Sequence, distribution and quantification of the motilin precursor in the cat

Due to motilin's relation to the migrating motor complex (MMC), the physiology of motilin has been mostly studied in man and dog. The cat does not have an MMC pattern, and little is known about cat motilin. Therefore we identified the cat motilin precursor (GenBank accession no. AF127917) and developed a quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to explore its distribution in the gastrointestinal tract and in the central nervous system (CNS). The precursor is closely related to the dog precursor and consists of an open reading frame of 348bp encoding the signal peptide (25 amino acids), the motilin sequence (22 amino acids) and the motilin associated peptide (69 amino acids). One amino acid of the signal peptide was subject to gene polymorphism. Quantification of motilin messenger RNA (mRNA) was for the first time achieved. It is most abundant in the gastrointestinal tract, with the highest concentration in the duodenum, the lowest in the colon and is not detectable in the corpus. However an important expression was also observed in several regions of the CNS, except the striatum and cerebral cortex. The highest level was in the hypothalamus (although 23-fold lower than in the duodenum), the lowest level in the pons. Moderate levels were found in the thyroid. These data suggest that the physiological role of motilin may extend beyond its effect on gastrointestinal motility.     

Duplication and adaptive evolution of the chalcone synthase genes of Dendranthema (Asteraceae)

Chalcone synthase (CHS) is a key enzyme in the biosynthesis of flavonoids, which are important for the pigmentation of flowers and act as attractants to the pollinators. Genes encoding CHS constitute a multigene family in which the copy number varies among plant species and functional divergence appears to have occurred repeatedly. Plants of the Dendranthema genus have white, yellow, and pink flowers, exhibiting considerable variation in flower color. In this article, 18 CHS genes from six Dendranthema species were sequenced. Two of them were found to be pseudogenes. The functional Dendranthema CHS genes formed three well-supported subfamilies: SF1, SF2, and SF3. The inferred phylogeny of the CHS genes of Dendranthema and Gerbera suggests that those genes originated as a result of duplications before divergence of these two genera, and the function of Dendranthema CHS genes have diverged in a similar fashion to the Gerbera CHS genes; i.e., the genes of SF1 and SF3 code for typical CHS enzymes expressed during different stages of development, whereas the genes of SF2 code for another enzyme that is different from CHS in substrate specificity and reaction. Relative rate tests revealed that the Dendranthema CHS genes significantly deviated from clocklike evolution at nonsynonymous sites. Maximum likelihood analysis showed that the nonsynonymous-synonymous (omega = d(N)/d(S)) rate ratio for the lineage ancestral to SF2 was much higher than for other lineages, with some sites having a ratio well above one. Positive selective pressure appears to have driven the divergence of SF2 from SF1 and SF3.     

B.B.R对严重烧伤大鼠肠道屏障功能的保护作用

目的 :探索 B.B.R(复合生态制剂 )对严重烧伤早期肠道屏障功能的保护作用 ,为防治肠源性感染寻找新途径。方法 :选用健康 Wistar大鼠 13 0只 ,体重 180～ 2 2 0 g,雌雄各半 ,随机分为 B.B.R治疗组 ,BFL(单一双歧杆菌制剂 )治疗组 ,烧伤对照组 (BC)和正常对照组 (NC) ,建立 3 0 % °烫伤肠源性感染的动物模型 ,按时分批活杀取材 ,检测细菌易位率、盲肠膜菌群、血浆内毒素和肠粘膜 s Ig A的含量。结果 :B.B.R和 BFL 组 ,伤后 3 d肠道细菌易位率分别为 10 %、2 0 .7% ,与 BC组 (3 3 % )比较明显降低了细易位率。血浆内毒素 BC组明显高于 NC组 (P>0 .0 5 ) ,而 B.B.R组与 NC组比较 ,差异无显著性 (P<0 .0 1)。BC组盲肠中双歧杆菌数量与 BC组比较明显减少 ,而 B.B.R、BFL 组与 NC组比较差异无显著性 (P>0 .0 5 ) ;NC组肠道中酵母菌和大肠埃希菌与 NC比较明显增加 ,B.B.R组差异无显著性 ,肠粘液 s Ig A水平与上述指标有类似变化。结论 :3 0 % °烫伤大鼠肠道内容物双歧杆菌明显下降 ,大肠埃希菌、酵母菌迅速过度生长 ,导致肠道微生态失衡 ,应用 B.B.R治疗后 ,促进肠粘膜机械屏障功能的恢复 ,减少细菌和内毒素的易位 ,调整肠道微生态平衡 ,提高了肠道局部和全身免疫功能     

人降钙素基因相关肽转基因马铃薯的RT-PCR分析

报道经过农杆菌介导将人降钙素基因相关肽(calcitoningenerelatedpeptide,CGRP)基因由马铃薯块茎专一表达classIpatatin基因5′侧翼区和CaMV35S启动子驱动构建的马铃薯表达载体导入马铃薯,PCR鉴定获得了转基因植株。RTPCR分析证实classIpatatin基因5′侧翼区驱动的CGRPmRNA在转基因马铃薯中的表达。研究结果在开发转基因马铃薯生物反应器表达医用多肽中具有重要意义。     

Antiproliferative function of glia maturation factor beta.

Recombinant human glia maturation factor beta (GMF-beta) reversibly inhibits the proliferation of neoplastic cells in culture by arresting the cells in the G0/G1 phase. This phenomenon is not target-cell specific, as neural and nonneural cells are equally inhibited. When tested simultaneously, GMF-beta suppresses the mitogenic effect of acidic fibroblasts growth factor (aFGF), but the two are synergistic in promoting the morphologic differentiation of cultured astrocytes. GMF-beta also counteracts the growth-stimulating effect of pituitary extract and cholera toxin on Schwann cells. The results underscore the regulatory role of GMF-beta and its intricate interaction with the mitogenic growth factors.     

Pristimerin Induces Autophagy‐Mediated Cell Death in K562 Cells through the ROS/JNK Signaling Pathway

Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) is a lethal malignancy, and the progress toward long‐term survival has stagnated in recent decades. Pristimerin, a quinone methide triterpenoid isolated from the Celastraceae and Hippocrateaceae families, is well‐known to exert potential anticancer activities. In this study, we investigated the effects and the mechanisms of action on CML. We found that pristimerin inhibited cell proliferation of K562 CML cells by causing G1 phase arrest. Furthermore, we demonstrated that pristimerin triggered autophagy and apoptosis. Intriguingly, pristimerin‐induced cell death was restored by an autophagy inhibitor, suggesting that autophagy is cross‐linked with pristimerin‐induced apoptosis. Further studies revealed that pristimerin could produce excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS), which then induce JNK activation. These findings provide clear evidence that pristimerin might be clinical benefit to patients with CML.     

Bringing Conducting Polymers to High Order: Toward Conductivities beyond 105 S cm−1 and Thermoelectric Power Factors of 2 mW m−1 K−2

Here, an effective design strategy of polymer thermoelectric materials based on structural control in doped polymer semiconductors is presented. The strategy is illustrated for two archetypical polythiophenes, e.g., poly(2,5‐bis(3‐dodecyl‐2‐thienyl)thieno[3,2‐b]thiophene) (C₁₂‐PBTTT) and regioregular poly(3‐hexylthiophene) (P3HT). FeCl₃ doping of aligned films results in charge conductivities up to 2 × 10⁵ S cm^?1 and metallic‐like thermopowers similar to iodine‐doped polyacetylene. The films are almost optically transparent and show strongly polarized near‐infrared polaronic bands (dichroic ratio >10). The comparative study of structure–property correlations in P3HT and C₁₂‐PBTTT identifies three conditions to obtain conductivities beyond 10⁵ S cm^?1: i) achieve high in‐plane orientation of conjugated polymers with high persistence length; ii) ensure uniform chain oxidation of the polymer backbones by regular intercalation of dopant molecules in the polymer structure without disrupting alignment of π‐stacked layers; and iii) maintain a percolating nanomorphology along the chain direction. The highly anisotropic conducting polymer films are ideal model systems to investigate the correlations between thermopower S and charge conductivity σ. A scaling law S ∝ σ^?1/4 prevails along the chain direction, but a different S ∝ ?ln(σ) relation is observed perpendicular to the chains, suggesting different charge transport mechanisms. The simultaneous increase of charge conductivity and thermopower along the chain direction results in a substantial improvement of thermoelectric power factors up to 2 mW m^?1 K^?2 in C₁₂‐PBTTT.     

Potential Applications in Sewage Bioremediation of the Highly Efficient Pyridine-Transforming Paenochrobactrum sp.

Applied Biochemistry and Microbiology - A pyridine-transforming strain P2 was isolated from sewage collected from Guangzhou oil stain field(China).According to the system analysis, it was...