陕南早寒武世早期磷酸盐化Punctatus发育模式研究

在陕南宁强宽川铺地区早寒武世早期灯影组宽川铺段地层中发现了数十枚呈三维立体精美保存的磷酸盐化Punctatus动物化石,包括花冠状口部,5辐射锥体及不同发育阶段的胚胎化石标本和2枚罕见的完整Punctatus化石.研究表明,这些胚胎标本中的部分类型与Punctatus有关,通过对这些Punctatus及与Punctatus有关的胚胎化石认真观察,对Punctatus的生长方式和发育模式进行了研究,提出两极生长发育模式.腔肠动物的出现标志着真后生动物的开始,所以腔肠动物一直在生物起源与演化研究方面占据显要地位,上述研究为"化石胚胎学"这一新的研究领域增添了新内容.     

陕南早寒武世早期磷酸盐化Punctatus奇异星状口盘的发现及其形态功能分析

早寒武世最早期梅树村期处于“寒武纪大爆发”序幕阶段。在这一时期,生物类群发生了大规模辐射演化及其身体构型的快速革新,形成与前寒武纪生物群明显不同的生物组合面貌。最近在陕南宽川铺地区早寒武世早期灯影组宽川铺段地层中发现了数十枚呈三维立体精美保存的磷酸盐化奇异星状生物化石标本,通过形态功能分析及与其共生的Punctatus的口盘类比表明,该奇异星状生物很可能属于腔肠动物Punctatus的口盘,星状体的中心为该生物的口部。而腔肠动物的出现标志着真后生动物的开始,在生物起源演化历程上占据着极其关键的位置。本文报道的奇异星状生物可能代表了初具原始触手的腔肠动物早期演化类型,为研究真后生动物起源演化、功能进化提供了新的实证材料。     

陕南寒武系底部保存精美的Punctatus胚胎及孵化幼体化石(英文)

在陕南寒武系底部的宽川铺段不仅保存了大量的小壳化石,而且还有诸多后生动物的卵和胚胎化石。目前,大量的胚胎化石已被报道,但是对古老的后生动物早期的个体发育却鲜有报道,尽管Bengtson和Yue(1977)建立了Olivooides的发育序列,但仍缺少一些重要的中间环节,而且胚胎的早期卵裂阶段还不是很清楚。因此,Olivooides和Punctatus之间的联系很难确立。本文报道了宽川铺生物群中新发现的精美的Punctatus的卵裂期、囊胚期及孵化幼体阶段的胚胎化石标本,这些新发现不仅填补了Punctatus发育序列中的空白,而且揭示了Olivooides和Punctatus之间的联系。这些新收集的Punctatus的卵裂期和孵化期的化石特征及Punctatus的形态学证明了Punctatus不是浮游生物,而是底栖生物。大量的胚胎化石和Punctatus的孵化幼体化石标本为我们研究后生动物早期演化提供了线索。     

陕西宁强地区早寒武世磷酸盐化Punctatus新材料

描记在陕西南部宽川铺地区的灯影组宽川铺段的震旦-寒武系界线附近发现的具五辐对称特征磷酸盐化Punctatus新种———Punctatus triangulicostalissp.nov.(三角隆脊瘤点壳)。新种的锥体由5条放射状排列的锥脊组成,柱体由5纵列等间隔排列的三角隆脊组成,构成了完美的五辐对称生物体。同时描记的有PunctatusemeiensisHe,1980,新种与它的显著区别是具有与锥顶5条放射脊相对应的5纵列三角隆脊。新种呈三维立体保存,暗示生物体内部已具有一定的硬化程度,而锥体表层及柱状体表面的三角隆脊为磷酸盐化软组织。形态功能分析表明,Punctatus在分类上可能更接近于腔肠动物的水螅型。     

小鼠胚胎体外培养条件的研究

为了探讨小鼠胚胎在体外发育过程中的最佳方案,我们将从超排昆明小鼠取出的５４３枚受精卵经过不同的培养液（Ｍ１６、Ｍ１６＋ＯＥＣ、Ｇｌｕ－ＦｒｅｅＭ１６和Ｇｌｕ－ＦｒｅｅＭ１６＋ＯＥＣ）及不同的培养微环境处理后,观察胚胎体外发育的过程。结果表明,葡萄糖在胚胎发育早期（２细胞期）有比较明显的发育阻断作用,同种输卵管上皮（ＯＥＣ）共同培养能够有效地抑制这种阻断作用;葡萄糖对胚胎８－１６细胞期及以后阶段的发育具有十分重要的作用,而此时ＯＥＣ的作用则不明显;除了葡萄糖外,在早期可能还有其它一些象磷酸盐、重金属离子的物质也能起胚胎发育阻断作用。同时还发现培养微环境的稳定也是胚胎发育的重要保证条件,石蜡油的封盖能够保持某种特定微环境而支持胚胎的体外发育。     

应用光学显微镜揭示寒武纪化石胚胎的表面结构

寒武纪化石胚胎是演化发育生物学研究的热点。传统的扫描电子显微镜可以观察到胚胎表面的三维结构,同步辐射X射线断层扫描显微镜等技术可以揭示胚胎的内部结构,但是胚胎表面由于矿物颜色差异表现出的结构在扫描电子显微镜和同步辐射成像下均无法观察,而光学显微镜恰恰能清晰地揭示这种结构。本研究应用光学显微镜和扫描电子显微镜对比观察了寒武纪化石胚胎,证明了光学显微镜在"光球"类胚胎观察方面有无可比拟的优势。从而揭示了在化石胚胎Olivooides multisulcatus的胚胎发育过程中,五辐射对称的口部要先于星状结构出现,证明辐射对称是Olivooides multisulcatus胚胎发育早期就已经建立的基本体构。     

斑马鱼胚胎发育过程中TGF-1基因的表达特征分析

为研究转化生长因子 (Transforming growth factor , TGF)1对斑马鱼胚胎发育的调控作用, 通过NCBI获得TGF-1基因序列, TGF-1 cDNA全长1571 bp, 编码377个氨基酸。系统进化树分析发现, TGF-蛋白按照不同的类型严格聚类, 斑马鱼TGF-1与其他鱼类的TGF-1聚集到一个分支, 在进化中非常保守。对斑马鱼胚胎进行RT-PCR和Real-Time PCR检测显示, TGF-1基因为母源表达基因, 在分节期之前的表达水平比较低, 而从咽囊期开始持续高水平的表达。胚胎整体原位杂交发现, TGF-1基因在斑马鱼24 hpf 胚胎中开始有特异信号出现, TGF-1基因的表达主要分布在腮弓、侧线原基、耳囊、嗅觉基板、心脏和前肾等处, 表明TGF-1基因可能参与斑马鱼胚胎免疫调节、循环系统发育和侧线形成。用低氧处理斑马鱼胚胎, 发现低氧处理24h后斑马鱼胚胎发育延迟。利用Real-Time PCR和胚胎整体原位杂交检测发现, 低氧处理后发育延迟的斑马鱼胚胎中TGF-1 mRNA表达量较常氧组显著降低。以上结果表明, TGF-1基因参与斑马鱼胚胎发育调控, 并且可能与低氧处理后斑马鱼胚胎发育延迟有关。研究结果将为深入研究斑马鱼TGF-1基因的功能奠定基础。       

陕西宁强早寒武世磷酸盐化具星状表饰胚胎化石研究

后生动物胚胎化石研究对了解寒武纪大爆发中生命的个体及系统发育具有十分重要的意义。陕南早寒武世灯影组宽川铺段发现大量磷酸盐化的球状化石标本,其中的一些为保存有十分精细的星状表饰的胚胎化石,目前发现至少3种具星状纹饰的胚胎化石:圆球状胚胎、具中央收缩带的球状胚胎和表面具“拉伸构造”的花生状胚胎,其中后者为新类型。研究表明,此新类型在演化序列上处于圆球状胚胎、具中央收缩带的球状胚胎发育阶段之后,是胚胎向成体演化的一个重要中间过渡环节,这一发现为研究早寒武世早期后生动物胚胎及个体发育提供了新线索。     

草鱼和鲤杂交的细胞学研究—鱼类远缘杂交核质不同步现象

以草鱼(Ctenopharyngodon idellus)为母本、鲤(Cyprinus carpio)为父本进行人工杂交,杂种胚胎发育至孵化期全部死亡;同时获得了少数雌核发育草鱼和雄核发育的鲤。分析比较了草鲤杂种胚胎染色体变化及胚胎发育情况。发现杂种胚胎染色体数目变化较大,一般在24—73之间,绝大部分细胞染色体在发育过程中不断丢失而出现非整倍体;极少数细胞在受精后雌性原核和雄性原核不结合而引起雌核发育和雄核发育;草鱼和鲤胚胎发育时序有较大差别;因此细胞分裂不能同步。可能是杂种胚胎染色体不断丢失的主要原因。     

PTEN在小鼠卵细胞和早期胚胎发育中的功能研究

PI3K/AKT信号通路在哺乳动物早期胚胎发育中起重要作用.抑癌基因PTEN是该通路中的负调节因子,但PTEN在卵和早期胚胎中的表达、分布以及作用都还未见报道.本研究通过免疫荧光方法发现卵细胞及着床前胚胎都表达PTEN,且具活性的PTEN主要分布在生发泡期(germinal vesical,GV)卵细胞的皮层部位以及致密桑椹胚的卵裂球表面.在培养基中添加低浓度的PTEN特异性抑制剂bpV(pic),GV期卵母细胞的成熟不受影响,但着床前胚胎发育受到阻滞.该结果提示PTEN在小鼠着床前胚胎发育中可能起重要作用.     

Mitochondrial DNA in metazoa: degree of freedom in a frozen event

The mitochondrial genome (mtDNA), due to its peculiar features such as exclusive presence of orthologous genes, uniparental inheritance, lack of recombination, small size and constant gene content, certainly represents a major model system in studies on evolutionary genomics in metazoan. In 800 million years of evolution the gene content of metazoan mitochondrial genomes has remained practically frozen but several evolutionary processes have taken place. These processes, reviewed here, include rearrangements of gene order, changes in base composition and arising of compositional asymmetry between the two strands, variations in the genetic code and evolution of codon usage, lineage-specific nucleotide substitution rates and evolutionary patterns of mtDNA control regions.     

陕南早寒武世早期Quadrapyrgites再研究

处于"寒武纪生命大爆发"序幕阶段的梅树村期,生物类群大规模辐射,身体构型快速革新,与前寒武纪生物群面貌明显不同.最近在陕南宁强宽川铺地区梅树村期地层中发现了大量五辐射Punctatus及部分四辐射四方塔形壳属Quadrapyrgites,其中包括1个新种Quadrnpyrgites undulatuscostalis sp.nov..在此基础上对Quadrapyrgites进行了属征补充.双胚层腔肠动物的出现标志着地球生命史的真后生动物演化开端,在生物起源演化历程上占据着关键的位置.本文为研究真后生动物起源演化、生物辐射、体型构建提供了重要实证.     

Evolutionary genomics reveals lineage-specific gene loss and rapid evolution of a sperm-specific ion channel complex: CatSpers and CatSperbeta

The mammalian CatSper ion channel family consists of four sperm-specific voltage-gated Ca2+ channels that are crucial for sperm hyperactivation and male fertility. All four CatSper subunits are believed to assemble into a heteromultimeric channel complex, together with an auxiliary subunit, CatSperbeta. Here, we report a comprehensive comparative genomics study and evolutionary analysis of CatSpers and CatSperbeta, with important correlation to physiological significance of molecular evolution of the CatSper channel complex. The development of the CatSper channel complex with four CatSpers and CatSperbeta originated as early as primitive metazoans such as the Cnidarian Nematostella vectensis. Comparative genomics revealed extensive lineage-specific gene loss of all four CatSpers and CatSperbeta through metazoan evolution, especially in vertebrates. The CatSper channel complex underwent rapid evolution and functional divergence, while distinct evolutionary constraints appear to have acted on different domains and specific sites of the four CatSper genes. These results reveal unique evolutionary characteristics of sperm-specific Ca2+ channels and their adaptation to sperm biology through metazoan evolution.     

MetaMirClust: Discovery of miRNA cluster patterns using a data-mining approach

Recent genome-wide surveys on ncRNA have revealed that a substantial fraction of miRNA genes is likely to form clusters. However, the evolutionary and biological function implications of clustered miRNAs are still elusive. After identifying clustered miRNA genes under different maximum inter-miRNA distances (MIDs), this study intended to reveal evolution conservation patterns among these clustered miRNA genes in metazoan species using a computation algorithm. As examples, a total of 15-35% of known and predicted miRNA genes in nine selected species constitute clusters under the MIDs ranging from 1kb to 50kb. Intriguingly, 33 out of 37 metazoan miRNA clusters in 56 metazoan genomes are co-conserved with their up/down-stream adjacent protein-coding genes. Meanwhile, a co-expression pattern of miR-1 and miR-133a in the mir-133-1 cluster has been experimentally demonstrated. Therefore, the MetaMirClust database provides a useful bioinformatic resource for biologists to facilitate the advanced interrogations on the composition of miRNA clusters and their evolution patterns.     

Reduce, reuse, and recycle: developmental evolution of trait diversification

A major focus of evolutionary developmental (evo-devo) studies is to determine the genetic basis of variation in organismal form and function, both of which are fundamental to biological diversification. Pioneering work on metazoan and flowering plant systems has revealed conserved sets of genes that underlie the bauplan of organisms derived from a common ancestor. However, the extent to which variation in the developmental genetic toolkit mirrors variation at the phenotypic level is an active area of research. Here we explore evidence from the angiosperm evo-devo literature supporting the frugal use of genes and genetic pathways in the evolution of developmental patterning. In particular, these examples highlight the importance of genetic pleiotropy in different developmental modules, thus reducing the number of genes required in growth and development, and the reuse of particular genes in the parallel evolution of ecologically important traits.     

The genesis and evolution of homeobox gene clusters

Once called the 'Rosetta stone' of developmental biology, the homeobox continues to fascinate both evolutionary and developmental biologists. The birth of the homeotic, or Hox, gene cluster, and its subsequent evolution, has been crucial in mediating the major transitions in metazoan body plan. Comparative genomics studies indicate that the more recently discovered ParaHox and NK clusters were linked to the Hox cluster early in evolution, and that together they constituted a 'megacluster' of homeobox genes that conspicuously contributed to body-plan evolution.     

Phosphatized rare star-like mouth disc of Punctatus and its functional morphology from the earliest Cambrian of the South Shaanxi China

The Meishucun stage is the prelude in decipher-ing the Cambrian Explosion. In this prominent stage, rapid radioactive evolution and body-plan innovation have taken place and different associations of organism have been shaped. In this paper we report several 3D-preserved rare star-like fossils with finely preserved soft tissues which were recovered from the Kuanchuanpu Member of the Dengying Formation in South Shaanxi, China in 2003. By studying on functional morphology and analogy with mouthpart of Punctatus, there are evidences that this star-like organism approaches the coelenterates in systematic classification and the centre of star-like organism is its mouth. The appearance of coelenterates marks the real beginning of metazoan evolution. Therefore, it has the prominent position in the origin and evolutionary history of organisms. Perhaps the star-like organism represents the early types of coelenterate with original tentacles. These new materials provide new evidence for the origin, evolution and the functional evolution of the metazoan during the early stage of the Cambrian Explosion.