猪霍乱沙门菌载体介导猪瘟病毒DNA免疫研究

构建了猪瘟病毒(CSFV)主要保护性抗原E2基因的真核表达质粒pVAXE2。将其电转化猪霍乱沙门氏菌C500疫苗株,得到了携带pVAXE2质粒的猪霍乱沙门氏菌工程菌株S.C500/pVAXE2,对该菌株的特征、培养特性和生化特性进行了鉴定。分别用1×10⁸CFU、2×10⁹CFU S.C500/pVAXE2经口服或肌肉注射免疫小鼠和家兔,间接ELISA检测免疫动物的特异性抗体,在第三次免疫后2周用20ID50猪瘟兔化弱毒和致死量猪霍乱沙门氏菌强毒株对免疫兔进行攻击。结果表明,S.C500/pVAXE2保持了猪霍乱沙门氏菌原有形态特征、培养特性和生化特性,免疫鼠和兔都产生了抗CSFV和猪霍乱沙门菌的ELISA抗体,免疫家兔能抵抗猪瘟兔化弱毒株和猪霍乱沙门氏菌强毒株的攻击。显示了以S.C500为DNA运输载体构建二联或多联猪用疫苗的可行性。     

Cloning of Pseudomonas putida genes responsible for the primary stages of oxidation of naphthalene in Escherichia coli cells

Data on cloning Pseudomonas putida D-plasmid pBS286 (IncP-9) genes which are responsible for primary stages of naphthalene oxidation as well as data on the expression of these genes in Escherichia coli cells are presented. Recombinant plasmid pBS959 containing the whole constitutive nahA locus encoding naphthalene dioxygenase, a key enzyme of the naphthalene oxidation pathway, has been constructed on the basis of the pUC19 vector. An evidence has been obtained that at least a portion of the sequence of structural nahB gene is cloned in the recombinant pBS959 plasmid. Constitutive expression of the nahA gene is controlled by its own promoter and leads to conversion of indole to indigo in E. coli cells, strain HB101. Plasmid pBS959 is characterized by high structural stability; some instability observed is due to segregation.     

核糖体结合位点序列对大肠杆菌中HBcAg重组质粒表达的影响

用Bal-31外切酶调整乙肝病毒核心抗原(HBcAg)基因非编码区长度并克隆到质粒pKK 223-3中,获得了不同水平地表达HBcAg的重组质粒pKL系统。该系统所表达的HBcAg蛋白分子量为21000D。DNA序列分析发现高、中、低表达水平的3个重组质粒的SD序列到HBcAg基因的ATG之间的距离分别为12bp、13bp和19bp,高、低表达质粒的mRNA核糖体结合位点序列的二级结构分析显示,二者的自由能相差约3倍,且低表达质粒的mRNA的SD序列中的3个碱基及AUG中的3个碱基都参与配对,而高表达质粒只有SD序列中的2个碱基参与配对,表明SD序列到ATG的距离及mRNA的二级结构均在HBcAg的表达调控中起重要作用。     

Cometabolic oxidation of polychlorinated biphenyls in soil with a surfactant-based field application vector.

Polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB)-degradative genes, under the control of a constitutive promoter, were cloned into a broad-host-range plasmid and a transposon. These constructs were inserted into a surfactant-utilizing strain, Pseudomonas putida IPL5, to create a field application vector (FAV) in which a surfactant-degrading organism cometabolizes PCB. By utilizing a surfactant not readily available to indigenous populations and a constitutive promoter, selective growth and PCB-degradative gene expression are decoupled from biphenyl. Since PCB degradation via the biphenyl degradation pathway is nonadaptive in the absence of biphenyl, there is no selective pressure for PCB gene maintenance. The recombinant strains exhibited degradative activity against 25 of 33 PCB congeners in Aroclor 1248 in the absence of biphenyl. Whole-cell enzyme assays indicated that PCB-degradative activity of a recombinant strain carrying the PCB genes on a plasmid was approximately twice that of the same strain carrying the PCB genes on a transposon. Plasmid loss rates in the absence of antibiotic selection averaged 7.4% per cell division and were highly variable between experiments. Surfactant-amended slurries of PCB-contaminated electric power plant substation soil were inoculated with approximately 10(5) recombinant cells per ml. The populations of the added strains increased to greater than 10(9) cells per ml in 2 days, and cell growth coincided with PCB degradation. By 15 days, 50 to 60% of the indicator congener 2,3,2',5'-tetrachlorobiphenyl was degraded. The effectiveness of PCB degradation by the plasmid-containing strain depended on plasmid stability. The transposon-encoded PCB genes were much more stable, and in surfactant-amended soil slurries, PCB degradation was more consistent between experiments.     

Endostatin gene therapy delivered by Salmonella choleraesuis in murine tumor models

BACKGROUND: Some anaerobic and facultatively anaerobic bacteria have been used experimentally as anticancer agents because of their selective growth in tumors. In this study, we exploited attenuated Salmonella choleraesuis as a tumoricidal agent and a vector to deliver the endostatin gene for tumor-targeted gene therapy. METHODS: Attenuated S. choleraesuis carrying a eukaryotic expression plasmid encoding reporter gene was used to evaluate its abilities of tumor targeting and gene delivery in three syngeneic murine tumor models. Furthermore, S. choleraesuis carrying the endostatin expression vector was administered intraperitoneally into tumor-bearing mice, and its antitumor effect was evaluated. RESULTS: Systemically administered S. choleraesuis preferentially accumulated within tumors for at least 10 days, forming tumor-to-normal tissue ratios exceeding 1000-10,000 : 1. Transgene expression via S. choleraesuis-mediated gene transfer also persisted for at least 10 days. Host immune responses and tumor hypoxia may influence tumor-targeting potential of S. choleraesuis. When systemically administered into mice bearing melanomas or bladder tumors, S. choleraesuis carrying the endostatin expression vector significantly inhibited tumor growth by 40-70% and prolonged survival of the mice. Furthermore, immunohistochemical studies in the tumors revealed decreased intratumoral microvessel density, reduced expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and increased infiltration of CD8(+) T cells. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that tumor-targeted gene therapy using S. choleraesuis carrying the endostatin expression vector, which exerts tumoricidal and antiangiogenic activities, represents a promising strategy for the treatment of solid tumors.     

Mini transposon vector mediated foreign gene expression in Mesorhizobium huakuii subsp. rengei

Among the transposable elements, mini-Tn5 transposon vector has proven to be of greater utility for insertion mutagenesis of variety of Gram negative bacteria. The mini-Tn5 vector containing promoter less egfp gene and gentamycin resistant gene was used for the present study. The transposon vector was introduced to M. huakuii from E. coli S17 by conjugation. The conjugants were screened for stable expression of egfp both in free-living and in nodules of Astragalus sinicus. The result showed that the conjugant #3 showed stable expression of green fluorescent both in free-living and bacteroid stage. The visualization of sym plasmid of wild strain and conjugants showed that conjugant #3 had a fragmentation of large sized plasmid into two but without affecting the nodulating ability. These results clearly indicated that mini-Tn5 vectors (Transposon vectors) the best alternate tools for plasmid vectors for integration of foreign genes in chromosomal DNA or symbiotic plasmid and expression, both in free-living and bacteroid stage of Rhizobium.     

麦迪霉素产生菌具有启动功能的DNA片段的克隆和分析

利用启动子探针质粒载体pIJ486从麦迪霉素产生菌总DNA中克隆得到了一段具有启动功能的DNA片段.通过限制性酶酶切分析,测定插入DNA片段大小为2.3kb.又利用载体pIJ486和pIJ487的新霉素抗性结构基因上游有多酶切点方向相反的性质,分析了插入片段在两个不同方向上的启动能力.结果表明,在两个方向上均有启动功能,但强弱相差六倍.其中在XbaI-HindIII方向上具有较强的启动能力,在变铅青链霉菌中新霉素抗性水平可达20mg/ml以上.进一步对插入片段的三个BamHI小片段进行分析的结果表明,较强启动子区域集中在BamHI-BamHI 0.79kb DNA片段上.     

猪霍乱沙门氏菌递送的双启动子表达载体的构建

猪霍乱沙门氏菌C500株不仅可以作为预防猪沙门氏菌病的活疫苗,还可作为运送其他DNA疫苗的优良载体,并通过粘膜免疫诱导产生针对特定抗原的各种免疫应答。为增强其携带的DNA疫苗的免疫效力,本研究以真核表达载体pEGFP-C1为基础,将其真核启动子CMVie与原核启动子Ptrc串联,并在其多克隆位点MCS下游引入rrnbT1T2转录终止序列,构建了真、原核双启动子表达载体pEGFPPtrcR。用1×TSS法将其转化C500,得到工程菌C500/pEGFPPtrcR,通过SDS-PAGE和Westernblotting鉴定了报告基因EGFP的原核表达,该菌在荧光显微镜下能发出强烈绿色荧光,被证明在体外至少能稳定遗传20代;采用脂质体介导法将pEGFPPtrcR转染Vero细胞,EGFP在胞核和胞浆内表达,24h后观察可到明显绿色荧光。结果表明,双启动子表达载体pEGFPPtrcR构建成功,预示其携带的外源基因既可在C500中表达,又可在体细胞中表达,为研制以C500为载体的新型DNA疫苗的发展开辟了一个新的途径。     

Generation of a packaging cell line for prolonged large-scale production of high-titer HIV-1-based lentiviral vector

BACKGROUND: A stable packaging cell line facilitates large-scale lentivirus vector manufacture. However, it has been difficult to produce clinical-scale HIV-1-based lentiviral vectors using a packaging cell line, in part due to toxicity of packaging genes, and gene silencing that occurs during the long culture period necessary for sequential addition of packaging constructs. METHODS: To avoid these problems, we developed a three-level cascade gene regulation system designed to remove tetracycline transactivator (tTA) from cytomegalovirus immediate early promoter (CMV)-controlled expression to reduce cytotoxicity from constitutive expression of tTA and leaky expression of packaging genes. We also performed a one-step integration of the three packaging plasmids to shorten the culture time for clonal selection. RESULTS: Although leaky expression of p24 and vector production still occurred despite the three-level regulation system, little cytotoxicity was observed and producer cells could be expanded for large-scale production. Producer cells yielded remarkably stable vector production over a period greater than 11 days with the highest titer 3.5 x 10(7) transducing units (TU)/ml and p24 300 ng/ml, yielding 2.2 x 10(11) TU and 1.8 milligram (mg) p24 from one cell factory. No replication-competent lentivirus (RCL) was detected. Long-term analysis demonstrated that, although the cells are genetically stable, partial gene silencing occurs after 2-3 months in culture; however, the one-step construct integration allowed prolonged vector production before significant gene silencing. Concentrated vector resulted in 90% transduction in CD4+ lymphocytes at 20 TU per cell. CD34+ progenitor cells were transduced at 41-46% efficiency, and long-term initiating culture (LTC-IC) was transduced at 45-51%. CONCLUSIONS: These results demonstrate for the first time HIV-1-based lentiviral vector production on the large scale using a packaging cell line.     

Plasmid pSE21 of Streptomyces erythraeus strains

Crossing of S. erythraeus 4, a laboratory strain (NRRL 2338) containing a family of plasmids with S. erythraeus 1, a plasmid-free strain resulted in formation of strain 6. A multi-copy plasmid pSE21 11.5 kb in length was isolated from S. erythraeus 6. A detailed restriction map of plasmid pSE21 was constructed. Its cloning to E. coli YM83 on vector pUC19 showed that plasmid pSE21 was not stable in E. coli. It was found that the status of plasmid pSE21 changed in relation to the physiological state of S. erythraeus 6. Southern hybridization of the plasmid pSE21 DNA with the total DNA of the cultures of S. erythraeus 1 maintained for various periods at 4 degrees C demonstrated that plasmid pSE21 was present in S. erythraeus 1 in an autonomous state in 0.1 to 0.2 copies per genome. The number of the plasmid pSE21 copies could be decreased. The chromosomal DNA of S. erythraeus 1 contained the DNA sequences highly homologous to those of plasmid pSE21. It was assumed that during the crossing of S. erythraeus 4 with S. erythraeus 1 the genetic element from the donor strain was transferred to the recipient strain which in some way changed the plasmid pSE21 status and imparted the multicopy pattern to it. Further investigation of the plasmid pSE21 properties and construction of a vector for S. erythraeus on the plasmid basis are under way.     

利用人U6 snRNA启动子构建RNA干扰质粒载体

RNA干扰技术已经成为基因功能研究等领域的有力工具,构建带有筛选标记的siRNA载体可以在细胞中持续抑制靶基因的表达.为了利用RNAi技术开展生物学研究,在克隆载体pUC19的基础上改造构建了人类细胞小干扰RNA（small interference RNA,siRNA）表达质粒pUC19NU.该质粒具有新霉素抗性标记和真核细胞复制起点,利用连入的人U6 snRNA启动子起始siRNA的转录.以EGFP 和p53为靶基因的干扰实验证明,所构建的siRNA表达质粒可以显著抑制细胞外源性增强绿色荧光蛋白（enhanced green fluorescent protein,EGFP）及细胞内源性p53蛋白的表达,而且抑制效果具有特异性.     

Mapping genetic elements of Epstein-Barr virus that facilitate extrachromosomal persistence of Epstein-Barr virus-derived plasmids in human cells.

The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) genome becomes established as a multicopy plasmid in the nucleus of infected B lymphocytes. A cis-acting DNA sequence previously described within the BamHI-C fragment of the EBV genome (J. Yates, N. Warren, D. Reisman, and B. Sugden, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 81:3806-3810, 1984) allows stable extrachromosomal plasmid maintenance in latently infected cells, but not in EBV-negative cells. In agreement with the findings of Yates et al., deletion analysis permitted the assignment of this function to a 2,208-base-pair region (nucleotides 7315 to 9517 of the B95-8 strain of EBV) of the BamHI-C fragment that contained a striking repetitive sequence and an extended region of dyad symmetry. A recombinant vector, p410+, was constructed which carried the BamHI-K fragment (nucleotides 107565 to 112625 of the B95-8 strain, encoding the EBV-associated nuclear antigen EBNA-1), the cis-acting sequence from the BamHI-C fragment, and a dominant selectable marker gene encoding G-418 resistance in animal cells. After being transfected into HeLa cells, this plasmid persisted extrachromosomally at a low copy number, with no detectable rearrangements or deletions. Two mutations in the BamHI-K-derived portion of p410+, a large in-frame deletion and a linker insertion frameshift mutation, both of which alter the carboxy-terminal portion of EBNA-1, destroyed the ability of the plasmid to persist extrachromosomally in HeLa cells. A small in-frame deletion and linker insertion mutation in the region encoding the carboxy-terminal portion of EBNA-1, which replaced 19 amino acid codons with 2, had no effect on the maintenance of p410+ in HeLa cells. These observations indicate that EBNA-1, in combination with a cis-acting sequence in the BamHI-C fragment, is in part responsible for extrachromosomal EBV-derived plasmid maintenance in HeLa cells. Two additional activities have been localized to the BamHI-C DNA fragment: (i) a DNA sequence that could functionally substitute for the simian virus 40 enhancer and promoter elements controlling the expression of G-418 resistance and (ii) a DNA sequence which, although not sufficient to allow extrachromosomal plasmid maintenance, enhanced the frequency of transformation to G-418 resistance in EBV-positive (but not EBV-negative) cells. These findings suggest that the BamHI-C fragment contains a lymphoid-specific or EBV-inducible promoter or enhancer element or both.     

HIV-1Gag蛋白在大肠杆菌和重组杆状病毒系统中的高效表达及通用型温控原核表达载体的构建

将中国株HIV－1B亚型的gag全基因序列,克隆到杆状病毒表达载体pfastbacI中,构建了重组质粒pfastGag,利用细菌／杆状病毒表达系统筛选重组杆状病毒,在昆虫细胞中高效表达了HIV－1Gag蛋白。通过改造原核表达载体pBV220和pET28,构建了一种新的通用型温控原核表达载体质粒pVV5,该载体携带PrPl串联温控启功子及His—Tag纯化标签,利于目的蛋白表达与纯化。将HIV－1gag基因的1148一1857编码序列,分别插入到pVV5b、pET28b的相应位点,构建了重组表达质粒pEG1b、pEG7b,二者在不同受体菌中,表达重组蛋白的量分别占全菌体蛋白总量的42％和28％。利用IMAC金属螯合层析柱,对包涵体中的重组p24蛋白进行纯化,纯度超过80％;纯化后的重组蛋白可与HIV－1型标准阳性血清发生较强的免疫学反应。     

Natural transmission of Salmonella choleraesuis in swine.

This experiment was designed to study the natural transmission of Salmonella choleraesuis in swine. Forty pigs were divided into three groups. Group 1 (n = 12) was challenged with 10(8) CFU of S. choleraesuis per ml by intranasal inoculation. One day postinoculation (p.i.), group 2 (n = 24) was commingled with group 1. Group 3 (n = 4) served as uninoculated controls. Serum samples were collected weekly. Blastogenesis assays and necropsies were performed at 1, 2, 4, 6, 9, and 12 weeks p.i., and 16 tissue samples per pig were collected and cultured. Environmental (pooled feces from the pen floor) levels of S. choleraesuis were 2.61 log10 CFU/g of feces at 24 h p.i. (immediately prior to commingling). Severe clinical signs were observed in groups 1 and 2. The results indicated that at least 16% of group 2 pigs were shedding S. choleraesuis within 24 h of commingling. At 1 week p.i., 32 of 32 group 1 and 39 of 62 group 2 tissue samples were positive for S. choleraesuis. Only 3 of 12 group 2 pigs were positive at 6, 9, and 12 weeks (1 pig for each week), indicating that only a small proportion of infected swine become long-term carriers. At 12 weeks p.i., only the colon and colonic lymph node samples of one pig from group 2 were positive. Humoral, mucosal, and cellular immune responses were similar between groups 1 and 2. These data demonstrate that a few pigs shedding low levels of Salmonella organisms before slaughter can result in rapid transmission and subsequent shedding by many swine.     

A ColE1-compatible expression vector for the production of His-tagged fusion proteins

Plasmid pDB31 is a ColE1-compatible expression vector based on the p15A origin of replication. It is designed to express His-tagged fusion proteins in cells co-hosting a compatible expression vector. It was constructed by assembling the operator/promoter region plus the 6xHis and the multiple cloning site of pQE31 (QIAGEN) with the p15A origin of replication plus Kan^R of pGP1-2. The plasmid was found to be stable in Escherichia coli strains BL21 and DH11S. It was used to produce and purify the ferredoxin reductase component of Comamonas testosteroni B-356 biphenyl dioxygenase inside a clone hosting the remaining dioxygenase genes on a compatible plasmid.     

Relative influence of the adeno-associated virus (AAV) type 2 p5 element for recombinant AAV vector site-specific integration

The p5 promoter region of the adeno-associated virus type 2 (AAV-2) rep gene has been described as essential for Rep-mediated site-specific integration (RMSSI) of plasmid sequences in human chromosome 19. We report here that insertion of a full-length or minimal p5 element between the viral inverted terminal repeats does not significantly increase RMSSI of a recombinant AAV (rAAV) vector after infection of growth-arrested or proliferating human cells. This result suggests that the p5 element may not improve RMSSI of rAAV vectors in vivo.     

Molecular amplification and purification of the E. coli recC gene product.

The level of recC gene expression has been analysed using Mud(bla lac) fusions to the recC promoter. The constitutive level of expression is very low and remains so even under SOS inducing conditions. The recC gene product has been amplified by harnessing the gene to the phage lambda leftward promoter in a plasmid. From cells harbouring this plasmid, RecC protein, which represented approximately 6% of the total cellular protein, was purified to electrophoretic homogeneity.