Mercury‐associated DNA hypomethylation in polar bear brains via the LUminometric Methylation Assay: a sensitive method to study epigenetics in wildlife

In this paper we describe a novel approach that may shed light on the genomic DNA methylation of organisms with non‐resolved genomes. The LUminometric Methylation Assay (LUMA) is permissive for genomic DNA methylation studies of any genome as it relies on the use of methyl‐sensitive and ‐insensitive restriction enzymes followed by polymerase extension via Pyrosequencing technology. Here, LUMA was used to characterize genomic DNA methylation in the lower brain stem region from 47 polar bears subsistence hunted in central East Greenland between 1999 and 2001. In these samples, average genomic DNA methylation was 57.9% ± 6.69 (SD; range was 42.0 to 72.4%). When genomic DNA methylation was related to brain mercury (Hg) exposure levels, an inverse association was seen between these two variables for the entire study population (P for trend = 0.17). After dichotomizing animals by gender and controlling for age, a negative trend was seen amongst male animals (P for trend = 0.07) but no associations were found in female bears. Such sexually dimorphic responses have been found in other toxicological studies. Our results show that genomic DNA methylation can be quantitatively studied in a highly reproducible manner in tissue samples from a wild organism with a non‐resolved genome. As such, LUMA holds great promise as a novel method to explore consequential questions across the ecological sciences that may require an epigenetic understanding.     

重组腺病毒Ad-HGF体外感染成纤维细胞后转染效率及表达的检测

押检测携带人肝细胞生长因子基因的重组腺病毒Ad-HGF在体外对成纤维细胞的感染效率以及感染细胞对目的蛋白的表达。以不同感染复数(m.o.i.)(25,50,100,200)的Ad-GFP感染NIH3T3细胞,48h时用流式细胞仪检测转染效率;以50m.o.i.感染NIH3T3细胞后48h,用ELISA和Western印迹杂交法分别检测感染上清中HGF的表达。分别以50m.o.i.的Ad-GFP和Ad-HGF感染原代培养人瘢痕成纤维细胞,以检测重组腺病毒对原代培养人瘢痕成纤维细胞的转染效率和其对HGF的表达。结果表明,当m.o.i.为50时,重组腺病毒对NIH3T3细胞的转染效率已达95%以上;HGF的表达量可达每2×106细胞249ng;并可检测到HGF蛋白的一特异杂交带。以50m.o.i.的Ad-GFP感染原代培养人瘢痕成纤维细胞,72h时GFP表达达高峰,此时转染效率可高达36.75%。Ad-HGF感染原代培养人瘢痕成纤维细胞后HGF的表达在72h时达高峰,表达量可达每3.3×105细胞66ng。初步认为重组腺病毒可有效地介导HGF基因转染正常或瘢痕成纤维细胞,且感染细胞可有效表达目的蛋白。     

Epistasis between beneficial mutations and the phenotype-to-fitness Map for a ssDNA virus

Epistatic interactions between genes and individual mutations are major determinants of the evolutionary properties of genetic systems and have therefore been well documented, but few quantitative data exist on epistatic interactions between beneficial mutations, presumably because such mutations are so much rarer than deleterious ones. We explored epistasis for beneficial mutations by constructing genotypes with pairs of mutations that had been previously identified as beneficial to the ssDNA bacteriophage ID11 and by measuring the effects of these mutations alone and in combination. We constructed 18 of the 36 possible double mutants for the nine available beneficial mutations. We found that epistatic interactions between beneficial mutations were all antagonistic-the effects of the double mutations were less than the sums of the effects of their component single mutations. We found a number of cases of decompensatory interactions, an extreme form of antagonistic epistasis in which the second mutation is actually deleterious in the presence of the first. In the vast majority of cases, recombination uniting two beneficial mutations into the same genome would not be favored by selection, as the recombinant could not outcompete its constituent single mutations. In an attempt to understand these results, we developed a simple model in which the phenotypic effects of mutations are completely additive and epistatic interactions arise as a result of the form of the phenotype-to-fitness mapping. We found that a model with an intermediate phenotypic optimum and additive phenotypic effects provided a good explanation for our data and the observed patterns of epistatic interactions.     

Comparative Ant Faunas between Seonyudo and Seven Other Islands of West Sea in Korea

ABSTRACT This paper is intended as an investigation of the biogeographic characteristics of ant faunas of the eight islands in West Sea of South Korea, using quantitative genetic analyses. The faunal similarity is examined using the Nomura-Simpson's Coefficient (NSC). The obtained NSC value matrix was examined by a cluster analysis using UPGMA method. The MSC-values between the seven areas investigated range from 0.500 (Deokjeokdo Hongdo) to 0.909 (Wonsando-Hongdo). In these islands including Seonyudo, the NSC -values range from 0.571 (Deokjeokdo) to 0.778 (Bigeumdo). The cluster analysis using the similarity index (NSC) showed that eight islands were divided into two groups at the level of 41%. It was shown that Wonsando and Bigeumdo were closer (Similarity = 83%) than those between others. Deokjeokdo and Bigeumdo were remote (Similarity = 41%) from each conspecific population. That is, the species composition of Bigeumdo (Similarity = 70%) was similar to that of the Seonyudo, while that of Deokjeokdo (Similarity = 41%) was different from that.     

低氧诱导因子和角质细胞生长因子双基因重组腺病毒的构建及其在肺泡上皮细胞中的表达

目的：构建同时携带低氧诱导因子-1α（HIF-1α）和角质细胞生长因子（KGF）N腺病毒载体（pAdxsi-GFP-HIF-KGF）,观察其在防治肺损伤潜在的应用前景。方法：低氧处理A549细胞后提取总RNA并逆转录为eDNA作为模板,依据GeneBank公布的HIF-1α cDNA设计引物,并分别引入KpnI和BamHI酶切位点,PCR扩增后将目的基因HIF-1α连接到载体pShuttle-CMV-EGFP上,构建重组质粒pShuttle-GFP—HIF。然后以质粒plRES2-EGFP-KGF为模板,用引入NheI和PmeI酶切位点的引物PCR扩增KGF基因并克隆到重组质粒pShuttle-GFP-HIF上,获得穿梭质粒重组质粒pShuttle—GFP-HIF—KGF。采用细菌内重组方法将目的序列重组到pAdxsi病毒骨架栽体上构建携带HIF．10t和KGF双基因的重组腺病毒载体pAdxsi-GFP-HIF-KGF。检测重组腺病毒滴度后,转染人肺泡上皮细胞A549,检测目的基因的转染表达。结果：通过对构建质粒克隆进行测序及酶切,证实携带HIF—lot和KGF双基因的重组腺病毒载体pAdxsi-GFP-HIF-KGF构建成功,且构建的重组腺病毒纯度好、滴度高。用pAdxsi-GFP-HIF-KGF以100MOI转染A549细胞后24h后在荧光显微镜下可观察到细胞有较强的绿色荧光表达,48h时荧光更强;转染48hELISA法检测培养上清中HIF-1蛋白表达水平为（56．36±4．53）ng／mL,KGF蛋白表达水平为（60．20±2．92）ng／mL。结论：成功构建了腺病毒栽体pAdxsi-GFP-HIF-KGF,其转染效率及目的基因的蛋白表达水平较高,具有潜在的进一步在肺损伤局部应用的前景,为后期制备可以同时发挥KGF、HIF-1作用的基因治疗药物打下基础,同时为高海拔地区应激性急性肺损伤的有效防治提供实验基础。     

科尔沁沙地蒙古族和汉族庭园植物群落垂直结构与种类组成比较——以内蒙古科尔沁左翼后旗为例

在内蒙古通辽市科尔沁左翼后旗蒙古族居住地区采用随机抽样和农户推荐选择30个农户,同时在邻近地区的汉族选择了10个农户作为对比分析。庭园样方取样为整个庭园面积,设立40个样方进行调查。结果表明,内蒙古通辽市科尔沁左翼后旗蒙古族庭园和邻近地区汉族庭园植物垂直结构主要有0~1 m、1~2 m、2~5 m、5~10 m、10 m等五类,其中不论是小规模庭园还是大规模庭园,5 m以下的阶层占优势;两个民族庭园植物种植模式研究结果阐明科尔沁左翼后旗蒙古族与邻近汉族相比,目前很少栽培观赏植物,仍停留在与日常生活相关的蔬菜植物栽培的水平上,而邻近的汉族已开始注重栽培美化环境的庭园植物。此外,本研究运用MVSP统计软件分析庭园类型表明科尔沁左翼后旗蒙古族庭园主要有4种类型,邻近的汉族庭园有3种类型,并且当地蒙古族与邻近的汉族庭园有所差异,这些差异是由两个民族间农耕文化传统以及畜牧业植物文化差异、庭园面积、庭园历史及庭园管理水平、传统植物利用知识的差异所造成。     

Bacillus natto TK-1产脂肽的纯化、抑菌活性及其表面活性剂特性

利用酸沉、醇提和薄层层析等方法从Bacillus natto TK-1 发酵液中分离得到脂肽。TLC结果表明,在迁移值Rf 0.58-0.65处出现单一紫红色条带其为脂肽粗提物。脂肽的临界胶束浓度约115mg/L。在浓度为512mg/L时,脂肽能将水的表面张力显著地降低到30.1mN/m。同时,通过体外抗粘连实验表明,脂肽能显著抑制沙门氏菌、大肠杆菌和金黄色葡萄球菌对96孔板固体表面的粘附,其中,对沙门氏菌的抗粘连效果较为明显。通过平板扩散法考察脂肽抑菌活性,结果表明脂肽具有较广泛的抑菌谱,对灰霉和镰胞霉的抑菌能力较强。     

MysTR: an endogenous retrovirus family in mammals that is undergoing recent amplifications to unprecedented copy numbers

A large percentage of the repetitive elements in mammalian genomes are retroelements, which have been moved primarily by LINE-1 retrotransposons and endogenous retroviruses. Although LINE-1 elements have remained active throughout the mammalian radiation, specific groups of endogenous retroviruses generally remain active for comparatively shorter periods of time. Identification of an unusual extinction of LINE-1 activity in a group of South American rodents has opened a window for examination of the interplay in mammalian genomes between these ubiquitous retroelements. In the course of a search for any type of repetitive sequences whose copy numbers have substantially changed in Oryzomys palustris, a species that has lost LINE-1 activity, versus Sigmodon hispidus, a closely related species retaining LINE-1 activity, we have identified an endogenous retrovirus family differentially amplified in these two species. Analysis of three full-length, recently transposed copies, called mysTR elements, revealed gag, pro, and pol coding regions containing stop codons which may have accumulated either before or after retrotransposition. Isolation of related sequences in S. hispidus and the LINE-1 active outgroup species, Peromyscus maniculatus, by PCR of a pro-pol region has allowed determination of copy numbers in each species. Unusually high copy numbers of approximately 10,000 in O. palustris versus 1,000 in S. hispidus and 4,500 in the more distantly related P. maniculatus leave open the question of whether there is a connection between endogenous retrovirus activity and LINE-1 inactivity. Nevertheless, these independent expansions of mysTR represent recent amplifications of this endogenous retrovirus family to unprecedented levels.     

Characterization of new microsatellite markers in mung bean,Vigna radiata (L.)

The present work reports the isolation and characterization of new polymorphic microsatellites in mung bean (Vigna radiata L.). Of 93 designed primer pairs, seven were found to amplify polymorphic microsatellite loci, which were then characterized using 34 mung bean accessions. The number of alleles ranged from two to five alleles per locus with an average of three alleles. Observed and expected heterozygosity values ranged from 0 to 0.088 and from 0.275 to 0.683, respectively. All seven loci showed significant deviations from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium, whereas only one pairwise combination (GBssr‐MB77 and GBssr‐MB91) exhibited significant departure from linkage disequilibrium. These newly developed markers are currently being utilized for diversity assessment within the mung bean germplasm collection of the Korean Gene Bank.