Transgenic Tobacco Plants Expressing Pea Chloroplast Nmdh cDNA in Sense and Antisense Orientation (Effects on NADP-Malate Dehydrogenase Level,Stability of Transformants,and Plant Growth)

A full-length cDNA encoding light-activated chloroplast NADP-malate dehydrogenase (NADP-MDH) (EC 1.1.1.82) from pea (Pisum sativum L.) was introduced in the sense and antisense orientation into tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.). Transgenic plants with decreased or increased expression levels were obtained. Because of substantial age-dependent differences in individual leaves of a single plant, standardization of NADP-MDH levels was required first. Then, extent and stability of over- or under-expression of Nmdh, the gene encoding NADP-MDH, was characterized in the various transformants. Frequently, cosuppression effects were observed, indicating sufficient homology between the endogenous tobacco and the heterologous pea gene. Analysis of the T1 and T2 progeny of a series of independent transgenic lines revealed that NADP-MDH capacity ranged between 10% and [greater than or equal to]10-fold compared with the wild type. Under ambient conditions whole-plant development, growth period, and fertility were unaffected by NADP-MDH reduction to 20% of the wild-type level; below this threshold plant growth was retarded. A positive growth effect was registered in young plants with stably enhanced NADP-MDH levels within a defined developmental window.     

南蛇藤脯氨酸脱氢酶基因的克隆和表达特性

利用兼并性引物和RACE方法, 在南蛇藤(Celastrus orbiculatus)中克隆了1个脯氨酸脱氢酶基因, 并命名为NstProDH1。序列比对显示该基因与拟南芥(Arabidopsis thaliana)和烟草(Nicotiana tabacum)的脯氨酸脱氢酶(ProDH)具有很高的同源性。酶学特性分析表明该酶具有脯氨酸脱氢酶的活性。比较南蛇藤不同器官该基因的转录表达模式与脯氨酸脱氢酶活性, 结果显示两者之间没有明显的关联, 说明该基因的表达受到转录和翻译水平的双重调控, 同时也暗示南蛇藤中还存在其它的脯氨酸脱氢酶基因。NstProDH1基因的表达模式与野生型拟南芥中的ProDH1具有相似性, 因此推测NstProDH1基因可能在功能上与拟南芥ProDH1基因相似。     

Over-expression of Osmotin Induces Proline Accumulation and Confers Tolerance to Osmotic Stress in Transgenic Tobacco

Osmotin has been implicated in conferring tolerance to drought and salt stress in plants. We have over-expressed the osmotin gene under the control of constitutive CaMV 35S promoter in transgenic tobacco, and studied involvement of the protein in imparting tolerance to salinity and drought stress. The transgenic plants exhibited retarded leaf senescence and improved germination on a medium containing 200mM NaCl. Further, the transgenics maintained higher leaf relative water content (RWC), leaf photosynthesis and free proline content than the wild type plants during water stress and after recovery from stress. When subjected to salt stress (200mM NaCl), the transgenic plants accumulated significantly more proline than the wild type plants. These results suggest the involvement of the osmotin-induced increase in proline in imparting tolerance to salinity and drought stress in transgenic plants over-expressing the osmotin gene.     

Genomic Responses during Acute Human Anaphylaxis Are Characterized by Upregulation of Innate Inflammatory Gene Networks

Background

Systemic spread of immune activation and mediator release is required for the development of anaphylaxis in humans. We hypothesized that peripheral blood leukocyte (PBL) activation plays a key role.

Objective

To characterize PBL genomic responses during acute anaphylaxis.

Methods

PBL samples were collected at three timepoints from six patients presenting to the Emergency Department (ED) with acute anaphylaxis and six healthy controls. Gene expression patterns were profiled on microarrays, differentially expressed genes were identified, and network analysis was employed to explore underlying mechanisms.

Results

Patients presented with moderately severe anaphylaxis after oral aspirin (2), peanut (2), bee sting (1) and unknown cause (1). Two genes were differentially expressed in patients compared to controls at ED arrival, 67 genes at 1 hour post-arrival and 2,801 genes at 3 hours post-arrival. Network analysis demonstrated that three inflammatory modules were upregulated during anaphylaxis. Notably, these modules contained multiple hub genes, which are known to play a central role in the regulation of innate inflammatory responses. Bioinformatics analyses showed that the data were enriched for LPS-like and TNF activation signatures.

Conclusion

PBL genomic responses during human anaphylaxis are characterized by dynamic expression of innate inflammatory modules. Upregulation of these modules was observed in patients with different reaction triggers. Our findings indicate a role for innate immune pathways in the pathogenesis of human anaphylaxis, and the hub genes identified in this study represent logical candidates for follow-up studies.     

Expression of vde Gene Integrated Into Tobacco Genome in Antisense and Overexpressed Ways

Violaxanthin de-epoxidase (VDE) is localised in the thylakoid lumen of chloroplasts and catalyses de-epoxidation of violaxanthin into antheraxanthin and zeaxanthin. Tobacco vde gene was inserted into a binary vector pCAMBIA1301 with the hygromycin resistant gene for selection in antisense and overexpressed ways. Two constructs with antisense and overexpressed vde gene were introduced in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) using Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain LBA4404, PCR and Southern blot analyses demonstrated that the exogenous gene was integrated into genome of tobacco plants. VDE activity assay and HPLC analysis of pigments showed that the vde gene was expressed in the overexpressed transformants, whereas suppressed in the antisense ones. The chlorophyll fluorescence measurements proved that the contents of VDE in transgenic plants have a significant function in non-photochemical quenching.     

水稻高脯氨酸变异系高脯氨酸含量和耐盐性的遗传性

由经羟脯氨酸处理的水稻（OryzasativaL．）品种香血糯幼胚愈伤组织中分离出的高脯氨酸变异体,经过长期继代培养、分化和脱分化培养等无性繁殖过程,仍保持其高脯氨酸含量特性。再生植株自交后代的脯氨酸含量大大高于原型对照。杂交6～7个有性世代的测试表明高脯氨酸特性有遗传性。高脯氨酸变异系杂交种子在盐胁迫条件下的发芽率明显高于原型和另一个亲本品种,幼苗生长亦较佳,显示高脯氨酸株系增强的耐盐性可以遗传。     

烟草胞质6-磷酸葡萄糖酸脱氢酶基因的克隆及表达分析

采用电子克隆的方法,结合RT-PCR和SMART RACE技术,首次从烟草(Nicotiana tabacum)中克隆到1个胞质6-磷酸葡萄糖酸脱氢酶(6PGDH)基因的c DNA序列,命名为Nt6PGDH(Gen Bank登录号:KM211534)。该基因c DNA全长1 932bp,开放阅读框1 455 bp,编码484个氨基酸,与番茄(Solanum lycopersicum)和马铃薯(Solanum tuberosum)的6PGDH氨基酸序列一致性最高,为95%。生物信息学分析表明,Nt6PGDH氨基酸序列不存在信号肽和转运肽,无跨膜结构域,定位于细胞质。对烟草不同发育时期Nt6PGDH基因的表达情况分析发现,Nt6PGDH基因在烟草旺长期根、茎、叶中的表达量均高于苗期,并且在同一发育时期,烟草根中表达量最强,茎次之,叶片最弱。     

Growth, Water Content, and Proline Accumulation in Drought-Stressed Callus of Date Palm

This study was conducted to examine the response of date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L., cvs. Barhee and Hillali) calli to water stress. Callus derived from shoot tip explants was inoculated in liquid Murashige and Skoog medium containing 10 mg dm^–3-naphthaleneacetic acid, 1.5 mg dm^–3 2-isopentenyladenine, and 0 to 30 % (m/v) polyethylene glycol (PEG 8000) to examine the effect of water stress. After 2 weeks, callus growth, water content, and proline accumulation were assessed. Increasing water stress caused a progressive reduction in growth as expressed in callus fresh mass, relative growth rate, and index of tolerance. Both genotypes tested followed this general trend, however, cv. Barhee was more tolerant to drought stress than cv. Hillali. Increasing PEG concentration was also associated with a progressive reduction in water content and increased content of endogenous free proline.     

Expression, Purification and Characterization of the Proline Dehydrogenase Domain of PutA from Pseudomonas putida POS-F84

The objective of the present work was to express a truncated form of Pseudomonas putida PutA that shows proline dehydrogenase (ProDH) activity. The putA gene encoding ProDH enzyme was cloned into pET23a vector and expressed in Escherichia coli strain BL-21 (DE3) plysS. The recombinant P. putida enzyme was biochemically characterized and its three dimensional structure was also predicted. ProDH encoding sequence showed an open reading frame of 1,035-bp encoding a 345 amino acid residues polypeptide chain. Purified His-tagged enzyme gave a single band with a molecular mass of 40 kDa on SDS-PAGE. The molecular mass of the isolated enzyme was found to be about 40 kDa by gel filtration. This suggested that the enzyme of interest consists of one subunit. The K _m and V _max values of recombinant P. putida ProDH were estimated to be 31 mM and 132 μmol/min, respectively. The optimum pH and temperature for the catalytic activity of the enzyme was about pH 8.5 and 30 °C. The modeling analysis of the three dimensional structure elucidated that Ser-165, Lys-195 and Ala-252 were key residues for the ProDH activity. This study provides data on the cloning, sequencing and recombinant expression of PutA ProDH domain from P. putida POS-F84.     

Effect of Various Ions, pH, and Osmotic Pressure on Oxidation of Elemental Sulfur by Thiobacillus thiooxidans

The oxidation of elemental sulfur by Thiobacillus thiooxidans was studied at pH 2.3, 4.5, and 7.0 in the presence of different concentrations of various anions (sulfate, phosphate, chloride, nitrate, and fluoride) and cations (potassium, sodium, lithium, rubidium, and cesium). The results agree with the expected response of this acidophilic bacterium to charge neutralization of colloids by ions, pH-dependent membrane permeability of ions, and osmotic pressure.     

A Sweetpotato Geranylgeranyl Pyrophosphate Synthase Gene,IbGGPS, Increases Carotenoid Content and Enhances Osmotic Stress Tolerance in Arabidopsis thaliana

Sweetpotato highly produces carotenoids in storage roots. In this study, a cDNA encoding geranylgeranyl phyrophosphate synthase (GGPS), named IbGGPS, was isolated from sweetpotato storage roots. Green fluorescent protein (GFP) was fused to the C-terminus of IbGGPS to obtain an IbGGPS-GFP fusion protein that was transiently expressed in both epidermal cells of onion and leaves of tobacco. Confocal microscopic analysis determined that the IbGGPS-GFP protein was localized to specific areas of the plasma membrane of onion and chloroplasts in tobacco leaves. The coding region of IbGGPS was cloned into a binary vector under the control of 35S promoter and then transformed into Arabidopsis thaliana to obtain transgenic plants. High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis showed a significant increase of total carotenoids in transgenic plants. The seeds of transgenic and wild-type plants were germinated on an agar medium supplemented with polyethylene glycol (PEG). Transgenic seedlings grew significantly longer roots than wild-type ones did. Further enzymatic analysis showed an increased activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) in transgenic seedlings. In addition, the level of malondialdehyde (MDA) was reduced in transgenics. qRT-PCR analysis showed altered expressions of several genes involved in the carotenoid biosynthesis in transgenic plants. These data results indicate that IbGGPS is involved in the biosynthesis of carotenoids in sweetpotato storage roots and likely associated with tolerance to osmotic stress.     

Differential Effects of Ornithine Enantiomers on the Activity of Anti‐oxidant Enzymes,Polyamines Content,and Growth of Tobacco Cells under Osmotic Stresses

Ornithine (Orn) plays an essential role in the metabolism of plant cells through incorporation in polyamines biosynthesis, the urea cycle and nitrogen metabolism. Herein, we show that Orn enantiomers have different effects on anti‐oxidant enzymes activities, polyamines and proline biosynthesis and also an alleviation effect of osmotic stresses on tobacco cells. The type of stress has a significant impact on the function of L‐ and D‐Orn for improvement of the stress effect on the cells. Under saline conditions, both enantiomers restored cell growth, though D‐Orn was more beneficial to some extent. This was accompanied with a higher biosynthesis of putrescine, proline, and up‐regulated activity of certain anti‐oxidant enzymes by D‐Orn. Under drought stress conditions, a distinct differential behavior emerged and only L‐Orn showed an alleviative effect on the cell growth. Regulation of hydrogen peroxide content via the activity of catalase/peroxidase and production of osmolytes, e.g., proline and fructans, was dependent on the type of enantiomers. Activity of anti‐oxidant enzymes and production of malondialdehyde from cell membranes were differently regulated following treatment with either Orn enantiomer. The results suggest that management of H₂O₂ content is a determining feature of the function of Orn enantiomers in tobacco cells under salinity and drought stress conditions. Chirality 25:583–588, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Changes in Proline Content Accompanying the Uptake of Zinc and Copper by Lemna minor

Lemna minor L. grown in Hoagland solution containing zinc (10ppm) or copper (5 ppm) for 4 d accumulated high levels of thesemetals. Zinc and Cu accumulation in the test plants was accompaniedby a specific pattern of change in proline content. The lattershowed a steep rise during early stages (peak at 12-24 h) followedby a gradual decline until 96 h of treatment. In a dose-responsestudy, lower metal concentrations induced a sharp rise in prolinelevel with a maximum value at 5 ppm, which declined when theconcentration was further enhanced. There was a correspondencebetween the level of proline and total free amino acids in metaltreated plants. The possibility of proline involvement in tolerancemechanisms to heavy metals has been discussed.Copyright 1993,1999 Academic Press Heavy metals, zinc, copper, proline, total free amino acids, Lemna minor     

Cloning, Structure, and Chromosome Localization of the Mouse Glutaryl-CoA Dehydrogenase Gene

Glutaryl-CoA dehydrogenase (GCDH) is a nuclear-encoded, mitochondrial matrix enzyme. In humans, deficiency of GCDH leads to glutaric acidemia type I, an inherited disorder of amino acid metabolism characterized by a progressive neurodegenerative disease. In this report we describe the cloning and structure of the mouse GCDH (Gcdh) gene and cDNA and its chromosomal localization. The mouse Gcdh cDNA is 1.75 kb long and contains an open reading frame of 438 amino acids. The amino acid sequences of mouse, human, and pig GCDH are highly conserved. The mouse Gcdh gene contains 11 exons and spans 7 kb of genomic DNA. Gcdh was mapped by backcross analysis to mouse chromosome 8 within a region that is homologous to a region of human chromosome 19, where the human gene was previously mapped.     

毛白杨CCoAOMT cDNA片段的克隆与转基因杨木质素含量的调控

用RT_PCR方法从毛白杨 (PopulustomentosaCarr.)中克隆了CCoAOMT基因的cDNA片段 ,并对其序列进行了分析。Northern杂交表明该基因在毛白杨正在木质化的次生木质部高水平表达 ,且与木质化进程同步。构建了该基因反义表达载体 ,根癌土壤杆菌 (Agrobacteriumtumefaciens (SmithetTownsend)Conn)介导转化杂交杨 (欧洲山杨×银白杨 ,P .tremula×P .alba)。采用PCR、PCR_Southern及Southern杂交对获得的转基因植株进行分子检测 ,并测定移栽 5～ 6个月的转基因植株的Klason木质素含量 ,其中一个转基因株系的Klason木质素含量比未转基因对照杨树下降 17.9%。结果表明利用反义RNA技术对杨树CCoAOMT基因的表达可以降低转基因植株的木质素含量 ,达到改善其造纸性能的目的     

特异性启动子调控甜瓜ACC氧化酶反义基因载体构建及对烟草的转化

以甜瓜ACC氧化酶反义基因抑制水果成熟过程中内源乙烯的合成为基础,建立甜瓜特异性启动子调控下ACC氧化酶反义基因表达载体。以pCB-ACO1载体为基础,进行平末端连接加入特异性启动子pCAM-ACO1-promoter,对转基因甜瓜表达载体的构建进行特异性启动子的研究,通过叶盘法转化的烟草经过PCR检测已转入含有特异性启动子promoter调控下ACC氧化酶反义基因表达载体,为下一阶段用该反义基因载体转化甜瓜栽培品种奠定基础。     

抑癌基因DAPK在肿瘤的发生、转移、复发、预后中的作用

肿瘤对人类生命危害极大,关于肿瘤的形成、发展等方面的研究,已越来越受到人们的关注.现在已认识到,肿瘤的形成是一个多因素、多基因、多阶段的过程,是促细胞生长和抑制细胞生长两大类调节基因失衡的结果.对于这两大类调节基因失衡的原因及导致肿瘤的发生还不明确.另外,关于肿瘤的预防和治疗等方面研究还不清楚.DAPK基因从发现后,科学家们就认识到其与肿瘤的形成、发展有重要关系.本文就DAPK与肿瘤的关系作一概述.