Characterization of a RacGTPase up-regulated in the large yellow croaker Pseudosciaena crocea immunity

The Rac proteins are members of the Rho family of small G proteins and are implicated in the regulation of several pathways, including those leading to cytoskeleton reorganization, gene expression, cell proliferation, cell adhesion and cell migration and survival. In this investigation, a Rac gene (named as LycRac gene) was obtained from the large yellow croaker and it was expressed in Escherichia coli and purified. Subsequently the specific antibody was raised using the purified fusion protein (GST-LycRac). Moreover, the GTP-binding assay showed that the LycRac protein had GTP-binding activity. The LycRac gene was ubiquitously transcribed and expressed in 9 tissues. Quantitative real-time RT-PCR and Western blot analysis revealed the highest expression in gill and the weakest expression in spleen. Time-course analysis revealed that LycRac expression was obviously up-regulated in blood, spleen and liver after immunization with polyinosinic polycytidynic acid (poly I:C), formalin-inactive Gram-negative bacterium Vibrio parahemolyticus and bacterial lipopolysaccharides (LPS). These results suggested that LycRac protein might play an important role in the immune response against microorganisms in large yellow croaker.     

Molecular characterization and bioactivity of a CXCL13 chemokine in large yellow croaker Pseudosciaena crocea

A CXCL13-like chemokine cDNA was isolated from large yellow croaker (Pseudosciaena crocea) by expressed sequence tag (EST) analysis (LycCXCL13). The full-length cDNA of LycCXCL13 is 796 nucleotides (nt) encoding a protein of 97 amino acids (aa), with a putative molecular weight of 10.7 kDa. The deduced LycCXCL13 contains a 24-aa signal peptide and a 73-aa mature polypeptide, which possesses the typical arrangement of four cysteines as found in other known CXC chemokines (C²⁵, C²⁷, C⁵² and C⁶⁸). It shares 35, 36 and 39% aa sequence identities to green puffer CXCL13-like, Atlantic salmon CXCL13 and Japanese flounder CXCL13 chemokines, and 24–29% identities to CXCL13 chemokines in mammals, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis showed that LycCXCL13 is more closely related to the CXCL13 subgroup than to any other CXC chemokine subgroups. LycCXCL13 gene was constitutively expressed in all tissues examined, except for intestine. Upon induction with poly(I:C) or inactivated trivalent bacterial vaccine, LycCXCL13 gene expression was significantly up-regulated in spleen, head kidney, heart and gills at 24 h post-injection. Real-time PCR results showed that LycCXCL13 gene expression reached peak level in spleen and head kidney at 12 h after induction by poly(I:C), while its expression increased to the highest level in head kidney at 24 h or in spleen at 48 h by bacterial vaccine. Recombinant LycCXCL13 protein produced in E. coli BL21 exhibited obvious chemotaxis to the peripheral blood leucocytes (PBLs) from large yellow croaker. These results suggest that LycCXCL13 may be involved in inflammatory responses as well as homeostatic processes in large yellow croaker.     

大黄鱼TRIM25基因克隆和表达分析

三重基序蛋白25 (Tripartite motif-containing protein 25, TRIM25)属于E3泛素连接酶家族, 在先天免疫反应中发挥重要作用。为研究TRIM25基因在大黄鱼(Larimichthys crocea)先天抗病毒免疫反应中的作用, 研究鉴定并克隆大黄鱼TRIM25基因(命名为LcTRIM25)。LcTRIM25基因编码序列2097 bp (GenBank登录号: MK327541), 编码698个氨基酸。蛋白结构域预测发现LcTRIM25包括保守的RING结构域、B-box2结构域、Coiled-coil结构域和可变的C末端PRY/SPRY结构域。多序列比对以及系统进化树分析表明LcTRIM25基因与斜带石斑鱼同源性高, 与哺乳动物、爬行动物、两栖动物和鸟类同源性相对低, 这说明不同物种受到来自环境不同的选择压力, 导致进化程度不同。应用实时荧光定量PCR方法分析大黄鱼TRIM25基因的表达水平。结果分析发现LcTRIM25基因在健康大黄鱼的9个组织中均有广泛表达, 且在肝脏中表达量最高, 在心脏中表达量最低。在poly(I:C)刺激后, 在外周血、头肾、脾脏和肝脏中LcTRIM25基因表达量迅速且明显上调, 均出现上升达到峰值后下降的趋势。LcTRIM25基因表达量在头肾和脾脏中6h达到最高表达量, 在肝脏中12h达到峰值, 外周血中在24h达到最高表达量。上述结果表明, 不同组织中LcTRIM25基因表达模式具有差异性。研究结果推测大黄鱼TRIM25基因参与抗病毒免疫反应且发挥十分关键的作用, 为进一步了解大黄鱼抗病毒免疫机制提供理论基础。     

Characterization of myosin light chain gene up-regulated in the large yellow croaker immunity by interaction with RanGTPase

RanGTPases are highly conserved in eukaryotes from yeast to human and have been implicated in many aspects of nuclear structure and function. In our previous study, it was revealed that the RanGTPase was up-regulated in large yellow croaker challenged by pathogen. However, the mechanism of RanGTPase in immunity remains unclear. In this investigation, on the basis of protein interaction, it was found that RanGTPase interacted with myosin light chain (designated as LycMLC), a crucial protein in the process of phagocytosis. Furthermore, it was found and characterized in this marine fish for the first time. The full-length cDNA of LycMLC was 771 bp, including a 5′-terminal untranslated region (UTR) of 36 bp, 3′-terminal UTR of 279 bp and an open reading frame (ORF) of 456 bp encoding a polypeptide of 151 amino acids. RT-PCR analysis indicated that LycMLC gene was constitutively expressed in the 9 tissues examined, including kidney, liver, gill, muscle, spleen, skin, heart, intestine and blood. The result of quantitative real-time PCR analysis revealed the highest expression in muscle and the weakest expression in skin. Time course analysis showed that LycMLC expression was obviously up-regulated in blood after immunization with either poly I:C or formalin-inactive Gram-negative bacteria Vibrio parahaemolyticus. It indicated that the highest expression was 4.5 times (at 24 h) as much as that in the control (P < 0.05) challenged by poly I:C and 5.0 times (at 24 h) challenged by bacteria. These results suggested that LycMLC might play an important role in large yellow croaker defense against the pathogen infection. Therefore our study revealed a novel pathway concerning immunity of RanGTPase by the direct interaction with the cytoskeleton protein, which would help to better understand the molecular events in immune response against pathogen infection in fish.     

Cloning and molecular characterization of lycC1INH genes in large yellow croaker (Pseudosciaena crocea)

Complement component 1 inhibitor (C1INH) is a crucial protein in controlling activation of many plasma mediator pathways and can directly interact with Gram negative bacteria. The full-length cDNA of lycC1INH gene was identified from the large yellow croaker. It is of 2046 nucleotides (nt) encoding a protein of 599 amino acids, with a 5′-untranslated region of 99 nt and a 3′-untranslated region of 147 nt including the poly (A) tail. The deduced protein contains a C-terminal serpin (serine protease inhibitor) domain, and two N-terminus immunoglobulin domains without significant homology to other species. Western blot analysis of the protein expression showed that the expression of lycC1INH was obviously up-regulated in liver, spleen and head kidney of the fish challenged by attenuated live Vibrio anguillarum strain. This indicated that lycC1INH might be involved in the immune response of large yellow croaker to bacterial challenge.     

Poly I∶C联合BCG-CpG复合佐剂对结核亚单位疫苗免疫效果的影响

目的探讨聚肌胞苷酸(Poly I∶C)联合BCG-CpG复合佐剂(BCG-CpG-DNA+Al,简称BC02)对结核亚单位疫苗的免疫效果是否有增强作用。方法 BALB/c小鼠分成5组,3组分别免疫含有不同剂量poly I∶C(10、25、50μg/剂)的结核亚单位疫苗(Ag85b+ESAT6-CFP10)/(BC02+poly I∶C)3针,间隔10 d;2组分别免疫PBS或(Ag85b+ESAT6-CFP10)/BC02作为对照。末次免疫后第7 d,分离脾淋巴细胞,进行抗原特异性的IFN-γELISPOT检测、ELISA检测和淋巴细胞增殖检测以评价细胞免疫应答。豚鼠分成4组,1组免疫含有50μg poly I∶C/剂的新亚单位疫苗(Ag85b+ESAT6-CFP10)/(BC02+poly I∶C)3针,间隔10 d;3组分别免疫(Ag85b+ESAT6-CFP10)/BC02疫苗、生理盐水和BCG作为对照。末次免疫30 d后,每只豚鼠皮下攻击250 CFU结核分枝杆菌。41 d后,解剖豚鼠,进行肝、脾、肺脏器综合病变评分和脾菌计数以评价保护力。结果含不同剂量poly I∶C的(Ag85b+ESAT6-CFP10)/(BC02+poly I∶C)疫苗免疫组小鼠的脾淋巴细胞分别经Ag85b和ESAT6-CFP10多肽刺激后,分泌IFN-γ的抗原特异性T细胞频数、IFN-γ分泌量和细胞增殖指数均较(Ag85b+ESAT6-CFP10)/(BC02)组大幅度提高,且应答强度与poly I∶C呈现较为明显的量效关系。(Ag85b+ESAT6-CFP10)/(BC02+poly I∶C)组豚鼠脏器综合病变指数(27.5±20.4)和脾菌分离数[(4.22±0.59)log10CFU]均低于(Ag85b+ESAT6-CFP10)/BC02组[35.8±27.3,(5.19±0.66)log10CFU],其中脾菌分离数的差异有显著统计学意义(P=0.003 0)。结论 Poly I∶C佐剂对结核亚单位疫苗(Ag85b+ESAT6-CFP10)/BC02诱导的细胞免疫应答和抗结核保护力均有一定的增强效果。     

Molecular cloning and functional characterization of a RabGTPase in large yellow croaker (Pseudosciaena crocea)

The molecular mechanisms of the immune system against pathogens in large yellow croaker (Pseudosciaena crocea) are not well known, despite its economic importance as an aquaculture species. In this investigation, a Rab gene (named as LycRab gene) was obtained from this fish, which exhibited high homology with Rab8 of other species. It was expressed in Escherichia coli, and the specific antibody was raised using the purified fusion protein (GST-LycRab). The LycRab protein, containing characteristic signatures of Rab proteins with 5 GTP-binding domains, had GTP-binding activity. The LycRab gene was ubiquitously expressed in all analyzed tissues as revealed by Western blot, although expression levels varied from tissue to tissue. Real-time PCR revealed that the LycRab gene was up-regulated after immunization with poly I:C, formalin-inactive Gram-negative bacterium Vibrio parahaemolyticus or bacterial lipopolysaccharides (LPS), suggesting that LycRab protein might play an important role in large yellow croaker defense against pathogens infection. This discovery might contribute better understanding to the molecular events involved in fish immune responses.     

大黄鱼CCT基因的克隆及其表达量随稚鱼生长发育的变化

研究旨在克隆大黄鱼磷脂酰胆碱合成关键基因磷脂酰胆碱胞苷转移酶 (CCT)基因全长, 并检测其表达量随稚鱼生长发育的变化。利用同源克隆技术和RACE技术从大黄鱼肝脏中成功扩增出CCT的全长。同时应用real-time PCR法检测不同日龄大黄鱼稚鱼CCT的表达变化。序列分析表明, CCT全长2419 bp(Genbank登录号: KF006239.1), 包括273 bp 的5'端非编码区, 1107 bp的开放阅读框, 1010 bp的3'端非编码区,共编码369个氨基酸。系统进化树分析表明, 相比其他物种, 大黄鱼CCT基因与红鳍东方鲀的亲缘关系较近。定量结果表明, 孵化后, 大黄鱼仔稚鱼CCT的表达量随日龄的变化先显著升高, 在15日龄时达到最大值,随后显著下降并趋于平稳, CCT基因表达量的变化趋势与大黄鱼稚鱼消化系统的发育密切相关。     

Molecular characterization and expression analysis of interferon- inducible protein 56 gene in large yellow croaker Pseudosciaena crocea

In mammals, interferon-inducible protein 56 (IFI56) has been considered to play a role in mediating inhibition of viral replication and cell growth, and possibly in mediating cell apoptosis. Here, we reported the cloning of an IFI56 homologue from the spleen of large yellow croaker, a marine fish (LycIFI56). The complete cDNA of LycIFI56 gene is 1628 nucleotides (nt) encoding a protein of 437 amino acids (aa), with a putative molecular weight of 50.8 kDa. The deduced LycIFI56 protein has a high-level homology with all members of IFIT (IFN-inducible proteins with TPR domain) family, and its 9 putative TPR motifs all locate the corresponding position of these IFIT proteins. Phylogenetic analysis showed that five fish IFIT members form a unique clad independent of mammalian homologues, reflecting a distant evolutionary relationship from mammals. LycIFI56 gene was constitutively expressed in various tissues examined, such as gills, intestine, liver, kidney, heart, spleen, muscle and blood. Upon induction with poly(I:C), LycIFI56 gene expression is obviously up-regulated in spleen, gills, intestine, liver and kidney at 24 h post-induction, suggesting that LycIFI56 may be involved in the immune response induced by poly(I:C). Analysis of the expression kinetics of LycIFI56 and IRF1 genes revealed that the up-regulation of LycIRF-1 expression by poly (I:C) was apparently earlier than that of LycIFI56. These results would facilitate a better understanding of the expression regulation of fish IFI56 gene, and of its roles in immunity of bony fish.