Macrophages, estrogen and the microenvironment of breast cancer

Estrogen is a major mitogenic stimulus to established breast cancer. Estrogen sources include ovarian, extraglandular sites and breast tissue. Which source primarily maintains benign and breast cancer tissue estrogen concentrations remains unclear. While macrophages may comprise up to 50% of the mass of breast carcinomas, previous studies neglected to study them as possible sources of estrogen. We present evidence that breast macrophages constitute an in situ source of estradiol and that the amount produced is sufficient to mediate cellular proliferation. We utilized immunohistochemistry and RT-PCR to study cell-specific aromatase expression in (i) 29 breast biopsies, (ii) human monocytes/macrophages and (iii) a myeloid cell line (THP-1) capable of differentiating into macrophages. Use of a breast cancer cell line (MCF-7) provided biologic confirmation of the role of aromatization in cell proliferation. We demonstrated considerable amounts of immunoreactive-aromatase (irARO) in breast tissue macrophages and a positive correlation between the proportion of irARO present in macrophages and lesion severity. Using in vitro techniques, we demonstrated that monocytes and THP-1 cells require differentiation into macrophages to produce aromatase in amounts approaching placental levels. The amount of estrogen produced by THP-1 cells stimulated MCF-7 cells to proliferate, an effect blocked by aromatase inhibitors. Estrogen production by macrophages in breast tissue appears sufficient to stimulate the proliferation of adjacent epithelial cells and to autoregulate cytokine production. These findings represent a new dimension of cellular regulation in breast tissue with major biologic implications, amenable to pharmacological manipulation.     

生物破乳剂产生菌的筛选及其方法研究

针对生物破乳剂产生菌筛选难的问题, 采用显色法、溶血细胞测试法、表面张力测定法和排油圈法从6种不同菌源对生物破乳菌产生菌进行了筛选。通过试验筛选得到了17株生物破乳剂产生菌, 其中24h内破乳率高于70%的破乳菌有5株; 油田含油污泥、采油废水生物处理污泥和污水处理厂剩余污泥是筛选破乳菌的较好的菌源; 显色法、溶血圈法存在检测范围的局限性; 表面张力测定法和排油圈法是最为简易和准确的生物表面活性剂产生菌的筛选方法, 采用模型乳状液对生物破乳剂产生菌进行筛选最为直接和准确, 但工作量大、所需时间长, 因此在筛选高效破乳菌时, 建议采用表面张力、排油圈法进行初筛, 而后通过模型乳状液破乳进行验证。     

基于能量融合积分模型的心脏生理物理活动研究

为了更深入地了解目前靠生理实验及临床手段无法洞察的心脏三维空间的电生理运行机制,分析和表现心脏复杂的电生理活动,从而揭示心脏的生理物理特性,本研究通过人类心肌细胞的动作电位传导数学模型,结合基于心脏解剖数据所建立的真实心脏组织结构的三维空间模型,构建出精细的心脏生物物理融合模型,并将心脏在三维空间中的生物物理活动表现出来.实验结果表明,基于心脏动作电位传导的融合模型,不同时刻的动作电位传导在非匀质性组织内的三维空间中的传播位置、空间关系以及生物物理过程被清晰地显示出来,心脏研究人员从而能够以视觉感知的方式认识和深入理解人类心脏电生物物理系统的功能机制,并有助于进一步推测心脏的生理和病理反应.     

Diallyl trisulfide induces apoptosis and inhibits proliferation of A549 cells in vitro and in vivo

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related mortality all over the world. In recent years, pulmonary adenocarcinoma has surpassed squamous cell carcinoma in frequency and is the predominant form of lung cancer in many countries. Epidemiological investigations have shown an inverse relationship between garlic (Allium sativum) consumption and death rate from many cancers. Diallyl trisulfide (DATS) is one of the garlic-derived compounds (also known as: organosulfer compounds, OSC). DATS can induce apoptosis and inhibit the growth of many cancer cell lines. Our study demonstrated that the apoptotic incidents induced by DATS were a mitochondria-dependent caspase cascade through a significant decrease of the anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 that resulted in up-regulation of the ratio of Bax/Bcl-2 and the activity of caspase-3, -8, and -9. Eventually, DATS induced the apoptosis and inhibited the proliferation in a concentration- and time-dependent manner. Furthermore, by establishing an animal model of female BALB/c nude mice with A549 xenografts, we found that oral gavage of DATS significantly retarded growth of A549 xenografts in nude mice without causing weight loss or any other side effects compared with the control group. All the evidence both in vitro and in vivo suggested that DATS could be an ideal anti-cancer drug.     

基于最大熵模型的不同尺度物种分布概率优化热点分析: 以红色木莲为例

单一空间尺度构建的最大熵(maximum entropy, MaxEnt)模型是否具有代表性, 是MaxEnt模型应用与发展中面临的重要问题。本研究基于有效的地理分布位点数据, 利用最小凸多边形法(the minimum convex polygon method)在三江并流、云南省及全国3个空间尺度下分别识别了红色木莲(Manglietia insignis)的建模区域, 并进一步建立MaxEnt模型: 使用ROC曲线分析法与遗漏率(omission rate, OR)检验评估MaxEnt模型预测精度; 基于ArcGIS分析分布概率及其热点区域的分布趋势, 并通过分区统计工具Zonal识别潜在适宜分布区域的质心位置; 采用刀切法检验环境因子贡献率。结果表明: (1)不同尺度下红色木莲的MaxEnt模型都有良好的预测效果, 三江并流、云南省及全国尺度下的AUC值分别为0.936、0.887和0.930, OR值分别为0.18、0.15和0.20; (2)各尺度红色木莲的适生区格局呈现一致性分布趋势, 集中在独龙江、怒江和澜沧江3个流域; (3) 3个空间尺度下红色木莲的地理分布受不同环境因子影响, 存在着尺度依赖效应。由此可见, 红色木莲在不同空间尺度下的预测模型有着稳定的性能表现与良好的预测效果。此外, 我们建议在野外实地调查与野生生物资源保护中加强对普通物种的关注, 在预测物种地理分布的研究中将MaxEnt模型与热点分析结合使用。     

Spred2 Modulates the Erythroid Differentiation Induced by Imatinib in Chronic Myeloid Leukemia Cells

Differentiation induction is currently considered as an alternative strategy for treating chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML). Our previous work has demonstrated that Sprouty-related EVH1 domainprotein2 (Spred2) was involved in imatinib mediated cytotoxicity in CML cells. However, its roles in growth and lineage differentiation of CML cells remain unknown. In this study, we found that CML CD34⁺ cells expressed lower level of Spred2 compared with normal hematopoietic progenitor cells, and adenovirus mediated restoration of Spred2 promoted the erythroid differentiation of CML cells. Imatinib could induce Spred2 expression and enhance erythroid differentiation in K562 cells. However, the imatinib induced erythroid differentiation could be blocked by Spred2 silence using lentiviral vector PLKO.1-shSpred2. Spred2 interference activated phosphorylated-ERK (p-ERK) and inhibited erythroid differentiation, while ERK inhibitor, PD98059, could restore the erythroid differentiation, suggesting Spred2 regulated the erythroid differentiation partly through ERK signaling. Furthermore, Spred2 interference partly restored p-ERK level leading to inhibition of erythroid differentiation in imatinib treated K562 cells. In conclusion, Spred2 was involved in erythroid differentiation of CML cells and participated in imatinib induced erythroid differentiation partly through ERK signaling.     

微生物育种物理诱变技术ARTP的应用进展

微生物物理诱变育种技术广泛应用于改善微生物菌种特性、提高微生物产品产量与质量,并且在生物燃料和生物修复方面也具有重要的应用价值。本文重点介绍常压室温等离子体(ARTP)物理诱变技术在微生物诱变育种方面的应用,其对具有重要工农业应用价值的产芽孢菌种具有明显的诱变优越性。进一步分析了微生物物理诱变育种技术未来的发展趋势和重要应用前景,为微生物物理诱变育种工作提供借鉴。     

Fluorescence resonance energy transfer reports properties of syntaxin1a interaction with Munc18-1 in vivo

Syntaxin1A, a neural-specific N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor attachment protein receptor protein essential to neurotransmitter release, in isolation forms a closed conformation with an N-terminal alpha-helix bundle folded upon the SNARE motif (H3 domain), thereby limiting interaction of the H3 domain with cognate SNAREs. Munc18-1, a neural-specific member of the Sec1/Munc18 protein family, binds to syntaxin1A, stabilizing this closed conformation. We used fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) to characterize the Munc18-1/syntaxin1A interaction in intact cells. Enhanced cyan fluorescent protein-Munc18-1 and a citrine variant of enhanced yellow fluorescent protein-syntaxin1A, or mutants of these proteins, were expressed as donor and acceptor pairs in human embryonic kidney HEK293-S3 and adrenal chromaffin cells. Apparent FRET efficiency was measured using two independent approaches with complementary results that unambiguously verified FRET and provided a spatial map of FRET efficiency. In addition, enhanced cyan fluorescent protein-Munc18-1 and a citrine variant of enhanced yellow fluorescent protein-syntaxin1A colocalized with a Golgi marker and exhibited FRET at early expression times, whereas a strong plasma membrane colocalization, with similar FRET values, was apparent at later times. Trafficking of syntaxin1A to the plasma membrane was dependent on the presence of Munc18-1. Both syntaxin1A(L165A/E166A), a constitutively open conformation mutant, and syntaxin1A(I233A), an H3 domain point mutant, demonstrated apparent FRET efficiency that was reduced approximately 70% from control. In contrast, the H3 domain mutant syntaxin1A(I209A) had no effect. By using phosphomimetic mutants of Munc18-1, we also established that Ser-313, a Munc18-1 protein kinase C phosphorylation site, and Thr-574, a cyclin-dependent kinase 5 phosphorylation site, regulate Munc18-1/syntaxin1A interaction in HEK293-S3 and chromaffin cells. We conclude that FRET imaging in living cells may allow correlated regulation of Munc18-1/syntaxin1A interactions to Ca(2+)-regulated secretory events.