Comparison of mucosal adhesion and species identification of bifidobacteria isolated from healthy and allergic infants

Fifty bifidobacteria strains were isolated from fecal samples of allergic and age matched healthy infants. Allergic infants were found to have an adult type Bifidobacterium flora with high levels of Bifidobacterium adolescentis. Healthy infants had a typical infant Bifidobacterium flora with high levels of Bifidobacterium bifidum. These isolates were tested for their adhesive properties to human intestinal mucus. The adhesion of the fecal bifidobacteria from healthy infants was significantly higher (P<0.0001) than for allergic infants. This suggests a correlation between allergic disease and the composition of the intestinal bifidobacteria flora which has reduced adhesive abilities to the intestinal mucus. Therefore, dietary supplementation of bifidobacteria typical for healthy infants, may be beneficial in the treatment of allergic disorders.     

Role of myosin light chain kinase in regulation of basal blood pressure and maintenance of salt-induced hypertension

Vascular tone, an important determinant of systemic vascular resistance and thus blood pressure, is affected by vascular smooth muscle (VSM) contraction. Key signaling pathways for VSM contraction converge on phosphorylation of the regulatory light chain (RLC) of smooth muscle myosin. This phosphorylation is mediated by Ca(2+)/calmodulin-dependent myosin light chain kinase (MLCK) but Ca(2+)-independent kinases may also contribute, particularly in sustained contractions. Signaling through MLCK has been indirectly implicated in maintenance of basal blood pressure, whereas signaling through RhoA has been implicated in salt-induced hypertension. In this report, we analyzed mice with smooth muscle-specific knockout of MLCK. Mesenteric artery segments isolated from smooth muscle-specific MLCK knockout mice (MLCK(SMKO)) had a significantly reduced contractile response to KCl and vasoconstrictors. The kinase knockout also markedly reduced RLC phosphorylation and developed force. We suggest that MLCK and its phosphorylation of RLC are required for tonic VSM contraction. MLCK(SMKO) mice exhibit significantly lower basal blood pressure and weaker responses to vasopressors. The elevated blood pressure in salt-induced hypertension is reduced below normotensive levels after MLCK attenuation. These results suggest that MLCK is necessary for both physiological and pathological blood pressure. MLCK(SMKO) mice may be a useful model of vascular failure and hypotension.     

中国黏菌的三个新记录种

报道了采自内蒙古自治区的3个黏菌中国新记录种：榄色孔膜菌Enteridium olivaceum,疏网发丝菌Stemonaria laxiretis和硬网发菌Comatricha rigidireta。通过扫描电镜观察,描述了它们的形态特征,与相近种进行了比较和讨论。考证标本保存于吉林农业大学菌物标本馆（MHJAU）。     

The thymic stromal cell line MTSC4 induced thymocyte apoptosis in a non-MHC-restricted manner

Mouse thymic stromal cell line 4 (MTSC4) is one of the stromal cell lines established in our laboratory. While losing the characteristics of epithelial cells, they express some surface markers shared with thymic dendritic cells (TDCs). To further study the biological functions of these cells, we compared the capability of MTSC4 with TDCs in the induction of thymocyte apoptosis, using thymic reaggregation culture system. Apoptosis of thymocytes induced by MTSC4 and TDCs was measured by Annexin V and PI staining and analyzed by flow cytometry. We found that MTSC4 selectively augmented the apoptosis of CD4^ 8^ (DP) thymocytes. This effect was Fas/FasL independent and could not be blocked by antibodies to MHC class I and class II molecules. In addition, MTSC4 enhanced the apoptosis of DP thymocytes from different strains of mice, which implies that MTSC4-induced thymocyte apoptosis is not mediated by the TCR recognition of self peptide/MHC molecules. In contrast to MTSC4, thymocyte apoptosis induced by TDCs was MHC-restricted. Thus, MHC-independent fashion of stromal-DP thymocyte interaction may be one of the ways to induce thymocyte apoptosis in thymus. Our study has also shown that the interaction of MTSC4 stromal cells and thymocytes is required for the induction of thymocyte apoptosis.     

阿替普酶联合依达拉奉治疗急性缺血性卒中的疗效及神经功能缺损与时间窗的关系研究

目的:探讨阿替普酶联合依达拉奉治疗急性缺血性卒中的疗效及神经功能缺损与时间窗的关系。方法:选取大连医科大学附属大连市中心医院于2016年3月~2018年10月间收治的急性缺血性卒中患者117例,根据随机数字表法将患者分为对照组(n=58,阿替普酶治疗)和研究组(n=59,阿替普酶联合依达拉奉治疗),比较两组患者临床疗效、神经功能缺损情况、基质金属蛋白酶-9(MMP-9)、白介素-6(IL-6)水平、头颅CT梗死面积,观察两组治疗期间不良反应发生情况。结果:研究组的总有效率为84.75%(50/59),高于对照组的63.79%(37/58)(P<0.05)。两组患者治疗2周后MMP-9、IL-6、美国国立卫生研究院卒中量表(NIHSS)评分均较治疗前降低,且研究组低于对照组(P<0.05)。研究组治疗24h、48h、72h的头颅CT梗死面积小于对照组(P<0.05)。治疗后研究组发病72h内、发病48h内患者NIHSS评分、头颅CT梗死面积高于发病24h内,且发病72h内高于发病48h内(P<0.05)。两组患者不良反应发生率比较无差异(P>0.05)。结论:阿替普酶联合依达拉奉治疗急性缺血性卒中,疗效确切,可有效改善患者过氧化损伤,降低细胞因子水平,且越早的时间窗内接受治疗的患者,其神经功能缺损、脑梗死面积改善效果越好。     

Soil respiration in Tibetan alpine grasslands: belowground biomass and soil moisture, but not soil temperature, best explain the large-scale patterns

The Tibetan Plateau is an essential area to study the potential feedback effects of soils to climate change due to the rapid rise in its air temperature in the past several decades and the large amounts of soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks, particularly in the permafrost. Yet it is one of the most under-investigated regions in soil respiration (Rs) studies. Here, Rs rates were measured at 42 sites in alpine grasslands (including alpine steppes and meadows) along a transect across the Tibetan Plateau during the peak growing season of 2006 and 2007 in order to test whether: (1) belowground biomass (BGB) is most closely related to spatial variation in Rs due to high root biomass density, and (2) soil temperature significantly influences spatial pattern of Rs owing to metabolic limitation from the low temperature in cold, high-altitude ecosystems. The average daily mean Rs of the alpine grasslands at peak growing season was 3.92 μmol CO(2) m(-2) s(-1), ranging from 0.39 to 12.88 μmol CO(2) m(-2) s(-1), with average daily mean Rs of 2.01 and 5.49 μmol CO(2) m(-2) s(-1) for steppes and meadows, respectively. By regression tree analysis, BGB, aboveground biomass (AGB), SOC, soil moisture (SM), and vegetation type were selected out of 15 variables examined, as the factors influencing large-scale variation in Rs. With a structural equation modelling approach, we found only BGB and SM had direct effects on Rs, while other factors indirectly affecting Rs through BGB or SM. Most (80%) of the variation in Rs could be attributed to the difference in BGB among sites. BGB and SM together accounted for the majority (82%) of spatial patterns of Rs. Our results only support the first hypothesis, suggesting that models incorporating BGB and SM can improve Rs estimation at regional scale.     

缺硼与低温对黄瓜幼苗—些生理反应的影响

营养液培养试验表明,缺硼明显降低黄瓜幼苗植株的生长量,植株叶片细胞质膜K 的渗漏增加,细胞结构受损。此外,叶片中蔗糖和还原糖都明显积累。缺硼的上述反应在低温胁迫（7－8℃,FX25－28℃为对照）时表现更为明显。试验结果表明硼对于细胞膜的完整性具有重要的作用;充分供硼可以减轻低温对细胞膜的伤害。     

改性聚二甲基硅氧烷 (iPDMS) 蛋白芯片在肿瘤相关抗原自身抗体筛查中的应用

肿瘤标记的快速筛查是临床早期诊断的难题。利用化学发光蛋白质芯片技术,对低丰度的肿瘤相关抗原的自身抗体进行高灵敏度的筛选,是一种有益的尝试。本研究首先将带烯烃末端的、引发聚合反应的表面引发剂加入到常规聚二甲基硅氧烷材料中,再通过热交联反应固定到聚二甲基硅氧烷的三维结构中,形成改性聚二甲基硅氧烷 (iPDMS)。为了使iPDMS材料具有抗蛋白质非特异性吸附的特性,在活性引发位点处通过表面引发的原子转移自由基聚合反应合成poly(OEGMA) 高分子刷。最后将20种肿瘤相关的抗原利用高通量喷点打印技术打印到芯片的特定区域,并组装成iPDMS芯片的48孔检测微孔板。对临床上常见的8种肿瘤患者血清进行分析,发现VEGFR1和VEGF121自身抗体对常见的8种肿瘤具有检测价值,有望成为肿瘤快速筛查的检测指标。