In situ filtration of Anchusa officinalis culture in a cell-retention stirred tank bioreactor

Summary The effect of agitation and aeration on filtration of Anchusa officinalis culture in a stirred tank bioreactor integrated with an internal filter unit was investigated. Increases in suction head of the pump that drove the filtration process were measured at impeller speeds of 100 and 200 rpm. Surprisingly, suction head attained at 200 rpm was about 40% higher than at 100 rpm. Direct observation of the cake deposition process in the reactor using a dilute cell suspension revealed that the filter cake formed at 100 rpm was thicker, but less compact. Aeration at 0.4 vvm was shown to have little effect on the filtration rate, since the bulk fluid flow was dominated by the impeller hydrodynamics. The initial flux can be recovered by filter backwashing with compressed air at a flow rate of 0.6 vvm for a duration of 5 minutes.     

Neither agouti-related protein nor neuropeptide Y is critically required for the regulation of energy homeostasis in mice

Agouti-related protein (AgRP), a neuropeptide abundantly expressed in the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus, potently stimulates feeding and body weight gain in rodents. AgRP is believed to exert its effects through the blockade of signaling by alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone at central nervous system (CNS) melanocortin-3 receptor (Mc3r) and Mc4r. We generated AgRP-deficient (Agrp(-/-)) mice to examine the physiological role of AgRP. Agrp(-/-) mice are viable and exhibit normal locomotor activity, growth rates, body composition, and food intake. Additionally, Agrp(-/-) mice display normal responses to starvation, diet-induced obesity, and the administration of exogenous leptin or neuropeptide Y (NPY). In situ hybridization failed to detect altered CNS expression levels for proopiomelanocortin, Mc3r, Mc4r, or NPY mRNAs in Agrp(-/-) mice. As AgRP and the orexigenic peptide NPY are coexpressed in neurons of the arcuate nucleus, we generated AgRP and NPY double-knockout (Agrp(-/-);Npy(-/-)) mice to determine whether NPY or AgRP plays a compensatory role in Agrp(-/-) or NPY-deficient (Npy(-/-)) mice, respectively. Similarly to mice deficient in either AgRP or NPY, Agrp(-/-);Npy(-/-) mice suffer no obvious feeding or body weight deficits and maintain a normal response to starvation. Our results demonstrate that neither AgRP nor NPY is a critically required orexigenic factor, suggesting that other pathways capable of regulating energy homeostasis can compensate for the loss of both AgRP and NPY.     

Conversion of a primary amine to a labeled secondary amine by the addition of phenolic group and radioiodination

To preserve the nucleophilicity of amino compounds during conjugative radioiodination, a new method for converting primary amines to phenolic secondary amines was developed. Amino acids were used as model compounds for establishing optimal conditions for the reductive amination. In the first step of the reaction, the aldehyde group of 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde (formylphenol) was reacted reversibly with an amino group to form an imine. The irreversible attachment of formylphenol to the amino group was accomplished by reduction of the imine with sodium cyanoborohydride. The pH optimum for the reaction was 5.0. Higher temperature has favorable effects on the rate and extent of the conjugation. Phenolic derivatives of amino compounds suitable for radioiodination are produced by the reactions described.     

The effect of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon contamination on distribution of the Sphingomonas community in the Shenfu irrigation area of Northeast China

Information about the diversity and community structure of indigenous Sphingomonas communities in natural environments is lacking. In this study, denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) was used to investigate Sphingomonas communities at nine selected sites from the up-, mid- and downstream regions of a wastewater channel, which once flowed with sewage containing high concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). From each region, three samples from channel sediment, rice soil and corn soil were collected. Sediment sites had significantly higher PAH contamination, followed by rice sites and corn sites. In addition, upstream sites had higher PAH accumulation, followed by mid- and downstream sites. For each sample type (sediment, rice and corn soils), the Shannon diversity indices of the Sphingomonas community increased slightly with increasing PAH contamination. Upstream sites had obviously higher diversity than mid- and downstream sites. Both cluster analysis and canonical correspondence analysis indicated that the Sphingomonas community was clearly different among sediment, rice and corn soils. Besides, the Sphingomonas community was affected by different PAH compounds in sediment, rice and corn sites. The Sphingomonas community might degrade mainly benzo[b]fluoranthene, fluorene and fluoranthene in sediment sites by co-metabolism, but degraded mainly pyrene and phenanthrene in corn and rice sites, which provides some suggestions for pollution remediation.     

Drought conditions alter litter decomposition and nutrient release of litter types in an agroforestry system of China

Evaluating how decomposition rates and litter nutrient release of different litter types respond to changes in water conditions is crucial for understanding global carbon and nutrient cycling. However, it is unclear how decreasing water affects litter mixture interactions for the maize–poplar system in arid regions. Here, the responses of the litter decomposition process and litter mixture interactions in the agroforestry system to changes in water conditions (control, light drought, and moderate drought) were tested. Moderate drought significantly decreased the decomposition rate for poplar leaf and mixed litters, and decomposition rate was significantly reduced for maize straw litter in light and moderate drought stress. The mass loss rates of maize straw and mixed litters were significantly higher than that of the poplar leaf litter under drought conditions, but there was no significant difference among the three litter types in the control. There was no interaction between mass loss of the mixed litter in the control and light drought conditions, and the litter mixture interaction showed nonadditive synergistic interactions under moderate drought. In terms of nutrient release, there was also no interaction between litter mixture with nitrogen and carbon, but there was antagonistic interaction with potassium release under the light drought condition. Our results demonstrate that drought conditions can lead to decreasing decomposition rate and strong changes in the litter mixture interactions from additive effects to nonadditive synergistic effects in moderate drought. Moreover, light drought changed the mixture interaction from an additive effect to an antagonistic interaction for potassium release.     

Chiral discrimination and interaction mechanism between enantiomers and serum albumins

The chiral discrimination studies of biological system are theoretically and practically significant for the development of chiral drugs and life science. Our work has embarked upon the interaction between serum albumin (SA) (including human SA and bovine SA), R,S‐1‐(4‐methoxyphenyl)ethylamine, and R,S‐1‐(3‐methoxyphenyl)ethylamine. The formation of intermediate transition state, binding sites, and chiral discrimination ability can be investigated by ultraviolet‐visible spectra and fluorescence spectra. Moreover, both the changes of hydrophobic microenvironment and energy transfer can be detected by synchronous fluorescence spectra and fluorescence lifetime. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

人体外周血淋巴细胞核损伤指标的比较研究

核异常作为组织特异性的遗传毒理体内短期检测法,现已日益受到重视。它比微核测试更敏感和合理。核异常包括多种形式的核损伤,而它们与致癌因子的损伤有着不同程度的相关性。本文以r-射线作为致癌与诱变因子,在人体外周血淋巴细胞中系统地比较研究了常用核损伤指标:微核、核变形、核碎裂和核固缩等的剂量(0-5Grag)一反应关系,并作线形回归分析。作者认为,作为人体淋巴细胞核异常测试法,应包括微核,核变形及核碎裂3个核损伤指标。     

心肌缺血再灌注手术改变炎症相关肠道菌群

目的 探讨心肌缺血再灌注损伤对大鼠肠道菌群结构特征的影响。 方法 18只雄性Sprague Dawley大鼠随机分为假手术组(n=7)和模型组(n=11),分别对大鼠冠状动脉左前降支进行结扎和再灌注。再灌注60 min后,通过TTC染色检测总梗死面积,H&E染色和免疫组织化学观察炎症细胞浸润情况、16S rRNA高通量测序分析心肌缺血前和再灌注后粪便中微生物的结构组成变化。 结果 与假手术组相比,模型组心肌梗死面积增加,心肌中炎症细胞浸润以及CD68阳性巨噬细胞明显增多,变形菌门(Proteobacteria)的相对丰度增加,厚壁菌门(Firmicutes)的相对丰度降低。 结论 心肌缺血再灌注损伤改变了肠道菌群的分布,这可能与促进了受损心脏的炎症细胞浸润有关。