塑料饲养大蜡螟幼虫肠道可培养细菌多样性

【背景】昆虫肠道中存在大量的微生物,是昆虫正常生命活动所必需的。它们能够促进维生素的合成、脂肪和碳水化合物的吸收及利用,同时还可以保护宿主抵御天敌,忍受高温以及促进毒素或异生素的代谢,间接促进资源开发。【目的】研究PE塑料饲喂的大蜡螟幼虫肠道可培养细菌的多样性。【方法】利用16S rRNA基因序列分析技术,结合菌落形态和细胞形态及相关生理生化特征鉴定细菌种类。【结果】从大蜡螟幼虫肠道分离纯化的40株可培养细菌得到16种不同细菌遗传型,分别属于芽孢杆菌科(Bacillaceae)、肠球菌科(Enterococcaceae)、葡萄球菌科(Staphylococcaceae)、莫拉菌科(Moraxellaceae)4个科。其中芽孢杆菌科是肠道可培养细菌的优势细菌种类。结合菌落和细胞形态及生理生化特征,确定肠道可培养细菌为芽孢杆菌属9株、肠球菌属4株、葡萄球菌属2株以及不动杆菌属1株。【结论】通过研究大蜡螟幼虫肠道可培养细菌群落结构组成,可为开展大蜡螟肠道的微生态研究提供相关理论基础。     

须糖多孢菌Saccharopolyspora pogona的核糖体工程改造对丁烯基多杀菌素合成的影响

核糖体工程是以微生物的各类抗生素抗性突变为筛选标记,高效获得次生代谢产物合成能力提高的突变株的一种育种新方法。通过核糖体工程技术,使用链霉素对须糖多孢菌Saccharopolyspora pogona进行抗性选育,以获得高产丁烯基多杀菌素突变菌株。对原始菌株和所获得的突变菌株代谢产物的研究发现,相对于原始菌株,其中突变株S13的丁烯基多杀菌素产量提高幅度最大,相比原始菌株提高了1.79倍。经质谱测定表明,其代谢物中比原始菌株多了一种丁烯基多杀菌素组分Spinosynα1。对抗性突变株S13的DNA序列进行分析,发现在编码核糖体S12蛋白的rps L基因保守区域中出现点突变,第314位和第320位的胞嘧啶(C)分别突变为腺嘌呤(A)和胸腺嘧啶(T),对应的氨基酸残基分别由脯氨酸突变为谷氨酰胺,丙氨酸突变为缬氨酸。研究显示,突变株S13遗传稳定性良好。     

对马铃薯具促生抗病作用的砖红镰刀菌及其遗传转化体系构建

本研究从药用植物马比木Nothapodytes pittosporoides的花瓣中分离获得了1株真菌,经形态学与ITS分子共同鉴定为砖红镰刀菌Fusarium lateritium。使用该菌处理马铃薯后发现,显著增强了马铃薯对晚疫病菌的耐受性,处理组植株感染率为37.5%,相较对照组87.5%的感染率显著降低;植株生长测定发现,处理组的马铃薯生物量、株高、根系生物量和主根数相较于对照组分别提高了1.25、1.19、2.3、1.47倍,表明该真菌对马铃薯还具有促生作用。为探究砖红镰刀菌促生抗病的分子机理,检测了植物生长素合成和免疫防御相关基因的表达模式,结果表明处理组植株生长素合成相关基因（StYUC5）显著上调,而免疫相关激素茉莉酸和水杨酸合成相关基因（StPI-I、StPAL和StPR1A）也不同程度上调。由此推测,砖红镰刀菌通过调控植物激素相关基因的表达介导马铃薯的促生和抗病。为了进一步探究砖红镰刀菌对马铃薯促生抗病的分子基础,构建了其遗传转化体系,并进行了优化,获得了GFP标记菌株。     

New Spirostane from a Fungus Neohelicomyces hyalosporus and Its Bioactivity

A new spirostane, namely neohelicomyine B ( 1 ), together with six known steroids ( 2 – 7 ) were isolated from the fermentation of fungus Neohelicomyces hyalosporus. The structures of these compounds were elucidated by extensive analyses of spectroscopic methods including 1D and 2D NMR and HR-ESI-MS. The absolute configuration of 1 was confirmed by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The bioactivities of compounds 1 – 7 were evaluated using cellular assays. Compound 1 displayed moderate cytotoxicity against HepG2 cells (hepatoma cells) with IC₅₀ value of 8.4±2.1 μM. Compound 7 also exhibited cytotoxic activity against HepG2 cells with the IC₅₀ value of 3.0±0.2 μM.     

Rearrangement of tryptophan residues in caspase-3 active site upon activation

Caspase-3, one of the major apoptotic proteins, is a cysteine protease and exists as an inactive zymogen in healthy cells. In this study, the dynamic nature of the rearrangements of two tryptophan residues (Trp 206 and Trp 214) in the active sites of caspase-3 during the activation was analyzed by measuring the fluorescence lifetimes. Significant changes in the lifetime occurred upon activation by the specific cleavage. In addition, two mutant proteins that have only one tryptophan residue also showed the similar changes. These data indicate that the activation of caspase-3 resulted in the reorganization of both tryptophan residues.     

Structural basis of cellular redox regulation by human TRP14

Thioredoxin-related protein 14 (TRP14) is involved in regulating tumor necrosis factor-alpha-induced signaling pathways in a different manner from human thioredoxin 1 (Trx1). Here, we report the crystal structure of human TRP14 determined at 1.8-A resolutions. The structure reveals a typical thioredoxin fold with characteristic structural features that account for the substrate specificity of the protein. The surface of TRP14 in the vicinity of the active site includes an extended loop and an additional alpha-helix, and the distribution of charged residues in the surface is different from Trx1. The distinctive dipeptide between the redox-active cysteines contributes to stabilizing the thiolate anion of the active site cysteine 43, increasing reactivity of the cysteine toward substrates. These structural differences in the active site suggest that TRP14 has evolved to regulate cellular redox signaling by recognizing a distinctive group of substrates that would complement the group of proteins regulated by Trx1.     

Helix 4 mutants of the Bacillus thuringiensis insecticidal toxin Cry1Aa display altered pore-forming abilities

The role played by alpha-helix 4 of the Bacillus thuringiensis toxin Cry1Aa in pore formation was investigated by individually replacing each of its charged residues with either a neutral or an oppositely charged amino acid by using site-directed mutagenesis. The majority of the resulting mutant proteins were considerably less toxic to Manduca sexta larvae than Cry1Aa. Most mutants also had a considerably reduced ability to form pores in midgut brush border membrane vesicles isolated from this insect, with the notable exception of those with alterations at amino acid position 127 (R127N and R127E), located near the N-terminal end of the helix. Introducing a negatively charged amino acid near the C-terminal end of the helix (T142D and T143D), a region normally devoid of charged residues, completely abolished pore formation. For each mutant that retained detectable pore-forming activity, reduced membrane permeability to KCl was accompanied by an approximately equivalent reduction in permeability to N-methyl-D-glucamine hydrochloride, potassium gluconate, sucrose, and raffinose and by a reduced rate of pore formation. These results indicate that the main effect of the mutations was to decrease the toxin's ability to form pores. They provide further evidence that alpha-helix 4 plays a crucial role in the mechanism of pore formation.     

Competition of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Bacillus thuringiensis</Emphasis> Cry1 Toxins for Midgut Binding Sites: A Basis for the Development and Management of Transgenic Tropical Maize Resistant to Several Stemborers

Binding and competition of five Bacillus thuringiensis toxins—Cry1Ab, Cry1Ac, Cry1Ba, Cry1Ca, and Cry1Ea—for midgut binding sites from three pests, Spodoptera frugiperda, Diatraea saccharalis, and Diatraea grandiosella, were investigated as part of a strategy to develop tropical transgenic maize resistant to several stemborers. On S. frugiperda, Cry1Ab and Cry1Ac compete for the same binding site; Cry1Ba and Cry1Ca compete for a second binding site. Cry1Ea recognizes a third specific binding site in S. frugiperda and does not compete with any of the other toxins. On D. grandiosella and D. saccharalis, Cry1Ac competes with Cry1Ab and not with Cry1Ba and Cry1Ca. Cry1Ba and Cry1Ca recognize each a specific binding site and do not compete with any of the other four toxins. Cry1Ea does not recognize any binding site on Diatraea species. Combinations of toxins are proposed to develop transgenic maize resistant to the three stemborers while allowing resistance management.     

Effects of Agitating Culture Condition on the Growth,Metabolic and Carotenoid Profiles of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Lemna paucicostata</Emphasis>

The effects of agitating culture conditions on the growth, metabolic and carotenoid profiles of Lemna paucicostata were investigated in this study using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry. Lemna paucicostata cultivated under static and agitating conditions showed no significant difference in total plant growth. Various alcohols, amino acids, fatty acids, organic acids, sugars, and phenolic compounds were identified in the sample. The higher relative yields of ferulic acid and GABA were obtained under the agitating condition on day 28, whereas that of coumaric acid was higher under the static condition on day 42. Significantly higher relative yields of antheraxanthin and lutein were achieved under agitation condition than static condition on day 42. In addition, fucoxanthinol was identified for the first time in L. paucicostata culture. The results of this study suggest that static and agitating culture conditions, as well as optimal harvest timing, should be selected according to the target products including ferulic acid, GABA, coumaric acid, antheraxanthin and lutein in L. paucicostata culture.     

Multi-gene phylogenetic analyses reveals <Emphasis Type="Italic">Neohelicosporium</Emphasis> gen. nov. and five new species of helicosporous hyphomycetes from aquatic habitats

Helicosporous hyphomycetes are a morphologically allied group of Tubeufiales. We introduce a new helicosporous genus, Neohelicosporium, with five new species, Neohelicosporium aquaticum, N. guangxiense, N. hyalosporum, N. parvisporum, and N. thailandicum, based on morphological and phylogenetic evidence. The RPB2 protein gene data are provided to analyze their phylogeny in Tubeufiales. Phylogenetic analyses of combined ITS, LSU, RPB2, and TEF1α sequence data from 13 new isolates of Neohelicosporium provided evidence to support the establishment of the new taxa. The morphological characters of Neohelicosporium that differentiate it from other helicosporous species are compared and discussed.