滇金丝猴粪便微生物来源的β-半乳糖苷酶基因的表达及酶学性质

【目的】对滇金丝猴粪便微生物来源的β-半乳糖苷酶进行异源表达和纯化,并研究其酶学性质。【方法】从滇金丝猴粪便微生物的宏基因组中克隆出一个β-半乳糖苷酶基因galRBM20_1,对该基因进行异源表达和酶学性质分析。构建含有T7强启动子的pEASY-E2-galRBM20_1质粒,转化至大肠杆菌BL21(DE3),经IPTG诱导表达后进行酶学性质研究。【结果】滇金丝猴粪便来源的β-半乳糖苷酶(galRBM20_1)最适pH为5.0,在pH 4–7之间能保留70%及其以上的活性。最适温度为45°C,在37°C和45°C下耐受1 h,酶活不变。特别的是,该酶具有良好的Na Cl稳定性,经1–5 mol/L的Na Cl作用1 h后,相对酶活均能超过初始酶活:当NaCl的作用浓度为4 mol/L时,β-半乳糖苷酶相对酶活最高(146%);当NaCl的作用浓度为5mol/L时,β-半乳糖苷酶的相对酶活仍达到135%。【结论】本研究从滇金丝猴粪便微生物的宏基因库中克隆得到β-半乳糖苷酶基因galRBM20_1,并成功在大肠杆菌BL21(DE3)表达,首次从动物胃肠道宏基因组中获得具有耐盐和转糖基产Galactooligosaccharides(GOS)性能的β-半乳糖苷酶。该酶具有良好的耐盐性,和较广的pH作用范围,使其在食品、生物技术领域和环保方面的发展具有良好的应用价值。     

副溶血弧菌SH112株OmpA蛋白的高效表达及免疫学特性

【目的】我们前期研究表明副溶血弧菌SH112株的OmpA蛋白在该菌的致病过程中发挥重要作用,是亚单位疫苗研制的潜在靶标抗原。本研究进一步对ompA(VPA1186)基因进行克隆表达,并研究其免疫学特性。【方法】扩增去除信号肽序列的成熟外膜蛋白OmpA的基因片段,定向克隆至表达载体,基因测序后对其编码蛋白质进行生物信息学分析。重组蛋白His-OmpA经纯化后,免疫ICR小鼠制备鼠多抗血清。Western blotting检测该蛋白的免疫原性及鼠多抗血清的特异性。动物实验验证其免疫保护率。【结果】成功表达分子量约为40.0 kDa的重组蛋白His-OmpA。制备的鼠多抗血清ELISA效价可达1∶50000以上。Westernblotting检测结果显示,该血清可与His-OmpA蛋白、总外膜蛋白和全菌蛋白发生特异性反应,说明所表达的目的蛋白保持原蛋白的免疫原性。此外,该高免血清可与其他主要血清型的副溶血弧菌发生特异性交叉反应,而与其他非副溶血弧菌菌株无交叉反应,表明该血清特异性较高,且提示OmpA蛋白可能是副溶血弧菌属的共同保护性抗原。小鼠免疫保护实验结果表明,该蛋白可提供约35%的免疫保护率。【结论】OmpA蛋白可作为诊断副溶血弧菌感染和亚单位疫苗研制的靶蛋白,为进一步开展该蛋白的功能研究提供了参考。     

一株虾池来源的螺旋拟柱孢藻藻株的分离鉴定及重金属离子Cu~(2+)、Cd~(2+)和Pb~(2+)对其生长的影响

【目的】探讨凡纳滨对虾养殖水体中入侵蓝藻拟柱孢藻的生长生理特性。【方法】从汕头澄海人工对虾养殖池分离纯化藻株,通过形态及其16SrRNA基因鉴定,之后在CT与BG11两种蓝藻通用培养基的基础上优化最佳培养条件,最后分析了不同浓度的3种重金属离子即Cu~(2+)(0–0.8 mg/L)、Cd~(2+)(0–4 mg/L)和Pb~(2+)(0–80 mg/L)对藻株生长的影响。【结果】澄海虾池来源的分离纯化藻株形态呈卷曲螺旋型,16S rRNA基因序列与多株其他来源的拟柱孢藻相似度均达98%以上。实验室培养,藻株最佳生长状态的培养条件是在BG11培养基的基础上调整氮浓度及氮磷比分别为N 62 mg/L,N︰P=9︰1,在此条件下,藻丝生物量可达(0.632±0.170)×107/L,藻丝比平均生长速率最高为(0.063±0.001)/d。本分离藻株活体对重金属Cu~(2+)、Cd~(2+)和Pb~(2+)具有一定的耐受性,其耐受浓度范围分别为0–0.2、0–0.5和1–40 mg/L,其中,Cu~(2+)和Cd~(2+)对藻的生长具有抑制作用,而且此抑制作用随着金属离子剂量的增加及作用时间的延长更加显著,Cu~(2+)和Cd~(2+)对藻体的半数抑制浓度(96 h EC50)分别为0.125和0.551 mg/L;而浓度范围为0–80 mg/L的Pb~(2+)对藻体的生长则表现为低剂量(≤40 mg/L)呈促进,高剂量(≥80 mg/L)则抑制。【结论】从凡纳滨对虾养殖池中分离鉴定出一株形态呈螺旋型的拟柱孢藻,命名为螺旋拟柱孢藻(Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii helix),本藻株活体能够在一定浓度的Cu~(2+)、Cd~(2+)和Pb~(2+)中生长,为螺旋拟柱孢藻活藻生物吸附重金属离子而改善虾池水体环境提供了可能性。     

Construction of a sensitive pyrogen-testing cell model by site-specific knock-in of multiple genes

A pyrogen test is crucial for evaluating the safety of drugs and medical equipment, especially those involved in injections. As existing pyrogen tests, including the rabbit pyrogen test, the limulus amoebocyte lysate (LAL) test and the monocyte activation test have limitations, development of new models for pyrogen testing is necessary. Here we develop a sensitive cell model for pyrogen test based on the lipopolysaccharides (LPS) signal pathway. TLR4, MD2, and CD14 play key roles in the LPS-mediated pyrogen reaction. We established a new TLR4/MD2/CD14-specific overexpressing knock-in cell model using the CRISPR/CAS9 technology and homologous recombination to detect LPS. Stimulation of our TLR4/CD14/MD2 knock-in cell line model with LPS leads to the release of the cytokines IL-6 and TNF-alpha, with a detection limit of 0.005 EU/ml, which is greatly lower than the lower limit of 0.015 EU/ml detected by the Tachypleus amebocyte lysate (TAL) assay.     

CircPUM1 promotes the malignant behavior of lung adenocarcinoma by regulating miR-326

CircRNAs are reported to be implicated in the development of lung cancer. This study focused on assessing the expression, functions and molecular mechanism of circPUM1 in lung adenocarcinoma. Here, it showed that circPUM1 is significantly upregulated in both lung adenocarcinoma cell lines and tissues. Furthermore, silencing of circPUM1 impaired the proliferation, migration and invasion ability, and increased apoptosis in A549?cells. Nevertheless, overexpression of circPUM1 in SPC-A1 cells has the opposite effect. Silencing of circPUM1 inhibits the tumorigenesis in nude mice. Mechanistically, circPUM1 could sponge miR-326 and promote the expression of its downstream proteins Cyclin D1 and Bcl-2. In summary, this present study revealed that circPUM1 functions as an oncogene to promote the tumorigenesis of lung adenocarcinoma through circPUM1/miR-326/Cyclin D1 and Bcl-2 axis. This indicates that circPUM1 may act as a potential therapeutic target for lung adenocarcinoma.     

Circular RNA circRNA_15698 aggravates the extracellular matrix of diabetic nephropathy mesangial cells via miR-185/TGF-β1

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are a novel type of noncoding RNAs that modulate the pathogenesis of multiple diseases. Nevertheless, the role of circRNAs in diabetic nephropathy (DN) pathogenesis is still ambiguous. In the current study, our team aims to investigate the expression profiles of circRNAs in DN and identify the function of circRNA on mesangial cells. CircRNAs microarray analysis revealed dysregulated circRNA in db/db DN mice, and circRNA_15698 was validated to be upregulated in both db/db mice and mouse mesangial cells (SV40-MES13) that were exposed to high glucose (25 mM) using real-time polymerase chain reaction. Loss-of-functional experiments showed that circRNA_15698 knockdown significantly inhibited the expression levels of collagen type I (Col. I), collagen type IV (Col. IV), and fibronectin. Moreover, the cellular localization of circRNA_15698 was mainly in the cytoplasm. Bioinformatics tools and luciferase reporter assay confirmed that circRNA_15698 acted as a ‘sponge’ of miR-185, and then positively regulated the transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) protein expression, suggesting a circRNA_15698/miR-185/TGF-β1 pathway. Further validation experiments validated that circRNA_15698/miR-185/TGF-β1 promoted extracellular matrix (ECM)-related protein synthesis. In summary, our study preliminarily investigates the role of circRNAs in mesangial cells and ECM accumulation, providing a novel insight for DN pathogenesis.     

Long term experimental drought alters community plant trait variation,not trait means,across three semiarid grasslands

Plant and Soil - Mechanisms by which soil pH affects rice growth await further elucidation. We have used a Systems Biology approach to elucidate the nature of the damage caused by extreme pH to...     

Effects of Melatonin on Growth,Physiology and Gene Expression in Rice Seedlings Under Cadmium Stress

Melatonin (MLT) is a hormonal substance found in many organisms and can improve plant stress resistance. In this study, the japonica rice variety Y32 and indica rice variety NJ6 were cultivated in hydroponics under different concentrations of CdCl₂ at the two-leaf stage. The growth, physiological and biochemical responses of the seedlings and the expression of cadmium (Cd)-related genes under exogenous melatonin (MLT) treatment were assessed. The results indicated that Cd stress destroyed the dynamic balance between reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and removal, resulting in ROS accumulation, membrane lipid peroxidation, and impaired growth and development. Following the application of exogenous MLT to rice seedlings, increases in plant biomass including both underground and above-ground areas were observed. MLT also scavenged the inhibition of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and peroxidase (POD) in a concentration dependent manner in response to Cd stress. Catalase (CAT) activity and malondialdehyde (MDA) expression also decreased following MLT treatment. Amongst the six Cd-related genes assessed, five genes were down-regulated and one was up-regulated in response to MLT treatment. Taken together, these data demonstrate that MLT improves the resilience of rice seedlings at the biochemical, physiological, and molecular levels, and diminishes the damage caused by Cd stress.     

High-resolution imaging of rhizosphere oxygen (O2) dynamics in Potamogeton crispus: effects of light,temperature and O2 content in overlying water

Plant and Soil - Radial oxygen loss (ROL) for macrophytes is intimately involved in their survival and growth, thus detailed characterizations of ROL and its implication for geochemical processes...     

Paecilomyces variotii extracts (ZNC) enhance plant immunity and promote plant growth

Plant and Soil - There are growing concerns regarding the restoration of karst rocky desertification (KRD) areas. However, the soil conditions and its residing microorganisms, which are essential...