Effect of exogenous gibberellin A4/7 on tracheid production, longitudinal growth and the levels of indole‐3‐acetic acid and gibberellins A4, A7 and A9 in the terminal shoot of Pinus sylvestris seedlings

Synchronously dividing cultures of the unicellular green alga Scenedesmus obtusiusculus were cultivated for 24 or 70 h in medium high (1000 μM) or low (60 μM) in phosphorus. Aliquots of AlCl₃ (0, 37, 74, 111, 148, 185, or 222 μmol) were added daily to 1 l cell suspension at the end of the cell division phase. Algae were also grown in media with different pH, adjusted with HCl, in the absence of AlCl₃.
Effects of Al on cell metabolism vary with the intracellular Al concentration and with the concentration of Al available per cell. When the concentration of phosphorus is low, internal concentrations of Al are high and the chlorophyll content and the net dry matter production per cell increase, whereas the photosynthesis and the cell division are increased. Presence of Al in a low P medium decreases the pH of the medium down to 4.5. There are only small effects of Al in the presence of P, due to precipitation of most of the Al with P in the medium.
Despite the Al-induced decrease of the pH of the culture medium, effects caused by Al cannot be explained as a pH effect. Instead, the Al effect may, at least to some extent, be related to a decrease in availability of P in the metabolism, due to formation of aluminium phosphate inside the cell.     

Redescription of the Chengjiang arthropod Squamacula clypeata Hou and Bergström, from the Lower Cambrian, south-west China

The anatomy of the arthropod Squamacula clypeata Hou and Bergström, 1997 from the Lower Cambrian Chengjiang Lagersta¨tte is redescribed based on four newly excavated specimens. The new material was collected from localities recently discovered in the Kunming area, Yunnan Province, south-west China, and preserves remarkable details of the ventral morphology, revealed by preparation. Squamacula clypeata is dorsoventrally flattened and rounded in outline. The cephalon was covered by a wide, short shield, with a large doublure and a pair of uniramous antennae on the ventral side. The thorax consists of nine somites, each protected by a tergite and carrying at least one pair of biramous limbs. The pygidium is covered with a small rounded tergum. The endopod is segmented, equipped with short spines on the inner margin of the coxa and a claw-like structure distally, and the exopod flap-like, fringed with setae. The limbs in the pygidium are like those in the thorax in shape. Squamacula was most probably a nektobenthic predator. The spinose endopod could walk, grasp and grind. The large flap-like exopod was adapted for swimming and respiration. Its affinities lie with the Arachnomorpha, but the relationships with other known taxa remain ambiguous.     

Detection of Salmonella typhi by polymerase chain reaction

A rapid and sensitive method for detection of Salmonella typhi would help in preventing the spread of outbreaks and in clinical diagnosis. In order to develop unique PCR primers to detect Salm. typhi , ribosomal RNA genes from Salm. typhi (Rawlings) were cloned in pUC18. The resulting clone was confirmed by sequencing. The cloned DNA fragment contained the 5S, part of the 23S rRNA genes and the 5S-23S spacer region (EMBL/GenBank accession No. U04734).
It was expected that the 5S-23S spacer region is divergent unlike the highly conserved 23S+5S genes. This was confirmed by comparison with the rRNA gene sequences in the EMBL/GenBank database. A pair of PCR primers specific for Salm. typhi was obtained, based on this spacer region sequence. The specificity of this pair of primers was tested with 54 Salm. typhi strains (of 27 different phage types). All these Salm. typhi strains showed the positive 300 bp PCR product with this pair of primers. Six other Salmonella species as well as six other non- Salmonella bacteria were tested and none showed the 300 bp PCR product. The sensitivity of the detection level was 0·1 pg of pure Salm. typhi genomic DNA, or approximately 40 Salm. typhi cells in a spiked food sample. This pair of primers therefore has the potential for development into a diagnostic tool for the rapid diagnosis of typhoid fever.     

RT－cDNA克隆－PCR法获取犬瘟热病毒融合蛋白基因（F）

纯化鸡胚成纤维细胞培养的犬瘟热病毒（ＣａｎｉｎｅＤｉｓｔｅｍｐｅｒＶｉｒｕｓ,ＣＤＶ）,获得病毒基因组ＲＮＡ后,反转录合成双链病毒Ｆ基因ｃＤＮＡ。将此双链ｃＤＮＡ平端插入ＰＵＣ１９质粒ＳａｍⅠ位点构建重组质粒,进行ｃＤＮＡ克隆。以重组克隆质粒为模板ＰＣＲ扩增,获得ＣＤＶ全长Ｆ基因。将此Ｆ基因插入表达载体ＰＢＶ２２０,在大肠杆菌中表达,通过对表达产物的最终鉴定,可确认所获片段为ＣＤＶ全长Ｆ基因．     

Ce~（3＋）与G－肌动蛋白结合引起的构象变化及对聚合的影响

用Ａｅｄａｎｓ标记肌动蛋白单体Ｇ－Ａｃｔｉｎ上Ｃｙｓ３７４残基作为探针,研究了稀土离子Ｃｅ~（３＋）与Ｇ－Ａｃｔｉｎ的结合及引起的微构象变化。Ｃｅ~（３＋）在低浓度（Ｃｅ~（３＋）／Ａｃｔｉｎ摩尔比＜１）和Ｃａ~（２＋）竞争Ｇ－Ａｃｔｉｎ上二价离子的高亲合位点。Ｃｅ~（３＋）取代Ｃａ~（２＋）引起Ａｅｄａｎｓ荧光强度增强与Ｍｇ~（２＋）取代Ｃａ~（２＋）的结果相同。Ｃｅ~（３＋）／Ａｃｔｉｎ＞ｌ则导致Ａｅｄａｎｓ荧光强度下降。说明Ｃｅ~（３＋）在高低两种浓度条件下结合的位点及对Ｃｖｓ３７４的微构象的影响不同。时间分辩测得的Ａｅｄａｎｓ荧光寿命也支持这一结论。ＣＤ谱结果表明Ｃｅ~（３＋）／Ａｃｔｉｎ＜０．４,Ａｃｔｉｎ的二级结构增加,大于０．４又导致其失去。Ｃｅ~（３＋）－Ａｃｔｉｎ在有／无游离ＡＴＰ时用聚合液诱导的聚合结果表明,无游离ＡＴＰ时,极低浓度Ｃｅ~（３＋）促进聚合,高浓度虽有促进但有所减弱;有游离ＡＴＰ时,Ｃｅ~（３＋）／Ａｃｔｉｎ在实验范围内促进聚合。     

人胸腺素α原cDNA的克隆及在大肠杆菌中的表达

采用基因工程方法制取人胸腺素α原获得成功。用２０ｕｇ／ｍｌ植物血球凝集素（ＰＨＡ）和５００Ｕ／ｍｌ重组人白细胞介素２（ＩＬ－２）联合刺激人胎儿胸腺细胞,从中提取总ＲＮＡ,经反转录ＰＣＲ获得了人胸腺素α原ｃＤＮＡ;将之克隆入ｐＵＣ１９中,序列测定表明与已报道序列一致,进一步将之亚克隆入原核表达载体ｐＢＶ２２０,转化大肠杆菌ＤＨ５ａ．观察到在不改变氨基酸编码的前提下,增加胸腺素ａ原上游引物中Ａ、Ｔ含量,可以明显提高胸腺素α原的表达量,同时,不同培养基对它的表达也有影响。胸腺素α原在大肠杆菌中以可溶形式表达,不需复性。初步活性测定显示,它可明显刺激人外周血淋巴细胞Ｅ－玫瑰花结形成率。重组人胸腺素α原在大肠杆菌中表达,为其临床应用及基础研究奠定了基础。     

艾滋病合并隐球菌感染17例尸检材料的临床病理学研究

在１５１例艾滋病尸检材料中发现１７例合并隐球菌感染,均经病理学确诊,患者男１５名,女２名,平均４３．６岁。１２例发生脑膜炎、肺炎和淋巴结炎各７例,尚见脾（６例）、肾（５例）等器官受累。９例为播散性感染。病变为慢性肉牙肿性,其中见有隐球菌。本文描述隐球菌性脑膜炎、肺炎等临床病理学表现,并讨论其病变特征与病理诊断问题。     

Nitrate Nonutilizing Mutants and Vegetative Compatibility Groups in Fusarium poae

Nitrate nonutilizing (nit) mutants were recovered from 24 isolates of Fusarium poae and used to force heterokaryons between these isolates and to determine vegetative compatibility. Between 30 and 90% of the mycelial blocks, cultured on medium containing chlorate, produced nit mutants. The amount of chlorate in the medium altered the frequency and spectrum of nit mutants recovered. Most of the mutants (63%) had lesions at a nitrate reductase structural locus (nit1). Another 30% were mutants at one or more loci that control the production of a molybdenum-containing cofactor necessary for nitrate reductase activity (NitM). A few (6%) of the mutations occurred in a regulatory gene specific for the nitrate reduction pathway (nit3). Pairings between nit1 and NitM mutants were made on minimal medium containing nitrate as the sole nitrogen source. A mutant grows thinly unless it forms a complementary heterokaryon upon contact with another mutant. Heterokaryon formation was indicated by dense growth where the two mutant colonies touched. The 24 isolates could be divided into 13 nonoverlapping vegetative compatibility groups, suggesting that asexual exchange of genetic information within F. poae is subject to significant limitations.     

A gene encoding a truncated large subunit of Rubisco is transcribed and salt-inducible in rice

Using the rice salt-tolerant mutant 20 as material, a cDNA library was constructed and two salt-inducible clones, SIR5.5 and SIR8.1, were isolated by differential screening. Homology analysis revealed that the two clones together constituted a chimeric rbcL which encoded a truncated large subunit of Rubisco with 337 amino-acids, plus 64 amino-acids of unknown origin. The expressions of both the normal and the chimeric locus appeared to be developmentally regulated and salt-inducible in shoots of the salt-tolerant mutant 20 and its original variety 77–170. In roots, their expressions were salt-inducible in the salt-tolerant mutant 20 whereas no, or only premature, forms were present in the salt-treated original variety 77–170. Higher concentrations of salt reduced the expressions of both normal rbcL and the chimeric locus. ABA showed no effect on their expression.