松嫩平原羊草草地土壤-植物间铁的动态研究

羊草草地土壤-植物间营养元素Fe的动态研究结果表明,土壤中全铁和有效铁含量均较低,羊草中Fe含量比较丰富．在生长季各时期,全铁和有效铁含量在土壤剖面分布上从上向下呈下降趋势,有效铁与有机质含量呈显著正相关,而与pH值呈显著负相关．全铁各月平均含量变化在生长季呈“V”型曲线,7月含量最低;有效铁平均含量从5～8月与全铁相似,8月后则逐渐减少．羊草各器官及枯落物Fe含量有很大变化,总的趋势是根>根茎>叶>枯落物>茎;羊草叶、茎的Fe含量在生长季中为波动型下降曲线,根茎、根及枯落物的Fe含量在生长季中为“V”型曲线．A层土壤富集有效铁的能力稍强．土壤中Fe活性平均为0．640％。从5月至8月逐渐升高,8月后逐渐下降,10月份最低．地下部的Fe向地上部的转移强度为5～7月下降,8月升高,随后又下降．地上部Fe向枯落物的转移强度平均为105．0％,与地下部Fe向地上部转移强度呈显著负相关。     

蓝色染料配基亲和纯化眼镜蛇心脏毒素的研究

探索了蓝色染料（Cibacron Blue F3G-A）亲和分离中华眼镜蛇心脏毒素的可能性。采用环氧基活化法制备蓝色染料亲和介质,中性条件下提取眼镜蛇粗毒中的心脏毒素。Tricine系统SDS-PAGE多肽电泳和Lowry法蛋白定量分析纯化效果,发现蓝色染料琼脂糖一步纯化中华眼镜蛇心脏毒素的纯度达到84%,结合量为6.9mg/ml介质。这是首次利用小分子亲和配基纯化心脏毒素。与生物大分子配基相比,活性染料分子具有价格便宜,易于合成,性质稳定,不易降解和适合大规模生产等优点。     

The thymic stromal cell line MTSC4 induced thymocyte apoptosis in a non-MHC-restricted manner

Mouse thymic stromal cell line 4 (MTSC4) is one of the stromal cell lines established in our laboratory. While losing the characteristics of epithelial cells, they express some surface markers shared with thymic dendritic cells (TDCs). To further study the biological functions of these cells, we compared the capability of MTSC4 with TDCs in the induction of thymocyte apoptosis, using thymic reaggregation culture system. Apoptosis of thymocytes induced by MTSC4 and TDCs was measured by Annexin V and PI staining and analyzed by flow cytometry. We found that MTSC4 selectively augmented the apoptosis of CD4^ 8^ (DP) thymocytes. This effect was Fas/FasL independent and could not be blocked by antibodies to MHC class I and class II molecules. In addition, MTSC4 enhanced the apoptosis of DP thymocytes from different strains of mice, which implies that MTSC4-induced thymocyte apoptosis is not mediated by the TCR recognition of self peptide/MHC molecules. In contrast to MTSC4, thymocyte apoptosis induced by TDCs was MHC-restricted. Thus, MHC-independent fashion of stromal-DP thymocyte interaction may be one of the ways to induce thymocyte apoptosis in thymus. Our study has also shown that the interaction of MTSC4 stromal cells and thymocytes is required for the induction of thymocyte apoptosis.     

Characterization of a novel toxin-antitoxin module, VapBC, encoded by Leptospira interrogans chromosome

Comparative genomic analysis of the coding sequences (CDSs) of Leptospira interrogans revealed a pair of closely linked genes homologous to the vapBC loci of many other bacteria with respect to both deduced amino acid sequencesand operon organizations. Expression of single vapC gene in Escherichia coli resulted in inhibition of bacterial growth,whereas co-expression of vapBC restored the growth effectively. This phenotype is typical for three other character-ized toxin-antitoxin systems of bacteria, i.e., mazEF[1], reIBE[2] and chplK[3]. The VapC proteins of bacteria and a thermophilic archeae, Solfolobus tokodaii, form a structurally distinguished group of toxin different from the other known toxins of bacteria. Phylogenetic analysis of both toxins and antitoxins of all categories indicated that althought oxins were evolved from divergent sources and may or may not follow their speciation paths (as indicated by their 16s RNA seouences）, co-evolution with their antitoxins was obvious.     

N-Acetylcysteine ameliorates lipopolysaccharide-induced organ damage in conscious rats

Lipopolysaccharide is strongly associated with septic shock, leading to multiple organ failure. It can activate monocytes and macrophages to release proinflammatory mediators such as tumor necrosis factor- (TNF-), interleukin-1 (IL-1), and nitric oxide (NO). The present experiments were designed to induce endotoxin shock by an intravenous injection ofKlebsiella pneumoniae lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 10 mg/kg) in conscious rats. Arterial pressure and heart rate (HR) were continuously monitored for 48 h after LPS administration. N-Acetyl-cysteine was used to study its effects on organ damage. Biochemical substances were measured to reflect organ functions. Biochemical factors included blood urea nitrogen (BUN), creatinine (Cre), lactic dehydrogenase (LDH), creatine phosphokinase (CPK), aspartate transferase (GOT), alanine transferase (GPT), TNF-, IL-1, methyl guanidine (MG), and nitrites/nitrates. LPS caused significant increases in blood BUN, Cre, LDH, CPK, GOT, GPT, TNF-, IL-1, MG levels, and HR, as well as a decrease in mean arterial pressure and an elevation of nitrites/nitrates. N-Acetylcysteine suppressed the release of TNF-, IL-1, and MG, but enhanced NO production. These actions ameliorate LPS-induced organ damage in conscious rats. The beneficial effects may suggest a potential chemopreventive effect of this compound in sepsis prevention and treatment.     

Do mitochondria make nitric oxide? no?

Several papers have claimed that mitochondria contain nitric oxide synthase (NOS) and make nitric oxide (NO*) in amounts sufficient to affect mitochondrial respiration. However, we found that the addition of L-arginine or the NOS inhibitor L-NMMA to intact rat liver mitochondria did not have any effect on the respiratory rate in both State 3 and State 4. We did not detect mitochondrial NO* production by the oxymyoglobin oxidation assay, or electrochemically using an NO* electrode. An apparent NO* production detected by the Griess assay was identified as an artifact. NO* generated by eNOS added to the mitochondria could easily be detected, although succinate-supplemented mitochondria appeared to consume NO*. Our data show that NO* production by normal rat liver mitochondria cannot be detected in our laboratory, even though the levels of production claimed in the literature should easily have been measured by the techniques used. The implications for the putative mitochondrial NOS are discussed.     

Tra2betal regulates P19 neuronal differentiation and the splicing of FGF-2R and GluR-B minigenes

The present study demonstrates that the expression of Tra2beta1 (Transformer 2-beta1) proteins, an SR (serine/arginine rich) protein, is developmentally up-regulated in a neural-specific pattern. The up-regulation is also observed in RA (retinoic acid) induced neural differentiation of P19 cells. Tra2betal proteins are located in the nuclei of P19 cells, which are consistent with its functional site as an SR protein. The over-expression of Tra2betal proteins promotes RA induced neuronal differentiation of P19 cells. In P19 cells, the splicing of FGF-2R (fibroblast growth factor receptor 2) minigene produces the BEK form, while the alternative splicing of GluR-B (glutamate receptor subunit B) minigene generates two products, the Flop and the Truncated isoforms. Tra2betal inhibits the BEK splicing, but it promotes the Flop splicing. The results therefore suggest that Tra2betal is involved in the regulation of alternative splicing processes during neural development, peculiarly the splicing of FGF-2R and GluR-B genes. Both FGF-2R and GluR-B genes are known to play important roles in neural differentiation.     

Nucleic acid capture assay,a new method for direct quantitation of nucleic acids

Technologies allowing direct detection of specific RNA/DNA sequences occasionally serve as an alternative to amplification methods for gene expression studies. In these direct methods the hybridization of probes takes place in complex mixtures, thus specificity and sensitivity still limit the use of current technologies. To address these challenges, we developed a new technique called the nucleic acid capture assay, involving a direct multi-capture system. This approach combines a 3′-ethylene glycol scaffolding with the incorporation of 2′-methoxy deoxyribonucleotides in the capture sequences. In our design, all nucleotides other than those complementary to the target mRNA have been replaced by an inert linker, resulting in significant reductions in non-specific binding. We also provide a versatile method to detect the presence of captured targets by using specific labeled probes with alkaline phosphatase-conjugated anti-label antibodies. This direct, flexible and reliable technique for gene expression analysis is well suited for high-throughput screening and has potential for DNA microarray applications.     

钠-氢交换蛋白 mRNA在人胎儿两个发育阶段中的组织特异性表达

钠－氢交换蛋白（Na^ -H^ exchangers,NHE）至少包含6个不同的亚型,生长因子可激活其表达。目前,对在发育过程中NHE的表达了解甚少。本文利用RT－PCR观察了4种NHE亚型的mRNA在人胎儿的两个不同发育阶段（11周、16周）在不同组织中的表达,以研究它们的发育调控。结果显示,NHE1 mRNA在两种胎龄的多种组织中均有表达,和16周胚胎相比,11周的胚胎的NHE1 mRNA的表达较弱,并且表现出明显的组织差异。据此推测,NHE1的管家（house-keeping）功能可能至少在11周就开始形成,而最迟在16周已基本建立;NHE2和NHE3 mRNA在11周和16周的胚胎组织中的特异性表达呈现相反的变化趋势及组织分布上的重叠,后者与NHE2和NHE3在成人组织中的分布及功能的重叠的特点相吻合;NHE5 mRNA的表达在11周的胚胎组织中比较普遍,而在16周的胚胎组织中则局限在小脑组织中,本研究表明,在人胚胎发育11－16周期间,NHE的组织特异性表达表现出时间依赖性的调控,而在不迟于胚胎发育的第16周,具有“管家功能”的NHE1的基因表达已与成人相似。     

Cardioprotection involves activation of NF-kappa B via PKC-dependent tyrosine and serine phosphorylation of I kappa B-alpha

Previous studies indicated that activation of PKC and Src tyrosine kinases by ischemic preconditioning (PC) may participate in the activation of NF-kappa B. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying activation of NF-kappa B during ischemic PC remain unknown. In the hearts of conscious rabbits, it was found that ischemic PC (6 cycles of 4-min coronary occlusion and 4-min reperfusion) significantly induced both tyrosine (+226.9 +/- 42%) and serine (+137.0 +/- 36%) phosphorylation of the NF-kappa B inhibitory protein I kappa B-alpha, concomitant with increased activation of the I kappa B-alpha kinases IKK alpha (+255.0 +/- 46%) and IKK beta (+173.1 +/- 35%). Furthermore, both tyrosine and serine phosphorylation of I kappa B-alpha were blocked by pretreatment with either the nonreceptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor lavendustin-A (LD-A) or the PKC inhibitor chelerythrine (Che) (both given at doses previously shown to block ischemic PC). Interestingly, Che completely abolished PC-induced activation of IKK alpha/beta, whereas LD-A had no effect. In addition, I kappa B-alpha protein level did not change during ischemic PC. Together, these data indicate that ischemic PC-induced activation of NF-kappa B occurs through both tyrosine and serine phosphorylation of I kappa B-alpha and is regulated by nonreceptor tyrosine kinases and PKC.