Comparative Analysis of Methane-Oxidizing Archaea and Sulfate-Reducing Bacteria in Anoxic Marine Sediments

The oxidation of methane in anoxic marine sediments is thought to be mediated by a consortium of methane-consuming archaea and sulfate-reducing bacteria. In this study, we compared results of rRNA gene (rDNA) surveys and lipid analyses of archaea and bacteria associated with methane seep sediments from several different sites on the Californian continental margin. Two distinct archaeal lineages (ANME-1 and ANME-2), peripherally related to the order Methanosarcinales, were consistently associated with methane seep marine sediments. The same sediments contained abundant ¹³C-depleted archaeal lipids, indicating that one or both of these archaeal groups are members of anaerobic methane-oxidizing consortia. ¹³C-depleted lipids and the signature 16S rDNAs for these archaeal groups were absent in nearby control sediments. Concurrent surveys of bacterial rDNAs revealed a predominance of δ-proteobacteria, in particular, close relatives of Desulfosarcina variabilis. Biomarker analyses of the same sediments showed bacterial fatty acids with strong ¹³C depletion that are likely products of these sulfate-reducing bacteria. Consistent with these observations, whole-cell fluorescent in situ hybridization revealed aggregations of ANME-2 archaea and sulfate-reducing Desulfosarcina and Desulfococcus species. Additionally, the presence of abundant ¹³C-depleted ether lipids, presumed to be of bacterial origin but unrelated to ether lipids of members of the order Desulfosarcinales, suggests the participation of additional bacterial groups in the methane-oxidizing process. Although the Desulfosarcinales and ANME-2 consortia appear to participate in the anaerobic oxidation of methane in marine sediments, our data suggest that other bacteria and archaea are also involved in methane oxidation in these environments.     

Mobile genetic elements mediate the mixotrophic evolution of novel Alicyclobacillus species for acid mine drainage adaptation

Alicyclobacillus species inhabit diverse environments and have adapted to broad ranges of pH and temperature. However, their adaptive evolutions remain elusive, especially regarding the role of mobile genetic elements (MGEs). Here, we characterized the distributions and functions of MGEs in Alicyclobacillus species across five environments, including acid mine drainage (AMD), beverages, hot springs, sediments, and soils. Nine Alicyclobacillus strains were isolated from AMD and possessed larger genome sizes and more genes than those from other environments. Four AMD strains evolved to be mixotrophic and fell into distinctive clusters in phylogenetic tree. Four types of MGEs including genomic island (GI), insertion sequence (IS), prophage, and integrative and conjugative element (ICE) were widely distributed in Alicyclobacillus species. Further, AMD strains did not possess CRISPR-Cas systems, but had more GI, IS, and ICE, as well as more MGE-associated genes involved in the oxidation of iron and sulfide and the resistance of heavy metal and low temperature. These findings highlight the differences in phenotypes and genotypes between strains isolated from AMD and other environments and the important role of MGEs in rapid environment niche expansions.     

Culture-dependent and culture-independent characterization of microbial assemblages associated with high-temperature petroleum reservoirs

Recent investigations of oil reservoirs in a variety of locales have indicated that these habitats may harbor active thermophilic prokaryotic assemblages. In this study, we used both molecular and culture-based methods to characterize prokaryotic consortia associated with high-temperature, sulfur-rich oil reservoirs in California. Enrichment cultures designed for anaerobic thermophiles, both autotrophic and heterotrophic, were successful at temperatures ranging from 60 to 90 degrees C. Heterotrophic enrichments from all sites yielded sheathed rods (Thermotogales), pleomorphic rods resembling Thermoanaerobacter, and Thermococcus-like isolates. The predominant autotrophic microorganisms recovered from inorganic enrichments using H(2), acetate, and CO(2) as energy and carbon sources were methanogens, including isolates closely related to Methanobacterium, Methanococcus, and Methanoculleus species. Two 16S rRNA gene (rDNA) libraries were generated from total community DNA collected from production wellheads, using either archaeal or universal oligonucleotide primer sets. Sequence analysis of the universal library indicated that a large percentage of clones were highly similar to known bacterial and archaeal isolates recovered from similar habitats. Represented genera in rDNA clone libraries included Thermoanaerobacter, Thermococcus, Desulfothiovibrio, Aminobacterium, Acidaminococcus, Pseudomonas, Halomonas, Acinetobacter, Sphingomonas, Methylobacterium, and Desulfomicrobium. The archaeal library was dominated by methanogen-like rDNAs, with a lower percentage of clones belonging to the Thermococcales. Our results strongly support the hypothesis that sulfur-utilizing and methane-producing thermophilic microorganisms have a widespread distribution in oil reservoirs and the potential to actively participate in the biogeochemical transformation of carbon, hydrogen, and sulfur in situ.     

番茄、玉米套种膜下滴灌条件下农田地温变化特征

土壤水热状况是影响作物生长的重要因素,以膜下滴灌及套种双重效应为背景,针对番茄、玉米套种农田设置了高(番茄:180 mm,玉米:270 mm)、中(番茄:132 mm,玉米:202.5 mm)、低(番茄:84 mm,135 mm)3种不同的灌溉定额,采用定位监测法测定番茄带膜间裸地(A)、覆膜番茄行间(B)、番茄带与玉米带膜间裸地(C)、覆膜玉米行间(D)共4个位置的不同深度主根区含水率和地温动态变化,研究了地膜覆盖、土壤水分以及作物遮阴对套种农田不同行间,不同深度土壤温度的影响特征。结果表明:全生育期内,4个水平位置的地温大小顺序与土壤深度有关,10 cm以上的地温大小顺序为CDAB,10 cm以下的地温大小顺序为DBAC;从土壤温度场的分布情况来看,地温的最大变幅出现在C处,为8.10℃;最小变幅出现在B处,为4.71℃;含水率与地温的关系表现为:5 cm以上地温与含水率呈反比关系,20 cm以下地温与含水率呈正比关系。可见,套种覆膜滴灌农田合适的土壤水分状况将有利于根区良好水热的形成,从而更有利于作物的生长。研究结果将对西北地区滴灌农田管理有一定的参考价值。     

干旱胁迫下不同抗旱水平陆地棉的叶片蛋白质组学比较研究

为了探讨陆地棉品种抗旱机理,以陆地棉抗旱品种‘中H177’和不抗旱品种‘中S9612’为材料,运用双向电泳结合质谱技术,分析干旱胁迫下不同陆地棉三叶期叶片蛋白质组分差异变化。结果表明:干旱胁迫下,不同陆地棉叶片蛋白表达差异较大;‘中H177’出现30个差异表达蛋白质点,‘中S9612’出现47个差异表达蛋白质点,只在‘中H177’表达差异的蛋白点11个,只在‘中S9612’表达差异的蛋白点28个,差异表达一致蛋白点8个,表达不一致蛋白点11个。质谱共鉴定出43个差异表达蛋白;功能分类分析表明,干旱胁迫蛋白参与光合作用、物质与能量代谢、抗逆相关蛋白、物质运输和活性氧清除;Rubisco活化酶和能量代谢相关蛋白ATP合成酶类表达差异最大。研究结果可以初步为陆地棉抗旱机理的探讨提供一定的理论基础。     

Toxicological Evaluation of Lactase Derived from Recombinant Pichia pastoris

A recombinant lactase was expressed in Pichia pastoris, resulting in enzymatic activity of 3600 U/mL in a 5 L fermenter. The lactase product was subjected to a series of toxicological tests to determine its safety for use as an enzyme preparation in the dairy industry. This recombinant lactase had the highest activity of all recombinant strains reported thus far. Acute oral toxicity, mutagenicity, genotoxic, and subchronic toxicity tests performed in rats and mice showed no death in any groups. The lethal dose 50% (LD₅₀) based on the acute oral toxicity study is greater than 30 mL/kg body weight, which is in accordance with the 1500 L milk consumption of a 50 kg human daily. The lactase showed no mutagenic activity in the Ames test or a mouse sperm abnormality test at levels of up to 5 mg/plate and 1250 mg/kg body weight, respectively. It also showed no genetic toxicology in a bone marrow cell micronucleus test at levels of up to 1250 mg/kg body weight. A 90-day subchronic repeated toxicity study via the diet with lactase levels up to 1646 mg/kg (1000-fold greater than the mean human exposure) did not show any treatment-related significant toxicological effects on body weight, food consumption, organ weights, hematological and clinical chemistry, or histopathology compared to the control groups. This toxicological evaluation system is comprehensive and can be used in the safety evaluation of other enzyme preparations. The lactase showed no acute, mutagenic, genetic, or subchronic toxicity under our evaluation system.     

Identification of Novel AR-Targeted MicroRNAs Mediating Androgen Signalling through Critical Pathways to Regulate Cell Viability in Prostate Cancer

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) have been recognized as significantly involved in prostate cancer (PCa). Since androgen receptor (AR) plays a central role in PCa carcinogenesis and progression, it is imperative to systematically elucidate the causal association between AR and miRNAs, focusing on the molecular mechanisms by which miRNAs mediate AR signalling. In this study, we performed a series of time-course microarrays to observe the dynamic genome-wide expressions of mRNAs and miRNAs in parallel in hormone-sensitive prostate cancer LNCaP cells stimulated by androgen. Accordingly, we introduced Response Score to identify AR target miRNAs, as well as Modulation Score to identify miRNA target mRNAs. Based on theoretical identification and experimental validation, novel mechanisms addressing cell viability in PCa were unravelled for 3 miRNAs newly recognized as AR targets. (1) miR-19a is directly up-regulated by AR, and represses SUZ12, RAB13, SC4MOL, PSAP and ABCA1, respectively. (2) miR-27a is directly up-regulated by AR, and represses ABCA1 and PDS5B. (3) miR-133b is directly up-regulated by AR, and represses CDC2L5, PTPRK, RB1CC1, and CPNE3, respectively. Moreover, we found miR-133b is essential to PCa cell survival. Our study gives certain clues on miRNAs mediated AR signalling to cell viability by influencing critical pathways, especially by breaking through androgen’s growth restriction effect on normal prostate tissue.     

鲫鱼的人工和天然雌核发育

用照射处理的草鱼或华南鲤的精液授精的鲫鱼卵为单倍体雌核发育;所有单倍体胚胎都是畸形,并在孵化前死亡。如果用照射精液授精的鲫鱼卵在18—19℃的水中放置2分钟,然后在0—3℃的冰水中放置20分钟,再放回室温水中孵化,可以从每百颗受精卵中得到4.5—11.9(平均8.34)尾成活的二倍体仔鱼。根据38尾银鲫(其中33尾捕自黑龙江省方正县双凤水库)的细胞学和胚胎学检查,证实它们是雌核发育繁殖的。       

Two-stage selection of distributed data centers based on deep reinforcement learning

Cluster Computing - Cloud computing is a computing service provided on demand through the Internet, which can provide sufficient computing resources for applications such as big data and the...