基于GST-pull down的小G蛋白Rac1活性检测体系的建立

目的:根据人PAK1基因的p21结合结构域(PBD)能够特异结合GTP-Rac1的特性,构建GST-PBD原核表达质粒,并利用GST-pull down方法检测真核细胞内小G蛋白Rac1的活性。方法:将人PAK1基因的PBD结构域克隆到pGEX原核表达载体上,经诱导纯化得到GST-PBD融合蛋白,并通过GST-pull down实验评估该方法的特异性和准确性。结果:pGEX-PBD质粒构建成功;纯化得到的GST-PBD融合蛋白能够特异性地与激活形式的Rac1(GTP-Rac1)结合,并且能够准确反映血小板衍生生长因子刺激下细胞内Rac1的激活过程。结论:GST-PBD融合蛋白及其整套GST-pull down检测体系能方便有效地检测细胞内Rac1的活性。     

植物小G蛋白的研究进展

小G蛋白(small GTPases)是近年来细胞信号转导的研究热点,包括Ras、Rho、Rab、Arf和Ran等5个亚家族.植物中存在一种特殊的小G蛋白ROP(Rho-related GTPase from plants)是Rho家族成员,在调控细胞生长发育及植物防御反应体系的建立等方面起重要作用.在植物细胞中ROP存在两种形式,一种是与GTP结合的激活态,另一种是与GDP结合的非激活态,通过这种激活态与非激活态之间的转变,ROPs作为植物生长发育过程中重要的"分子开关"参与调控多种信号转导过程.本文主要对国内外近年来有关小G蛋白的种类及其调节机制,以及植物小G蛋白ROP在花粉管生长、根毛发育、H2O2的产生、脱落酸(ABA)以及防御应答反应中的调节作用等方面的研究进展进行综述.     

小G蛋白ROP的研究进展

小G蛋白(small GTPases)是近年来研究细胞信号转导过程的热点问题,包括Ras、Rab、Rho、Arf和Ran5个亚家族,其中ROP蛋白是Rho家族成员,为植物特有,在调控细胞生长、发育及调节植物对环境响应等各方面起重要作用.对ROP蛋白的活性调节和功能进行了重点介绍.     

小G蛋白抑制剂CASIN的体外抗真菌活性研究CSCD

目的通过对小G蛋白抑制剂体外抗真菌活性的测定,筛选具有新结构类型的抗真菌活性化合物。方法采用微量液基稀释法考察不同小G蛋白抑制剂对于念珠菌的最低抑菌浓度(MIC),并从中筛选活性较强的化合物进一步进行抗真菌谱测定;采用时间-生长曲线和时间-杀菌曲线考察CASIN对于白念珠菌生长增殖的影响;采用菌丝诱导实验考察化合物CASIN对于白念珠菌菌丝形成的抑制效果;采用甲基四氮盐(XTT)法考察化合物CASIN对于白念珠菌生物被膜形成的抑制作用。结果在考察的小G蛋白抑制剂中,CASIN的体外抗真菌活性最强,对于近平滑念珠菌、克柔念珠菌、热带念珠菌、光滑念珠菌中均有较好的抑制作用,MIC为8~16μg/mL。16μg/mL CASIN可以有效抑制YPD培养基中白念珠菌的生长增殖,也在RPMI1640培养基中展现出对白念珠菌的杀菌活性;当培养基中CASIN浓度高于8μg/mL时,白念珠菌菌丝受到明显抑制;此外,8μg/mL的CASIN浓度对于白念珠菌的被膜生成具有80%以上的抑制率。结论小G蛋白抑制剂CASIN具有较强的体外抗念珠菌活性。     

植物小G 蛋白功能的研究进展

近年来,小G蛋白的调控途径已经成为人们研究细胞信号转导过程的热点问题。小G蛋白家族包括Ras、Rab、Rho、Arf和Ran亚家族,它们起着许多不同的重要细胞生理作用,例如基因表达、细胞骨架重组装、微管的形成以及囊泡和核孔运输机制。这些小G蛋白作为重要的分子开关,具有一个非常保守的功能区域,即I-IV结构区,它起着关键性作用。从拟南芥(Arabidopsis thaliana)基因组预测分析得出,拟南芥含有93个小G蛋白同源序列,包含Rab、Rho、Arf和Ran亚家族,但没有Ras亚家族。本文主要阐述了迄今在植物中研究小G蛋白各个亚家族功能的最新进展,并对植物、酵母和动物相关的同源蛋白的生理功能进行比较和推测。     

植物小G蛋白功能的研究进展

近年来,小G蛋白的调控途径已经成为人们研究细胞信号转导过程的热点问题.小G蛋白家族包括Ras、Rab、Rho、Arf和Ran亚家族,它们起着许多不同的重要细胞生理作用,例如基因表达、细胞骨架重组装、微管的形成以及囊泡和核孔运输机制.这些小G蛋白作为重要的分子开关,具有一个非常保守的功能区域,即I-Ⅳ结构区,它起着关键性作用.从拟南芥(Arabidopsisthaliana)基因组预测分析得出,拟南芥含有93个小G蛋白同源序列,包含Rab、Rho、Arf和Ran亚家族,但没有Ras亚家族.本文主要阐述了迄今在植物中研究小G蛋白各个亚家族功能的最新进展,并对植物、酵母和动物相关的同 源蛋白的生理功能进行比较和推测.     

黄瓜卷须缠绕过程中小G蛋白活性变化

攀爬植物的卷须是对机械刺激极为敏感的器官。拟南芥(Arabidopsisthaliana)小G蛋白能够响应机械刺激调控自身发育,但小G蛋白信号是否在卷须感受机械刺激发生缠绕过程中发挥作用目前尚不清楚。该研究以黄瓜(Cucumissativus)为实验材料,对其卷须受机械刺激缠绕过程中小G蛋白活性进行了探讨。ROP活性检测结果表明,在卷须缠绕过程中小G蛋白CsROP6的活性显著增强;同时,质谱鉴定结果显示,卷须缠绕过程中生长素的含量明显增加。进一步的实验表明,外源生长素处理能明显增强CsROP6的活性,暗示黄瓜卷须在缠绕过程中受机械刺激可能通过生长素增强ROP活性,且机械刺激激活小G蛋白信号在不同植物中存在一定的保守性。     

小G蛋白在植物抗病性中的作用

小G蛋白一类是低分子量GTP结合蛋白,其分子量大约20～30 kDa.小G蛋白作为重要的分子开关参与了细胞许多重要生理信号途径的调控.近几年在植物中的研究、尤其是对模式植物水稻杭病分子机制的研究发现,Rho家族的小G蛋白在植物抗病信号传导途径的调控中起了关健的作用.本文对植物特有的Rho家族小G蛋白在植物免疫反应中的最...     

Rho小G蛋白介导的细胞周期调控

Rho小G蛋白作为一个信号分子家族具有多样化的功能, 可以调节细胞骨架重排 、细胞迁移、细胞极性、基因表达、细胞周期调控等. Rho小G蛋白家族对细胞周期 调控的研究主要集中在其对于有丝分裂期细胞的调节作用,包括调节有丝分裂期前 期细胞趋圆化、后期染色体排列及收缩环的收缩作用.近期的研究显示,Rho小G蛋白及其效应分子对于细胞周期G1、S、G2期的调控主要是通过影响细胞周期的正调控因子细胞周期蛋白D1 (cyclin D1) 和负调控因子细胞周期蛋白依赖型激酶相互作用蛋白1及细胞周期蛋白依赖型激酶抑制蛋白27 (p21cip1/p27kip1) 进行的.本文总结了Rho小G蛋白及其效应分子在细胞周期调控,尤其是对G1/S期调控的研究进展,并简要阐述了Rho小G蛋白介导的细胞周期调控异常与癌症发生的关系.     

水稻小G蛋白OsPra2基因的克隆及功能分析

利用micro array 技术对水稻幼苗在营养胁迫条件下根部基因表达的研究中发现: 一个与豌豆Pra2(小G蛋白)基因有同源性的基因的RNA水平在营养胁迫后再补充营养时, 表达量下降。用RT-PCR和PCR方法分别获得该基因的cDNA克隆—OsPra2和该基因翻译起始位点上游1 kb的启动子序列。OsPra2基因编码的蛋白质具有结合GTP/GDP的4个保守结构域和构成小G蛋白Rab家族的特有的结构域。该基因cDNA与GST蛋白基因融合表达载体在洋葱表皮细胞中的瞬间表达结果显示该蛋白定位在在细胞膜和细胞核上, OsPra2基因启动子与GUS报告基因融合表达转基因水稻显示该基因启动子驱动GUS在胚芽鞘和根中表达, 35S启动子驱动OsPra2基因过表达转基因水稻与野生水稻株型相比明显矮化, 类似BR缺陷型植物株型。本实验还对OsPra2和P450蛋白的相互作用及在BR代谢途径中的可能作用进行了分析。     

Phosphorylation of Serine 402 Regulates RacGAP Protein Activity of FilGAP Protein

FilGAP is a Rho GTPase-activating protein (GAP) that specifically regulates Rac. FilGAP is phosphorylated by ROCK, and this phosphorylation stimulates its RacGAP activity. However, it is unclear how phosphorylation regulates cellular functions and localization of FilGAP. We found that non-phosphorylatable FilGAP (ST/A) mutant is predominantly localized to the cytoskeleton along actin filaments and partially co-localized with vinculin around cell periphery, whereas phosphomimetic FilGAP (ST/D) mutant is diffusely cytoplasmic. Moreover, phosphorylated FilGAP detected by Phos-tag is also mainly localized in the cytoplasm. Of the six potential phosphorylation sites in FilGAP tested, only mutation of serine 402 to alanine (S402A) resulted in decreased cell spreading on fibronectin. FilGAP phosphorylated at Ser-402 is localized to the cytoplasm but not at the cytoskeleton. Although Ser-402 is highly phosphorylated in serum-starved quiescent cells, dephosphorylation of Ser-402 is accompanied with the cell spreading on fibronectin. Treatment of the cells expressing wild-type FilGAP with calyculin A, a Ser/Thr phosphatase inhibitor, suppressed cell spreading on fibronectin, whereas cells transfected with FilGAP S402A mutant were not affected by calyculin A. Expression of constitutively activate Arf6 Q67L mutant stimulated membrane blebbing activity of both non-phosphorylatable (ST/A) and phosphomimetic (ST/D) FilGAP mutants. Conversely, depletion of endogenous Arf6 suppressed membrane blebbing induced by FilGAP (ST/A) and (ST/D) mutants. Our study suggests that Arf6 and phosphorylation of FilGAP may regulate FilGAP, and phosphorylation of Ser-402 may play a role in the regulation of cell spreading on fibronectin.     

梭梭小G蛋白基因HaRAN1克隆与表达分析

采用cDNA-AFLP技术从梭梭中获得了一个干旱诱导的TDF序列,编码RAN基因的cDNA片段,利用5'-RACE和3'-RACE技术克隆到一个1 083 bp的全长基因,含有一个编码221个氨基酸的开放阅读框,具有结合GTP/GDP的4个保守结构域,属于RAN1亚家族,命名为HaRAN1.Blast分析表明,HaRAN1与单、双子叶植物(毛果杨、拟南芥、小麦、水稻)的一致性高达95%~96%以上;与哺乳动物(人类)和真菌(烟曲霉)的一致性高达88%以上;半定量RT-PCR分析显示,干旱、PEG和NaCl胁迫明显诱导HaRAN1基因的表达.结果表明,HaRAN1基因编码蛋白在物种间具有高度保守性,可能在梭梭适应极端干旱的沙漠生境中起重要作用.     

Coronin-1C Protein and Caveolin Protein Provide Constitutive and Inducible Mechanisms of Rac1 Protein Trafficking

Sustained directional fibroblast migration requires both polarized activation of the protrusive signal, Rac1, and redistribution of inactive Rac1 from the rear of the cell so that it can be redistributed or degraded. In this work, we determine how alternative endocytic mechanisms dictate the fate of Rac1 in response to the extracellular matrix environment. We discover that both coronin-1C and caveolin retrieve Rac1 from similar locations at the rear and sides of the cell. We find that coronin-1C-mediated extraction, which is responsible for Rac1 recycling, is a constitutive process that maintains Rac1 protein levels within the cell. In the absence of coronin-1C, the effect of caveolin-mediated endocytosis, which targets Rac1 for proteasomal degradation, becomes apparent. Unlike constitutive coronin-1C-mediated trafficking, caveolin-mediated Rac1 endocytosis is induced by engagement of the fibronectin receptor syndecan-4. Such an inducible endocytic/degradation mechanism would predict that, in the presence of fibronectin, caveolin defines regions of the cell that are resistant to Rac1 activation but, in the absence of fibronectin leaves more of the membrane susceptible to Rac1 activation and protrusion. Indeed, we demonstrate that fibronectin-stimulated activation of Rac1 is accelerated in the absence of caveolin and that, when caveolin is knocked down, polarization of active Rac1 is lost in FRET experiments and culminates in shunting migration in a fibrous fibronectin matrix. Although the concept of polarized Rac1 activity in response to chemoattractants has always been apparent, our understanding of the balance between recycling and degradation explains how polarity can be maintained when the chemotactic gradient has faded.     

sTACI-Fc-Myc重组质粒的构建、原核表达及活性鉴定

目的:构建s TACI-Fc-Myc重组质粒,并进行原核表达和纯化具有生物活性的融合蛋白。方法:通过PCR法获得s TACI-Fc-Myc重组片段,然后把融合基因片段与原核载体p ET28a连接在一起,并构建p ET28a-s TACI-Fc-Myc重组子,并转入BL21(DE3)中进行表达,用蛋白A凝胶亲和层析柱进行纯化及酶联免疫吸附剂(ELISA)法测定其生物学活性。结果:获得了s TACI-Fc-Myc重组质粒,且该质粒可以在BL21(DE3)中表达,亲和层析柱纯化后纯度可达到95%以上,与BAFF的结合活性具有剂量依赖性,浓度达到5 ng/μL时,两者的吸附达到饱和。结论:成功构建了s TACI-Fc-Myc原核表达载体,并使有生物学活性的融合蛋白在BL21(DE3)上获得了稳定表达,为进一步研究并筛选高活性BAFF拮抗肽奠定了基础。     

小G蛋白Rap的信号通路与生物学功能

Rap在细胞内控制着许多重要的信号通路,这些通路与细胞极性的形成、细胞增殖、分化和癌变、细胞黏附和运动等重要的生物功能密切相关,并进一步在组织器官水平影响一些重要的生理功能,如神经极性的建立、神经突触生长、突触可塑性和神经元迁移等。Rap属于Ras家族,含有Rap1和Rap2两个亚类。Rap通过结合GTP或GDP,在激活与失活两种状态之间切换,从而发挥分子开关的功能。此外,Rap在癌症的发生和发展过程中也发挥着关键作用,它可抑制癌基因Ras诱导的细胞转化;还可通过与其下游靶分子的相互作用,作为细胞信号通路上的一个开关分子诱导细胞恶性转化。本文对上述Rap的生物学功能做了概括总结,并在此基础之上探究Rap及受其调控的蛋白质对肿瘤和神经系统疾病的药物开发和治疗的重要意义。     

Systematic Evaluation of Protein Sequence Filtering Algorithms for Proteoform Identification Using Top‐Down Mass Spectrometry

Complex proteoforms contain various primary structural alterations resulting from variations in genes, RNA, and proteins. Top‐down mass spectrometry is commonly used for analyzing complex proteoforms because it provides whole sequence information of the proteoforms. Proteoform identification by top‐down mass spectral database search is a challenging computational problem because the types and/or locations of some alterations in target proteoforms are in general unknown. Although spectral alignment and mass graph alignment algorithms have been proposed for identifying proteoforms with unknown alterations, they are extremely slow to align millions of spectra against tens of thousands of protein sequences in high throughput proteome level analyses. Many software tools in this area combine efficient protein sequence filtering algorithms and spectral alignment algorithms to speed up database search. As a result, the performance of these tools heavily relies on the sensitivity and efficiency of their filtering algorithms. Here, we propose two efficient approximate spectrum‐based filtering algorithms for proteoform identification. We evaluated the performances of the proposed algorithms and four existing ones on simulated and real top‐down mass spectrometry data sets. Experiments showed that the proposed algorithms outperformed the existing ones for complex proteoform identification. In addition, combining the proposed filtering algorithms and mass graph alignment algorithms identified many proteoforms missed by ProSightPC in proteome‐level proteoform analyses.     

Expression of Rac1b stimulates NF-kappaB-mediated cell survival and G1/S progression

The small GTPase Rac1 can stimulate various signaling pathways following a tightly controlled GDP-GTP exchange. A splicing variant designated Rac1b was found to exist predominantly in the active GTP-bound state but the functional consequences of its expression remain unknown. Here we used mouse fibroblasts as a model to assess the signaling properties of Rac1b. We show that, in contrast to Rac1, expression of wild-type Rac1b is sufficient to stimulate cyclin D1 accumulation and G1/S progression in these cells. Moreover, expression of wild-type Rac1b, but not of wild-type Rac1, dramatically increased cell survival in the presence of only minimal growth stimuli. Both cellular responses were blocked by the NF-kappaB super-repressor IkappaBalpha(A32A36). Active Rac1b induced the phosphorylation and membrane translocation of IkappaBalpha, a prerequisite for the activation of NF-kappaB. These data demonstrate that Rac1b is a highly active Rac1 variant that stimulates cell cycle progression and cell survival in pathways involving NF-kappaB.     

监测活细胞中诱导激活的Rac、Cdc42时空图像的FRET单分子探针的构建

以PCR方法从人脑cDNA基因文库扩增Rac1、Cdc42 cDNA全序列及其效应蛋白基因Pak1、N-WASP的GTP酶联结区域(GBD)序列,从dsRed1-N1质粒扩增红色荧光蛋白dsRed1cDNA全序列.将cDNA序列依次定向克隆至pECFP-N1质粒载体,获得基于FRET原理,包含dsRed1,Pak1或N-WASP的GBD,Rac1或Cdc42,ECFP编码序列的单分子探针.在dsRed1的C末端加入一段CAAM法尼基化基序,构建包含EGFP,Pak1的GBD,Rac1或Cdc42,dsRed1-CAAM的质膜特异表达的单分子探针.采用这两种探针,可用于监测活细胞中诱导激活的Rac1、Cdc42信号转导通路的3D时空图像,检测待测蛋白分子的GEF或GAP活性.     

光对拟南芥微管蛋白基因表达的负调节作用

白光处理后拟南芥白化苗中的微管蛋白基因mRNA都有不同程度降低。白化苗中TUBI的mRNA量很高,连续用白光处理由化苗2－6h,TUB1mRNA降低。分析拟南芥幼苗根、下胚轴中的RNA发现根中TUBI基因转录水平不受白光影响。具子叶的下胚轴中TUB1基因转录水平受白光抑制。白先对TUB1基因表达的负调节具有组织特异性。