Evolution of β-amylase: Patterns of variation and conservation in subfamily sequences in relation to parsimony mechanisms

Soybean and sweet potato β-amylases are structured as α/β barrels and the same kind of folding may account for all known β-amylases. We provide a comprehensive analysis of both protein and DNA (coding region) sequences of β-amylases. The aim of the study is to contribute to the knowledge of the evolutionary molecular relationships among all known β-amylases. Our approach combines the identification of the putative eightfold structural core formed by β-strands with a complete multi-alignment analysis of all known sequences. Comparing putative β-amylase (α/β)₈ cores from plants and microorganisms, two differentiated versions of residues at the packing sites, and a unique set of eight identical residues at the C-terminal catalytical site are observed, indicating early evolutionary divergence and absence of localized three-dimensional evolution, respectively. A new analytical approach has been developed in order to work out conserved motifs for β-amylases, mostly related with the enzyme activity. This approach appears useful as a new routine to find sets of motifs (each set being known as a fingerprint) in protein families. We demonstrate that the evolutionary mechanism for β-amylases is a combination of parsimonious divergence at three distinguishable rates in relation to the functional signatures, the barrel scaffold, and α-helix-containing loops. © 1996 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

4种市售抗生素对发酵床垫料中益生微生物生长的影响

目的研究不同剂量土霉素、盐酸环丙沙星、克拉霉素、乙酰甲喹对垫料中益生微生物生长的影响。方法以饲料中抗生素添加量、抗生素在动物体内转化率为依据,观察0.1×国标、1×国标和10×国标对应的抗生素残留对垫料中主要益生微生物生长的影响。结果与空白组相比,0.1×国标的土霉素和克拉霉素残留对3种益生微生物影响小,盐酸环丙沙星和乙酰甲喹残留使枯草芽胞杆菌和酵母菌数量不可检测;1×国标量的土霉素残留对3种益生微生物影响较小,而盐酸环丙沙星、克拉霉素、乙酰甲喹残留造成了益生微生物的不可检测;除植物乳杆菌在10×国标的土霉素残留中生长变化小外,所有检测菌在该浓度其他抗生素残留中均不可检测。结论土霉素、盐酸环丙沙星、克拉霉素、乙酰甲喹残留对垫料中主要益生微生物生长均有不同程度的影响。     

植物入侵机制的主要假说

植物入侵是最严重的全球问题之一,严重破坏生态系统的结构和功能。随着植物入侵现象日益严峻,要控制和解决外来植物入侵问题,了解和掌握植物入侵机制尤为重要。本文概述了植物入侵的多种机制及不同机制间的协同作用,阐述了植物入侵过程中的化感作用、植物-土壤反馈机制、互惠共生关系,以及植物功能性状和表型可塑性对入侵过程的影响,并对多种机制协同与植物入侵轨迹的关系进行综合分析。根据分析结果将外来植物在侵入地的入侵时间轨迹分为引入、定植、建立和侵入4个阶段,把遇到的各种阻碍和促进因素融入其中,提出外来植物入侵曲线图,有助于未来对入侵植物及其影响的研究和管理。对现有的植物入侵研究方法进行分析,提出现阶段研究的不足以及未来的研究方向和目标。     

海洋哺乳动物信息素嗅觉的分子进化

研究感觉基因的进化规律是动物进化领域长期探索的重要问题.哺乳动物通常具有2套嗅觉系统:主要嗅觉系统(MOS)和犁鼻器系统(VNS).其中,VNS主要感知动物个体释放的信息素分子,而信息素在动物的生殖和社会行为中起重要调节作用.为了研究动物信息素嗅觉进化的背后推动力,对海洋哺乳动物的代表物种进行了Trpc2基因(VNS功能的分子标记)的序列测定和进化分析.以前的研究表明,Trpc2基因仅在VNS中表达,其序列完整/缺失与VNS的功能完整/退化完全一致.本研究结果显示,鲸类和海牛类的Trpc2为假基因,鳍脚类的1个分支类群(海豹类)和水獭类的Trpc2也是假基因,提示VNS功能丢失,即信息素嗅觉功能退化;而北极熊和鳍脚类的另一个分支类群(海狮类)保留了1个完整的Trpc2,并且这个基因仍受强烈的净化选择和功能限制,提示信息素嗅觉功能仍然保留.进一步分析表明,信息素嗅觉退化的海兽主要在水中交配,而信息素嗅觉保留的海兽主要在陆地上交配.本研究提出了一个新的科学假说:交配场所的选择可能推动了海洋哺乳动物信息素嗅觉的进化.     

Prognostic Value of the Interaction between Galectin-3 and Antigen Carbohydrate 125 in Acute Heart Failure

Aims

Galectin-3 (Gal-3) and carbohydrate antigen 125 (CA125) have emerged as robust prognostic biomarkers in heart failure. Experimental data have also suggested a potential molecular interaction between CA125 and Gal-3; however, the biological and clinical relevance of this interaction is still uncertain. We sought to evaluate, in patients admitted for acute heart failure, the association between plasma Gal-3 with all-cause mortality and the risk for rehospitalizations among high and low levels of CA125.

Methods and Results

We included 264 consecutive patients admitted for acute heart failure to the Cardiology Department in a third-level center. Both biomarkers were measured on admission. Negative binomial and Cox regression models were used to evaluate the prognostic effect of the interaction between Gal-3 and CA125 (dichotomized by its median) with hospital readmission and all-cause mortality, respectively. During a median follow-up of 2 years (IQR = 1-2.8), 108 (40.9%) patients deaths and 365 rehospitalizations in 171 (69.5%) patients were registered. In a multivariable setting, the effect of Gal-3 on mortality and rehospitalization was differentially mediated by CA125 (p = 0.007 and p<0.001, respectively). Indeed, in patients with CA125 above median (>67 U/ml), values across the continuum of Gal-3 showed a positive and almost linear relationship with either the risk of death or rehospitalization. Conversely, when CA125 was below median (≤67 U/ml), Gal-3 lacked any prognostic effect on both endpoints.

Conclusion

In patients with acute heart failure, Gal-3 was strongly associated with higher risk of long-term mortality and repeated rehospitalizations, but only in those patients exhibiting higher values of CA125 (above 67 U/ml).     

Mechanism of Action of Two Flavone Isomers Targeting Cancer Cells with Varying Cell Differentiation Status

Apoptosis can be triggered in two different ways, through the intrinsic or the extrinsic pathway. The intrinsic pathway is mediated by the mitochondria via the release of cytochrome C while the extrinsic pathway is prompted by death receptor signals and bypasses the mitochondria. These two pathways are closely related to cell proliferation and survival signaling cascades, which thereby constitute possible targets for cancer therapy. In previous studies we introduced two plant derived isomeric flavonoids, flavone A and flavone B which induce apoptosis in highly tumorigenic cancer cells of the breast, colon, pancreas, and the prostate. Flavone A displayed potent cytotoxic activity against more differentiated carcinomas of the colon (CaCo-2) and the pancreas (Panc28), whereas flavone B cytotoxic action is observed on poorly differentiated carcinomas of the colon (HCT 116) and pancreas (MIA PaCa). Apoptosis is induced by flavone A in better differentiated colon cancer CaCo-2 and pancreatic cancer Panc 28 cells via the intrinsic pathway by the inhibition of the activated forms of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) and pS6, and subsequent loss of phosphorylation of Bcl-2 associated death promoter (BAD) protein, while apoptosis is triggered by flavone B in poorly differentiated colon cancer HCT 116 and MIA PaCa pancreatic cancer cells through the extrinsic pathway with the concomitant upregulation of the phosphorylated forms of ERK and c-JUN at serine 73. These changes in protein levels ultimately lead to activation of apoptosis, without the involvement of AKT.     

基于高通量测序的文冠果转录组分析

应用Illumina Hi-seqTM2000高通量测序技术对文冠果花芽进行转录组分析。共获得N50为1 180bp、平均长度为686bp的unigene 58 311条。与公共数据库Nr和Swiss-Prot同源性比较后发现37 047条unigene获得基因注释,另有21 264条unigene未被注释。利用COG数据库将unigene分成25类。通过GO分类和KEGG Pathway富集性分析,将unigene分别归类于55个GO term和128个代谢途径。此外,在9 794条unigene中共搜索到12 213个SSR位点,单核苷酸重复基元出现频率最高(34.95%),其次分别为二核苷酸(32.74%)和三核苷酸(28.64%)。在获得的unigene中发掘出涉及4个开花调控途径(光周期途径、春化途径、GA途径和自主途径)多个基因的同源序列。研究结果可在一定程度上解析文冠果花芽形态分化的分子调控模式与机制。     

树突状细胞在抗真菌感染免疫中的作用

近年来,随着广谱抗生素、抗肿瘤药物和免疫抑制剂等药物的广泛使用,免疫功能降低患者数量的增加,侵袭性真菌感染性疾病的发病率逐年升高。树突状细胞(Dendritic Cells,DCs)是已知功能最强的专职抗原提呈细胞,作为宿主固有免疫和适应性免疫的联系枢纽,DCs在病原微生物抗原的识别与呈递过程中发挥核心作用。研究证明,DCs可通过其细胞表面的多种受体有效识别病原真菌的抗原,并在诱导宿主免疫应答过程中发挥重要作用。本文将对树突状细胞分类及其在抗真菌感染免疫中的识别作用进行系统叙述。     

Nitrogen addition increases intraspecific competition in the invasive wetland plant Alternanthera philoxeroides,but not in its native congener Alternanthera sessilis

Nitrogen is often released in pulses with different frequencies, and N supply pulses may affect growth, reproduction, and biomass allocation of plants. However, few studies have examined how N supply pulses affect intraspecific competition of clonal plants and whether such an effect depends on the N supply amount. We grew one (no competition) or 12 ramets (with intraspecific competition) of both an invasive clonal plant Alternanthera philoxeroides and its native congener Alternanthera sessilis in five different N treatments: control (no N addition), low/high amount with low/high frequencies (pulses). Nitrogen addition significantly increased the growth of both species, while intraspecific competition decreased it. Nitrogen addition significantly increased intraspecific competitive intensity of A. philoxeroides as measured by the log response ratio of growth traits, but did not affect that of A. sessilis. Despite the N supply amount, N pulses had little effect on the growth and thus intraspecific competition of the two species. Therefore, increasing N deposition may change population structure and dynamics and the invasion succession of A. philoxeroides, but changes in N pulses may not.