurred several times in the evolution of section Scabra.     

马铃薯甲虫结节性硬化复合物基因LdTSC1和LdTSC2基因的克隆及功能分析

【目的】通过RNAi技术明确马铃薯甲虫TOR上游的关键信号集成节点及类胰岛素信号通道下游基因结节性硬化复合物TSC1和TSC2的功能。旨在为探明马铃薯甲虫类胰岛素信号转导提供更多理论支持。【方法】在NCBI(美国国家生物技术信息中心)获取马铃薯甲虫LdTSC1/2序列,分别利用多重序列比对和系统发育分析确定该基因的完整性和系统发育关系;采用喂食幼虫dsRNA的方法,观察该基因的调低对马铃薯甲虫幼虫生长发育、糖脂代谢的影响。【结果】克隆得到马铃薯甲虫TSC1编码蛋白的氨基酸序列与鞘翅目白蜡窄吉丁直系同源蛋白的氨基酸序列的自展一致度为100%,聚为一支;TSC2编码蛋白的氨基酸序列与鞘翅目白蜡窄吉丁和赤拟谷盗的同源蛋白氨基酸序列的自展一致度为100%,聚为一支。通过分别喂食2龄幼虫LdTSC1/2的dsRNA能有效降低靶标基因的表达量,幼虫出现体重减轻,化蛹率和羽化率显著下降,葡萄糖的吸收转化效率降低,海藻糖含量升高和甘油三酯均减少。【结论】下调2龄幼虫LdTSC1/2的表达量,导致试虫出现抑制了糖脂代谢、脂肪体减少、体重减轻以及发育延迟;结果表明LdTSC1/2调控了马铃薯甲虫幼虫的糖脂代谢过程,显著影响幼虫化蛹和蜕皮过程。     

The phylogenetic placement of Ostropales within Lecanoromycetes (Ascomycota) revisited

Results of molecular studies regarding the phylogenetic placement of the order Ostropales and related taxa within Lecanoromycetes were thus far inconclusive. Some analyses placed the order as sister to the rest of Lecanoromycetes, while others inferred a position nested within Lecanoromycetes. We assembled a data set of 101 species including sequences from nuLSU rDNA, mtSSU rDNA, and the nuclear protein-coding RPB1 for each species to examine the cause of incongruencies in previously published phylogenies. MP, minimum evolution, and Bayesian analyses were performed using the combined three-region data set and the single-gene data sets. The position of Ostropales nested in Lecanoromycetes is confirmed in all single-gene and concatenated analyses, and a placement as sister to the rest of Lecanoromycetes is significantly rejected using two independent methods of alternative topology testing. Acarosporales and related taxa (Acarosporaceae group) are basal in Lecanoromycetes. However, if the these basal taxa are excluded from the analyses, Ostropales appear to be sister to the rest of Lecanoromycetes, suggesting different ingroup rooting as the cause for deviating topologies in previously published phylogenies.     

基因CfATG6和CfATG14参与调控果生刺盘孢细胞自噬和致病力

【目的】炭疽病是油茶的主要病害,由刺盘孢属的多种真菌引起,其中果生刺盘孢分布范围最广、分离率最高,是油茶炭疽病的主要致病菌。研究自噬相关蛋白CfAtg6和CfAtg14的生物学功能,为进一步揭示果生刺盘孢通过细胞自噬调控致病的分子机制,并为油茶炭疽病的防治提供理论基础。【方法】根据同源重组原理,通过聚乙二醇(polyethylene glycol, PEG)介导的方法,在果生刺盘孢中敲除基因CfATG6和CfATG14,并进一步获得回补菌株ΔCfatg6-C和ΔCfatg14-C。【结果】酵母双杂交试验结果显示,果生刺盘孢蛋白CfAtg6和CfAtg14可能存在互作关系。生物学表型测定结果表明,相较于野生型和回补菌株,突变体ΔCfatg6和ΔCfatg14均表现出营养生长速率显著减慢,附着胞形成率分别只有野生型的5%和18%;突变体ΔCfatg6和ΔCfatg14致病力均极显著减弱,造成的油茶叶片病斑面积少于野生型和回补菌株的1/3;CfATG6和CfATG14基因缺失突变体均丧失转运和降解CfAtg8蛋白的能力,并对细胞壁胁迫更敏感。突变体ΔCfatg6的分生孢子产量显著降低,仅为野生型的20%左右;氧化胁迫试验结果表明,相较于野生型和回补菌株,过氧化氢对突变体的生长抑制率升高10%左右。内质网压力胁迫试验表明,ΔCfatg14对二硫苏糖醇抑制率升高5%以上。【结论】自噬相关基因CfATG6和CfATG14参与调控了果生刺盘孢生长发育、细胞自噬和致病力。     

Molecular phylogeny of the Acre clade (Crassulaceae): Dealing with the lack of definitions for Echeveria and Sedum

The phylogenetic relationships within many clades of the Crassulaceae are still uncertain, therefore in this study attention was focused on the “Acre clade”, a group comprised of approximately 526 species in eight genera that include many Asian and Mediterranean species of Sedum and the majority of the American genera (Echeveria, Graptopetalum, Lenophyllum, Pachyphytum, Villadia, and Thompsonella). Parsimony and Bayesian analyses were conducted with 133 species based on nuclear (ETS, ITS) and chloroplast DNA regions (rpS16, matK). Our analyses retrieved four major clades within the Acre clade. Two of these were in a grade and corresponded to Asian species of Sedum, the rest corresponded to a European–Macaronesian group and to an American group. The American group included all taxa that were formerly placed in the Echeverioideae and the majority of the American Sedoideae. Our analyses support the monophyly of three genera – Lenophyllum, Thompsonella, and Pachyphytum; however, the relationships among Echeveria, Sedum and the various segregates of Sedum are largely unresolved. Our analyses represents the first broad phylogenetic framework for Acre clade, but further studies are necessary on the groups poorly represented here, such as the European and Asian species of Sedum and the Central and South American species of Echeveria.