塔克拉玛干沙漠南缘荒漠绿洲过渡带不同土地利用影响下土壤化学计量特征

荒漠绿洲过渡带在维护绿洲生态安全和绿洲稳定上具有重要作用。垦荒等土地利用的增强使得荒漠绿洲过渡带的健康稳定受到了巨大的挑战。以塔克拉玛干沙漠南缘典型荒漠绿洲过渡带为研究对象,系统分析了不同土地利用方式(桑田、半自然柽柳林、瓜地、棉花-玉米地)对土壤养分化学计量特征的影响。土壤取样沿农田到荒漠方向进行,分5层进行。研究发现,土壤各养分指标均受土地利用方式(4种)、土层(5层)和与农田边缘垂直距离(4梯度)的显著影响,且存在一定的交互作用。土地利用方式显著影响土壤各养分元素含量。随土层由浅到深,有机碳(C)、有效氮(N)和有效磷(P)基本呈下降趋势,全N具有波动变化,而全P变化不显著。随与农田边缘垂直距离的增加,各养分含量基本呈递减趋势。对同一土层(共选择三层)不同土地利用方式下土壤养分具体分析表明,棉花-玉米地这一利用方式在农田内部具有最高的土壤有机C和全N含量,其次为桑田。随着与农田边缘垂直距离的增加,土壤C、N含量优势减弱。除农田内部样地(0 m)外,三层土壤全P含量基本呈桑田柽柳林棉花-玉米地趋势。表层有效N含量在农田内部样地(0 m)瓜地最高,其他距离处(大于等于20 m)棉花-玉米地高,下层土壤有效氮含量在农田内部各土地利用方式间无差异。在各距离样点处不同土地利用类型间土壤有效P含量的变化无明显规律,在农田内部以瓜地有效P含量最高。棉花-玉米地土壤全量N/P在农田内部和与农田边缘垂直距离20 m处含量最高。三土层土壤有效N/P在农田内部以柽柳林最高,随着与农田边缘垂直距离增加,土壤有效N/P显著改变。综合来看,土地利用对荒漠绿洲过渡带土壤营养含量的增加具有正向作用,由土壤养分变化带来的生态效应值得关注。     

热胁迫下萝卜不同耐热性品种细胞组织结构比较

利用显微及扫描电镜方法,研究热胁迫下萝卜不同耐热性品种外部形态,叶片及叶柄组织细胞结构的差异,耐热性品种比感热性品种叶表皮气孔密度大,体积小和开度小,部分呈关闭状态,叶片厚,叶肉细胞排列紧密,叶肉细胞很少出现质壁分离;耐热品种叶柄内维管束总面积是感热性品种的１．５倍以上,具发达的形成层及厚壁组织。     

Screening and Characterization of the High-Cellulase-Producing Strain Aspergillus glaucus XC9

Cellulose is a kind of renewable resource that is abundant in nature.It can be degraded by microorganisms such as mildew.A mildew strain with high cellulase activity was isolated from mildewy maize cob and classified as Aspergillus glaucus XC9 by morphological and 18S rRNA gene sequence analyses.We studied the effects of nitrogen source,initial pH,temperature,incubation time,medium composition,and surfactants on cellulase production.Maximal activities of carboxymethylcellulase (6,812 U/g dry koji) and filter paperase (172 U/g dry koji) were obtained in conditions as follows:initial pH,5.5-6.0;temperature,30℃;cultivation period,3-4 days;inoculum ratio,6% (vol/vol);sugarcane bagasse/wheat bran ratio,4:6.When bagasse was used as substrate and mixed with wet koji at a 1:1 (wt/wt) ratio,the yield of reducing sugars was 36.4%.The corresponding conversion rate of cellulose to reducing sugars went as high as 81.9%.The results suggest that A.glaucus XC9 is a preferred candidate for cellulase production.     

Novel Reassortant Highly Pathogenic H5N2 Avian Influenza Viruses in Poultry in China

There has been multiple evidence that domestic poultry may act as a vessel for the generation of novel influenza A viruses. In this study, we have analyzed the evolution and pathogenicity of 4 H5N2 avian influenza viruses isolated from apparently healthy poultry from H5N1 virus endemic areas in China. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that two of these viruses, A/duck/Eastern China/1111/2011 (DK/EC/1111/11) and A/goose/Eastern China/1112/2011 (GS/EC/1112/11) were derived from reassortment events in which clade 2.3.4 highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 viruses acquired novel neuraminidase and nonstructural protein genes. Another two isolates, A/chicken/Hebei/1102/2010 (CK/HB/1102/10) and A/duck/Hebei/0908/2009 (DK/HB/0908/09), possess hemagglutinin (HA) gene belong to clade 7 H5 viruses and other genes from endemic H9N2 viruses, or from viruses of various subtypes of the natural gene pool. All of these H5N2 isolates bear characteristic sequences of HPAI virus at the cleavage site of HA, and animal experiments indicated that all of these viruses but DK/HB/0908/09 is highly pathogenic to chickens. In particular, DK/EC/1111/11 and GS/EC/1112/11 are also highly pathogenic to ducks and moderately pathogenic to mice. All of these 4 viruses were able to replicate in domestic ducks and mice without prior adaptation. The emergence of these novel H5N2 viruses adds more evidence for the active evolution of H5 viruses in Asia. The maintenance of the highly pathogenic phenotype of some of these viruses even after reassortment with a new NA subtypes, their ability to replicate and transmit in domestic poultry, and the pathogenicity in the mammalian mouse model, highlight the potential threat posed by these viruses to both veterinary and public health.     

A novel and highly efficient production system for recombinant adeno-associated virus vector

Recombinant adeno-associated virus (rAAV) has proven to be a promising gene delivery vector for human gene therapy. However, its application has been limited by difficulty in obtaining enough quantities of high-titer vector stocks. In this paper, a novel and highly efficient production system for rAAV is described. A recombinant herpes simplex virus type 1 (rHSV-1) designated HSV1-rc/AUL2, which expressed adeno-associated virus type2 (AAV-2) Rep and Cap proteins, was constructed previously. The data confirmed that its functions were to support rAAV replication and packaging, and the generated rAAV was infectious. Meanwhile, an rAAV proviral cell line designated BHK/SG2, which carried the green fluorescent protein (GFP) gene expression cassette, was established by transfecting BHK-21 cells with rAAV vector plasmid pSNAV-2-GFP. Infecting BHK/SG2 with HSV1-rc/AUL2 at an MOI of 0.1 resulted in the optimal yields of rAAV, reaching 250 transducing unit (TU) or 4.28×104 particles per cell. Therefore, compared     

Structure-based discovery of a novel inhibitor targeting the β-catenin/Tcf4 interaction

Overactivation or overexpression of β-catenin in the Wnt (wingless) signaling pathway plays an important role in tumorigenesis. Interaction of β-catenin with T-cell factor (Tcf) DNA binding proteins is a key step in the activation of the proliferative genes in response to upstream signals of this Wnt/β-catenin pathway. Recently, we identified a new small molecule inhibitor, named BC21 (C(32)H(36)Cl(2)Cu(2)N(2)O(2)), which effectively inhibits the binding of β-catenin with Tcf4-derived peptide and suppresses β-catenin/Tcf4 driven reporter gene activity. This inhibitor decreases the viability of β-catenin overexpressing HCT116 colon cancer cells that harbor the β-catenin mutation, and more significantly, it inhibits the clonogenic activity of these cells. Down-regulation of c-Myc and cyclin D1 expression, the two important effectors of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling, is confirmed by treating HCT116 cells with BC21. This compound represents a new and modifiable potential anticancer candidate that targets β-catenin/Tcf-4 interaction.     

Genetic engineering of T cells with chimeric antigen receptors for hematological malignancy immunotherapy

The host immune system plays an instrumental role in the surveillance and elimination of tumors by recognizing and destroying cancer cells. In recent decades, studies have mainly focused on adoptive immunotherapy using engineered T cells for the treatment of malignant diseases. Through gene engraftment of the patient’s own T cells with chimeric antigen receptor (CAR), they can recognize tumor specific antigens effectively and eradicate selectively targeted cells in an MHC-independent fashion. To date, CAR-T cell therapy has shown great clinical utility in patients with B-cell leukemias. Owing to different CAR designs and tumor complex microenvironments, genetically redirected T cells may generate diverse biological properties and thereby impact their long-term clinical performance and outcome. Meanwhile some unexpected toxicities that result from CAR-T cell application have been examined and limited the curative effects. Diverse important parameters are closely related with adoptively transferred cell behaviors, including CAR-T cells homing, CAR constitutive signaling, T cell differentiation and exhaustion. Thus, understanding CARs molecular design to improve infused cell efficacy and safety is crucial to clinicians and patients who are considering this novel cancer therapeutics. In this review, the developments in CAR-T cell therapy and the limitations and perspectives in optimizing this technology towards clinical application are discussed.