A Water-Soluble Inclusion Complex of Pedunculoside with the Polymer β-Cyclodextrin: A Novel Anti-Inflammation Agent with Low Toxicity

More than 50% of new drug candidates in drug discovery are lipophilic and exhibit poor aqueous solubility, which results in poor bioavailability and a lack of dose proportionality. Here, we improved the solubility of pedunculoside (PE) by generating a water-soluble inclusion complex composed of PE and the polymer β-cyclodextrin (CDP). We characterized this novel complex by ¹H NMR, FT-IR, UV-vis spectroscopy, powder X-ray diffractometry and thermogravimetric analysis. The ratio of β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) units in CDP to PE was determined to be 2∶1. The K _D value of the inclusion complex was determined to be 4.29×10⁻³ mol•L⁻¹. In contrast to the low solubility of PE, the water-solubility of the PE–CDP complex was greatly enhanced. A preclinical toxicological study indicated that PE–CDP was well tolerated for a single administration. Importantly, the anti-inflammation potency of the PE–CDP complex was higher than that of PE. As a result, the formation of inclusion complexes by water-soluble CDP opens up possible aqueous applications of insoluble drug candidates in drug delivery.     

Perinatal Exposure to Low-Dose Methoxychlor Impairs Testicular Development in C57BL/6 Mice

Methoxychlor (MXC), an organochlorine pesticide, has adverse effects on male reproduction at toxicological doses. Humans and wild animals are exposed to MXC mostly through contaminated dietary intake. Higher concentrations of MXC have been found in human milk, raising the demand for the risk assessment of offspring after maternal exposure to low doses of MXC. In this study, pregnant mice (F0) were given intraperitoneal daily evening injections of 1 mg/kg/d MXC during their gestational (embryonic day 0.5, E0.5) and lactational periods (postnatal day 21.5, P21.5), and the F1 males were assessed. F1 testes were collected at P0.5, P21.5 and P45.5. Maternal exposure to MXC disturbed the testicular development. Serum testosterone levels decreased, whereas estradiol levels increased. To understand the molecular mechanisms of exposure to MXC in male reproduction, the F1 testes were examined for changes in the expression of steroidogenesis- and spermatogenesis- related genes. RT-PCR analysis demonstrated that MXC significantly decreased Cyp11a1 and increased Cyp19a1; furthermore, it downregulated certain spermatogenic genes (Dazl, Boll, Rarg, Stra8 and Cyclin-a1). In summary, perinatal exposure to low-dose MXC disturbs the testicular development in mice. This animal study of exposure to low-dose MXC in F1 males suggests similar dysfunctional effects on male reproduction in humans.     

Characterization of miRNomes in Acute and Chronic Myeloid Leukemia Cell Lines

Myeloid leukemias are highly diverse diseases and have been shown to be associated with microRNA（miRNA） expression aberrations. The present study involved an in-depth miRNome analysis of two human acute myeloid leukemia（AML） cell lines, HL-60 and THP-1, and one human chronic myeloid leukemia（CML） cell line, K562, via massively parallel signature sequencing. mRNA expression profiles of these cell lines that were established previously in our lab facilitated an integrative analysis of miRNA and mRNA expression patterns. miRNA expression profiling followed by differential expression analysis and target prediction suggested numerous miRNA signatures in AML and CML cell lines. Some miRNAs may act as either tumor suppressors or oncomiRs in AML and CML by targeting key genes in AML and CML pathways. Expression patterns of cell type-specific miRNAs could partially reflect the characteristics of K562, HL-60 and THP-1 cell lines, such as actin filament-based processes, responsiveness to stimulus and phagocytic activity. miRNAs may also regulate myeloid differentiation, since they usually suppress differentiation regulators. Our study provides a resource to further investigate the employment of miRNAs in human leukemia subtyping, leukemogenesis and myeloid development. In addition, the distinctive miRNA signatures may be potential candidates for the clinical diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of myeloid leukemias.     

治疗自身免疫性疾病的抗细胞因子疫苗

抗细胞因子疫苗是针对疾病相关细胞因子而设计与构建的一类能激发体液免疫应答的主动免疫治疗性疫苗,是用于自身免疫性疾病的一种极具潜力的新型疗法。目前研究与开发的抗细胞因子疫苗主要有2 种类型,一种是通过偶联载体或直接修饰为细胞因子引入外源表位而构建的蛋白疫苗,另一种则是可表达细胞因子免疫原的核酸疫苗。这两类疫苗在临床前及临床研究中,对各种自身免疫性疾病均显现出治疗活性。简介各类抗细胞因子疫苗及其作用机制,综述用于治疗类风湿性关节炎、多发性硬化症、系统性红斑狼疮等各种自身免疫性疾病的抗细胞因子疫苗研究进展。     

SARS亚基疫苗-突刺蛋白受体结合区RBD在烟草叶绿体中的高效表达

叶绿体表达系统为植物源重组药用蛋白和亚基疫苗的生产提供了一个有效的途径。为验证SARS亚基疫苗在叶绿体中表达的可行性,以及为植物源SARS亚基疫苗的生产提供一套高效、低成本的技术平台,本研究将人工优化合成的SARS-CoV突刺蛋白(S蛋白)受体结合区序列RBD与载体分子CTB融合基因导入烟草叶绿体基因组中。PCR和Southern杂交分析表明,外源融合基因已整合到烟草叶绿体基因组中,并获得同质化。Western杂交分析表明,重组融合蛋白CTB-RBD在叶绿体转基因烟草中获得表达,且主要以可溶性单体形式存在。ELISA分析表明,在不同生长阶段、不同生长部位和不同时间点烟草叶片中,重组融合蛋白CTB-RBD的表达水平呈现明显的变化。重组蛋白在成熟叶片中的表达水平最高可以达到10.2%TSP。本研究通过SARS亚基疫苗RBD在烟草叶绿体中的高效表达,有望为植物源SARS亚基疫苗的生产以及SARS血清抗体的检测提供一个有效的技术平台。     

缺氮及氮素形态对烟草幼苗糖代谢的影响机理初探

为了探明缺氮及不同氮素形态对烟草幼苗糖代谢的影响机理。该试验以‘中烟100’为试材,设置正常供氮为对照(CK,NO3-∶NH4+=1∶1)、缺氮(T1)、单一铵态氮(T2)和单一硝态氮(T3)4个处理的沙培试验,检测烟株功能叶片的全氮、还原糖、总糖、蔗糖淀粉的含量及糖代谢相关酶的活性,并分析根、茎、叶等3个部位糖代谢关键基因(SUT1、INV、GBSSI、AGPase)的表达差异。结果显示:(1)烟株功能叶片的全氮含量表现为T3CKT2T1。(2)与CK前期相比,T1处理显著增加了烟株叶片的还原糖、总糖、蔗糖及淀粉含量,降低了淀粉酶的活性,但对转化酶活性影响不显著;其中烟株叶片淀粉积累表现为T1T2CKT3。(3)缺氮及氮素形态对糖转运蛋白基因(SUT1)、焦磷酸化酶基因(AGPase)和颗粒淀粉合成酶基因(GBSSI)等关键基因的表达影响显著。研究认为,缺氮及不同氮素形态下烟草幼苗氮素利用率与淀粉积累成反比,其中蔗糖转运蛋白基因(SUT1)在氮素形态影响烟叶糖代谢过程中起关键作用。     

小眼虫藻△8-脂肪酸脱氢酶基因的克隆及其在酿酒酵母中的表达

△8途径是合成多不饱和脂肪酸的替代途径,△8-脂肪酸脱氢酶是该途径的关键酶之一.根据已报道的△8-脂肪酸脱氢酶基因设计引物,分别从小眼虫藻基因组DNA和cDNA中扩增得到该基因片段,序列分析表明:结构基因长1 266 bp,编码421个氨基酸;该基因没有内含子,比已经报道的△8-脂肪酸脱氢酶基因长6bp,并且N末端序列也有所不同.利用酿酒酵母的载体pYES2.0构建△8-脂肪酸脱氢酶表达载体pYEFD,并转化到营养缺陷型酿酒酵母菌株INVSc1中,在选择培养基中筛选得到酿酒酵母转化菌株YD8.YD8在合适的培养条件下,添加外源底物二十碳二烯酸和二十碳三烯酸并诱导基因表达.脂肪酸甲酯气相色谱分析表明小眼虫藻△8-脂肪酸脱氢酶基因在酿酒酵母中获得了高效表达,将二十碳二烯酸和二十碳三烯酸分别转化成二高-γ-亚麻酸和二十碳四烯酸,其底物转化率分别达到了31.2%和46.3%.     

Better understanding of organ dysfunction requires proteomic involvement

Organ dysfunction is defined as a systemic consequence of acute and chronic diseases, a critical and important phase of disease development. The mortality of patients with severe illness is highly correlated with the number and duration of dysfunctional organs. There is still not an efficient and specific therapy to improve the prognosis of patients with organ dysfunction, due to the complexity and severity of the disease. There is a great need to understand molecular mechanisms of the disease, identify disease-related biomarkers, and validate therapeutic effects. Thus, it is important to have a special attention from proteomic scientists to explore the combination between advanced proteomic biotechnology, clinical proteomics, tissue imaging and profiling, and organ dysfunction score systems, to improve the clinical outcomes of these patients.     

Depolarization promotes survival of ciliary ganglion neurons by BDNF-dependent and -independent mechanisms

Membrane activity upregulates brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) expression to coordinately support neuronal survival in many systems. In parasympathetic ciliary ganglion (CG) neurons, activity mimicked by KCl depolarization provides nearly full trophic support. While BDNF has been considered unable to influence CG neuronal survival, we now document its expression during CG development and show that low concentrations do support survival via high-affinity TrkB receptors. Furthermore, a contribution of BDNF to activity-induced trophic support was demonstrated by showing that KCl depolarization increased BDNF mRNA and protein in, and release of BDNF from, CG neuron cultures. Application of anti-BDNF blocking antibody or mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) kinase inhibitor, attenuated depolarization-supported survival, implicating canonical BDNF/TrkB signaling. Ca2+-Calmodulin kinase II (CaMKII) was also required since its inhibition combined with anti-BDNF or MAPK kinase inhibitor abolished or greatly reduced the trophic effects of depolarization. Membrane activity may thus support CG neuronal survival both by stimulating release of BDNF that binds high-affinity TrkB receptors to activate MAPK and by recruiting CaMKII. This mechanism could have relevance late in development in vivo as ganglionic transmission and the effectiveness of BDNF over other growth factors both increase.     

The role of root damage in the chelate-enhanced accumulation of lead by Indian mustard plants

In the present study, increasing ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) concentration from 0 to 0.5 mmol L(-1) resulted in progressive increases in root elongation and in shoot and root dry matter (DM) of Indian mustard seedlings (Brassica juncea. L.) exposed at 0.5 mmol L(-1) of lead (Pb). The highest concentration of Pb in the shoots of Indian mustard reached 1140 mg kg(-1) dry weight (DW) in the treatment with 0.5 mmol L(-1) of Pb + 0.25 mmol L(-1) of EDTA. A significantly positive correlation was found between the concentrations of Pb and EDTA in the shoots of mustard. Roots were pretreated with an MC (methanol:trichloromethane) solution, 0.1 mol L(-1) of HCl, and 65 degrees C hot water. The plants were then exposed to 0.5 mmol L(-1) of Pb + 3 mmol L(-1) of EDTA in solution for 2 d. The pretreatments with MC, HCl, and hot water all increased the concentration of Pb in shoots by 14-, 7-, and 15-fold, respectively, compared with the shoots that had not been pretreated. Therefore, some physiological damage to roots would be useful to enhance the uptake of metal by plants and to minimize the application of doses of chelates in the practical operation of chelate-assisted phytoremediation.