福建冬青属新种

本文发表了冬青属一新种,即平和冬青Ilex pingheensis C.J.Tseng,sp.nov.。     

DNA vaccination against foot-and-mouth disease via electroporation: study of molecular approaches for enhancing VP1 antigenicity

BACKGROUND: Foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) affects susceptible livestock animals and causes disastrous economic impact. Immunization with plasmid expressing VP1 that contains the major antigenic epitope(s) of FMDV as cytoplasmic protein (cVP1) failed to elicit full protection against FMDV challenge. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, mice were immunized via electroporation with four cDNA expression vectors that were constructed to express VP1 of FMDV, as cytoplasmic (cVP1), secreted (sVP1), membrane-anchored (mVP1) or capsid precursor protein (P1), respectively, to evaluate whether expression of VP1 in specific subcellular compartment(s) would result in better immune responses. RESULTS: Electroporation enhanced immune responses to vectors expressing cVP1 or P1 and expedited the immune responses to vectors expressing sVP1 or mVP1. Immunization of mice via electroporation with mVP1 cDNA was better than sVP1 or cVP1 cDNA in eliciting neutralizing antibodies and viral clearance protection. Vaccination with P1 cDNA, nonetheless, yielded the best immune responses and protection among all four cDNAs that we tested. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that the antigenicity of a VP1 DNA vaccine can be significantly enhanced by altering the cellular localization of the VP1 antigen. Electroporation is a useful tool for enhancing the immune responses of vectors expressing VP1 or P1. By mimicking FMDV more closely than that of transgenic VP1 and eliciting immune responses favorably toward Th2, transgenic P1 may induce more neutralizing antibodies and better protection against FMDV challenge.     

Induction of Fas and Fas-ligand expression in plasmacytoma cells by a cytotoxic factor secreted by murine macrophages

Induction of tumoricidal activity is one of the major functions of activated macrophages. Our previous study demonstrated that P388D1 murine macrophage-like cells secreted a plasmacytoma cytotoxic factor (PCF) that selectively killed certain tumor cell lines including MOPC-315 plasmacytoma in vitro. Our subsequent studies demonstrated that PCF killed MOPC-315 cells by induction of apoptosis. In this report, the involvement of Fas and Fas ligand (FasL) in PCF-induced apoptosis was investigated. Results suggest that expression of Fas mRNA time-dependently increased in PCF-treated cells and reached an optimal level after 36 h of treatment. The augmented effect of PCF on Fas mRNA expression was significantly reduced by the addition of CB7.C2, an anti-PCF monoclonal antibody. The expression of FasL mRNA was also induced by PCF and reached an optimal level at 24 h, but sharply decreased after 36 h of treatment. Caspase-3 is one of the proteolytic enzymes that can be activated by the Fas-FasL interaction. In our studies, the enzymatic activity of caspase-3 was significantly induced by PCF after 6 h of treatment and reached an optimal level at 12 h. The augmented effect of PCF on caspase activity was significantly reduced by the addition of CB7.C2 and the caspase-3-specific inhibitor, DEVD-fmk. Therefore, PCF-treated plasmacytoma cells might undergo apoptosis via interaction between Fas and FasL.     

Modeling of exposure to mercury in different environmental media over a 30-year period: A case study of Shimen reservoir,northern Taiwan

Abstract

Mercury is affected by the movement mechanisms in the environmental media and is normally present in dry and wet depositions and surface and water vapor, among other things. The rapid growth of mercury-related industries in the past two decades reflects the result of its increased use in water sources such as in the Shimen reservoir, northern Taiwan. Consequently, residents living nearby are exposed to mercury almost every day. In light of the effects of continued exposure to the deleterious properties of mercury, this study provides modeling results of the atmosphere, soil, and freshwater over a 30-year period (2016–2046). The associated influences in the media and mercury contamination during this period will be determined via sensitivity analysis. Finally, the results of this study facilitate the assessment of potential health hazards associated with mercury inhalation and the ingestion of MeHg-contaminated fish. The mean daily dose (mg/kg) and hazard quotient (HQ) in the children and adult were 3.52E-13 (HQ = 4.10E-09) and 1.19E-13 (HQ = 1.39E-09) for Hg inhalation and 6.38E-05 (HQ = 6.38E-01) and 4.47E-05 (HQ = 4.47E-01) for ingestion of MeHg+-contaminated fish.     

Do innate killing mechanisms activated by inflammasomes have a role in treating melanoma?

Melanoma, as for many other cancers, undergoes a selection process during progression that limits many innate and adaptive tumor control mechanisms. Immunotherapy with immune checkpoint blockade overcomes one of the escape mechanisms but if the tumor is not eliminated other escape mechanisms evolve that require new approaches for tumor control. Some of the innate mechanisms that have evolved against infections with microorganisms and viruses are proving to be active against cancer cells but require better understanding of how they are activated and what inhibitory mechanisms may need to be targeted. This is particularly so for inflammasomes which have evolved against many different organisms and which recruit a number of cytotoxic mechanisms that remain poorly understood. Equally important is understanding of where these mechanisms will fit into existing treatment strategies and whether existing strategies already involve the innate killing mechanisms.