ARFGAP1 Is Dynamically Associated with Lipid Droplets in Hepatocytes

The ARF GTPase Activating Protein 1 (ARFGAP1) associates mainly with the cytosolic side of Golgi cisternal membranes where it participates in the formation of both COPI and clathrin-coated vesicles. In this study, we show that ARFGAP1 associates transiently with lipid droplets upon addition of oleate in cultured cells. Also, that addition of cyclic AMP shifts ARFGAP1 from lipid droplets to the Golgi apparatus and that overexpression and knockdown of ARFGAP1 affect lipid droplet formation. Examination of human liver tissue reveals that ARFGAP1 is found associated with lipid droplets at steady state in some but not all hepatocytes.     

川楝内生放线菌的分离及多样性研究

【目的】分离四川省各个地区川楝内生放线菌并研究其物种多样性。【方法】应用7种选择性分离培养基分离样品根、茎、叶、树皮和果实中的内生放线菌,采用16SrRNA基因RFLP分析代表菌株多样性。【结果】研究共获得403株内生放线菌。不同地点、不同植株部位、不同培养基分离得到的内生放线菌数目均有差异。广元采集的样品分离得到的数目最多,为86株;最少的是绵阳,仅有12株。从植物表皮中分离到148株放线菌,占获得菌株总数的36.7%;而从果中分离到31株,仅占获得菌株总数的7.6%;虽然从根部分离到的数量也很少,但是其出菌率却是最高的。5号和3号培养基的分离效果最为理想。16S rRNA基因RFLP分析结果显示所有供试菌株在68%的相似性上聚在一起,在84%的相似水平上分成了10个遗传类型。代表菌株的16SrRNA基因序列测定及系统发育分析结果表明:分离得到的放线菌包括4个属,分别是链霉菌属(Streptomyces)、北里孢菌属(Kitasatospora)、节杆菌属(Arthrobacter)、克里布所菌属(Kribbella)。其中,链霉菌是优势类群,占代表菌株数目的比例高达91%,而稀有放线菌的比例只有9%。【结论】研究发现的川楝内生放线菌主要属于链霉菌属(Streptomyces)、北里孢菌属(Kitasatospora)、节杆菌属(Arthrobacter)、克里布所菌属(Kribbella)。     

疏叶骆驼刺和多枝柽柳不同时期光合特性日变化及其与环境因子的关系

在自然条件下,利用Li-6400光合仪测定疏叶骆驼刺(Alhagi sparsifolia Shap.)和多枝柽柳(Tamarix ramosissima Ledeb.)7~9月份的气体交换参数,分析2种植物净光合速率(Pn)与环境因子——光合有效辐射(PAR)、空气温度(Ta)、大气CO2浓度(Ca)、相对湿度(RH)之间的关系,以明确影响其光合作用的主导环境因子,为恢复和重建过渡带植被提供理论依据。结果显示:(1)疏叶骆驼刺不同时期Pn的日变化均为单峰曲线,多枝柽柳7、8月份的Pn日变化为单峰曲线,9月份为双峰曲线,且疏叶骆驼刺Pn的平均值(7.08μmol·m-2·s-1)高于多枝柽柳(5.54μmol·m-2·s-1)。(2)2种植物7~9月份的蒸腾速率(Tr)日变化均为单峰曲线,且疏叶骆驼刺Tr的平均值(5.46mmol·m-2·s-1)高于多枝柽柳(4.40mmol·m-2·s-1);疏叶骆驼刺和多枝柽柳的胞间CO2浓度(Ci)的日变化趋势均呈"倒钟型"曲线,与Pn日变化趋势相反。(3)2种植物7~9月份的WUE日变化进程与各自的Pn日变化规律基本一致,多枝柽柳的WUE日均值(1.21 mmol·mol-1)明显高于疏叶骆驼刺(0.97mmol·mol-1)。(4)偏相关分析显示,骆驼刺和柽柳的Pn与PAR呈显著正相关关系,而与RH呈显著负相关关系;回归分析显示,骆驼刺和柽柳Pn日变化的变异分别有35.6%和42.4%是由环境因子的日变化造成的;通径分析显示,各环境因子对Pn都具有显著的影响,其大小顺序分别为:TaRHPARCa(骆驼刺)和PARCaTaRH(柽柳),且骆驼刺在7~9月份内PAR均为决策变量,RH为限制变量(除7月份外);而柽柳在8、9月份内PAR均是决策变量,RH、Ca是限制变量。研究表明,疏叶骆驼刺属于高光合高蒸腾低水分利用效率型,多枝柽柳属于低蒸腾低光合高水分利用效率型;7月份骆驼刺和柽柳Pn的下降主要是由于气孔限制引起,而8、9月份主要是由非气孔因素限制所致;PAR和RH是影响骆驼刺和柽柳最重要的环境因子,其次是Ca,而Ta在不同时期的影响程度不同;疏叶骆驼刺和多枝柽柳与环境协同进化过程中产生了一定的生态适应性,但柽柳的WUE明显高于骆驼刺,推测柽柳的抗旱能力强于骆驼刺。     

家蚕非编码RNA在神经系统中的表达分析

【目的】非编码RNA(non-coding RNA,ncRNA)在家蚕Bombyx mori发育过程中具有重要调控作用。本研究旨在探索ncRNA参与家蚕神经系统发育的分子机理。【方法】采用实时荧光定量PCR技术对22个中等长度的ncRNA及3个ncRNA的邻近编码基因在家蚕幼虫神经系统中的表达水平进行检测。【结果】8个ncRNA(包括1个C/D box snoRNA,4个H/ACA box snoRNA和3个不能归类的ncRNA)在家蚕5龄幼虫神经组织和非神经组织中均有表达,且在胸腹神经中的表达量明显高于头部神经中的表达量。其中,snoRNA Bm-51,Bm-18和Bm-86在胸腹神经中的表达量分别是头部神经中的23,5和4.7倍。进一步研究发现,这3个内含子起源的ncRNA与其宿主基因在家蚕神经系统中的表达趋势一致,宿主基因在胸腹神经中的表达量也明显高于头部神经中的表达量。【结论】本研究筛选到的在家蚕不同神经部位存在差异表达的ncRNA,特别是在胸腹神经中高表达的ncRNA可能协同其邻近编码基因,参与家蚕神经发育或神经活动过程。该结果为研究ncRNA参与家蚕神经系统发育提供了分子依据,为从非编码RNA角度探索鳞翅目害虫防治提供了新的思路。     

Predictive functional profiling using marker gene sequences and community diversity analyses of microbes in full-scale anaerobic sludge digesters

Anaerobic digestion (AD) is widely used in treating the sewage sludge, as it can reduce the amount of sludge, eliminate pathogens and produce biofuel. To enhance the operational performance and stability of anaerobic bioreactors, operational and conventional chemical data from full-scale sludge anaerobic digesters were collected over a 2-year period and summarized, and the microbial community diversity of the sludge sample was investigated at various stages of the AD process. For the purpose of distinguishing between the functional and community diversity of the microbes, Phylogenetic Investigation of Communities by Reconstruction of Unobserved States (PICRUSt) software was used to impute the prevalence of 16S rDNA marker gene sequences in the difference in various sludge samples. Meanwhile, a taxa analysis was also carried out to investigate the different sludge samples. The microbial community diversity analysis of one AD sludge sample showed that the most dominant bacterial genera were Saccharicrinis, Syntrophus, Anaerotruncus and Thermanaerothrix. Among archaea, acetoclastic Methanosaeta represented 56.0 %, and hydrogenotrophic Methanospirillum, Methanoculleus, Methanothermus and Methanolinea accounted for 41.3 % of all methanogens. The taxa, genetic and functional prediction analyses of the feedstock and AD sludge samples suggested great community diversity differences between them. The taxa of bacteria in two AD sludge samples were considerably different, but the abundances of the functional KEGG pathways took on similar levels. The numbers of identified pathogens were significantly lower in the digested sludge than in the feedstock, but the PICRUSt results showed the difference in “human diseases” abundances in the level-1 pathway between the two sludge samples was small.