Anti-apoptotic effect of magnolol in myocardial ischemia and reperfusion injury requires extracellular signal-regulated kinase1/2 pathways in rat in vivo

Magnolol, an active component extracted from Magnolia officinalis, has been reported to have protective effect on ischemia and reperfusion (I/R)-induced injury in experimental animals. The aim of the present investigation was to further evaluate the mechanism(s) by which magnolol reduces I/R-induced myocardial injury in rats in vivo. Under anesthesia, left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery was occluded for 30 min followed by reperfusion for 24 h (for infarct size and cardiac function analysis). In some experiments, reperfusion was limited to 1 h or 6 h for analysis of biochemical and molecular events. Magnolol and DMSO solution (vehicle) were injected intra-peritoneally 1 h prior to I/R insult. The infarct size was measured by TTC technique and heart function was monitored by Millar Catheter. Apoptosis related events such as p-ERK, p-Bad, Bcl-xl and cytochrome c expression were evaluated by Western blot analysis and myocardial caspase-3 activity was also measured. Magnolol (10 mg/kg) reduced infarct size by 50% (P < 0.01 versus vehicle), and also improved I/R-induced myocardial dysfunction. Left ventricular systolic pressure and positive and negative maximal values of the first derivative of left ventricular pressure (dP/dt) were significantly improved in magnolol-treated rats. Magnolol increased the expression of phosphor ERK and Bad which resulted in inhibition of myocardial apoptosis as evidenced by TUNEL analysis and DNA laddering experiments. Application of PD 98059, a selective MEK1/2 inhibitor, strongly antagonized the effect of magnolol. Taken together, we concluded that magnolol inhibits apoptosis through enhancing the activation of ERK1/2 and modulation of the Bcl-xl proteins which brings about reduction of infarct size and improvement of cardiac function in I/R-induced injury.     

Development of species-specific quantitative real-time PCR primers for detecting anginosus group streptococci based on the rpoB

In this study, we introduced species-specific quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) primers designed based on a DNA-dependent RNA polymerase beta-subunit gene for detecting anginosus group streptococci (AGS), Streptococcus anginosus, S. constellatus, and S. intermedius. The specificity of the qPCR primers was confirmed by conventional PCR with the genomic DNAs of 76 strains regarding 44 bacterial species including the type strain for the target species. The standard curves revealed the lower detection limits of these species-specific qPCR primers was 40 fg at below a cycle threshold (C_T) value of 35. These results suggest that AGS species-specific qPCR primers are suitable for applications in epidemiological studies associated with infectious diseases related to AGS.     

Effects of three biological control approaches and their combination on the restoration of eutrophicated waterbodies

Choosing appropriate approaches is a key to successfully using biological control measures to accelerate the recovery of eutrophic waterbodies. In this study, we used three biomanipulation approaches—including introducing filter-feeding bivalves, stocking planktivorous fish, replanting submerged macrophytes—as well as an approach that combined all three of these methods in order to investigate their effects on water quality and plankton communities within simulation experiment systems. The experimental results showed that only stocking filter-feeding bivalves or fish could not significantly control the total algal biomass and water nutrient concentrations compared to those of the controls. The cladoceran biomasses were reduced under the treatments of stocking filter-feeding bivalves or fish. However, replanting macrophytes and a combined biological restoration approach could significantly reduce the algal biomass and the nutrient content, and both of these methods increased cladoceran biomass. The results of factor analysis of ten environmental parameters suggested that a combined biological restoration treatment was the most effective at controlling the algal biomass and reducing the nutrient content. In conclusion, combination of biological restoration measures was the best treatment out of the three treatments that were tested, and we suggest that more whole-lake scale experiments are needed. Additionally, designing a combined approach should not be a simple superposition of individual measures, but the measures should be complementary to each other.     

葡萄糖氧化酶解除黄曲霉毒素M_1的应用研究

试验旨在研究葡萄糖氧化酶解除黄曲霉毒素M_1毒性的应用效果。选择含有7.2μg/kg(A组)和19.5μg/kg(B组)黄曲霉毒素B_1(AFB_1)的玉米饲料,分别添加5‰固体和液体葡萄糖氧化酶制剂,连续饲喂奶牛10 d,同时和延后测定鲜牛奶和尿中黄曲霉毒素M_1(AFM_1)量。测定数据表明,与AFB_1组相比,固体酶A组产牛奶中AFM_1未检出,B组中AFM_1含量平均减少了76.47%;液体酶A组产牛奶中AFM_1未检出,B组中AFM_1平均减少了82.35%。尿中AFM_1量减少了75%、70.5%和75%、73.1%;与对照组相比,牛奶产量、牛奶中蛋白质及脂肪含量没有变化。     

Pregnancy Loss Following Coxsackievirus B3 Infection in Mice during Early Gestation Due toHigh Expression of Coxsackievirus-Adenovirus Receptor (CAR) in Uterus and Embryo

Coxsackieviruses are important pathogens in children and the outcomes of neonatal infection can be serious or fatal. However, the outcomes of coxsackievirus infection during early gestation are not well defined. In this study, we examined the possibility of vertical transmission of coxsackievirus B3 (CVB3) and the effects of CVB3 infection on early pregnancy of ICR mice. We found that the coxsackievirus and adenovirus receptor (CAR) was highly expressed not only in embryos but also in the uterus of ICR mice. CVB3 replicated in the uterus 1 to 7 days post-infection (dpi), with the highest titer at 3 dpi. The pregnancy loss rate in mice infected with CVB3 during early gestation was 38.3%, compared to 4.7% and 2.7% in mock-infected and UV-inactivated-CVB3 infected pregnant mice, respectively. These data suggest that the uterus and embryo, which express abundant CAR, are important targets of CVB3 and that the vertical transmission of CVB3 during early gestation induces pregnancy loss.     

Rad9 plays an important role in DNA mismatch repair through physical interaction with MLH1

Rad9 is conserved from yeast to humans and plays roles in DNA repair (homologous recombination repair, and base-pair excision repair) and cell cycle checkpoint controls. It has not previously been reported whether Rad9 is involved in DNA mismatch repair (MMR). In this study, we have demonstrated that both human and mouse Rad9 interacts physically with the MMR protein MLH1. Disruption of the interaction by a single-point mutation in Rad9 leads to significantly reduced MMR activity. This disruption does not affect S/M checkpoint control and the first round of G₂/M checkpoint control, nor does it alter cell sensitivity to UV light, gamma rays or hydroxyurea. Our data indicate that Rad9 is an important factor in MMR and carries out its MMR function specifically through interaction with MLH1.     

Las-like quorum-sensing system negatively regulates both pyoluteorin and phenazine-1-carboxylic acid production in Pseudomonas sp. M18

A las-like quorum-sensing system in Pseudomonas sp. M18 was identified, which consisted of lasI and lasR genes encoding LuxI-LuxR type regulator. Several functions of the las system from strain M18 were investigated in this study. The chromosomal inactivation of either lasI or lasR by recombination increased the production of both pyoluteorin (Plt) and phenazine-1-carboxylic acid (PCA) by 4－5 fold and 2－3 fold over that of the wild type strain of M18, respectively. Production of both antibiotics was restored to wild-type levels after in trans complementation with the wild-type lasI or lasR gene. Ex-pression of the translational fusions pltA&#1523;-&#1523;lacZ and phzA&#1523;-&#1523;lacZ further confirmed the negative effect of lasI or lasR on both biosynthetic operons, and it was also demonstrated that the las system was related to the ability of swarming motility and the inhibition of cell growth.     

不同处理对濒危植物黄枝油杉扦插育苗的影响

黄枝油杉属珍稀濒危植物,树形高大,采种困难,母树开花结实少,种子发芽率低,繁殖速度慢。采用扦插育苗,方法简便易行,繁殖速度快。为此,针对与黄枝油杉扦插育苗成活、生长密切相关的插穗粗度、ABT生根粉浓度和施肥种类三大因素,分别进行对比试验。结果表明:插穗茎粗0.70cm用150mg/LABT生根粉溶液处理的平均成活率达95.6%;扦插成活后施用粪肥+尿素(配比为100∶0.4)的混合肥苗木生长健壮,平均抽梢长达30.8cm。方差分析和多重比较分析结果表明,插穗粗度、ABT生根粉浓度和肥料种类对黄枝油杉扦插苗木的生长影响极大。     

Ca2+: a stabilizing component of the transglutaminase activity of Galphah (transglutaminase II)

Galphah (transglutaminase type II; tissue transglutaminase) is a bifunctional enzyme with transglutaminase (TGase) and guanosine triphosphatase (GTPase) activities. The GTPase function of Galphah is involved in hormonal signaling and cell growth while the TGase function plays an important role in apoptosis and in cross-linking extracellular and intracellular proteins. To analyze the regulation of these dual enzymatic activities we examined their calcium-dependence and thermal stability in enzymes from several cardiac sources (mouse heart, and normal, ischemic and dilated cardiomyopathic human hearts). The GTP binding activity of Galphah was markedly inhibited by Ca2+ whereas the TGase activity was strongly stimulated, suggesting that Ca2+ acts as a regulator, switching Galphah from a GTPase to a TGase. The TGase function of Galphah of both mouse and human hearts was more thermostable in the presence of Ca2+.