Do chromosomal hybrids necessarily suffer from developmental instability?

The role of chromosomal rearrangements in disturbing reproduction in hybrids between karyotypically differentiated groups is fairly well documented. However, the effect of chromosomal changes at other phenotypic levels is rarely considered. In Tunisia, natural chromosomal hybrids of the house mouse exhibit developmental instability, suggesting that a high karyotypic heterozygosity might also affect developmental processes. If this is true, we predict that, in this species, developmental instability should arise in hybrids between any populations with a high chromosomal differentiation. To test this hypothesis, we compare the results obtained in Tunisian mice with those obtained in the present analysis on Madeiran mice. Both systems of races have similar levels of chromosomal differentiation (nine Robertsonian fusions). Unlike Tunisian mice, hybrids in Madeira display a similar level of developmental instability as parental groups. This indicates that structural heterozygosity per se does not necessarily impair developmental stability. It further suggests that chromosomal fusions are not all equivalent in their phenotypic effects, and that the identity of each fusion should be taken into account.  © 2006 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society , 2006, 88 , 33–43.     

中国‘苦水’玫瑰杂交育性的初步研究

油用玫瑰主栽品种‘苦水’玫瑰的栽培园区总见千花无果现象,为此,本研究对‘苦水’玫瑰的杂交育性进行了遗传学研究。授粉试验发现,自然授粉和人工辅助授粉时‘苦水’玫瑰自交不结实;异交时,‘苦水’玫瑰作为母本与‘丰花’玫瑰、‘四季’玫瑰、‘艳霞’玫瑰、重瓣黄刺玫之间具有亲和性,而作为父本与杂交母本都无法成功授粉结实。在雄蕊花瓣化、P/O值、花粉异型性和花粉萌发率等生殖特征中发现‘苦水’玫瑰的花粉畸形现象严重,萌发率近似为零。进而,显微观察小孢子母细胞减数分裂各时相发现‘苦水’玫瑰中存在染色体分配行为不协调,胞质分裂不均一,四分体中有三分体等异常现象。由此可见‘苦水’玫瑰的异常减数分裂行为致花粉败育妨碍其做父本时的受精结实,故雄性不育而非蔷薇科常见的自交不亲和性,是‘苦水’玫瑰自交不结实的主要原因,也表明作为母本通过杂交育种方法改良‘苦水’玫瑰的种质是可行的。     

西藏野生芥菜型油菜构件种群相互关系及其与气候因素的灰色关联度分析

以生物构件理论为基础,运用灰色关联分析技术对西藏野生芥菜型油菜种群构件结构与环境因子的关系进行了研究。结果表明:1)每株角果数、每角果粒数和粒重是产量构成的重要指标,随着每株角果数、每角果粒数和粒重的增大,西藏野生芥菜型油菜的产量明显增加,它们之间的构件因子关联度较大;2)主茎系统是西藏野生芥菜型油菜植株的基础,其间的关联性显示了西藏野生芥菜型油菜植株构件组成的整合作用;3)一级分枝长度、一级分枝角果数、二级分枝数、一级分枝粗度之间有较大的关联度,但与一级分枝发生高度关联度相对较小;4)研究的7个环境因子与西藏野生芥菜型油菜种群的生长关系均较密切,且温度是影响西藏野生芥菜型油菜分布和生命活动相对重要的环境因子,而降水为次要因子。     

STUDIES ON THE FORMATION AND STATE OF DETERMINATION OF THE TRUNK ORGANIZER IN THE NEWT, CYNOPS PYRRHOGASTER

Mesoderm formation in the presumptive trunk organizer was analyzed in gastrulae of Cynops pyrrhogaster. The presumptive trunk organizer showed little or no mesodermal differentiation in the beginning gastrula (0 h embryo). But as soon as the presumptive trunk organizer came into contact with the newly invaginated cranial archenteron roof, it rapidly formed mesoderm. This suggests that this differentiation was brought about by an inductive effect of the underlying cranial archenteron roof. For investigation of this possibility, the presumptive trunk organizer of 0 h embryos (Tr-0) and the newly invaginated cranial archenteron roof (presumptive pharyngeal endoderm and prechordal plate) of successive stages were cultured in isolation and by the sandwich technique. The newly invaginated presumptive pharyngeal endoderm and prechordal plate had no effect on mesoderm formation of the presumptive trunk organizer, and mesodermal differentiation of the combinations was similar to that of the Tr-0 alone. On the other hand, results showed that the prechordal plate, which came into contact with the still uninvaginated presumptive trunk organizer, stimulated dorsalisation of the weakly mesodermized trunk organizer. Based on these results, the stepwise process of mesoderm formation in the trunk organizer is discussed.     

Unraveling seasonality in population averages: an examination of seasonal variation in glucose levels in diabetes patients using a large population-based data set

It has been shown that the population average blood glucose level of diabetes patients shows seasonal variation, with higher levels in the winter than summer. However, seasonality in the population averages could be due to a tendency in the individual to seasonal variation, or alternatively due to occasional high winter readings (spiking), with different individuals showing this increase in different winters. A method was developed to rule out spiking as the dominant pattern underlying the seasonal variation in the population averages. Three years of data from three community-serving laboratories in Israel were retrieved. Diabetes patients (N?=?3243) with a blood glucose result every winter and summer over the study period were selected. For each individual, the following were calculated: seasonal average glucose for all winters and summers over the period of study (2006-2009), winter-summer difference for each adjacent winter-summer pair, and average of these five differences, an index of the degree of spikiness in the pattern of the six seasonal levels, and number of times out of five that each winter-summer difference was positive. Seasonal population averages were examined. The distribution of the individual's differences between adjacent seasons (winter minus summer) was examined and compared between subgroups. Seasonal population averages were reexamined in groups divided according to the index of the degree of spikiness in the individual's glucose pattern over the series of seasons. Seasonal population averages showed higher winter than summer levels. The overall median winter-summer difference on the individual level was 8?mg/dL (0.4?mmol/L). In 16.9% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 15.6-18.2%) of the population, all five winter-summer differences were positive versus 3.6% (95% CI: 3.0-4.2%) where all five winter-summer differences were negative. Seasonal variation in the population averages was not attenuated in the group having the lowest spikiness index; comparison of the distributions of the winter-summer differences in the high-, medium-, and low-spikiness groups showed no significant difference (p?=?.213). Therefore, seasonality in the population average blood glucose in diabetes patients is not just the result of occasional high measurements in different individuals in different winters, but presumably reflects a general periodic tendency in individuals for winter glucose levels to be higher than summer levels.     

Interplay between BRCA1 and RHAMM regulates epithelial apicobasal polarization and may influence risk of breast cancer

Differentiated mammary epithelium shows apicobasal polarity, and loss of tissue organization is an early hallmark of breast carcinogenesis. In BRCA1 mutation carriers, accumulation of stem and progenitor cells in normal breast tissue and increased risk of developing tumors of basal-like type suggest that BRCA1 regulates stem/progenitor cell proliferation and differentiation. However, the function of BRCA1 in this process and its link to carcinogenesis remain unknown. Here we depict a molecular mechanism involving BRCA1 and RHAMM that regulates apicobasal polarity and, when perturbed, may increase risk of breast cancer. Starting from complementary genetic analyses across families and populations, we identified common genetic variation at the low-penetrance susceptibility HMMR locus (encoding for RHAMM) that modifies breast cancer risk among BRCA1, but probably not BRCA2, mutation carriers: n = 7,584, weighted hazard ratio (_wHR) = 1.09 (95% CI 1.02–1.16), p_trend = 0.017; and n = 3,965, _wHR = 1.04 (95% CI 0.94–1.16), p_trend = 0.43; respectively. Subsequently, studies of MCF10A apicobasal polarization revealed a central role for BRCA1 and RHAMM, together with AURKA and TPX2, in essential reorganization of microtubules. Mechanistically, reorganization is facilitated by BRCA1 and impaired by AURKA, which is regulated by negative feedback involving RHAMM and TPX2. Taken together, our data provide fundamental insight into apicobasal polarization through BRCA1 function, which may explain the expanded cell subsets and characteristic tumor type accompanying BRCA1 mutation, while also linking this process to sporadic breast cancer through perturbation of HMMR/RHAMM.     

反义锁核酸阻断耐甲氧西林金黄色葡萄球菌agr群体感应系统

目的:利用反义策略,设计、筛选针对agrA mRNA的反义锁核酸,阻断agr群体感应系统,降低MRSA毒力因子的表达,减小细菌生存压力,为抗耐药菌感染提供一种新策略。方法:应用Primer Premier 5.0和RNA structure 4.5两种软件,设计、筛选2条针对agrA mRNA的反义寡核苷酸序列,对其进行锁核酸修饰,并与透膜肽(KFF)3K共价连接,将这两条反义序列导入细菌体内。体外与MRSA共培养,观察细菌生存情况。实时定量PCR检测其对agrA及agr群体感受系统的效应分子RNAⅢ和下游毒力基因hla的转录水平的影响,Western blot检测其是否能抑制α-溶血素的表达。结果:两条反义锁核酸序列PLNA34和PLNA522在体外均无抗菌活性,但都能不同程度的抑制agrA,RNAⅢ和hla的转录水平;相比较而言,PLNA34的抑制效果更佳,并能明显抑制α-溶血素的分泌表达。结论:agrA可作为抗MRSA感染的新靶点,为新型抗MRSA药物的研发提供了理论基础。     

农杆菌介导5种中草药叶片瞬时表达的研究

农杆菌介导的瞬时基因表达因其操作简单、可重复性高和实验成本低而成为研究基因功能、生产活性蛋白的有效方法.该研究以非病毒型(载体Ⅰ)和病毒型二元载体(载体Ⅱ)及两种农杆菌(EHA105、LBA4404)为介导,通过叶片渗透法在5种中草药(甘草、黄芩、黄芪、大黄、板蓝根)叶片中进行报告基因GFP的瞬时表达,并对影响表达的因...