No evidence of association between the synonymous polymorphisms in XRCC1 and ERCC2 and breast cancer susceptibility among nonsmoking Chinese

DNA repair proficiency has also been proposed as a potential susceptibility factor for breast cancer. Synonymous polymorphism roles of the DNA repair genes in relation to breast cancer remain largely unknown. Nonsmokers are a good model in which to investigate genetic susceptibility to cancer because they are at low-dose carcinogen exposure. To validate genetic biomarkers of the disease, we explored the effects of the two synonymous polymorphisms [Pro206Pro (rs915927) and Arg156Arg (rs238406)] in the DNA repair genes XRCC1 and ERCC2 at chromosome 19q13.2-3 on breast cancer susceptibility among nonsmoking Chinese. The study recruited 243 patients with breast cancer and 234 cancer-free controls matched to the cases by age (±3years), gender, nonsmoking status and ethnicity. Genotypes were determined using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism. No associations were observed between both individual single nucleotide polymorphisms or haplotypes and breast cancer susceptibility. After stratification, no effects were detected for age-dependent effects or menopause status in relation to breast cancer occurrence. No evidence of gene-gene interaction in breast cancer susceptibility was revealed. The two loci were at weak linkage disequilibrium (D' value=0.244, P=0.07). The present data suggest that XRCC1 Pro206Pro and ERCC2 Arg156Arg do not substantially influence breast cancer susceptibility among nonsmoking Chinese.     

Fibroblast growth factor receptor 2 tyrosine kinase is required for prostatic morphogenesis and the acquisition of strict androgen dependency for adult tissue homeostasis

The fibroblast growth factor (FGF) family consists of 22 members and regulates a broad spectrum of biological activities by activating diverse isotypes of FGF receptor tyrosine kinases (FGFRs). Among the FGFs, FGF7 and FGF10 have been implicated in the regulation of prostate development and prostate tissue homeostasis by signaling through the FGFR2 isoform. Using conditional gene ablation with the Cre-LoxP system in mice, we demonstrate a tissue-specific requirement for FGFR2 in urogenital epithelial cells--the precursors of prostatic epithelial cells--for prostatic branching morphogenesis and prostatic growth. Most Fgfr2 conditional null (Fgfr2(cn)) embryos developed only two dorsal prostatic (dp) and two lateral prostatic (lp) lobes. This contrasts to wild-type prostate, which has two anterior prostatic (ap), two dp, two lp and two ventral prostatic (vp) lobes. Unlike wild-type prostates, which are composed of well developed epithelial ductal networks, the Fgfr2(cn) prostates, despite retaining a compartmented tissue structure, exhibited a primitive epithelial architecture. Moreover, although Fgfr2(cn) prostates continued to produce secretory proteins in an androgen-dependent manner, they responded poorly to androgen with respect to tissue homeostasis. The results demonstrate that FGFR2 is important for prostate organogenesis and for the prostate to develop into a strictly androgen-dependent organ with respect to tissue homeostasis but not to the secretory function, implying that androgens may regulate tissue homeostasis and tissue function differently. Therefore, Fgfr2(cn) prostates provide a useful animal model for scrutinizing molecular mechanisms by which androgens regulate prostate growth, homeostasis and function, and may yield clues as to how advanced-tumor prostate cells escape strict androgen regulations.     

MEK1-independent activation of MAPK and MEK1-dependent activation of p70 S6 kinase by stem cell factor (SCF) in ovarian cancer cells

We discovered a stem cell factor (SCF)-triggered, MEK1-independent, and PI3K-dependent MAPK activation pathway in the Kit-expressing ovarian cancer cell line HEY. When we knocked down MEK1 with RNA interference (RNAi) to study the function of MEK1 on the proliferation and survival of ovarian cancer cells, we found that impaired cell growth still occurred after MEK1 expression had been suppressed, although MAPK activation remained intact. This suggests that there is MEK1-independent activation of MAPK in the SCF-induced ovarian cancer cell growth process, and that MEK1 still plays a crucial role in maintaining the malignant properties of ovarian cancer cells even when it fails to activate MAPK as expected.     

Practical application of fluorescent quantitative PCR on Trisomy 21 in Chinese Han population

Objective To apply the fluorescent quantitative PCR method on the detection of Trisomy 21 by D21S11 locus and make a foundation for rapid prenatal diagnosis of Trisomy 21. Methods About 409 controls (39 amniotic fluid samples and 370 peripheral blood samples) and 35 patients (4 amniotic fluid samples and 31 peripheral blood samples) with Trisomy 21 were tested using fluorescent quantitative PCR by amplification of DNA fragment on D21S11 STR locus. The results were compared with conventional cytogenetic analysis to confirm the utility of this method. And the allele frequency distributions of D21S11 STR locus were analyzed. Results The 95% reference interval of fluorescent intensity ratios of peak heights of PCR products amplified from two alleles on D21S11 locus ranged from 0.84 to 1.42 (1.13 ± 0.29) in heterozygous controls. About 19 out of 35 patients showed a “diallelic“ pattern and their height ratio of fluorescent peaks of PCR products amplified from two alleles in patients with “diallelic” patterns were all outside of the 95% reference range of controls. The PCR products of DNA from 12 patients presented the third allele. No sample with the “monoallelic“ pattern was found. Four chimeras diagnosed by cytogenetic method could not be diagnosed by this method. There were 17 and 11 alleles found in controls and patients, respectively. About 343 out of 409 controls were heterozygous and the heterozygosity was 83.86%. We did not find any significant differences in the frequency distributions of alleles on D21S11 locus between controls and patients. But there were significant differences in the frequency distributions of alleles on D21S11 locus between controls and patients. But there were significant differences in the frequency distributions of alleles on D21S11 locus among different populations. Conclusions The fluorescent quantitative polymerase chain reaction method was rapid, accurate, and only small amount of starting material was needed, it could be applied in rapid prenatal diagnosis of Trisomy 21. D21S11 was a good marker with high heterozygosity for the screening of Trisomy 21. And the frequency distributions of alleles on D21S11 locus were significantly related to ethnic background. This work was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (30200107) as well as the Dominant Youth Fund from Wuhan University School of Medicine     

Identification and characterization of class 1 <Emphasis Type="Italic">DXS</Emphasis> gene encoding 1-deoxy-<Emphasis Type="SmallCaps">d</Emphasis>-xylulose-5-phosphate synthase,the first committed enzyme of the MEP pathway from soybean

1-Deoxy-d-xylulose-5-phosphate synthase (DXS) catalyses the first committed step of the 2C-methyl-d-erythritol-4-phosphate (MEP) pathway, which is an alternative isoprenoids biosynthetic route that has been recently discovered. In this work, a DXS1-like cDNA (GmDXS1) was isolated from soybean. The full-length cDNA of GmDXS1 encoded 708 amino acid residues with a predicted molecular mass of 76.4 KD. Sequence alignment showed that GmDXS1 had high homology to known DXS proteins from other plant species and contained the conserved N-terminal plastid transit peptide, the N-terminal thiamine binding domain and pyridine binding DRAG domain. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that GmDXS1 belonged to the plant DXS1 cluster. Southern blot analysis indicated that a single copy of GmDXS1 gene existed in soybean genome. Tissue expression analysis revealed that GmDXS1 expressed in all photosynthetic tissues except pod walls and roots. Green fluorescence analysis with the fusion protein 35S:GmDXS1:GFP suggested that GmDXS1 was localized in plastid. The relatively higher photosynthetic pigment content in transgenic tobacco leaves compared to the control implied that GmDXS1 catalyzed the first potential regulatory step in photosynthetic pigment biosynthesis via the MEP pathway.     

葡萄糖淀粉酶在高压静电纺PEI/PVA纳米纤维膜上的离子吸附固定

旨在应用离子结合法将葡萄糖淀粉酶固定在PEI/PVA纳米纤维膜上并对其理化性质进行研究。采用高压静电纺丝技术制备聚乙烯亚胺(PEI)/聚乙烯醇(PVA)纳米纤维膜,采用热交联方法使其具备水稳定性后,再利用离子吸附法固定葡萄糖淀粉酶。结果显示,利用红外光谱(FT-IR)表征固定有葡萄糖淀粉酶的PEI/PVA纳米纤维膜,表明葡萄糖淀粉酶可成功固定在静电纺丝形成的PEI/PVA纳米纤维膜表面。通过固定化葡萄糖淀粉酶的酶学性质鉴定,发现固定化葡萄糖淀粉酶的最适反应温度为65℃,比游离的葡萄糖淀粉酶提高了6℃;固定化葡萄糖淀粉酶的适用p H值范围明显变宽;热稳定性和存贮稳定性显著增强且可以重复使用。利用离子吸附法能简便地将蛋白质分子固定于纳米纤维膜上,具有一定的应用前景。     

枯草芽胞杆菌基因组混组方法

基因组混组作为一种育种方法,通过循环原生质体融合等手段,使得不同菌株来源的基因组能够得到充分重组,增加将正向突变整合到同一重组子中的机会。使用4株带有4种不同标记的枯草芽胞杆菌亲本为初始菌株,通过循环转化、循环转导或循环原生质体融合的手段进行基因组混组,统计后代中非亲本类型占整个群体的比例,以衡量基因组混组的效果。分别经过5轮循环原生质体融合、循环转化或者循环转导,结果显示,重组程度较高者在后代群体中的比例较低,带有4种标记的后代未出现,带有3种标记的后代最高分别为4.53×10?4、1.64×10?4、4.47×10?3,明显低于文献报道的天蓝色链霉菌中同样实验的结果:带4种和3种标记的后代分别占2.5%、17%。对比上述实验的结果和文献报道的天蓝色链霉菌、乳杆菌基因组混组的结果,并结合计算机模拟循环融合过程,分析后认为:要达到较充分的基因组混组,需要有能够实现微生物细胞间高频重组的操作技术作为基础,重组频率应该不低于10?3～10?2数量级。