Quantitative analysis of cytoplasmic actin gene promoter and nuclear polyhedrosis virus immediate-early promoter activities in various tissues of silkworm Bombyx mori using recombinant Autographa californica nuclear polyhedrosis virus as vector

Cassettes harboring luciferase reporter driven by Bombyx mori cytoplasmic actin gene promoter (A3) (671 bp) and B. mori nuclear polyhedrosis virus immediate-early promoter (IE-1) (580 bp) were transferred to the bacmid AcΔEGT to generate the recombinant Autographa californica nuclear polyhedrosis viruses, AcNPVA3Luc and AcNPVIELuc, respectively. Recombinant baculoviruses were injected into the hemocoele of newly ecdysed 5th instar larvae. The activities of the A3 and IE-1 promoters in various tissues were measured by luciferase activity assay and normalized by the copy number of recombinant virus. Results showed that the activity of the A3 promoter was approximately 10-fold higher than the IE-1 promoter. The promoter activities of A3 and IE-1 were highest in the silk gland, followed by fat body, middle gut, Malpighian tubule, and hemocyte. In silk gland, activity of the two promoters was highest in posterior silk gland, followed by middle and anterior silk glands. The difference in promoter activities reflects the growth speed of tissue in silkworm larvae. The activity of the A3 promoter remained unchanged and was not inhibited significantly by viral factors at least 3–4 d post injection of rAcNPV.     

Case of a stronger capability of maize seedlings to use ammonium being responsible for the higher 15N recovery efficiency of ammonium compared with nitrate

Plant and Soil - Biocrusts are important functional units in dryland ecosystems. Regarded as ecosystem engineers, cyanobacteria in biocrusts contribute several major physico-chemical and biological...     

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Rubellimicrobium roseum</Emphasis> sp. nov., a Gram-negative bacterium isolated from the forest soil sample

A novel pink-coloured, non-spore-forming, non-motile, Gram-negative bacterium, designated YIM 48858^T, is described by using a polyphasic approach. The strain can grow at pH 6.5–9 (optimum at pH 7) and 25–30°C (optimum at 28°C). NaCl is not required for its growth. Positive for oxidase and catalase. Urease activity, nitrate reduction, starch and Tween 80 tests are negative reaction. 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity studies showed that strain YIM 48858^T is a member of the genus Rubellimicrobium, with similarities of 96.3, 95.7 and 95.5% to Rubellimicrobium mesophilum MSL-20^T, Rubellimicrobium aerolatum 5715S-9^T and Rubellimicrobium thermophilum DSM 16684^T, respectively. Q-10 was the predominant respiratory ubiquinone as in the other members of the genus Rubellimicrobium. The major polar lipids were diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylcholine, phosphoglycolipid, glycolipid and the major fatty acids were C18:1 ω7c, C16:0 and C10:0 3-OH, which are very different from the valid published species. The DNA G + C content was 67.7 mol%. Both phylogenetic and chemotaxonomic evidence supports that YIM 48858^T is a novel species of the genus Rubellimicrobium, for which the name Rubellimicrobium roseum sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is YIM 48858^T (=CCTCC AA 208029^T =KCTC 23202^T).     

Inhibition of miR146b-5p suppresses CT-guided renal cell carcinoma by targeting TRAF6

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is one of the most common malignancies in the urinary system. Due to the lack of early symptoms, diagnosis of RCC usually occurs at late stages or after cancer metastasis leading to poor prognosis. Therefore, it is crucial to study early molecular mechanisms and biomarkers. Previous studies have suggested that microRNAs are involved in RCC initiation and development, making them a good candidate for early diagnosis and therapy. MiR146b-5P plays important roles in the progression of multiple cancers including thyroid cancer, pancreatic cancer, cervical cancer. However, it is not clear whether and how miR146b-5P is involved in RCC. In this study, we aimed to investigate the function of miR146b-5P in RCC. We examined the expression levels of miR146b-5p in renal cancer tissue and cell lines. We also explored the effects of blocking miR146b-5p in renal tumor growth and inflammatory signaling. Finally, we determined if miR146b-5p regulates tumorigenesis through TRAF6. We found that miR146b-5p levels were significantly increased in renal cancer tissue and renal cancer cells. Blocking miR146b-5p suppressed renal tumor growth and enhanced inflammatory response through increased TRAF6 expression. These effects were eliminated in TRAF6 knockout mice. Our results suggest that enhanced miR146b-5p expression may be a biomarker for RCC and modulating miR146b-5p and TRAF6 levels represent a potential therapeutic strategy for RCC.     

猪血粉分离氨基酸的研究

本文报道了从猪血粉中提取分离七种氨基酸(L—Phe、L—Tyr、L—His·HCl、L—lys·HAC、L—Arg·HCl、L—leu、L—Val)的小试工艺。通过合成一系列专用树脂(AAS—1、AAS—2、D083)对现行工艺脱酸、脱色及层析分离等过程作了较大改进,使猪血粉分离氨基酸的生产工艺全部树脂化,并使氨基酸收率大幅度提高。经周期性实验,每批投料130g猪血粉,七种氨基酸总回收率平均达34.9%。(占血粉量)。经自检产品质量基本符合注射用结晶氨基酸原料标准。     

Impact of nonrandom selection mechanisms on the causal effect estimation for two-sample Mendelian randomization methods

Nonrandom selection in one-sample Mendelian Randomization (MR) results in biased estimates and inflated type I error rates only when the selection effects are sufficiently large. In two-sample MR, the different selection mechanisms in two samples may more seriously affect the causal effect estimation. Firstly, we propose sufficient conditions for causal effect invariance under different selection mechanisms using two-sample MR methods. In the simulation study, we consider 49 possible selection mechanisms in two-sample MR, which depend on genetic variants (G), exposures (X), outcomes (Y) and their combination. We further compare eight pleiotropy-robust methods under different selection mechanisms. Results of simulation reveal that nonrandom selection in sample II has a larger influence on biases and type I error rates than those in sample I. Furthermore, selections depending on X+Y, G+Y, or G+X+Y in sample II lead to larger biases than other selection mechanisms. Notably, when selection depends on Y, bias of causal estimation for non-zero causal effect is larger than that for null causal effect. Especially, the mode based estimate has the largest standard errors among the eight methods. In the absence of pleiotropy, selections depending on Y or G in sample II show nearly unbiased causal effect estimations when the casual effect is null. In the scenarios of balanced pleiotropy, all eight MR methods, especially MR-Egger, demonstrate large biases because the nonrandom selections result in the violation of the Instrument Strength Independent of Direct Effect (InSIDE) assumption. When directional pleiotropy exists, nonrandom selections have a severe impact on the eight MR methods. Application demonstrates that the nonrandom selection in sample II (coronary heart disease patients) can magnify the causal effect estimation of obesity on HbA1c levels. In conclusion, nonrandom selection in two-sample MR exacerbates the bias of causal effect estimation for pleiotropy-robust MR methods.     

Proteome analysis of hepatocellular carcinoma by two-dimensional difference gel electrophoresis: novel protein markers in hepatocellular carcinoma tissues

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a highly malignant tumor, and chronic infection with hepatitis B virus is one of its major risk factors. To identify the proteins involved in HCC carcinogenesis, we used two-dimensional fluorescence DIGE to study the differentially expressed proteins in tumor and adjacent nontumor tissue samples. Samples from 12 hepatitis B virus-associated HCC patients were analyzed. A total of 61 spots were significantly up-regulated (ratio >/= 2, p 相似文献   

Anchor peptide of transferrin-binding protein B is required for interaction with transferrin-binding protein A

Gram-negative bacterial pathogens belonging to the Pasteurellaceae, Moraxellaceae, and Neisseriaceae families rely on an iron acquisition system that acquires iron directly from host transferrin (Tf). The process is mediated by a surface receptor composed of transferrin-binding proteins A and B (TbpA and TbpB). TbpA is an integral outer membrane protein that functions as a gated channel for the passage of iron into the periplasm. TbpB is a surface-exposed lipoprotein that facilitates the iron uptake process. In this study, we demonstrate that the region encompassing amino acids 7-40 of Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae TbpB is required for forming a complex with TbpA and that the formation of the complex requires the presence of porcine Tf. These results are consistent with a model in which TbpB is responsible for the initial capture of iron-loaded Tf and subsequently interacts with TbpA through the anchor peptide. We propose that TonB binding to TbpA initiates the formation of the TbpB-TbpA complex and transfer of Tf to TbpA.     

Effects of Irrigation and Nitrogen on the Performance of Aerobic Rice in Northern China

Aerobic rice is a new production system in which specially-developed varieties are grown under non-flooded, non-puddled, and non-saturated soil conditions. In 2003-2004, irrigation x Nitrogen experiments were carried out near Beijing using variety HD297. Water treatments included four irrigation levels, and Nitrogen treatments included different fertilizer N application rates and different numbers of N splits. The highest yields were 4460 kg/ha with 688 mm of total (rain plus irrigation) water input in 2003 and 6 026 kg/ha with 705 mm of water input in 2004. Because of the quite even distribution of rainfall in both years, the four irrigation treatments did not result in large differences of soil water conditions. There were few significant effects of irrigation on biomass accumulation, but yield increased with the total amount of water applied. High yields coincided with high harvest index and high percentages of grain filling. The application of fertilizer N either reduced biomass and yield or kept it at the same level as 0 N and consistently reduced the percentage grain filling and 1 000-grain weight. With the highest water application, five splits of N gave higher yield than three splits, whereas three splits gave higher yield than five splits with lower water applications.