牦牛的分布及保护

牦牛原是青藏高原一带的特产动物,也是我国现存最大的有蹄类动物,为典型的高山高寒荒漠动物,目前主要分布于青海、西藏、甘肃西北部、新疆南部,极少数个体见于邻近的印度西北部、尼泊尔、哈萨克斯坦、蒙古和西伯利亚边缘[1],家养牦牛是我国牧区重要的资源.     

牦牛眼的动脉分布

运用大体解剖学的方法研究了青藏高原牦牛(Bos grlznniens)眼的动脉供应。为了显示从颈总动脉到眼的血液供应情况,在6个牦牛的颈总动脉内灌注乙醚．红色油画颜料(15：1)。结果表明,眼的动脉供应主要来源于眼内动脉、眼外动脉、颞浅动脉和颧动脉。眼内动脉在眼眶内与眼外动脉相吻合,其为睫状长动脉的主要来源;眼外动脉产生的分支供应眼背侧斜肌、泪腺区、上下眼睑和眼外侧角,并且参与了前硬膜外异网和眼异网的形成;眼异网发出许多分支供应眼直肌、眼背侧斜肌、眼球缩肌、上眼睑提肌和脉络膜;颞浅动脉发出分支供应眼外侧角、上下眼睑、泪腺区,而且和眼异网发出的泪腺动脉相互吻合;颧动脉起自眶下动脉,其分支供应上下和第三眼睑、眼腹侧直肌及内侧眼角。在6个标本中,眼的动脉分布左右基本相同。     

Genetic Diversity and Divergence in Chinese Yak (Bos grunniens) Populations Inferred from Blood Protein Electrophoresis

In 6 Chinese yak (Bos. Grunniens) populations including 177 yaks, 34 blood protein loci were studied by horizontal starch gel electrophoresis, four of these loci (AKP, ALB, LDH-1, TF) were found to be polymorphic. The percentage of polymorphic loci(P) is 0.118, the mean individual heterozygosity(H) is 0.015, which means a low level of genetic diversity in the whole Chinese yak population. The coefficient of gene differentiation (G _ST ) is 0.0625, which indicated an almost-indistinguishable divergence among different populations at the level of blood protein electrophoresis.     

Expression and purification of active recombinant human bikunin in Pichia pastoris

Bikunin is a proteoglycan exhibiting broad-spectrum inhibitory activity against serine proteases and could potentially suppress tumor cell invasion and metastasis. Here, we have successfully expressed recombinant human bikunin (rh-bikunin) in the methylotrophic yeast Pichia pastoris and established the purification procedure. The cDNA encoding human bikunin was cloned by PCR and inserted into the expression vector pPICZαC. After expressed in shake flask, rh-bikunin was produced in an 80-L fermenter and purified by cation exchange chromatography and reverse phase chromatography. The rh-bikunin was active by trypsin inhibition test. The final expression levels were 55 mg/L and we got totally 1.44 g (5600 inhibitor units/mg) of purified rh-bikunin (purity is 95%) from 40 L of fermentation broth. The rh-bikunin consists of two forms with molecular masses of 24 and 21 kDa, respectively. Both forms were immunoreactive by Western blotting and N-terminals were correctly processed by amino-terminal sequencing. This study provided a new method for expression and purification of active rh-bikunin.     

Expression of the nucleocytoplasmic tobacco lectin in the yeast Pichia pastoris

The Nicotiana tabacum lectin, also called Nictaba, is a nucleocytoplasmic plant lectin expressed in tobacco leaves after exposure to jasmonates. Purification of the lectin from raw material is a time-consuming process, demanding large amounts of induced plant material. In addition, the lectin yield is low and purified lectin fractions are always contaminated with low molecular weight compounds such as phenols. In a way to improve and facilitate the purification of the tobacco lectin, we cloned the Nictaba gene in a vector optimized for protein expression in the methylotrophic yeast Pichia pastoris. In this report, we present data of the expression profile of recombinant Nictaba in the P. pastoris culture medium and in P. pastoris cells together with the purification strategy using ion exchange chromatography and affinity chromatography on a column with immobilized ovomucoid. Pichia transformants were estimated to express approximately 6mg of recombinant lectin per liter medium after a 72h culture. SDS-PAGE and Western blot analysis revealed that the recombinant lectin expressed in Pichia exists in two molecular forms. Edman degradation and mass spectrometry analysis confirmed the presence of at least two forms of recombinant lectin with molecular weights of 19,060 and 20,100Da, corresponding to lectin polypeptides similar to the fully processed Nictaba which is N-terminally blocked, and Nictaba extended at the N-terminus with the amino acids residues EAEAYVEFT due to incomplete processing of the alpha-factor mating sequence. Further characterisation of the recombinant lectin revealed agglutination and carbohydrate-binding properties similar to the native tobacco lectin.     

Yak (Bos Grunniens) Stomach Lysozyme: Molecular Cloning,Expression and its Antibacterial Activities

The cDNA coding for stomach lysozyme in yak was cloned. The cloned cDNA contains a 432 bp open reading frame and encodes 143 amino acids (16.24 KDa) with a signal peptide of 18 amino acids. Further analysis revealed that its amino acid sequence shares many common properties with cow milk lysozyme. Expression of this gene was also detected in mammary gland tissue by RT-PCR. Phylogenetic relationships among yak stomach lysozyme and 8 cow lysozymes indicated that the yak enzyme is more closely related to both cow milk lysozyme and the pseudogene ΨNS4 than cow stomach lysozyme. Recombinant yak lysozyme purified by Ni²⁺-column showed a molecular weight of 33.78 kDa and exhibited lytic activity against Staphylococcus aureus, providing evidence of its antibacterial activities.     

牦牛MT-Ⅰ/-Ⅱ cDNA分子克隆及其蛋白质结构分析

利用基因特异引物Y_MTSP₁和Y_MTSP₂,通过RT-PCR从牦牛肝脏组织RNA中克隆出了牦牛MT-Ⅰ(GenbankAccessionNo:AY513744)和MT-Ⅱ(GenbankAccessionNo:AY513745)基因编码区全长。将牦牛MT-Ⅰ和MT-ⅡcDNA序列在CBI上进行同源性搜索发现,牦牛MT-Ⅰ/-Ⅱ编码区序列在不同哺乳动物中相当保守。牦牛MT-Ⅰ和MT-Ⅱ编码的MT-Ⅰ和MT-Ⅱ蛋白分别由61个氨基酸组成,其具有保守的短肽结构如:C-X-C,C-C-X-C-C,C-X-X-C等,其决定MT蛋白分子的整个三维结构,在分子进化上十分保守。同时对牦牛MT的疏水性和跨膜区分析表明,牦牛MT蛋白可能不存在跨膜区,也不存在信号肽,是1种非分泌蛋白。并通过同源比较模建,预测和构建了牦牛MT-Ⅰ和MT-Ⅱ蛋白的分子空间结构,表明牦牛MT-Ⅰ和MT-Ⅱ由α-和β-两个结构域组成,在α-结构域含有5个Cys短肽结构,β-结构域有4个Cys短肽结构,且2个结构域由保守的三肽序列KKS相连。     

Expression of recombinant Aspergillus niger xylanase A in Pichia pastoris and its action on xylan

The mature peptide of Aspergillus niger xylanase A (AnxA) was successfully expressed in Pichia pastoris at high levels under the control of AOX1 promoter. The recombinant AnxA (reAnxA) was secreted into culture medium. After 96-h 0.25% methanol induction, the activity of reAnxA in the culture supernatant reached the peak, 175 U/mg, which was 1.9 times as high as that of the native AnxA (92 U/mg). Studies on enzymatic properties showed that the optimum temperature and optimum pH of reAnxA were 50 degrees C and 5.0, respectively. The reAnxA was very stable in a wide pH range of 3.0-8.0. After incubation at the pH 3.0-8.0, 25 degrees C for 1h, all the residual activities of reAnxA were over 80%. The K(m) and k(cat) values for reAnxA were 4.8 mg/ml and 123.2s(-1), respectively. HPLC analysis showed that xylotriose was the main hydrolysis product of birchwood xylan and bran insoluble xylan by reAnxA.     

Secretion, purification, and characterization of a recombinant Aspergillus oryzae tannase in Pichia pastoris

Tannase (tannin acyl hydrolase) is an industrially important enzyme produced by a large number of fungi, which hydrolyzes the ester and depside bonds of gallotannins and gallic acid esters. In the present work, a tannase from Aspergillus oryzae has been cloned and expressed in Pichia pastoris. The catalytic activity of the recombinant enzyme was assayed. A secretory form of enzyme was made with the aid of Saccharomyces cerevisiae alpha-factor, and a simple procedure purification protocol yielded tannase in pure form. The productivity of secreted tannase achieved 7000 IU/L by fed-batch culture. Recombinant tannase had a molecular mass of 90 kDa, which consisted of two kinds of subunits linked by a disulfide bond(s). Our study is the first report on the heterologous expression of tannase suggesting that the P. pastoris system represents an attractive means of generating large quantities of tannase for both research and industrial purpose.     

蚓激酶基因的克隆及在毕赤酵母中的表达

以赤子爱胜蚓(Eisenia fetida)体内的总RNA为模板,通过RT-PCR方法扩增含自身信号肽的蚓激酶基因F238,将其克隆到pUCm-T载体上,并进行测序。GenBank登录号为:DQ202401。测序结果表明基因全长为738bp,共编码245个氨基酸,包括7个氨基酸的信号肽序列和238个氨基酸的成熟肽序列。与粉正蚓(Lumbricus rubellus)F-III-2相比,核苷酸与氨基酸序列的同源性均为99%,仅存在2个碱基的差异,导致2个氨基酸的突变。通过生物信息学方法对蛋白质的理化及结构特性进行分析预测,F238的等电点为4.61,含有11个半胱氨酸,形成3个二硫键。蛋白质分子主要由β折叠组成,具有丝氨酸活性中心,属丝氨酸蛋白酶超家族胰蛋白酶类。以重组质粒pUCm-T-F238为模板,通过PCR方法扩增去信号肽的蚓激酶基因F238-m,构建毕赤酵母(Pichia pastoris)表达载体pPIC9-F238-m,将其线性化后用电穿孔法导入酵母宿主菌GS115中。在MM和MD平板上筛选表型,经甲醇诱导后,SDS-PAGE分析显示表达产物的分子量为28kDa左右,纤维平板法测定活力最高可达100U/mL。     

Expression and purification of recombinant human apolipoprotein C-I in Pichia pastoris

Apolipoprotein C-I (ApoC-I) is a small, basic apolipoprotein which is mainly secreted by the liver as a component of triglyceride-rich lipoproteins and high density lipoproteins whose importance in plasma lipoprotein metabolism is increasingly evident. At present, the only way to obtain native ApoC-I is separating it from human plasma. The methods have some restrictions on source, the complicated technology, the potential infections and a high cost which limits the research and application of native ApoC-I. Because of its small size, ApoC-I has previously been prepared by peptide synthesis which is also limited by a high cost. Therefore, in this study, a Pichia pastoris expression system was first used to obtain a high level expression of secreted, recombinant human ApoC-I (rhApoC-I).     

Molecular Cloning and Expression of a cDNA Encoding Lon Protease from rice (Oryza sativa)

The ATP-dependent Lon protease is a highly conserved enzyme that is present in archeae, eubacteria, and eukaryotes, and plays an important role in intracellular protein degradation. We have isolated a Lon protease gene, OsLon1, from Oryza sativa. The cDNA contained a 2,655 bp ORF. Comparative analysis showed that OsLon1 shared significant similarity with the previously reported Lon proteases from maize, Arabidopsis, human, and bacteria. Tissue expression pattern analysis revealed that OsLon1 was highly expressed in young leaves, mature leaves, and leaf sheaths but only weakly in young roots, mature roots, and young panicles. The OsLon1 gene was successfully expressed in E. coli and the detected protein size, about 120 kDa, matched the expected molecular mass of the His-tagged OsLon1 protein.     

Expression, purification, and activity identification of Alfimeprase in Pichia pastoris

Alfimeprase (ALF) is a truncated form of non-hemorrhagic zinc metalloproteinase fibrolase. In order to achieve a high level secretion and full activity expression of ALF, the Pichia pastoris (P. pastoris) expression system was used. ALF coding sequence fused with a 6 *histidine tag and an enterokinase recognition site at the N-terminus was cloned into the expression vector pPIC9K and then expressed in P. pastoris strains of GS115 and KM71 by methanol induction. SDS-PAGE and Western blotting analysis showed that the secreted recombinant ALF (rALF) had a molecular weight of 23.8 kDa and was bound specifically to mouse anti-His. tag monoclonal antibody. Under the optimized culture parameters of pH value, initial A(600) value, methanol daily addition concentration and induction time length, the production of rALF reached up to 510 mg/L and 465 mg/L of the GS115 and KM71 transformants, respectively. It also appeared that KM71 was producing a more pure protein than GS115 while GS115 was producing more rALF per unit volume. Through one-step affinity chromatography, the purity of rALF was as high as 96%. The fibrinolytic activity of rALF revealed by the modified fibrin plate method indicated that the protein was efficiently secreted and functionally expressed, and thrombolysis of rALF was demonstrated to be dose-dependent and time-relative. The improved expression system will facilitate further studies and industrial production of ALF.     

High-level expression of nonglycosylated human pancreatic lipase-related protein 2 in Pichia pastoris

The human pancreatic lipase-related protein 2 (HPLRP2) was produced in the methylotrophic yeast Pichia pastoris. The HPLRP2 cDNA corresponding to the protein coding sequence including the native signal sequence, was cloned into the pPIC9K vector and integrated into the genome of P. pastoris. P. pastoris transformants secreting high-level rHPLRP2 were obtained and the expression level into the liquid culture medium reached about 40mg/L after 4 days of culture. rHPLRP2 was purified by a single anion-exchange step after an overnight dialysis. N-terminal sequence analysis showed that the purified rHPLRP2 mature protein possessed a correct N-terminal amino acid sequence indicating that its signal peptide was properly processed. Mass spectrometry analysis showed that the recombinant HPLRP2 molecular weight was 52,532Da which was 2451Da greater than the mass calculated from the sequence of the protein (50,081Da) and 1536Da greater than the mass of the native human protein (50,996Da). In vitro deglycosylation experiments by peptide:N-glycosidase F (PNGase F) indicated that rHPLRP2 secreted from P. pastoris was N-glycosylated. Specific conditions were setup in order to obtain a recombinant protein free of glycan chain. We observed that blocking glycosylation in vivo by addition of tunicamycin in the culture medium during the production resulted in a correct processing of the rHPLRP2 mature protein. The lipase activity of glycosylated or nonglycosylated rHPLRP2, which was about 800U/mg on tributyrin, was inhibited by the presence of bile salts and not restored by adding colipase. In conclusion, the experimental procedure which we have developed will allow us to get a high-level production in P. pastoris of glycosylated and nonglycosylated rHPLRP2, suitable for subsequent biophysical and structural studies.     

Expression of recombinant hybrid peptide cecropinA(1-8)-magainin2(1-12) in Pichia pastoris: purification and characterization

Hybrid antibacterial peptide CA-MA (cecropinA(1-8)-magainin2(1-12)) is a linear cationic peptide that has potent antimicrobial properties without hemolytic activity. To explore a new approach of expression of hybrid peptide CA-MA in methylotrophic yeast, Pichia pastoris, the gene of CA-MA was obtained by recursive PCR (rPCR) and cloned into the vector pPICZalpha-A. The SalI-linearized plasmid pPICZalpha-CA-MA was transformed into P. pastoris SMD1168 by electroporation. The expression was induced for 96h with 1.0% methanol at 28 degrees C, pH 5.0. Recombinant CA-MA was purified by reversed-phase HPLC and 22 mg pure active CA-MA was obtained from 1L fermentation culture. Tricine-SDS-PAGE indicated that recombinant CA-MA protein molecular weight is 2.6 kDa. Mass spectrometry of purified CA-MA demonstrated a single large signal for the molecular ion [M+2H+](2+) at 1281.07 m/z, identical to that of the putative protein (2.56 kDa). Antimicrobial assays showed that CA-MA has a broad spectrum of antimicrobial property against fungi, as well as Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. This is the first report on the heterologous expression of a hybrid antibacterial peptide with molecular weight below 3.0 kDa in P. pastoris. Our results demonstrate that functional CA-MA can be produced in sufficient quantities using P. pastoris for use in further studies on functionality and diagnostic applications.     

耐碱性甘露聚糖酶基因的克隆及其在毕赤酵母中的表达

通过功能平板从土壤中筛选得到含甘露聚糖酶基因的耐碱菌株。构建其基因组文库,从中筛选到甘露聚糖酶基因TM1并测序分析,用BLAST分析表明,TM1的氨基酸序列与其他在GenBank发表的甘露聚糖酶的氨基酸序列的同源性均低于60%,故确定其为一个新的甘露聚糖酶基因(GenBank登录号为AY623903)。将此基因去除信号肽后的编码序列克隆到表达载体pHBM905C上,得到重组质粒pHBM1201。经SalⅠ酶切后分别转化毕赤酵母(Pichiapastoris)KM71、GS115、SMD1168,得到分泌表达的重组毕赤酵母。挑选相对表达量最高的重组毕赤酵母SMD1168-3在摇瓶中诱导产酶,对该酶的粗酶进行酶学性质分析表明,其最适反应温度为55℃,最适PH值为7.5,以魔芋粉为底物所测得的最高酶活为41.8U,半衰期为1h,在80℃保温5min其酶活由最初酶活的77%下降到11%,温度下降到55℃后活性可恢复到最初酶活的60%以上。     

Expression and purification of ancrod, an anticoagulant drug, in Pichia pastoris

Ancrod is known as a thrombin-like enzyme from the venom of Calloselasma rhodostoma. The cDNA encoding ancrod was synthesized with a yeast bias codon and inserted into the eukaryotic expression vector pPIC9 and was subsequently expressed in the yeast Pichia pastoris. Recombinant ancrod was produced in 5-L bioreactor using a sorbitol-methanol feeding strategy and recovered from the fermentation broth by hydrophobic, affinity, and ion exchange chromatography. SDS-PAGE analysis revealed that ancrod was heterogeneously glycosylated and running at the expected molecular weight of 43-48 kDa which decreased to about 29 kDa after deglycosylation with N-glycosidase F. The fibrinogenolytic and zymographic activity of the recombinant ancrod were determined and were found to be similar to that of the native protein.     

Expression of functional single-chain variable domain fragment antibody (scFv) against mycotoxin zearalenone in Pichia pastoris

A synthetic gene coding for single-chain variable domain fragment antibody against mycotoxin zearalenone (scFv-ZEN) has been designed, constructed and expressed in Pichia pastoris. The native scFv-ZEN sequence was optimized to Pichia preference codon usage. The expression level of codon-optimized scFv-ZEN was slightly higher than that of native scFv-ZEN, and its maximum yield reached 328 mg total protein/l in flask culture. The binding activities of two selected clones to ZEN using surface plasmon resonance analysis were comparable or better than that of monoclonal antibody. Our results demonstrate the potential of soluble scFv-ZEN for developing a rapid and affordable immunoassay for detection of ZEN in food and feedstuff.     

Expression of the human activin type I and II receptor extracellular domains in Pichia pastoris

Methods for the expression in Pichia pastoris and purification of the human activin receptor type I and II extracellular domains (ARIa/ARIb-ECDs, ARIIA/ARIIB-ECDs) are described. Key experimental aspects are also documented of the vector transformation methodology and the binding characteristics of these ECDs with activin A and inhibin. The cDNA constructs for these ECDs contained a C-terminal His6-tag with either the native signal (N) or the yeast alpha mating factor (alphaMF) sequence and were introduced into the pPICZ expression vector either as a single-copy or as a four-copy expression cassette. Hyper-resistant transformants (zeo(R): 500 microg/mL) generated from the cassette containing a single copy of the expression vector gave the stronger signal intensity with a DNA dot-blot screening assay. These transformants also produced higher quantities of the corresponding recombinant protein compared to transformants using the four-copy cassette vector. All receptor-ECD proteins expressed were found to be heterogeneously glycosylated, whereby the ARIIA-ECD and ARIIB-ECD had undergone two Asn-linked glycosylation events and the ARIb-ECD a single event. By SDS-PAGE, the de-glycosylated proteins migrated larger than the expected core size, indicating that they may have undergone O-linked glycosylation. Biacore-based procedures with the glycosylated and de-glycosylated ARIIA-ECD were employed to determine the kinetic and equilibrium binding parameters for the interaction with activin A and inhibin. The glycosylated ARIIA-ECD bound to activin A with a KD of 11.9 nM and inhibin with a KD of 21.1 nM. Although glycosylation of ARIIA-ECD was not strictly required for high affinity interactions with activin A or inhibin, it markedly improved the overall stability of the ARIIA-ECD.     

Optimal conditions for the expression of a single-chain antibody (scFv) gene in Pichia pastoris

A Pichia pastoris system was used to express a single-chain antibody (scFv) targeted against Mamestra configurata (bertha armyworm) serpins. To improve scFv production we examined parameters such as proteinase activity, temperature, cell density, osmotic stress, medium composition, pH, and reiterative induction. P. pastoris was found to express several proteases; however, adjustment of medium pH to limit their activity did not correlate with increased scFv recovery. Induction medium pH values of 6.5-8.0 were most conducive to scFv production, despite significant differences in cell growth rates. Increasing inoculum density limited growth potential but gave rise to higher levels of scFv production. Three factors, medium composition, pre-induction osmotic stress, and temperature, had the greatest effects on protein production. Supplementation of the induction medium with arganine, casamino acids, or EDTA increased scFv production several fold, as did cultivation under osmotic stress conditions during pre-induction biomass accumulation. Incubation at 15 versus 30 degrees C extended the period whereby cells were capable of producing scFv from 1 to 7 days. Under optimal conditions, yeast cultures yielded 25 mg/L of functional scFv and could be subject to five reiterative inductions.