Genetic Specificity of Stress-Induced Anemia in Rats

There is a genetic difference in rat hemoglobin (Hb) β-chain structure, with alternate alleles, A and B, at a single locus. This study was designed to find out whether marrow sensitivity due to γ exposure and experimentally induced anemia in age-matched adult rats is entirely strain specific or is a combination of both strain and Hb genotype. Eight strains of inbred and outbred rats comprising AA and BB types were examined. The data indicate that there is a relationship between marrow sensitivity and Hb genotypes in response to erythropoietic stress caused by three techniques.     

Quantitative Trait Loci for Metabolic Syndrome in the Hypertension Genetic Epidemiology Network Study

As part of the Hypertension Genetic Epidemiology Network study, genome scans were performed in two ethnicities on the categorical metabolic syndrome (MetS). Genome scans were performed also on the factor scores produced by factor analysis (quantitative MetS). Heritabilities were highest for the obesity‐insulin (INS) factor and lowest for blood pressure (BP) and central obesity. Seventeen unique putative quantitative trait loci (QTLs) yielded logarithm of the odds ratio (LOD) scores in excess of 1.7, 8 for blacks and 9 for whites. Important QTL findings in whites included an LOD score of 3.19 on chromosome 15q15 for the BP factor, 3.08 on chromosome 8p23 for the lipids‐INS factor, and 3.07 on chromosome 3p26 for the obesity‐INS factor. In blacks, after excluding type 2 diabetics, important QTLs were identified, including an LOD score of 2.77 on 13p12 for the obesity‐INS factor and 2.63 on chromosome 11q24 for the lipids‐INS factor. Categorical MetS had lower results than quantitative MetS. Notably, several loci identified overlap with those identified in other studies for a single or group of traits. The most promising candidate loci on 11q24 for lipids‐INS and 13p12 for obesity‐INS in blacks, 8p23 for lipids‐INS, 14q24 for obesity‐INS, and 15q15 for BP in whites warrant further investigation.     

A Genomewide Search for Quantitative-Trait Loci Underlying Asthma

A genomewide screen for quantitative-trait loci (QTLs) that underlie asthma was performed on 533 Chinese families with asthma, by the unified Haseman-Elston method. Nine asthma-related phenotypes were studied, including forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1), forced vital capacity (FVC), airway responsiveness as indicated by methacholine (MTCH)-challenge test, serum total immunoglobulin E (TIgE), serum-specific immunoglobulin E, eosinophil count in peripheral blood, and skin-prick tests with three different allergens (cockroach, Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus, and D. farinae). Our study showed significant linkage between airway responsiveness to MTCH and D2S1780 on chromosome 2 (P<.00002) and provided suggestive evidence (P<.002) for six additional possible QTLs: D10S1435 and D22S685, for FEV1; D16S412, for FVC; D19S433, for airway responsiveness to MTCH; D1S518, for TIgE; and D4S1647, for skin reactivity to cockroach. No significant or suggestive evidence of linkage for the other four traits was found.     

HMGB1 Promotes the Development of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension in Rats

Rationale

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is characterized by increased pulmonary vascular resistance leading to right ventricular failure and death. Recent studies have suggested that chronic inflammatory processes are involved in the pathogenesis of PAH. However, the molecular and cellular mechanisms driving inflammation have not been fully elucidated.

Objectives

To elucidate the roles of high mobility group box 1 protein (HMGB1), a ubiquitous DNA-binding protein with extracellular pro-inflammatory activity, in a rat model of PAH.

Methods

Male Sprague-Dawley rats were administered monocrotaline (MCT). Concentrations of HMGB1 in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and serum, and localization of HMGB1 in the lung were examined over time. The protective effects of anti-HMGB1 neutralizing antibody against MCT-induced PAH were tested.

Results

HMGB1 levels in BALF were elevated 1 week after MCT injection, and this elevation preceded increases of other pro-inflammatory cytokines, such as TNF-α, and the development of PAH. In contrast, serum HMGB1 levels were elevated 4 weeks after MCT injection, at which time the rats began to die. Immunohistochemical analyses indicated that HMGB1 was translocated to the extranuclear space in periarterial infiltrating cells, alveolar macrophages, and bronchial epithelial cells of MCT-injected rats. Anti-HMGB1 neutralizing antibody protected rats against MCT-induced lung inflammation, thickening of the pulmonary artery wall, and elevation of right ventricular systolic pressure, and significantly improved the survival of the MCT-induced PAH rats.

Conclusions

Our results identify extracellular HMGB1 as a promoting factor for MCT-induced PAH. The blockade of HMGB1 activity improved survival of MCT-induced PAH rats, and thus might be a promising therapy for the treatment of PAH.     

Genetic Polymorphism of Experimentally Produced Forms of Arterial Hypertension

Russian Journal of Genetics - The paper analyzes the distribution of polymorphic loci in rats of different hypertensive strains. When analyzing the transcribed loci of ISIAH rats and the...     

Phylogenomic Subsampling and the Search for Phylogenetically Reliable Loci

Phylogenomic subsampling is a procedure by which small sets of loci are selected from large genome-scale data sets and used for phylogenetic inference. This step is often motivated by either computational limitations associated with the use of complex inference methods or as a means of testing the robustness of phylogenetic results by discarding loci that are deemed potentially misleading. Although many alternative methods of phylogenomic subsampling have been proposed, little effort has gone into comparing their behavior across different data sets. Here, I calculate multiple gene properties for a range of phylogenomic data sets spanning animal, fungal, and plant clades, uncovering a remarkable predictability in their patterns of covariance. I also show how these patterns provide a means for ordering loci by both their rate of evolution and their relative phylogenetic usefulness. This method of retrieving phylogenetically useful loci is found to be among the top performing when compared with alternative subsampling protocols. Relatively common approaches such as minimizing potential sources of systematic bias or increasing the clock-likeness of the data are found to fare worse than selecting loci at random. Likewise, the general utility of rate-based subsampling is found to be limited: loci evolving at both low and high rates are among the least effective, and even those evolving at optimal rates can still widely differ in usefulness. This study shows that many common subsampling approaches introduce unintended effects in off-target gene properties and proposes an alternative multivariate method that simultaneously optimizes phylogenetic signal while controlling for known sources of bias.     

Aspirin Attenuates Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension in Rats by Reducing Plasma 5-Hydroxytryptamine Levels

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is characterized by increasing pulmonary pressure, right ventricular failure, and death. The typical pathological changes include medial hypertrophy, intimal fibrosis and in situ thrombosis. Serotonin (5-HT) and other factors contribute to the development of pathologic lesions. Aspirin (ASA), a platelet aggregation inhibitor, inhibits 5-HT release from platelets. The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy of ASA in preventing or attenuating PAH. Sprague–Dawley rats injected with monocrotaline (MCT) developed severe PAH within 31 days. One hundred forty rats were randomized to receive either vehicle or ASA (0.5, 1, 2, or 4 mg/kg/day). The pre-ASA group was treated with ASA (1 mg/kg/day) for 30 days before the MCT injection. Thirty-one days after the injection (day 61 for the pre-ASA group), pulmonary arterial pressure (PAP), right ventricular hypertrophy and pulmonary arteriole thickness were measured. Plasma 5-HT was measured by high-performance liquid chromatography. Aspirin suppressed PAH and increased the survival rate compared with the control group (84 vs. 60%, P < 0.05). Aspirin treatment also reduced right ventricular hypertrophy and pulmonary arteriole proliferation in ASA-treated PAH model. In addition, plasma 5-HT was decreased in our ASA-treated PAH model. The degree of 5-HT reduction was associated with systolic PAP, right ventricular hypertrophy and wall thickness of pulmonary arterioles in rats. These results showed that ASA treatment effectively attenuated MCT-induced pulmonary hypertension, right ventricular hypertrophy, and occlusion of the pulmonary arteries. The effects of ASA was associated with a reduction of 5-HT.     

Aldosterone Biosynthesis: Genetic Control and Contribution to the Development of Arterial Hypertension

Russian Journal of Genetics - Data on the contribution of gene polymorphism of proteins and enzymes of aldosterone metabolism to arterial hypertension are considered. On the basis of the analysis...     

他达那非治疗肺动脉高压进展

肺动脉高压是一类以小肺动脉血管重构为特征的恶性肺血管疾病,肺血管阻力进行性升高最终导致右心衰竭死亡。肺动脉高压的药物治疗主要针对前列环素、内皮素、一氧化氮三个靶点。他达那非(Tadalafil)是一种口服、长效、选择性5-型磷酸二酯酶抑制剂,增加环磷酸鸟苷(cGMP)浓度,通过一氧化氮途径起到治疗作用。PHIRST临床试验证实肺动脉高压患者每日一次口服他达那非40mg,能够提高6分钟步行距离,减少临床恶化。本文就他达那非治疗肺动脉高压研究新进展作一综述。     

A Genetic Map of Quantitative Trait Loci for Body Weight in the Mouse

The genetic basis of body weight in the mouse was investigated by measuring frequency changes of microsatellite marker alleles in lines divergently selected for body weight from a base population of a cross between two inbred strains. In several regions of the genome, sharp peaks of frequency change at linked markers were detected, which suggested the presence of single genes of moderate effect, although in several other regions, significant frequency changes occurred over large portions of chromosomes. A method based on maximum likelihood was used to infer effects and map positions of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) based on genotype frequencies at one or more marker loci. Eleven QTLs with effects in the range 0.17-0.28 phenotypic standard deviations were detected; but under an additive model, these did not fully account for the observed selection response. Tests for the presence of more than one QTL in regions where there were large changes of marker allele frequency were mostly inconclusive.     

Genetic Loci for Retinal Arteriolar Microcirculation

Narrow arterioles in the retina have been shown to predict hypertension as well as other vascular diseases, likely through an increase in the peripheral resistance of the microcirculatory flow. In this study, we performed a genome-wide association study in 18,722 unrelated individuals of European ancestry from the Cohorts for Heart and Aging Research in Genomic Epidemiology consortium and the Blue Mountain Eye Study, to identify genetic determinants associated with variations in retinal arteriolar caliber. Retinal vascular calibers were measured on digitized retinal photographs using a standardized protocol. One variant (rs2194025 on chromosome 5q14 near the myocyte enhancer factor 2C MEF2C gene) was associated with retinal arteriolar caliber in the meta-analysis of the discovery cohorts at genome-wide significance of P-value <5×10⁻⁸. This variant was replicated in an additional 3,939 individuals of European ancestry from the Australian Twins Study and Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (rs2194025, P-value = 2.11×10⁻¹² in combined meta-analysis of discovery and replication cohorts). In independent studies of modest sample sizes, no significant association was found between this variant and clinical outcomes including coronary artery disease, stroke, myocardial infarction or hypertension. In conclusion, we found one novel loci which underlie genetic variation in microvasculature which may be relevant to vascular disease. The relevance of these findings to clinical outcomes remains to be determined.     

肾上腺皮质激素在应激性高血压发病中的中枢机制

本工作观察到应激性高血压大鼠发病过程中伴随着出现血浆儿茶酚胺，皮质酮以及血糖，血脂的平行升高，肾上腺皮质激素微量注射至延髓头端腹外侧区可引起升压，加快心率及增强防御性升压反应，该作用可能是应激性高血压发病机制的重要环节之一，其机制可能通过对该区神经元的快速膜效应而实现，并与该区胆碱能系统活动的异常增强和钙通道的激活有关。     

胁迫诱导型启动子在植物抗逆基因工程中的应用

在抗逆基因工程中,大多采用的是组成型表达启动子,组成型表达启动子驱动外源抗逆基因表达虽然可以提高转基因植物的抗逆性,但会导致转基因植株生长迟缓或不育;而胁迫诱导型启动子则可提高转基因植物的抗逆性,不影响其正常生长发育,所以,胁迫诱导型启动子已逐渐用于植物抗逆基因工程。本文介绍不同胁迫诱导型启动子在植物抗逆基因工程中的应用。     

不同剂量野百合碱诱导大鼠肺动脉高压模型的实验研究

目的:肺动脉高压患者的预后非常差并且目前对肺动脉高压的治疗缺乏有效的方法.因此,对肺动脉高压的研究十分迫切,而建立稳定、操作简便、稳定的肺动脉高压模型是研究肺动脉高压的基础.本实验的目的就是采用不同剂量野百合碱(monocrotaline,MCT)诱导建立SD大鼠肺动脉高压模型,探讨肺动脉高压模型的制作方法及其稳定性.方法:清洁级SD雄性大鼠75只,随机分为C组、M1、M2、M3和M4组,每组各15只.其中M1～M4组大鼠分别一次性腹腔注射MCT 30、40、50和60 mg/kg,诱导制作肺动脉高压动物模型;C组为对照组,给予相同剂量溶剂腹腔注射.腹腔注射4周后比较各组大鼠的生存率、检测平均肺动脉压力(mPAP),肺动脉收缩压(PASP),右心肥大指数(RVHI),并取肺组织行苏木素-伊红染色,观察肺的病理改变,采用肺小动脉形态计量学指标综合判断肺动脉高压模型的稳定性.结果:C组无死亡,M1～M4组大鼠的生存率分别为87％,87％,67％,40％.M1～M4各组SD大鼠平均肺动脉压、肺动脉收缩压、右心肥大指数依次增大(P＜0.05),肺小动脉形态计量学指标检测显示肺血管中膜厚度百分比依次增大(P＜0.05),而M3与M4组各测量结果无明显差异.结论:腹腔注射50 mg/kg、60 mg/kg剂量野百合碱均可引起大鼠肺动脉压力升高和肺血管重构,均可诱导稳定的肺动脉高压模型,而50 mg/kg剂量有更高的生存率.所以50mg/kg剂量野百合碱腹腔注射是成功诱导大鼠肺动脉高压模型的合适剂量.     

营养不良性肺水肿大鼠肺泡液体清除机制的研究

目的探讨营养不良性肺水肿大鼠肺泡液体清除功能的变化及其机制。方法制备营养不良性肺水肿大鼠动物模型,分别于48h和120h测定大鼠肺泡液体清除率（AFC）、总肺水量（TLW）和肺血管外水量（EVLW）。将钠通道阻断剂氨氯毗眯、Na-K-ATP酶阻断剂畦巴因及β2受体激动剂特布他林分别灌注到正常及禁食120h大鼠的肺泡腔内,测定AFC的变化。结果大鼠禁食48hAFC（19．7±3．22％）与正常大鼠AFC（18．5±2．21％）比较没有明显变化;120h时AFC（9．50±2．19％）明显降低。氨氯吡咪、哇巴因明显降低营养不良性肺水肿大鼠AFC（P＜0．05）,特布他林对营养不良性肺水肿大鼠AFC的作用与对照组大鼠比较差异无显著性（P＞0．05）。结论营养不良性肺水肿与钠通道及Na-K-ATP酶及的活性被抑制,导致肺泡液体清除能力降低有关。     

Arterial Stiffening Provides Sufficient Explanation for Primary Hypertension

Hypertension is one of the most common age-related chronic disorders, and by predisposing individuals for heart failure, stroke, and kidney disease, it is a major source of morbidity and mortality. Its etiology remains enigmatic despite intense research efforts over many decades. By use of empirically well-constrained computer models describing the coupled function of the baroreceptor reflex and mechanics of the circulatory system, we demonstrate quantitatively that arterial stiffening seems sufficient to explain age-related emergence of hypertension. Specifically, the empirically observed chronic changes in pulse pressure with age and the impaired capacity of hypertensive individuals to regulate short-term changes in blood pressure arise as emergent properties of the integrated system. The results are consistent with available experimental data from chemical and surgical manipulation of the cardio-vascular system. In contrast to widely held opinions, the results suggest that primary hypertension can be attributed to a mechanogenic etiology without challenging current conceptions of renal and sympathetic nervous system function.     

聚焦治疗肺动脉高压的靶向药物

肺动脉高压(PAH)是一种以血管收缩和重构所致的肺血管阻力升高为病理生理学特征的临床综合征,其呈进行性发展,最终可 导致右心衰竭甚至死亡,预后差。随着对 PAH 病理生理学机制的深入研究,该病所涉不同信号通路的关键位点逐渐被认识,相应的靶向 药物也不断涌现,它们的应用明显改善了PAH患者的生活质量和预后。综述针对PAH 发生发展过程中所涉的3条主要通路:前列环素通路、 内皮素通路和一氧化氮-鸟苷酸环化酶-环磷酸鸟苷通路以及其他靶点(如酪氨酸激酶受体和 Rho 激酶等)而开发的靶向药物研究进展。     

两个基因座位的遗传平衡原理

由于许多教科书中关于连锁平衡的介绍,多是引用结论或是推导不太严谨,使学生在学习群体遗传学时对理解连锁平衡的原理感到困难。本文从遗传平衡的基本条件出发,通过较严谨的数学推导,介绍了两个基因座的连锁平衡条件、平衡过程等原理,供教师和学生在群体遗传学教学中参考。Abstract: Because linkage equilibrium is introduced by directly quoting the conclusions or imprecise mathematical reasoning in most of textbooks, many students are puzzled with the problem of linkage equilibrium when they learn population genetics. Based on the radical conditions of genetic equilibrium, the principle of linkage equilibrium condition and process, for two gene loci is introduced by precise mathematical reasoning. The article may provide reference to teachers and students in the teaching and learning of population genetics.