染料木素对MRSA外排蛋白表达的影响

[目的] 研究染料木素对耐甲氧西林金黄色葡萄球菌（MRSA）外排蛋白的影响。[方法] 通过联合药敏实验检测染料木素影响MRSA对环丙沙星的敏感性;利用等重同位素多标签相对定量蛋白质组学（iTRAQ）技术,检测染料木素作用MRSA41577后菌体蛋白表达量的变化;通过生物信息学方法对差异显著的蛋白进行系统分析;通过qPCR和尼罗红外排实验,探讨耐药相关的蛋白介导细菌耐药的作用机制。[结果] 联合药敏实验结果显示,染料木素能增强MRSA对环丙沙星的敏感性;通过iTRAQ技术检测到差异显著蛋白共有129个,包括60个表达上调的蛋白和69个表达下调的蛋白;生物信息学分析结果显示,与细菌耐药相关的蛋白约有14个,其中,通过主动外排系统介导细菌耐药的蛋白主要有PstB、PstS等;qPCR结果显示,与对照组相比,PstB、PstS的基因表达量分别下降了51.6%和78.6%;尼罗红外排实验结果显示,染料木素与尼罗红之间存在竞争关系,为MRSA41577的竞争性抑制剂。[结论] 染料木素可通过降低MRSA41577外排基因pstB和pstS的mRNA表达量,进而影响PstB、PstS外排蛋白的表达来逆转细菌耐药;此外,染料木素还是MRSA41577的竞争性外排抑制剂,可通过与底物竞争外排的方式,使抗菌药物留在菌体内发挥抗菌作用。     

iTRAQ-based proteomics reveals novel biomarkers of osteoarthritis

Abstract

Objective: We performed comprehensive proteomic analyses of articular cartilage by using the isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantitation (iTRAQ) method, and searched for candidate biomarkers for osteoarthritis (OA).

Methods: Articular cartilage was collected from patients with OA or femoral neck fracture for the control group. Molecular variations were detected by the iTRAQ method, and quantitative analyses were performed by western blot.

Results: Using the iTRAQ method, we identified 76 proteins with different expression levels in OA patients and the control group. Among these proteins, we selected LECT2 (leukocyte cell-derived chemotaxin-2), BAALC (brain and acute leukemia, cytoplasmic), and PRDX6 (peroxiredoxin-6), which had not been reported as biomarkers for OA.

Conclusions: Use of these proteins in combination with conventional OA biomarkers may better reflect the grade and prognosis of OA.     

Anti-ageing effects of red ginseng on female Drosophila melanogaster

Red ginseng (RG) was recently reported to extend the lifespan of Drosophila melanogaster. However, the mechanism underlying this effect has not yet been elucidated. The present study aimed to elucidate the molecular mechanisms of the RG-mediated prolongation of the lifespan of female D melanogaster. In this study, protein changes in 36-day-old female D melanogaster were identified using isobaric tag for relative and absolute quantitation (iTRAQ), and levels of differentially expressed proteins were verified by quantitative real-time PCR and Western blotting. Our studies have shown that RG concentrations of 12.5, 15 and 17.5 mg/mL significantly prolonged the lifespan. Eleven proteins were up-regulated and 46 were down-regulated between the RG and control groups; and Pebp1 expression was significantly down-regulated. In addition, AKT and p-AKT were down-regulated, and ERK, p-ERK and Raf1 were up-regulated by RG. Therefore, RG significantly prolonged the lifespan of female D melanogaster by reducing the expression of Pebp1, up-regulating ERK and inhibiting the AKT pathway. RG may be a potential drug for anti-ageing treatment.     

相对定量分析异烟肼、链霉素单耐药与多耐药结核分枝杆菌临床分离株的蛋白质组差异

【目的】探讨异烟肼(isoniazid,INH)、链霉素(streptomycin,SM)单耐药结核分枝杆菌(Mycobacterium tuberculosis,MTB)与INH/SM多耐药MTB蛋白质组差异。【方法】应用i TRAQ结合Nano LC-MS/MS定量蛋白质组学技术,分析临床分离INH、SM或INH/SM耐药MTB与H37Rv标准株间均表达差异蛋白;并以INH/SM耐药MTB与H37Rv比值为对照,相对定量分析单耐药与多耐药MTB蛋白表达差异倍数;运用DAVID 6.7分析差异蛋白生物功能;STITCH 5.0分析差异蛋白与INH和SM相互作用。【结果】与H37Rv标准株比较,58个蛋白在INH、SM耐药与INH/SM耐药MTB间均有表达差异,共同差异蛋白生物功能主要为氧化还原酶活性和转移酶活性;主要参与丙酸代谢信号通路。共同差异蛋白中,与INH/SM耐药MTB比较,Rv2986c和Rv1908c在INH、SM耐药MTB均表达上调1.25倍;Rv3133c和Rv0577则均表达下调0.7倍;生物信息学预测发现以上4种蛋白可直接或间接与INH、SM进行相互作用。【结论】INH、SM单耐药和INH/SM多耐药MTB蛋白表达谱有较大差异,蛋白Rv2986c、Rv1908c、Rv3133c和Rv0577表达水平及相互作用可能与INH和SM耐药有关。     

Antibacterial Effects of Green Tea Polyphenols on Clinical Isolates of Methicillin-Resistant <Emphasis Type="Italic">Staphylococcus aureus</Emphasis>

The antibacterial effects of tea polyphenols (TPP) extracted from Korean green tea (Camellia sinensis) against clinical isolates of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) were evaluated. Characterization of the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) of oxacillin for 30 S. aureus strains isolated from patients treated with oxacillin identified 13 strains with an oxacillin MIC ≥ 4 μg/mL as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) (range: 8 to 512 μg/mL), while 17 strains were methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) (range: 0.25–0.5 μg/mL). The MICs of TPP ranged from 50 to 180 μg/mL for both the MSSA and the MRSA strains. The MICs of oxacillin for each of the 13 MRSA strains were reduced between 8- and 128-fold when these strains were coincubated with sub-MIC (≤0.5× MIC) levels of TPP, demonstrating that the combination of TPP plus oxacillin was synergistic for all of the clinical MRSA isolates. Two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis identified 14 extracellular proteins of MRSA-13 down-regulated and 3 proteins up-regulated by exposure to TPP. These studies demonstrate that TPP can differentially stimulate the expression of various proteins in these bacteria and synergize the bactericidal activity of oxacillin for MRSA.     

Mathematical modelling of the agr operon in Staphylococcus aureus

Staphylococcus aureus is a pathogenic bacterium that utilises quorum sensing (QS), a cell-to-cell signalling mechanism, to enhance its ability to cause disease. QS allows the bacteria to monitor their surroundings and the size of their population, and S. aureus makes use of this to regulate the production of virulence factors. Here we describe a mathematical model of this QS system and perform a detailed time-dependent asymptotic analysis in order to clarify the roles of the distinct interactions that make up the QS process, demonstrating which reactions dominate the behaviour of the system at various timepoints. We couple this analysis with numerical simulations and are thus able to gain insight into how a large population of S. aureus shifts from a relatively harmless state to a highly virulent one, focussing on the need for the three distinct phases which form the feedback loop of this particular QS system.     

Genome-wide identification of conserved microRNA and their response to drought stress in Dongxiang wild rice (Oryza rufipogon Griff.)

Objectives

To identify drought stress-responsive conserved microRNA (miRNA) from Dongxiang wild rice (Oryza rufipogon Griff., DXWR) on a genome-wide scale, high-throughput sequencing technology was used to sequence libraries of DXWR samples, treated with and without drought stress.

Results

505 conserved miRNAs corresponding to 215 families were identified. 17 were significantly down-regulated and 16 were up-regulated under drought stress. Stem-loop qRT-PCR revealed the same expression patterns as high-throughput sequencing, suggesting the accuracy of the sequencing result was high. Potential target genes of the drought-responsive miRNA were predicted to be involved in diverse biological processes. Furthermore, 16 miRNA families were first identified to be involved in drought stress response from plants.

Conclusion

These results present a comprehensive view of the conserved miRNA and their expression patterns under drought stress for DXWR, which will provide valuable information and sequence resources for future basis studies.

     

Novel thiazolinyl-picolinamide based palladium(II) complex-impregnated urinary catheters quench the virulence and disintegrate the biofilms of uropathogens

Abstract

Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Serratia marcescens are prominent members belonging to the group of ESKAPE pathogens responsible for Urinary Tract Infections (UTI) and nosocomial infections. Both the pathogens regulate several virulence factors, including biofilm formation through quorum sensing (QS), an intercellular communication mechanism. The present study describes the anti-biofilm and QS quenching effect of thiazolinyl-picolinamide based palladium(II) complexes against P. aeruginosa and S. marcescens. Palladium(II) complexes showed quorum sensing inhibitory potential in inhibiting swarming motility behaviour, pyocyanin production and other QS mediated virulence factors in both P. aeruginosa and S. marcescens. In addition, the establishment of biofilms was prevented on palladium (II) coated catheters. Overall, the present study demonstrates that thiazolinyl-picolinamide based palladium (II) complexes will be a promising strategy to combat device-mediated UTI infections.     

Identification of NaCl and NaHCO3 stress responsive proteins in tomato roots using iTRAQ-based analysis

Soil salinity and alkalinity are common constraints to crop productivity in low rainfall regions of the world. However, the physiological difference of plant response to these two stresses was short of deep investigation. This study has identified a set of differentially expressed proteins of tomato root exploring to NaCl and NaHCO₃ stress by iTRAQ (isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantitation) assay. A total of 313 proteins responsive to NaCl and NaHCO₃ were observed. Among these proteins, 70 and 114 proteins were up-regulated by salt and alkali stress, respectively. While down-regulated proteins were 80 in salt treatment and 83 in alkali treatment. Only 39 up-regulated proteins and 30 down-regulated proteins were shared by salt and alkali stresses. The majority of the down-regulated proteins accounted for metabolism and energy conversion, and the up-regulated proteins were involved in signaling or transport. Compared with salt stress, alkali stress down-regulated proteins related with the respiratory metabolism, fatty acid oxidative metabolism and nitrogenous metabolism of tomato roots, and up-regulated protein with the reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging and ion transport. This study provides a novel insight into tomato roots response to salt and alkali stress at a large translation level.     

水稻病程相关蛋白质在逆境胁迫下的表达研究

植物病程相关(PR)基因一般在病原物侵染过程中受诱导发生转录上调．目前有证据提示植物PR基因在非生物逆境胁迫下也发生转录变化,但其蛋白质的表达变化情况还鲜有报道．为了解水稻PR蛋白质在逆境胁迫下的表达特征,本文采用免疫印迹技术(Western blotting,WB)调查了8个PR蛋白质在冷、热、旱、淹和盐等5种胁迫下的表达谱．结果表明：在冷胁迫下PR8表达上调,在热胁迫下PR1a、PR3、PR5和PR16表达下调;在旱胁迫下PR1a、PR2和PR8表达上调,而PR5 和PR16表达下调,在淹胁迫下PR1、PR2和PR15表达上调,PR1a、PR3、PR5和PR8表达下调;在盐胁迫下PR2和PR3表达上调,而PR1a、PR5、PR8和PR16表达下调．另外,对这些PR 基因的上游启动子区进行分析,发现存在与胁迫响应相关的调控元件,其中脱落酸反应元件(ABRE)、TC-rich repeats和HSE的出现频率较高．这些蛋白质表达数据进一步佐证了PR蛋白在逆境胁迫反应中发挥着重要且不尽相同的作用．     

Antimicrobial activity of AOT-isooctane reverse micelle as a bioseparation and biocatalysis tool

Abstract

The antimicrobial activity of different reverse micelles on microorganisms is been compared using the disc diffusion method. The bis (2-ethylhexyl) sodium sulfosuccinate (AOT) reverse micelle showed a more significant inhibitory effect than do other reverse. micelles, and it had an antimicrobial activity against a broad range of microorganisms. Results from an antimicrobial activity test of isooctane and a forward extraction containing soybean protein suggest that the surfactant was chiefly responsible for inhibiting microbes in AOT/isooctane reverse micelle, while isooctane hardly inhibited the microbial growth. The properties of S. aureus, cultured in the TSB with AOT reverse micellar solution, were identified by the SEM and SDS-PAGE fingerprinting of cell-wall proteins. It is concluded that the cell-wall of the S. aureus decreased in the TSB with AOT reverse micellar solution, and some cell protein subunits of the S. aureus did not occurr, especially between 14.4 and 42.7 kDa, while one new protein subunit at near 97.4 kDa occurred