Two mutations in LDLR gene were found in two Chinese families with familial hypercholesterolemia

Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) (OMIM 143890) is an autosomal dominantly inherited disease mainly caused by mutations of the gene encoding the low density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR) and Apolipoprotein (Apo) B. First the common mutation R3500Q in ApoB gene was determined using PCR/RFLP method. Then the LDLR gene was screened for mutations using Touch-down PCR, SSCP and sequencing techniques. Furthermore, the secondary structure of the LDLR protein was predicted with ANTHEPROT5.0. The R3500Q mutation was absent in these two families. A heterozygous p.W483X mutation of LDLR gene was identified in family A which caused a premature stop codon, while a homozygous mutation p.A627T was found in family B. The predicted secondary structures of the mutant LDLR were altered. We identified two known mutations (p.W483X, p.A627T) of the LDLR gene in two Chinese FH families respectively.     

Overexpression of Jatropha curcas Defensin (JcDef) Enhances Sheath Blight Disease Resistance in Tobacco

Plant defensins are small, basic, cysteine‐rich peptides, belonging to the antimicrobial peptide superfamily, commonly found in the plant kingdom. In this study, we cloned and characterized a plant defensin gene from Jatropha curcas (JcDef). JcDef carried conserved receptor binding sites and a cysteine motif, and it was phylogenetically grouped together with defensin Ec‐AMP‐D2‐like in Elaeis guineensis. JcDef is localized to cytoplasm and highly expressed in young tissues with fast metabolism such as cotyledons and stem apexes. Transgenic expression of JcDef in tobacco showed enhanced resistance against sheath blight disease caused by R. solani, indicating the antibacterial function.     

杜鹃花属的研究(二)

灌木,高1.5-3米。小枝适度地纤细,当年生者紫色,有鳞斑,约长4-5厘米,直径1-1.5毫米,一年生以上者淡黄色或褐色,无鳞斑。冬芽长圆锥状,鳞片覆瓦状排列,早落。叶薄纸质,狭窄或长圆状椭圆形,先端渐尖或近于钝尖状锐尖,基部楔形或钝形,长4.5-5厘米,宽1.2-2厘米,上面深绿色,有稀疏的鳞斑,下面淡绿色,有鳞斑,彼此间的距离,为其直径的2-3倍,中脉在上而略四陷,在下面稍凸起,侧脉不发育;叶柄有稀疏的鳞斑,长6-8毫米。     

Five New Guaiane Sesquiterpenes from the Endophytic Fungus Xylaria sp. YM 311647 of Azadirachta indica

Five new guaiane sesquiterpenes, 1 – 5 , were isolated from the culture broth of the endophytic fungus Xylaria sp. YM 311647, isolated from Azadirachta indica A. Juss . The structures of these compounds were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic analyses, and their inhibitory activities against five pathogenic fungi were evaluated. All guaiane sesquiterpenes showed moderate or weak antifungal activities in a broth microdilution assay.     

丁香酚对致热家兔弓状核及PO/AH区脑组织中PGE2和cAMP含量的影响

丁香酚是中药丁香油中的主要作用成份,它具有多种复杂的药理作用,尤其在解热降温方面有显著作用.本研究室以往的电生理实验观察到,丁香酚可反转致热原作用下的PO/AH(视前区-下丘脑前部)温度敏感神经元的放电活动,说明丁香酚的解热作用是通过直接或间接地影响PO/AH神经元的放电活动而实现的.近年来,弓状核在体温调节方面的作用倍受观注.本研究室多年的研究表明,弓状核积极地参与了体温调节活动,因为毁损弓状核后大鼠体温发生明显紊乱.本实验对PO/AH与弓状核在体温调节中的作用进行比较性研究,同时观察家兔发热以及丁香酚解热时在家兔弓状核及PO/AH中PGE2和cAMP含量的变化.     

Dopaminergic pathways and its effects on honeybee behaviors

蜜蜂复杂的社会行为受到了研究者的广泛关注,了解蜜蜂的学习、记忆、导航、信息传递等行为的神经分子基础,可对探索人类自身的脑科学和复杂社会行为的分子基础提供比较研究信息.本文综述了多巴胺的作用机制及其在蜜蜂行为中的作用,详细介绍了蜜蜂脑部的多巴胺受体,总结了蜜蜂脑部多巴胺水平的影响因子等,最后对进一步研究多巴胺神经通路对蜜蜂行为的作用及机制的前景做一展望.     

The DLC-1 -29A/T polymorphism is not associated with nasopharyngeal carcinoma risk in Chinese population

Deleted in liver cancer-1 (DLC-1), encoding a Rho GTPase-activating protein (GAP), is considered as a promising candidate tumor suppressor gene in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). The single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) -29A/T upstream of ATG start codon was found when gene mutation profile of DLC-1 in NPC was analyzed. To evaluate the correlation between SNP -29A/T in the promoter region of DLC-1 gene and risk of NPC, a total of 521 samples from a Chinese population, including 320 healthy individuals and 201 NPC patients, were collected for SNP analysis by PCR-single-strand conformation polymorphism and sequencing. The differences in allele and genotype frequencies between NPC patients and controls were tested using logistic regression statistical method. No significant differences were found in allele or genotype frequencies between NPC patients and controls or among different NPC clinical stages. Hence, our data indicate that the SNP -29A/T of DLC-1 gene is not associated with NPC susceptibility.     

小鼠子宫颈部位输卵管蛋白表达的初步研究

用RT-PCR及免疫印迹法检测证实小鼠子宫颈粘膜上皮细胞具表达输卵管蛋白的能力,宫颈部所获得的输卵管蛋白转录产物, 310到 714的405bp的cDNA片段经序列测定及blast比较表明与输卵管部位表达的输卵管蛋白完全一致(100%)。小鼠子宫颈输卵管蛋白在动情周期的表达波动情况与输卵管粘膜上皮的类似,其表达于小鼠动情期明显增加。Westernblot显示小鼠子宫颈提取物中存在两种不同分子量(60KD,30KD)的输卵管蛋白。原位杂交结果则提示子宫颈粘膜上皮细胞含丰富的输卵管蛋白mRNA信号。通过"原体中风"实验未发现输卵管蛋白在体外对精子活动有影响,其功能尚须进一步分析。     

玉米幼苗萎蔫过程中某些理化性质变化的研究

玉米幼苗在暂时性萎蔫期间失水速率相对较慢,可溶性糖,脯氨酸等渗透调度物质的积累较多,ＳＯＤ活性增加,而在永久性萎缩期间失水速率较快,渗透调节物质减少,ＳＯＤ活性下降,在玉米幼苗萎蔫的全过程中,叶绿素,蛋白质含量及ＣＡＴ,ＰＯＤ活性等迅速下降,质膜透性增大,膜脂过氧化加剧。