A Study of the Structure of Trypsin-Like Serine Proteinases. 2. A Study of Tryptophan Fluorescence in Variants of Miniplasminogen with an Altered Primary Structure

Biophysics - Abstract—Variants of miniplasminogen with an altered primary structure have been designed to study previously described changes in tryptophan fluorescence during plasminogen...     

Calorimetric study of the order-disorder conformational transition in succinoglycan

Thermally induced order-disorder conformational transition in succinoglycan was studied using the method of high-sensitivity differential scanning microcalorimetry within the range of polysaccharide concentrations from 0.1 to 3.5 mg mL⁻¹ at NaCl concentrations 0, 0.01, and 0.1M. The positions and shapes of the excess heat capacity curves depended substantially on both the NaCl and polysaccharide concentrations. At low polysaccharide concentrations in salt-free solution the experimental curves were closely approximated by the two-state model suggesting the transition mechanism to be of the single helix-coil type. With increasing polysaccharide and/or NaCl concentration, the experimental curves changed significantly in symmetry, which indicated a changing transition mechanism. At high polysaccharide concentrations or in the presence of the salt, the order-disorder transition of succinoglycan was shown to include two stages: the cooperative dissociation of the helix dimer and subsequent two-state melting of the helix monomer. The dependence of thermodynamic parameters for the dissociation and melting of helix structures in succinoglycan on NaCl and polysaccharide concentrations was obtained by fitting the experimental excess heat capacity curves. The cooperativity parameter σ for the single helix-coil transition as well as the average length of the helix segment of succinoglycan were calculated. Some features of succinoglycan ordering in solution are discussed. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Acyl-CoA synthetase long-chain 3-mediated fatty acid oxidation is required for TGFβ1-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition and metastasis of colorectal carcinoma

Cancer cells frequently undergo metabolic reprogramming to support tumorigenicity and malignancy, which is recognized as a hallmark of cancer. In addition to glycolysis and glutaminolysis, alterations in fatty acid (FA) metabolism have received increasing concerns in the past few years. Recently, accumulating evidence has shown that fatty acid β-oxidation (FAO) is abnormally activated in various tumors, which is associated with the machinery of proliferation, stemness, metastasis, and radiochemotherapeutic resistance of cancer cells. Acyl-CoA synthetases 3 (ACSL3) belongs to a family of enzymes responsible for converting free long-chain FAs into fatty acyl-CoA esters, which act as substrates both for lipid synthesis and FAO.Here, we demonstrate that transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGFβ1) induces the up-regulation of ACSL3 through sterol regulatory element-binding protein 1 (SREBP1) signaling to promote energy metabolic reprogramming in colorectal carcinoma (CRC) cells. ACSL3 mediates the epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) and metastasis of CRC cells by activation of FAO pathway to produce ATP and reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH), which sustain redox homeostasis and fuel cancer cells for invasion and distal metastasis. Thus, targeting ACSL3 and FAO metabolic pathways might be exploited for therapeutic gain for CRC and other FAs- addicted cancers.     

中国牡蛎蚧属一新种记述(半翅目:盾蚧科)

记述中国牡蛎蚧属1新种——浙江牡蛎蚧Lepidosapheszhejiangensis,sp.nov.。模式标本存于中国科学院上海生命科学院植物生理生态研究所昆虫博物馆。     

eIF3k inhibits NF-κB signaling by targeting MyD88 for ATG5-mediated autophagic degradation in teleost fish

Optimal activation of NF-κB signaling is crucial for the initiation of inflammatory responses and eliminating invading bacteria. Bacteria have likewise evolved the ability to evade immunity; however, mechanisms by which bacteria dysregulate host NF-κB signaling are unclear. In this study, we identify eukaryotic translation initiation factor eIF3k, a nonessential member of the eIF3 translation initiation complex, as a suppressor of the NF-κB pathway. Mechanistically, we show that eIF3k expression induced by Vibrio harveyi enhances E3 ligase Nrdp1-mediated K27-linked ubiquitination of MyD88, an upstream regulator of NF-κB pathway activation. Furthermore, we show that eIF3k acts as a bridge linking ubiquitin-tagged MyD88 and ATG5, an important mediator of autophagy. We demonstrate that the MyD88-eIF3k-ATG5 complex is transported to the autophagosome for degradation, and that innate immune signaling is subsequently terminated and does not attack invading V. harveyi. Therefore, our study identifies eIF3k as a specific inhibitor of the MyD88-dependent NF-κB pathway and suggests that eIF3k may act as a selective autophagic receptor that synergizes with ATG5 to promote the autophagic degradation of MyD88, which helps V. harveyi to evade innate immunity. We conclude that V. harveyi can manipulate a host''s autophagy process to evade immunity in fish and also provide a new perspective on mammalian resistance to bacterial invasion.     

飞机草和兰花菊三七光合作用对生长光强的适应

测定了干季不同光强下生长的飞机草和兰花菊三七叶片最大净光合速率(Pmax)、荧光动力学参数、叶绿素含量和比叶重(LMA),研究了两种植物适应光环境的策略,探讨了其与入侵性的关系.100%光强下,两种植物主要通过降低捕光色素复合体Ⅱ的含量减少光能吸收,提高Pmax增加光能利用维持叶片能量平衡,而它们的热耗散能力并不强,均显著低于其它光强下的值.100%光强下,提高类胡萝卜素含量是飞机草耗散过剩能量的有效策略,而兰花菊三七可能有其它耗散途径.4.5%光强下仅飞机草能够存活,它通过降低LMA、维持很低的日间热耗散和较高的光合系统Ⅱ非环式电子传递效率适应了弱光环境.推测对强光环境较强的适应能力是入侵植物的共性之一,但这种能力强不一定入侵性大.     

华北平原及黄土高原啮齿动物物种丰富度的空间格局及其分异

在采用网格法对华北平原及黄土高原啮齿动物调查的基础上,分析了啮齿动物物种丰富度空间格局。华北平原物种丰富度最低,其次为晋、翼山地和汾、渭谷地,而南蒙高原和黄土高原的丰富度较高;物种丰富度纬向变化不明显,而经向变化显著,由东向西,物种丰富度呈递增趋势;丰富度在海拔上的变化并不存在相关的地理模式;丰富度与山地面积呈正相关,与平原面积呈负相关,而与丘陵面积相关不显著,丰富度与各地地貌类型面积的总和呈明显的正相关;丰富度与温度相关不明显,而与降雨量呈负相关。在华北平原及黄土高原,生境结构类型愈复杂的地区,啮齿动物物种丰富度愈高。     

MUC1/Y特异表位肽在大肠杆菌中的可溶性表达及其抗体的制备

为获得MUC1/Y的特异表位肽,制备抗体,用PCR扩增其编码序列,克隆到pGEX-2T中,转化DH5α感受态,0.2mmol/L IPTG诱导表达,超声破碎或BPER-TMⅡ试剂处理诱导菌,亲和层析和阴离子交换纯化目的蛋白,SDSPAGE及Western blotting鉴定;免疫家兔制备多抗,初步用于免疫组化分析。结果表明,转化菌经诱导后表达融合蛋白GSTY30,约占菌体总蛋白的20%,大多以可溶形式存在,与诱导温度无关。免疫家兔获得多抗,效价为1∶320 000,纯化的抗体具有特异性,可识别肿瘤细胞表面的MUC1/Y蛋白。所得蛋白和抗体可用于MUC1/Y的表达特征及其生物学功能研究。     

调节性T细胞的分化及其影响因素

调节性T细胞是近年发现的一种具有免疫抑制活性的CD4+T细胞亚群,它们可以在胸腺中被选择分化,也可以在外周淋巴组织内由转化生长因子-β等细胞因子诱导分化。本文就调节性T细胞分化过程的关键信号通路及影响因素进行综述。调控调节性T细胞的分化过程能够影响其在体内的数目,可通过对其数量的干预,为自身免疫性疾病、免疫监视、排斥反应及变态反应等相关疾病提供可能的治疗靶点。     

BACE蛋白的表达、纯化和活性测定

在大肠杆菌中表达、纯化并重新折叠以获得有活性的酸性蛋白水解酶 (BACE蛋白 )———一种与阿尔茨海默病 (AD)发病相关的蛋白水解酶。克隆BACE活性区的表达序列到原核表达载体 pET11a中 ,经E .coliBL2 1(DE3)表达 ,从包涵体中获取蛋白质 ,电泳鉴定后经梯度反向快速折叠法重新折叠 ,柱层析分离纯化 ,得到了表达的重组可溶性BACE蛋白 ;用高效液相色谱、质谱等方法检测其对人工合成多肽底物的水解作用 ;测定了BACE蛋白的酶促动力学常数。结果表明 ,得到的重组BACE蛋白具有水解人工合成小肽底物的活性。