Non-monotonic effects of GABAergic synaptic inputs on neuronal firing

GABA is generally known as the principal inhibitory neurotransmitter in the nervous system, usually acting by hyperpolarizing membrane potential. However, GABAergic currents sometimes exhibit non-inhibitory effects, depending on the brain region, developmental stage or pathological condition. Here, we investigate the diverse effects of GABA on the firing rate of several single neuron models, using both analytical calculations and numerical simulations. We find that GABAergic synaptic conductance and output firing rate exhibit three qualitatively different regimes as a function of GABA reversal potential, E_GABA: monotonically decreasing for sufficiently low E_GABA (inhibitory), monotonically increasing for E_GABA above firing threshold (excitatory); and a non-monotonic region for intermediate values of E_GABA. In the non-monotonic regime, small GABA conductances have an excitatory effect while large GABA conductances show an inhibitory effect. We provide a phase diagram of different GABAergic effects as a function of GABA reversal potential and glutamate conductance. We find that noisy inputs increase the range of E_GABA for which the non-monotonic effect can be observed. We also construct a micro-circuit model of striatum to explain observed effects of GABAergic fast spiking interneurons on spiny projection neurons, including non-monotonicity, as well as the heterogeneity of the effects. Our work provides a mechanistic explanation of paradoxical effects of GABAergic synaptic inputs, with implications for understanding the effects of GABA in neural computation and development.     

表型可塑性和局域适应在紫茎泽兰入侵不同海拔生境中的作用

紫茎泽兰是我国危害最严重的外来入侵物种之一,为探讨表型可塑性和局域适应在其入侵中的作用,在高、低海拔的两个样地内,测定了来自云南南部640～2450 m海拔范围的6个种源的紫茎泽兰种群的株高、冠宽、分枝数和高温半致死温度(HSLT).结果表明,在高海拔样地,各种群紫茎泽兰株高、冠宽、分枝数和HSLT(2130 m的哀牢山种群除外)均显著低于在低海拔样地,紫茎泽兰各种群的株高、冠宽和分枝数的可塑性指数(0.881～0.975)均较大,而HSLT的可塑性(0.052～0.200)较小.无论在高还是低海拔样地,紫茎泽兰的株高、冠宽和分枝数在种群间的差异均不显著,而HSLT在种群间的差异达极显著水平,表现出明显的遗传分化,但其在种群间的差异仍小于其在样地间的差异.在高海拔样地,紫茎泽兰各种群的分枝数与种源海拔呈显著正相关;在低海拔样地,紫茎泽兰的HSLT与种源海拔呈显著负相关,表现出明显的局域适应特征.表型可塑性和局域适应均与紫茎泽兰的入侵有关,但前者的作用可能更大.     

泾河流域植被覆盖动态变化特征及其与降雨的关系

植被退化是全球环境变化研究的一个重点问题,植被状况是环境评估的重要指标.利用8km分辨率的NOAA-AVHRR/NDVI时间序列数据,对位于黄土高原的泾河流域1982～2003年植被特征及变化状况进行系统分析,并在此基础上评估降雨与流域植被的相互关系.研究主要利用了变化斜率法、主成分分析法和相关分析法,得到如下结论:过去22a来流域植被NDVI均值波幅和变化都很小,变化较显著的区域集中在流域上游和流域边缘的山区.变化斜率分析得出了类似的结论,气候变化以及人类活动导致的土地利用改变可能是影响在流域不同地区植被状态变化的主要原因.对NDVI时间序列的主成分分析发现PC1和PC2与植被覆盖和气候密切联系,PC3和PC4与流域汛期洪水有关,PC5和PC6体现了人类活动的影响.流域的NDVI与降雨显示了良好的相关性,降雨与NDVI相关性的阈值可能在550mm或更高.     

Tree House Explorer: A Novel Genome Browser for Phylogenomics

Tree House Explorer (THEx) is a genome browser that integrates phylogenomic data and genomic annotations into a single interactive platform for combined analysis. THEx allows users to visualize genome-wide variation in evolutionary histories and genetic divergence on a chromosome-by-chromosome basis, with continuous sliding window comparisons to gene annotations, recombination rates, and other user-specified, highly customizable feature annotations. THEx provides a new platform for interactive phylogenomic data visualization to analyze and interpret the diverse evolutionary histories woven throughout genomes. Hosted on Conda, THEx integrates seamlessly into new or pre-existing workflows.     

Exosomes surf on filopodia to enter cells at endocytic hot spots,traffic within endosomes,and are targeted to the ER

Exosomes are nanovesicles released by virtually all cells, which act as intercellular messengers by transfer of protein, lipid, and RNA cargo. Their quantitative efficiency, routes of cell uptake, and subcellular fate within recipient cells remain elusive. We quantitatively characterize exosome cell uptake, which saturates with dose and time and reaches near 100% transduction efficiency at picomolar concentrations. Highly reminiscent of pathogenic bacteria and viruses, exosomes are recruited as single vesicles to the cell body by surfing on filopodia as well as filopodia grabbing and pulling motions to reach endocytic hot spots at the filopodial base. After internalization, exosomes shuttle within endocytic vesicles to scan the endoplasmic reticulum before being sorted into the lysosome as their final intracellular destination. Our data quantify and explain the efficiency of exosome internalization by recipient cells, establish a new parallel between exosome and virus host cell interaction, and suggest unanticipated routes of subcellular cargo delivery.     

我国生态补偿研究中的科学问题

我国生态补偿的研究始于20世纪80年代对生态学意义上生态补偿的探讨和经济学意义上生态补偿的摸索;联合国环境与发展大会后,进入主动的基于环境损失赔偿的理论探讨阶段;随着生态保护的加强、生态工程的实施以及保护和发展矛盾的加剧,生态补偿涵义拓展到对生态环境保护者进行补偿,进入理论和实践相结合的阶段,并成为国内社会各界的热点问题。但是目前生态补偿的涵义、理论依据和补偿标准等生态补偿研究的核心问题仍然存在不确定性。我国生态补偿涵义经历了从生态学意义到经济学意义的发展历程,目前阶段的生态补偿涵义与国际上的"生态系统服务付费"比较接近。理清生态补偿费与环境费、资源费的关系是生态补偿定位的关键,主要是确定与后者的包含或者补充关系;生态补偿的环境经济学理论来源是基本一致的,即环境外部成本内部化原理和公共物品理论,但是生态系统服务作为生态补偿的理论依据还存在基于效益补偿还是基于价值补偿的争论;生态补偿标准确定主要包括基于生态系统服务量化、成本(机会成本)或通过供需双方的博弈等方法,目前仍然处于探索阶段。上述科学问题是决定生态补偿实施的可行性和有效性的关键性问题,需要从我国的实际出发,从不同区域的现实出发结合理论探讨和实践需求进行研究,建议日后加强以下几个方面的研究:(1)与现实需求一致的生态补偿概念的确定和科学定位;(2)以现实有效性为基础的理论依据和补偿标准计算;(3)基于利益相关方多方参与的生态补偿机制研究;(4)生态系统服务研究与生态补偿研究的结合。     

Wistar大鼠C6胶质瘤模型中的肿瘤消退现象研究

目的:建立Wistar大鼠C6胶质瘤模型,研究其生物学特性(病理特性,新生血管特性,模型最佳应用时间段,肿瘤自发消退现象)并对其进行MRI动态扫描观察,了解肿瘤的自然生长规律,与人脑胶质瘤的自然生长规律相比较.方法:Wistar大鼠40只,分成2组,一组30只,二组10只,分别将C6胶质瘤细胞悬液和DMEM培养基立体定向接种于大鼠的右侧尾状核,分别于接种后7,14,21,28,35,50天进行增强MRI扫描,了解肿瘤生长特性,脑组织水肿情况,肿瘤消退现象等.于荷瘤鼠死亡当日取脑组织,液氮速冻后行脏染色,抗CD31免疫组化检查.结果:大部分肿瘤模型于接种后7天可在MRI上见到肿瘤生长,14-28天为快速增长期,并有大量新生血管形成,脑屏障严重破坏,大部分荷瘤鼠死于28天内,有3只大鼠20天以后出现肿瘤自发消退现象,病理切片可见大量炎细胞浸润,肿瘤内部出现软化灶.结论:立体定向建立大鼠C6胶质瘤模型与人脑胶质母细胞瘤具有相似性,部分荷瘤鼠在5周左右有肿瘤自发消退,肿瘤新生血管于7天开始出现并增多,4周后基本趋于稳定.因此利用此模型进行试验研究的最佳时期在14-28天.     

Plant peroxisomal solute transporter proteins

Plant peroxisomes are unique subcellular organelles which play an indispensable role in several key metabolic pathways, including fatty acid b-oxidation,photorespiration, and degradation of reactive oxygen species. The compartmentalization of metabolic pathways into peroxisomes is a strategy for organizing the metabolic network and improving pathway efficiency. An important prerequisite, however, is the exchange of metabolites between peroxisomes and other cell compartments. Since the first studies in the 1970s scientists contributed to understanding how solutes enter or leave this organelle.This review gives an overview about our current knowledge of the solute permeability of peroxisomal membranes described in plants, yeast, mammals and other eukaryotes. In general, peroxisomes contain in their bilayer membrane specific transporters for hydrophobic fatty acids(ABC transporter) and large cofactor molecules(carrier for ATP, NAD and CoA). Smaller solutes with molecular masses below 300–400 Da, like the organic acids malate, oxaloacetate, and 2-oxoglutarate, are shuttled via non-selective channels across the peroxisomal membrane.In comparison to yeast, human, mammals and other eukaryotes, the function of these known peroxisomal transporters and channels in plants are discussed in this review.     

Down syndrome with duplication of a region of chromosome 21 containing the CuZn superoxide dismutase gene without detectable karyotypic abnormality

Summary We report the case of an 18-month-old boy with many typical Down syndrome features but a normal cytogenetic analysis. High-resolution banding techniques on lymphocytes and fibroblasts of the propositus and his parents did not show any detectable abnormality including that of trisomy 21 mosaicism. However, CuZn superoxide dismutase (CuZn SOD) in the patient's red cells was increased as in trisomy 21. DNA analysis (Southern blots) using a human CuZn SOD probe showed that the genotype of the propositus contained three CuZn SOD genes. In situ hybridization on metaphase chromosomes with the same probe confirmed the gene location in a segment enclosing the distal part of 21q21 and 21q22.1. There was no significant labeling on other chromosomes of the patient. These results indicate that the Down syndrome phenotype of this patient is due to microduplication of a chromosome 21 fragment containing the CuZn SOD gene.