Identification and expansion of cancer stem cells in tumor tissues and peripheral blood derived from gastric adenocarcinoma patients

Gastric cancer is the fourth most common cancer worldwide, with a high rate of death and low 5-year survival rate. To date, there is a lack of efficient therapeutic protocols for gastric cancer. Recent studies suggest that cancer stem cells (CSCs) are responsible for tumor initiation, invasion, metastasis, and resistance to anticancer therapies. Thus, therapies that target gastric CSCs are attractive. However, CSCs in human gastric adenocarcinoma (GAC) have not been described. Here, we identify CSCs in tumor tissues and peripheral blood from GAC patients. CSCs of human GAC (GCSCs) that are isolated from tumor tissues and peripheral blood of patients carried CD44 and CD54 surface markers, generated tumors that highly resemble the original human tumors when injected into immunodeficient mice, differentiated into gastric epithelial cells in vitro, and self-renewed in vivo and in vitro. Our findings suggest that effective therapeutic protocols must target GCSCs. The capture of GCSCs from the circulation of GAC patients also shows great potential for identification of a critical cell population potentially responsible for tumor metastasis, and provides an effective protocol for early diagnosis and longitudinal monitoring of gastric cancer.     

烟粉虱种内及种间竞争取代机制

B型烟粉虱（Bemisia tabaci）是烟粉虱复合种下危害最为严重的一个生物型,现己成为一种世界性的害虫,被称为“超级害虫”。近年来,存许多地区发现B型烟粉虱竞争取代非B型烟粉虱和其他害虫的现象。综合相关报道．B型烟粉虱竞争取代机制包括资源利用竞争和相互干扰竞争,可能涉及的因素包括：生态位竞争、寄主适应能力的差异、非对称交配互作、高温逆境适应能力差异、药剂敏感性差异及其与双生病毒的互作等,且B型烟粉虱可能含有的独特的内共生菌对增强其竞争能力也具有一定作用。此外,本文还就目前Q型烟粉虱在局部区域严重危害的相关机制进行了探讨。     

A novel role for PECAM-1 (CD31) in regulating haematopoietic progenitor cell compartmentalization between the peripheral blood and bone marrow

Although the expression of PECAM-1 (CD31) on vascular and haematopoietic cells within the bone marrow microenvironment has been recognized for some time, its physiological role within this niche remains unexplored. In this study we show that PECAM-1 influences steady state hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) progenitor numbers in the peripheral blood but not the bone marrow compartment. PECAM-1(-/-) mice have higher levels of HSC progenitors in the blood compared to their littermate controls. We show that PECAM-1 is required on both progenitors and bone marrow vascular cells in order for efficient transition between the blood and bone marrow to occur. We have identified key roles for PECAM-1 in both the regulation of HSC migration to the chemokine CXCL12, as well as maintaining levels of the matrix degrading enzyme MMP-9 in the bone marrow vascular niche. Using intravital microscopy and adoptive transfer of either wild type (WT) or PECAM-1(-/-) bone marrow precursors, we demonstrate that the increase in HSC progenitors in the blood is due in part to a reduced ability to migrate from blood to the bone marrow vascular niche. These findings suggest a novel role for PECAM-1 as a regulator of resting homeostatic progenitor cell numbers in the blood.     

鼠PS1-GFP融合蛋白表达载体的构建研究

Presenilin1(PS1)的突变是早发家族性老年痴呆发生的重要因素之一。目前对于PS1结构和功能的研究表明,PS1作为一种多次跨膜并具有γ-secretase活性的蛋白酶,很可能参与众多的细胞信号传导通路,影响细胞分化和调亡、组织及个体的发育等等。但对于PS1的精细结构和功能目前了解甚少,为探讨PS1的精细结构和功能,本研究构建了鼠PS1-GFP融合蛋白表达载体。方法:我们设计了扩增PS1的cDNA全长的引物,以C57BL/6小鼠9天胚的RNA为模板,利用RT-PCR的方法从C57BL/6小鼠9天胚中获得PS1的cDNA,经测序确认后,将其克隆到pMD18-TVector中。设计引物:上游5’-GCCGAATTCTATGACAGAGATACCTGCACC-3’;下游5’-GAAGGATCCGATATAAAACTGATGGAATGC-3’,上游含有EcoRI酶切位点,下游含有BamHI酶切位点。利用高保真DNA聚合酶通过PCR方法将pMD18-T-PS1质粒中的PS1基因亚克隆到pEGFP-C1载体中,获得pEGFP-C1-PS1融合蛋白表达载体,然后利用EcoRI和BamHI从pEGFP-C1-PS1融合蛋白中切下PS1基因,从pMD18-T-PS1质粒中切下载体部分,经过连接,获得中间载体,利用该重组载体中的EcoRI和SalI酶切位点,酶切连接入pEGFP-N2载体中,获得pEGFP-N2-PS1融合蛋白表达载体,经测序鉴定后备用。     

中国红豆杉细胞紫杉醇合成期与非紫杉醇合成期基因表达差异初步分析

紫杉醇 (Ｐａｃｌｉｔａｘｅｌ,商品名为Ｔａｘｏｌ)是存在于红豆杉属(Ｔａｘｕｓｓｐ .)植物中的一种四环二萜酰胺类化合物 ,因其具有广谱强效的抗癌活性和独特的抗癌机理而倍受人们关注。然而 ,紫杉醇天然资源十分有限 ,自 1992年美国食品与药物管理局 (ＦＤＡ)批准紫杉醇用于癌症的临床治疗以来 ,其供需矛盾日益尖锐[1 ] 。目前 ,普遍认为采用红豆杉细胞悬浮培养生产紫杉醇是解决其药源紧缺问题的最佳途径之一。迄今为止 ,在红豆杉细胞的代谢规律和培养方面均取得一定成果 ,但前景仍不容乐观 ,离工业化大规模生产还有相当大的距离 ,主要…     

珍稀濒危植物蒙古扁桃的组织培养及植株再生

对珍稀濒危植物蒙古扁桃进行组织培养获得再生植株。实验结果表明,在MS培养基上蒙古扁桃幼苗茎尖,茎切段和叶片等外植体均可以脱分化形成愈伤组织,并进一步分化形成再生植株。器官的脱分化与再分化决定于培养基中的激素种类及其浓度。诱导愈伤组织形成的最适培养基为MS＋6－BA0.8mg/L NAA0.1mg/L,芽分化诱导最适培养基为MS＋6－BA0.8mg/L,诱导生根的最适培养基是MS＋IBA0.5mg/L。     

枯草芽孢杆菌α乙酰乳酸脱羧酶基因在啤酒酵母工业菌株中的表达

啤酒酿造中,双乙酰是影响啤酒生产熟化期长短及其风味的主要因素.存在于多种细菌中的a-乙酰乳酸脱羧酶(EC4.1.1.5,简称a-ALDC)[1]能将双乙酰的前体a-乙酰乳酸直接转化为对啤酒风味没有影响的乙偶姻,从而大大降低啤酒中双乙酰的含量,缩短啤酒熟化期.但所有的啤酒酵母菌不产生此酶.虽然在发酵过程中添加此酶是一个解决的途径,但解决问题的根本是将ALDC基因引入到啤酒酵母菌中.国外已开展这方面的研究[2,3],本研究组曾用随机克隆的方法获得了枯草芽孢杆菌a-ALDC基因[4],本文报道了枯草芽孢杆菌ALDC基因在工业用啤酒酵母中的表达研究结果.     

Conserved Loop Cysteines of Vitamin K Epoxide Reductase Complex Subunit 1-like 1 (VKORC1L1) Are Involved in Its Active Site Regeneration

Vitamin K epoxide reductase complex subunit 1 (VKORC1) reduces vitamin K epoxide in the vitamin K cycle for post-translational modification of proteins that are involved in a variety of biological functions. However, the physiological function of VKORC1-like 1 (VKORC1L1), a paralogous enzyme sharing about 50% protein identity with VKORC1, is unknown. Here we determined the structural and functional differences of these two enzymes using fluorescence protease protection (FPP) assay and an in vivo cell-based activity assay. We show that in vivo VKORC1L1 reduces vitamin K epoxide to support vitamin K-dependent carboxylation as efficiently as does VKORC1. However, FPP assays show that unlike VKORC1, VKORC1L1 is a four-transmembrane domain protein with both its termini located in the cytoplasm. Moreover, the conserved loop cysteines, which are not required for VKORC1 activity, are essential for VKORC1L1''s active site regeneration. Results from domain exchanges between VKORC1L1 and VKORC1 suggest that it is VKORC1L1''s overall structure that uniquely allows for active site regeneration by the conserved loop cysteines. Intermediate disulfide trapping results confirmed an intra-molecular electron transfer pathway for VKORC1L1''s active site reduction. Our results allow us to propose a concerted action of the four conserved cysteines of VKORC1L1 for active site regeneration; the second loop cysteine, Cys-58, attacks the active site disulfide, forming an intermediate disulfide with Cys-139; the first loop cysteine, Cys-50, attacks the intermediate disulfide resulting in active site reduction. The different membrane topologies and reaction mechanisms between VKORC1L1 and VKORC1 suggest that these two proteins might have different physiological functions.