花色改造基因工程

自1987年世界首例成功运用转基因技术改造矮牵牛花色以来,花色改造基因工程技术不断展现它在培育新花色品系上的无穷魅力。介绍了近年来运用基因工程技术成功改造花色的3种主要策略:(1)采用反义RNA及共抑制的方法来改变花颜色的深浅;(2)通过导入新基因产生新奇花色;(3)利用转座子构建特殊表达载体,随机激活花色合成的基因来产生嵌合花色。此外,还对转基因株花色不稳定原因进行了讨论。     

转座子标签及其在酿酒酵母基因功能研究中的应用

转座子标签(transposontagging)技术是研究功能基因的有效的工具之一。介绍了几种在酿酒酵母(Saccharomycescerevisiae)基因功能研究中应用的转座子标签:mTn3标签、miniMu噬菌体标签和Ty转座子标签,阐述了转座子标签的构建原理、应用策略和转座子标签插入位点的鉴定方法。     

转座子标签法克隆分离植物基因的研究进展

转座子标签法是克隆与分离植物基因的一项十分有效的方法。概述了转座子标签技术克隆与分离植物基因的基本原理与方法 ,介绍了可用于转座子标签技术的转座子 ,对于转座子标签系统以及在克隆与分离异源植物基因方面的主要成就进行了综述 ,并对将来的研究方向进行了讨论。     

高等植物转座子的超家族及其应用(综述)

转座子是广泛存在于高等植物基因组中的可移动的DNA分子。文中主要介绍高等植物的各种转座子超家族,包括LTR类反转录转座子、hAT、CACTA因子、Mutator和MULEs、Tc1/mariner、微小反向重复转座子MITEs等;另外还阐述了植物转座子标签体系和筛选方法,以及转座子在生物多样性与遗传连锁分析、植物基因组学研究与植物性状改良方面中的应用。     

转座子插入位点的鉴定方法

转座子是基因组中的可移动成分,已经成为分子生物学研究中的一种有用的研究工具。转座子插入位点识别的难易决定着转座子应用的潜能。本介绍曾应用过的几种转座子插入位点周围染色体序列的克隆测序方法及其优缺点。     

菊花花色遗传及花色嵌合体发现

对开黄花菊花和开白花菊花材料分别和开红花菊花材料进行了正反交,结果表明,花色遗传比较复杂, 在以红花材料作为母本组合中表现为比较明显的偏母性遗传特征,而以黄花和白花材料为母本则不表现偏母性特征;除此之外,菊花花色遗传还表现出不完全显性和镶嵌显性的特点。在黄花材料3501和红花材料3509所得到杂种中发现了2个分枝出现花色嵌合体的现象,该嵌合体特征是花一边为红色,而另一边则出现镶嵌显性的现象。染色体分析表明,不同颜色嵌合体花瓣的染色体数目都是36条,因此,实验所得到的花色嵌合体不是由染色体数目变化造成的,而有可能是转座子插入影响色素合成基因造成的。     

植物转座子

在简要介绍转座子的种类、结构和特性的基础上,综述了利用转座子诱变、基因标签和克隆方面的研究进展。     

真核生物转座子鉴定和分类计算方法

重复序列是真核生物基因组的重要组成成分,根据其序列特征及在基因组中的存在形式,可以进一步分为串联重复、片段重复和散在重复。其中,散在重复大多起源于转座子。根据转座介质的不同,转座子又可分为DNA和逆转录转座子。转座子的转座和扩增对基因的进化和基因组的稳定具有显著的影响;同时与其他类型的重复序列相比,转座子的结构和分类更为复杂多样,使得对转座子的鉴定和分类更为复杂和困难。鉴于此,文章简要概括了转座子的功能及分类,总结了真核生物转座子鉴定、分类和注释的3个步骤:(1)重复序列库的构建;(2)重复序列的校正和分类;(3)基因组注释。着重介绍了每一步骤所采用的不同计算方法,比较了不同方法的优缺点。只有把多种方法结合起来使用才能实现全基因组转座子的精确鉴定、分类和注释,这将为转座子的全基因组鉴定和分类提供借鉴意义。     

高通量测序技术在转座子研究中的应用

高通量测序技术极大地提高了测序效率,大幅度降低了测序成本,同时该技术具有特异性好、灵敏度高、精确性高等优势,目前已被广泛应用于遗传变异、转录组学和表观组学等研究。近年来,高通量测序技术也逐渐应用于转座子的研究,并取得了丰硕的成果。本文主要综述了高通量测序技术在转座子研究中的应用,包括转座子含量估算、靶点偏好性及分布、多态性及群体频率、稀有转座子的鉴定、转座子的水平转移以及转座子标签技术中的应用等,并简要介绍了目前研究中采用的主要测序策略和算法,及其存在的利弊和相应的解决方案。最后对高通量测序技术,尤其是第三代测序技术的发展趋势和它们在转座子未来的研究中的应用进行了展望,以期为相关的科研人员提供一个全面的了解和参考。     

DNA转座子在小鼠基因功能研究中的应用

近年来,转座子介导的插入突变在哺乳动物的分子遗传学研究中得到了广泛的应用。转座子作为一种简便高效的遗传学操作工具,在构建转基因动物模型、基因治疗、细胞水平和动物整体水平的基因功能研究等方面发挥了重要的作用。文章重点介绍DNA转座子的结构、功能及其应用于小鼠分子遗传学领域的最新研究进展。     

Role for dopamine in malonate-induced damage in vivo in striatum and in vitro in mesencephalic cultures

Defects in mitochondrial energy metabolism have been implicated in the pathology of several neurodegenerative disorders. In addition, the reactive metabolites generated from the metabolism and oxidation of the neurotransmitter dopamine (DA) are thought to contribute to the damage to neurons of the basal ganglia. We have previously demonstrated that infusions of the metabolic inhibitor malonate into the striata of mice or rats produce degeneration of DA nerve terminals. In the present studies, we demonstrate that an intrastriatal infusion of malonate induces a substantial increase in DA efflux in awake, behaving mice as measured by in vivo microdialysis. Furthermore, pretreatment of mice with tetrabenazine (TBZ) or the TBZ analogue Ro 4-1284 (Ro-4), compounds that reversibly inhibit the vesicular storage of DA, attenuates the malonate-induced DA efflux as well as the damage to DA nerve terminals. Consistent with these findings, the damage to both DA and GABA neurons in mesencephalic cultures by malonate exposure was attenuated by pretreatment with TBZ or Ro-4. Treatment with these compounds did not affect the formation of free radicals or the inhibition of oxidative phosphorylation resulting from malonate exposure alone. Our data suggest that DA plays an important role in the neurotoxicity produced by malonate. These findings provide direct evidence that inhibition of succinate dehydrogenase causes an increase in extracellular DA levels and indicate that bioenergetic defects may contribute to the pathogenesis of chronic neurodegenerative diseases through a mechanism involving DA.     

Scurvy in capybaras bred in captivity in Argentine

In order to determine if the absence of vitamin C in the diet of capybaras (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) causes scurvy, a group of seven young individuals were fed food pellets without ascorbic acid, while another group of eight individuals received the same food with 1 g of ascorbic acid per animal per day. Animals in the first group developed signs of scurvy-like gingivitis, breaking of the incisors and death of one animal. Clinical signs appeared between 25 and 104 days from the beginning of the trial in all individuals. Growth rates of individuals deprived of vitamin C was considerably less than those observed in the control group. Deficiency of ascorbic acid had a severe effect on reproduction of another population of captive capybaras. We found that the decrease in ascorbic acid content in the diet affected pregnancy, especially during the first stages. The results obtained suggest that it is necessary to supply a suitable quantity of vitamin C in the diet of this species in captivity.     

Changes in lactate dehydrogenase activity in chicken tissues in hyperthyreosis in ontogenesis

The lactate dehydrogenase activity in reactions of lactate oxidation and synthesis was studied in subfractions of the chicken brain, heart and liver at the embryonal, early postembryonal and adult stages of development after thyroxine administration. It has been shown that during embryogenesis thyroxine predominantly enhanced the rate of lactate oxidation in the mitochondrial tissues. A marked increase in the lactate synthesis was found in cytoplasm of the adult chicken tissues. Specificity of enzyme activity alterations was detected in the chicken brain during ontogenesis after thyroxine administration.     

SSTR5 ablation in islet results in alterations in glucose homeostasis in mice

Somatostatin (SST) peptide is a potent inhibitor of insulin secretion and its effect is mediated via somatostatin receptor 5 (SSTR5) in the endocrine pancreas. To investigate the consequences of gene ablation of SSTR5 in the mouse pancreas, we have generated a mouse model in which the SSTR5 gene was specifically knocked down in the pancreatic beta cells (betaSSTR5Kd) using the Cre-lox system. Immunohistochemistry analysis showed that SSTR5 gene expression was absent in beta cells at three months of age. At the time of gene ablation, betaSSTR5Kd mice demonstrated glucose intolerance with lack of insulin response and significantly reduced serum insulin levels. Insulin tolerance test demonstrated a significant increase of insulin clearance in vivo at the same age. In vitro studies demonstrated an absence of response to SST-28 stimulation in the betaSSTR5Kd mouse islet, which was associated with a significantly reduced SST expression level in betaSSTR5Kd mice pancreata. In addition, betaSSTR5Kd mice had significantly reduced serum glucose levels and increased serum insulin levels at 12 months of age. Glucose tolerance test at an older age also indicated a persistently higher insulin level in betaSSTR5Kd mice. Further studies of betaSSTR5Kd mice had revealed elevated serum C-peptide levels at both 3 and 12 months of age, suggesting that these mice are capable of producing and releasing insulin to the periphery. These results support the hypothesis that SSTR5 plays a pivotal role in the regulation of insulin secretion in the mouse pancreas.