丹参内生拮抗细菌DS-R5对丹参根际和根表土壤细菌群落结构的影响CSCD

目的 探究生防细菌DS-R5施入丹参植株后根际和根表土壤细菌群落组成及多样性变化。方法 向丹参植株根部施入生防细菌DS-R5,以未施用细菌为对照组,分别采集根际和根表土壤样品提取总DNA,扩增样品总DNA的V3-V4区,采用Illumina MiSeq测序平台对PCR扩增产物进行双端测序分析,利用生物信息学分析解析丹参植株根际土壤和根表土壤细菌群落结构组成及多样性。结果 菌株DS-R5处理后增加了根际土壤细菌群落的多样性和丰度,降低了根表土壤细菌群落的多样性和丰度;高通量测序得到的根际和根表土壤的有效序列数量和OTU数量相比对照组均有所下降,根际土壤处理样品中微生物种类最丰富,根表土壤处理样品中微生物种类最少,根际土壤处理样品与根际土壤对照物种种类更接近;在门水平上,根际土壤处理样品相比对照变形菌门丰度下降,酸杆菌门丰度升高,根表土壤处理样品相比对照变形菌门和酸杆菌门丰度均升高,放线菌门丰度降低;在属水平上,根际土壤处理样品中鞘氨醇单胞菌属、芽胞杆菌属、慢生根瘤菌属相比根际土壤对照占比均有升高,根表土壤处理样品相比对照黄杆菌属和伯克菌属丰度下降,而土壤中的优势菌属根瘤菌属和芽胞杆菌属丰度升高。结论 丹参植株施用生防细菌DS-R5后,改变了根际土壤和根表土壤中微生物群落结构和多样性。     

长春新碱诱导建立人结肠癌多药耐受性小鼠模型及MDR1和MRP1基因表达

目的建立人结肠癌多药耐受性动物模型并初步探索其耐药机制。方法结合体内外诱导方法建立人结肠癌多药耐受性动物模型,利用VCR和CTX的肿瘤抑制实验评价其MDR特性;利用real-time PCR和West-ern blotting等方法分析其P-gp/MDR1和MRP1基因和蛋白的表达。结果肿瘤抑制实验结果显示,MDR和敏感型结肠癌模型的肿瘤生长速度差异不显著,MDR结肠癌动物模型对于VCR和CTX的耐药性均有较大程度的提高;表达分析结果显示,人结肠癌MDR动物模型的P-gp/MDR1表达水平有较大提高,而MRP1表达没有显著变化。结论人结肠癌多药耐受性动物模型具有较好的多药耐受性,其多药耐受性表型主要是由于P-gp/MDR1过量表达所导致。     

黑线毛足鼠年龄和种群密度与肝毛细线虫感染率的关系

2004—2005年,在内蒙古锡林郭勒盟阿巴嘎旗和东乌珠穆沁旗研究了肝毛细线虫病对黑线毛足鼠种群感染情况,分析肝毛细线虫对黑线毛足鼠的感染率与鼠体年龄以及种群密度的关系。结果表明,黑线毛足鼠达到一定的年龄(或体质量)才可感染肝毛细线虫病,最低感染个体体质量为14.6g。肝毛细线虫对低龄鼠的感染检出率比较低,而对成体鼠感染检出率较高,其感染率和感染度均随着个体年龄的增长而增高(感染率与年龄:r=0.97,P<0.05;感染度与年龄:r=0.93,P<0.05)。此外,黑线毛足鼠体质量与肝毛细线虫感染率和感染度也存在显著的相关关系(感染率与体质量:r=0.99,P<0.05;感染度与体质量:r=0.95,P<0.05),黑线毛足鼠的种群密度则对肝毛细线虫的感染率(r=0.27,P>0.05)和平均感染度(r=0.41,P>0.05)没有明显的影响,其感染率可能与地区不同有关。     

Effects of an exotic invasive macrophyte (tropical signalgrass) on native plant community composition,species richness and functional diversity

1. The issue of freshwater species being threatened by invasion has become central in conservation biology because inland waters exhibit the highest species richness per unit area, but apparently have the highest extinctions rates on the planet. 2. In this article, we evaluated the effects of an exotic, invasive aquatic grass (Urochloa subquadripara– tropical signalgrass) on the diversity and assemblage composition of native macrophytes in four Neotropical water bodies (two reservoirs and two lakes). Species cover was assessed in quadrats, and plant biomass was measured in further quadrats, located in sites where tropical signalgrass dominated (D quadrats) and sites where it was not dominant or entirely absent (ND quadrats). The effects of tropical signalgrass on macrophyte species richness, Shannon diversity and number of macrophyte life forms (a surrogate of functional richness) were assessed through regressions, and composition was assessed with a DCA. The effects of tropical signalgrass biomass on the likelihood of occurrence of specific macrophyte life forms were assessed through logistic regression. 3. Tropical signalgrass had a negative effect on macrophyte richness and Shannon and functional diversity, and also influenced assemblage composition. Emergent, rooted with floating stems and rooted submersed species were negatively affected by tropical signalgrass, while the occurrence of free‐floating species was positively affected. 4. Our results suggest that competition with emergent species and reduction of underwater radiation, which reduces the number of submersed species, counteract facilitation of free‐floating species, contributing to a decrease in plant diversity. In addition, homogenisation of plant assemblages shows that tropical signalgrass reduces the beta diversity in the macrophyte community. 5. Although our results were obtained at fine spatial scales, they are cause for concern because macrophytes are an important part of freshwater diversity.     

Molecular evolution of cytochrome c oxidase: rate variation among subunit VIa isoforms

Cytochrome c oxidase (COX) consists of 13 subunits, 3 encoded in the mitochondrial genome and 10 in the nucleus. Little is known of the role of the nuclear-encoded subunits, some of which exhibit tissue-specific isoforms. Subunit VIa is unique in having tissue-specific isoforms in all mammalian species examined. We examined relative evolutionary rates for the COX6A heart (H) and liver (L) isoform genes along the length of the molecule, specifically in relation to the tissue-specific function(s) of the two isoforms. Nonsynonymous (amino acid replacement) substitutions in the COX6AH gene occurred more frequently than in the ubiquitously expressed COX6AL gene. Maximum-parsimony analysis and sequence divergences from reconstructed ancestral sequences revealed that after the ancestral COX6A gene duplicated to yield the genes for the H and L isoforms, the sequences encoding the mitochondrial matrix region of the COX VIa protein experienced an elevated rate of nonsynonymous substitutions relative to synonymous substitutions. This is expected for relaxed selective constraints after gene duplication followed by purifying selection to preserve the replacements with tissue-specific functions.      

A modular treatment of molecular traffic through the active site of cholinesterase

We present a model for the molecular traffic of ligands, substrates, and products through the active site of cholinesterases (ChEs). First, we describe a common treatment of the diffusion to a buried active site of cationic and neutral species. We then explain the specificity of ChEs for cationic ligands and substrates by introducing two additional components to this common treatment. The first module is a surface trap for cationic species at the entrance to the active-site gorge that operates through local, short-range electrostatic interactions and is independent of ionic strength. The second module is an ionic-strength-dependent steering mechanism generated by long-range electrostatic interactions arising from the overall distribution of charges in ChEs. Our calculations show that diffusion of charged ligands relative to neutral isosteric analogs is enhanced approximately 10-fold by the surface trap, while electrostatic steering contributes only a 1.5- to 2-fold rate enhancement at physiological salt concentration. We model clearance of cationic products from the active-site gorge as analogous to the escape of a particle from a one-dimensional well in the presence of a linear electrostatic potential. We evaluate the potential inside the gorge and provide evidence that while contributing to the steering of cationic species toward the active site, it does not appreciably retard their clearance. This optimal fine-tuning of global and local electrostatic interactions endows ChEs with maximum catalytic efficiency and specificity for a positively charged substrate, while at the same time not hindering clearance of the positively charged products.     

Diet-induced obesity in rats leads to a decrease in sperm motility

Background  

Obesity is rapidly becoming a worldwide epidemic that affects children and adults. Some studies have shown a relationship between obesity and infertility, but until now it remains controversial. Thus, the aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of high-fat diet-induced obesity on male reproductive parameters.     

An NAD+ Phosphorylase Toxin Triggers Mycobacterium tuberculosis Cell Death

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