Effects of europium ions (Eu3+) on the distribution and related biological activities of elements in Lathyrus sativus L. roots

Scanning electron microscopic and energy-dispersive X-ray analyses were used to study the distributions of different types of elements in the epidermis, exodermis, endodermis, and vascular cylinder of the fracture face in the Lathyrus sativus L. roots in the presence or absence of Eu³⁺. Some index of the biological activity related to the elements binding with protein were determined also. The results showed that the tissular distributions of elements in the fracture face are different in the presence and absence of Eu³⁺. The atomic percentages of P, S, Ca, and Mn were influenced more than those of other elements. Eu³⁺ promoted the biological activities of various kinds of element. The one possible mechanism changing the biological activities was that the reaction of Eu³⁺ Eu²⁺ would influence the electron capture or transport in elements of binding protein. Another mechanism was that CaM-Ca²⁺ becoming CaM-Eu³⁺ through Eu³⁺ instead of Ca²⁺ would affect the biological activity of elements by regulating the Ca²⁺ level in the plant cell.     

Paenibacillus brassicae sp. nov., isolated from cabbage rhizosphere in Beijing, China

A novel Gram-positive, rod-shaped, motile, spore-forming, nitrogen-fixing bacterium, designated strain 112^T, was isolated from cabbage rhizosphere in Beijing, China. The strain was found to grow at 10–40 °C and pH 4–11, with an optimum of 30 °C and pH 7.0, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis based on a fragment of the full-length 16S rRNA gene sequence revealed that strain 112^T is a member of the genus Paenibacillus. High levels of 16S rRNA gene similarities were found between strain 112^T, Paenibacillus sabinae DSM 17841^T (97.82 %) and Paenibacillus forsythiae DSM 17842^T (97.22 %). However, the DNA–DNA hybridization values between strain 112^T and the type strains of these two species were 10.36 and 6.28 %, respectively. The predominant menaquinone was found to be menaquinone 7 (MK-7). The major fatty acids were determined to be anteiso-C_15:0 and C_16:0. The major polar lipids were found to be diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol and unknown aminophospholipids. The cell wall peptidoglycan was found to contain meso-diaminopimelic acid. The DNA G+C content was determined to be 55.4 mol%. On the basis of its phenotypic characteristics, 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis and the value of DNA–DNA hybridization, strain 112^T is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Paenibacillus, for which the name Paenibacillus brassicae sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is 112^T (= ACCC 01125^T = DSM 24983^T).     

Genetic analysis of IREB2, FAM13A and XRCC5 variants in Chinese Han patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Recently, variants (rs2568494, rs2869967 and rs3821104) in the IREB2, FAM13A and XRCC5 genes were found to be associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in non-Asian populations by genome-wide association study (GWAS) analysis. To evaluate whether variants in these genes are related to COPD in Chinese Han population, we investigated COPD patients of Chinese Han ethnicity from Mainland China. Significant differences in genotypic distributions (χ² = 6.319, p = 0.042 for rs2869967; χ² = 6.062, p = 0.048 for rs3821104) and allele distributions (χ² = 4.014, p = 0.045 for rs2869967; χ² = 5.607, p = 0.018 for rs3821104) were observed between patients and control subjects for variants rs2869967 and rs3821104, whereas no statistically significant associations for genotypic and allelic distribution between IREB2 rs2568494 and COPD phenotype (p > 0.05) were identified. Our results support that FAM13A rs2869967 and XRCC5 rs3821104 are associated with COPD in Chinese Han population.     

ApCl基因在毕赤酵母中的表达

为了研究ApCl基因的功能,应用基因重组技术将ApCl基因片段克隆入大肠埃希菌—酵母穿梭质拉pGAPZαA,构建重组真核表达质拉pGAPZαA-ApCl,电转化巴斯德单赤酵母GS115,Zeocin筛选出阳性克隆转化子.通过比较转化空载体pGAPZaA和重组载体pGAPZαA-ApCl的不同菌株分别在含有高盐和高山梨醇浓度的液体培养基中生长情况,发现毕赤酵母GS115在转化ApCl基因后其抗旱、抗盐能力显著提高(约3倍),进一步验证了ApCl基因对提高生物抗逆能力有显著作用,为将来分离该蛋白及进一步研究奠定基础.     

Inhibitory effect of C-type natriuretic peptide on L-type calcium channel currents in gastric antral myocytes of guinea pigs

The role of C-type natriuretic peptide (CNP) in the gastrointestinal tract is still unclear. This study was designed to investigate the effect of CNP on barium current (I(Ba)) through the L-type calcium channel in gastric antral myocytes of guinea pigs. The whole-cell patch clamp technique was performed in gastric antral myocytes isolated by collagenase in guinea pigs. CNP significantly inhibited I(Ba) in a dose-dependent manner at the concentrations of 0.001, 0.01, and 0.1 micromol/l, CNP inhibited I(Ba) to 81.56 +/- 2.48 %, 73.64 +/- 3.65 %, and 57.77 +/- 4.93 % of control at 0 mV, respectively. The values of steady-state half-inactivation voltage (33.6 +/- 2.6 mV and 33.8 +/- 3.4 mV, in control and CNP groups, respectively) or the half-activation voltage (-12.6 +/- 2.2 mV and 12.4 +/- 1.8 mV) of I(Ba) were not significantly changed (p > 0.05, n = 6). 8-br-cGMP (1 mmol/l) mimicked the effect of CNP on I(Ba), and the peak current of I(Ba) was inhibited from -403.84 +/- 61.87 pA to 318.94 +/- 67.17 pA (p < 0.05, n = 5). In the presence of LY83583 (0.1 micromol/l), a nonspecific inhibitor of guanylate cyclase, CNP (0.1 micromol/l)-induced inhibition of I(Ba) was partially blocked (n = 13, p < 0.05 ). However, when the cell was pretreated with zaprinast (0.1 micromol/l), an inhibitor of cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) sensitive phosphoesterase, the inhibitory effect of CNP on I(Ba) was significantly potentiated (n = 11, p < 0.05). KT5823 (1 micromol/l), a cGMP-dependent protein kinase (PKG) inhibitor, almost completely blocked CNP-induced inhibition of I(Ba). The results suggested that CNP can inhibit L-type calcium channel currents, and the inhibitory effect is mediated by pGC-cGMP-PKG-dependent signal pathway in gastric antral myocytes of guinea pigs.     

Protective effects of N-n-butyl haloperidol iodide on myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury in rabbits

N-n-butyl haloperidol iodide (F2), a novel compound derived from haloperidol, was synthesized by our drugs research lab. The present study aims to evaluate the protective effects of F2 on myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury in vivo, and to try to find the protective mechanism of F2. The animal model of myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury was established by ligaturing rabbit's left ventricular branch of coronary artery for 40 min and removing the ligation later to reperfuse for 40 min. Different doses of F2 were intravenously injected before the onset of ischemia. The changes of hemodynamics were recorded during the experiment, and the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), creatine kinase (CK), Ca2+-ATPase, Na+,K+-ATPase and the level of malondialdehyde (MDA) of myocardial tissue were detected after reperfusion. Administration of F2 could dose-dependently ameliorate the hemodynamics of ischemia-reperfusion injured myocardium. During the course of reperfusion, MAP, LVSP, +/-dP/dt(max) in all F2 groups were obviously higher than those in the ischemia-reperfusion control group, and LVEDP were lower. F2 could also reduce the production of MDA, and maintain the activities of SOD, Ca2+-ATPase, Na+,K+-ATPase, and minimize the leakage of CK out of myocardial cells in a dose-dependent manner. These results suggested that F2 had apparent protective effects against myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury.