北京地区油菜软腐病病原菌的鉴定

摘要:【目的】确定引发北京地区油菜［Brassica campestris L．ssp．chinensis (L.) Makino var． communis Tsen et Lee］软腐病的病原。【方法】结合病原菌形态、BIOLOG 及生理生化、16S rＲNA 基因序列及亚种IGS区特征分析,对从北京大兴和通州区油菜软腐病样中病原菌进行生物学鉴定。【结果】分离的40 个菌株均能引发 油菜软腐病,但分别为胡萝卜果胶杆菌(Pectobacterium carotovorum) 的2个不同亚种,其中13株为P．carotovorum subsp．carotovorum(Pcc),另27株为P．arotovorum subsp． brasiliensis(Pcb)。接种白菜(Brassica campestris L．ssp．pekinensis)致病力测定分析表明,亚种内、来源相同与16S rRNA基因序列相同的菌株间均存在明显的致病力分化。【结论】Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp．carotovorum和Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. brasiliensis是引发北京地区油菜软腐病的致病菌,后者为首次报道能引起白菜类蔬菜软腐病的常见致病菌。     

Interdomain Hydrophobic Interactions Modulate the Thermostability of Microbial Esterases from the Hormone-Sensitive Lipase Family

Microbial hormone-sensitive lipases (HSLs) contain a CAP domain and a catalytic domain. However, it remains unclear how the CAP domain interacts with the catalytic domain to maintain the stability of microbial HSLs. Here, we isolated an HSL esterase, E40, from a marine sedimental metagenomic library. E40 exhibited the maximal activity at 45 °C and was quite thermolabile, with a half-life of only 2 min at 40 °C, which may be an adaptation of E40 to the permanently cold sediment environment. The structure of E40 was solved to study its thermolability. Structural analysis showed that E40 lacks the interdomain hydrophobic interactions between loop 1 of the CAP domain and α7 of the catalytic domain compared with its thermostable homologs. Mutational analysis showed that the introduction of hydrophobic residues Trp²⁰² and Phe²⁰³ in α7 significantly improved E40 stability and that a further introduction of hydrophobic residues in loop 1 made E40 more thermostable because of the formation of interdomain hydrophobic interactions. Altogether, the results indicate that the absence of interdomain hydrophobic interactions between loop 1 and α7 leads to the thermolability of E40. In addition, a comparative analysis of the structures of E40 and other thermolabile and thermostable HSLs suggests that the interdomain hydrophobic interactions between loop 1 and α7 are a key element for the thermostability of microbial HSLs. Therefore, this study not only illustrates the structural element leading to the thermolability of E40 but also reveals a structural determinant for HSL thermostability.     

Aberrant Expression of Osteopontin and E-Cadherin Indicates Radiation Resistance and Poor Prognosis for Patients with Cervical Carcinoma

Radiotherapy is the first-line treatment for all stages of cervical cancer, whether it is used for radical or palliative therapy. However, radioresistance of cervical cancer remains a major therapeutic problem. Consequently, we explored if E-cadherin (a marker of epithelial-mesenchymal transition) and osteopontin could predict radioresistance in patients with locally advanced cervical squamous cell carcinoma (LACSCC). Patients were retrospectively reviewed and 111 patients divided into two groups (radiation-resistant and radiation-sensitive groups) according to progression-free survival (PFS). In pretreated paraffin-embedded tissues, we evaluated E-cadherin and osteopontin expression using immunohistochemical staining. The percentage of patients with high osteopontin but low E-cadherin expression in the radiation-resistant group was significantly higher than those in the radiation-sensitive group (p<0.001). These patients also had a lower 5-year PFS rate (p<0.001). Our research suggests that high osteopontin but low E-cadherin expression can be considered as a negative, independent prognostic factor in patients with LACSCC ([Hazard ratios (95% CI) 6.766 (2.940, 15.572)], p<0.001).