凝固酶阴性葡萄球菌耐药性及流行变迁情况的观察

通过对我院1992－1994年间的108株CNS和1997－1999年8月间的72株CNS的比较研究发现：表皮葡萄球菌的分离率仍居首位,溶血葡萄球菌和模仿葡萄球菌占的比例有所提高,耐药性的研究发现,对环丙氟哌酸和红霉素的耐药率有显著提高。     

LeETR1反义基因对番茄的遗传转化

从番茄果实中提取总RNA,根据GeneBank中LeETR1序列,设计合成特异性引物,利用RT-PCR及技术克隆了LeETR1基因3’端非编码区313bp的cDNA,经酶切图谱和序列分析鉴定无误后,反向插入到植物表达载体pPZP11A中,构建了表达LeETR1反义RNA的双元载体。经农杆菌途径转化番茄品种B1后,通过PCR检测从抗卡那霉素再生植株中筛选到13株阳性植株,Southern blot杂交确证反义基因已经整合到番茄染色体中。对果实乙烯释放的测定结果表明,转基因番茄乙烯释放高峰的出现比对照果实推迟10天,番茄红素的合成受到显抑制,果实不能形成正常的红色。推测LeETR1和番茄的成熟有着密切的关系。     

会同和朱亭11年生杉木林能量积累与分配

利用我国杉木中心产区会同和杉木扩大栽培区朱亭测定的杉木林生物量和干物质热值资料的基础上,对会同和朱亭11年生杉木人工林能量积累和分配规律进行研究。结果表明:杉木人工林群落林分能量现存量与立地和气候条件关系密切,朱亭11年生杉木人工林群落林分能量现存量 (9294×10⁸-10894×10⁸J/hm²)显著低于会同(12406×10⁸-14733 ×10⁸J/hm²);同龄林分中,现存能量的数值在一定的林分密度范围内,随密度增加而减少。随密度增加而减少的能量现存量,主要是减少了树干的能量现存量,而枝、叶的能量现存量则保持一定稳定状态;能量在林分各组分的分配比大小依次是干＞根＞叶＞枝,林分各组分能量的分配比大小也与立地和气候条件有关,树干中能量分配比会同(56.8%-61.2%)大于朱亭(47.0%-53.5%),枝叶中能量分配比朱亭(28.3%-34.2%)大于会同(22.2%-25.9%);林分能量现存量的空间分布与林分功能作用层面及对水分和养分交换作用密切相关,林分的地表平面和林冠2/3高度处分配的能量最多。     

Identification and comparison of cutinases for synthetic polyester degradation

Cutinases have been exploited for a broad range of reactions, from hydrolysis of soluble and insoluble esters to polymer synthesis. To further expand the biotechnological applications of cutinases for synthetic polyester degradation, we perform a comparative activity and stability analysis of five cutinases from Alternaria brassicicola (AbC), Aspergillus fumigatus (AfC), Aspergillus oryzae (AoC), Humicola insolens (HiC), and the well-characterized Fusarium solani (FsC). Of the cutinases, HiC demonstrated enhanced poly(ε-caprolactone) hydrolysis at high temperatures and under all pH values, followed by AoC and AfC. Both AbC and FsC are least stable and function poorly at high temperatures as well as at acidic pH conditions. Surface charge calculations and phylogenetic analysis reveal two important modes of cutinase stabilization: (1) an overall neutral surface charge within the “crowning area” by the active site and (2) additional disulfide bond formation. These studies provide insights useful for reengineering such enzymes with improved function and stability for a wide range of biotransformations.     

Determination of lactate dehydrogenase in human erythrocytes by capillary electrophoresis with electrochemical detection

Capillary electrophoresis (CE) was employed to analyze lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) in human erythrocytes using an amperometric detector with a carbon fiber micro-disk bundle electrode. LDH activity was measured by determining the amount of NADH generated by LDH through a enzyme-catalyzed reaction between NAD(+) and lithium lactate. The factors influencing the enzyme-catalyzed reaction, separation and detection were examined and optimized. The following conditions were suitable for the determination of LDH: running buffer, 5.0 x 10(-2)mol/l Tris-HCl (pH 7.5); separation voltage, 20.0 kV; detection potential, 1.00 V (versus saturated calomel electrode (SCE)). The conditions of enzyme-catalyzed reaction were: reaction buffer, 5.0 x 10(-2)mol/l Tris-HCl (pH 9.3); substrates, 5.0 x 10(-2)mol/l lithium lactate and 5.0 x 10(-3)mol/l NAD(+); reaction time, 10 min. The concentration limit of detection (LOD) of the method was 0.017 U/ml at a signal-to-noise (S/N) ratio of 3, which corresponded to 1.10 x 10(-10)mol/l, and the mass LOD was 2 x 10(-20)mol. The linear dynamic range was 0.039-4.65 U/ml for the injection voltage of 5.0 kV and injection time of 10s. The relative standard deviation (R.S.D.) was 0.85% for the migration time and 1.8% for the electrophoretic peak area. The method was applied to determine LDH in human erythrocytes. The recovery of the method was between 98 and 101%.     

Development of a highly sensitive chemiluminescent assay for hydrogen peroxide under neutral conditions using acridinium ester and its application to an enzyme immunoassay

We developed a highly sensitive chemiluminescent (CL) assay for hydrogen peroxide using 10‐methyl‐9‐(phenoxycarbonyl) acridinium fluorosulfonate (PMAC) that produced chemiluminescence under neutral conditions and applied it to an enzyme immunoassay (EIA). One picomole of hydrogen peroxide could be detected using the optimized PMAC‐CL method and 6.2 × 10^‐20 mol β‐d ‐galactosidase (β‐gal) could be detected by combining an indoxyl derivative substrate and the proposed PMAC‐CL method. This highly sensitive CL β‐gal assay was applied to an EIA for thyroid‐stimulating hormone (TSH) using β‐gal as a label enzyme; 0.02–100.0 μU/mL TSH in human serum could be assayed directly and with high reproducibility. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

CCL5/CCR5 axis promotes the motility of human oral cancer cells

CCL5 (previously called RANTES) is in the CC‐chemokine family and plays a crucial role in the migration and metastasis of human cancer cells. On the other hand, the effect of CCL5 is mediated via CCR receptor. RT‐PCR and flow cytometry studies demonstrated CCR5 but not CCR1 and CCR3 mRNA in oral cancer cell lines, especially higher in those with high invasiveness (SCC4) as compared with lower levels in HSC3 cells and SCC9 cells. Stimulation of oral cancer cells with CCL5 directly increased the migration and metalloproteinase‐9 (MMP‐9) production. MMP‐9 small interfering RNA inhibited the CCL5‐induced MMP‐9 expression and thereby significantly inhibited the CCL5‐induced cell migration. Activations of phospholipase C (PLC), protein kinase Cδ (PKCδ), and NF‐κB pathways after CCL5 treatment was demonstrated, and CCL5‐induced expression of MMP‐9 and migration activity was inhibited by the specific inhibitor of PLC, PKCδ, and NF‐κB cascades. In addition, migration‐prone sublines demonstrate that cells with increasing migration ability had more expression of MMP‐9, CCL5, and CCR5. Taken together, these results indicate that CCL5/CCR5 axis enhanced migration of oral cancer cells through the increase of MMP‐9 production. J. Cell. Physiol. 220: 418–426, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Ecologically heterogeneous populations of the invasive ant Wasmannia auropunctata within its native and introduced ranges

Abstract 1. The biology of most invasive species in their native geographical areas remains largely unknown. Such studies are, however, crucial in shedding light on the ecological and evolutionary processes underlying biological invasions. 2. The present study focuses on the little fire ant Wasmannia auropunctata, a species native to Central and South America that has been widely introduced and which has become invasive throughout the tropics. We characterise and compare several ecological traits of native populations in French Guiana with those in one of its introduced ranges, New Caledonia. 3. We found ecologically heterogeneous populations of W. auropunctata coexisting in the species’ native geographical area. First, we found populations restricted to naturally perturbed areas (particularly floodplains) within the primary forest, and absent from the surrounding forest areas. These populations were characterised by low nest and worker densities. Second, we found dominant populations in recent anthropogenic areas (e.g. secondary forest or forest edge along road) characterised by high nest and worker densities, and associated with low ant species richness. The local dominance of W. auropunctata in such areas can be due to the displacement of other species (cause) or the filling‐up of empty habitats unsuitable to other ants (effect). With respect to their demographic features and ant species richness, the populations of native anthropogenic habitats were to a large extent similar to the invasive populations introduced into remote areas. 4. The results point to the need for greater research efforts to better understand the ecological and demographic features of invasive species within their native ranges.     

PML/RARalpha fusion protein mediates the unique sensitivity to arsenic cytotoxicity in acute promyelocytic leukemia cells: Mechanisms involve the impairment of cAMP signaling and the aberrant regulation of NADPH oxidase

Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) cells are characterized by PML/RARalpha fusion protein, high responsiveness to arsenic trioxide (ATO)-induced cytotoxicity and an abundant generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). In this study we investigated the association among these three features in APL-derived NB4 cells. We found that NADPH oxidase-derived ROS generation was more abundant in NB4 cells compared with monocytic leukemia U937 cells. By using PR9, a sub-line of U937 stably transduced with the inducible PML/RARalpha expression vectors, we attributed disparities on ROS generation and ATO sensitivity to the occurrence of PML/RARalpha fusion protein, since PML/RARalpha-expressing cells appeared higher NADPH oxidase activity, higher ROS level and higher sensitivity to ATO. On the other hand, the basal intensity of cAMP signaling pathway was compared between NB4 and U937 as well as between PR9 cells with or without PML/RARalpha, demonstrating that PML/RARalpha-expressing cells had an impaired cAMP signaling pathway which relieved its inhibitory effect on NADPH oxidase derived ROS generation. In summary, the present study demonstrated the correlation of PML/RARalpha with cAMP signaling pathway, NADPH oxidase and ROS generation in APL cells. PML/RARalpha that bestows NB4 cells various pathological features, paradoxically also endows these cells with the basis for susceptibility to ATO-induced cytotoxcity.     

Population genetic structure in Atlantic and Pacific Ocean common murres (Uria aalge): natural replicate tests of post‐Pleistocene evolution

Understanding the factors that influence population differentiation in temperate taxa can be difficult because the signatures of both historic and contemporary demographics are often reflected in population genetic patterns. Fortunately, analyses based on coalescent theory can help untangle the relative influence of these historic and contemporary factors. Common murres (Uria aalge) are vagile seabirds that breed in the boreal and low arctic waters of the Northern Hemisphere. Previous analyses revealed that Atlantic and Pacific populations are genetically distinct; however, less is known about population genetic structure within ocean basins. We employed the mitochondrial control region, four microsatellite loci and four intron loci to investigate population genetic structure throughout the range of common murres. As in previous studies, we found that Atlantic and Pacific populations diverged during the Pleistocene and do not currently exchange migrants. Therefore, Atlantic and Pacific murre populations can be used as natural replicates to test mechanisms of population differentiation. While we found little population genetic structure within the Pacific, we detected significant east–west structuring among Atlantic colonies. The degree that population genetic structure reflected contemporary population demographics also differed between ocean basins. Specifically, while the low levels of population differentiation in the Pacific are at least partially due to high levels of contemporary gene flow, the east–west structuring of populations within the Atlantic appears to be the result of historic fragmentation of populations rather than restricted contemporary gene flow. The contrasting results in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans highlight the necessity of carefully considering multilocus nonequilibrium population genetic approaches when reconstructing the demographic history of temperate Northern Hemisphere taxa.