血管内皮细胞特异表达Cre重组酶转基因小鼠的建立

血管内皮细胞参与血管形成、血管稳态维持、血栓形成、炎症和血管重建等生理和病理过程。为了便于通过Cre-LoxP系统研究相关基因在血管内皮细胞中的功能,创建了Tie2-Cre转基因小鼠,利用Tie2基因的启动子驱动Cre重组酶基因在血管内皮细胞中表达。经基因组PCR和Southern Blot鉴定有6只小鼠在基因组上整合有Cre基因,整合率为11％。为了验证Cre重组酶的剪切活性和表达组织分布,我们将Tie2-Cre转基因小鼠分别与Smad4条件基因打靶小鼠和报告小鼠ROSA26交配。Tie2-Cre;Smad4^co/＋小鼠的多个组织的基因组DNA的PCR结果显示,Cre重组酶在所有包含血管内皮细胞的组织中表达并能介导LoxP间的重组。Tie2-Cre;ROSA26双转基因胚胎LacZ染色结果显示,Cre重组酶在所有被检测组织的血管内皮细胞中特异性表达。因此．Tie2-Cre转基因小鼠可作血管内皮细胞谱系分析和在血管内皮细胞进行条件基因打靶的理想工具小鼠。     

Conserved Mechanisms for Germ Cell-Specific Localization of nanos3 Transcripts in Teleost Species with Aquaculture Significance

The importance of the aquaculture production is increasing with the declining global fish stocks, but early sexual maturation in several farmed species reduces muscle growth and quality, and escapees could have a negative impact on wild populations. A possible solution to these problems is the production of sterile fish by ablation of the embryonic primordial germ cells (PGCs), a technique developed in zebrafish. Cell-specific regulation of mRNA stability is crucial for proper specification of the germ cell lineage and commonly involves microRNA (miRNA)-mediated degradation of targeted mRNAs in somatic cells. This study reports on the functional roles of conserved motifs in the 3′ untranslated region (UTR) of the miRNA target gene nanos3 identified in Atlantic cod, Atlantic salmon, and zebrafish. The 3′UTR of cod nanos3 was sufficient for targeting the expression of green fluorescent protein (GFP) to the presumptive PGCs in injected embryos of the three phylogenetically distant species. 3′UTR elements of importance for PGC-specific expression were further examined by fusing truncated 3′UTR variants of cod nanos3 to GFP followed by injections in zebrafish embryos. The expression patterns of the GFP constructs in PGCs and somatic cells suggested that the proximal U-rich region is responsible for the PGC-specific stabilization of the endogenous nanos3 mRNA. Morpholino-mediated downregulation of the RNA-binding protein Dead end (DnD), a PGC-specific inhibitor of miRNA action, abolished the fluorescence of the PGCs in cod and zebrafish embryos, suggesting a conserved DnD-dependent mechanism for germ cell survival and migration.     

人脑髓鞘碱性蛋白cDNA体外扩增、克隆和鉴定

采用聚合酶链反应(PCR)从人脑cDNA文库中扩增出600bp的髓鞘碱性蛋白(MBP)cDNA片段,与载体pGEM-3Zf(+)平端连接.重组质粒DNA转化宿主菌JM109,在含X-gal和IPTG的平板上直接筛选阳性克隆.限制性内切酶分析和成套引物扩增鉴定证明,该克隆含有7个外显子的21.5kD人脑MBP全长编码序列.     

Translational Activity of mRNA Coding for Cytoskeletal Brain Proteins in Newborn and Adult Mice: A Comparative Study

Translational activity of mRNA coding for cytoskeletal brain proteins was used to determine the relative abundance of the mRNA in the brains of newborn and adult mice. mRNA was translated in a cell-free system containing rabbit reticulocyte factors. The products of translation were analyzed by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and characterized by peptide map analysis. Comparison of the products of translation from newborn and from adult brain mRNA shows a 50% decrease in actin and tubulin from newborn to the adult stage. In contrast, the 70 kd neurofilament protein and glial fibrillary acidic protein show a twofold increase in the adult stage. The heat-shock protein HSP70 increases slightly (30%) whereas the brain isozyme of creatine kinase and the heat-shock protein HSP90 are three times as high in adult subjects as in newborns.     

Cloning and Identification of a Complete cDNA Coding for a Bactericidal and Antitumoral Acidic Phospholipase A2 from Bothrops jararacussu Venom

In order to better understand the function of acidic phospholipases A2 (PLA2s) from snake venoms, expressed sequence tags (ESTs) that code for acidic PLA2s were isolated from a cDNA library prepared from the poly(A)+ RNA of venomous glands of Bothrops jararacussu. The complete nucleotide sequence (366 bp), named BOJU-III, encodes the BthA-I-PLA2 precursor, which includes a signal peptide and the mature protein with 16 and 122 amino acid residues, respectively. Multiple comparison of both the nucleotide and respective deduced amino acid sequence with EST and protein sequences from databases revealed that the full-length cDNA identified (BOJU III--AY145836) is related to an acidic PLA2 sharing similarity, within the range 55-81%, with acidic phospholipases from snake venoms. Moreover, phylogenetic analysis of amino acid sequences of acidic PLA2s from several pit viper genera showed close evolutionary relationships among acidic PLA2s from Bothrops, Crotalus, and Trimeresurus. The molecular modeling showed structural similarity with other dimeric class II PLA2s from snake venoms. The native protein BthA-I-PLA2, a nontoxic acidic PLA2 directly isolated from Bothrops jararacussu snake venom, was purified and submitted to various bioassays. BthA-I-PLA2 displayed high catalytic activity and induced Ca2+-dependent liposome disruption. Edema induced by this PLA2 was inhibited by indomethacin and dexamethasone, thus suggesting involvement of the cyclo-oxygenase pathway. BthA-I-PLA2 showed anticoagulant activity upon human plasma and inhibited phospholipid-dependent platelet aggregation induced by collagen or ADP. In addition, it displayed bactericidal activity against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus and antitumoral effect upon breast adrenocarcinoma as well as upon human leukemia T and Erlich ascitic tumor. Following chemical modification with p-bromophenacyl bromide, total loss of the enzymatic and pharmacological activities were observed. This is the first report on the isolation and identification of a cDNA encoding a complete acidic PLA2 from Bothrops venom, exhibiting bactericidal and antitumoral effects.     

从原始生殖细胞分离克隆鸡胚胎生殖细胞的研究

从孵化 5 5天的鸡胚生殖腺中分离得到大量原始生殖细胞 (PGCs)集落 ,这些集落的细胞经多次克隆传代具有胚胎生殖细胞 (EG)的诸多特征 ,如有连续传代的能力 (传至第 9代 ) ,细胞集落有典型鸟巢状结构 ,PAS染色阳性 ,AKP染色阳性 ,在无饲养层无分化抑制因子LIF时可以自发分化成几种细胞类型 ,包括成纤维细胞、神经细胞、自律细胞等 ,悬浮培养时具有形成类胚体的能力。上述发现表明该细胞具EG细胞的诸多特性 ,为类EG细胞     

MSJ-1, a New Member of the DNAJ Family of Proteins, Is a Male Germ Cell-Specific Gene Product

A cDNA encoding for a new member of the DnaJ protein family has been isolated by screening a mouse spermatogenic cell expression library. The full-length cDNA obtained by extension of the original clone with RT-PCR has been characterized with respect to its DNA sequence organization and expression. The predicted open reading frame encodes a protein of 242 amino acid residues whose sequence is similar to that of bacterial DnaJ proteins in the amino-terminal portion since it contains the highly conserved J domain which is present in all DnaJ-like proteins and is considered to have a critical role in DnaJ protein–protein interactions. In contrast, the middle and carboxyl-terminal regions of the protein are not similar to any other DnaJ proteins, with the exception of the human neuronal HSJ-1 with which displays a 48% identity in a 175-amino-acid overlap. Analysis of RNAs from a wide spectrum of mouse somatic tissues, including the brain, and from ovary and testis reveals that the gene is specifically expressed in testis only. Developmental Northern blot analysis of testis RNA from mice of different ages andin situhybridization on juvenile and adult testis sections demonstrate that the mRNA is first transcribed in spermatids. A similar pattern of expression is exhibited also in rat testis. Based upon all these observations, we have named this novel mouse gene, MSJ-1, for mouse sperm cell-specific DNAJ first homolog.     

Detection of Tumor Cell-Specific mRNA and Protein in Exosome-Like Microvesicles from Blood and Saliva

The discovery of disease-specific biomarkers in oral fluids has revealed a new dimension in molecular diagnostics. Recent studies have reported the mechanistic involvement of tumor cells derived mediators, such as exosomes, in the development of saliva-based mRNA biomarkers. To further our understanding of the origins of disease-induced salivary biomarkers, we here evaluated the hypothesis that tumor-shed secretory lipidic vesicles called exosome-like microvesicles (ELMs) that serve as protective carriers of tissue-specific information, mRNAs, and proteins, throughout the vasculature and bodily fluids. RNA content was analyzed in cell free-saliva and ELM-enriched fractions of saliva. Our data confirmed that the majority of extracellular RNAs (exRNAs) in saliva were encapsulated within ELMs. Nude mice implanted with human lung cancer H460 cells expressing hCD63-GFP were used to follow the circulation of tumor cell specific protein and mRNA in the form of ELMs in vivo. We were able to identify human GAPDH mRNA in ELMs of blood and saliva of tumor bearing mice using nested RT-qPCR. ELMs positive for hCD63-GFP were detected in the saliva and blood of tumor bearing mice as well as using electric field-induced release and measurement (EFIRM). Altogether, our results demonstrate that ELMs carry tumor cell–specific mRNA and protein from blood to saliva in a xenografted mouse model of human lung cancer. These results therefore strengthen the link between distal tumor progression and the biomarker discovery of saliva through the ELMs.     

Cloning of cDNA for a juvenile hormone-regulated oothecin mRNA

Oothecins, the structural proteins of the egg case of the cockroach Periplaneta americana, have a high content of a few amino acids. This allowed cDNA cloned in the phage M13 to be directly screened for the presence of sequences derived from glycine-rich oothecins by selective DNA sequence analysis. One cDNA fragment codes for the major oothecin synthesised by the left colleterial gland. Part of its derived amino-acid sequence contains a repeated pentapeptide, Gly.Gly.Leu.Gly.Tyr, which is identical to the tandemly repeated consensus pentapeptide in silkmoth chorion proteins. Oothecin synthesis in the left colleterial gland is dependent on the presence of juvenile hormone. A probe from the cDNA segment coding for the major glycine-rich oothecin was used to measure the induction of the corresponding RNA during maturation of the colleterial gland after adult emergence.     

Germ Cell Transplantation and Testis Tissue Xenografting in Mice

Germ cell transplantation was developed by Dr. Ralph Brinster and colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania in 1994^1,2. These ground-breaking studies showed that microinjection of germ cells from fertile donor mice into the seminiferous tubules of infertile recipient mice results in donor-derived spermatogenesis and sperm production by the recipient animal². The use of donor males carrying the bacterial β-galactosidase gene allowed identification of donor-derived spermatogenesis and transmission of the donor haplotype to the offspring by recipient animals¹. Surprisingly, after transplantation into the lumen of the seminiferous tubules, transplanted germ cells were able to move from the luminal compartment to the basement membrane where spermatogonia are located³. It is generally accepted that only SSCs are able to colonize the niche and re-establish spermatogenesis in the recipient testis. Therefore, germ cell transplantation provides a functional approach to study the stem cell niche in the testis and to characterize putative spermatogonial stem cells. To date, germ cell transplantation is used to elucidate basic stem cell biology, to produce transgenic animals through genetic manipulation of germ cells prior to transplantation^4,5, to study Sertoli cell-germ cell interaction^6,7, SSC homing and colonization^3,8, as well as SSC self-renewal and differentiation^9,10.Germ cell transplantation is also feasible in large species¹¹. In these, the main applications are preservation of fertility, dissemination of elite genetics in animal populations, and generation of transgenic animals as the study of spermatogenesis and SSC biology with this technique is logistically more difficult and expensive than in rodents. Transplantation of germ cells from large species into the seminiferous tubules of mice results in colonization of donor cells and spermatogonial expansion, but not in their full differentiation presumably due to incompatibility of the recipient somatic cell compartment with the germ cells from phylogenetically distant species¹². An alternative approach is transplantation of germ cells from large species together with their surrounding somatic compartment. We first reported in 2002, that small fragments of testis tissue from immature males transplanted under the dorsal skin of immunodeficient mice are able to survive and undergo full development with the production of fertilization competent sperm¹³. Since then testis tissue xenografting has been shown to be successful in many species and emerged as a valuable alternative to study testis development and spermatogenesis of large animals in mice¹⁴.     

Chemical Synthesis and Cloning of a Gene Coding for Bacillus Subjilis Hbsu Protein

Abstract

A gene coding for Bacillus subtilis non-specifically DNA-binding HBsu protein has been chemically synthesized and cloned. The gene was designed to permit expression of the encoded protein in several ways.