Amelioration of cognitive deficits in plaque‐bearing Alzheimer's disease model mice through selective reduction of nascent soluble A42 without affecting other A pools

Given that amyloid‐β 42 (Aβ42) is believed to be a culprit in Alzheimer's disease (AD), reducing Aβ42 production should be a potential therapeutic approach. γ‐Secretase modulators (GSMs) cause selective reduction of Aβ42 or both reduction of Aβ42 and Aβ40 without affecting total Aβ through shifting the γ‐cleavage position in amyloid precursor protein. We recently reported on GSM‐2, one of the second‐generation GSMs, that selectively reduced brain Aβ42 level and significantly ameliorated cognitive deficits in plaque‐free 5.5‐month‐old Tg2576 AD model mice. Here, we investigated the effects of GSM‐2 on 10‐, 14‐, and 18‐month‐old mice which had age‐dependent increase in amyloid plaques. Eight‐day treatment with GSM‐2 significantly ameliorated cognitive deficits measured by Y‐maze task in the mice of any age. However, GSM‐2 reduced brain soluble Aβ42 only in 10‐month‐old mice. In contrast, GSM‐2 markedly reduced newly synthesized soluble Aβ42 in both 10‐ and 18‐month‐old mice with similar efficacy when measured using the stable isotope‐labeling technique, suggesting that nascent Aβ42 plays a more significant role than plaque‐associated soluble Aβ42 in the cognitive deterioration of Tg2576 mice. These findings further indicate the potential utility of approach to reducing Aβ42 synthesis in AD therapeutic regimens.     

Characterization of the quantitative trait locus OilA1 for oil content in Brassica napus

Increasing seed oil content has become one of the most important breeding criteria in rapeseed (Brassica napus). However, oil content is a complex quantitative trait. QTL mapping in a double haploid population (SG population) emerging from a cross between a German (Sollux) and Chinese (Gaoyou) cultivars revealed one QTL for oil content on linkage group A1 (OilA1), which was mapped to a 17 cM genetic interval. To further validate and characterize the OilA1, we constructed a high-resolution map using B. rapa sequence resources and developed a set of near-isogenic lines (NILs) by employing a DH line SG-DH267 as donor and Chinese parent Gaoyou as recurrent background. The results showed highly conserved synteny order between B. rapa and B. napus within the linkage group A1 and revealed a possible centromere region between two markers ZAASA1-38 and NTP3 (2.5 cM). OilA1 was firstly validated by 250 BC₅F₂ plants and was confirmed in a 10.6 cM interval between the markers ZAASA1-47 and ZAASA1-77. Further substitution mapping was conducted by using two generations of QTL-NILs, 283 lines from eight BC₅F_3:4 families and 428 plants from six BC₅F₄ sub-NILs and thus narrowed the OilA1 interval to 6.9 cM and 4.3 cM (1.4 Mb), respectively. Field investigations with two replications using homozygous BC₅F_3:4 sister sub-NILs indicated that NILs, which carry a Sollux chromosome segment across the target region showed significant higher oil content (1.26 %, p < 0.001) than their sister NILs containing Gaoyou chromosome. The OilA1 locus is of particular interest for breeding purpose in China because 80 % of Chinese cultivars do not carry this desirable allele.     

Linking carbon and nitrogen metabolism to depth distribution of submersed macrophytes using high ammonium dosing tests and a lake survey

相似文献   

Biosynthesis of ethylene glycol in Escherichia coli

Ethylene glycol (EG) is an important platform chemical with steadily expanding global demand. Its commercial production is currently limited to fossil resources; no biosynthesis route has been delineated. Herein, a biosynthesis route for EG production from d-xylose is reported. This route consists of four steps: d-xylose?→?d-xylonate?→?2-dehydro-3-deoxy-d-pentonate?→?glycoaldehyde?→?EG. Respective enzymes, d-xylose dehydrogenase, d-xylonate dehydratase, 2-dehydro-3-deoxy-d-pentonate aldolase, and glycoaldehyde reductase, were assembled. The route was implemented in a metabolically engineered Escherichia coli, in which the d-xylose?→?d-xylulose reaction was prevented by disrupting the d-xylose isomerase gene. The most efficient construct produced 11.7 g?L^?1 of EG from 40.0 g?L^?1 of d-xylose. Glycolate is a carbon-competing by-product during EG production in E. coli; blockage of glycoaldehyde?→?glycolate reaction was also performed by disrupting the gene encoding aldehyde dehydrogenase, but from this approach, EG productivity was not improved but rather led to d-xylonate accumulation. To channel more carbon flux towards EG than the glycolate pathway, further systematic metabolic engineering and fermentation optimization studies are still required to improve EG productivity.     

新疆额尔齐斯河流域冷水鱼肠道耐低温乳酸菌的分离筛选及其遗传差异

[目的]从新疆阿勒泰地区额尔齐斯河流域冷水鱼肠道中分离耐低温的乳酸菌,挖掘乳酸菌的物种和遗传多样性,为低温乳酸菌生物技术研发提供优良菌种.[方法]利用MRS、Elliker两种不同培养基从9种冷水鱼肠道中,分离筛选出耐低温菌,测定细菌最适生长温度并进行常规生理生化实验.根据16S rRNA基因序列初步确定耐低温菌的系统进化地位,并采用BOX、(GTG)5、ERIC三种不同的引物进行rep-PCR,对16S rRNA基因高度同源性的菌株进一步区分.[结果]分离得到78株耐冷菌,最终确定有24株为耐低温乳酸菌,菌株的最适生长温度在15-24℃之间.系统发育分析结果表明:24株耐低温乳酸菌隶属于6个属,其中肉杆菌属(Carnobacterium)3株,乳球菌属(Lactococcus)9株,肠球菌属(Enterococcus)7株,环丝菌属(Brochothrix)1株,魏斯氏菌属(Weissella)2株,链球菌属(Streptococcus)2株.指纹图谱聚类分析树状图显示乳球菌属(Lactococcus)和肠球菌属(Enterococcus)存在种及菌株水平上的遗传差异,前者包括4个种,后者2个种.[结论]新疆额尔齐斯河流域冷水鱼肠道中分离的耐低温乳酸菌以球菌为主,没分离到常见的乳杆菌,需进一步完善分离培养的方法,深入挖掘和研究其物种多样性和遗传多样性.     

Cloning,expression and characterization of d-aminoacylase from Achromobacter xylosoxidans subsp. denitrificans ATCC 15173

d-Aminoacylase catalyzes the conversion of N-acyl-d-amino acids to d-amino acids and fatty acids. The aim of this study was to identify the d-aminoacylase gene from Achromobacter xylosoxidans subsp. denitrificans ATCC 15173 and investigate the biochemical characterization of the enzyme. A previously uncharacterized d-aminoacylase gene (ADdan) from this organism was cloned and sequenced. The open reading frame (ORF) of ADdan was 1467 bp in size encoding a 488-amino acid polypeptide. ADdan, with a high amino acid similarity to N-acyl-d-aspartate amidohydrolase from Alcaligenes A6, showed relatively low sequence similarities to other characterized d-aminoacylases. The recombinant ADdan protein was expressed in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3) using pET-28a with a T7 promoter. The enzyme was purified in a single chromatographic step using nickel affinity gel column. The molecular mass of the expressed protein, calculated by SDS–PAGE, was about 52 kDa. The purified ADdan showed optimal activity at pH 8.0 and 50 °C, and was stable at pH 6.0–8.0 and up to 45 °C. Its activity was inhibited by Cu²⁺, Fe²⁺, Ca²⁺, Mn²⁺, Ni²⁺, Zn²⁺ and Hg²⁺, whereas Mg²⁺ had no significant influence on this recombinant d-aminoacylase. This is the first report on the characterization of d-aminoacylase with activity towards both N-acyl derivatives of neutral d-amino acids and N-acyl-d-aspartate. The characteristics of ADdan could prove to be of interest in industrial production of d-amino acids.     

Construction of novel chimeric proteins through the truncation of SEC2 and Sak from Staphylococcus aureus

It is an usual clinical phenomenon that cancer patients are prone to thrombosis. Until now, there have been no efficient methods or appropriate drugs to prevent and cure tumor thrombus. Therefore, the construction of a bifunctional chimeric protein for the treatment of cancer, complicated with thrombosis, is of great significance. Utilizing the superantigenic activity of staphylococcal enterotoxin C2 (SEC2) and the thrombolytic activity of staphylokinase (Sak), Sak-linker-SEC2 and SEC2-linker-Sak were constructed which had good anti-tumor and thrombolytic activities at the same time. Due to the intrinsic emetic activity of SEC2 and high molecular weight (MW) of chimeric proteins (44?kDa), their clinical applications will be restricted. In this study, novel chimeric proteins including ΔSEC2–ΔSak and ΔSak–ΔSEC2 were constructed through the truncation of SEC2 and Sak without 9-Ala linker and His-tag. Compared with the former, both the truncated proteins preserved nearly the same anti-tumor and thrombolytic activities. In addition, their MWs were only 29?kDa and their immunoreactivities were slightly lower than that of Sak-linker-SEC2 and SEC2-linker-Sak, respectively. Therefore, the novel chimeric proteins possessed merits and characteristics, such as low MS, low immunogenicity, and difunctionality which the former had not. It will be of great interest if the above-mentioned proteins can be used to cure Trousseau syndrome in clinic.