The COBRA gene family in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Populus</Emphasis> and gene expression in vegetative organs and in response to hormones and environmental stresses

COBRA proteins have been shown to be involved in both cell wall expansion and/or cellulose deposition. In this paper, we analyzed all 18 COBRA genes (PtCOBRA) from the completely sequenced Populus trichocarpa genome. The 14-member PtCOBRA subfamily I proteins have high similarities to the Arabidopsis (At) COB subfamily, and members with full length sequences were predicted to possess significant potentials for a GPI-anchor site. The 4-member PtCOBRA subfamily II proteins are 45% longer than subfamily I proteins and lack ω-attachment sites at the C terminus, and are more similar to AtCOBL7 subfamily. The expression of the Populus COBRA family genes were regulated in a tissue-specific manner, and were shown to also respond differentially to inductions of hormones and environmental stimuli which affect plant cell expansion. The high levels of expressions, particularly in shoot tip and young root organs, suggests that at least some Populus COBRA genes are likely involved in regulating cell expansion.     

肾阴虚证的现代研究进展

肾阴虚证是中医学的基本证型之一.对中医证的研究,基本方法是运用现代科技手段,通过动物实验与临床研究,探讨疾病发生后"证"与人体生理变化、病理、生化等客观指标的关系,尝试揭示证的实质.几十年来,不少学者从细胞、分子等水平上对肾阴虚证本质做了深入地研究,并已取得了一定的成果,某些方面已形成了共识.这不仅丰富和发展了传统的中医肾阴虚理论,而且为肾阴虚证的临床诊断、治疗、预后判断提供了更客观的、更全面的指导作用.本文从神经内分泌、免疫、微量元素、脂代谢、自由基、细胞因子与介质、基因等方面对肾阴虚证病理生理的客观化研究进展进行了详细地阐述.     

Acquisition and expression of resistance by Bos indicus and Bos indicus X Bos taurus calves to Amblyomma americanum infestation

Purebred and crossbred Bos indicus calves were infested 1, 2, or 3 times with 10 female and 5 male Amblyomma americanum. Resistance was acquired by both the purebred and the crossbred calves after 1 infestation and resulted in statistically significant decreases in the percentages of females that engorged, the mean weights of engorged females, and the mean weights of egg masses. Comparisons between breeds of the percent of female ticks that engorged during the first and second infestations indicate that purebred B. indicus expressed a stronger acquired resistance to A. americanum more readily than did crossbred animals. However, calves of both genetic compositions displayed similar levels of resistance during a third exposure. All tick-exposed and control animals were skin tested with salivary gland extracts of A. americanum, A. cajennense and Dermacentor andersoni. Control, uninfested calves, did not display significant cutaneous reactivity to these extracts. All calves that had been infested had immediate, 30-min, 5-hr and delayed, 24-hr, skin reactions to Amblyomma species antigens. Reactions to D. andersoni salivary antigens in tests of both purebred and crossbred calves with acquired resistance to A. americanum suggest that Amblyomma species salivary gland antigens might have cross reactive moieties with a salivary extract prepared from D. andersoni. Peripheral blood lymphocyte in vitro responsiveness to Amblyomma species antigens was detected in purebred calves after a first, second, and third infestation, indicating the presence of cells of the immune system capable of recognizing and undergoing blast transformation in response to tick salivary components.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Stimulation of synaptosomal uptake of neurotransmitter amino acids by insulin: possible role of insulin as a neuromodulator

Insulin stimulates in a dose-dependent manner (concentration range of 0.1 - 10 microM) the synaptosomal uptake of amino acids characterized by high-affinity, Na+-dependent, veratridine-sensitive transport systems. This stimulation is observed in synaptosomes prepared from each of several regions of the adult rat brain. Both the initial rate of amino acid uptake and the overall capacity for amino acid accumulation are increased. Since these transport systems have been associated with the neurotransmitter role of the amino acids, we postulate that insulin can modulate neurotransmission in the rat central nervous system by increasing the efficiency of neuroactive amino acid reuptake.     

Sex Ratio and Sexual Size Dimorphism in a Toad-headed Lizard,Phrynocephalus guinanensis

Phrynocephalus guinanensis has sexual dimorphism in abdominal coloration, but its ontogenetic development of sexual size dimorphism(SSD) is unknown. Using mark-recapture data during four days each year from August from 2014 to 2016, we investigated the development of sex ratios, SSD, sex-specific survivorship and growth rates in a population of P. guinanensis. Our results indicated that the sex ratio of males to females was 1:2.8. Males had a lower survival rate(6%) than females(14%) across the age range from hatchling to adult, which supported the discovered female-biased sex ratio potentially associated with the low survival rate of males between hatchlings and juveniles. Male-biased SSD in tail length and head width existed in adults rather than in hatchling or juvenile lizards. The growth rates in body dimensions were undistinguishable between the sexes during the age from hatchling to juvenile, but the growth rate in head length from juvenile to adult was significantly larger in males than females. Average growth rate of all morphological measurements from hatchling to juvenile were larger compared with corresponding measurements from juvenile to adult, but only being significant in tail length, head width, abdomen length in females and snout-vent length in males. We provided a case study to strengthen our understanding of the important life history traits on how a viviparous lizard population can survive and develop their morphology in cold climates.     

Association of bluetongue virus gene segment 5 with neuroinvasiveness.

Two strains (UC-2 and UC-8) of bluetongue virus were used to determine genetic factors influencing neuroinvasiveness. Reassortants were produced in vitro, and the parental origins of their genes were determined by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis profiles and restriction endonuclease digestion. Gene segment 5 of UC-8 correlated with neuroinvasiveness of reassortants when inoculated subcutaneously into newborn mice.     

猴肝细胞膜脂蛋白(a)受体的研究

猴肝细胞膜蛋白经 SDS- PAGE和蛋白转移电泳后用免疫印迹法测定 ,硝酸纤维素膜分别与抗牛肾上腺皮质 LDL受体的抗体、LDL、Lp( a)和 PLG温育后见有 3条不同的蛋白条带 ,分子量分别为 370 kd、2 90 kd和 80 kd.用酶标法测定猴肝细胞膜蛋白 ,发现经 Lp( a) + PLG温育后用 Lp( a)抗体反应的结果与 Lp( a)温育后用 Lp( a)抗体反应的结果比较无显著差异 ,而经 Lp( a) + PLG温育后用 PLG抗体反应的结果比单独用 PLG温育后用 PLG抗体反应的作用强 ;同样经 Lp( a) +LDL温育后用 Lp( a)抗体反应的结果与经 Lp( a)温育后用 Lp( a)抗体反应的结果比较无显著差异 ,而经 Lp( a) + LDL温育后用 LDL抗体反应比单独经 LDL温育后用 LDL抗体的反应强 ,排除Lp( a)与 PLG和 LDL的交叉反应 ,实验认为猴肝细胞膜上可能同时存在 LDL受体、PLG受体和Lp( a)受体     

植物苯丙氨酸解氨酶的研究——Ⅵ.水稻、小麦PAL的纯化及基本特性

分离和纯化了的水稻和小麦黄化苗中的PAL,经聚丙烯酰胺凝胶电泳及SDS-聚丙烯酰胺凝胶电泳检验均为单一的蛋白带。水稻、小麦的PAL都具有一定的耐热性,但前者略高于后者;两者的最适pH都在碱侧,前者为9.2,后者为8.8;并均能被巯基试剂NEM所抑制。此外,水稻的PAL比活远较小麦的高;水稻只有一个K_m值,为5.94×10~(14)M,而小麦则有二个,即K_m~L=0.625×10~(-4)和K_m~H=3.1×10~(-4)M。分析不同来源PAL的氨基酸百分组成,发现水稻的酸性氨基酸成分少于小麦;而中性及碱性氨基酸成分则高于小麦。用SDS电泳测得小麦亚基分子量为70,000而水稻则为57,500,推测小麦、水稻PAL全酶分子量分别为280,000与230,000道尔顿。