Interspecific hybridization of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Prunus persica</Emphasis> with <Emphasis Type="Italic">P. armeniaca</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">P. salicina</Emphasis> using embryo rescue

Embryo rescue technique was used successfully to produce interspecific hybrids by crossing peach (P. persica) as a female parent with apricot (P. armeniaca) and plum (P. salicica). In those crosses that had ‘Yuhualu’ or ‘Zhonghuashoutao’ as female parents, hybrid embryos aborted from the 7th or 8th week after pollination mainly due to post-pollination incompatibility. An embryo rescue protocol was established to rescue such embryos and recover hybrid plants. Modified half-strength MS medium containing 4 mg l⁻¹ 6-BA and 0.5 mg l⁻¹ IBA produced up to 90% germination in the embryos. Modified MS medium with 1.0 mg l⁻¹ 6-BA and 1.0 mg l⁻¹ IBA gave the highest bud induction and multiplication whereas modified MS medium containing 0.5 mg l⁻¹ IAA and 0.2 mg l⁻¹ NAA gave the best rooting percentage. All the hybrids obtained using this embryo rescue technique were verified using simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers. A series of pollen treatments were carried out to partially overcome pre-pollination incompatibility, and it was found accidentally that pollen treatment with electrostatic field not only improved pollen germination but also increased the multiplication coefficient of embryo-induced shoots.     

Loss of viability during freeze–thaw of intact and adherent human embryonic stem cells with conventional slow-cooling protocols is predominantly due to␣apoptosis rather than cellular necrosis

Summary A major challenge in the widespread application of human embryonic stem (hES) cells in clinical therapy and basic scientific research is the development of efficient cryopreservation protocols. Conventional slow-cooling protocols utilizing standard cryoprotectant concentrations i.e. 10% (v/v) DMSO, yield extremely low survival rates of <5% as reported by previous studies. This study characterized cell death within frozen–thawed hES colonies that were cryopreserved under standard conditions. Surprisingly, our results showed that immediately after post-thaw washing, the overwhelming majority of hES cells were viable (≈98%), as assessed by the trypan blue exclusion test. However, when the freshly-thawed hES colonies were incubated within a 37 °C incubator, there was observed to be a gradual reduction in cell viability over time. The kinetics of cell death was drastically slowed-down by keeping the freshly-thawed hES colonies at 4 °C, with >90% of cells remaining viable after 90 min of incubation at 4 °C. This effect was reversible upon re-exposing the cells to physiological temperature. The vast majority of low temperature-exposed hES colonies gradually underwent cell death upon incubation for a further 90 min at 37 °C. Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT)-mediated dUTP nick-end-labeling (TUNEL) assay confirmed apoptosis-induced nuclear DNA fragmentation in frozen–thawed hES cells after incubation at 37 °C for 90 min. Expression of active caspase-3 enzyme, which is another prominent marker of apoptosis, was confirmed by immunocytochemical staining, while transmission electron microscopy showed typical ultrastructural features of apoptosis such as chromatin condensation and margination to the nuclear membrane. Hence, our results demonstrated that apoptosis instead of cellular necrosis, is the major mechanism of the loss of viability of cryopreserved hES cells during freeze–thawing with conventional slow-cooling protocols.     

Fecal Microbiota Transplantation Exerts a Protective Role in MPTP-Induced Parkinson’s Disease via the TLR4/PI3K/AKT/NF-κB Pathway Stimulated by α-Synuclein

Neurochemical Research - Gut microbiota is closely related to the Parkinson’s disease (PD) pathogenesis. Additionally, aggregation of α-synuclein (α-syn) is central to PD...     

Bt rice expressing Cry1Ab does not stimulate an outbreak of its non-target herbivore, Nilaparvata lugens

In this study, the non-target effects of Bt rice “KMD2” expressing a Cry1Ab protein on the performance of the brown planthopper (BPH), Nilaparvata lugens, over multiple generations were evaluated under laboratory and field conditions. In the laboratory, BPH was reared to observe the impact of the Bt rice as compared to its parental non-Bt cultivar Xiushui 11, while the population dynamics and oviposition performance of BPH were investigated in the field. The survival of BPH nymphs fed Bt and non-Bt rice did not differ significantly. The nymph developmental duration of BPH was significantly delayed by the Bt rice by comparison with the non-Bt rice for the 1st and 2nd but not the 4th generation. Most importantly, the fecundity of BPH on the Bt rice was significantly decreased in every generation when compared with the non-Bt rice. In the field investigations, the population density of BPH nymphs was significantly lower in the Bt rice field. However, the temporal pattern of population dynamics of BPH adults was similar between the Bt and non-Bt rice, presumably due to migratory interference of the adults. In the Bt rice field, the percentage of tillers with eggs and the number of eggs per tiller were also significantly lower from tillering to mature stage. Additionally, Cry1Ab protein could not be detected in guts from single BPH adults. In general, our results suggest that the Bt rice “KMD2” could not stimulate an outbreak of BPH.     

Morphological bases of suppressive and facilitative spatial summation in the striate cortex of the cat

In V1 of cats and monkeys, activity of neurons evoked by stimuli within the receptive field can be modulated by stimuli in the extra-receptive field (ERF). This modulating effect can be suppressive (S-ERF) or facilitatory (F-ERF) and plays different roles in visual information processing. Little is known about the cellular bases underlying the different types of ERF modulating effects. Here, we focus on the morphological differences between the S-ERF and F-ERF neurons. Single unit activities were recorded from V1 of the cat. The ERF properties of each neuron were assessed by area-response functions using sinusoidal grating stimuli. On completion of the functional tests, the cells were injected intracellularly with biocytin. The labeled cells were reconstructed and morphologically characterized in terms of the ERF modulation effects. We show that the vast majority of S-ERF neurons and F-ERF neurons are pyramidal cells and that the two types of cells clearly differ in the size of the soma, in complexity of dendrite branching, in spine size and density, and in the range of innervations of the axon collaterals. We propose that different pyramidal cell phenotypes reflect a high degree of specificity of neuronal connections associated with different types of spatial modulation.     

黑木耳多糖对急性脑缺血/再灌注损伤影响的研究

目的:观察黑木耳多糖(APP)对急性脑缺血大鼠的保护作用并探讨其相关机制。方法:成年雄性SD大鼠给予不同浓度的AAP灌胃20d,每天1次,腹腔注射银杏叶提取物(ginkgo biloba extract,EGb671)作为阳性对照,20d后实施右侧大脑中动脉栓塞(MCAO)建立局灶性脑缺血模型。MCAO60min后复灌,复灌24h后进行Longa神经功能损伤评分,并用2,3,5-氯化三苯基四氮唑(TTC)染色法测定脑梗死面积。复灌48h后用TUNEL免疫组化检测神经元凋亡,测定脑组织线粒体内活性氧簇(ROS)的生成量判断氧化应激水平。结果:黑木耳多糖能降低神经功能损伤评分,减小脑梗死面积,减少神经元凋亡,并且能够使缺血复灌脑组织线粒体ROS生成显著减少。高剂量AAP组的凋亡神经元数量、ROS生成量和阳性对照组相比有显著性差异。结论:黑木耳多糖能够对抗大鼠的局灶性脑缺血损伤,其保护作用和减轻氧化应激水平有关,并优于银杏叶提取物。     

Characterization of the putative tryptophan synthase β-subunit from Mycobacterium tuberculosis

The increasing emergence of drug-resistant tuberculosis （TB） poses a serious threat to the control of this disease. It is in urgent need to develop new TB drugs. Tryptophan biosynthetic pathway plays an important role in the growth and replication of Mycobacterium tuberculosis （Mtb）. The β-subunit of tryptophan synthase （TrpB） catalyzes the last step of the tryptophan biosynthetic pathway, and it might be a potential target for TB drug design. In this study, we overexpressed, purified, and characterized the putative TrpB-encoding gene Rv1612 in Mtb H37Rv. Results showed that Mtb His-TrpB optimal enzymatic activity is at pH 7.8 with 0.15 M Na^＋ or 0.18 M Mg^2＋ at 37℃. Structure analysis indicated that Mtb TrpB exhibited a typical β/α barrel structure. The amino acid residues believed to interact with the enzyme cofactor pyridoxal-5＇-phosphate were predicted by homology modeling and structure alignment. The role of these residues in catalytic activity of the Mtb His-TrpB was confirmed by site-directed mutagenesis. These results provided reassuring structural information for drug design based on TrpB.     

生长激素受体及其介导的信号转导

生长激素受体(growth hormone receptor,GHR)是细胞因子／造血因子受体超级家族的一员。它通过二聚体的形式和生长激素(growth hormone,GH)相结合,然后诱发Janus激酶2(Janus kinase 2,JAK2)等细胞因子酪氨酸磷酸化并通过4条不同的途径将信号传入细胞内从而产生一系列的生理效应。现在了解GHR的结构特征、组织分布的基础上,对其介导的信号转导途径作进一步的阐明。     

Dihydroartemisinin-Piperaquine vs. Artemether-Lumefantrine for First-Line Treatment of Uncomplicated Malaria in African Children: A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis

Background

Recent multi-centre trials showed that dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine (DP) was as efficacious and safe as artemether-lumefantrine (AL) for treatment of young children with uncomplicated P. falciparum malaria across diverse transmission settings in Africa. Longitudinal follow-up of patients in these trials supported previous findings that DP had a longer post-treatment prophylactic effect than AL, reducing the risk of reinfection and conferring additional health benefits to patients, particularly in areas with moderate to high malaria transmission.

Methods

We developed a Markov model to assess the cost-effectiveness of DP versus AL for first-line treatment of uncomplicated malaria in young children from the provider perspective, taking into consideration the post-treatment prophylactic effects of the drugs as reported by a recent multi-centre trial in Africa and using the maximum manufacturer drug prices for artemisinin-based combination therapies set by the Global Fund in 2013. We estimated the price per course of treatment threshold above which DP would cease to be a cost-saving alternative to AL as a first-line antimalarial drug.

Results

First-line treatment with DP compared to AL averted 0.03 DALYs (95% CI: 0.006–0.07) and 0.001 deaths (95% CI: 0.00–0.002) and saved $0.96 (95% CI: 0.33–2.46) per child over one year. The results of the threshold analysis showed that DP remained cost-saving over AL for any DP cost below $1.23 per course of treatment.

Conclusions

DP is superior to AL from both the clinical and economic perspectives for treatment of uncomplicated P. falciparum malaria in young children. A paediatric dispersible formulation of DP is under development and should facilitate a targeted deployment of this antimalarial drug. The use of DP as first-line antimalarial drug in paediatric malaria patients in moderate to high transmission areas of Africa merits serious consideration by health policymakers.